Teacher / Student Relationships Matter - A Lot

Greetings!

We have many special events throughout the year @oostburgschools, and one at the top of my list is always the spring Voice and Jazz concert. Taking place at the UW-Sheboygan Campus for many years, last year the event was moved back to OHS and expanded to include a meal, dinner music and entertainment. Due to large crowds and high interest, this year's program added a second date making this a two evening event.

The concert performances caused me to reflect on the ground-breaking education meta-analysis completed by John Hattie in his book Visible Learning. Hattie lists student-teacher relationships as 11th out of 138 items in terms of impact (effect size) on learning.  The research confirms what most of us know - student-teacher relationships matter a lot.  Simply put, it is tough to have a significant impact on student learning absent the ability to build relationships.  Our spring vocal / jazz performances provided a lot of evidence of those relationships.

The relationship piece really comes through each year as Mrs. Mueller and Mrs. Howell participate with a short kit during the performance. This year's contribution included a parody of the popular theme song from the movie Frozen.  Take a few minutes to click on the Youtube link below to see that segment of the evening.  In addition to our choir and band director dressing up and singing, you will also notice three special accompanist in the background.  On drums you will see Mrs. Howell's husband. On base guitar you will see her dad, and on keyboard her uncle.

There are many examples from staff members across our district which demonstrate that teaching is much more than simply what they do....it really is a large part of who they are.  In many cases teaching is a family endeavor where spouses and children chip in as our teachers invest in the young people of our community. The Vocal / Jazz concert is a perfect example of what is right in education: students  partnering with their teachers as they take on challenging work together - definitely a night to be proud of!

The "Frozen" parody is about 8 minutes long but you can skip in to the 4 minute mark to get to the actual singing. Enjoy!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z9pkZkT_2N8&list=PLME6pRteSNHizwuYrEnju8BhO4Y_Ytt7u&sns=em

Kevin

Nothing Like a Good Book!

Greetings!

Reading and biking are two of my favorite things to do for relaxation.  I thoroughly enjoy reading books on leadership and human behavior and then discussing those books with friends and colleagues. Biking provides a very different outlet, but one that like reading, shapes who I am.  The obvious connection is that when I bike a lot my shape tends to be slightly more narrow and when I bike a little things widen!  Reading is just the opposite since when I read a lot my perspective widens, and when I read a little my perspective can narrow.

Several of the books I have read in the past few years have had a powerful impact on shaping who I am as a father, husband and educator.  Some of my favorites which I would highly recommend, include, A Leader's Legacy by Kouzes and Posner, Blink by Malcolm Gladwell, Pope Francis: Why He Leads the Way He Leads, and Leaders of Learning by DuFour and Marzanno.  I am currently reading Shifting the Monkey by Todd Whitaker and looking forward to reading Fully Charged? by Tom Rath.

Fully Charged caught my interest as it looks at research around three things which matter most in daily fulfillment.  The book just arrived from Amazon, and I could not resist taking a sneak-peek inside.  The first chapter has already caught my interest as the author lists what he believes research shows as the keys to fully charged days. His list includes:

• Meaning: doing something that benefits another person
• Interactions: creating far more positive than negative moments
• Energy: making choices which improve your mental and physical health

Our District goals have a strong literacy focus and sharing the value and importance of reading with our students is a daily emphasis across all levels and in all departments. Whether we are reading a set of technical drawings in tech ed class, interpreting an artist's critique, or reading a novel in English, the impact which comes from strong literacy skills is pervasive.

Research clearly shows that one of the most powerful ways to grow the reading potential of young readers is through our example.  I hope you have the opportunity to experience and model the power of reading to your children.

Have a great week!

Kevin

Thank You Teachers!

Greetings!

May 4-8 is Teacher Appreciation Week and I would like share my appreciation for the teachers across the Oostburg School District for making our District unique.  We are unique in having unusual levels of student achievement, ranking #1 out of all area schools on the most recent state report cards. We are unique in having tremendous extracurricular programming which consistently performs at measurably high levels, and I believe we are unique in our ability to blend tradition with growth and improvement focused on fulfilling our mission to ensure all students graduate ready to be positive and productive contributors to society and the world.

Our unique qualities don't happen by accident. They occur in large part due to the expertise and commitment of our teachers.  Visible Learning, John Hattie's ground-breaking work on education research, lists teacher credibility as one of the top influences on student achievement. According to Hattie, "Teacher credibility is vital to learning, and students are very perceptive about knowing which teachers can make a difference.  There are four key factors of credibility: trust, competence, dynamism and immediacy." (http://visible-learning.org/glossary/#4_Teacher_credibility).  Hattie emphasizes that, "If a teacher is not perceived as credible, the students just turn off."

