Earlier today Crookston Public Schools Superintendent Jeremy Olson released a Community Communication for February, highlighting many things the district can be celebrating this year. It can be found down below –
Crookston Public Schools has had many things to celebrate this year as we continue to work to support our students and families. Highland Elementary School was named a “Best Elementary School” ranking in the top 30% of Elementary Schools in MN. Crookston High School Teacher Andrea Adrian was selected as a candidate for MN Teacher of the Year. Crookston High School One-Act play took first place in the section competition. Crookston High School Leo club was recognized with the excellence award. George French and Emma Osborn received the Triple ‘A’ Award. The Girls Basketball and Hockey teams are having a great season and I could go on and on. We have so many things to celebrate!
While we still struggle with staffing due to the pandemic combined with the usual blend of annual sicknesses, the structure, and feel of the school is much more normal than last year at this time. Crookston Public Schools has worked diligently to balance the competing views of our community over this pandemic. We have tried to as much as possible strike a balance in which students are protected, parents are respected, and we attempt to be reasonable in our actions and policies.
As we look toward the future, we see some challenges and opportunities. Our number one challenge is staffing as we are not immune from the worker shortage that has plagued our nation. Recruiting high-caliber staff who share our vision of putting kids and families first will be a challenge. We are blessed with an incredibly great staff and must continue to bring on this same caliber of staff. In the short term, we are in need of specific positions such as bus drivers and subs for both teaching and non-instructional positions. If you or someone you know has an interest in being a substitute teacher, bus driver, or paraprofessional please call our school at 218-281-5313.
We also see opportunities for our school to rethink how and what we do. Some of these opportunities are the development of a middle school concept. We know that we need to help with the transition from elementary to high school as this is a developmental leap. Creating an environment that looks and feels different from elementary and high school and that is developmentally appropriate will be a step forward for our students. We also know that without direct intervention, students who have experienced learning interruptions and loss due to the pandemic will continue to be behind. This led to the retooling and expansion of our Title I interventions for students. Our district has also invested in after-school programming and credit recovery which is currently in the developmental stage and will be available to identified students over the course of the next month.
This pandemic has been difficult on so many levels. This has been incredibly frustrating to parents, difficult on students, and stressful for educators. We are in the midst of taking back what was lost and moving forward together. As a school system, we are preparing for a brighter future as our educators work incredibly hard to provide the systems of support that our students need for future success. If you would like to connect with me about Crookston Public Schools, please call 218-770-8717 (cell), email me at jeremyolson@isd593.org, or stop by the district office located at Crookston High School. I am proud to serve as your superintendent.
