Milton's Monday Message
October 22, 2018
I was raised to treat the janitor with the same respect as the CEO. ~ Anonymous
#GrowthMindset
#WeAreWestFel
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UPCOMING EVENTS:
Thanksgiving Holiday ~ November 19-23
School Board Meeting ~
November 27
Reflecting on Last Week
Juniors and Seniors prepare for the October ACT by attending the ACT prep class.
Jack Hosford and Dylan Weaver
Parker Varnedoe and Khiry Morrison
WFMS students Taylar Seymore and Jomira Williams
Bains Lower students, Emmerson Brouillette, Kaitlyn Gore, Delilah Gillis, Jayce Gibson, and Dakota Gilmore, not only lead the announcements but help raise the flag.
Sadie Aitken, Ja'Mia Beauchamp, Joli Blackard, Alexis Freeman, Marley Malory, Mia McFarland, and Mic Michaelson
Keondre' Bibbins, Cole Bohannon, Buddy Floyd, Maxx Garrett, Jayden Johnson, Jason Landry, Taylor Triche, and Kaylyn Whetstone
Anya Barton, Noah Blankenship, Joshua Dorsey, Xiamya Harris, and Jermyrian Jackson
Ms. Betti Dooley receives a game ball for identifying a student who fell asleep on her bus. She found the students before leaving her bus which can be a lifesaver.
Tommy Lastrapes receives a game ball because he was the first student to make the AR 30 Point Club!
Two of our all star student athletes at WFMS, Delvin Whitaker and Jontre' Cummings, receive a WFHS Game ball because of their hard work on and off the field at WFMS.
Mr. Barry Erwin, Katie Alberty and April Blanchard
Cade Bush
Luke Perdue
Blake Landry
Tim Lindsey
La'Dayshia Sullivan and Kalijah Lewis
Jamison Parker
Oryanna Walker and Savannah Worle
Aubrey Honeycutt
Isiah Walker
Natalie Oliveaux and Kimberly Matta Juarez
Chase Baker, Bains Lower 1st grader
Bryson Cummings, Bains Lower 1st Grader
Looking Ahead
Ojo Johnson and Charles Fox-Smith
Lillie Lynch and Lilly Higgins
Makhil Tate and Evie Perdue
Food for Thought
As a part of our strategic planning, we are working to address three issues that are interconnected. The three issues are:
1) Traffic congestion on Bains Road;
2) Student enrollment increases;
3) Safety and modernization of our schools.
In our data gathering process, we have completed a facility assessment of Bains Elementary. Bains is nearing 60 years old. It would take a major renovation to modernize the building with an enclosure for safety and would require an additional wing to meet the student growth needs that are approximately two years away. Our third party independent assessment came back at an estimated $15 million dollars. There are four challenges that renovation would not solve:
1) Traffic congestion;
2) Lack of parking space;
3) Extensive renovation would be very difficult to complete while students are in school;
4) Lack of space for future growth.
Our preliminary demographic assessment using an independent demographer suggests that Bains Lower would be at full capacity by 2021. It is likely that when the assessment also addresses external factors, such as the two new residential developments (Hwy 61 and town development), full capacity would be reached by 2020.
According to our traffic engineer, the only way to reduce traffic is to relocate one of our schools. Traffic has become very congested each morning and afternoon. A growing student population will further compound the current traffic problem.
These data points have helped us to come up with solutions that we believe will help us move our school system forward. We call our plan, Vision 2030, as we are looking out at the immediate future and also stepping back to see the larger trends and what we must do to best serve our children who are just entering our schools.
Next month, we will present Vision 2030 at our school board meeting and then present at various events into the spring.
One possibility is a new Bains Elementary located near our current properties or within 10 minutes of our property. This would allow us to continue to educate our students at Bains while the new school is built. Once built, our traffic flow will be reduced on Bains Road, and therefore congestion will be minimized. The new school will consist of grades 1st through 5th which will alleviate pressure from Bains Lower and our current Bains school. The new facility will accommodate 21st century learning, address safety, be a school that students will enjoy and a source of pride for the community.
All throughout our town and parish, we can see growth and investment being made. The school system would like to adapt to the growth, bring new opportunities for our students, and make the investments in our facilities that will modernize them and make our community proud. We look forward to dialogue and input to make Vision 2030 a reality.
#wearewestfel