CHRISTOPHER DORMER- NASD SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS
Last Thursday, the Club was fortunate to have as its guest speaker, Christopher Dormer, the Superintendent of the Norristown Area School District. Chris gave a detailed account of the make-up of the district, capital projects in process and planned, district improvements, priorities, strategies, successes, and plans for the future. The District haas grown to 7891 students with a racial make-up of 49% Hispanic, 30% Black, and the balance White, Asian, and mixed. He presented the District Mission of educating and inspiring Each and Every student to become a lifelong learner and to give them the tools needed for success in a diverse , global society. He pointed out that the main core value of the district is, that every student is capable of limitless growth, and that there are many difficult obstacles to overcome to realize this value including ,that for 2000 students, English is not their first language, and that a large portion for the student body is touched by poverty.
Chris touched on successes the District has seen recently including no new tax increases in the last four years, 140 new staff positions added, and the creation of a capital reserve fund. The academic successes have been impressive also: Their investment in English language arts materials has led to 7% increase in third grade reading and a 30% point in kindergarten students reading levels. The District has been honored as Best Community for music ed and liberal arts, and several other awards.
He also spoke of the challenges facing the District which center around funding, with the State being slow to increase funding per a court order, and the delays expected in federal money in the near future. They still have an extensive program of capital expansion and upgrades the the school buildings, some of which are aging rapidly.
Thank you Chris for this informative update on our school system.