The Weekly Update

We are monitoring the current weather reports. When inclement weather occurs, Superintendent Wimmer and the transportation staff consult with the national weather service, municipal plow operators, bus companies, and area school districts frequently, including during early morning conference calls prior to the start of the school day. Every effort is made to make a final determination on a possible school building closure or delay by 5:30 a.m. Review more information about weather closure on the website. Announcements of a closure, delay, or distance learning, will be made via a phone call, email, West Bend School District websites and social media accounts, and Milwaukee television stations.

We anticipate proceeding with school on Thursday, November 21. The drive to school may be slower than usual, our drivers will be proceeding with caution.

The Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction Accountability Report Cards for 2023-2024 show that the West Bend Schools has accomplished areas of growth and achievement and has other areas to focus on for improvement. Ratings of schools in the West Bend School District include:

• Green Tree Elementary and Decorah Elementary received a five-star rating, Significantly Exceeds Expectations.

• Fair Park, Jackson, McLane, and Silverbrook all received the four-star, or Exceeds Expectations, accountability rating.

• West High School and East High School received three-star, or Meets Expectations, ratings. The rating for the West Bend School District was also Meets Expectations.

• Badger Middle School earned a Meets Few Expectations rating.

The full report cards can be found at WI DPI School & District Report Cards. The report card is more than a rating. Each report card is unique to the school and provides great detail into performance areas and outcomes, and the West Bend Schools use this data and additional information to inform School Improvement Plans.

Because the student body of each school is unique, the DPI places different weights on four “Priority Areas” when calculating each individual school's rating. Highlights of the reports include:

• Green Tree Elementary has earned a perfect math Growth score of 100 for three straight years.

• Decorah Elementary and Green Tree Elementary Growth scores rank in the top 10% of elementary schools in the state.

• McLane Elementary and Jackson Elementary had Achievement scores that have ranked in the top 25% of districts in the state for four consecutive years.

• Badger Middle School increased its Achievement Score due to improved scores in math.

• Fair Park Elementary’s Achievement score has increased for three consecutive years.

• West High School’s Achievement score has increased for four consecutive years.

• Silverbrook Intermediate’s Growth score has increased for four consecutive years.

• East and West High Schools graduation rate score has increased for three consecutive years, currently scoring 96.0 out of 100.0

Additional detail on the report cards is available on the West Bend School District website.

In addition to accountability report cards, the Wisconsin DPI announced the 2023-2024 ACT composite score for West was 20.3 and East 20.2. The percentage of East and West students meeting or advanced in the ACT Math section is the highest it has ever been. In addition, among both schools, five students scored a 35 out of 36 and eight more students scored a 33 or 34 out of 36.

Last week, the yearly Wisconsin high school rankings by U.S. News and World Report magazine showed that East High School is ranked 36th and West High School 50th among 462 public high schools in the state.

This ranking uses college readiness, state assessment proficiency, state assessment performance, underserved student performance, college curriculum breadth, and graduation rate. Review the detailed U.S. News and World Report rankings.

• The West Bend Christmas Parade on Sunday, December 1 will feature WBHS Bands and various athletics teams and clubs. The parade begins at 5:00 p.m. on Main Street in downtown West Bend.

• Tickets are still available for the COLUMNS Holiday Pops Concert by the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra on Tuesday, December 10 at 7:30 p.m. at the Silver Lining Arts Center at the high schools building. Tickets are $30 each and available at Jeff’s Spirits on Main, Horicon Bank, and Sendik’s or by calling Horicon Bank at 262-808-2670 or Pick Heaters at 262-338-1191.

• The West Bend High Schools student council presents the 2024 Blood Drive on Thursday, December 12, in the West Bend High Schools South Gym. The goal this year is more than 300 units collected! Please sign up to donate: https://donateblood.versiti.org/.../drive_schedule/11537343.

All the emotions we feel are perfectly normal, even if some of them are more challenging to experience. When you provide opportunities for your kids to talk about and understand their feelings, you help them develop the tools to work through those emotions. Expanding our emotional vocabulary is an important step in our emotion regulation. Below are some resources to assist families with childhood emotions.

Daily Feelings Check-In

Feelings Thermometer and How to use the feelings thermometer

Helping Your Kids Share Their Emotions

Help with Calming Big Feelings in Young Children

During its regular meeting on November 18, the West Bend School Board heard a report from the Curriculum Committee and the superintendent. The board also took action on several out-of-state and out-of-country trip requests.

If you are interested in reviewing the details of the meeting, see this tutorial on how to access the agenda with links to the supporting documents. The video of the meeting is also available.

Congratulations to East senior Maddie Rummel who finished sixth in Division 1 WIAA State Diving Championships last week.

There are various events and activities available on the WBSD’s Community Bulletin Board!

Events and Fundraisers:

Columns Holiday Pops Concert Tickets

Third Annual Turkey Trot for Wash. County Foster Closet

Wash. County Caregiver Coalition Holiday Respite Services

Volunteer Center Giving Tree

Volunteer Center Plant and Sip Event

Kettle Moraine Symphony Christmas Concert

Cub Scout Pack 3796

Athletics:

West Bend Swim Club Information

Ski/Snowboard Club for West Bend Students

Boys & Girls Club 1st and 2nd Grade Basketball

East Dance Team Clinic for Kids

YMCA:

YMCA Swim Lessons for WBSD Students

YMCA Winter Programs, Holiday Events, and More

Services:

Good News Club Afterschool Program

4C Family Center Playgroups