

KCSD & Me
May 2023 / Klamath County School District

IMPORTANT DATES:
- May 11: KCSD Board of Directors Budget Committee meeting
- May 18: KCSD Board of Directors meeting
- May 29: Memorial Day. No school.
- June 1: Graduation Sensation. Noon. Main Street/Veterans Memorial Park
- June 9-11: Graduations for all KCSD high schools
- June 15: Last day of school for students
Above photo: Henley Elementary sixth-graders enjoy outdoor school at the coast.
DEAR KCSD COMMUNITY,
The Klamath County School District has been invited to testify before the Oregon Legislature's Joint Ways and Means Subcommittee on Education in mid-May. Our goal is to impress upon our lawmakers the need for stability in the State School Fund.
Since September, the district has used its state Student Investment Account funds to create 37 new full-time positions and implement project-based and small-group learning in our 12 elementary schools. Not only has this improved attendance, but we are also seeing marked student growth in math and reading.
Last month, myself, school board member Steve Lowell, and Ferguson Vice Principal Jana Dunlea testified before the Oregon Senate Education Committee in support of an early literacy funding bill and an adequate State School Fund allocation of $10.3 billion. Our presentation focused on the need to have enough educators to structure schedules so students achieve learning growth “between the bells” during regular classroom time, not after school or in the summer.
Since September, we have seen significant academic growth with small group instruction and phenomenal student enthusiasm for project-based learning. For us, the key is our new parallel block scheduling that temporarily dramatically reduces class sizes to allow for small groups.
We are making a big difference for students during the normal school day, but it is going to take ongoing sustainable state funding to train teachers and maintain the staffing levels to attain these learning goals. This is the message we will continue to bring to our lawmakers in Salem.
As we enter into the last month of the school year, we appreciate the ongoing support and efforts of our educators, district staff, and families. Let’s finish the year strong!
Sincerely,
Glen Szymoniak
Superintendent
WE LOVE OUR TEACHERS!
APPLICANTS SOUGHT FOR ZONE 2 BOARD POSITION
Klamath County School District Board of Directors is seeking applicants for its Zone 2 position, which represents the Henley and Keno elementary attendance areas. Laura Blair, who was elected to the position two years ago, resigned in April. Applicants are being sought to finish out her term, which ends June 30, 2025.
To apply, fill out this online application and submit it by 5 p.m., May 21. Applicants can also print the form and deliver, mail, or email it to: Klamath County School District, c/o Stephanie Bland, 2845 Greensprings Drive, Klamath Falls, OR 97601; blands@kcsd.k12.or.us. The KCSD Board of Directors plans to interview applicants and make an appointment at the June 15 regular monthly board meeting.
CELEBRATING OUR EDUCATORS!
A shout out to all of our winners and a huge thank you to everyone who celebrated with us at the Crystal Apple Awards Gala April 25 at the Ross Ragland Theater. (For those who couldn't attend, a full video of the event is linked above)
A new chorale group – the KCSD Elementary Ensemble – performed as well as the members of Henley High’s Touch of Class Choir. Henley High's Alexis Johnson sang the National Anthem.
Crystal Apple winners accepted their special apples engraved with the words: “To teach is to touch a life forever” following a video introduction produced by videographer Ron Matchett. A special thank you to Ron, Klamath Insurance Center, KCSD Food Service, piano accompanist Dan Crenshaw, and our own Katy Garvin for organizing the event.
One of the evening’s surprise highlights was Keno Elementary first-grader Kyla Chenault, who accompanied winner Shannon McDonald to the stage and gave a speech about her so McDonald wouldn’t be nervous.
Congratulations again to our 2023 Crystal Apple Award winners – Adriana Atwood, Rachel Belenfant, Christopher Benjamin, Bob Chambrose, Shannon McDonald, Crystal Renslow, Laci Teaters, and Olga Wenick. You humble, inspire, and motivate all of us at KCSD!
HENLEY MATH COMPETITORS QUALIFY FOR STATE
Three Henley High School math team members qualified for the Oregon Invitational Mathematics tournament during the Oregon Council of Teachers of Mathematics Regional Math Contest April 11 at Oregon Tech.
Henley's Alexandra Difani took a first in geometry, qualifying for the state event May 20 at University of Oregon. Teammate Miranda Vincent placed fourth and also qualified for state. Henley's Dane Downing qualified after placing third in Algebra II.
Three other Henley math team members placed at the event, sweeping the top three spots in the Algebra I category: Christie Harris, 1st; Abelina Muneton, 2nd; and Stephen Cassidy, 3rd. (Algebra I competitors do not qualify for state competition).
