Congratulations and Thank You for a Successful School Year!

Dear Orting Students, Families, Staff and Citizens:

A demanding but productive school year is drawing to a close. Before we breathe a huge sigh of relief and launch into summer break, it is fitting to take a moment or two to reflect on how far we have come and where we are headed.

First, I want to recognize each of you for the dedication, talent, energy and care you bring to your work. Together, we are making a visible difference for our students, families and community.

This year we set our sights on some challenging Board goals in the areas of staff, building capacity, student achievement, college and career readiness, resource management, and community engagement. In spite of the challenges, we have focused on what matters most—ensuring our students are learning and that we continue to grow as a staff and district. Over the past year, we worked toward implementing the Common Core State Standards, enhancing performance on state assessments and increasing graduation rates.

Some academic accomplishments I’d like to highlight include:
• Forty-Two Orting High School seniors were awarded a total of $537,517 in scholarships and grants.
• Orting High School earned a third consecutive Washington Achievement Award for High Performance & Growth in Reading.
• In addition, Orting High School was also named a School of Distinction based on significantly increasing student achievement.
• The District implemented all-day kindergarten at Orting Primary School in January.
• Based on research, best practice and community input, the District will implement a new K-5 configuration next year, adding Kindergarten, First and Second grades to Ptarmigan Ridge.

To better engage our external stakeholders, we worked to build stronger communications with legislators, key state educational leaders, community leaders and others to advocate for legislation in support of strategies to increase student achievement and sustainable funding for schools. In addition, we strove to enhance communications by implementing social media (Facebook and Twitter) and launching our mobile application.

Across the district, we’ve worked on improving efficiency and reducing costs. With strong support from our community, we now have a renewed educational levy to support classroom learning and provide critical resources to our district.

These accomplishments reflect the dedication, perseverance and collaboration of staff and community partners throughout our community. You could certainly add many more achievements worthy of celebration in each of our schools and departments. This year has seen improvements initiated at every school by creative teachers, administrators and staff.

Educating our children for a successful future is important and influential work. I want to recognize your daily contributions in providing the richest experience possible for our students. In ways large and small, each of you has made a positive difference for kids this year. If I haven’t had an occasion to express this to you in person, please know that I deeply value your efforts and your commitment. I hope you have an opportunity to rest and re-energize over the summer.

For those staff members who are retiring after serving the district for so many years, I wish you the best. You have contributed immensely to the success of our district. I hope you have great enjoyment in this next phase of your life.

Thank you, again, for an outstanding 2013-14 school year and I look forward to an even better one next year.

Sincerely,

Michelle Curry
Superintendent