This Week, from Dr. Cuthbert | January 30
Hello everyone!
The practice evacuation of Stoddert East to St. Luke’s Church and the return trip were accomplished in just 31 minutes, with great assistance from MPD in crossing Wisconsin Avenue. Your children were wonderful! It is such a pleasure to be the principal of these terrific students and accomplished teachers. Everyone took the practice seriously and cooperated completely. We’ll practice another evacuation in the Spring. We also do a fire drill every month and record the time it takes to leave the building. The staff and students are conscientious and we can usually be completely out within 4 to 5 minutes.
The School Improvement Team (SIT) met this week. This is the committee of community members and teachers who meet with the architects and engineers to get updates on the progress of the new school. It’s getting really exciting as the building is up and plans are moving ahead on schedule. Just to mention a few highlights from what was reported to us this week:
• Framing of the West wing is ongoing;
• The new slate roof is happening;
• The retrofit of the cupola and slashing should be finished this week;
• Installation of subsoil drainage is being finished; and
• Brick work is beginning on the West wing.
If you haven’t gone around the block lately, please do so. You’ll see the framing of the amazing new school. It’s so invigorating to begin to imagine how it will be to run our school in such a marvelous environment. Stoddert has so much to celebrate!
If I may, once again, I’d like to give a very friendly but important reminder, to please get the Stoddert Wolves to school on time. We have some chronic late-comers who miss instruction and disrupt the class when they arrive. Please find a way to get to school on time. Also, please let us know when your child(ren) need(s) to miss school. When we know, we can record it as an excused absence. Also, school is out at 3:15 p.m. If you are picking up your child(ren), this is the time — not 3:30 p.m. Please be respectful of the teachers’ time and pick up at 3:15 p.m. Of course, we understand if situations arise when you cannot. Just let us know as the students will wait on the Stoddert bench by the office. As always, thanks in advance for helping out on this situation!
–Dr. Marjorie Cuthbert
