The overall enrollment numbers are up for the Edmonds School District.

Monday was the fourth day of school and the official count day for September. Executive Director of Business and Operations Stewart Myhre noted that the District is projected to have an average full-time enrollment (FTE) of about 18,445 students, which is 78 students above last spring’s projection of 18,367.

The numbers translate into about $390,000 more in revenue, Myhre said during a report to the Edmonds School District Board of Directors on Tuesday. The average full-time enrollment (FTE) is how the District is funded from the State.

The District’s elementary school numbers are up by 83 students. The Northwest Quadrant of Beverly, Edmonds, Lynndale, Maplewood K-8, Meadowdale and Seaview elementary schools saw an increase of 96 students, while the Northeast Quadrant of Cedar Valley, Hazelwood, Hilltop, Lynnwood, Martha Lake, Oak Heights and Spruce elementary schools saw a decrease of 80 students .

The Southeast quadrant of Brier, Cedar Way, Mountlake Terrace and Terrace Park elementary schools increased by 29 students and the Southwest Quadrant of Chase Lake, College Place, Madrona K-8, Sherwood and Westgate increased by 42 students.

The District’s middle schools saw a decrease of 50 students with only College Place showing a slight increase of four students. The four main high schools — Edmonds-Woodway, Lynnwood, Meadowdale and Mountlake Terrace — had an overall increase of 43 students. Edmonds-Woodway was up by 31 students, while Mountlake Terrace, the only high school to show a decrease, was down by six students.

The Board also approved a request to implement a Move 60 recess pilot program in four elementary schools with District funds. In a report to the Board, Move 60! coordinators Jennifer McCloughan and Jennifer Hershey noted that research shows that “play” time can have a positive effect on students’ social, emotional and physical healthy, all of which correlate with increases in desirable classroom behavior, decreases in undesired behaviors and increases in academic achievement.

The Move 60! Recess program’s goal is to increase student participation in games and activities, improve school climate and decrease conflicts at recess, which would improve student learning and academic performance in the classroom. The plan would have fifth- and sixth-graders serving as mentors for younger students. The budget of just over $18,000 includes equipment, training and staffing costs at four schools.

The Board also gave the go-ahead for the Community Relations Department, as part of the District’s Strategic Direction Proposed Communication Plan, to look into the redesigning of the District’s logo. The District will bring back proposals to the Board before moving forward.

Assistant Superintendent for Secondary Schools Patrick Murphy reported on the meeting of 12^th grader English teachers on the impact of the elimination of the Senior Culminating Project.

The group’s findings include:

• There is a lack of senior oriented resources at sites, leading to an inconsistent 12th grade English experience across and within sites.
• In the short- and long-term, the gaps that need to be addressed include: public speaking, research element present with consistent standards for all students, College Career Readiness research, and other related skills.
• In the long term, there is need to collaborate with high school counselors with respect to path for long-term career exploration. When the senior project was a requirement, all students explored career and college options beyond high school. A College and Career Planning tool will be adopted to allow for more intentional work on the high school and beyond plan that will address much of this.

The District also will be continuing to look at ways to encourage community service among high school students.

The Board recognized the cast, crew and production team of Edmonds Heights K-12’s musical production Pippin! as recipients of the 5^th Avenue Theater Award for Best Musical. The cast treated the Board members and audience to an impromptu performance.

The Board authorized a preliminary budget of $100,000 for the Fire Sprinkler and Roofing Replacement project at Hazelwood Elementary and authorized a preliminary budget of $150,000 for the Pedestrian and Traffic Safety Improvements, Playfield Drainage and Playground/Parking Pavement projects at Sherwood Elementary.

Pacific Little League President Doug Shelton talked with the Board about the upcoming rebuilding of Lynndale Elementary School and the impact on the three baseball/softball fields used by the league. The District noted that when all is said and done, the plan is for all three fields to be back at Lynndale. But all of the fields may not be able to be used during the construction process of the new school. The District is looking into other fields that the league may be able to use.

– By David Pan