January 7, 2013

Dear Parents:

Strongsville City Schools has a long history as an exemplary school district as evidenced by our ten consecutive years rated Excellent by the state of Ohio, as well as our current rating of Excellent with Distinction.  As you may be aware, each year there is an increasing number of educational initiatives mandated by state legislation, many of which must be implemented by the start of the 2013-14 school year.  In addition to these state mandates, we are also working on many local initiatives to enhance our district and continue to meet the diverse needs of our students and community.

Over the past two years, our administrators and teachers have worked collaboratively to include two and a half professional development days in the district calendar each school year.  Even with these professional development days and the vast amount of time administrators and teachers are spending outside of the school day for professional development with various state and district initiatives, more time is needed.

To assist us in implementing the upcoming state mandates, we have applied and been approved for two (2) Waiver Days from the state of Ohio to be used during the 2012-13 school year.  These days will be used to provide professional development for both our certificated and non-certificated staff members.  A Waiver Day allows the district to "waive" the state requirement for the minimum number of instructional days in a school year for specific purposes to be approved by the state.  Our two Waiver Days will take place on Friday, February 15^th and Friday, May 24^th.  Please plan accordingly for this change to our district calendar, as your child(ren) will not have school on Friday, February 15^th and Friday, May 24^th.  

If you have any questions, do not hesitate to contact my office at any time.

Sincerely,

John J. Krupinski

Superintendent