OPEN LETTER TO SELMA CITY SCHOOLS’

STAFF, STUDENTS, PARENTS AND CITIZENS

 January 6, 2008

On  Monday, January 7, 2008, schools in Selma City Schools System will re-open. Staff and students will be returning with renewed energy to complete the 2007-2008 school year.

As we return, I wish to assure staff, students, parents and citizens that the Selma City Schools System remains committed to educating the children of Selma.  Administrators are setting goals and supervising/monitoring schools and programs. The second semester begins with the Selma City Schools System on a steady and stable course.

Schools are safe because of the diligent work of the administrative staff. Students are learning in safe schools.

Teachers are teaching. Instructional aides are double dosing. Reading coaches are triple dosing. Psychometrists and speech pathologists are testing and teaching one-on-one; students are learning.

Counselors are guiding; students are learning for life. Librarians are promoting reading. Students are reading more and more.

School nurses are checking for health conditions that hinder success. Students are learning how to be healthy. Cafeteria workers are cooking healthy, tasty meals. Students are eating nutritious meals that provide brain food for learning.

 Maintenance workers are improving lighting, plumbing, electrical/HVAC (heating and air conditioning) systems. Custodial workers are cleaning schools and landscaping grounds. Students are learning in conducive learning environments.

Bus drivers are transporting students to school, WCCS, field trips, athletic events, etc. Students are safe as they learn.

The technology team has installed and is managing the connectivity of every classroom, library, and office and computer lab to the Internet. School and district secretaries and bookkeepers create and manage school and district records. Students and staff use technology to learn and work.

During second semester, all schools will increase their emphasis on maintaining our “Made AYP status.” This status is reserved for schools and school districts which meet the goals of the federal No Child Left Behind Act, 2001. The federal legislation, jointly required by the Alabama Board of Education, holds schools and school districts accountable for teaching every child with skill, irrespective of gender, race, poverty, or disability.

 In the Selma City Schools System, academic attainment and strengthening come through the on-going review and examination of curricular, extra-curricular and instructional programs and services. Beginning in January, Selma City Schools will expand course offerings at Selma High School through two distance learning labs. Students will learn via the Internet and video-based courses provided by the Alabama State Department of Education.

Also, during second semester staff and students in all schools will continue the preparation needed to pass State tests: SAT-10, ARMT, DAWR, AHSGE, DIBELS, AAA and ELL. Tests will be given from February to May. Information about each test will be sent out from the schools.

The Selma City Schools System also remains committed to sound fiscal management. The Business Department is headed by Selma native, Mrs. Maria Glover, Chief School Finance Officer. She and her staff support student learning from the business side. As of January 2008 Selma City Schools will begin the use of centralized school accounting at the district level. Local school financial transactions will become a joint venture of schools and the school district.

Simply put, staff, students, parents and citizens of Selma, the Selma City Schools System is on the move. We, the Interim Superintendent, administrative staff, district and schools staff, invite citizens of Selma to visit your schools. We are busily “aiming for excellence” in academics, personal development and community involvement. We firmly believe that, “It takes a village to raise a child.”

Citizens of Selma, please join us in our quest for excellence. You may contact me at 334 874-1601 or visit our office at 2194 Broad Street. Office hours are 8 A.M. to 4:30 P.M. Monday through Friday. 

                                                                   Sincerely,

                                                Verdell Lett Dawson, Ed. D.

Interim Superintendent

Ms. Sadarry Bennett, Executive Secretary/Personnel Assistant