The Emergency Broad-

cast Center seemed

to be practicing all

the month of March

for emergencies as I

heard over and over

the screech of the

high-pitched warning

signal. What followed

was "This is only a test.

If this was a real emer-

gency, tune into..." All

of us have heard the

routine. Perhaps we

become so accus-

tomed to these tests,

the warnings fall on

deaf ears.

There have been

many warnings in re-

cent months coming

from Madison regard-

ing school funding.

Some warnings imply

the "sky is falling" with

dire consequences.

Other messages are

not so bleak, but still

carry the message

there is belt tightening

happening and it will

involve public schools.

So what is the real

story?

I am not an alarmist,

but I have to be hon-

est. In the thirty-nine

years of being educa-

tor, I have never

faced a more dismal

outlook for public

schools than I have

this year in our state.

One thing is clear -

school funding is com-

plicated. I certainly

can’t explain it all in

this short letter. While

at risk of being overly

simplistic in delivering

this message I will try.

The Governor’s 2015-

16 proposed budget

contains a $150 de-

crease per student in

public school funding

for 2015-16. While $150

doesn’t sound like

much, this reduction in

projected revenue

comes close to$41,000

for the Plum City

School District. $41,000

is a large amount of

money for us to work

without especially

when we have had a

considerable number

of delayed mainte-

nance issues surface

this year in our district.

For example, the cost

of a boiler fix at the

high school was over

$12,000. The cost of a

broken well at the ele-

mentary school was

over $15,000. The cost

of a new elementary

gym floor needed due

to safety and health

hazards for our stu-

dents was over

$35,000. These are just

a few examples of the

major maintenance

issues facing our dis-

trict. Yes, a loss of

$41,000 is significant in

an already tight oper-

ating budget. These

‘fixes’ were not

“wants” but necessary

maintenance needs

to keep the school

operating. $41,000

cannot be found with

simple “belt tighten-

ing”. This is just one of the

provisions in the pro-

posed budget that

concern us. In the

Plum City School Dis-

trict we have histori-

cally been fiscally pru-

dent, and we use a

strategic process to

plan for both short-

term and long-term

needs. We respect the

financial investment

you make to the suc-

cess of our schools

and students. We re-

spect the commit-

ment you make with

the tax dollars you pay

to support our schools.

We have tightened

our belt and did more

with less for the last

several years. We did

this to lower the tax

impact for all our tax-

payers. As we look to

the next year, this

“belt tightening” is

getting more and

more challenging. And as we look to the

future, the economic

From the Desk of the Superintendent By: Mary Baier

Inside this issue:

Assessment Dates 2

Principal’s Desk 3

Reality Check 4

NHS 5

5th Grade News 6

Lunch Menu 7-8

Music Notes 9

Special points of interest:

4K Screening, April 17

Instrument Display, April 21

MS Spring Concert, April 27—7 p.m.

HS Spring Concert, April 29—7 p.m.

Freshmen Smorgas-bord—May 3

NO SCHOOL—Monday, May 25, Memorial Day

SPRING 2015

Plum City School District VOLUME 27, ISSUE 4

Yearbook Sponsors 10 The School District of Plum City is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, age ancestry, creed, pregnancy, marital or parental status, physical or mental health, emotional or learning disability.

From the Superintendent’s Desk Continued . . .

Page 2 Plum City School District

challenges fostered in this budget will compound requiring us to make some serious decisions about the

district budget and create challenges far beyond the 2015-16 school year. That is the largest concern.

The District Steering Committee made up of over twenty community members who have volunteered

their time and commitment to studying the future of our district needs will have their first meeting April

22, 2015. Their work will be important to gathering factual and transparent information about the needs

of our district and making recommendations to your School Board in the upcoming months.

Additionally, the Governor proposed removing the 1000-student cap on private school vouchers.

These vouchers, as proposed, would be funded from public school dollars in which the voucher student

resides. Voucher schools use your tax dollars, taken from your local public schools and are not account-

able to the taxpayers or for their academic performance. Although the financial impact is impossible to

calculate at this time, the net result will be less state funding for K-12 public schools in Wisconsin. And

this means, less for the children in your district. Wisconsin guarantees a constitutional right to our children

of a public education. We must be willing to support every child’s right to that education. Our chil-

dren’s and grandchildren’s futures depend on it.

