Northfield's Bakke Semifinalist for Teacher of the Year

Bakke is a first-grade teacher at Greenvale Park Elementary.

Northfield's Deborah Bakke is one of 39 semifinalists for this year’s Minnesota Teacher of the Year honor has been narrowed to 39 semifinalists.  Bakke is a first-grade teacher at Greenvale Park Elementary. A selection panel of 25 community leaders chose the semifinalists from an initial field of 135 candidates from across the state.   The panel will meet again in late March to select about 10 finalists from the group of semifinalists. The current Minnesota Teacher of the Year, Jackie Roehl of Edina, will announce her successor at a banquet at the Marriott Minneapolis Northwest in Brooklyn Park on May 5.  Education Minnesota, the 70,000-member statewide educators’ union, organizes and underwrites the Teacher of the Year program. Candidates…

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Open Enrollment Made Northfield Schools Slightly More Diverse

For the 2009-10 school year, 85.7 percent of the district's enrollment were white students, according to data provided by Northfield Public Schools.

While not by a large margin, a study of recent open enrollment numbers show Northfield Public Schools became slightly more diverse because the number of outgoing students who were white was greater than those coming in, according to a recent study from the University of Minnesota Law School. Northfield experienced a 1-percent decrease in overall enrollment because of outgoing students in the 2009-10 school year—127 students left the district while 87 came to the district. Of those outgoing students, 119 were white, while only 84 non-resident white students enrolled with Northfield schools. There was a net loss of three black students and one Hispanic student, while Asian and Native American numbers were unaffected, according to the study. …

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From the Principal's Desk

Craft: Determination Key to Success

At Greenvale Park, we incorporate character into a child’s education for a number of reasons.

At Greenvale Park, academics are an important part of the formula for success for a child in the future. But academics are not enough. During the month of January, we will be working on the character trait of determination. Determination is, “Deciding that it is worth finishing something you’ve started.” In the e-mail version of this Audio Gecko Gazette, parents will find materials to help their children make connections between what they are learning in school about determination and what parents teach about it at home. At Greenvale Park, we incorporate character into a child’s education for a number of reasons. Let me tell you about one of them. Modern day American schools have been saturated with the notion of success depending …

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Influenza Strikes Northfield Classrooms

Schools must report when 5 percent of the total student enrollment in a building or when three or more children from the same elementary classroom are absent or sent home due to “influenza-like illness.”

On Tuesday, Dec. 11, Greenvale Park Elementary had three students from a single classroom absent and Northfield Middle School had more than 5-percent absence due to influenza-like illness, according to the school district. Minnesota schools must report to the Minnesota Department of Health when 5 percent of the total student enrollment in a building or when three or more children from the same elementary classroom are absent or sent home due to “influenza-like illness.” Last week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that influenza rates were up in Minnesota compared to a year ago and were now categorized as "high."  Read more about Influenza (Flu) Information for Parents published by the Minnesota Department of Health. …

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Corey Butler Jr.

5:49 pm on Monday, December 17, 2012

Anyone pull their child/children out of school because of flu-like symptoms?   more ›

865 Children Served by CAC's Christmas Sharing Program

Through its Christmas Sharing program, the Community Action Center of Northfield provided a variety of toys, books, pajamas and quilts to 865 area children on Wednesday.

Tis the season of giving. Through its Christmas Sharing program, the Community Action Center of Northfield provided a variety of toys, books, pajamas and quilts to 865 area children on Wednesday—reaching 373 households—according to Judy Bickel, program director for the CAC. Last week, several Greenvale Park Elementary fifth-graders dropped off 358 unwrapped toys for the CAC's Christmas Sharing program. "This makes a big, big difference in many children's lives," Bickel told the students. Follow Northfield Patch on Twitter | Like us on Facebook | Sign up for our newsletter

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Greenvale Park Fifth-Graders Donate 358 Toys to Christmas Sharing Program

Several Greenvale Park Elementary fifth-graders—along with adult supervision—dropped off 358 unwrapped toys for the Community Action Center of Northfield's Christmas Sharing program.

