South Walton High School Monthly Parent Meeting- Feb. 26

Thanks for the info, JDarg!

I copied and pasted your "notice" and sent it to about 40 SWHS parents that I have email addresses for.

I believe that the roundtable meetings will be very productive, and I'm so glad that they will be starting them next week.

Thank you for making a difference at SWHS! :clap:

;-)

Also- don't forget to e-mail that Seahawk News around- the SWHS front office does not have every single e-mail address!

Way to go!

Way to go!

Hey- come to the meeting!:wave:

South Walton High to begin monthly parent meetings


Sean Boone
2008-02-21 10:35:00
In an attempt to inspire more parent-school interaction at South Walton High School, administrators will begin holding a monthly Seahawk Parent Roundtable meeting starting Tuesday, Feb. 26, at 6 p.m. in the student media center.
The meeting will allow parents to talk with teachers, guidance counselors and Principal Mark Ewing about such issues as the FCAT, school performance grades, college prep and what is happening at the school.
?It?s an avenue for better communication,? said South Walton Principal Mark Ewing. ?We are open to talk about anything positive. The first meeting we will shake it out and see what people want to do.?
The school once held a PTO, but for more than a year there have been no formal meetings between parents and faculty.
Ewing said the meetings will encourage parents the opportunity to make a difference in the school.
?Where do we want to go as a school and as a community?? he said. ?What can we do to make the school the best in the Panhandle of Florida??
Parent Jenny Dargavell, who brought the idea to Ewing earlier this year, said the meetings are great for the parents who feel they aren?t in the know of what is going on.
?Because it?s a high school, parents typically help out more with booster club type events than show up at meetings,? she said. ?This allows them to be at the school once a month and meet (with their children?s) principal and teachers.?
The school currently has an e-mail network that sends updates to parents on what is going on around school, but a new service called Seahawk News will begin rotation in the upcoming weeks.
?The Seahawk News will let parents know the calendar, sporting events and testing,? said Dargavell. ?Down the road I would like to see it made into a very nice newsletter as our first line of communication.?

South Walton High to begin monthly parent meetings


Sean Boone
2008-02-21 10:35:00
In an attempt to inspire more parent-school interaction at South Walton High School, administrators will begin holding a monthly Seahawk Parent Roundtable meeting starting Tuesday, Feb. 26, at 6 p.m. in the student media center.
The meeting will allow parents to talk with teachers, guidance counselors and Principal Mark Ewing about such issues as the FCAT, school performance grades, college prep and what is happening at the school.
?It?s an avenue for better communication,? said South Walton Principal Mark Ewing. ?We are open to talk about anything positive. The first meeting we will shake it out and see what people want to do.?
The school once held a PTO, but for more than a year there have been no formal meetings between parents and faculty.
Ewing said the meetings will encourage parents the opportunity to make a difference in the school.
?Where do we want to go as a school and as a community?? he said. ?What can we do to make the school the best in the Panhandle of Florida??
Parent Jenny Dargavell, who brought the idea to Ewing earlier this year, said the meetings are great for the parents who feel they aren?t in the know of what is going on.
?Because it?s a high school, parents typically help out more with booster club type events than show up at meetings,? she said. ?This allows them to be at the school once a month and meet (with their children?s) principal and teachers.?
The school currently has an e-mail network that sends updates to parents on what is going on around school, but a new service called Seahawk News will begin rotation in the upcoming weeks.
?The Seahawk News will let parents know the calendar, sporting events and testing,? said Dargavell. ?Down the road I would like to see it made into a very nice newsletter as our first line of communication.?

:clap::clap::clap:

This is on my calendar. I hope I can make it over there.

Better yet, I hope WE can make it over!

way to go jdarg and swhs!!!:wave: highschoolers need lots of parent participation! this is great.

Hey SWHS parents- hope to see you tonight. Here is your chance to participate in your child's high school education and life! Bring your questions, ideas, and big plans!!

