The City of Monroe recently released its summer performance schedule for Thursday night entertainment in St. Mary’s Park and once again, they have saved the best for first.

               That’s right – the award-winning Monroe High School Jazz Band kicks off the entire summer music program with a concert 7 p.m., Thursday, May 26.  Admission is always free and make sure you bring your lawn chair and enjoy the great music.

               Here is what the Recreation Department said about the Monroe High School Jazz Band:  “We kick off our concert series with this great jazz opportunity.  The MHS Jazz Band under the direction of Mr. Jim Nuechterlein earned a Division 1 rating – the best achievable – at the Michigan School Band and Orchestra State Jazz Festival.  This is the fifth Division One rating the band has earned in the last six years.  Help us celebrate our youth.”   

               Throughout the summer you will get to see tribute bands for Bob Seger, the Beatles and Tim McGraw but on May 26 you get to see the REAL MHS jazz band.  Come and enjoy.

The Monroe High School Class of 2016 will proudly tell the world today what plans they have after they graduate from Monroe High School.  It is Decision Day 2016.  The festivities begin at noon today in the Monroe High School Auditorium and you can watch them live.  Just use the link below to watch the actual ceremonies. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OBOOsuqQkyU

Remember to vote Tuesday, May 3, in the Educational Technology Millage Renewal Election.  Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.  If you are not sure where your polling place is, please call the clerk in your governmental unit.  Here are their phone numbers:

City of Monroe – 384-9136

Monroe Charter Township – 241-6574

Frenchtown Charter Township – 242-5800

LaSalle Township – 241-4344

Raisinville Township – 269-2506

Exeter Township -- 587-2100

Students at Monroe High School will participate in the third annual Career and College Readiness Fair and Decision Day program on Tuesday, May 3. Decision Day is an opportunity for the MHS Class of 2016 to proudly declare their post-secondary plans to their classmates, teachers, family members, and younger students within Monroe Public Schools.

To generate excitement among all students in Monroe Public Schools, including elementary students, staff members and a handful of graduating seniors will visit the district’s elementary schools on April 28 and 29. They will get the students excited and will question them about their hopes for their future, instilling in them desire and eagerness for college and career readiness.

The big day for Monroe High School students will begin in the gym at 8am on May 3rd, where the annual Career and College Readiness Fair will take place; this event will include participation of some 50 institutions and/or organizations. Those represented will include colleges and universities, technical and trade associations, military representatives, local employers, and community resources.  Parents who are available and interested are invited to attend the College and Career Readiness Fair.

During the afternoon, Decision Day, a high-spirited event, will begin at noon in the MHS auditorium. The event will be live-streamed on YouTube so all Monroe Public Schools students – from the youngest up to juniors in high school who will take the stage next year -- can share in the excitement and celebration, as can parents who may not be able to attend the event.

At the Decision Day ceremony, all Monroe High School seniors will take turns declaring their post-secondary plans. Students will walk across the stage, proudly flaunting their Decision Day posters, and will sign a letter of intent as well as place their mark on a map. Representatives from many institutions and/or organizations will be on hand to welcome their newest members. 

Mrs. Sandra Kreps, MHS principal, will welcome several Monroe Public School alumni that will share their career pathway from elementary school to where they are today!  The speakers will inspire and encourage the students that Career and College Decision day is a beginning and continuation of their life’s journey!

Additionally, two special videos will be aired. One will feature graduating seniors sharing their thoughts about their years in Monroe Public Schools and the plans they have for their lives.  The other video will highlight faculty and staff wishing their students the best. 

     Registration for the Monroe Public Schools (MPS) incoming class of kindergarten and Young 5s students will be held at the Riverside Early Learning Center, 77 N. Roessler St., on April 25, 26 and 27.

     To make it as convenient as possible, no appointments are necessary.  Parents may choose from three different time periods to register the incoming students.

     The registration schedule is:

Monday, April 25, noon to 7 p.m.

Tuesday, April 26, noon to 7 p.m.

Wednesday, April 27, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

     Any child who will be five years old on or before June 15, 2016, is eligible to enter kindergarten.  Any child turning five between June 16 and December 1 is eligible to enroll in the Young 5s program. 

     For registration, parents must bring:

Certified copy of the child’s birth certificate

The child’s hearing and vision results from a doctor or the health department

Immunization record

Proof of residence, such as a utility bill or mortgage/rental document.

Picture ID for the parent or guardian.

     All immunizations should be updated before your children enter kindergarten.  Specifically,  –

--DTP, four or five doses with the last dose given on or after the child’s fourth birthday;

--Polio, three or four doses with the last dose given on or after the child’s fourth birthday;

--MMR, two doses;

--Hepatitis B, three doses;

--Varicella (chicken pox,) two doses.

     The Monroe County Health Department will perform hearing and vision testing from noon to 7 p.m., on Monday and Tuesday, and 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., on Wednesday.  In addition, immunizations will be offered on the first day of registration.

     Persons with questions can call the Monroe Public Schools Administration Office at 734-265-3000.  Parents coming to sign up their child should plan on about one hour, depending on the number of people registering at that time.

