Update 1:35 PM: There’s a helpful reminder in the comments that our library also offers reading programs for children and for adults. Many thanks for both programs and reminder. A summer reading program for the Whitewater Schools (even if only for some classes) is a good idea. It’s new for Whitewater, and so one can…
School District
City, Politics, School District
Political Recap: The Whitewater Schools’ Referendum
by JOHN ADAMS •
Sometimes one sees something impressive. Last night was one of those times. After all but a few votes have been counted, the Whitewater Schools’ referendum has likely passed. I wrote about the referendum on January 18th, and made two principal points: (1) the referendum faced long odds (“I’d guess that a referendum in the spring…
Education, School District
Spanish, French, Mandarin, Brazilian Portuguese, &c.
by JOHN ADAMS •
It shouldn’t be odd that people speak more than one language. Many who arrived here, and all who were originally here, spoke a language other than English. We’ve a multicultural community, and beyond it trade with all the world, yet use of other languages seems odd to us. I remember being initially surprised when former…
School District
The Whitewater District’s Search that Wasn’t
by JOHN ADAMS •
Months ago, at a party, someone asked me if the Whitewater Schools would conduct a genuine search for a high school principal. I said no: they’d take the interim principal, insist he was the only candidate, and make him the permanent high school principal. (That’s exactly what happened Monday night, 2.27.12. There are many times…
Books, New Whitewater, Press Release, School District, University
Mark Twain T-shirt Art Contest for K-12 Students
by JOHN ADAMS •
Best to all the contestants, and appreciation to those supporting the contest — Mark Twain T-shirt Art Contest for K-12 Students For the fourth year in a row, the National Endowment for the Arts has awarded a local partnership to bring the national Big Read initiative to Rock, Walworth and Jefferson County. Mark Twain in…
Beautiful Whitewater, School District
Channel 3000: Whitewater Girls Basketball Coach Imparts Life Lessons to Team
by JOHN ADAMS •
School District, Technology
Whitewater Schools’ Good Step on Internet Devices: A BYOD Policy
by JOHN ADAMS •
I see that the Whitewater Schools now have a bring-your own device (BYOD) policy. This is the right decision, allowing students to use the many useful, advanced devices available to students across America. Tablets, laptops, handhelds: facility in their use — and simple enjoyment of them — is now part of a proper schooling. The…
School District
Local Politics of a Whitewater Schools Referendum
by JOHN ADAMS •
Like many communities, Whitewater’s schools have a structural deficit. In the past, they’ve plugged that deficit via referendum, or through federal grant money (now in short supply). I’ll not now comment on the merits of a referendum, but rather on the politics of one. The district has not yet set the final amount of a…
School District
Whitewater Schools’ Budget Assumptions and ‘Citizen’ Advisors
by JOHN ADAMS •
Not long ago, Whitewater’s public school district published seventeen budget assumptions for the 2012-13 budget. Along with those assumptions, the district announced the names of a citizens’ panel to consider and offer budget recommendations. The assumptions. If you’re wondering whether seventeen assumptions is a typo, and that I meant to write ‘seven,’ wonder no more:…
School District
The Whitewater Schools’ Sound Path
by JOHN ADAMS •
A dynamic organization both experiences, and experiences positively, changes in personnel and direction. Tonight, Whitewater’s school board will discuss a replacement for our high school principal, who is leaving for Williams Bay. (For more on the departure, see Kevin Hoffman’s story on the change.) These last twenty-six months have, overall, been good ones for our…
City, School District
Innovation in Whitewater
by JOHN ADAMS •
There’s so much talk about innovation in Whitewater, but an example of it will be found in an old institution, not a new building. It’s not a center, but a school district, that holds innovative promise for our city. Here’s why: A Solid Record. Looking at the last two years, one sees quickly that the…
School District
The Whitewater Schools’ Next Administrator: A Wise and Sound Choice
by JOHN ADAMS •
These last two years have been, overall, very good ones for Whitewater’s public schools: a renewed interest in the curriculum, including the creative option of a charter school, the preservation via agreement of workers’ bargaining rights for another two years, the cancellation of an expensive plan to go to referendum, and significant budget cuts that…
School District, Sports
Donald Driver at Washington School
by JOHN ADAMS •
City, Police, School District
Whitewater’s Different Search Strategies
by JOHN ADAMS •
While Whitewater’s police department has embarked on a traditional search strategy with a consulting firm, Whitewater’s school district is willing first to consider internal candidates in a backyard-search strategy. Will the different methods produce results different in candidate quality? Thats hard to knoww, although a national search should yield a stronger field.