Please share your concerns with our governor and legislators.

Governor Scott Walker Representative Warren Petryk Senator Kathleen Vinehout

P.O. Box 7863 Room 103 West Room 108 South

Madison, WI 53707 State Capitol State Capitol

608-266-1212 P.O. Box 8953 Madison, WI 53707-7882

govgeneral@wisconsin.gov Madison, WI 53708 (877) 763-6636

(888) 534-0093 Sen.Vinehout@legis.wisconsin.gov

Rep.Petryk@legis.wisconsin.gov

The 14-15 school year has in-

cluded many new assessments.

The students and staff at Plum

City have done a remarkable

job of adapting to these chal-

lenging tests. Please review the

following assessment schedule

for the rest of the school year:

Badger Exam (grades 3-8; Eng-

lish/Language Arts & Math)

Grades 6-8: April 14, 15, 21, 23

Grades 3-5: April 21, 22, 28, 30

ASPIRE (grades 9-10; English,

Reading, Writing, Science, Math)

April 27, 28, 30

MAPS (grades 6-10; Reading,

Language, Math)

May 18, 19, 20, 21

District Assessment Coordinator Update Submitted by: Danni Noel, School Counselor

School Counseling Department Update Submitted by: Danni Noel, School Counselor

Our seniors have been busy

working on scholarships, firming

up their future plans, and pre-

paring for graduation. I am

happy to report that 88% of the

class has committed to a post-

secondary institution! It has been

fun to watch this group grow

throughout the last four years

and I am looking forward to

hearing about their future suc-

cesses. Parents of eighth and

fifth grade students should keep

an eye on the mail for an invita-

tion to attend their student’s in-

dividual planning conference in

the upcoming months. The stu-

dents have been working very

hard to prepare their academic

and career portfolios to share

with you. The purpose of these

conferences is to establish a col-

laborative team to assist our stu-

dents in achieving their aca-

demic and career goals. I look

forward to assisting each of you

in this exciting process. As al-

ways, please feel free to con-

tact me at school if you have

any questions or concerns that I

can assist with. Have a safe and

relaxing summer!

Page 3 Plum City School District

Come Support

the Freshmen Class Fundraiser With

DAD’S WAFFLES Sunday, May 3, 2015

9 a.m.—Noon

Plum City High School

Advanced Tickets $7 or $8 at the door

Thank you for your support!

From the High School Principal’s Desk Submitted by: Paul Churchill We are entering a very busy time

of the school year and nearly all

the students are participating in

extra-curricular activities. Our

high school and middle school

groups received all firsts at the

Large Group Music Festival in

Spring Valley last week. The stu-

dents and Mr. Bonn should be

commended for another great

job at the Music Festival. The

spring concerts will be held on

April 27 and 29 at 7 pm. Please

plan to support our music pro-

gram by attending the concerts.

The students enjoy performing for

a large audience.

Congratulations to the following

students who qualified for the

State Forensics Meet in Madison

on April 17. Taylor Chilson, Rhian-

non Kernstock, Rachel Redding,

Josalin Helmueller, Tuvara Riley,

Kassandra Heit, Linkon Foley, Lexy

Weiss, Kailee Broeckert, Anna

Almsted, and Wyatt Holt. Mrs.

Laehn and Mrs. Bechel are the

advisors for the forensic team. As

a high school student years ago, I

feared the thought of speaking in

front of other people. I admire

the confidence that students ac-

quire through forensics. Develop-

ing good communication skills is

one of the most important things

a student can do to be successful

in life. Good Luck forensics team!

Our juniors finished taking the ACT

exam last month and have re-

ceived their individual reports.

This is the first year all students in

the junior class were required by

the State of Wisconsin to take the

ACT exam. Our 9th and 10th

graders will be taking the ACT As-

pire exam the week of April 27th.

This exam is also required by the

State of Wisconsin and replaces

the Wisconsin Knowledge and

Concepts Exam for Math, English,

Writing, Reading, and Science.

