Preparation underway for new school year
With the first day of school for Lodi Unified School District students less than a week away, preparations are underway for the big day.
With students set to report next Monday, the district kicked off the upcoming school year with a new boot camp for teachers last Tuesday and a leadership team meeting Thursday.
During the boot camp, new teachers were introduced to the district and learned all of the new things they need to go over as first-year teachers.
“There are going to be new students enrolling at the schools, and we want to make sure the teachers are familiar with all of the student expectations and teacher expectations, so that those are clearly and consistently communicated,” said Scott McGregor, interim assistant superintendent with the district.
“When everyone understands the expectations, things tend to flow a lot more smoothly, everyone is on the same pages and the kids are welcomed and excited about starting the school year. It’s important to get off on a positive note,” McGregor said.
This Thursday, principals are set to meet with their staffs to finalize preparations for the upcoming school year, and today and Wednesday principals will undergo training at the district office.
“It’s all about leadership for the principals,” McGregor said. “It’s a way of supporting our site leaders and helping to work on leadership development with all of the elementary and secondary principals,”
On Friday, schools will hold orientations for parents and students.
“The purpose is to help the students become familiar with their teachers and the actual physical campus, so they’re not overwhelmed when they get on campus,” McGregor said. “They‘ll know where their classroom is. They’ll know who their teacher is, the name of the teacher and they can appropriately navigate the campus. It kind of calms their nerves a little bit prior to starting the first day of school.”
In order to have a successful school year, McGregor advises parents to communicate with their children frequently about what’s going on at school.
“That connection is very important between home and school. We also
want to make sure that parents know the lines of communication are open to teachers and site administrators,” McGregor said.
This year, Superintendent Dr. Cathy Nichols-Washer and the school board would like to emphasize support and intervention for any students who are struggling and focus on transitioning students from the sixth grade to the seventh grade, McGregor said.
The district will also continue to focus on helping students understand what the behavioral expectations are at schools.
McGregor is hoping the students will be excited about school and will look forward to coming every day.
“Folks that get into the profession of education look forward to making a difference in the lives of children,” he said. “I think if all sites work together to create an atmosphere that is welcoming and supportive of children, then children can’t help but enjoy coming to school and finding success, and I think that’s a common message that we want around the entire Lodi Unified School District.