Huskie Howl

Fall 2016

Albany Area Schools Community Newsletter

District Building
Project Update
So many exciting things are taking place
with our facility project. With all of our
bid packages in, I am happy to report we
are $1.6 million under budget. Funds
have also been set aside as a contingency
for unexpected costs that may develop
with the project. In the weeks ahead, the
school board will be discussing options
for reinvesting these funds in our schools.

From the

Avon Elementary and Albany Elementary

have the hardware installed to secure
their main entrances. We are working
on a few technical issues and hope to
have functional, secure entrances this
month. Parents and guests who visit our
elementary schools will enter through
the main entrance, use the visitor
management system to alert office
personnel, and be buzzed into the main
office to sign in.

District

The physical changes in our school district are what seem to be the focal point and topic of discussion.
This is great! These improvements are important in securing our entrances and expanding opportunities
for our students, staff, and community. However, what I am most proud of as we end the first month of
our school year is the work within the walls of our facilities.
At the heart of our work is preparing students for the next phase of their learning. The next phase
may be entering kindergarten, moving to the next grade level, and ultimately being college and career
ready. As each school closely examines the progress of its students, I am impressed with our results in
reading, math, and science.
One of our school district goals is to support teachers in their work to be innovative. This means
encouraging teachers to take risks as they create learning opportunities that are new and better for
our students. Many of our teachers have been reading The Innovators Mindset by George Couros to
help us empower learning, unleash talent, and lead a culture of creativity. Preparing students for what
lies ahead is an exciting journey.
When reflecting on all of the positive things taking place in
our schools, I also reflect on this important truth: none of
this could happen without the support of our families and
community. Thanks for seeing the value of our schools and
working with us to create an amazing place to live and learn.

Superintendent Greg Johnson

gregjohnson@district745.org
320-845-2171 x5050
Follow me on Twitter @gregjohnson2283

Photo courtesy of Grant Kulzer

The seven-room addition to Albany

Elementary continues to make progress
(see photos below). This addition will
be completed by January 1. Beginning
in January, our district office staff will
occupy this space at Albany Elementary
so renovations can begin at the secondary
school.
The drone photo depicts the new layout
of our parking lots and bus zones. This
change has gone very well. Any visitors
to the school will use the south entrance,
while the west entrance is designated
for buses, staff, and students. Once
construction is completed next year, we
will recoup 45 additional parking spots.
A large number of transitions will take
place this spring and summer in all Albany
Area Schools. As soon as the school year
ends on May 24, 2017, we will begin
the process of moving many classrooms
to new locations. This includes early
childhood programming, kindergarten,
grade 6, science classrooms, and others
to accommodate our new facilities.

news & updates

School District Selected to
Participate in Q Comp Program
This past July, Albany Area Schools received notice that the
Minnesota Department of Education had approved the districts Q
Comp application. The application was then formally approved by
both by the teachers union and school board, clearing the way for
its implementation. The Albany Area School Sistrict now joins over
80 other school districts in the state participating in this program.
What exactly is Q Comp? In 2005 the Minnesota Legislature,
through a bipartisan agreement, passed the Quality Compensation
law (better known as Q Comp). It is a strictly voluntary program
that enables local school districts and teacher representatives to
create and collectively bargain a plan that fulfills the laws five
components:

Career Ladder/Advancement Options

Job-Embedded Professional Development
Teacher Evaluation
Performance Pay
Alternative Salary Schedule

As an approved school district, Albany Area Schools will

receive over $400,000 of funding to meet the Q Comp goals. As
Superintendent Greg Johnson notes, The primary goal of Q Comp
is improving student achievement. This is the most important work
we do in our schools. Q Comp will allow us to enhance professional
development in our district by increased teacher leadership and
providing additional opportunities to collaborate.

