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The first day of school in La Conner was in the bag. La Conner Middle and High School students received something new during this year's back-to-school routine. Staff distributed magnetized Yondr bags into which students place and lock their cell phones during the school day. They can unlock the pouches to access phones when school lets out. Yondr marks the start of a project designed to increase academic engagement and eliminate distractions in classrooms. By establishing a cell-phone-free zone...
It's only the first full week of school and district officials are already looking ahead to February. The five-month countdown has begun for the next La Conner Schools Educational Programs and Operations replacement levy. School district voters in 2021 approved a four-year levy that will collect $1.02 million for 2024 and $1.05 million in 2025. Those funds are generated by a $1.11 per $1,000 assessed property valuation across the district. That rate is the second lowest among Skagit County...
In recent years, districts are spending a lot more money to keep Washington’s schools running – but state funding isn’t keeping up. That’s according to a new report from the League of Education Voters, which found school districts have increased spending on staff by 19.7% between the 2019-20 and 2022-23 school years. “We’re using an outdated prototypical school funding model to try to take care of kids in 2024,” said one rural school district superintendent quoted in the report. “It’s like trying to use a geometry equation to solve a calculus...
What a difference a year makes. Last summer, La Conner School District officials required a budget extension that forecasted a negative general fund balance, the result of declining student enrollment and loss of pandemic-related federal dollars. That dire scenario landed La Conner in binding conditions, essentially giving the state Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction oversight of La Conner’s finances. On Monday, the school board approved what it called a “lean” $13 million budget for 2024-25 that projects revenues exceeding expen...
La Conner School District Superintendent David Cram and board members approved key goals for the 2024-25 academic year at their study session Monday night. Before the meeting started, the district hired a special education director, a role former superintendent Will Nelson juggled with other administrative duties after special programs coordinator Andy Wheeler retired in 2023. Cram announced that Beth Mills, who has worked in the special education field for two decades, will run special education in La Conner. She comes from the Granite Falls...
The La Conner School Board spent June 24 with interim superintendent David Cram for their annual daylong retreat. They addressed roles, responsibilities and goals for board members. Cram projected a K-12 student enrollment of 460 and beginning fund balance of $535,000 this fall. While the enrollment figure is lower than last year, the fund balance estimate represents a significant improvement. The school district opened 2023-24 in the red. Cram, who returned to La Conner as finance director in...
On June 18, the State of Washington’s Department of Commerce announced that the La Conner School District has won a $1.96 million Community Decarbonization Grant. This new grant will pay for the development, at the La Conner Middle School, of a grid-interconnected solar electric generation system with a capacity of 138.2 kilowatts. Based on the U.S. Department of Energy’s solar generation model, the electricity produced by this system during an average year will be about 140,000 kilowatt-hours....
After four years of struggles and challenges, most notably isolation and remote instruction imposed by the Covid-19 pandemic, the Class of 2024 capped its high school experience with a picture-perfect day. La Conner High School's graduating seniors, an accomplished group comprised of talented scholars, artists, musicians, public speakers and athletes, received their diplomas during seamless and briskly paced commencement exercises held in warm, sunny conditions at Whittaker Field Thursday...
It was hats off to La Conner High School's tribal seniors Thursday, May 30. And hats on, too. That's because those members of the school's Class of 2024 were honored during the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community's annual Cedar Hat Ceremony at Swedebs Park, an upbeat outdoor evening event featuring tributes from speakers that included four Swinomish senators and departing La Conner School District Superintendent Will Nelson, a member of the Blackfeet Nation. The grads, donning their finely woven...
The countdown is on for La Conner High School seniors. Having wrapped up four years of classes, some of which were held remotely due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Class of 2024 will participate in the school's 130th annual commencement exercises at 5 p.m. Thursday, June 6, at Whittaker Field. Nine graduates received National Honor Society recognition for their scholarship, character, leadership and service: Class President Josi Straathof (school board student representative), valedictorian...
An early lesson taught in La Conner schools is that it's far better to give than receive. It's a value that Dean Swanson not only learned but has lived for much of his life. June 1, Swanson, a 1975 La Conner High School graduate, found himself on the receiving end for a change when presented with the school's Outstanding Alumnus award in recognition of his remarkably generous spirit. Swanson's giving nature was highlighted by his grandson, Kenai Zimmerman, Class of 2024, who formally introduced...
The state's top educators want to learn why some Native American students struggle with literacy more than their peers, so they're traveling the state to hear from families. The Swinomish Indian Tribal Community gym was the second stop for Henry Strom, executive director of the Office of Native Education for the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction, and his staff. They came from an information-gathering session in Yakima. Next, they'll talk to Native educators in Suquamish. About 50...
When national Head Start budget cuts announced earlier this year spelled the imminent demise of the Little Braves preschool program, La Conner Elementary School Principal Heather Fakkema reacted with sadness. But not panic. Fakkema was among those who first floated the idea of following up the Little Braves mission with a new educational concept – transitional kindergarten. Transitional kindergarten, which serves students who are at least 4 years old, has been implemented in Washington state and elsewhere to help eligible children prepare fo...
