by Logan Gruber
operations@thenewsleaders.com
“Attending the State of the Union was an amazing opportunity,” said Sauk Rapids-Rice Superintendent and Minnesota’s 2016 Superintendent of the Year Dr. Daniel Bittman in a Sauk Rapids-Rice Newsleader interview.
Bittman attended President Barack Obama’s State of the Union address on Jan. 12 in Washington, D.C. as the guest of Sixth Congressional District Representative Tom Emmer.
“I was initially contacted by Congressman Emmer’s staff, and it was an honor to meet him in D.C.,” Bittman said. “It was a quick trip, focused on the address, though we did have time to speak about issues surrounding education and issues specific to central Minnesota.”
Bittman noted he was able to meet with the majority of Minnesota’s congressional delegation, as well as a number of congress-people, both Republican and Democrat.
Issues
President Obama spoke on several issues in regards to education during his final State of the Union address.
Pre-K
“The President, as well as numerous politicians have focused time and energy on kids in the early childhood environment,” Bittman said.
He added he thinks there is support for mandatory pre-K in Congress, but it’s hard to tell what will get done based on other priorities for lawmakers.
As far as the school district is concerned, pre-K is a part of their discussion when it comes to long-term planning.
“The district does not have the facilities to accommodate all of those students should the government mandate it,” Bittman said. “In addition to building space, our district will continue to talk about how to find the qualified candidates to teach those programs, and where the resources will come from to fund them.”
STEM
The President also touched on the need for students to have hands-on experience with the sciences in order to be career ready. STEM programs (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) have increased in importance during the past few years.
“Our district has focused on increased access and opportunity for all students,” Bittman said. “Technology plays a role in that.”
An example would be the opportunity for each student to have access to an iPad, or the use of smart boards instead of the white boards or blackboards generations before might be familiar with.
Support great teachers
President Obama also said schools need to support great teachers.
“We have been very fortunate to recruit and sustain great teachers in all areas,” Bittman said. “Part of that is providing a culture where teachers want to work in our district and community. SR-R has done this successfully by working closely with the community as well as providing strong mentorship both within and outside the school, especially for those within their first three years of teaching.”
He also noted SR-R has a partnership with St. Cloud State University called the Teacher Prep Initiative. TPI provides professional development opportunities that a teacher or staff member might also have in their own school, but it also brings teachers and staff from various districts together to learn from each other and from staff and faculty at SCSU.