     People with a child already attending a Young 5s class in Monroe Public Schools, do not need to attend registration.

The Learning Bank of Monroe has received two grants totaling $5,500 from the Community Foundation of Monroe County to help provide testing and make it easier for some students to get to the learning facility at E. First and Winchester Streets.

     A $4,500 grant will be used to purchase testing materials.  Each testing module costs $37.50 but most students have to complete four of them, meaning each battery of tests costs $150. 

     Another $1,000 grant will be used to buy gasoline cards for students who may have trouble purchasing gasoline to be able to attend school.  The cards also may be used as incentives.

     “We are very grateful for the support of the Community Foundation,” said Vuncia Council, director, Learning Bank of Monroe.  “The grant means that we can support testing for at least another 30 students.  The gas cards mean that transportation, which is a challenge for so many of our students, now can be less of an issue for them.”

     The Learning Bank, an affiliated learning facility of Monroe Public Schools, is a valuable public resource for people who want to go back to school to earn a GED as a way of preparing for a career or preparing to pursue post-secondary education.  The Learning Bank also is open 12 months out of the year and offers learning times during the day and at night at the nearby Orchard Center High School as a way of making it as easy as possible for its students to attend their classes. 

     This grant is made possible through The Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. Foundation. 

     "We know that education is a way out of poverty offering a hand up not a hand out," said Kathleen Russeau, executive director of the Community Foundation of Monroe County. "Our goal is to improve the quality of life of in our community."

The Arborwood Elementary Campus of the Monroe Public Schools’ facilities has achieved Green School status through the Michigan Green Schools initiative.

     Michigan Green Schools is a non-profit agency dedicated to helping all Michigan schools achieve environmental goals which include protecting the air, land, water and animals of Michigan along with world outreach through good ecological practices and the teaching of educational stewardship of students pre-kindergarten through senior high school.

     “All of us Arborwood Eagles are extremely proud to receive this recognition.  Our students realize that what they do has an impact on the environment and this recognition shows the positive effect they are having,” said Arborwood Dean of Students Megan Angerer who led the effort for the Green School recognition.

     To earn this first recognition for the school, Arborwood’s efforts have been many and sustained. 

     Here is a list of the environmentally friendly activities going on at Arborwood which have produced the Green School honor:

--Adopting a portion of N. Macomb St. for students to help maintain and clean

--Recycling paper, printer cartridges, cell phones, pop cans, cardboard, water bottles and newspapers

--Switching from Styrofoam lunch trays to trays made of recyclable materials

--Using recycled napkins for breakfast and lunch.

--Forming student organizations focusing on recycling and gardening, and forming the Green Club

--Adopting an eagle from the Defenders of Wildlife Program

--Building a butterfly garden with the help of funds from the Arborwood PTO

--Energy-saving efforts, such as making a concerted effort to turn off lights in unoccupied rooms

--Encouraging parents to carpool whenever possible

--Publicizing to the children what activities are being done at school and what efforts they can make to help Michigan’s environment

--Celebrating Earth Day and hosting an Earth Day book swap.

     As part of Arborwood’s dedication to the environment, students will plant 14 trees along Riverview Ave. from Arborwood South to Linwood Ave. in ceremonies with the City of Monroe on Friday, April 29.  Working with the Forestry Unit of the City of Monroe, the students will plant seven Cleveland Select Pear trees and seven Pink Spire Crabapple trees in an alternating pattern to blossom white and pink in the spring. 

Monroe High School senior Morgan Kline earned a Division 1 rating for her violin solo at the recent Michigan School Band and Orchestra State Solo and Ensemble Festival at Chelsea High School. 

In addition she passed a Proficiency II exam in sight reading and scales which is very significant.  In that, students have to earn an 85 percent or higher score to pass.  Besides their solos, students are graded on their ability to play 18 scales that test their range and theory knowledge as well as sight-reading which tests their ability to play a piece they have never seen before.

Other Monroe High School musicians who did well in the state competition were cello soloist Jacob Foulkrod and the cello quartet of Kyle Huisman, Jacob Foulkrod, Maggie Pasko and Eleni Wohl.  Both groups earned Division 2 ratings. 

The next early release day for Monroe Public Schools students will be Wednesday, April 20, but Monroe High School students will go a full day that day.

Excused early that day are all district elementary schools, Monroe Middle School and Orchard Center High School. 

Monroe High School students will attend class all day – 7:23 a.m. to 2:12 p.m. -- on April 20 because they need to receive the required number of instructional hours which was reduced due to state-mandated testing.

The next early release is scheduled for May 18 and once again that day, Monroe High School students will attend all day, but all of the other district schools will only have a half-day of class.

By building, here is the early-release schedule for April 20 and May 18.  

Orchard Center High School – 10:14 a.m.

Monroe Middle School – 11:09 a.m.

Arborwood North – 11:43 a.m.

Arborwood South – 11:48 a.m.

Custer 1 – 12:14 p.m.

Custer 2 – 12:11 p.m.

Manor – 12:01 p.m.

Raisinville – 12:01 p.m.

Waterloo – 11:46 a.m.