Perry Elementary School Co-Principal Ned Menke of Perry stopped by the Hotel Pattee Sept. 27 to visit a meeting of the Perry Kiwanis Club.
Menke discussed his new co-principal role, a position he shares with fellow co-principal Joel Martin of Perry. The administrators were named to the newly divided positions in April and began their new duties at the start of the school year.
Menke previously served as dean of students at the Perry Elementary School and coached the Perry High School Boys Basketball team for the past eight seasons. Last season Menke led his team to the state tournament, something no PHS cagers had done since 1988.
Menke said that his position as co-principal is very unusual for a public school in Iowa. There are duties that each co-principal discharges alone and others they share. Menke deals with the math curriculum, while Martin focuses on issues related to reading. Both share in preparing evaluations and reports for the Iowa Department of Education, he said.
The Perry Elementary School has 66 teachers, Menke said. A high turnover rate among elementary teachers has been common in recent years, with 14 new teachers starting in the 2015-2016 academic year but only seven in the 2016-2017 year.
Menke talked about the program for English language learners (ELL), which has at any one time 300 to 350 students enrolled. Students in the elementary grades from other countries pick up English fairly easily, he said, while it is a little more difficult for students in the upper grades.
Menke discussed standards-based grading, a new grading system that will replace the traditional A-to-F system and be based on a students’ effort though out the year in a subject. He also described the new Teacher Leadership Program, which offers mentoring, coaching, and support services for novice teachers.
Welcoming Menke was two-year Perry Kiwanis Club member Jeremy Winter.
