Welcome Maple Leaf families and students to a new and exciting school year! Many of you may already know I was the principal of Elmwood and have now been given the opportunity to lead Maple Leaf. I am ready to take on the challenges of moving the building forward both academically and with renovations. Renovations are moving along relatively quickly. Our students are very fortunate to be starting the year off in beautiful classrooms equipped with up to date technology and furnishings. On the outside, the building has a new parking lot and a new playground area. While students and staff are busy teaching and learning, a large part of the first floor is being renovated. The final phase is scheduled to be completed sometime in December and students being able to occupy the entire first floor by January. Let’s keep our fingers crossed since construction schedules can change. At any rate, the final product will be a beautiful facility both inside and outside that our students and staff deserve. We appreciate everyone’s patience with some of the adjustments we have had to make from traffic patterns, recess schedules to student lunch options.

With that being said, our focus will continue to provide students with a safe environment and a top quality educational experience. We are fortunate to have a variety of instructional programs this year that address students that may need intense literacy intervention to enrichment. We have created a schedule that allows blocks of uninterrupted time to devote to focused and purposeful instruction. Improving student achievement is a non-negotiable this year. However, students also need a safe and positive environment to learn in. Implementation of PBIS will continue with a focused effort on recognizing students demonstrating their P.A.W.S PRIDE. Students can receive P.A.W.S dollars which are redeemable for daily, weekly, and monthly incentives. Students will also have the opportunity to apply to Maple Leaf’s “Job Corps” and receive a “wage” paid in P.A.W.S dollars. We want to create an environment where students can learn and teaches can teach.

These are just a few of the exciting things going on here at Maple Leaf.

Let’s have a great 2011-2012 school year! Maple Leaf has P.A.W.S PRIDE!

Mrs. Jody Saxton, Principal