NESC Newsletter- September 2024

Welcome Back! It has been really nice to have students back in the halls. Summers are nice for everyone, but the schools are definitely much better and more enjoyable when the kids are there. Thus far, things are going very well. The students are doing great, the teachers are refreshed and ready to go, and for the most part, we have not had to endure any major issues. If the first few weeks are any indication, we are going to have a fantastic 2024-2025 school year!

For those who do not know me, I would like to introduce myself. My name is Dustin Hitt, and I am the new NESC superintendent. I cannot tell you how excited I am to join the T-Bird family! Before coming to NESC, I worked as the principal at Sullivan Middle School for seventeen years. Prior to being at Sullivan, I was a principal in Vincennes for two years, and a teacher for six years. This is my twenty fifth year in education. I have a wife and two children. My daughter is attending Murray State University and is studying Agriculture Education, and my son is a sophomore in high school. My wife is a science teacher at Sullivan High School. I spend most of my free time outdoors hunting, fishing, or backpacking, so if you see me out and about this fall in camouflage on the weekends, do not worry as that is perfectly normal for me!

We have much to be excited about early on this year at NESC. We have many new faces in our hallways, we have updated our curriculum in some areas, and students are beginning to participate or get signed up for all the different fall extracurricular activities our corporation has to offer. With so many things going on, students seem to be excited and have smiles on their faces as I walk the buildings, which pleases me greatly. It is very important to me and all of the professionals within our corporation that our students have a great experience within our schools. They are why we are here!

It is my hope that the 2024-2025 school year is going well and will continue to go well for all students of the Northeast School Corporation. We have many positive things going, and I feel that we are poised for a very successful year. I am looking forward to embracing all of the great traditions, customs, and academic excellence that NESC has become known for, while also helping to lead the corporation into future opportunities, endeavors, and growth. We have fantastic schools, communities, teachers, principals, and staff, but most of all, we have really great students. As I meet more and more of our young people in our schools, I am absolutely thrilled that I am a part of the T-Bird nation, and I am very excited to see what the future holds in store for our corporation.

I am eager to meet the families within our great corporation, so when you see me out at events, please feel free to come up and introduce yourself and talk with me. Thank you for allowing us to educate your child, and thank you for welcoming me to the Northeast School Corporation! I hope we all have a great 2024-2025 school year!

-Dustin Hitt, Superintendent

Check out the various NESC renovations that took place this summer.

Students in Principles of Agriculture, Horticulture, and Landscape and Turf Management participated in an aloe vera lab today. They took cuttings from the aloe vera. The cuttings will dry for a period of 5 days. On the 5th day, the students will plant the cuttings. While they are waiting on the cuttings to dry, the students will be working on separating the pup plants from the parent plants. Once separated, they will re-pot the pup plants.

7th grade students in 1st hour Engineering are finishing up the foot orthosis project. They bean by learning about Cerebral Palsy (CP), the engineering design process, 3D modeling, and prototyping, ultimately applying their learning to create a foot orthosis for a student with the same shoe size with CP. We talked extensively about the engineering design process, I challenged them with creating a prototype of an ankle foot orthosis, with the goal of having them experience and reflect on the steps they took, the decisions they made, and the creative design aspect best suited for a student their age.

AP Biology student are ready for another day in the lab!

A handful of students in the Student Media course have dedicated themselves to bringing school-related news to their classmates, dubbing their weekly newscast "NC News." Click the first button below to view the episode from Monday, September 9.

Other students in the course help design the yearbook, assist with athletic programs, build slides for our hallway TVs, create digital wallpaper, help promote our athletics with hype videos, and more. To view our collection of digital wallpaper, click the second button below. As for our promo videos, follow the North Central Jr/Sr High School Facebook page, and also stay tuned for those coming out in other social media platforms.

