Anchor Bay Makes MME, ACT Strides Compared to 2011

Data from the Michigan Department of Education shows the Class of 2013 at Anchor Bay, L'Anse Creuse and New Haven did better on the Michigan Merit Exam than their predecessors.

The majority of Chesterfield and New Baltimore area students continue to score above state average on the Michigan Merit Exam, but the number of students actually passing the exam suggests there is much work to be done, according to a report released by the Michigan Department of Education this morning. The performance of students this year takes into account a test that is more difficult to pass, based on new cut scores implemented last year by the state. Across the state, the largest gains on the MME occurred in reading and writing, where reading saw an average one-year increase of 3 percent and writing an average one-year increase of 2.5 percent. These increases show roughly 56 percent of tested students are proficient in reading and 50…

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Not Your Grandpa’s Wood Shop: High Schools Revolutionize Career Programs

Once known as "vocational education," today's career and technical education programs are changing the way students work and study in the 21st century.

February is National Career and Technical Education (CTE) Month Where earlier generations learned to boil eggs and build birdhouses, today’s career and technical education students are and . “The overall goal of the CTE of yesteryear was to prepare students for the world of work and we still do that, but we do so much more than that right now,” said Claire Brisson, CTE director for Chippewa Valley Schools. With the continued advance of technology and the related change in industry demands, traditional “voc ed” mainstays like home economics and drafting have disappeared. In their place, CTE programs such as health occupations, , robotics and mechatronics (engineering) have developed. “It’s an edge,” said Monica Leasure, MISD CTE regional …

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L'Anse Creuse Asks Community to Aid Search for New Superintendent

L'Anse Creuse Public Schools has scheduled two meetings to allow members of the community to offer their input on what they would like to see in a new district superintendent.

With the current superintendent, Dr. DiAnne Pellerin, retiring at the end of the month, L'Anse Creuse Public Schools will immediately begin the search and selection process for its sixth superintendent. In the weeks or months leading to the hire of a new superintendent, the L’Anse Creuse Board of Education has appointed Assistant Superintendent of Operations Robert Randlett to serve as interim superintendent. The district has contracted with Cascade Consulting of Seattle to assist with the search and selection process for the new superintendent, and plans to host several focus-group meetings with representative groups and members of the community as well. Two meetings have been scheduled thus far: These meetings are intended to provide a …

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L'Anse Creuse Offers Select Students 'FastTrack' to GED

A new program through L’Anse Creuse Public Schools will allow qualifying students to test for their GED at no charge and gain valuable work experience while pursuing their GED.

A new program through L’Anse Creuse Public Schools will allow some students to test for their GED at no charge. The students who qualify for this program are those ages 19-21 who meet the eligibility requirements set by Michigan Works! guidelines and funding. These students will be offered an increased credential with a Value Added GED and may pursue their GED through the FastTrack GED + Program. They will also be able to test for their GED at no charge. Students in the program will be able to earn their GED while acquiring the necessary workforce development skills needed to secure employment or to enroll in additional training opportunities. These skills will be tested during participation in a 12-week paid work experience after …

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L'Anse Creuse Increases Meal Prices 5-10 Cents

For the first time in five years, the district is increasing the cost of its breakfasts and lunches for all grade levels.

Students buying breakfast and lunch in L'Anse Creuse Public Schools this year will need a few extra nickels and dimes as the district is increasing its meal costs by 5 to 10 cents. When section 205 of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Act of 2010 went into effect July 1, it was mandated that all school food authorities participating in the National School Lunch Program were required to provide the same level of support for lunches served to students who are not eligible for free or reduced price lunches as they are for lunches served to students eligible for free lunches. In an effort to comply with this new requirement, the district raised its meal prices. “L’Anse Creuse has not increased food costs for students in over five years,” said …

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MCC Partners With L'Anse Creuse to Offer Job Training in Defense Sector

A $5.2-million federal grant will aid Macomb Community College and L'Anse Creuse Public Schools in providing retraining opportunities for individuals to work in the growing defense sector in Macomb County.

