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| Please Welcome Our New Superintendent |
 The Touchet School District would like to extend a warm welcome to Dr. Eugene "Skip" Berquam as our new superintendent. Dr. Berquam has a vast amount of experience which he will bring with him to Touchet. Most recently, he was the Business and Operations Manager for East Valley School District in Spokane. He has also filled two interim superintendent positions since he retired in similar sized districts to Touchet.
Dr. Berquam completed his Ph.D. at the University of Florida in the areas of Special Education and Psychology in 1981. He also earned his superintendents credential from the University of Washington during the 80’s. Over the years, he has a variety of successful experience with fiscal management, technology, assessment, and the application of data driven practices.
Holly, Dr. Berquam’s wife, is a retired High School Counselor and administrator. They have two children; Michael, age 25 and Scott, age 22. Michael works in retail sales. Scott will be serving our country in Iraq this coming fall. Superintendent Berquam will be officially in Touchet by mid-July and will be working part-time. If you happen to be visiting the school after we reopen in August, feel free to introduce yourself to him.
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 As the State fiscal picture shapes up, our district will be in a better position to understand the amount of reductions that our programs and or staff must face.
We will know in a day or so whether or not the legislature will go into an extended session which will extend our "not knowing" what ramifications the final state fiscal budget will have on our progams and staff.
As our state appropriations and federal fiscal resources become better identified, the administration and school board will make sure it sends out reassuring messages to its community members that it will do all that it can to stem the tide of reduction in resources that can tarnish its programs and hence retrict its efforts to provide effective and efficient educational programs.
We are all eagerly awaiting official word as to what the Governor and legislature's final fiscal picture for education will be like...stay tuned as we await the results of the legislatures efforts to bring back quality educational funding to us.
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SPECIAL PROGRAMS INFORMATIONAL MEETING Date Change To:
Wednesday, MARCH 24, 2010 (Date Change)
6:00 P.M. IN THE HIGH SCHOOL COMMONS
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| The Local Levy and its necessaity |
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With the expiration of the District’ s current two-year General Fund Maintenance and Operations Tax Levy, it appears certain that the money which will be available for the General Fund for the school years 2010-2011, 2011-2012 and 2012-2013 will be insufficient to permit the District to meet the educational needs of its students and pay general expenses of educational programs, maintenance and operations support thereof, all as more particularly set forth in Section 2 of this resolution, during such school years, and that it is necessary that a replacement excess tax levy of $676,546 be made in 2010 for collection in 2011, and $684,355 be made in 2011 for collection in 2012, and $684,355 be made in 2012 for collection in 2013 for the District’s General Fund to provide the money required to meet those expenses.
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| School Levy Issues in 2010 Legislative Session |
The top priority of the 290 some school district superintendents in the state of Washington is Ample funding for the state's school systems. Paramount to that is the protection and restoration of the school levy base, which will require immediate legislative action to avoid even greater local reductions.
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| A Warm Welcome to My Superintendent's Blog |
Dear School District Supporters:
I am writing today to welcome you and your family to the Touchet School District and to encourage you to remain involved in your child’s education, both inside and outside of the classroom. Your involvement will help your sons and daughters be more successful now and in the future.
Our children need all of our support to reach their potential as great thinkers, innovators and leaders. The commitment we make now will benefit our state and country as they become citizens of the world, competing and collaborating in an ever-changing global landscape.
Educators play a critical role of teaching knowledge and skills but children’s attitudes toward school and their habits of studying, reading and learning, are largely developed at home.
Studies have consistently linked parental involvement with higher student grades and test scores, more positive student attitudes and behaviors, and improved school environments. Family participation in education was found to be twice as predictive of academic learning as family socioeconomic status.
There are many ways to be involved with your child’s learning. This includes not only establishing routine homework habits but also making time to get to know your child’s teacher and other staff members at his or her school and asking how your child can find success this school year.
I pledge to work tirelessly on behalf of the children in kindergarten through 12th grade to ensure they are prepared for college and careers in the 21st century. Please join me in this pledge so that our children can be successful in the 2009-10 school year and beyond.
I will attempt to send a message via the superintendent’s blog to interested students, parents, staff, and community patrons and do so in as timely a manner as possible.
Thanks for support our students, staff, and school.
Sincerely,
Dan McDonald
Superintendent of Schools
Touchet School District
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