Children learn better—and faster—when teachers have a clear picture of what students know and how they are growing academically. NWEA MAP Growth is a computer-adaptive test. If your child answers a question correctly, the next question is more challenging. If they answer incorrectly, the next one is easier. This type of assessment challenges top performers without overwhelming students whose skills are below grade level. MAP Growth begins with a question at each student’s grade level and adjusts the level of difficulty based on individual performance. What it measures MAP Growth uses a RIT scale to accurately measure what students know, regardless of their grade level. It also measures growth over time, allowing you to track your child’s progress throughout the school year and across multiple years. Once your child completes a MAP Growth test, they receive a RIT score. RIT scores have the same meaning across grade levels. If a fourth-grade student and an eighth-grade student have the same RIT score in reading, then they are testing at the same level in that subject. This stable scale allows teachers to accurately measure each student’s academic growth throughout the school year and over time. The school then uses educational resources that use MAP Growth RIT scores to provide personalized learning resources and activities. NWEA helps the school to create interventions and enrichments all throughout the year. Be watching for your child's MAP Growth Report to come home soon.

Our All American Kids will be learning all about America this school year. Students kicked off the year with creating their own classroom constitutions. They decided as a group how they could interact and grow as a community. We the People in each class came up with the rules to live by creates an environment that is safe, organized, accountable, and respectful. Students know the two rules at Northeast North: Do the right thing and treat people right.

The school has planned some events around the Americana theme. Constitution Day will be celebrated on September 17. Fifty Dates and State float parade will take place on October 23. We will be spilling the tea on December 16 by learning about the Boston Tea Party. Students will help to create a Hall of Presidents in February. These are just a few events that are in the works for the 24-25 school year.

On August 30th, the NESC School Board walked the halls of Northeast North. They visited classrooms to see technology enhancing learning and lots of fun hands on activities that engaged students in growing as readers and mathematicians.

Second graders at NENE finished up their first domain on Fairy Tales & Tall Tales. One of the tall tales we read was Paul Bunyan. Students were then asked to create Paul Bunyan during art class by using perspective art. They had so much fun and their creations turned out great! We love being able to continue our lessons during encore.

At this year's Hymera Seafood Festival, the "Hymera's Got Talent" competition made a comeback, thanks to the efforts of Debbie Norris, Ruritan Treasurer, who fondly remembered participating in the event 30 years ago. Several Northeast East Elementary students showcased their skills in a variety of acts, from dancing to crocheting, singing, piano playing, and comedy. Amanda Swearingen took first place with a captivating dance performance, while the comedic duo of Khloe Brinegar and Brystal Robinson secured second place, and Adalin Allen earned third place for her crochet demonstration. The staff at Northeast East Elementary were incredibly proud of their students, both those performing and those in the audience, for representing their school and showing such strong community spirit.

At this year's annual Hymera Seafood Festival Parade, the teachers of Northeast East Elementary continued their beloved tradition of walking under the theme of "The Magic School Bus." Principal Hannon drove the school's small white bus, decked out in a space-themed display, while Student Council members passed out Starburst candies, wearing NASA vests, rocket jet packs, and with John McClure humorously carrying the entire earth on his back. This year, the teachers had a special guest, as the new superintendent, Mr. Dustin Hitt, joined them along the parade route, greeting the Hymera community and adding to the excitement of the day.

This year, after the Olympics had concluded, Kindergarten kept the spirit alive by hosting their own Olympic celebration. The students lit their very own Olympic torch and had fun competing in events like balloon tap, skipping, block building, paper plate skating, and balancing on the beam. Gold and silver medals were awarded, and the children dove into the history of the Olympics. They were shocked to learn that women were once banned from competing but were inspired by current champions like Simone Biles and Katie Ledecky, who has won an incredible 14 medals. It was a memorable Olympic Day in Kindergarten, and the torch has been extinguished until the next Summer Games.

Current members of the NEEE Beta Club helped work the Seafood Festival for the Ruritan Club. They were a huge help to the Ruritan, as was the Jr. High and High School Beta Clubs from North Central. Potential future Beta members from Mrs. Weir's 4th grade class also helped out at the festival by giving away books to the public. Books were donated from teachers, staff, and students and were given away to anyone who wanted them. The 4th grade also sold DIY slap bracelets to help raise money for Christmas For Kids Sullivan.

4th grade has been learning about Energy in Science and how energy can be transferred to objects through motion. In Reading, they have learned about Rosa Parks and how she helped start the Civil Rights Movement. They created a timeline of her life's accomplishments, which helped them see how long it took for equality to take effect in our nation.

Check out all of the wonderful events that are being offered up by our very own Sullivan County Public Libraries in Carlisle, Dugger, Merom, Sullivan, Shelburn, and Farmersburg!

Click on the button below for information on current NESC job openings⤵️