New Buses To Be Purchased By Eastern Pulaski Schools

Posted on Author WKVI
Dr. Robert Klitzman
Dr. Robert Klitzman

Eastern Pulaski Schools will soon be shelling out nearly $200,000 for new equipment. Superintendent Dr. Robert Klitzman explained that they will be purchasing three buses – one utility bus and two full-size buses.

“The board did authorize us to purchase two new school buses. We had put out bids and the low bid for two full-size passenger buses went to Midwest, so we will get two buses from Midwest this year, and the prices actually came in a little lower than they were a year ago. We are also going to purchase one utility bus, that’s a 14-passenger bus, and that is coming from Kerlin out of Silver Lake,” said Klitzman.

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Eastern Pulaski Schools To Revert To Two Semesters

Posted on Author WKVI
Dr. Robert Klitzman
Dr. Robert Klitzman

Students at Eastern Pulaski Schools will soon be dealing with a number of changes regarding semesters and graduation. Superintendent Dr. Robert Klitzman said the school board at their meeting this week voted to approve a number of changes to board policies, including a change from the current tri-semester system to dual-semesters like most other schools in the state.

Klitzman explained that they had previously been on a dual-semester system, but because of changes in state statute, they are once again switching to dual-semesters. The corporation had used the tri-semester system for about ten years, giving students one less class per semester and keeping them in their classrooms for a full 70 minutes.

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Bomb Threats Made at Eastern Pulaski Schools Last Week Were Hoaxes

Posted on Author WKVI
Dr. Robert Klitzman
Dr. Robert Klitzman

The Eastern Pulaski School Corporation is currently investigating a fraudulent bomb threat made at the school on Wednesday, Oct. 10. Superintendent Dr. Robert Klitzman explained that they had been alerted by a student that a threat had been written in one of the stalls in the high school girls’ restroom indicating that a bomb was in the school and would go off at a specific time.

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Winamac High School Weatherbug System to Be Repaired, Upgraded

Posted on Author WKVI
Dr. Robert Klitzman
Dr. Robert Klitzman

Besides the technology upgrades in the classroom at Eastern Pulaski schools, Superintendent Dr. Robert Klitzman said they are also working on upgrading a lesser-known device: the Weatherbug system atop the school. Klitzman said the weather station had been damaged by this summer’s strong, damaging winds, and the corporation’s insurance company will be funding its repairs.

“The nice thing about this weather station is it’s on top of our high school, so in terms of the readings for temperature, wind direction, wind speed, humidity, all that is right here in Winamac and right now it’s not working. The camera is not working, so we need to repair that,” said Klitzman.

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Eastern Pulaski Schools Continue Their Technology Initiative

Posted on Author WKVI
Dr. Robert Klitzman
Dr. Robert Klitzman

As schools throughout the country migrate from the rapidly-antiquating textbooks, chalkboards, and other teaching tools, the Eastern Pulaski School Corporation is following the same path, but Superintendent Dr. Robert Klitzman said his corporation is going about it a bit different.

Klitzman explained that the corporation will be slowly phasing in the new technology, as opposed to dropping new technology on the heads of teachers and students at the beginning of the school year. He said they will be systematically adding new devices throughout the year, and they’ve already started this school year with iPads in the hands of 7th graders working in science. On top of that, Klitzman noted they also have several handheld devices that go beyond iPads, such as notebooks, netbooks, and other devices, in several advanced high school classes.

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Eastern Pulaski Schools Hear 2012 Graduating Class Follow-Up

Posted on Author WKVI
Dr. Robert Klitzman
Dr. Robert Klitzman

With the number of programs offered at the Eastern Pulaski Schools Corporation, the schools like to keep track on where their students end up after high school. Superintendent Dr. Robert Klitzman said high school counselor Kate Dailey presented the school board with the roundup of the 2012 graduating class, with a follow-up on where they are now.

Klitzman said more than 90 percent of the class of 2012 have either entered the workforce or sought further education, either through trade schools, college, or other training.

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ADM Counts Reported at Eastern Pulaski, West Central Schools

Posted on Author WKVI
Dr. Robert Klitzman
Dr. Robert Klitzman

The Average Daily Membership, or ADM counts, were conducted throughout the state for all school corporations last Friday. Schools rely on this count as corporations receive funding for every student counted on that day.

