approaching and students are anxious for the time off. Engadine Consolidated Schools will be out for the holiday from December 24 to January 2, 2009. School will resume January 5.

First semester and second quarter will come to an end January 23. This will be a half day, with no school in the afternoon.

Last week, sixth graders and junior and senior high school students sent holiday cards to U.S. Marines serving in Afghanistan. We have been sending cards to service people since the 2002- 2003 school year. The students write some wonderful messages in their cards, and usually end with thanks to the recipient for making our world a safer place. In the past, we have even received responses from the troops in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The elementary band concert was December 8 with a large parent/ community turn-out. This is by far one of the biggest events of the school year.The secondary concert is scheduled for Tuesday, December 16, at 7 p.m. As is the case for all school concerts, the general public is invited.

The elementary school will also be involved in a penny and can drive for our community. With the economy in such bad shape, we have many people in need. Your contributions, no matter how small, are welcome.

Engadine High School is in the process of implementing the "20/20" program. This unique program allows students who have failed a core class or part of a core class to receive remedial assistance to restore lost credit. An example of how this program functions would be a ninth grade student, assessed at the quarter, who failed to master the skill of writing a cohesive paragraph and has problems with verb tenses. He or she would be placed in the 20/20 program (with parent notification), which is an integral part of their regular study hall course. The student would take an English/Language Arts pre-test and begin a self-guided remediation process that could take a month or even a whole quarter. That student would post-test and receive academic credit if they passed. This program is offered in grades nine through 12 in mathematics, English/language arts, science, and social studies. A teacher is available to provide assistance and monitor student progress. The 20/20 program provides the high school with another mechanism to help students meet "new" state core knowledge benchmarks. All students must now show measured academic mastery in all core subject areas under the mandate of the Michigan Merit Curriculum, or they will not be graduated.

School closure: Please be aware that on days of significant inclement weather the superintendent is out in the community very early in the morning to ascertain weather conditions and make a determination for a late school start, or to close school completely. Usually a decision is made by 5:30 a.m. (or earlier) and staff are notified. The broadcast media typically cannot be reached until 6 a.m. and when reached, will release delay or closure information as quickly as they can. The superintendent has no control of when this information is broadcast. You may listen on the radio to WNBY, Big Country, The Eagle, or WKHQ and/or watch television channels 9/10 or 7/4 for notification. If there is a delay or closure, a school administrator can usually be reached by 7 a.m. at the school (477-6313 or 477-6449).

Have a safe holiday season.