Reading practice
Triad Elementary School Second Grade Teacher MaryBeth Roose, at left, practices reading with one of her students. Staff members are finding creative ways to practice coronavirus safety measures while educating students. Though students wear face masks during class, they occasionally take them off while sitting between a clear divider so they can mimic their teacher’s mouth when pronouncing new words. (Photo submitted)
Triad board members and staff gathered for an in-person, public meeting Thursday for the first time in nearly a year.
The group met face-to-face in the new community room for the monthly Board of Education meeting.
Continuing their path to normalcy, administrators and staff members discussed plans for upcoming school events.
High School Principal Kyle Huffman said staff is currently working on finalizing details surrounding prom and graduation.
He said the district is searching for venues for prom, as managers of a previous location indicated they will not be able to safely accommodate the number of students Triad is expecting to attend the event.
Prom will be held outside, Huffman said, as will graduation.
Superintendent Vickie Hoffman said the new track will be completed by June 6, graduation day.
She said there will not be a limit on the number of attendants, but they must be seated in separate groups of 10 people or less. The completed track and field facility will provide the space for all those who would like to attend to spread out adequately.
Hoffman said staff is working on alternate location plans in the case of inclement weather.
However, Triad has experience and knowledge to draw from, as last year’s graduation was hosted outside during stricter coronavirus protocols.
“Just keep your fingers crossed we have as beautiful of a day this year as we had last year,” Huffman added.
The principal said details surrounding prom and graduation will likely be decided upon in the next week to week-and-a-half.
In other business:
– Hoffman said state testing is underway and going smoothly in the elementary, middle and high schools.
“I feel like it’s gone very well,” she said.
– Huffman said he is working on the formation of a parental advisory committee for Triad High School.
He noted that parents are generally most involved in their student’s education early in their academic career. As children progress through grade levels, Huffman said parents tend to become less involved, making it difficult to engage some high schoolers’ parents.
He said he hopes to discuss logistics such as career pathways and graduation seals with parents, as well as receive their feedback as to how to make Triad High School more welcoming to students.
– Athletic Director Logan Dunn shared an update with the board regarding sports at Triad.
He noted that efforts to effectively brand the school are seeing success.
Upon his hiring, he created guidelines for Triad branding that ensured apparel used the same color scheme and appropriate logos. He said the same images are now being used throughout gyms, locker rooms and the Triad campus.
Dunn said the uniformity helps to foster a sense of community and pride surrounding the district.
“When you’re here, you know you’re at Triad,” he said.
Dunn added that a number of successes throughout the pandemic will be carried into the future, namely livestreaming capabilities.
He said he hopes to add more camera angles to online sports events to give viewers a similar experience to what they see when watching college sports. Dunn said there is even a possibility of conducting sideline interviews during livestreamed games.