The newest school in Great Bend USD 428, Little Panthers Preschool, hosted its first Board of Education luncheon meeting on Wednesday, Oct. 30. Principal Tandi Mai and Student Family Advocate Taylor Gobin shared information regarding the academic programs and the school improvement efforts there.
“We have the best staff and the cutest clientele in the district,” Mai said.
Enrollment as of Oct. 30 was 245 with 12 families on a waiting list. The preschool is set up to prepare children for kindergarten at Great Bend Public Schools, so 4-year-olds take the FastBridge Fall Benchmark tests of their proficiency in early reading and early math. FastBridge tests are administered to older students in the district to see if they are learning at their grade level or need intervention. There are three scoring tiers, with Tier 1 being the highest and Tier 3 being the lowest. For students in Tier 3, there may be concerns that teachers can address now. Among the students in Tier 1, some at the preschool are already reading and this will be useful information for their future kindergarten teacher so they can build on what they already know.
“Even at this level we are able to write SIP (Student Improvement Plan) information,” Mai said.
Mai reported 93.2% of the students had parents attend the fall parent-teacher conferences.
Gobin shared an on-screen presentation of “A Day in the Life of a Little Panther,” from the Pledge of Allegiance to family style snacks and meals (and learning about brushing teeth), playtime, learning time, nap time and field trips.
“I couldn’t be more proud of the teachers,” Mai concluded. The school opened eight months ago and her plan for Year 2 and Year 3 is to refine what they’re doing and “level up just a bit.” Physical needs are a windbreak outdoors and a tool shed where they can store the tricycles.
Board members and guests were invited to take a tour of the preschool after the meeting.
Wrestling Trip approved
Action items on the agenda were approval of an out-of-state student travel request and approving a donation to the district.
“Any time we go out of state it requires board approval,” Superintendent Khris Thexton said.
The Great Bend High School wrestling team has been invited to attend a tournament in Kearney, Nebraska, on Saturday, Dec. 7. The estimated cost is $3,496, which includes providing a bus, meals and overnight accommodations for one night. The trip was approved.
There was one donation on the agenda. The board approved $443.32 from Dillons for incentive awards to Lincoln Elementary School.
Board member Aaron Emerson raised a question, asking if the multiple permission slips for field trips in town could be reduced. “I got a hand cramp,” Emerson said of the many permission slips he had to sign recently. He suggested this might also be cumbersome for teachers. For example, students had to sign slips to attend the Great Bend Fire Department’s fire safety skit.
Thexton said there might be legalities but the administration can look into it.
