Dear parents, students, staff and community members,

Welcome to a new school year!

I spent my first year as superintendent here in Issaquah listening, meeting, and watching in my best attempt to get to know and understand the Issaquah School District. Amid the incredible learning moments I observed in classrooms and passionate conversations I had with parents and community members, I heard one thing clearly: We all want to continue to move our students to even higher levels of achievement.

And that’s what we plan to do! Heading into my second year, we plan to be even more accountable for serving all students. I have been working with School Board members and administrators to form a long-term strategic plan to operationalize the District mission: “Our students will be prepared and eager to accept the academic, occupational, personal, and practical challenges of life in a dynamic global environment.” When completed, the plan will provide a roadmap—with clear initiatives and measurable student results—allowing me to report to the Board annually that our students are learning powerfully and competing capably after graduation. As part of this effort, we are launching a new District Web site that features a report to the public with easily accessible information about student achievement, finances, programs and services.

We have an exciting workload in 2008-09: The bulk of the renovation and expansion projects at Issaquah High and Skyline High will be completed so that Pacific Cascade Freshman Campus can be converted into a middle school; individual schools will hone their Continuous Improvement Plans; our high schools are studying how to optimize learning for students, looking at everything from graduation requirements to schedules to class offerings; we will conduct focus groups to form a philosophy that shapes our middle school culture; and elementary schools will maintain their focus on unified, standards-based instruction that reach all levels of learners.

This is just a tiny sampling! Down to an individual educator, we are aligning our efforts, our creative thinking, and our energy where it counts—toward powerful student learning.

Here’s to an incredible year!

Sincerely,

Steve Rasmussen,

ISD Superintendent