Jenna Zoerman

Junior Jenna Zoerman has been named the March 2016 Student Athlete of the Month for Competitive Cheer. Jenna is the daughter of Joel & Kate Zoerman. Jenna was named All Conference in 2013 and All Conference Honor Mention in 2014 & 2015. She also does excellent in the classroom with a 3.88 GPA and has been involved in many community volunteer events such as the Alzheimers Walk, Back to School Clinic, Santa Clause Parade, and Rocket Cheer Coach. Coach Olszewski comments: “Jenna takes all advanced placement classes even though she plays more than one sport. She prioritizes her work and maintains an excellent GPA and works hard at practices. She is in all three rounds on the mat, she has a substantial skill set for our sport. She is growing and learning what it takes to be a leader in her sport and life.”

Patrick Fliearman

Junior Patrick Fliearman has been named March 2016 Student Athlete of the Month for Wrestling. Patrick is the son of Jim & Renee Fliearman. He is a three year varsity wrestler and won 15 matches this season. Patrick is also a black belt in Karate. He does great in the classroom with a 4.0 GPA and is on the National Honor Society. Coach Emery comments: “ The Spectacular aspect about Patrick is his dedication to the sport. He has a great work ethic, participates in all team functions and is a phenomenal teammate who puts the team first.”

The Board of Education is committed to providing an excellent education for every child in the district. The Board of Education is committed to high expectations for excellence in all we do as a district. We hold ourselves and all others accountable and expect every person to work with integrity in all positions. To that end this Board of Education is providing transparency in all they do. This Board is proud of the forward motion of the school district and a list of many accomplishments in the 2014-15 and 2015-16 school years.

An example of a recent accomplishment that will serve our district and community well is the refunding of Bonds, Series A and Series B. The Superintendent, Board of Education, Director of Business and Finance, CSPS Accountant, financial advisors to the District, banks and legal counsel worked through a lengthy process to make the bond refunding possible. A summary of the bond refunding process is illustrated as follows:

December 14, 2015: Board of Education adopted a delegating resolution at a regular board meeting. This authorized the superintendent to accept and execute a Bond Purchase Agreement with the Underwriter.

February 1, 2016: Conference call with all parties to review POS
February 8, 2016 (week of): Conference call with rating agency
February 18, 2016: Pricing of bonds (subject to market conditions)
February 19, 2016: Superintendent executes bond purchase agreement
March 14, 2016: Board of Education adopts a “ratification resolution” at a regular board meeting. This is an additional, but not mandatory step, to add a great depth of transparency and support to the process. Signatures from the superintendent, Board President and Board Secretary were required to adopt the resolution.
March 23, 2016: Closing

This Board of Education and leadership team are excited to have worked through this long and involved process to save our tax payers approximately 2.5 million dollars over the next several years. Please see our website www.csredhawks.org where all documents related to the bond refunding are available for your review. Please feel free to contact Dr. Laura VanDuyn, Superintendent, at 696-1204 ext. 1001, should you have any questions or would like to meet to discuss this exciting news.

Superintendent Laura VanDuyn, Ed.D.

Dear Cedar Springs Public Schools Staff and Families,

On behalf of the Board of Education, thank you for participating in the Strategic Planning Process. At Cedar Springs Public Schools we commend the Board of Education for entering into this important process. A strategic plan provides for a district shared vision, mission and set of core values in order to plan forward for the continued success in serving the nearly 3,500 students of Cedar Springs Public Schools.

As promised, feedback groups met with the Board of Education’s strategic planning facilitator. Administrators, teachers, support staff, students, parents and community members provided invaluable input into creating a district shared vision, mission and set of core values. The facilitator will now combine the information gathered from all constituent groups and circle back to ensure he captured what was shared. The facilitator will then work with the Board of Education to utilize constituent input to articulate the vision, mission and core values for the district.

The collaboration of so many has made this inclusive process possible. Again, thank you to all who spent their days and evenings with the steering committee and in feedback groups. Hard work and great progress is taking place every day at Cedar Springs Public Schools in order to serve our students – because our Cedar Springs Public Schools students deserve the very best!

In appreciation,

Laura VanDuyn, Ed.D.

Superintendent of Schools

Office: 616-696-1204 ext. 1001 Cell: 925-899-3111

Email: laura.vanduyn@csredhawks.org

The snow day from Thursday, February 27 has put Cedar Springs Public School District over the allotted snow days for the 2013-2014 school year.   Friday, May 23 was built in school calendar as a snow day make-up.    Mark your calendar, Friday, May 23 will be a full instructional day.

Hopefully Mother Nature will loosen up her grip just a bit in the remaining days between now and June!

For the updated school calendar, please visit www.csredhawks.org.