All the Buzz
HCS News and Information -- October 11, 2024
Supe Scoop
Hornet Nation,
The Developmental Assets were assessed in Harrison Community Schools in March 2024, using the Search Institute survey Profiles of Student Life: Attitudes and Behaviors. In August, we received a briefing with our data, and have spent the last month or so digesting and breaking it down.
On October 24, we are holding an evening community event to share the data, and to work together to plan where needed. We are inviting YOU - parents, staff, coaches, mental and physical health experts, religious community leaders, scout leaders, business leaders, and public officials to join us. We will meet in the MS Gym, from 7:00 to 8:30 pm. Please use this form to RSVP, just so we have an idea of how many to expect.
In partnership and with Hornet Pride,
Judy
Judy Walton
989.539.7871
HCS Mission Statement
The staff of Harrison Community Schools, in the spirit of a growing and changing community, pledge to educate all students by teaching the District Curriculum and beyond, ensuring the development of responsible learners prepared to take an active role in a complex society.
Guiding Beliefs
Honesty: We believe in being truthful in our actions and communications, and fostering a culture of honesty, trust, and integrity.
Openness: We believe in a culture of collaboration and transparency, where students, staff, and families openly share ideas and information.
Respect: We believe in an inclusive and respectful learning environment for all, and we value the diverse background of each individual.
Neighborliness: We believe in being welcoming and inviting to each person who walks through our doors. We also believe in being a good neighbor beyond our schools’ walls, actively engaged with our local community, and instilling a sense of civic pride and responsibility.
Excellence: We believe in striving for excellence in all we do, and encouraging both academic and personal growth through hard work and commitment.
Trust: We believe in a culture of reliability and confidence, where students, staff, and families work together to foster trust.
Stewardship: We believe in embedding good stewardship and governance into our decisionmaking to ensure long-term success and well being.
Strategic Plan Highlight
In this issue, we are highlighting our third goal, which is centered around ENGAGEMENT - Create and grow an environment that fosters connections among our students, staff, Board, and community.
Our action steps include:
- Develop a marketing and branding strategy that promotes Harrison Community Schools.
- Establish consistent, ongoing interactions among our students, staff, families, and community through communicating excellence and telling our story.
- Attract, recruit, and retain a highly-qualified and highly-effective staff.
- Build and sustain thriving relationships at all levels.
Project RED - 5th Grade
On September 26, our fifth graders attended Rural Education Day at the CGRESD site on Clare Avenue. sponsored by the Clare County Farm Bureau. Joining peers from around our region, students learned about the significance and importance of agricultural in our community and daily life.
More specifically, students interacted with staff from the district forestry service, MSU Extension, FFA members, Agricultural Science students, and local producers. They rotated through 12 informative stations, covering topics such as: beef, sheep, popcorn, forestry, wildlife, dairy, maple syrup, tractor safety, apple cider, honey bees, swine, and invasive species.
Check out some pictures below!
OK2SAY Presentation at Middle School
Our middle school crew kicked off Anti-Bullying Month with an OK2SAY presentation. OK2SAY is a state-wide program around school safety that enables students to anonymously report tips on potential harm or criminal activities directed at students, school employees, and schools.
The presentation covered the difference between rude, mean, and bullying behavior including cyber bullying, as well as suicide awareness, sexting, sextoration and abuse. The presentation was led by a trained facilitator, and we also had mental health staff available in the event a student needed to process one or more topics. You can learn more about the OK2SAY program by clicking here.
Student Voice - Board of Education
At the September Board meeting, new Board Policy 2104 was adopted. This policy advances student voice in our district by expanding the Board to include a student representative. The student may not vote, nor generally attend closed sessions, but will represent all students to provide information and advocate. The student joining the Board for the 2024-2025 school year is senior Johnathon Cischke-Sprague. Welcome aboard!
Are Your Child's Immunizations Up to Date?
When students enter kindergarten and seventh grade, we are required by state law to ensure that they are up to date on immunizations, or, the family has obtained a waiver in a manner allowed by law. In addition, if you transfer to HCS in a different grade level, we are also required to check.
