This Week
In the Ann Arbor Public Schools

October 15, 2007

To: The Staff of the Ann Arbor Public Schools
From: Todd Roberts, Superintendent

This Week’s Good News!

• The Pioneer Debate team, now in it's second year, debated ten rounds at Dexter High School on October 10, and won every round. This year's novice teams composed of the students listed below, debated against South Lyon, Holt, and Dexter and proved that this year's four meets that comprise the John Fitzgerald Debate League will be hard to wrest away from Pioneer. This year's novices are: Boxin Zhou and Yue Xi, Adam Gluck and Julia Whiting, Elizabeth Qian and Yaoyao Liu, Uma Bleiler-Sickels and Stephnie Gu, Dhaatri Kuchipudi and Melanie Croos-Dabrera. The returning JV debaters are: Munjal Attawala and Molly Epstein, Gaurav Kulkarni and Alina Charniauskaya and Mandi Steed The JV debaters were trained in judging rounds and will be used to help with judging duties for the rest of the league. Give these excellent students a pat on the back today. . And wish them luck at their first debate tournament at Wayne State University. Eli Bleiler is the debate team coach.
• Lawton School held its 6th Annual Runathon on Saturday, Sept 28. 297 students, staff, family and friends participated. The proceeds will be donated to the Lawton PTO and the John R. Crosby Foundation.
• Lawton Principal Ruth Williams shares a wonderful story about school personnel reaching out to their community members. “Again this year the Lawton staff spent their last staff meeting time at Pinelake Community Center.  We took pizza, pop, fruit, cake, cookies, and chips to share with the students and their families.  One staff person brought her cotton candy machine and made it for all of the students.  You would have thought we were the "stars of the evening".  The students were so excited upon our arrival.  When they came to school today, they were still talking about the good time they had.  A little time that is well intended and some good food go a long way toward bridging diverse groups of people.  Several staff members commented to me about how great it felt.”
• Burns Park Elementary 5th grade students in Ms. Kreger’s class held a garage sale to raise money for various charities and made $1,780.08. There was a matching donor who also gave $800 additional dollars! These funds will go to benefit animals, women who need a safe place to live, and people who don't have fresh water in Africa. 
• Dr. Maria J. Coolican, from the University of Michigan’s School of Education, send the following message to Pioneer teachers Don Packard, Karla Hitchcock and Brent Richards, “I simply cannot thank you enough for your time and your excellent presentation to our student teachers on Thursday evening.  Your authentic approach and solid ideas were exactly what they were hoping to hear. As we continue to refine our secondary teacher education program, I am committed to creating more events like this one that feature and highlight master teachers and other excellent practitioners.  Our student teachers are asking for, and rightly so, more "real" teachers to share their experiences and to offer their advice.  The students really appreciated your presentation; your combination of humor, high expectations and real world stories was exactly what they needed and wanted.  Thank you again, so much.”
• School districts throughout Michigan will celebrate National School Lunch Week from October 15-19, 2007.  This year’s theme for National School Lunch Week, entitled Vote for School Lunch, presents an excellent opportunity to promote school lunch programs statewide and to emphasize the importance of child nutrition.
  The National School Lunch Program has served children for over 60 years through advanced practices and nutrition education.  Signed into law by President Harry Truman, the National School Lunch Program provides nutritionally balanced low-cost and free meals to students.  Today, healthful options are available in schools nationwide.
  Within the federally funded National School Lunch Program, 95% of schools participate and 30 million children are served daily nationwide.  Last school year, more than 831,000 school lunches were served daily to Michigan students at more than 4,000 sites.  Well-balanced school lunches include protein, fruits and vegetables, grains, and low-fat milk and are served in age-appropriate portions.
  “Children who are provided breakfast and lunch daily are better prepared for the classroom environment, being able to focus solely on their learning, rather than a basic physical need,” said State Board of Education President Kathleen A. Straus.  “It is important for all Michigan communities to understand that education and proper child nutrition go hand-in-hand.”
  The non-profit School Nutrition Association’s (SNA) nationwide membership of 55,000 school nutrition professionals work in schools and in communities to provide balanced, nutritious school meals and information and on proper portion sizes and nutrition education for children.  Each year, the School Nutrition Association helps schools celebrate National School Lunch Week with an official theme, suggested menus and recipes, promotional resources, activity sheets, decoration ideas and more.
  National School Lunch Week serves as a fitting time to recognize everyone who contributes to the successful operation of our state’s school lunch food service program and urge all Michigan residents to become aware and concerned about their children’s and their own nutrition habits, in hope of achieving a more healthful citizenry for today and the future.
  

Todd Roberts, Ed.D.
Superintendent