The Wisconsin Association of School Boards has designated October 6-12 as Wisconsin School Board Week as a time to build awareness and understanding of the vital function an elected board of education plays in our communities. The School District of Monticello is joining all public school districts across the state to celebrate Wisconsin School Board Week to honor local board members for their commitment to Monticello and its children.

"It takes strong schools to build a strong community, and these men and women devote countless hours to making sure our schools are helping every child learn at a higher level," Mr. Allen Brokopp said. "They make the tough decisions every month and spend many hours studying education issues and regulations in order to provide the kind of accountability our citizens expect."

Brokopp said the key work of school boards is to raise student achievement by: Creating a vision for what the community wants the school district to be and for making student achievement the top priority; Establishing standards for what students will be expected to learn and be able to do; Ensuring progress is measured to be sure the district's goals are achieved and students are learning at expected levels; Being accountable for their decisions and actions by continually tracking and reporting results; Creating a safe, orderly climate where students can learn and teachers can teach; Forming partnerships with others in the community to solve common problems; and Focusing attention on the need for continuous improvement by questioning, refining and revising issues related to student achievement.

"School board members give the Monticello citizens a voice in education decision making. Even though we make a special effort to show our appreciation in October, their contribution is a year-round commitment."

The members serving our district and their years of service are as follows: Tim Bruns, President, member since 2002; Julie Havens, Vice President, member since 2009; Randall Smith, Clerk, member since 2001; Ronald Blumer, Treasurer, member since 2009; Trina Zanow, member since 2011; Tyler Smith, member since 2015; and Becky Clark, member since 2016.

Please join us by saying thanks to our school board members during Wisconsin School Board Week.