High School Pool In Line For Upgrades

The school district wants to use money from the Wispark land exchange for much-needed improvements to the Oak Creek High School pool.

Thanks in part to money from Wispark, the Oak Creek High School pool may be getting some long-awaited improvements. The Oak Creek-Franklin School Board signaled its support for a recommendation to make about $200,000 worth of improvements to the pool using money from a fund set up for community-based projects. This project would move drainage filters so the water level can be raised. That will allow OCHS swim teams to finally use starting blocks, which are used at meets at nearly every other school except Oak Creek. The board could vote on the proposal Feb. 11. Work would be done over the summer and completed in time for the girls' swimming season in the fall. As part of a land exchange agreement last year , Wispark agreed to pay $100,000…

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School Board Incumbents Seek Re-Election

School Board members Frank Carini and Paul Mason will be on the ballot April 2; no other candidates have yet filed nomination papers.

Both members of the Oak Creek-Franklin School Board whose terms expire in April will seek re-election. Frank Carini and Paul Mason have turned in the necessary paperwork to be on the ballot in April, Superintendent Sara Burmeister said. No other candidates have yet emerged. Carini, the school board president, was first elected in 2007, while Mason has been on the board since 2003. Nomination papers must be turned in by 5 p.m. Jan. 2. If more than four people file papers, a primary would be held Feb. 19. The general election is April 2.  School Board members are elected to three-year terms and receive $420 per month.

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School Board Approves OCHS Course Changes

A host of class additions, subtractions and changes at Oak Creek High School were approved for the 2013-14 school year.

The Oak Creek-Franklin School Board approved a host of class additions, subtractions and changes at Oak Creek High School for the 2013-14 school year. A rundown of the new courses and changes: The School Board also approved a Math in the Technical Fields course that will begin in the second semester of this school year.

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School Board Zeroes In On New Grading Scale

Ongoing discussions over the best grading scales and practices in Oak Creek schools continued Monday night. A new grading scale could be adopted in December.

The Oak Creek-Franklin School Board appears close to a consensus on a new grading scale for the district's high school and two middle schools, though it may conflict with what parents want. After discussions that started at the beginning of the school year, the board was presented with five grading-scale options at a meeting Monday night. Among them: keeping the status quo, adopting the current high school scale, adopting the current middle school scale and two different blends of the middle and high school scales. Board members favored a blend of the scales that puts equal distance between each grade. Several said they liked that scale because of the equidistance between grades and a higher standard for a passing grade.  However, a …

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School Board to Discuss Grading Scales Monday

Grading scales and procedures have come under scrutiny over the past few months.

School district administrators are scheduled to present options for grading scales at Oak Creek High School and the district's two middle schools in a School Board meeting Monday night. The meeting begins at 6 p.m. in the district offices, 7630 S. 10th St. Any action or vote by the school board would come in December at the earliest. The board has been reviewing grading procedures and scales over the past few months amid concerns from parents and some teachers. Only the grading scales are subject to school board approval; officials say changes to the scales, if any, would not go into effect until next school year. Teachers gave an overview of recently-implemented procedures in an October meeting.

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School Tax Levy Stays Relatively Steady

The tax levy in the 2012-13 Oak Creek-Franklin School District budget, approved by the school board earlier this week, will rise less than 1 percent.

The Oak Creek-Franklin School Board gave final approval to the district's 2012-13 budget, which includes a tax levy increase of less than 1 percent. The tax levy goes up $240,675 — from $32.1 million to $32.3 million — for an increase of 0.75 percent. The tax rate is at $9.44 per $1,000 of equalized value, up from $8.78 a year ago. The district was also able to maintain all of its programs, Business Services Director Cathy Cramer said. Oak Creek was able to keep its tax levy stable in large part due to an increase in state aid.

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Editor's Notebook

Oak Creek Grading Practices: The Pros and Cons

Teachers, administrators and parents discussed a variety of grading practices in Oak Creek Monday night. Here's a recap of some of the most-discussed issues.

Discussions over grading practices and scales in Oak Creek will continue over the next several months, as disagreement between parents, teachers and school administrators is still evident. Teachers and administrators presented an overview of new grading practices, some of which have been the subject of criticsim within the community, in a meeting Monday night. School officials say the practices are designed to give a true indication of a student's achievement in any given class, as well as provide more consistency throughout Oak Creek High School and the district's two middle schools. Some of the practices have drawn more attention than others. Here's a look at some of the arguments for and against those practices, drawn from information …

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Grading Policy: Have Your Say

Parents are invited to a meeting to learn about controversial changes to the Oak Creek-Franklin grading policy, and to tell the School Board how they feel about it.

A grading policy that counts strictly academic achievement — not attendance, effort or participation in class — was met with criticism last month, and the Oak Creek-Franklin School Board will get more input from parents before moving forward. The board will hold a meeting at 6 p.m. Monday at West Middle School, 8401 S. 13th St., that will include a presentation on the changes and an opportunity for the public to provide comments. A committee spent more than a year researching and discussing best grading practices and unveiled the plan near the start of the school year. Among the proposed changes: The school district has also proposed adjustments in the grading scales at Oak Creek High School and both middle schools. But the school board …

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Oak Creek Teachers Get Small Raises, Bonuses

The Oak Creek-Franklin School Board approved two measures related to teacher pay.

Oak Creek teachers will get 1.29 percent raises through a new contract and a $550 one-time bonus following School Board votes on Monday. Since the contract covers the 2011-12 school year, union leaders and administrators agreed the raises would only apply to teachers still in the district or who retired at the end of last year — not teachers who have resigned, Human Resources Director Troy Hamblin said. The cost to the school district is about $341,000, he said. The Oak Creek Education Association ratified the agreement late last month. Under new state law, teachers can only negotiate for their base salary. But school boards determine supplemental wages, which can include bonuses, stipends or merit pay. Administrators proposed the $550 …

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OCHS Parent

2:04 pm on Thursday, October 11, 2012

Thankyou...I thought I was the only one   more ›