Sibley East adds fifth section of Kindergarten
August 23rd, 2007“It’s a good problem for us. We are seeing stable numbers and growth,” Sibley East Superintendent John Langenbrunner said.
Because of higher than anticipated enrollment, Sibley East’s Board of Education, Monday night, approved adding a fifth section of Kindergarten.
Mari Lu Martens, Sibley East Elementary Principal, said that the two sections of Kindergarten in Gaylord each have 28 students enrolled. The Arlington sections of Kindergarten have 23 and 26 students respectively.
After Kindergarten Roundup last spring, Sibley East anticipated about 80 students. Now enrollment is at 105. Two of the students are from migrant families, Martens reported. The new section of Kindergarten will be in the Gaylord campus.
“We’re looking at a $45,000 decision. I’m comfortable making the decision. I’m not comfortable with 28 in Kindergarten,” Langenbrunner said.
School board members also turned down a request from Martens to close open enrollment of students in Grade 6. There are 33 sixth grade students enrolled at the Arlington campus, and two sections of 28 students each at the Gaylord campus.
There are presently four migrant students enrolled in Grade 6, with three more “probable,” because the families have enrolled here the past five or six years, Martens said. Migrant students generally leave by October 1.
There is only one section of Grade 6 at Arlington. Martens explained that Grades 5 and 6 in Arlington will have a “mini-middle school” for those grades, with each teacher teaching a subject to all of those students.
Board members Scott Dose and Tim Dolan said that they didn’t want to say “no” to families who choose to enroll their children at Sibley East. Martens said, historically, that if students open enroll at Sibley East in Kindergarten, they stay for their remaining years of school.
The school board stated that they would not be opposed to providing additional support by para-professionals for Grade 6.
As of Monday night, elementary enrollment is at 639 students.
Junior High principal Steve Harter reported that 15 new students enrolled in the past week and a half. Senior High Principal Jim Swanson said that seven exchange students will be attending school here this year. The exchange students are from a variety of countries, including Brazil, Germany, Switzerland, Korea and China, he said.