On April, 6, the National Honor

Society held its annual awards

night and inducted six new mem-

bers. Congratulations to Kailee

Broeckert, Danyelle Hovland,

Adrianna Almsted, Anthony

Ebensperger, Josalin Helmueller,

and Kaitlyn Ahlers for your out-

standing scholarship, leadership,

character, and community ser-

vice. The NHS students will be

working at the community table

on Thursday, April 23 in Eau Claire.

The senior class is excited about

leaving on their class trip to Chi-

cago, New York City, and Wash-

ington D.C. on May 6. This will be

the 60th anniversary of the senior

class trip to Washington D.C. The

first senior class trip was a day trip

to Wisconsin Dells in 1951, from

1952 to 1955, the senior class took

a 3-day trip to Chicago, Ill. Since

1956, the senior class has made

the trip to Washington D.C. as

part of their 8 day trip that also

includes Chicago and New York

City. A mandatory student/

parent meeting will be held on

Wednesday, April 22 at 6 p.m. to

review the class trip rules and turn

in parent permission and insur-

ance forms.

Many FFA members will be recog-

nized for their accomplishments

at the annual FFA banquet on

Tuesday, April 14. Congratula-

tions to the state qualifying horse

judging team of Tiffany Stauffer,

Katitlyn Ahlers, Danyelle Hovland,

and Lexi Diesing.

Have a nice spring!

This year the Plum City Junior

class was invited to Mondovi to

do a Reality Check Simulation

on March 26. This simulation

consisted of everyday activi-

ties and issues that may occur

throughout a person’s life.

Prior to the event, students had

to research several different

occupations and gather infor-

mation regarding each one,

be able to keep an accurate

checkbook, and determine

withholdings. The students

then picked one of their occu-

pations and filled out a form

which was sent into the Exten-

sion office. This form was used

by the Buffalo County Exten-

sion Office to give each of the

students an occupation and

other relevant information for

the simulation.

The day of the Reality-Check

simulation the students realized

very quickly what real life was

all about. Some students were

paying child support of more

than $1000 a month, other stu-

dents needed to apply for sec-

ond jobs just to make their

payments, and still oth-

ers needed to take out

loans. They realized that

living on their own takes

a lot of money and abil-

ity to plan a budget.

During the duration of

the simulation, some stu-

dents were appre-

hended by the police

officer and given tickets.

Depending on the

ticket, some of the stu-

dents needed to go see

the judge before paying

for their fines. The stu-

dents also needed to do exit

interviews and check-outs be-

fore they were

allowed to

leave the simu-

lation.

Students

learned a lot of

valuable infor-

mation and

were excited

that they had

the opportunity

to participate

in such a realistic simulation.

They continue

to talk about

the experience

today which is

always a posi-

tive thing. Plum

City students

were given sev-

eral compli-

ments through-

out the day by

all the volun-

teers on how respectful and

courteous they were.

Page 4 Plum City School District

Reality Check Simulation Submitted: Nanette Murray, Business Ed.

Student Reflection— Reality Check Simulation

I think reality check is

beneficial to applying skills that

are learned in the classroom in

a simulation. Overall I thought

that it went really well and I

liked it! The volunteers were

nice and very helpful also. I

felt pretty comfortable working

and managing my budget for

the month. I actually had my

totally come out to having an

extra $1.29 when everything

was almost said and done but

I wasn’t aware that I had to

pay for a credit card that I did-

n’t even use so I had to dip

into savings which I wasn’t

looking forward to but I guess

that’s how things work out

sometimes! I also learned that

being single and having chil-

dren is much harder than hav-

ing a spouse to also supply in-

come and to add to that

healthy, safe, and smart life

choice will pay off and end up

saving money and are overall

good for your well being. Aaron Mattingly

Reality check was a

great learning experience for

me. By going, I learned how to

spend money wisely or else

deal with the consequences of

my poor spending. It really

opens a person’s eyes about

their career choice as well like

what I would be able to spend

on my salary. At reality check I

was a single divorced mother

of an infant, between child

support, diapers, food and

child care, I was just about

broke.

