Welcome back to school Dickinson

Talk about it

The school year began Wednesday and I would like to welcome all students and parents to the new school year.

It was an active and busy summer in the school district and there are some exciting developments in the Dickinson Public Schools that I would like to share with the community.

With the arrival of students, a large kindergarten class enrollment continues to increase in the school district.

As of Aug. 22 the enrollment in the district was 2,911 students. This number represents an increase of 131 in the kindergarten-six grades, an increase of 57 in grades seven-eight and a decrease of three students at Dickinson High School.

These numbers represent a total increase of 185 students across the district. Additionally, the kindergarten class this year is the largest class in the school district since 1992 with an enrollment of 273 students.

The school district has adequate space to accommodate this number of students. While a few classes are larger, the average class sizes in the elementary grades are 20-21 in grades kindergarten through second, 24 in grade three, 22 in grade four and 25-26 in grades five and six.

However, we know that next school year we will need additional classroom space just to accommodate our current enrollment. This brings us to the topic of Prairie Rose Elementary.

Construction on K-5 elementary school (Prairie Rose) is underway and on schedule.

The school is scheduled to be open in the fall of 2013 and has been designed to accommodate three classrooms per grade level and the classroom space is crucial for the district to meet its space needs next year.

Periodically there will be pictures posted on the district’s website providing progress on the new elementary school. The pictures may be viewed at http://www.dickinson.k12.nd.us/prairerose/index.html.

Each school building in the district operates a Parent Advisory Council (PAC) that is designed to encourage parental engagement in the schools and district. The PAC provides information for the parents that attend the monthly meetings. Additionally, the PAC members assist with various activities and events in the schools that are designed to benefit the students and staff.

The PAC is a crucial element of the district’s effort to provide information and communicate with its constituents. I encourage parents to visit with the building principal to identify when the meetings occur and become involved in the PAC.

If you have any questions about these topics or any other issue in the Dickinson Public Schools, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Dickinson Public Schools superintendent Sullivan can be reached at 701-456-0002 or at douglas.sullivan@dickinson.k12.nd.us.

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