Future SWHS parents are of course welcome too- :wave:

I also encourage all parents to show up for this. By meeting the teachers/admins you let them know that you are taking a large part of your childs life seriously. Most teachers/staff there know me on a first name basis, know exactly which kids are mine, and I am sure that they wont hesitate to call me if an issue comes up with my kids. I am positive there have been times when they hate to see me coming, although not so much recently as in years past. (Pretty sure I have caught a former principle trying to hide before...but it didnt work. 😀) But it also shows your child that you really DO CARE about them. Yea, some at this age might be embarrassed by your presence, but I explained to mine that I was doing it so they didnt embarrass ME and it seemed to give them pause ;-) While work doesnt allow me to come to this one I will be there in spirit. And will someone please reiterate for me how teaching only the FCAT does more harm than good. I realize that it is messing with their $$$....but come on...:bang: I wanted my kids to get a good education, not have them be used to determine if the teachers were doing their jobs.

Great post- thanks Jodi. Hope you can make the meeting in March!

No prob... if it hadnt been for parents getting involved and "squeaking" the school situation in SOWAL (or lack thereof) wouldnt have been what it is now. And I want them to know that we as parents really do outnumber them when it comes to the power we give them in our childrens lives. I also think that if something like this had come to be a bit sooner that there wouldnt have been a "Blithe Spirit" issue as they would have known that the parents outnumbered the the parishioners of some church in a different county.

Thanks for doing this! If I had a kid at SoWal High I would have to buy you dinner afterward.

Thanks to everyone attending last night's meeting. We had a great crowd!

It was a great start in strengthening the bond between the school and the parents. Principal Ewing explained FCAT and the school grade system (A school, B school, etc) in great detail and I finally have somewhat of a grasp on the meaning. FCAT does cause a lot of headache for admin and teachers, but it appears to be here to stay for awhile, so as parents we need to offer all the support we can. Our principals and teachers have no control over FCAT- they are just as frustrated as we are!

In the next month, parents will work in small groups on 3 issues- block scheduling, more classroom space, and an online grade system. We will be able to help the principal and school with these issues and hopefully effect change and improvement at the district level. For a first meeting, we really made some headway!

Thanks to the teachers and staff present- they were very helpful! We really have a great school and it is getting better and better.

Next month's Seahawk Roundtable will be March 25th, 6 pm. If you would like to be part of one of the small groups mentioned above, please PM me and I will put in in touch with the group.

Way to go Jen-ay!!!! :clap: I am providing a link to the online grading system that our school uses. Perhaps someone form SWHS might want to contact them, and see if it would meet the needs there. I really like the system alot. Good luck in all your endeavors!

STI

Way to go Jen-ay!!!! :clap: I am providing a link to the online grading system that our school uses. Perhaps someone form SWHS might want to contact them, and see if it would meet the needs there. I really like the system alot. Good luck in all your endeavors!

STI

Thanks Kathy! I will forward this.

Thanks to everyone attending last night's meeting. We had a great crowd!

It was a great start in strengthening the bond between the school and the parents. Principal Ewing explained FCAT and the school grade system (A school, B school, etc) in great detail and I finally have somewhat of a grasp on the meaning. FCAT does cause a lot of headache for admin and teachers, but it appears to be here to stay for awhile, so as parents we need to offer all the support we can. Our principals and teachers have no control over FCAT- they are just as frustrated as we are!

In the next month, parents will work in small groups on 3 issues- block scheduling, more classroom space, and an online grade system. We will be able to help the principal and school with these issues and hopefully effect change and improvement at the district level. For a first meeting, we really made some headway!

Thanks to the teachers and staff present- they were very helpful! We really have a great school and it is getting better and better.

Next month's Seahawk Roundtable will be March 25th, 6 pm. If you would like to be part of one of the small groups mentioned above, please PM me and I will put in in touch with the group.

I understand that the district is in the middle of implementing a system called Dashboard that is going to allow parents access to grades. I will check with the spouse tonight to make sure that is what is going on and see if she has heard of a time frame for implementation.

What are their concerns with block scheduling? Like it? Hate it?

I understand that the district is in the middle of implementing a system called Dashboard that is going to allow parents access to grades. I will check with the spouse tonight to make sure that is what is going on and see if she has heard of a time frame for implementation.

What are their concerns with block scheduling? Like it? Hate it?

Apparently Dashboard has a lot of problems and may be a loser.

Block scheduling? Hate it. So do most parents. SWHS is too small for it to really work well.

How is the football team looking for 2008?:idontno: