Eastern Pulaski students will start school a little later on Wednesdays next school year. Superintendent Dan Foster says it’s part of a new professional development plan approved by the school board last week.
“We’ll be starting school about 40 minutes or so later than the other days of the week,” Foster explains. “And yes, there’s some concerns and questions along that line, too, with parents and dropping off kids and that kind of stuff. So we’re working through all that process, and we will have some supervision available in the mornings, so we will continue to pay some people to come in at their normal time to help supervise.”
The school board formally adjusted the 2019-2020 school calendar to reflect the late start Wednesdays, as well as the planned eLearning and eLearning make-up days.
Foster says the school board also approved a new mentoring and induction plan for teachers. “Basically, it’s about a three-year plan for a new teacher that comes into the corporation,” he explains. “They’re paired up with a mentor teacher three years. There’s a schedule in there. There’s calendars in there. ‘Here’s what we talk about. Here’s what we go through.’ And obviously, after the first year, we’ll probably tweak some things.”
The plan also includes resources to help experienced teachers who are new to Eastern Pulaski adjust to the school corporation’s procedures. Foster says Eastern Pulaski partnered with the Indiana Department of Education to develop the new plan.
