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Dear Lansing School District Community,
What a great first week of school! It was wonderful to be able to see so many students and staff in our buildings. This week I was able to visit almost all of our schools. If I missed you this week, I promise I will see you next week. However, each day, I started at the CATA hub. I know that it was a big change, going from using traditional school buses for high school students to using either a gas card or a CATA pass. But, from what I saw, it worked really well. The Lansing School District staff, along with the CATA staff, were incredibly supportive and caring. CATA and LSD worked tirelessly to make sure that all students got on the right bus, and if they missed the bus, CATA or LSD was able to get them home or to school. It was wonderful to see such a strong partnership. Not only do our high school students now have free CATA transportation to and from school, but they are also able to ride on the weekends and to stay later for after-school programming and not worry about a ride home. Additionally, because we were able to make this change, it had a great positive outcome for our K-8 students. Unlike last year, where buses were consistently late or just didn't show up, the number of reported off-time Dean buses has dropped precipitously.
This week I also attended both the Eastern vs. Everett and Sexton vs. Waverly football games. I love sports. I played in both high school and college. I love how sports can bring a community together and how winning on the field somehow seems to translate to winning as a community. But what I love about high school sports the most is how it creates better outcomes for our students. In order to play on a team, a student needs to be eligible, meaning they have to pass their classes with a solid GPA. When you are on a team, you have another support network, socially and emotionally. You have another group of adults who are focused on your development. All of this translates to better outcomes overall for student athletes. No matter the sport, be it swimming or softball, baseball or basketball, playing sports is good for a student. I urge all students, if they are interested in sports, to please reach out to your principal or athletic director. You can get a free physical at one of our clinics, and we have plenty of room on our teams. I know the coaches will welcome any experience level. We all had to start somewhere.
Though I thanked many people last week, because it is the Labor Day Weekend, I want to specifically thank our staff again. It is through your labor, your hard work, your care, and compassion that we are able to do great things in this district. Thank you.
We continue to receive positive emails about these newsletters. Please continue to contact us with your thoughts. We would love to hear your feedback, especially around topics you would like us to cover.
Thank you so much for all of your incredible support of our district. Together, we will do great things for the children of Lansing.
Benjamin Shuldiner, Superintendent
Lansing School District
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