Inside Schools, Bike to Work/School, and District Recogntion

A Message from Superintendent Greg Baker

Dear Families,

I wanted to end this week on a positive note by sharing a few highlights with you. Inside Schools, our community newsletter, was sent out this week and is arriving in our community’s mailboxes. This edition features several great stories about the work our schools are doing to engage students in their learning, integrate the arts into everyday instruction, and help our students take early steps toward college admission. There are also features on our foundation and the school board’s engagement with non-profits and service organizations.

The major focus of the newsletter is our work to build The Bellingham Promise. Feedback on the first draft has been incorporated into the document and Version 2.0 is ready for your review. We’ve posted a short survey on The Bellingham Promise webpage to gather your thoughts on our progress.

Bike to Work/School Day
Deputy Superintendent Tom Venable and I took part in our community’s “Bike to Work / School Day.” On our way in, we stopped by eight schools and really enjoyed the opportunity to meet with students, staff and people across our community. In the photo below, Tom and I visit with eighth graders from Shuksan Middle School at their Bike to School Celebration Station. These students volunteered to staff the station as part of their eighth grade service learning project.

Bellingham Schools Recognized for Early Childhood Commitment
Thanks to funding from the Gates Foundation, Washington State sent a team to Harvard last week for an institute focused on early childhood learning (birth through third grade). In recognition of our community’s commitment to early childhood education and our decision to provide full-time kindergarten to all of our community’s children at no cost, the state specifically requested that the Bellingham superintendent be included in the team. I felt very proud to be a member of our staff and community; it was an honor to represent our organization and it was a great learning opportunity. I look forward to sharing what I learned with many of you as we continue our important work around early childhood education.
I hope you each have a wonderful weekend.

Sincerely,

Greg Baker