River Forest Educator - English Edition 

River Forest Educator - Spanish Edition

Car Rider Drop Off & Pick up Instructions

Parent call out for support!!!

Indiana State Board of Education

Graduation Pathways Panel Recommendations 

The River Forest Community School Corporation and Board of Trustees oppose the current recommendations for Graduation Pathways. If you have heard about the pathways, you know that the State Board of Education is pushing this concept through without getting much input from schools, parents, or other concerned entities. 

If this initiative were enacted today, the state graduation rate would drop by more than 25% and River Forest would move from 80% graduation rate to 47%.

We share concerns with Dr. McCormack (the State Superintendent of Public Education), superintendents, principals and teachers across the state. It is our opinion that the State Board should host public forums across the state – without your help, however, they may vote to approve the current pathways as early as December 6^th.

We believe that the current proposals are detrimental and discriminatory towards special education students, second language learners, and students of poverty. Although we support some areas, we believe that some of the benchmarks are detrimental to our student’s economic futures. 

• We have concern with the obtainment of the amount of dual credits, advanced placement, and CTE credits when we have a severe teaching shortage that can compromise a districts ability to provide highly qualified staff to teach these areas.
• We have concern for our special education honors students that have earned a high GPA and college credit but may require special accommodations for the SAT and ACT. We have found that it is difficult working with the College Board in obtaining the accommodations. When these accommodations are obtained, it is difficult to arrange these for 2^nd and 3^rd examination opportunities for these students.
• We also believe that the career pathways have a negative impact on special education students and the school districts.  

To view the Graduation Pathway document in its entirety please click HERE

What can you do? E-mail state board of Education members click HERE for a directory (especially Gov Holcomb and Speaker Bosma)

Preliminary Spring 2017 Istep scores available. Please read the parent information letter here.

Promising Practices Recognized

Meister and Evans Elementary Schools were recognized by the State of Indiana as having 1 of 200 notable Promising Practices to be recognized in the State.

Click here to read more

Internet Essentials from Comcast

Affordable Internet at Home for Eligible Households ($9.95/mo)

Click here for information on Comcast deals on internet services

Meister to focus on Attendance for the 2016-17 School Year

For the first time ever, Meister’s attendance rate has dipped below the state average to 95.5% - the state average is 95.8%.  This may not seem like a huge deal, but in reality, a few tenths of a percentage point make all the difference and represent MANY days of student absence.    

Recently, Meister school banded together to re-vamp our school-based goals . . . in the process of examining the data, it was discovered that specific actions needed to be taken to help increase our attendance rate.        

As a school (and as a reflection of our community), we are expected to have an attendance rate no lower than the state average.  In reality, attendance matters.  The literal translation of all this . . . Your children need to be in school unless they are too sick to attend, and it is your job as a good parent to see that this is taken care of.

I personally would like to thank every family whose children have perfect or near-perfect attendance.  In all reality, the overwhelming majority of our children have fine attendance, and this reminder is not meant to upset those households that strive for good attendance.  It is, however, meant to bring attention to a problem that can easily - and rightfully so - be solved in the home.

All of our efforts will not change our poor attendance rate unless we get support from each and every parent in the Meister school community.  Please see to it that your child is in school every day possible and we will continue to see to it that we give him/her the best education that we possibly can.

If you have any questions, comments or suggestions, please feel free to call over to Meister.

School Times