He was raised and again resides on a diversified century-old farm north of town, but more than any single crop it's been goodwill that Dean Swanson has spent a lifetime cultivating. "I've been lucky to have grown up in a community that really cares," Swanson, 67, told the Weekly News. "I had all the support I ever needed. That's why I've always chosen to give back and (my wife) Becky, who's the rock of our family, is in on that with me." Because he mastered the concept of "paying it forward"...
The La Conner School District should enjoy a smooth leadership transition as the school board on Monday appointed finance chief David Cram to succeed Will Nelson as superintendent for one year, starting July 1. Nelson, who is completing his third year leading La Conner schools, announced in April that he will leave the district June 30 for a teaching post at Western Washington University in Bellingham. Rather than conducting a potentially costly external search for Nelson's successor, the board...
Washington’s access to quality preschool services falls below many other states, only serving 16% of 4-year-olds and 8% of 3-year-olds, a new national report found. The National Institute for Early Education Research released its annual preschool report in April and found Washington’s preschool access ranked 33rd for 4-year-olds and 17th for 3-year-olds. The report also found that despite its low rankings for access, Washington scores fairly well for funding for the child-care sector, ranking eighth for state spending. But despite the spe...
The La Conner School Board may not have to look far to find a successor to Dr. Will Nelson. Board president Susie Deyo last week raised the prospect of the school district hiring from within its ranks an acting interim superintendent to succeed Nelson, who is leaving June 30 after three years leading La Conner School District to accept a teaching post at Western Washington University. Deyo shared that option during an hourlong April 18 public “listening session” on campus. She and other board members had held a similar meeting with school sta...
Math is cool again. That’s the message La Conner School Board members heard during their one-hour public meeting Monday night. Math teachers Dan Hansen and Julia Johnson shared with the board via Zoom how the district’s new curriculum has contributed to greater content mastery and perhaps more important, increased student confidence and development of critical thinking skills. Hansen noted how his students now appreciate the role geometry plays in everyday life. “They realize how geometry fits into the world,” said Hansen. “It’s so prevalent i...
La Conner School Board members want input on what approach should be taken as they seek a successor to Superintendent Will Nelson, who is stepping down after three years. Nelson announced earlier this month that he will be leaving June 30 to accept a teaching post at Western Washington University in Bellingham. The board’s superintendent search process began Monday when school staff participated in the first of two listening sessions designed to discuss filling the pending vacancy. The second session, targeting community participation, is at 7...
The La Conner School Board took its first small steps Monday toward finding a new district superintendent. A shorthanded board met for about 15 minutes in closed executive session to discuss the process for hiring a successor to Dr. Will Nelson, who announced his resignation March 29 after three years as the district’s lead administrator. He accepted a teaching post at Western Washington University in Bellingham. No action was taken during the closed portion of the meeting, in part because only School Board President Susie Deyo and board m...
La Conner School District Superintendent Will Nelson, the face of the local district for the past three years, is about to do an about face in terms of his professional career path. Nelson announced in an email to district staff last Friday that he will leave his position in June as lead administrator at La Conner Schools to accept a teaching post with Western Washington University in Bellingham. In an email delivered as students and staff embarked on their weeklong spring break, Nelson did not divulge a specific reason for his departure other...
Swinomish Tribal Senate chair Steve Edwards, a La Conner High School graduate, enjoyed a warm homecoming when he met with school board members March 25. Edwards, known for his conciliatory leadership style, focused his remarks on building bridges between the La Conner School District and Swinomish. “It’s great that we can come to the table and have an open discussion,” said Edwards. “We all grew up together. We all know one another. We’re a community here.” Edwards was the second local elected leader to address the board in recent weeks, foll...
Much has been made the last couple years about tough personnel and program cuts at La Conner schools forced by steadily shrinking student enrollment. But in the most recent example of difficult funding choices – and one not of its making – La Conner is again paying the price. La Conner Elementary School Principal Heather Fakkema told school board members at their March 25 public meeting that pending closure of the popular Little Braves preschool program is rooted in national budget decisions, not local. She said the national Head Start org...
A La Conner fourth grader has learning down to an art form. Halley Oh received a statewide Award of Excellence for Visual Arts, ranking second in her age group (grades 3-5) in the Washington State PTA Reflections Art Contest. The contest theme was "I Am Hopeful Because..." "She did a really good job," La Conner PTA Vice-President Mia Paulson told the Weekly News. "They (the contest judges) obviously saw her talent." Halley's colorful entry illustrates how education makes her feel hopeful. Her...
La Conner Schools officials are bracing for fewer students again this fall. School district financial chief David Cram is projecting 460 full-time K-12 enrolled students in 2024-25, 30 fewer than this year. “That’s the number we’ll use as we build our budget,” he said. The net loss of 30 students translates to a loss for La Conner Schools of about $330,000 in state funds next year. Enrollment is the main driver of support the state provides to its public school districts. Cram told school board members at their March 11 study session that hi...