Soon, letters will be going out to families for whom we do not have either an updated vaccine record or the allowed waiver (it must be on a prescribed form, from either a doctor or the health department). If we do not have them by October 11, the law provides that we must exclude those children from school. This is never a step we want to have to take, but if we do not have the required paperwork, our hands are tied by the law.
The good news is that you can make an appointment with our very own health clinic, located in the middle school, for immunizations. You can also use your private doctor or the public health department. Again, if you need a waiver because your child is immuno-suppressed, your doctor can provide that, or if you need a waiver for religious objection or other cause, you can obtain that from the local health department. We are prohibited from accepting any other types of waivers.
MyMichigan Healthy Lifestyle Program for 6th Graders
Homecoming 2024
Hands-On Learning at Larson
GSRP Curriculum Night
Hornet Team Time in the Media Center, with Hot Chocolate & Cookies
Our Apologies
We recently were made aware of a two-page spread in last year's high school yearbook that should not have been printed. It is entitled "senior prophecies" and its contents are contrary to our Guiding Beliefs. For anyone mentioned in it, please accept our deepest apology. It does not represent who we are, nor who we want to be.
Moving forward, we have put additional procedures in place for proofreading. There will now be a team, comprised of the yearbook advisor, school principal, and all four class advisors. If you have any questions, please reach out to superintendent Judy Walton, at 989.539.7871 or juwalton@harrisonschools.com.
MidMichigan Career Quest
Today, our sophomore participated in an interactive, hands-on, informational and inspiring career exploration. Thanks to the generous support of the Clare County Community Foundation, transportation costs were covered.
Hosted by Great Lakes Bay Michigan Works! and Michigan Works! Region 7B, MiCareerQuest Middle Michigan is designed for 10th grade students (and their teachers, counselors and career navigators) from an 11-county area including Arenac, Bay, Clare, Gladwin, Gratiot, Isabella, Iosco, Midland, Ogemaw, Roscommon and Saginaw. Almost 100 employers from five industry sectors — Advanced Manufacturing, Agri-Business, Construction, Health Sciences and Information Technology — worked together to create exciting exhibits with heavy equipment, simulators, robots, drones, and much more.
Strategic Work Group on Building Usage
Launching in November, we will be pulling together a volunteer work group of staff and community members to take about 4-5 months to study enrollment and building usage and make recommendations. Specifically, we are at capacity in Larson, and have excess capacity in the middle school, high school, and potentially our administration building. The group will take a look at all five campuses (preschool, Larson, middle school, high school, and the Hive), and configure a variety of options to lessen the crowding at Larson for the Board to consider. If you are interested in being a part of this work, please email juwalton@harrisonschools.com to join.
Interested in Volunteering?
Would you like to be more involved in your child's school? Do you have time during the school day or just after to volunteer? We would welcome you with open arms!
In order to volunteer, you simply fill out and submit an iChat form (linked below). This enables us to run a criminal background check in short order, to ensure the safety of all students you may come into contact with. Assuming nothing of concern shows up, you are all set to help out wherever your school may need you -- the cafeteria, the playground, the gym, a field trip, or an individual classroom, just to name a few. If you would like to view our Board Policies in regard to volunteering, please view Board Policy 4205 on our website.
If your home/work responsibilities don't allow you to spend time with us during or right after school, there are still ways to support. Perhaps that might be chaperoning an evening event, or helping to organize a fundraiser for a team or group. Just reach out!
Excused Absences
When communicating that your child will be absent, the following are coded as "excused" per Board Policy 5301:
- the student’s physical or mental illness (verification from a physician, physician assistant, or nurse practitioner is required after 4 consecutive days of absence for illness);
- severe weather;
- medical appointments for the student;
- death or serious illness of the student’s family member;
- attendance at a funeral, wedding, or graduation;
- appearance at court or for other legal matters;
- observance of religious holidays of the student’s own faith;
- college planning visits; and
- personal or family vacations (form must be completed and turned in at least five (5) days beforehand; see principal for form).
CPR Safety
On September 28, our high school robotics team hosted a safety training for themselves and area robotics teams from Clare, Beaverton, and Farwell. Staff from Mobile Medical Response provided training on CPR, AED use, and general first aid.