It made me realize that

even though a person doesn’t

plan on being divorced or get-

ting tickets or having kids

young, that these things hap-

pen. Of course I knew these

things could happen but I did-

n’t think of all the things that

come along with all those bad

cards dealt to a person. Brittany Bataglia

Congratulations NHS Members Submitted by: Steve Ottman, NHS Advisor

The Plum City Chapter of the

National Honor Society held its

annual banquet on Monday,

April 6. This banquet recog-

nized the achievements of

twelve students over the

course of the school year. Their

activities included

a ‘Pink Out’ in the

fall to raise money

for Breast Cancer

Awareness, a ‘Red

Out’ to raise money

for the American

Heart Association,

a bean bag toss

and 50/50 raffle

during basketball

games with recipi-

ents of those funds

to be determined.

On April 23 the stu-

dents will travel to Eau Claire

to prepare and serve a meal

at Community Table.

Six new members were in-

ducted at the banquet. In or-

der to be eligible for NHS a stu-

dent must maintain a 3.85

grade point average; attend

school with no more than five

excused absences, show traits

of good leadership, service

and character.

NHS Members: Rachel

Redding, Lexy Weiss,

Jillian Holt, Anna Alm-

sted, Rhiannon Kern-

stock, Cheyenne Ca-

tura, Kailee Broeckert,

Kaitlyn Ahlers, Danyelle

Hovland, Nash Gilles,

Austin Coss, Anthony

Ebensperger, Joslyn

Helmueller, Peter

Fenter, Dillon Hovland

and Linkon Foley. Miss-

ing are Tiffany Stauffer

and Allysa Wieser.

Page 5 Plum City School District

5th Grade Achievements Submitted by: Kristen Elbe, 5th Grade Teacher

The fifth graders have been busy “stretching their thinking” lately! The past few months, they

have participated in the following enrichment activities:

Page 6 Plum City School District

Elementary Spelling Bee

On Friday, February 27th, nine elementary students took the stage to

face a list of very tough words to spell and an audience made up

of parents, grandparents, and classmates. Three of each grade’s

top spellers represented their third, fourth, and fifth classes. Partici-

pants included: Grade 3- Kali Brunner, Giovanni Nunez & Trichelle

Smaller ; Grade 4- Ally Gilles, Alicia Hines, Cheyenne McMurray;

Grade 5-Joey Bechel, McKenna Kannel & Hailee McDonough.

Joey Bechel claimed the title of Spelling Bee Champ, by correctly

spelling the word “vacuum.” Congratulations to all of our school’s

top spellers!

Pierce County Speaking Contest

Lauren Schultz headed to Ellsworth on Monday, February 2nd to

compete in the Pierce County Environmental Speaking Contest. Lau-

ren researched, wrote and delivered a 5-minute speech about Wis-

consin’s reed canary grass. She represented Plum City well and

earned a 4th place award. Way to go, Lauren!

Math Masters

An enthusiastic group of fifth

graders have been spending

extra time after school preparing for the 2015 Math

Masters Competition, which will be held held at St.

Croix Central Middle School on Friday, April 24th. This

team will compete in individual and team rounds,

challenging their math skills in the areas of both fact

drill and problem-solving. Good luck to our 5th grade

Math Masters team, which includes: Greta Batho,

Joey Bechel, Colton Coss, Jarrod Pelzel, Travis Seipel,

and Dayne Whipple!

SPECIAL THANKS FROM SUPPORT OUR SCHOOL Heartfelt thank you to those who made Plum City School District’s S.O.S.

Schwan’s active campaign a success! Our school will continue to earn 5% on all product sales

through March of 2016, so it is not too late to join our campaign.

Appreciate your contribution of Box Tops, Kwik Trip milk caps, and bag tops throughout the

year.

Thanks again for your support!

All meals are served with 1% and skim milk choices along with 100% whole

grains.

