Magnifying Glass

Friday Focus

Liz Upton

October 25, 2024

York School Department

Office of the

Superintendent of Schools

Dear Families and Community Members,

  1. The Maine School Management Association's Fall Conference, a significant event for superintendents and school board members, is scheduled for the last week of October. This Fall conference is a crucial platform for us to discuss and learn about important topics in education. I am honored to present the crucial topic of A Comprehensive Approach to School Budgets on Friday. Please participate and contribute to this critical discussion in our schools.   

  1. On Wednesday,  the Maine School Superintendents Association holds its Fall meeting for all Maine superintendents and assistant superintendents.  Since I started my career as a school superintendent, the Maine superintendent and assistant superintendent group has been much smaller in the audience.  The keynote speaker, Thomas Murray, the lead presenter on Leading with the Intention to Foster Sustainable Change, asked the group to discuss someone in your school district who is a leader without holding the leadership role of a school administrator.  Without hesitation, I talked about Neil Rideout, York High School's facility manager. Neil's selfless leadership, willingness to help without being asked, and commitment to doing what is best for the York School Department, the students and staff of York High School, and other schools he can help in the York School Department are truly commendable. Thank you, Neil, for your dedication and being a role model for all of us.

  1. Our first early dismissal for staff development will be on Wednesday, October 30, 2024. The building principals have also notified families. The dismissal times are YMS and YHS, 11:00 a.m., and VES and CRES, 12:00 noon. 

  1. On Tuesday, October 15, 2024, a Bus Transportation Survey was sent to all families.  We received close to 400 responses. This information was critical to developing collaborative solutions that address our continued challenges related to bus driver shortages. Families supported the following potential solutions: 

    a. 68.9% of respondents supported Consolidating Cluster Stops 

    b. 42.1% of respondents supported Redistributing Stops 

    c. 52.8% of respondents supported Instituting a Walker/Biker Radius. 

  1. An update will be sent out early next week as Ledgemere prepares to transition to cluster stops in our current bus runs to accommodate a shortage of bus drivers.  

OneYork MISSION!

  1. Every Friday Focus, we're thrilled to share the progress of our fundraising campaign for the new athletic complex. Thanks to your generosity, we've raised  $5,929.05 so far. Your contributions make a real difference and bring us closer to our goal of $1,063,000. Please consider donating today!

  1. This one-page brochure provides helpful information for families who want to donate to the athletic complex project. The new athletic complex will allow regional and state competitions to be held at York High School.

Timothy L. Doak, Superintendent of Schools