The gift of giving was felt in a big way on Friday morning at the Community Action Center of Northfield. Several Greenvale Park Elementary fifth-graders—along with adult supervision—dropped off 358 unwrapped toys for the CAC's Christmas Sharing program. Abby Swanson's class had made a classroom goal to collect 200 toys to be given to the effort. As the group left school Friday, Principal David Craft said students were still handing in toys. "This makes a big, big difference in many children's lives," Judy Bickel, program director for the CAC, told the students. She said this year's collection will serve about 900 children. On Wednesday, the toys will be distributed to families. Toys are being collected at 39 sites throughout the Northfield…

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Corey Butler Jr.

7:58 pm on Friday, December 7, 2012

Thanks for inviting me!   more ›

What's My Spark

What's My Spark: Maddie Schulz

What excites you? What drives you? What motivates you when you wake up in the morning?

What excites you? What drives you? What motivates you when you wake up in the morning? That's your "spark." As former Northfield Healthy Community Initiative/LINK Center VISTA Soraya Dangor said in a blog on Patch: Sparks are your deepest passions and interests. They are the things that give you meaning, focus and joy.  The Sparks Initiative is a project of HCI grounded in the research of the Minneapolis-based Search Institute. The Sparks Initiative has a handful of pilot sites in Northfield. Northfield Patch has partnered with Northfield Public Schools and Greenvale Park Elementary, one of the schools working with HCI, to highlight students and their sparks. Look for more videos in the future.  Follow Northfield Patch on Twitter | Like us…

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What's My Spark

What's My Spark: Mason Fields

What excites you? What drives you? What motivates you when you wake up in the morning?

What excites you? What drives you? What motivates you when you wake up in the morning? That's your "spark." As former Northfield Healthy Community Initiative/LINK Center VISTA Soraya Dangor said in a blog on Patch: Sparks are your deepest passions and interests. They are the things that give you meaning, focus and joy.  The Sparks Initiative is a project of HCI grounded in the research of the Minneapolis-based Search Institute. The Sparks Initiative has a handful of pilot sites in Northfield. Northfield Patch has partnered with Northfield Public Schools and Greenvale Park Elementary, one of the schools working with HCI, to highlight students and their sparks. Look for more videos in the future.  Follow Northfield Patch on Twitter | Like us…

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Who's New to Northfield's Classrooms?—Part 4

This school year, Northfield Patch will introduce you to the new teachers in Northfield School District's classrooms.

Each year several new teachers come to Northfield schools. This school year, Northfield Patch will introduce you to the new teachers in Northfield Public Schools' classrooms with brief profiles set to run in the coming days. Be sure to check back to be introduced to a new set of educators. Eric Klein School: Northfield High School Grade level/subject: Student teacher/9-12/English Last job: Just graduated with my undergrad degree from St. Olaf College Education: St. Olaf College—English major, educational studies concentration Hometown: Wells, MN Hobbies: Running, reading, creative writing, rooting for the Minnesota Twins Why I chose education: Because I firmly believe that, despite what many people believe, the "Kids these days" are not in…

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Who's New to Northfield's Classrooms?—Part 3

This school year, Northfield Patch will introduce you to the new teachers in Northfield School District's classrooms.

Each year several new teachers come to Northfield schools. This school year, Northfield Patch will introduce you to the new teachers in Northfield Public Schools' classrooms with brief profiles set to run in the coming days. Be sure to check back to be introduced to a new set of educators. Natalie Czech School: Bridgewater Elementary Grade level/subject: Special education resource room Last job: Substitute teaching  Education: University of Minnesota, Duluth—elementary and special education Hometown: Farmington Hobbies: Spending time with friends and family, movies, running, dance, hockey Why I chose education: Ever since I was a child I loved teaching and helping the younger kids. Since then I have wanted to work with kids and help them …

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