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Dear Parents and Community,
Welcome to the 2012-13 school year at William E. Miller Elementary School!
William E. Miller Elementary School has an excellent staff, supportive parents, and students who excel in their academic studies. Student academic assessment scores have been very high the last three years and we believe that this trend will continue in the future. Parents and community volunteers are welcome and they are an integral component for the school's success. The school's Parent/Teacher Organization plans engaging activities for the students and families during the school year, and is effective in raising important funding to support the children and teachers.
William E. Miller Elementary School is unique in some respects. The school construction complies with guidelines from the "Leadership in Energy and Environment Designs" (LEED). The school uses approximately 35 - 50% less water and 41% less energy than a prototypical school of the same size. Approximately 14% of the energy needed to power the building is produced by 252 solar panels on the roof. Miller Elementary was the first school east of the Cascades with a LEED Gold Level certification.
Because of the LEED design, the school's standard Oregon State Curriculum is augmented by some of the building's properties. Each grade level has an environmental science unit (alternative energy, composting and gardening, water conservation, indigenous plants and habitat, or recycling) as part of their curriculum. At the school we try to implement sustainable practices when we can during the school day and try to educate our children and families so they can carry out those habits in their everyday lives. The school also has a science focus and has a partnership with the Bend Science Station in which the students visit the station multiple times during the school year.
The school believes that our children will use technology consistently in the future. We have multiple computer labs at the school plus other computers in each wing that are available daily. All of our teachers have SMART Boards in the classrooms to augment instruction during the day. Yearly, our PTO fundraises to purchase and support technology at the school. This year two of our 4th grade teachers will continue their technology grant and each will have up to 16 computers in their classrooms.
Miller Elementary also has an Interactive Kiosk in the front hall. It consists of a touch screen TV loaded with a real-time solar panel display of the energy produced from the panels on our roof, an interactive building tour focusing on the LEED qualities in the school, the fifth grade's "The Green Story" video, and has a biography of William E. Miller.
Lastly, at W.E. Miller we use electronic email and web pages to communicate and get information to our parents instead of printing newsletters on paper. This communication is very effective for our families and it helps them to feel connected to the school. If you have questions about William E. Miller Elementary School, please email or call me.
Respectfully,
Steven Hill
Principal
steven.hill@bend.k12.or. us
541-355-2502
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