Eastern Pulaski School Superintendent Dr. Robert Klitzman said that his corporation is down approximately 30 students. That amounts to a loss of $150,000 in funding for the school. Dr. Klitzman said this year’s count was 1,190.

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Eastern Pulaski Community Helps Helping Hands With $500 Donation

Posted on Author WKVI
Dr. Robert Klitzman
Dr. Robert Klitzman

The Eastern Pulaski School Board accepted four donations to the corporation that were made by the community. Superintendent Dr. Robert Klitzman says the program that received monetary donations was that of Helping Hands.

“It’s designed to help students who have a need in the area of textbook rental and also for their lunch program and breakfast program,” explained Dr. Klitzman. “Our community donates money anonymously and as students have this need, we go ahead and provide the funding for that and let the parents know that this was provided by our Helping Hands Program.”

More than $500 was donated toward that fund to help students with their needs at school.

Eastern Pulaski Schools To Adopt Reading, Handwriting Textbooks

Posted on Author WKVI
Dr. Robert Klitzman
Dr. Robert Klitzman

The Eastern Pulaski School Board approved the textbook adoption committee for two elementary subjects. Superintendent Dr. Robert Klitzman said a group of educators and parents will choose the material.

“The curricular area that we’ll study leading to adoption is in the area of reading and handwriting,” commented Klitzman. “For those who have followed our data, we have had exceptionally good data in the area of reading so we’re going to be hard-pressed to come up with new materials that will help us do a better job.”

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No School For Eastern Pulaski Students on Sept. 24

Posted on Author WKVI
Dr. Robert Klitzman
Dr. Robert Klitzman

There will be no school for students at the Eastern Pulaski School Corporation on Monday, Sept. 24. That day has been set aside for parent/teacher conferences and professional development opportunities.

Superintendent Dr. Robert Klitzman explained that it will be a full day of conferences at the elementary school, but only a half day of conferences at the middle school and high school.

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Eastern Pulaski School Board Discusses Harmony Program

Posted on Author WKVI
Dr. Robert Klitzman
Dr. Robert Klitzman

Winamac High School Principal Rick DeFries discussed the Harmony program with the Eastern Pulaski School Board. Superintendent Dr. Robert Klitzman commented that it’s a great way for parents to keep track of how their child is doing in school.

“Harmony has a lot of information for parents,” said Klitzman. “If they can get on the internet, they can actually get into a teacher’s grade book and see their child’s scores, grades, absences and discipline. Harmony is a great feature. Parents can get in there and keep track, on a daily basis, of what their children may be doing.”

Eastern Pulaski School Board Approves Policy Changes For Evaluations

Posted on Author WKVI
Dr. Robert Klitzman
Dr. Robert Klitzman

The Eastern Pulaski School Board approved some changes to its school board policy manual which Superintendent Dr. Robert Klitzman says are the direct result of state statutes.

“It was put into a statute that superintendents must be evaluated every year which was a shock to me because at Eastern Pulaski, for the last 25+ years I’ve been here, there’s been an evaluation every year, but evidently some places choose not to. We modified our school board policy to make sure we were in compliance with Indiana statutes,” commented Klitzman.

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West Central, Eastern Pulaski Schools Discuss Enrollment

Posted on Author WKVI
West Central School Superintendent Charles Mellon

Although the Average Daily Membership, or ADM count, isn’t officially taken until Friday, West Central School Superintendent Charles Mellon discussed the preliminary enrollment for this year with the board last week.

“We like to keep track of that because the number of students equals the amount of money we receive from the state,” said Mellon. “As far as the number of students we have currently, it’s identical to last year. Some of these people are migrant students that will not be with us all year and they may not be with us on Sept. 14, but they are in the count at the current time.”

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Eastern Pulaski School Corporation Acquires Bus Garage Property

Posted on Author WKVI
Dr. Robert Klitzman
Dr. Robert Klitzman

The Eastern Pulaski School Corporation is now the owner of the abandoned state highway property that the corporation has been leasing from the Indiana Department of Transportation as a bus garage.

Superintendent Dr. Robert Klitzman made the announcement at the recent school board meeting.

“I’ve gone back to 1984 and found correspondence with INDOT stating that we could secure that property,” explained Dr. Klitzman.

