[Nfbwv-talk] Dr. Keller's Weekly Notes for September 13, 2016

Tue Sep 20 13:44:33 UTC 2016

A warm welcome to WVSDB students, faculty and staff! I hope that each of you had a restful and relaxing summer. We are excited to turn the page on a new school year and to experience all the possibilities that accompany a new beginning.

We welcome Mr. Michael Coleman as the Principal of the School for the Deaf and Dr. Kurt Metz, school neuro-psychologist. Each has returned to the WVSDB campus after pursuing other opportunities. They bring a wealth of experience and expertise to our school and we are thankful to have them among us once again.

We are excited about the consolidation of the WVSD Elementary, Middle and High Schools. As a result of their relocation in a single building on campus, the School more closely mirrors the School for the Blind and will allow faculty and staff to engage in more collaborative relationships. The building housing the School for the Deaf has previously been known as the "Secondary Building". Since the building no longer accommodates only secondary students, it was felt we needed a name to better reflect the current K-12 programming.  So, the building will be named in honor of a former Deaf teacher, mentor, colleague, coach and friend, Mr. Pierre Sevigny. The dedication ceremony will occur during the WVSDB Homecoming on October 1, 2016, at 11:00 a.m.   An exciting soccer match between our team and the team from the Western Pennsylvania School for the Deaf will take place at 2:00 p.m.  Please make plans to attend the Homecoming!

One of the most exciting initiatives currently occurring on campus is the first ever WVSDB robotics program. Through a collaborative initiative with the NASA Educational Resource Center in Fairmont and grant funding through FIRST LEGO League, WVSDB is able to offer an afterschool robotics program. Plans are to host a scrimmage with local competition teams on the evening of October 25th as well as a regional competition on Saturday, November 5th. Stay tuned, we hope to have much more to share about this exciting opportunity for our students as the year progresses.

The teaching staff returned the week of August 15-19 and during that time was able to take advantage of a host of targeted professional development opportunities. The following week, teachers at the School for the Deaf participated in a literacy training event with nationally-reputed Fairview Learning (www.fairviewlearning.com), led by Trish Vierra. Several teachers from the county school systems working with Deaf and hard-of-hearing students were also in attendance. The training was offered in collaboration with the West Virginia Department of Education (WVDE). I want to personally thank Mr. Clayton Burch, WVDE Chief Academic Officer, for his support for this critical training program in our continued efforts to improve the literacy skills of our students.

WVSDB is gearing-up for the state Office of Education Performance Audit (OEPA). The leadership staff met with Ms. Susan O'Brien and her team at the end of last year and earlier this year in preparation for the upcoming October audit. We are currently in the process of completing a self-monitoring evaluation to determine our strengths and identify areas that need improvement. I see this as an opportunity to document where we are in areas of school performance and to use that information to inform and guide WVSDB's strategic plan. The OEPA audit should be viewed as a mechanism for school improvement and growth as we strive to be the best we can be.

In an effort to be more accessible to the students and staff at the school for the blind, I will be occupying the office next to Principal Jamie Vittorio's office at the school for the Blind every Thursday afternoon, 1:00 - 4:00 p.m.

Principal Vittorio and Matthew Stewart have been busy making preparations for the first ever statewide White Cane Day, which will take place at the Capitol in Charleston on Thursday, October 13th.   More information on this historical event will be forthcoming.

Lastly, the Administration team and I are proudly unveiling our new tagline for the school year of 2016-17 which is as follows:

ACHIEVE. CHALLENGE. THRIVE.

Respectfully yours,

Dr. Martin P. Keller, Jr., Superintendent

West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and the Blind

301 East Main Street

Romney, WV  26757

Videophone/Phone:  304-553-7974

Email:  martin.keller at k12.wv.us<mailto:martin.keller at k12.wv.us>

Achieve. Challenge. Thrive.

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