Welcome to Amy Notch,

Curriculum, Instruction, and
Assessment Director

Growing up on a farm near Cold Spring taught me essential lessons

that drive my learning philosophies today. Life on the farm with my
parents and four siblings
taught me the values of
dedication, persistence, and
community. The lessons
I learned growing up in
central Minnesota serve as
foundations for the way I
work with students, parents,
teachers, and administrators
at Albany Area Schools. I
am excited to serve as the
director of curriculum,
instruction, and assessment
in the district at a time
when innovation is creating
quality opportunities for all
who are served by our school
district.
I spent 15 years of my career as an English teacher in Kimball. For the
last two years, I served as the director of student achievement in Milaca.
My role at Albany Area Schools is one of service to students, parents,
teachers, and administrators. From coordinating state and federal testing
schedules to researching and providing support in curriculum discussions
across the district, my job pushes me to research what is best for learners,
to shared that research with parents, teachers and administrators, and to
support those efforts with quality educational resources. I am excited to
be a part of a district where success is a tradition. It is my goal to build
continuing opportunities for success for all learners, extending the proud
tradition of exceptional education in the Albany Area School District.
Amy Notch
Curriculum, Instruction,
and Assessment Director

Congratulations to Dana Amdahl and Lori Habben, who were

selected as the districts Q Comp advisors

Albany School Board Appoints

Student Representatives

School District Hosts George Couros,

Known as The Principal of Change
On October 31, Albany Area Schools had the distinct pleasure of hosting
internationally known author and speaker George Couros. Couros, a
champion of innovative teaching,
learning, and leadership, has
worked
with
schools
and
organizations around the world.
During his visit, Couros addressed
the Albany Area Schools staff and
representatives from five area
school districts in a three-hour
morning session, and then led a
two-hour session that afternoon
with the Albany Area Schools
building leadership teams, staff
development team, and innovation
team on how to ignite and manage
innovative change. Mr. Couros is the author of the landmark book, The
Innovators Mindset: Empower Learning, Unleash Talent, and Lead a Culture
of Creativity.
PA G E 2

Albany Area School Board student representatives are non-voting

board members serving as liaisons between their fellow high school
students and the governing body of the school district. Serving
in this role for the 2016-17 school year are seniors Olivia Maus,
Emily Winkels, and Emily Johnson. As school board representatives,
these high school seniors provide valuable insight and support to
the school boards understanding of student needs and perspectives.

Albany Area High School

Launches Work-Based
Learning Program
Albany Area High Schools new Work-Based Learning Program
is designed to enrich a students learning through real-world
applications. It is also an opportunity to showcase a students talent
for future employment and to build his or her resume. The program
is designed to give credit to students for significant practical work
experience, one that allows them to apply concepts and technical
skills learned in the classroom to the world of work.

School Safety News:

Stepping In to Help: Matt Gannon,
School Resource Officer
Since September 2015, Albany Area Schools has been fortunate to have
Albany police officer Matt Gannon serving in the role of school resource
officer (SRO), working in our school district four to eight hours a day.
As Officer Gannon noted, he spends approximately 85% of his time at
the high school, where he is busy meeting the needs of its students and
staff.

Last spring high school juniors applied to participate in the

program and 11 were selected. These seniors are now working in
various businesses throughout our community Monday, Tuesday,
Thursday, and Friday of each week during their 4th block class.
On Wednesdays they are in class with Mr. Stromme, our workbased learning coordinator, studying a host of topics ranging from
workplace safety to personal communication skills in the workplace.
Here are the 2016-17 first semester Work-Based Learning interns
and their work location:

Emily Brausen, Mother of Mercy/Campus of Care

Emily Johnson, Albany Elementary
Grace Keck, Albany Elementary
Mitchell Klaphake, Midsota Manufacturing
Spencer Notch, Albany Chrysler
Travis Ramacher, Albany Chrysler
Devin Rausch, JT Electric
Mackenzie Sand, Lake Country Veterinary Service
Megan Stroeing, Albany Elementary
Jacob Swenson, Central Minnesota Credit Union
Emily Winkels, Blattner Energy

High school seniors interested in participating in this program 2nd

semester are encouraged to see Mr. Stromme or their high school
counselor for further information and an application.

