-
Bethel School District maintains high graduation rat...
Bethel School District maintains high graduation rates in 2021-2022 school year The Bethel School District sees high rates of on-time student graduations, topping three major metro-area districts and state average Bethel has reason to celebrate! Graduation rate data released Thursday by the Oregon Department of Education showed that the Bethel School District saw high rates of on-time graduation in the 2021-22 school year, with 81.7 percent of high school seniors graduating district-wide. The rate topped overall district graduation rates of neighboring Eugene 4J and Springfield districts, as well as statewide graduation rates. Willamette High School, the largest comprehensive high school in Lane County, saw 88.3 percent of its high school seniors graduate on time. This is following Willamette’s highest ever on-time graduation rate of 90.3 percent last school year. In 2022, Willamette had the second highest graduation rate of all high schools in Eugene and Springfield and more than 15 percentage points higher than area high schools with a similar student demographics. “We are thrilled with these graduation rates,” said Bethel Superintendent Kraig Sproles. “These numbers reflect the culmination of work being done by dedicated educators across our district and a cohort of incredibly resilient students. Willamette had the second-highest graduation rate of all seven area high schools, just barely behind South Eugene. In many cases, the social-economic backgrounds for students predict graduation rates. This is not the case with the graduation numbers in the Bethel School District and is evidence that the work being done at both Willamette and Kalapuya is changing the trajectory of our students’ lives.” Kalapuya High School also has the highest graduation rate among alternative high schools of the three major metro-area districts with 45.3 percent of students graduating on time in the 2020-2021 school year. That’s compared with an about 28 percent 26 percent graduation rate for alternative high schools in the Eugene and Springfield School Districts, respectively. Over the last four years, Bethel School District staff have successfully implemented systems of support that allow staff to better understand the specific needs of students based on academics, grades and attendance, among other data points. In addition to creating systems of support for all students, the district in recent years has implemented programs to provide additional support to historically marginalized groups such as students with disabilities, students facing housing and food insecurity, navigating homelessness, or experiencing poverty. Bethel has also focused on offering comprehensive career technical education (CTE) courses and hands-on learning experiences at both high schools, which directly correlate with higher graduation rates.
Thursday, Jan 26 2023
-
Middle School Mentor Program - We need volunteers!
Calling all Bethel parents and volunteers! Can you give 45 minutes a week to make a difference in the lives of middle school students in Bethel? The Bethel Mentor Program pairs caring and committed community members with middle school students who are interested in receiving some extra support. The mentor and mentee meet weekly during lunch for conversation and sharing. Mentoring is currently taking place Shasta Middle School and will expand to Cascade Middle School this month – and we need more mentors! Mentors must commit to volunteering weekly for the 2022-23 school year, pass a criminal background check and participate in a short training. Parents can’t mentor at their student’s, school but can mentor at the other middle school To learn more and complete an application to mentor, please visit www.bethel.k12.or.us/bsdfamilies/ms_mentors/ Thanks for your consideration!
Friday, Jan 20 2023
-
Vaccine Exclusion Day is Feb. 15
Vaccine Exclusion Day Vaccine Exclusion Day is Wednesday, Feb. 15. Families whose students are overdue on their state-required immunizations have been contacted directly by their school health personnel. Students who are not up-to-date on their required immunizations will be excluded from school attendance, on-site programs and after-school activities beginning Wednesday, Feb. 15 until proof of updated shots or exemption paperwork are provided. All required immunizations are available at the Bethel Health Center and families can call 541-607-1430 to make an appointment.
