SPS Staff and Families,

One week left. Next week is filled with end of year activities like the Senior Walk, 5th grade graduations, and of course Graduation, 7pm at Gallagher Iba Arena.  It’s been an amazing year. Let’s stay the course and finish out strong!

 

 

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I Love Stillwater - Teachers and Staff

 

Thank you to the numerous PTOs and PTAs, parents, businesses, and organizations that have heaped snacks, gifts, and thank you notes on our staff during Teacher Appreciation Week! A special shout out to Simmons Bank for spreading the love next week with a delivery of special treats to each of the schools on Monday to show their appreciation. Our teachers deserve appreciation every week! 

 

I don’t know how many teachers  I’ve learned from, worked alongside, or served as a principal and now superintendent. With my many years in education and knowing we currently have more than 400 teachers in the district, I’d estimate it to be more than a thousand teachers who have come into my life.

 

I was a teacher. I married a teacher. I surround myself with teachers. I truly, truly believe these people, along with the support staff of our schools make the world a better place every single day. But I’m not going to talk about teachers in general. This is my “I Love Stillwater” section, so allow me to be  more specific.

 

Larry Hesler, Laura Flesner, Rebecca Reese, Susan Weaver, Julie Farrington, Kris Fowler, Brett Stokes, and so many others are teachers that have had a profound impact on thousands of Pioneers. Staff members like Sam Burri, Kyle and Kayla Kilby, Charles Krajacic, Debbi Kemp, Cathy our custodian, Mark Schooley support student learning in countless ways. 

 

This district is special. Our staff and faculty are exceptional. We see it in awards like Melissa Kifer being named the Special Services Director of the Year, Jennifer Crosthwait’s Ag in the Classroom Awards, our 8 consecutive years as a Best Community for Music Education, a complete sweep of last year’s Discovery Awards, state athletic championships, best FFA programming in the nation, Blue  Ribbon school designation, and more Academic State Championships than any school in the state. It’s a community where teachers know they are supported, and supported because they’re good.

 

But the greatest evidence of how our Stillwater teachers and staff are exceptional will walk across the stage next Friday night. Hundreds of Pioneers shaped by their time from PreK-12th grade in Stillwater Public Schools will go out and do great things in the world. They’ll become engineers, mechanics, health care workers, pilots, first responders, moms, business owners, accountants, dads, soldiers, scientists, and more. 

 

And some of those amazing students, some of them, will hear the call and go to work as teachers and school staff and follow in the footsteps of those that inspired them and make the world a better place every single day.

 

 

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Testing, Testing.

 

Testing is done! It looks as if each site achieved 99% or above in participation in all testing categories. This is outstanding. This takes a  lot of time, effort, and planning to achieve.

 

Preparing. Testing. Make-up testing. I know standardized testing is no one’s favorite. But measurement of growth is important. While differences in towns, community values, socioeconomics, and other factors make it really hard to use standardized testing to compare one community to another, or even one school to another, it’s important to have metrics for a district to use to measure its progress against its own year to year data.  I appreciate everyone’s hard work on testing this year!

 

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It Feels like Summer

Keep the learning and activities going this summer. SPS and OSU Coaches camps, Prairie Arts Theater Camp, Arts Camps, Free Bowling, and more at www.stillwaterschools.com/summer  

 

 

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Shout out to our Shout-outer!

Friday was National School Communications Professionals Day, so thank you to our PR and Communications Coordinator Barry Fuxa! Most people think about pictures and social media when it comes to school communications jobs, but, at least in our case the position includes being a media contact, crisis communications, website management, data, graphic design, and brand management. His work as PR/Communications Coordinator for SPS is second to none. He also asked for permission to share a message and some of his favorite pics from this year. Take it away, B…

 

Being a school communications professional is an amazing job, and I’m sure even more so here in Stillwater than anywhere else. Much like Mr. Gordon, I say “I love Stillwater” a lot, but since I joined the district in 2019, I’ve only come to love and appreciate this town and SPS even more. The teachers, administrators, support staff, community members, parents, and students I’ve met astound me on a daily basis. Our kids do amazing things, win prizes, claim titles, and are amazing people. I do a lot of things, but my favorite thing to do is trying to capture moments. Not the posed, looking-at-the-camera moments (though those are great too), but the moments when students and staff don’t even know I have a camera pointed at them. Moments of joy over candy, music, and games. Instances of kids being kind or silly, teaching each other, or watching their peers do amazing work on the field. Friends young and old connecting. Children caught up in pretending. New teachers learning from seasoned ones. 

 

 

Now my absolute favorite pic I’ve taken this year is of this guy. When I ask people, “what’s he looking at?” everyone answers, “his team,” and if that was true, I’d really like this picture. 

But he’s looking at his wife. This is the only picture I’ve ever taken that I’ve named. It’s called “Joy.”

 

I love capturing moments like these to share with those in our community to show them the great things and the great human beings that are in Stillwater Public Schools every day. There are so many great things to try to capture in Stillwater Public School and communicate out, it’s dizzying to try to keep up.

 

I especially appreciate all the other staff and boosters in the district from individual sites, athletics, and activities that work to keep me informed of fun things to share and important things to address. I look forward to continuing to work with each of you to help us always move towards better communication and more community awareness of the awesome things happening in your programs. It’s an honor to be in this job in this place. Thank you, all.

 

 

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Pioneer Proud

 

• Boys Golf finished 4th in the state this year.

• Baseball won their first game in the State Tournament and are facing Westmoore this afternoon.

• Sophie Deng’s original composition “Summer Night Gondola” premiered at last Thursday night’s Orchestra concert. Give it a listen at www.stillwaterschools.com/paclive.
  

• Emery Fuxa and Alex Seojoon Kim are recipients of the Oklahoma Education Awards for Arts Excellence in Instrumental Music
  

 

 

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Don’t Miss - www.stillwaterschools.com/calendar 

• Now - 5.17 - 6th grade art show at Prairie Arts

• 5.13 - Senior Walk

• 5.17 - Graduation @ 7pm in Gallagher Iba Arena

• Check out summer activities at www.stillwaterschools.com/summer 

• 8.15 - First Day of School

• 9.24 - SPEF Celebration of Education

• 3.4.25 - Taste of Stillwater

 

 

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I love Stillwater,

 

Uwe Gordon
Superintendent
Stillwater Public Schools