Nate VeVerka shows former
faculty member, Paul Jones
an item in the CAD drafting
program during a school
open house.

They’ said it and so do we . . .
There is a “can-do” spirit in our schools

“It” is hard to define.

But “It” is there.

“It” is a “can-do” spirit and a feeling of cooperation that pervades the Montezuma Community Schools. Experienced members of the faculty feel it and so do people in the community who have been here for a while.

Recently, a trained panel of experts from outside the community came in and felt “It” too.

A nine-member site visitation team from the Department of Education spent three days (March 27-29) conducting interviews, observing presentations by students and reviewing district documents.

Their full report hasn’t been issued. But they gave a partial overview, and it was glowing, according to a front-page story by editor J.O. Parker in the April 4 issue of The Montezuma Republican.

Ken Howard, a team member and the superintendent at Union-Remsen in the far northwest part of the state, said Montezuma has a “can-do” atmosphere.

He also said the staff is willing to work together to get things done.

Some of the strengths the team noted:

Achievement scores that are above state and Area Education Agency averages.
A comparatively large number of course offerings for high school students.
Strong FFA and speech and drama departments.
A talented and gifted program, a preschool and a special education program.
Strong student participation in extracurriculars.
Well-kept buildings and grounds.
Two student-operated businesses – the FFA greenhouse and The View coffee shop.

The underlying attitude, they said, was a strong commitment to excellence.

The state committee learned something that local residents have known for some time: The students themselves are an essential ingredient of that Montezuma commitment to excellence.

Leadership students presented the overview of the district. That’s something that the committee members have learned to expect from administrators and other adults.

There is another “It.”

“It” is a bond between the school and the community.

Perhaps faculty member Rick Swenson expressed it best. He has been teaching agriculture at Montezuma since 1988. Under his guidance, Montezuma FFA students have earned 49 state championship event titles and five national titles. No other chapter in Iowa is even close to that.

Speaking at the 71^st annual FFA Parent-Member Banquet in late March of 2007, Swenson noted that the high school’s football team adopted the theme, “Band of Brothers” during its run to the 2006 Class 1A state championship game.

“I think that term is descriptive of our entire school district, not just football,” Swenson said.

Montezuma is known for its fiscal responsibility and the comparatively large number of course offerings for a school its size. The district had 534 students in 2006-07, including about 160 in the high school. They work with a school staff of 81.

All students are located in one building at the north end of town which sits in the middle of a 35-acre campus. The campus includes a state-of-the-art children’s playground, which was built with strong volunteer support from the community. It also includes a student fitness center which is well-appointed with weight training and cardiovascular training equipment, an all-weather running track, softball fields, a baseball field and a football stadium and practice fields.

We Believe:

Each individual has unique needs and abilities
Various instruction methods should be used to meet those unique needs
Learning is a lifelong process
Learning is enhanced through a collaborative effort of students, parents and community
High expectations promote high achievement
Everyone deserves to be treated with dignity and respect

Montezuma Elementary

Grades – Pre-school through sixth grade
Average grade size - 35
Average class size - 19
Certified teachers – 22
Guidance counselor
Paraprofessionals – 6
Homework Club – Monday through Thursday
Computer labs – two, with 20 and 16 computers, respectively.
Computer in every classroom
All-weather track for high school and elementary students
Four playground areas

Progress Monitoring – We operate on a quarter- and semester-based systems with conferences at the end of the first and third quarters. The teacher or parent may request a conference at any time.

Daily schedule – Montezuma Elementary works on a six-day cycle. Our special classes – art, music, physical education, etc., are scheduled once, twice or three times a cycle.

If we were ever to miss a day, we will simply pick up where we left off. This kind of schedule ensures that our students do not miss any classes, as they are all important to developing the whole child.

Activities for Elementary-Aged Children

Band (begins in fifth grade)
Honor choir (begins in fourth grade)
Flag football
Summer recreation: baseball and softball
Cheerleader camps (K-6)
Youth color guard (5-6)
Little Braves wrestling
Youth AAU basketball
Swimming lessons (set up by District)
Soccer
Dance (area studio)
Youth clubs (organized by community churches)
Piano and guitar lessons

Pre-School Education

Montezuma Pre-School offers –

A quality pre-school education
A licensed Iowa teacher
A full-time paraprofessional
Adult-pupil ratio of 1-10
A warm, caring environment

Pre-school requirements –

Must be age 4 by Sept. 15

Pre-school information

Meets Monday through Friday

Two half-day sessions:

Morning – 8:30 to 11:30 a.m.
Afternoon – 12:30 to 3:25 p.m.

Cost

$65 per month

Success Lab

Success Lab is an independent computer learning lab. The lab has 26 new iMac computers using the SuccessMaker program.

In the lab, students work for a half-hour per session. They meet four days out of each six-day cycle.

During each session, the students work at their own learning level. For example, a second grade student may be working on addition or multiplication depending on his or her needs.

School contacts:

Phone: 641.623-5129

Fax: 641.623-5733

Darin Jones, Elementary Principal

e-mail: djones@Montezuma.k12.ia.us

Dave Versteeg, Superintendent

Shelly Long, Elementary Secretary

School Location

604 North 4^th Street

P.O. Box 580

Montezuma, Iowa 50171

Website: www.montezuma.k12.ia.us

Montezuma's FFA chapter has won more state championship
contests than all other Iowa FFA chapters combined! This is
a scene from the chapter's 73rd annual banquet.

More about our schools

We offer many technology classes with 10 labs containing 190 computers.

In 2007, some 82 percent of Montezuma High School graduates pursued higher education using more than $300,000 in scholarships.

In conjunction with Poweshiek County Consortium, we have 11 on-campus classes that count toward both high school and college credits. These classes range from agriculture marketing and programming to entrepreneurship.

Through Iowa Valley Community College’s Grinnell campus, courses in industrial maintenance and health careers are available.

Montezuma offers a wide variety of online and advance placement (AP) online courses that have dual high school-college credit.

Athletics

In addition to a great academic offering, our school is consistent in athletics. Players and coaches team to make positive things happen and they receive outstanding support from the community.

Our all-weather running track was re-surfaced in 2005.

Our high school gym floor was renovated two years ago.

Our student fitness center is used by both students and community members.

We have an agriculture and FFA greenhouse.

Our students operate “The View,” an espresso shop downtown.

Our band facilities are new and of high quality.

Other Than School . .

Montezuma offers not only a very good education, but other activities as well. Among them: Fun Valley for racing, Lake Ponderosa, Diamond Lake and Lake Silverado for on-the-water activities, Montezuma Country Club and Star Lanes.

Active youth groups meet weekly in area churches.

Sources:

Montezuma Community Schools
Site visitation: Story in the April 4 edition of The Montezuma Republican.
FFA Banquet: Story in Montezuma Magazine portion of www.clownsiniowa.com website

More information about the schools is available in the Montezuma Community Guide, a community reference published by The Montezuma Republican.

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