Macomb County Executive Mark Hackel has said he believes Macomb County is poised to become the “defense capital of the world.” This year, with the help of a $5.2-million federal grant, Macomb Community College, in partnership with L'Anse Creuse Public Schools, will take the first steps toward achieving that title by providing retraining opportunities for individuals to work in the defense sector. “We have enjoyed a very positive collaboration with Macomb Community College for the past several years, and it made sense to bring the parties back together to provide these essential services during this difficult economic time in Michigan,” said Michelle Irwin, senior director for Community Relations & Programs for L’Anse Creuse, in a release…

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Richard Rowley

4:19 pm on Friday, August 5, 2011

There are not many counties that contain as many branches of defense as those that exist right here in Macomb County. TAACOM in Warren, Selfridge which has on its base USCG, 127th Wing, Homeland Security, US Border Patrol just to name a few right here in Mt. Clemens. St. Clair Shores has yet another USCG station. It only makes sense to turn this vision into reality. There are many engineers in …   more ›

L'Anse Creuse Revs Up Summer Camp Programs

School's out, but camps and classes are ready to fill up the summer months in L'Anse Creuse schools.

It’s summer vacation for L’Anse Creuse Public Schools, but dozens of summer classes and camps will keep the district’s buildings buzzing through the lazy, hazy months ahead. Although some of the classes and camps start next week, registration is still open. Classes in the Summer Swim Program start the week of June 20, and run throughout the summer at the L’Anse Creuse High School North pool. Classes run both consecutive days and once a week for six weeks. For more information, or to register for a summer athletic camp, contact 586-783-6330 in advance or show up at the camp on the first day. Summer school for elementary, middle and high school students can be arranged by calling 586-783-6300. For a list of other summer camps in the area, …

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L'Anse Creuse Criminal Justice Students Investigate Mock Car Crash

Students from Tom Grindem's Pankow criminal justice class joined local law enforcement and paramedics to investigate a two-car accident staged in the parking lot of the John R. Armstrong Performing Arts Center.

A two-car accident behind the John R. Armstrong Performing Arts Center Wednesday brought officers from the Macomb County Sheriff's Office and Chesterfield Police Department as well as paramedics from Medstar Ambulance to survey the scene and instruct L'Anse Creuse criminal justice students in the crash investigation. The accident was the fifth mock car crash staged by Tom Grindem's Frederick V. Pankow Center criminal justice class in cooperation with local law enforcement. "It's a very realistic opportunity to experience what we've been talking about," Grindem said. "Half the whole point is to reduce injuries and investigate crimes. They made two arrests here and processed the crime scene to recreate it in court." When asked how he thought…

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Schools in the News

Green Elementary Students Turn Trash to Treasure

Recycling project teaches Green Elementary students responsibility and beautifies school grounds.

Green Elementary students transformed thousands of collected plastic lids into colorful art to decorate school grounds. “We were trying to think of something the whole school could participate in,” said Green Elementary School Principal Eileen Hielscher, who found directions for the project while browsing through art books. The recycling art project, which involved all the school's teachers, fell in line with a L'Anse Creuse Public Schools district-wide green initiative. 'They were so cool' For one month, students scoured Chesterfield Township for lids of all sizes before sorting them by color. Next, parents and teachers helped students cut plywood into animal- and flower-shaped pieces, which students painted and decorated with their lids…

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Snyder, GOP Budget Deal Reduces Per-Pupil Cuts

Gov. Rick Snyder and legislative leaders reached a deal Thursday night that reduced the originally proposed $300 per-pupil cut to about $100 per student.

The governor and legislative leaders announced a tentative deal Thursday that would lessen planned cuts to schools and put aside money in the state's rainy day funds. Gov. Rick Snyder, Senate Majority Leader Randy Richardville and House Speaker Jase Bolger made the announcement in Lansing. The terms of the deal include: The governor had asked legislators for a deal by May 31. "We will have a timely, balanced budget in place so that our municipal and school partners can accurately plan for the coming year, avoiding the chaos that too often has been foisted upon them due to Lansing's inaction," Snyder said in a statement. To brace for the budget cuts, Chippewa Valley had already issued pink slips to 338 teachers, and L’Anse Creuse sent out …

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