1 Turkey burgers or hamburgers (m/h) Hamburgers (elem) Broccoli Pineapple tidbits

2

Chicken nuggets BBQ beans Sliced pears Banana bread

13

NO SCHOOL

6

Hamburgers Sweet potato fries Baked beans Applesauce

7

Breaded chicken Sandwich Mashed potatoes Fresh veggies/dip Fruit cocktail

8

Pizza hotdish Broccoli Mandarin oranges

9

Soft shell tacos w/ fixings Green beans Tropical Fruit

10

Mandarin orange Rice bowl (m/h) Chicken nuggets (el) Rice California medley Sliced pears

13

Grilled chicken sand. Broccoli Sliced peaches Brownie

14

Lasagna/bread stick California medley Diced pears

15

Chicken nug/bread Romaine salad Strawberries

16

Ft. long hot dogs BBQ beans Fresh veggies/dip Bananas

17

Tatertot hotdish Whole grain bread Green beans Orange wedges

20

Meat & cheese subs Romaine salad, tomato & onion Corn Mandarin oranges

21

Chicken nuggets w/bread Broccoli Apple wedges

22

Ravioli w/marinara sauce Green beans Grapes

23

Hamburgers Sweet potato tots Banana

24

Breaded chicken sandwich Baked beans Sliced peaches

27

Pizza burgers Roasted potatoes Cooked carrots Applesauce

28

Corn dogs Fresh veggies/dip Diced peaches

29

Grilled chicken sand. Romaine salad Calico beans Fruit cocktail

30

Chicken tacos & fixings Baked beans Orange wedges

MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY

April 2015 LUNCH MENU

All meals are served with 1% and skim milk

choices along with 100% whole grains.

Salad bar served daily for middle/high school

1

Hamburgers Sweet potato fries Baked beans Applesauce

4

Spaghetti & Breadstick Green beans Cucumber sticks Apple wedges

5

Chix-n-fri stix Baked beans Baby carrots/dip Strawberries Muffin

6

Tacos & fixings Romaine lettuce, tomato Corn Pineapple tidbits

7

Meatball subs Sweet potato fries Broccoli Grapes

8

Pizza Romaine salad Cauliflower Jello & bananas

11

Pulled pork sandwch BBQ beans Baby carrots & dip Tropical fruit

12

Lasagna & breadstick California medley Sliced peaches

13

Foot long hot dog Sweet potato tots Cole slaw Diced pears

14

Hot ham & cheese Romaine salad Potato wedges Banana

15

Tater tot hotdish Bread & butter Green beans Orange wedges

18

Pizza burger Roasted potatoes Green beans Applesauce

19

Corn dogs Broccoli Fresh veggies/dip Diced pears

20

Grilled chicken sandwich Romaine salad Calico beans Fruit cocktail

21

Ground beef stroganoff Bread & butter Cooked carrots Cucumber sticks Apple wedges

22

Bosco sticks Marinara sauce Cauliflower Banana

25

NO SCHOOL 26

Breaded chicken sandwich Romaine salad Green beans Fruit cocktail

2

Pizza hotdish Bread & butter Broccoli Mandarin oranges

2

Tacos & fixings Romaine salad, tomt. Corn Pineapple tidbits Ice cream treat

2

Chicken nuggets Rice w/ cinnamon sugar California medley Diced pears Bread & butter

MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY

May 2015 LUNCH MENU

Music Notes Submitted by: Mike Bonn

Page 9 Plum City School District

MIDDLE SCHOOL SPRING

CONCERT

On Monday, April 27 Plum City

Middle School will hold their final

concert of the year. The Spring

Concert will be held in the high

school gym at 7 p.m. Starting the

evenings performances will be

the SAB Middle School Choir.

They will sing songs from their

Large Group Festival including

“Sanctus” and “Didn’t My Lord

Deliver Daniel”. The Blue & Gold

Band will take the stage next.

They have been working hard all

year and are ready to show their

improvements with “Old

McBingo” and Rockin’ The

Blues”. Finishing the evening’s

performance is the Middle

School Band. They will feature

the flute section with “Flutes Es-

pana”, and then feature the

trombone section with “Slippery

Slides”. Awards will also be given

to the top 8th grade vocalist and

instrumentalist. This concert is

open to the public and is free of

charge. HIGH SCHOOL SPRING CONCERT

This year’s High School Spring

Concert is slated for Wednesday,

April 29 at 7p.m. The evening’s

entertainment will start with the

Jazz Band performing 3 selec-

tions, one of which is by Van

Morrison. Following the Jazz

band will be the H.S. Vocal Jazz

Ensemble. They also be singing

three selections including an ac-

capella version of “Stand By

Me”. Next up is our class “A”

Concert Choir. After receiving a

“I” at Large Group Festival, they

will be happy to perform

“Neighbors Chorus”, and “Here

Inside My Hear” for the audi-

ence. Lastly, the evening will

end with the dynamic High

School Band. After getting rave

reviews at Large Group Festival

they will perform “The Washing-

ton Post” by John Phillip Sousa

and “Exhilaration” by Larry Clark.

