Hello, United South Central Parents and Community Members,
I hope the first week out of school is going well for you and your family. It certainly is quiet in the building without the energy and excitement that students bring to United South Central. While we value each day of the school year and our time with students, summer is a much-needed opportunity to reset and plan for the upcoming school year. I sincerely hope that this summer provides opportunities for you and your family to have quality time together as we work towards the start of the 2024-25 school year.
Stadium Seat Replacement - Over the summer you will notice some work taking place at our stadium. After eight seasons at USC, our Metrodome seats are showing their age and wear from the weather. We are scheduled for seat replacement mid-summer and are slated for the current seats to be removed within the next week. The work of removing the existing seats in the stadium had a large cost if taken on by an outside contractor. Fortunately, our athletic Booster Club has partnered with us to do the work of removing the existing seats as a fundraising opportunity. The athletic boosters are seeking the assistance of student-athletes and parents to transfer seats to dumpsters, and in turn, the District will donate a significant portion of our funds set aside for seat removal to the Booster Club. We believe this will be advantageous for both the Booster Club and the District and be an overall win-win for both organizations.
Playground Enhancement Project - As our student population continues to expand, we have found our playground space to be slightly undersized. Over the summer, there will be some major work occurring in the playground area on the north side of the building. This work will include moving equipment to create a separate Preschool playground area and removing and replacing a large portion of outdated playground equipment. When this work is complete, we will have a playground space that is significantly more modern, safe, and accessible for all students than the equipment currently in place. This work is not scheduled to begin until our summer sessions wrap up in late June, and please keep in mind that the playground area will then be inaccessible for use over a portion of time in July and August.
Strategic Planning - Over the next few months we are continuing the work of drafting an updated long-term strategic plan for our school district. Thank you to the parents, students, and staff members who took the time to offer input on the surveys that were distributed in the past few weeks. This information is incredibly helpful to our planning process and provides tremendous insight into developing a direction that is reflective of our entire district. Our strategic planning team will continue with the in-depth process of developing our future directions over the summer, aiming to have a full strategic plan completed in the mid-fall. More information on our strategic planning process can be located on our district website.
Wednesday Schedule for the School Year - Please remember that we will be dismissing one hour early on Wednesdays during the upcoming 2024-2025 school year (with the exception of the first and last Wednesdays of the school year, which will be normal length days). Please keep this change in mind as you look ahead to the upcoming school year.
Thank you for the help and assistance you provided our students throughout the school year. I hope that you have a great start to the summer.
Taylor Topinka,
USC Superintendent
ttopinka@unitedsouthcentral.org