We are blessed to have teachers who have earned their credibility largely by modeling the learning they expect from their students. A few of the areas which stand out to me include the large amount of reading our teachers do and the education-focused professional learning networks in which they participate. It is fair to say that for many of our teachers, teaching is not only what they do, it is a large part of who they are. When teachers love to learn, grow, and improve, they provide an example which builds the credibility Hattie talks about in his research.

As we approach Teacher Appreciation Week I encourage you to join me in thanking our teachers for the investment they make in our children.  The power of a short note of appreciation or even the traditional "apple for the teacher" can go a long way in letting our teachers know how much we value their work.  In case the note or apple don't work for you the following link provides some additional thank you options: http://teaching.about.com/od/ParentalInvolvement/fl/Twenty-Five-Ways-to-Say-Thank-You-to-Teachers.htm

Make this a great day!

Kevin Bruggink

Badgers Model Growth Mindset

Greetings!

I hope you enjoyed watching @BadgerMBB as much as I have this season.  Although they came up a little short in the championship, it certainly has been an enjoyable ride for much of the state.  This Badger team was special in many ways, and it was obvious that they were more than the collective sum of their parts.  This group of young men truly defined team and modeled characteristics that we hope to display as a school district.

Our Badgers were disciplined and silly, trusting and individually confident, tough and kind. They epitomized a few really important qualities which we work hard to value as a school. First, they seemed to recognize that things don't have to be "this or that." They reminded us that things which may seem contradictory can have the power to compliment one another.  The politics of education can at times struggle to find that balance and often misses out on opportunities where common ground and collaboration compliment each other in our work growing students.  We hope that our efforts as a school contribute to partnerships where things that may seem opposite, come together in magical ways.  The diversity in our student body definitely provides fertile ground as we work to apply this principle.

Although this Badger team was a unique combination of often conflicting characteristics, they were also extremely focused on being great. Watching them and learning about their journey - particularly the journey of players like @JPGasser21 (Josh Gasser) and @FSKPart3 (Frank Kaminsky) - provided clear evidence of their belief that growth and improvement was something they owned.  Team members demonstrated a belief that their abilities were not fixed, but malleable.  They were improvement focused.  As your school we hope we embrace that Badger quality as well.  We want to be a school where students and adults see knowledge and abilities as something that can be changed, not as some fixed set of assets which some individuals possess and others do not.

Badger center Frank Kaminsky went from a sophomore bench regular to consensus National Player of the Year, and we can make the same giant steps with our personal growth and the impact we have on students. We have a desire to mirror Kaminsky's growth mindset in our work as a school district.  At times we may fall short of that goal, just as the Badgers fell a bit short last night. We hope that when we fall short we display the class our Badgers displayed and that we see each obstacle as simply another opportunity to get better.

Thanks to @BadgerMBB for sharing your journey with us!

Kevin Bruggink

Solo & Ensemble

Greetings!

Our annual sole & ensemble music festival was hosted in Random Lake this past weekend, and the diverse representation from @oostburgschools was another reminder that big is not always better.  Our District is large enough to provide a variety of offerings yet small enough that students can participate in diverse areas of interest.  I was able to watch the starting center on our basketball team show his talents in a male choir which qualified for state competition.  A little later our champion heavy weight wrestler and starting football lineman played his saxophone in multiple events.  It is neat to know that Oostburg students don't have to limit themselves to one area but can explore a variety of interests. Throughout the day, I sat back and enjoyed solos and ensembles as our students stretched themselves in front of judges and audience members.

The day reminded me of my high school years when I would pray that the room where my solo & ensemble event was scheduled would not have anyone other than the judge and my accompanist.  I watched with empathy and interest as our students stepped up to the challenge in rooms with both large and small audiences.  I was impressed with the maturity displayed by our students as they accepted feedback from their judge, particularly when a performance may not have gone as well as they had hoped.  I smiled along with our students, as in many cases their music reflected their personalities but in some cases showed sides we seldom see outside of their musical performances.

During the course of a school year I am fortunate to be able to attend a variety of student events.  Solo & ensemble is one of my favorites.  The opportunity to see such a diverse collection of talents on one day is, in my opinion, unmatched.  Thanks to each of our student participants and to Mrs. Mueller and Mrs. Howell for the work they put into preparing for music festival. Best of luck to those who qualified for state competition.  We are fortunate to live in a community blessed with musical abilities which we can nurture through strong school programming.

Make this a great week!

