September Meeting - Warren Township School Board President - Tony Mendez
Tonight our Guest Speaker was Anthony Mendez, President of the Warren Township School Board. Anthony and his children are graduates of Warren Township High School. He came tonight with a disclaimer that he was not here speaking on behalf of the school board.
A few fun facts about Warren Township Schools, they are the biggest employer in Warren Township, with over 1700 students. As Tony put it, the Board is there to act as a Steward of the Public's money.
We asked Tony to speak about what he felt is important for Club Members and Residents of Warren Township to know. Tony came prepared filled with passion and information that was really insightful.
His dialog opened with what the School Board facilitates. The main functions he brought up are: Hiring and Firing the Superintendent, Approve the Annual Budget, Personal Reports, New Policies and work closely with NEOLA. NEOLA's function is to help the Township stay current with state and federal laws. Tony also mentioned functions the School Board does NOT facilitate, they do not: Hire and Fire teachers, Select Football Coaches, or Work for the District. The School Board also holds monthly meetings, where they have the pleasure of showcasing and spotlighting students, teachers, and administrators.
Tony felt it was important to mention accountability, which the School Board is held accountable by the Indiana Department of Education Office of Accountability. Every year the DOE Releases a report, grading the schools on an A-F accountability scale. The results of the evaluation are published in their Annual Performance Report. Click the image below to view the entire report.
https://www.doe.in.gov/accountability/annual-school-performance-reports
Warren Township School District was a recipient of the Federal Race to the Top Grant. When Tony presented this information he made it known "because they received the grant it does not mean they are teaching new math". He wanted to stress the important aspects brought to the district, without new math. Aspects such as, reorganized classrooms that allowed for breaking things up into sessions and stations allowing students to work independently and collaboratively with other students. The grant helped add on to the Walker Career Center, a career and technical school for high school students. Also, 1 to 1 laptop computers for middle school students.
Tony was a great presenter and this is only a fraction of the information he presented to the club. He spoke about the individuality and achievements of the schools, he was very passionate about each one. A little bit of the past a where he foresees the future going. I encourage you to head over to their website and attend their next meeting:
http://www.warren.k12.in.us/school-board
Finally, head on over to BoardDocs and check out all the information you have at your fingertips as current or future residents of Warren
http://www.boarddocs.com/in/msdwt/Board.nsf/Public
