Superintendent's Message 7/13/2018

Superintendent's Message by Dr. Kelly T. Burhop
Posted on 07/13/2018
Dr. Kelly T. Burhop, Superintendent

Superintendent’s Message

July 13, 2018

During the summer months the staffing here at the Norwalk-Ontario-Wilton School District is scaled back quite a bit.  If you call the school and there is no answer, please be patient through the month of July.  The clerical staff starts coming back around the second week of August.  I apologize for any inconveniences.

Over the course of the past school year, the Norwalk-Ontario-Wilton School District has obtained a good amount of grant and disbursement refunds.  The District received $441,710 from the ESSA Grant which is used to fund the Title I Reading and Math programs. Some of the ESSA Grant Money was also used to fund classroom reduction in the lower elementary and purchase instructional supplies for English Language Learners.  Also, the District received $50,000 from the 21st Century Learning Center Grant to fund the after school education program for elementary students.  Below is a list of other grants and disbursement refunds obtained by the District over the past school year.

 Grant  Used For  Amount
 TEACH Wisconsin  Teacher Instructional Technology Training  $  7,500
 TEACH Wisconsin  Caching Server/Wi-fi Routers on Buses  $ 21,292
 E-Rate  Caching Server/Installation/Internet  $ 20,753
 EPA Grant  Money towards new School Bus  $ 20,000
 School Safety Grant  Money towards new PA system  $ 40,000
 Title IV  Funds used to finance Social Worker  $ 10,000
 Title VI(B)  New I-pads, Reflex Math  $ 12,465
 Total    $132,010

Over the course of the summer there will be several safety improvements authorized by the Norwalk-Ontario-Wilton Board of Education made to the school building.  Not only will the district have a surveillance system of the exterior building and grounds, but will be adding a surveillance system to the interior of the building.  The internal communications system which has been substandard since CenturyLink upgraded the District’s telephone system, will have a major upgrade so staff can communicate with each other much more effectively in an emergency situation.  Also, by the end of 2018, two school safety training sessions have been planned for all school employees. 

Reminders to Parents

Back-to-School Night for the 2018-19 school year is from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. on Thursday, August 30.

The first day of school is scheduled for September 4, 2018.  School hours will return to their traditional times.  Elementary will attend from 8:00 a.m. to 3:05 p.m., Jr. & Sr. High School hours will be 8:00 a.m. until 3:15 p.m.  The buses will depart the school district grounds at 3:20 p.m.

New for 2018-19

Funded by the TEACH Grant, the district is planning on having wi-fi service on all twelve main bus route school buses for this upcoming school year.  There will be filters in place on the wi-fi so students will not be able to access whatever they want.  In the digital age we live in, the idea is to allow students to access files to complete homework to and from their trip to school and when riding to and from athletic events.  

Currently, five new staff members have been hired for the 2018-19 school year.  They are:

  • Katy Baciak – Elementary School Counselor
  • Cassandra Drohmann – 4 Year Old Kindergarten Teacher
  • Bailey Hart – Jr. & Sr. High Agriculture Teacher and FFA Advisor
  • Sarah Schmitz – High School Math Teacher
  • Mary Sullivan – 5th Grade Teacher

Elementary class lists will be posted on Thursday, July 26.  They will be posted in the three community libraries and on the bulletin board outside of the District/Elementary Offices.  Administration has made the decision over the years not to post class lists.  Administration is not comfortable with any person on the planet having access to all the names of our elementary students, how big the class sizes are, and what class they are in.

I hope your summer is going well.  Have a great week.