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Eastern Pulaski Schools To Adopt RISE Evaluations

Posted on Author WKVI
Dr. Robert Klitzman
Dr. Robert Klitzman

Eastern Pulaski School Superintendent Dr. Robert Klitzman spent some time discussing the new teacher evaluation model with the school board this week.

“Education in Indiana has changed somewhat in that there is a prescribed procedure, methodology, timing and organization in how teachers are going to be evaluated,” said Klitzman. “At Eastern Pulaski, as many schools in the area and statewide, we’re going to start using the DOE prescribed evaluation instrument called RISE.”

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Eastern Pulaski Schools Receive Donations For Supplies, Upgrade

Posted on Author WKVI
Dr. Robert Klitzman
Dr. Robert Klitzman

The Eastern Pulaski School Corporation recently received two donations. Superintendent Dr. Robert Klitzman said the North-Central Co-op donated $840 to the elementary school, specifically for classroom supplies for the teachers.

“They just decided it was a project they wanted to do,” explained Klitzman. “Mrs. Collins [Principal of the Elementary School] did go down to their facility to accept the donation and asked them if they had children in our school corporation and no one did. They just wanted to do it to help us.”

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Return To School Went Smoothly Throughout Kankakee Valley

Posted on Author WKVI

This was the first week of school for area students.

Superintendent A.J. Gappa talks about how the first week went for Knox Community School students.

“After talking to the principals at each building, I guess the one word we could use is smooth,” said Gappa. “There were no major glitches. Bus loading and unloading seemed to go well. I talked to the people at the transportation garage and all of the routes seemed to be in place and moving well. I don’t have any preliminary numbers, but hopefully our student population is at least as much as last year.”

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Two Retirees Return To Eastern Pulaski Schools

Posted on Author WKVI
Dr. Robert Klitzman
Dr. Robert Klitzman

The Eastern Pulaski School Board hired two teachers back to the corporation that retired last school year. Superintendent Dr. Robert Klitzman said it’s nice to have them back for another year.

“Bus driver, Mrs. Janet Haschel, had decided to retire back in May and come July she decided that bus route wasn’t so bad! She is going to be a bus driver with us again this next year. I’m very pleased to announce that one of our long-time math teachers, Mrs. Jan Moore, has come back with us. When she left, we made her position a part-time position. That half-time position seemed pretty attractive to her so she did apply and the board hired her,” explained Klitzman. (dr klitzman 07-14 #1)

Klitzman says this practice doesn’t happen very often.

Eastern Pulaski School Purchases RISE Software

Posted on Author WKVI
Dr. Robert Klitzman
Dr. Robert Klitzman

The Eastern Pulaski School Board approved the purchase of software for the RISE evaluation model for teachers and administrators. Superintendent Dr. Robert Klitzman says the company Own It! designed the software that parallels the evaluation requirements.

“The forms, the checklists, the graphs, the details – all of that is right in that software,” said Klitzman. “They can use their iPad, do the evaluation and then as soon as they’re ready with it, they can push the magic button and send that right to the teacher’s computer as well.”

Evaluation models and procedures for teachers and administrators need to be in place in the fall per state mandate. The RISE model uses multiple sources of information to paint a fair, accurate, and comprehensive picture of a teacher’s performance. It also provides information on the most important aspects of teaching: planning, instruction, leadership, and student learning.

Eastern Pulaski Registration to Take Place Aug. 7 and 8

Posted on Author WKVI
Dr. Robert Klitzman
Dr. Robert Klitzman

Registration for Eastern Pulaski students will be August 7 and 8, and more details will be released later concerning specific times and other information, but Superintendent Dr. Robert Klitzman told the School Board this week about a new feature during registration.

“This year, we’re going to open up the modes of payments for the fees – we take cash and checks, but we’re adding a credit card feature,” said Klitzman. “Parents, for their convenience, they can pay book rental on credit card and all through the year, they can put money into their child’s lunch account. It will be available 24 hours a day, seven days a week for the credit card option.”

The registration process will be the same as last year.

“Last year, we established a common registration area, so everyone that is going to register and come in and pay their book fees and lunch fees, will go to the Middle School/High School Cafeteria. If they have students in all three buildings, it’s one stop.”