Superintendent previews high school facility priorities and new kindergarten 'switcheroo' plan

Dr. Summer (Dr. Schultz) told the Brookings School District board that the district will present a facility plan focused on the high school's highest-priority needs — including bathrooms, roofing and plumbing — at a workshop the following day to help guide next steps and prioritization.

Schultz said a districtwide asset list is being developed and that the high school building currently has greater needs. She also summarized boundary committee work reviewing configurations among elementary and intermediate buildings and noted the district’s policy to review boundaries at least annually.

Tana Stadler, preschool–fifth-grade director of academic instruction and special programs, described a proposed ‘switcheroo’ kindergarten model to begin next fall. Under the plan, incoming kindergartners would spend a week rotating through different classrooms with a temporary home-base teacher who would handle morning and dismissal procedures and meet with families. The rotations are intended to give teachers better, more-current observational data on each child’s social, emotional and academic strengths so homerooms can be balanced by personality and learning style and to reduce separation anxiety for students entering school.

Stadler said the district is coordinating parent meetings, registration and immunization requirements and exploring grant funding to support the Waterford early-literacy program through second grade. An initial family session attracted about 100 attendees; the next meeting was scheduled for Wednesday at 4 p.m. Board members asked logistics questions about junior kindergarten and how Waterford implementation might extend into additional grades.

No board action was taken during the report; the topics were set for further discussion at upcoming workshops and committee meetings.