Friday, Jan 13 2023
-
-
-
Bethel Newsletter: January 2022
Happy New Year, Bethel families, staff and community members! This month's newsletter includes an update on strategic planning, local resources and opportunities, bond updates and more. As always, please reach out to communications@bethel.k12.or.us with any questions or concerns. Happy reading! News and Upcoming Events Update: Bethel's Strategic Planning and Visioning Process Surveys + information-gathering complete; Processing underway Thank you to every Bethel community member who took the time to complete our community survey! Your responses will help to guide our strategic planning process and future work. District staff are now working to compile all of the data gathered at our staff and community focus groups, as well as the data gathered in our surveys, to determine common themes. Our Strategic Planning Steering Committee will use that information to make recommendations to district staff. Data and information gathered in this process will be shared back out to staff and families as it's finalized. Stay tuned! Calendar and Upcoming Events Bethel School Calendar January 2 No School K-12 - New Year’s Day Observance 3 No School K-12 - Curriculum/Professional Dev. 4 Students Return - K-12 16 No School K-12 - Martin Luther King Jr. Day February 2 No School Willamette High - WHS Grading Day 3 No School K-12 - Curriculum Development Day 6 Semester 2 begins 20 No school K-12 - Presidents' Day The Eugene/Springfield NAACP will be hosting the 2023 MLK March on Monday, January 16th. Organizations that are interested in tabling at the Hult Center should fill out the form below. After the march, a celebration will be held at the Hult center beginning at 12:30 p.m. that is open to the entire community. For more information visit www.facebook.com/search/top/?q=Eugene%20Springfield%20NAACP Bond Updates Take a sneak peek at the new Willamette Vocational Education Center; see a time lapse of the construction progress for the new Cascade Middle School; and get a bird’s-eye view of the other bond-funded projects underway in Bethel. Give Back: Bethel Scholarship Fund Interested in supporting a high school student in Bethel? The Bethel Scholarship Fund is one of the best ways that you can do just that! The Bethel Scholarship Fund aims to support one graduating senior per school year from each of the Bethel School District’s high schools – Kalapuya High School and Willamette High School – as they transition from their K-12 career to higher education, trade school, or other educational opportunities. Lear more and donate here . Local Resources + Programs + Opportunities Winter Holiday Resource List Food boxes, to-go meals, holiday gift programs and other winter holiday resources are available to families across Lane County. Please see this winter holiday resource list for details about when and where families can get access to food, gifts and more. Food for Lane County Mobile Pantry at Shasta Middle School The Food for Lane County mobile pop-up food pantry is serving Bethel-area families f rom 10:15 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. on January 19 in the Shasta Middle School Parking lot near the ball fields. Beginning in February, the mobile pantry will take place on the first and third Thursdays of the month. Volunteer with 90by30 90by30 is a local initiative to reduce Lane County’s rates of child abuse and neglect 90% by 2030 and is recruiting new volunteers! Eugene Library offers live, online tutors, homework help and more The Eugene Library offers fr ee one-on-one help with online tutors from 1 p.m. to 10 p.m. daily. In addition, practice exercises are available any time and papers can be submitted for review. Learn more at the link above. You must create a free account with the library to access the services. Cascade Family Resource Center The Cascade Family Resource Center is open to all Bethel families from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. on the first and third Thursdays of each month! Families are invited to come in and "shop" for food and essentials, including fresh food, dairy products, breads, canned products, clothes, toiletries and more. Have questions? Contact Shannon Witty at Shannon.Witty@bethel.k12.or.us or call 541-689-0641 ext 3024. What: Cascade Family Resource Center When: 4-6 p.m. every first and third Thursday of the month Where : Cascade Middle School - 1525 Echo Hollow Rd, Eugene, OR 97402. Winter Weather Reminders Now that winter is in full swing, we want to remind families of how they can expect to receive information from the Bethel School District in the event of hazardous weather conditions. When hazardous weather (snow, ice, storms etc.) is a concern, decisions regarding schedule changes are made in the early morning, before school, when current weather conditions can be assessed. Our main concern is the safety of our students and staff. How families will receive information: In the event of school closures or delays due to inclement weather, Bethel families can expect to first be alerted via text message, email, and/or voice message through our ParentSquare system. (Learn how to download the app here ). Bethel families are also encouraged to visit their school website or the Bethel District website at www.bethel.k12.or.us for up-to-date information. Bethel social media sites will also be updated with any closure or delay information. General weather delay information School delays or closures are typically decided by 6 a.m. and announced shortly after. No news = No change . If school closure or delay information is not posted school sites, the district website, district social media pages or news stations, then staff and families can assume we have determined that it is safe to run buses in the district and schools will operate as usual. Follow Bethel School District social media where information on school closures or delays will also be posted. On Twitter at: @ Bethel_Schools and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/BethelSchoolDistrict ParentSquare Tips: How to change your notification settings Y ou can control how and when you receive ParentSquare notifications by setting your notifications to “digest.” When you set your notifications to “digest” you will receive one email and/or one text and/or one app notification that compiles all ParentSquare messages and posts sent to you that day. Changing your settings to “digest” will not keep you from receiving urgent information in an emergency situation (i.e. lockdowns, weather delays, etc.). Such alerts will override individual settings. Here’s how you change your notification settings to “digest”: Set Your Notification Method Go to www.parentsquare.com and log in. Click the drop-down arrow next to your name in the upper right. Select My Account. Click Notification Settings . Select Off , Instant or Digest for each type of notification (Email, Text, App), and for each school or district if there is more than one. Want to learn more about how to change your notification settings? This ParentSquare blog post goes into further details: parentsquare.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/360040910132#h_01F9A14YZX897T811M5JV6WE2H As always, please reach out to Alisha Dodds, Bethel Communications Director, with any ParentSquare questions or concerns.
Tuesday, Jan 03 2023