The competition, open to high school students enrolled in algebra I, algebra II, geometry, pre-calculus, and calculus, brought together 105 high school students from Henley High School, Lakeview High School, Klamath Union High School, and Crosspoint Christian School.
FBLA STUDENTS QUALIFY FOR NATIONALS; MAZAMA WINS STATE TITLE
More than 60 FBLA students from Bonanza, Lost River, Gilchrist, Brixner, and Mazama qualified to compete at the national level during the Oregon FBLA State Business Leadership Conference last month in Portland. Mazama FBLA won the Sweepstakes Award at the state event, earning the title of Oregon State FBLA Champions for 2023. Oregon FBLA is a career and technical student organization that has chapters in schools ranging from 1A up to 6A. The four school’s FBLA chapters all earned awards and recognition at the state conference. For all results and more photos
HENLEY STUDENT PLACES IN STATEWIDE GRAPHIC DESIGN CONTEST
Congratulations to Henley High School student Gracie Poe, who won third place and $300 in OSHA's media contest to promote young worker safety. Poe, who is a member of Henley's Digital Art Club, submitted an entry in the graphic design category. In this video by the OSHA newsroom -- https://youtu.be/5roAtZ_heqQ -- she provides commentary about her entry and what inspired her to promote young worker safety.
WHEN POSITIVE BEHAVIOR & LEARNING EQUALS FUN
Stearns Elementary students have been earning points for demonstrating positive behavior at school and for making good academic progress in literacy and math.
The students spent their points April 7 at a carnival, playing all kinds of fun games and activities. In the morning, the younger grades participated in activities that were planned and hosted by older grades. In the afternoon, the older grades participated in activities that were planned and hosted by students in younger grades.
READY TO BE A VIKING!
Nearly 200 eighth-graders from Brixner Junior High School visited their soon-to-be high school April 11 to explore Mazama High School’s academic and elective course offerings, see the campus, and meet teachers and student leaders. After an introduction to the Viking student leadership team, the rising freshmen were given a forecasting sheet with a list of all of the elective classes they could sign up for next year. As they toured the school, they had a chance to see some of those offerings firsthand. At Mazama, the choices are varied and include the arts, food science, automotive, woodshop, chemistry, teaching, robotics, foreign languages, health occupations, journalism and yearbook, among others. “The more students are engaged, the more successful they are,” said Mazama Vice Principal Sergio Cisneros. “We want to match students up with courses they are interested in. When they are enjoying the classes and following the sequence, they’re also more likely to take some advanced courses their senior year.” Read more
EXPLORING THEIR OPTIONS
Henley Middle School eighth-grader Robert Alvarez is considering a career in construction. Classmate Lilly Schott isn’t sure what she wants to do. Robert and Lilly were among Henley eighth-graders who spent the day at Henley High School April 5, exploring Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs and pathways available to them when they enter high school this fall. The event is one way of helping eighth-graders determine their interests and forecast what classes they want to take as ninth-graders. Read more
STUDENTS MOVE INTO NEW SHASTA CLASSROOM BUILDING
Fifth- and sixth-grade students and teachers moved into the new six-classroom addition at Shasta Elementary School in late March. The new 9,500-square-foot building, located between the main school building and Shasta’s Big Gym, features a wide, brightly lit hallway, reflective windows, polished concrete floors, the latest classroom technology, energy efficient adjustable lighting and HVAC with added controls.
Most of the work was done in-house by the district’s maintenance and projects crew. The 15-member team includes plumbers, electricians, carpenters, concrete finishers and HVAC technicians. Local subcontractors installed the HVAC and windows, and performed the building site excavation. The nearly $1.4-million project was paid for with federal ESSER funds. The project also includes renovating the exterior and adding two bathrooms to Shasta’s Big Gym.
The Shasta project is the fourth classroom building constructed by the district over the last five years. The first three projects were funded through a $4.1 million, 20-year debt issuance in December 2016. The first was a six-classroom building constructed at Peterson Elementary. It opened to students in September 2018. Henley Middle School’s four-classroom addition was completed in September 2019, and Stearns Elementary opened its eight-classroom addition in September 2021.
The addition of new classroom space allows the district to accommodate expanding enrollment and provide state-of-the art learning environments and educational programs.
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Klamath County School District
Inspiring today's students to meet tomorrow's challenges!
Read our Strategic Plan
Email: kcsd_communications@kcsd.k12.or.us
Website: www.kcsd.k12.or.us
Location: 2845 Greensprings Drive, Klamath Falls, OR, USA
Phone: 541-883-5000