Just a reminder to look for the survey when you come to Crosswinds tomorrow or Thursday for your parent-teacher conference. You will find other parents near the entrance with surveys to document how you feel about the notion of adding 11th and 12th grades to Crosswinds. Make sure you fill one out.

Crosswinds Site Council meeting on Monday (4/5) will be a particularly eventful and interesting one. Carl Wahlstrom and two board members will be at there to listen to parents and give an update on the task force progress. It will also feature a representative from the U of MN to talk about the Bush initiative that will bring many student teachers to Crosswinds. Site Council meetings are open to all parents, so whether you’ve been to one before or not, please feel welcome to join us at 6:30pm Monday at Crosswinds.

Please join the Parents + Students for 11th and 12th Grade at Crosswinds page on Facebook. They are trying to build a list of “100 reasons that adding 11th and 12th grade at Crosswinds is a good idea” and can use your help!

If any members of this group do not have Facebook accounts and are interested, it is free to sign up and there are no ongoing fees. It is a great way to stay connected with your student and their and his friends through media they are comfortable with. If you don’t have a Facebook account and want us to post ‘challenge responses,’ please feel free to email them to Christopher Porter.

I you would like to see 11th and 12th grade at Crosswinds, so that your kids could have their full high school years here, then please take a look at our grade structure task force pages. This won’t happen without some very active parents, so lift your voice if you want to see it become a reality. We have put talking points and sample letters on the website. Take a look!

The next opportunity for face-time with the EMID board will be Wednesday, 17 March, at Harambee. Even just being present can help the board understand our support.

The Grade Structure Task Force will be reporting its recomendations to the EMID Board at its next working group meeting on Wednesday, 2/17. This meeting starts at 6pm at Harambee. If you are curious about the results of this intensive look at whether Crosswinds should expand its grade levels, or want to be supportive of their message, please come to the meeting.

In brief, the task force recommends expanding Crosswinds through 12th grade and making an effort to streamline our message about the school’s focus. They also favor continuing the year-round calendar. Come to the meeting for details and to show we care about the outcome of this one.