CCS System Update
February 2024
National Board Certified Teachers
Congratulations and celebrations are in order…The National Board for Professional Teaching Standards recently released its state rankings. Alabama ranked 11th in the nation, showcasing a remarkable total of 3,634 National Board Certified teachers (NBCTs) across the state. The commitment to educational excellence is vividly displayed as Alabama also secured the 5th position nationwide in welcoming 199 new NBCTs in December of 2023!
In Alabama, Cullman City is one of 4 school systems that have 20% or more of their teachers who are NBCTs. We would like to recognize the three newest NBCTs in our school system
Stephanie Carver
Lindsay Harris
Denise Burroughs
Junior Varsity Cheerleaders
On behalf of the Board of Education, it is my honor to recognize the CHS Junior Varsity cheerleaders who won the Division II Gameday National Championship earlier this month while competing in the UCS Nationals Competition in Orlando, Florida. Congratulations to these student athletes and thank you coaches for the time and effort put into our student athletes.
Safety and Growth Plan Updates
Cullman Middle School
Demolition of the round building and FACS building is nearing its final stages and we are preparing to begin the footprint on the next phase of the new build.
Soccer and Multipurpose Complex
Demolition of both buildings on this property have been completed. Excavation to subgrade should be completed by the end of this week and removed from the site. Drainage installation will begin this week along with curb installation and the perimeter netting pole installation will begin the last week of February. Our goal is to have FieldTurf on site installing turf by the end of March and try to get a few games on the new surface before the end of the regular season.
CIS and CHS/CTE Building
In January, we met with applicable teacher groups for both of these projects to gather input on design. Earlier this month we spent a day with Lathan Architects to put the finishing touches on the design phase of these projects. The architects will now work with the engineers to develop the specifications and drawings in an effort to bid these projects by this summer.
Smaller Projects
Outdoor Classroom
We have a reasonable bid for an outdoor classroom to be put in on the corners of Hoehn and Stadium Drives. This will be an amphitheater style setting with a concrete and grass surface which will include sidewalks and lighting and seat up to 100 students. The outdoor classroom will be mostly used by CCPS and CHS students but available to all students in the Cullman City School System during, before or after school. This is an ESSER funded project with an emphasis on improving air quality.
CCPS 2nd grade Playground
The site work has been completed and we anticipate awarding the bid for equipment in the March board meeting with a summer completion date. This is an ESSER funded project with an emphasis on improving air quality.
Baseball and Softball Ticket Booth Pavilions
Both of these projects are at CHS and should be completed prior to the end of March. These pavilions will provide shelter and power for our employees who work gates. Each structure will compliment the current architectural design at both athletic facilities. A special thanks to Senator Garlan Gudger who helped fund these projects.
Ice Days Follow-up
The State Superintendent of Education, Dr. Eric Mackey, has graciously forgiven us for the missed instructional days due to the January ice storm. These days will not have to be made up, however it is imperative that we maximize the instructional days we have the remainder of this school year.
Middle Grades Innovation Grant
We recently received a grant just shy of $200,000.00 to support STEM education in the middle grades (4th-6th) at East and West Elementary Schools. These funds will compliment the work we are doing with STEM education across our school system. The furniture, technology, materials and supplies funded through this grant will be used this current school year and will serve as a foundation to the STEM area which will be located at Cullman Intermediate School. Kudos to Mrs. Lindsay Brannon who researched and wrote this grant.
Pre-School Registration
Registration opened on January 15th and the lottery will be held on March 1st at 1:00. Below is more information on the Cullman City School System Preschool registration process. If you have questions please contact Mrs. Elizabeth Shaddix eshaddix@cullmancats.net or Mrs. Marci Watts mwatts@cullmancats.net.
Literacy Act
In May of 2019, the Alabama Literacy Act was enacted. The Alabama Literacy Act was established to improve the reading proficiency of public school kindergarten through 3rd grade students and ensure that those students are able to read at or above grade level by the end of the 3rd grade. This school year is the first year the requirements of the Act will be fully implemented. One requirement is for 3rd grade students who are not reading at grade-level, as indicated on the ACAP, to be retained in third grade.
Throughout the school year, teachers will provide parents feedback on how their children are progressing in reading using benchmark tools like DIBELS and iReady. Third grade students who do not meet the score on ACAP will be required to attend a mandatory summer reading camp in June. At the conclusion of the reading camp the identified students will have one more opportunity to take the ACAP and show that they are reading at a third grade level or above.
The third grade teachers at both East and West are very strong and receive tremendous support, however it is going to take a team (teacher, parent and student) to reach the 100% threshold.
Strategic Commitments
Recently, the Cullman City Board of Education approved the new Strategic Plan and Strategic Commitments. The entire plan is located on the school system website (https://www.cullmancats.net). Some of the highlights from the six broad areas include:
Student Support and Safety
Safe learning environments
Access to related services
Increase modes of communication
Technology
Enhancing devices and connectivity
Safe and secure networks
Professional development and support
Curriculum and Assessment
Rigor, critical thinking and creativity
Alignment of assessments and intended outcomes
More academic and extracurricular opportunities
Employees
Consistent expectations from campus to campus
Continuous training on 21st century transferable skills
Seek the best educators
Finance and Resources
Financial transparency
Increase community and industry partnerships
Budget for the Board’s vision
Facilities
Clean learning environments on all campuses
Plan for comprehensive Cullman Intermediate School (3-5)
Expand preschool programs
Tech Check
Our Tech Department continues to work diligently to stay on top of technology issues in our system and educate our teachers and students on new or emerging technology. We are fortunate to have access to an incredible amount and variety of technology, but with that comes the task of launching new items, repairing issues that arise and preparing our teachers and students to best use that technology. In the coming weeks, Mrs. Waldrop will be revealing a fantastic update to the technology webpages of our District website. These new pages will be full of information (tips, videos, and opportunities to sign up for training) on the many pieces of technology available in our system. This includes hardware and applications. Mrs. Waldrop and Mrs. Drake want to increase the time they spend with teachers and students preparing them to effectively integrate technology into our classroom management and learning activities.
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The Bottom Line
Full financial statements can be found on the Cullman City Schools website by clicking here.
The month of December is 1) 25% into the fiscal year. Revenues were at 2) 26.51% while
expenditures were at 3) 25.72%. Our total net operations were 4) $38,084. Total assets were
5) $11.25 M. We ended the month with a fund balance of 6) $11.25 M which brings us to
7) 3.53 months of reserves.
Kyle Kallhoff, Superintendent
Email: kkallhoff@cullmancats.net
Website: https://www.cullmancats.net/
Location: 301 1st Street Northeast, Cullman, AL, USA
Phone: (256)734-2233
Twitter: @kkallhoff