New school year starts Aug. 25

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Jason Burton
  • 39th Air Base Wing Public Affairs
INCIRLIK AIR BASE, Turkey --  The school bell will ring the morning of Aug. 25 starting the 2008-2009 Incirlik Unit School season.

"We are very excited about this school year because it is our accreditation year," said Raynard Eddings, IUS principal. "This winter we will be visited by a stateside accrediting agency and they will assess our program to verify we are offering credible services to our students."

Mr. Eddings said this is important because it authorizes the school to continue teaching.

"This also gives parents confidence knowing their children are receiving a quality education," he added.

One challenge IUS will have to overcome is an understaffed faculty.

Mr. Eddings explained that each year Department of Defense Dependent's Schools have to fill teacher vacancies for various reasons such as transfers, retirements and fluctuations in the student population. This school year, Incirlik had four teacher openings; however, only one was filled by a DODDS transfer.

"We got to a point in our hiring process that we had to recruit from the states," Mr. Eddings said. "Some of the applicants didn't meet the required standards and some decided Turkey was not for them."

After some assistance from the Department of Defense Education Activity and DODDS, qualified candidates were located and selected to teach here.

"Three of our selectees are on the road to come here, just not at the start of the school year when we wanted them," said Mr. Eddings. "I am anticipating it will be a couple weeks until they are in country."

This means several classes will begin the new school year with a substitute teacher.

"This isn't ideal," said Mr. Eddings. "However my goal is to try to have substitutes who are teachers so at least they are experienced with managing a classroom and we will provide as much guidance as we can with curriculum issues."

As the students and IUS staff get ready for another year, Mr. Eddings said there are some things parents can do to assist with the back to school transition.

"It is important parents talk with their children about school ... not by asking generic questions but specific questions like 'What did you cover today?' and 'Do you feel you understand what is going on in class?,'" he said.

Mr. Eddings added that a vital part of the school's success depends on involvement in the Parent Teacher and Student Association.

"We like to see as many parents as possible, not just as members of the PTSA, but actively involved," he said. "The PTSA is very valuable and is a critical organization to the life of the school."

Susie Gray, PTSA president, agrees and encourages parental involvement.

"My philosophy is that the PTSA is about parents helping the teachers teach our children," she said.

Parents can't expect the school to do everything, so they should help out as much as possible she said

Every new school year brings change and for IUS students that will include new policies.

One of the policies Mr. Eddings plans to implement is making the school grounds an MP3 player-free zone. Last year, he allowed the high school students to use MP3 players during lunch. However, he found that the IUS faculty was spending too much time enforcing that policy.

"If we are enforcing a policy too much that means the policy is not working ... so this year I am going to try a different tact," he said. "This year our expectations are just don't bring them onto school grounds."

Another change Mr. Eddings plans for is better communication between the school and parents.

"At the end of last year we looked at ourselves as a staff and determined we moved in the right direction with our school improvement plan," he said. "However, one area we feel we can improve in is communicating to our parents ... making sure everyone knows our goals and focus as a school."

With one year as the IUS principal under his belt, Mr. Eddings said he appreciates having last year to build experience because it allowed him to acclimate to the community and get a sense of where the school's strengths are and where it can grow.
"I am excited to take last year's experience and make this school year even better," he said. "I am very pleased with our student population and I think our staff is dedicated and committed to making this school the best it can be."

For more information about the PTSA, parents can call Ms. Gray at 676-5418 or e-mail iusptsa@yahoo.com.