End of the year awards will be

given to the musicians. INSTRUMENTAL DISPLAY

Any and all students wanting to

join band should plan on attend-

ing the music departments In-

strumental Display. The display

will take place on Tuesday, April

21 from 6-8 p.m in the elemen-

tary gym. Students and parents

can come in anytime during

that time frame to select, rent, or

purchase instruments and

method books for the up-

coming school year. Mr. Bonn

and Schmitt music from Eau

Claire will be on hand to answer

any questions. ELEMENTARY VARIETY SHOW

This year the Elementary Variety

Show will be held a week earlier

than usual. The show will be held

on Friday, May 8 in the elemen-

tary gym at 1:30 p.m. All students

are allowed to sign up for two

separate acts, one solo and one

group event. These acts could

be singing, dancing, skit, playing

an instrument, lip sync, or any

other talent they would like to

share. This is a great opportunity

for parents to catch some foot-

age or take pictures. Let’s have

some fun Friday, May 7th! SPRING MUSIC DATES:

Instrumental Display

Tuesday, April 27, 6-8 p.m.

Middle School Spring Concert

Monday, April 27, 7 p.m.

High School Spring Concert

Wednesday, April 29, 7 p.m.

State Solo & Ensemble

May 2, TBA

Elementary Variety Show

Friday, May 8, 1:30 p.m.

Graduation Ceremony

(grades 8-11 and H.S. Choir)

Saturday, May 23

Memorial Day Services

(M.S. Band)

Monday, May 25

On March 28 & 29, Plum City FFA

members competed in the Ag

Tech contest at UW-River Falls.

The day was highlighted by the

Horse team finishing second and

qualifying for the state contest

for the second year in a row.

Danyelle Hovland led the team

with a 5th place finish in her first

ever contest. Four middle school

teams competed in the Agris-

cience contest and they repre-

sented themselves very well. The

Plum City #1 team of Noah

Gansluckner, McKenzie Raethke,

Olivia Miller, Carson Smith and

Alexis Reinhardt won the contest.

Noah and McKenzie tied for sec-

ond place individuals in the con-

test. The chapter also had

teams compete in the Wildlife

and Livestock contests.

FFA Update Submitted by: Scott Imrie

Tractor Central

First Bank of Baldwin

Kristo Orthodontics

Durand Builders

Westconsin Credit Union

Eau Galle Cheese

Durand Publishing

Molly's on Main

Midwest Dental

Bauer Built

Heike Pharmacy

Bauer's Gas & Appliance Sales, Inc.

Rhiel Funeral Home

Idosew alterations--Deb Ottman

Cottage Hill

Wieser Concrete Products

Chippewa Valley Cable, Inc.

S.O.S.

Plum City Hardware

Panther Drive Inn

Security Financial Bank

Fetzer Farms, Inc.

Weiss Woods of Plum Creek

Lonnie Larson--ReMax

Binkowski Oil LLC

Plum City Service

Designs by Dianne

Kent's Auto Service

Cat-Matt

Binkowski Trucking

Panel Systems

Valley Repair

Bittersweet Bakery & More, LLC

Precise Concrete Walls, Inc.

Pioneer

Fleet Feet

Ellsworth Cooperative Creamery

JM Watkins, LLC

Pittman Maple Syrup

Durand Optometry Clinic LLC

Ryan's Sports Shop Inc.

Wolf's

Michaels Portrait Design Inc.

Grange Hall Auto, Inc

Plum City Care Center

Annabell's Catering

Fairmount Minerals

Thank you so much for your continued

sponsorship of the Plum City yearbook.

Your support is greatly appreciated.