Indian River School District

The recent arrest of Sussex Central High School Principal Dana I. Goodman has sent shockwaves through teachers, parents and students statewide. Goodman, arrested on rape charges involving a 17-year-old female student at the high school, was being held this week on $331,000 cash-only bail. Following the past week’s events, the regularly scheduled Indian River School Board meeting on Tuesday, May 6, had another topic for board members to consider in their executive session: Who would be named the acting praincipal of Sussex Central?

The Indian River School Board will be filling three seats next week in Districts 4 and 5, in elections on Tuesday, May 13.

The Southern Delaware School of the Arts, temporarily housed in the “old” Indian River High School – otherwise known as the John M. Clayton Building – will be hosting a Silent Art Auction this Saturday, May 10, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., to coincide with the school’s World Fair celebration.

Delaware State Police detectives on Friday arrested the principal of Sussex Central High School for the alleged rape of a 17-year-old female high school student at the school.

Most college freshmen will be returning home for their first summer break this month with haste, eager to get some relaxing time away before hitting the books again in a matter of months. For three local students, though, kicking off the summer is hardly a walk in the park. It is, however, a walk — 400 miles of walking, to be exact, and, to top it off, it’s all for a good cause.

On Tuesday, April 29, students, teachers and community volunteers were set to come together to create a new schoolyard habitat at Indian River High School in Dagsboro.

With more than 80 students representing Indian River High School in the National Honor Society (NHS), Monday’s induction ceremony proved that one school can never have too much perfection. In all, 38 new NHS members made their way across the stage in last Tuesday’s presentation to join the John M. Clayton Chapter of the society.

The fourth- and fifth-graders of Lord Baltimore were treated to a special presentation on April 17, of “Tar Wars” a nationwide program that started in Colorado, designed to educate America’s youth about the dangers of smoking.

On Thursday, May 22, the Indian River School District will host a current-expense referendum for the purpose of generating additional local funding for operating expenses, salaries and the implementation of full-day kindergarten.

The Indian River School District’s concern over issues of religious expression in the schools — a matter discussed and debated for the past three years — reached new heights this week when officials mandated on Tuesday that no school in the district can host or celebrate the Easter holiday with egg hunts, candy or the Easter Bunny, etc.

The Indian River Variety Show came out with a bang last weekend, as 35 acts consisting of more than 50 students put on their best performances Friday and Saturday nights. The annual performance, headed by the school’s band and chorus director, Mark Marvel, uses money from ticket and food sales to benefit the music department at the school.

Kim Kleinstuber, a fourth-grade teacher at Frankford Elementary School, was recently picked as the school’s Teacher of the Year. In order to win the honor, a teacher must be nominated by a student, parent or fellow teacher.

Thanks to a Melody Program grant award from the Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation, third-graders at Frankford Elementary School received instruments earlier this year that have enabled them to start a mariachi band.

The Indian River School Board elections may be a few months off, but the registration time for those running for seats is slim. Eligible candidates who wish to vie for the positions have until 4:30 p.m. today, Friday, March 7, to do so. As of Wednesday, March 5, only the four incumbents have registered for the available seats, representing three-year terms in three districts.

Welcome to CoastalPoint.com 2.0! If you’ve visited our Web site in the last few weeks, you’ll already have noticed the appearance of the first phase of months of behind-the-scenes work by our staff on The Point’s Web presence.

The Indian River School District reached a partial settlement Tuesday morning with two families who filed a federal lawsuit in 2005 accusing district officials of violating their First Amendment rights by aggressively promoting Christianity.

Towns throughout the area have recently been starting up curbside recycling programs, but until recently, they were primarily for residents. Now, three high school students have brought the idea forth in their school, and the trend is catching on quickly.

With the end of the Labor Day holiday weekend comes the start of the 2007-2008 school year for students in the Indian River School District. And when they return to school on Tuesday, Sept. 4, they may find some changes to school rules and even the location where they’re attending classes.

Indian River students continued to perform among the best in the state on standardized tests, but achievement gaps between racial groups continued in 2007. Scores from the statewide spring test were released last week.

State legislators approved a sweeping revenue package with the 2008 fiscal year budget this weekend, raising $572 million over the next six years to help cover a $1.5 billion shortfall in the capital transportation program and, perhaps, saving some roadway projects that were left in jeopardy.

The skies over coastal Delaware will light up over the Fourth of July holiday with a variety of pyrotechnics displays.

But not all of them will be legal.

State legislation up for approval this week would allow state transportation officials to begin work on the much-anticipated Indian River Inlet Bridge project that was delayed again in late April.

The 25-member working group made up of civic leaders coming Millsboro south to Selbyville have officially recommended building a highway that will bypass U.S. 113 from north of Millsboro to south of Frankford.

This weekend, a talented collection of students will participate in the annual, two-night Indian River High School Variety Show, the music department’s most successful fundraiser. Headed by the Mark Marvel, the school’s band and chorus director, it will comprise 35 acts, featuring song, dance, skits and more.

Recent Indian River High School graduates Catie Cummings, Ellen Dupont and Krista Littleton are asking the public for help in raising money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society — and, ultimately, for recovering IR student, cancer patient and friend Elizabeth Shoemaker.

After listening to a discussion on a uniformed dress code proposal at Tuesday night’s Indian River School Board meeting, Antonio Lopez, his two sisters and mother promptly stood up and walked out of the meeting at Sussex Central High School. It was clear they had come for one reason.

State legislation approved in 1995, allowing students to attend schools outside of the area in which they live, has been responsible for roughly a third of the Indian River School District’s population growth in the last decade.

School Choice