School Resource Officer Matt Gannon

This summer Officer Gannon attended the 2016 National School Safety
Conference in Anaheim, California, a conference which he said was the
most informative, helpful school safety conference I have ever attended.
His primary takeaways from the conference were the following: (1) a
heightened awareness of what is really occurring in the lives of our
students is essential to providing the help they need, and (2) the safety
and security of our students and staff begins with the building of
supportive relationships.
As an SRO, Officer Gannon works closely with teachers, administrators,
and school counselors to maintain a safe and secure learning environment.
While he certainly makes a point of connecting with as many students
as he can on a daily basis, his time, as he notes, is best spent positively
engaging students who are hurting and/or isolated. Students who are
hurting, for a variety of reasons, are the ones most likely to be having
trouble in school. I want to help them. My focus is not on punishment,
but rather support, he says.
Research shows that the work of school resource officers has been
instrumental in reducing the number of student discipline problems and
incidents of school violence. Our SRO, Matt Gannon, looks for the good
in all of our students, and having found it, uses it to help them become
happier and more productive in and out of the classroom. Thank you,
Officer Gannon!

The 11 Work-Based Learning Program students are pictured (lr): Grace Keck, Mackenzie Sand, Emily Brausen, Spencer Notch,
Megan Stroeing, Emily Winkels, Travis Ramacher, Jacob Swenson,
Emily Johnson, Mitchell Klaphake, and Devin Rausch.

What I care about is that kids are inspired to be

better people because of their experiences in my school.
- George Couros, The Innovators Mindset

Digging Into the Data

This fall Albany Area Schools K-11 teachers, under the guidance of Amy
Notch, director of curriculum, instruction, and assessment, met in gradelevel teams and by department to closely examine STAR and Minnesota
Comprehensive Assessment (MCA) data as well as test specifications (the
scenarios being tested, how they will be tested, and how often they will be
tested).
All teachers have student achievement as their primary goal. Collaborating
with colleagues to examine student test data helps our teachers better
understand what all students need to meet state academic standards and
how we can work as a district to exceed those standards.
PA G E 3

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Huskie Howl

leadership

FA L L 2 0 1 6

Albany Area Schools Building Leadership Teams:

Focused on Boosting Student Achievement
In 2013, the Albany Area School District adopted a site-based, shared decision-making model. Each of our district school sites
the Early Childhood Center, Avon Elementary, Albany Elementary, Albany Area Middle School, and Albany Area High Schoolis
led by a building leadership team, composed of the school principal and several teachers elected by their peers. This team works
together to provide a process for school improvement, the ultimate goal being improved student achievement.
Building Leadership Teams (BLTs) have three primary responsibilities in their school: goal-setting, communication, and professional
development. They meet regularly to plan for school improvement, keeping their focus on specific building goals, which are closely
aligned with school board goals. BLT members, believing that professional growth leads to improved student achievement, work
hard to make sure that all staff members are committed and supported in their efforts to help all students learn.
Early Childhood Center BLT
(top left pictured l-r): Sue
Jenkins, Katie Radeke, Sheila
Kost, Cassie Nentl
Avon Elementary BLT (top
right pictured l-r): Carole
Braschayko, Renee Nelson,
Sue Jenkins, Anne Strack,
Corey Harmon

Albany Elementary BLT (pictured l-r): Joan

Eibensteiner, Ann Schultz, Kim Koehn, Sara
Friedrichs, Sharon Navratil
PA G E 4

Albany Area Middle School BLT (pictured l-r):

Paul Conrad, Dan Anderson, Kelly Klasen, Casey
McGuire, Carrie Schmitz

Albany Area High School BLT (pictured l-r): Al

Amdahl, Jeanne Bruns, Jen Hiltner, Amy Spohn,
Tim Wege (not pictured)