September 22, 2009

Dear Orting Community Members,

As you know, Orting School District recently embraced the motto, ""Learning Today for a Changing Tomorrow."  I think this statement captures the very best our schools, parents and community have to offer for our young people.  Part of preparing students for a changing tomorrow involves providing them the opportunity to pursue a rewarding and fulfilling career path.  In order to equip Orting graduates with the tools necessary to achieve professional and personal goals, post-high school education is paramount.

Preparing students to enroll in college and graduate on time starts with creating a college-going culture - an environment that nourishes student aspirations and supports behaviors that lead students to prepare for, apply to, and enroll in college and other postsecondary institutions. We certainly have students that are highly capable and the staff to help further their academic knowledge and achievement.  It's important that all of our students have the option of attending college to pursue an advanced degree.  A key piece for college admission is the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT®), and as we all know, preparation and practice for any important test is critical to performing well. 

Because we want all of our students to do the best possible job on the SAT®, for the first time ever all Orting juniors will be taking the Preliminary SAT (PSAT) on Wednesday, October 14 during the school day.  This a significant change from previous years when only a fraction of our juniors took the PSAT in the evening after school and for many students after sports.  School staff will be visiting with all juniors during the next week to inform them of this opportunity. We encourage parents, staff and community members to support our juniors to do their very best.  The fee for the test is being paid for by the district because of the importance of the test. Freshmen and sophomores are allowed to take the test but will need to pay $18.00 to do so.

In addition to the PSAT serving as a standardized test that provides firsthand practice for the SAT®, it also gives students a chance to enter scholarship programs and gain access to college and career planning tools. The PSAT measures critical reading skills, math problem-solving skills, and writing skills.  The most common reasons for taking the PSAT/NMSQT are to identify a student's strengths and weaknesses on skills necessary for college study. Students can then focus their preparation on those areas that could most benefit from additional study or practice.

A district's college-going culture is reflected in the value it places on college attendance and its beliefs about the appropriate destinations for students after high school. In a college-going culture educators believe that all students can learn at very high levels, and that students receive the experiences they need for high achievement and college preparation. Creating a college-going culture requires a commitment from school administrators, teachers, support staff, parents, and community members.  I look forward to our work together to ensure that our students are "Learning Today for a Changing Tomorrow."

Sincerely,

Michelle Curry

Superintendent

360.893.6500 x222

"Learning Today for a Changing Tomorrow"