The Wilson School District superintendent wants to meet you

by Steve Reinbrecht

In May, I wrote a blog titled “New Wilson schools chief should answer to the public.”

Well, Curt Baker is doing just that [not that my nano-publication had anything to do with it.]

Hired in May, the new Wilson School District superintendent has been hosting a series of small meetings with residents. I went to one, in his office, on Wednesday morning, with three other visitors.

The next “Coffee with Curt” is scheduled for 7 p.m. Monday, Oct. 10.

Rise in the ranks

Ten years ago, Wilson was ranked in the top 20 percent of the state’s 500 or so school districts, Baker said. The latest scores on standard tests put Wilson in the top 6 percent of districts, he said. [Schooldigger.com, an unofficial watchdog website, ranks Wilson at 36 out of the state’s 500 or so districts, or better than 93.8 percent of other districts.]

Baker called the rise “remarkable progress” that encompasses all the students. “Teaching is happening in all our classrooms.”

In response to a visitor’s question, Baker said the higher ranking is not because Wilson has narrowed its teaching to material on the state assessment tests.

New tests measure more than students’ mastery of content and now demand critical thinking, he said.

“I don’t know if you can teach to that.”

He approves of the Common Core, the federal program that details what students should know in English and math at the end of each grade, kindergarten through 12th. It establishes standards across the states and is designed to make sure students are ready for higher education or work.

Baker says it emphasizes critical-thinking skills. Content can be argued over, but everyone agrees that students need to be able to speak well, write well and to “think across platforms” to succeed at work, Baker said.

Another reason for Wilson’s rise in the rankings is that it has increased the number of advanced-placement AP classes, said district spokeswoman Kristin Kramer, also at the meeting.

Baker said a goal is to have “a good solid lesson every day in every classroom.”

Administrators will find out if that's not happening because many people observe classrooms, formally and informally, including principals and other teachers.

He has been spending a full day once a week in a school building, so he believes he's learning what is going on.

Finances

Many taxpayers don’t understand that the school district’s revenues are flat because they are based on property assessments, which don’t change, Baker said. Without new business or industry, property-tax revenues don’t rise. But expenses always do, driven by labor contracts and inflation.

Wilson has the third-lowest school property tax among Berks’ 18 districts, after Boyertown and Reading, the lowest. This year, an owner with a Wilson property assessed at $200,000 would pay the district $4,990.

Teacher morale

Baker said he’s heard few complaints from teachers, though he acknowledges he’s still on his honeymoon.

Wilson has a strong teaching force, in part because it’s an attractive place to work, he said.

Supporting teachers is a priority, he said.

“We would be failing if we weren’t supporting teachers,” he said.

Should every student go to college?

Baker said one question that troubles him is whether college is right for all students.

For one thing, employers locally and across the country need workers with technical skills that can be learned in two-year programs, such as machining, mechatronics and industrial maintenance.

The trouble is that, for decades, sending their children to college has been every parent’s dream.

A visitor at the meeting said that some people in the district perceive the technical and vocational programs are “a dumping ground.”

“Technical education is frowned upon in this district,” he said.

Baker said he struggles with that problem, and that the community needs to discuss it. Parents need to understand all the higher-educational and employment options in the world today, Baker said.

The problem needs “a lot of work at the guidance level,” he said, and students should be exposed to all sorts of jobs.

Baker said that pushing for vocational and technical education sometimes spurs fears of tracking – assigning students to classes according to their overall achievement.

School safety

The district and Spring Township split the cost of a full-time police officer at the high school. But the district doesn’t use him as a security cop, Baker said. He doesn’t run to every disturbance on campus, most of which are settled in 30 seconds and handled by school staff, Baker said. 

The officer is there to build relationships with students and share his knowledge of the community to help security at the school, Baker said.

Most security problems result from custody issues, he said.

Wilson serves almost 6,000 students and has about 1,100 employees, 520 of them teachers.