Kevin Bruggink

School Revenue Limits

Greetings,

Thank you to those who have posed questions related to my recent school funding related blog posts. Several of those questions have centered on the topic of revenue limits so I would like to explain how those limits work and how they impact finances in the Oostburg School District.  The graph below was included in my last blog and compares revenue limits for Central Lakeshore Conference schools along with Nicolet HS.  Limits on school revenue were put in place in 1993 with the District-specific limit determined based on spending from the prior school year.  Oostburg's revenue limit is one of the lowest in the Wisconsin based primarily on the fact that our per pupil spending was very low in the '92-'93 school year.  The graph shows that Nicolet HS was on the other extreme with very high per pupil spending in '92-'93.  That resulted in a very high revenue limit per student for Nicolet and a low limit for OSD.  From '04-'11 revenue limits have increased by approximately $250 per year to account for inflationary cost increases (fuel costs, insurance, etc.).  Between '11-'15 revenue limits have decreased just under $500 per student.

School revenue is comprised of two primary funding sources: our local tax levy and state aid to public education (called equalization aid).  The amount of equalization aid a District receives is directly related to the overall District property value.  For example, Kohler and Elkhart Lake have high property values so they receive little state aid.  With moderate property values Oostburg receives about 53% of its revenue from state equalization aid and 47% from our local tax levy.  If our property values would decrease more than other areas of the state, our state equalization aid percent would increase.

Although we have a low revenue limit ceiling, we are one of a small number of Districts that actually operates under our revenue limit. In other words, we could increase our local tax levy more than what we have and still be below state-imposed limits.  Very few schools operate under their revenue limit and as an example, Random Lake increased their local tax levy by 8% last year keeping them at their revenue limit.  We increased our levy 2% and remained almost 6% under our revenue limit. (see previous blog for info regarding our local levy increase since '08-'09)

Our community survey data (http://oostburg.k12.wi.us/pdfs/Oostburg_2013_Survey_Report.pdf)  from last fall provided solid feedback in the area of school funding.  The graph below summarizes survey results which show that a majority of respondents favored funding OSD at levels at least comparable to our conference schools.  The graph above shows that revenue limits prevent comparable levels of funding.  Again referring to the graph above and assuming a similar approximate population of 1000 students, Random Lake receives over $500,000 per year in revenue beyond that which is available to OSD. That number doubles to over $1,000,000 in additional annual revenue when considering the Ozaukee School District.

Survey respondents also clearly indicated that they view OSD as a strong asset, bringing value to our community.  Our ranking as the top academic District in the area (see 2014 State School Report Card results and my 9/29/14 blog entry) combined with our efficient use of taxpayer resources affirms that perspective. I welcome your continued interest in the work of our District as we partner together to serve the young people in our community.

Kevin

Tax Levy and Voucher Costs

Greetings!

Thank you to those who have contacted me with questions regarding how Governor Walker's budget will impact the Oostburg School District and specifically how the expansion of the voucher program could impact us.  There is a significant amount of misunderstanding and misinformation around these topics, and my intent with the last blog entry was to focus on facts which may be important as you consider how our schools will be affected.

My conversations with several of you led me to believe that some specific examples may be helpful in clarifying how @oostburgschools would be affected by the proposed state budget.  The graphs below are a starting place for our discussion. As described in my last blog, our primary revenue sources are state aid (called equalization aid) and our local tax levy.  You can see that our local tax levy has increased significantly less than surrounding schools with the exception of Howards Grove where they have seen a large reduction of 115 students.  The lower graph shows our state-imposed revenue limits, and you can see that we have the lowest revenue limits of our local comparable Districts. I included Nicolet School District in the graph to show the extreme disparity in school funding as Nicolet spends well over twice as much as @oostburgschools.

The graphs demonstrate that our District has been a conservative steward of community resources.  That conservative approach leaves us more susceptible to reductions in state aid.  Let’s consider the following example:

• Should 10 students from OSD receive vouchers, our state aid would be reduced by about $50,000 ($5000 per student is our approximate state aid).
• Unless those students were all in the same grade level we would not be in a position to reduce costs in any significant way.  Losing 1-2 students per grade level does not change our staffing levels or other costs.
• That $50,000 represents approximately 1% of our local tax levy.  Since we have operated conservatively under the revenue limits, the voucher program would put us in a situation to increase the local levy by that 1%.
• The voucher program then becomes a parallel education system drawing financial resources from local communities and the state to pay for private education.

The second reality of the state budget reduces state aid by approximately $150,000 for OSD.  That is the result of Governor Walker’s proposal to eliminate $150 per student in categorical aid (another form of state support for schools).  When you consider that we are the lowest spending District per student in our area, and one of the lowest spending in the state, it is not difficult to recognize that these reductions will have consequences.  

There are other reasons for concern related to voucher expansion, but the focus here is on the financial details as we consider the proposed state budget's impact on education. I encourage you to contact our local legislators and share your concerns regarding cuts to public education and how those cuts will impact our schools and your local taxes.  I would be happy to talk with community members that have additional questions around these important decisions.

Kevin