In October, several of our high school students learning on the Hive campus did the same, with Officer McLearen.
Updated COVID-19 Information
Based on information from the CDC and our local health department, upon testing positive, children should stay out of school until: 1) if there was a fever, 24 hours of being fever-free without the use of medicines to reduce fever; and 2) symptoms are improving. It is also recommended that a mask be worn for 5 days after returning to school. We will be following the same protocol for our staff.
The ABCs of a BOE Meeting
All Board meetings are open to the public, and are conducted in compliance with the Michigan Open Meetings Act. On rare occasions, the Board may go into closed session, but only as allowed by the OMA.
If it is your first time attending a Board meeting, you may not be familiar with the structure. Make sure you pick up an agenda on your way in, and if you intend to speak during the portion designated for public comments, please pick up a copy of Board Policy 2504, which is near the copies of the agenda. This will explain the parameters of the public comment portion of the agenda.
As you observe the Board conduct its business, the agenda will guide you. Common agenda sections are as follows:
- Opening of the Meeting (welcome, Pledge of Allegiance, additions/corrections to agenda/minutes, building instructional highlight, any other "organizational" items)
- Consent Agenda (items for approval that do not require a roll-call vote, and without objection from a Board member, can be considered all together)
- Non-Consent Agenda (one or more items that require a separate roll-call vote, such as budget approval)
- Informational Items (examples include resignations, other presentations, etc.)
- Public Comments (3 minutes each, Board members do not respond during the 3 minutes so that each speaker gets their full time; after, Board members may, but do not have to, pose questions or make statements)
- Communication (Superintendent's Report - includes subject matter of public comments; any other Board communication)
- Discussion Items (other matters any Board member may choose to speak about; may relate to public comments but not required)
- Adjournment
Within 8 business days of the meeting, minutes are posted on our website.
See below for information on our next meeting.
Board Members
Zachary Driver -- Kendra Durga (President) -- Therese Haley (Secretary)
James Neff (Vice President) -- Chelsea Roland (Treasurer) -- Betsy Ulicki -- Carrie Whitaker
Board of Education Meeting
Monday, Oct 14, 2024, 05:30 PM
DISTRICT INFORMATION
October/November Calendar Information
October 12: Robotics Bot Bash at HH Dow High School (8:00 am)
October 16: Larson Picture Day
October 23: PSAT/NMSQT testing - 9th, 10th, 11 graders
October 23: National Junior Honor Society (MS) induction (5:00 pm @ HS auditorium)
October 24: A&B Survey Community Event (7-8:30pm @ MS)
November 5-6: Conferences for grades 6-12, after school
November 15: No school for students or staff
November 16: Harrison Arts & Crafts Market (9:00 am - 3:00 pm, HS)
November 20: Half day for student; teachers have professional learning in afternoon
November 25-26: Conferences for grades K-5, after school
November 27-29: No school for students or staff
School Contact Information
- Early Childhood & Larson Elementary, 989.539.3259 (Principal Andrea Andera, aandera@harrisonschools.com, Assistant Principal Sandy Hargraves, shargraves@harrisonschools.com)
- Middle School, 989.539.7194 (Principal Jennifer Thrush, jthrush@harrisonschools.com)
- Hive, 989.539.7417 (Principal Stacey VanAntwerp, svanantwerp@harrisonschools.com)
- High School, 989.539.7417 (Principal Joe Ashcroft, jjashcroft@harrisonschools.com, Assistant Principal/Athletic Director Brad Carlstrom, bcarlstrom@harrisonschools.com)
District Contact Information
Superintendent, 989.539.7871 (Judy Walton, juwalton@harrisonschools.com)
Special Education (Stacey VanAntwerp, svanantwerp@harrisonschools.com)
Homeless Child/Youth Services (Shannon Haines, shaines@harrisonschools.com)
Bus Services, 989.539.7082 (Kelli Whitaker, kwhitakerclaffey@harrisonschools.com)
Bus/Vehicle Pick Up and Drop Off
Allowed waiting area for afternoon pick-up at Larson is on West Hornet Drive, highlighted in orange