Week 2: Settling In and Starting Strong

Happy Friday!

Thank you to every teacher, bus driver, custodian, food service worker, office staff member, paraprofessional, maintenance worker, administrator, tech team member, and volunteer for the dedication you showed throughout this first full week. Your steady effort and positive spirit ensured that our students were not only welcomed back but also engaged in meaningful learning from the very start.

This first full week of the school year gave us the chance to move beyond the introductions and routines of the opening days. Our classrooms are now alive with hands-on lessons, our athletic teams are stepping onto the field and court for real competition, and teachers are beginning to see the unique strengths of each student. These are the moments when the purpose we spoke about last week, instilling confidence and growth, begins to take shape.

Preliminary assessments will soon be taking place so that we can track our academic goals for the year, just as we will continue to monitor attendance and discipline as important indicators of student success. These measures, along with the engaging teaching and learning we are already seeing, will help us keep a clear view of where we are and where we need to go.

Opportunities for Teachers

This year brings several valuable professional learning opportunities for our staff. The Writing Revolution will once again be available to connect the Science of Reading to writing, with cohorts forming now for teachers in all grade levels. In science, OpenSciEd has released new K-5 units that are expected to become high-quality instructional materials. Teachers of grades 3-6 also have the chance to apply for STEM Coalition grants of up to $10,000 to support classroom kits and professional learning. For our new educators, the updated Foundations of Reading test now includes the “Free After Three” policy, making retakes more accessible. Each of these opportunities is designed to invest in you and to support your work with students.

Assessment and Literacy

According to the August TCC Update from the DeQueen-Mena Educational Co-op, we are now entering the third year of our own ATLAS state assessment. Educators are being recruited to participate in item review, bias review, and data review, which is an important opportunity for those with strong knowledge of standards and testing. Andria Miller stated that this is one of the best professional development opportunities for teachers, but they have to know their content standards very well.

On the literacy side, the Division of Elementary and Secondary Education is continuing its partnership with The Writing Revolution to form new cohorts this year. These courses connect the Science of Reading to writing instruction and are open to K-12 content teachers at no cost to districts.

STEM and Science

The August TCC Update also highlights promising developments in science and STEM. OpenSciEd has released the first of four new units for K-5, which are expected to become high-quality instructional materials in the near future. In addition, the Arkansas STEM Coalition is offering grants of up to $10,000 for grades 3-6. These grants can be used for classroom kits and professional learning to support STEM instruction. Applications are open now and will close on September 19, 2025. Several Mena teachers have successfully earned these and other grants in past years, and I encourage you to continue pursuing them so that our classrooms remain filled with innovative opportunities for students.

Praxis and Novice Teachers

Another update from the August TCC Update involves licensure testing and support for new teachers. Arkansas is transitioning from the Foundations of Reading 190 test to the Foundations of Reading 890. The new test code allows teachers to take advantage of the “Free After Three” retake policy, which provides no-cost retakes after three attempts. In addition, principals are reminded that all novice teachers in years one through three must be assigned a support person this school year.

Crystal Bridges Learning Experiences

The Arkansas Department of Education has shared a Commissioner’s Memo, announcing that Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art will once again offer completely free experiential learning opportunities for students this fall. These programs include free admission to galleries and exhibitions, free lunch for students and chaperones, transportation reimbursement, and substitute coverage. Highlights include “Get in the Game: Sports, Art, and Culture,” “Careers at Crystal Bridges,” “Art in Nature” outdoor experiences, and guided mindfulness tours at the new Heartland Whole Health Institute. Optional hands-on workshops are also available to deepen classroom connections.

Closing

As we close Week 2, let us celebrate the way classrooms have quickly shifted from introductions into meaningful, hands-on learning. Teachers are building strong connections, and students are beginning to discover the rhythm of a new school year.

It was also an exciting week in Bearcat athletics. Ladycat Volleyball competed in its first benefit game at Van Buren, and our Bearcat Football team held its annual scrimmage with Mansfield last night to prepare for next week and the season opener next Friday at Bearcat Stadium against another annual rival, DeQueen. Tennis is also underway with solid results at Arkadelphia, and our students continue to shine in all areas of competition.

Next week will bring the Polk County Fair, where Mena Public Schools will host a booth, and our students with livestock projects will demonstrate the hard work they have invested throughout the summer. This is always a highlight of community pride and a chance to showcase the dedication and talent of our students beyond the classroom.

We also want to thank the Hatfield Lions Club for donating the new playground balls for our students! We appreciate that very much!

It was a good week of momentum at Mena Public Schools.

At Mena Public Schools, our students are prepared, our staff is supported, and our community is confident.

Keep the 2025-2026 #menareads posts and videos coming, and have a great weekend!