BDHS Agriculture Teacher Receives Top Honor

The Beaver Dam Unified School District is excited to announce that Mr. Jacob Cramer, agricultural educator at Beaver Dam High School, received the Outstanding Young Member Award from the Wisconsin Association of Agricultural Educators at the WAAE Professional Development Conference in Middleton, from June 22-25, 2015. This award is generously sponsored by the Dairy Farm Families of Wisconsin and The Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board.

Mr. Cramer believes in empowering his students by encouraging ownership of their educational experience. Emphasis on critical thinking skills, experiential learning through cooperation allows him to create a rigorous learning environment where students master technical skills which allow students to be career ready after completing the agricultural education pathway at Beaver Dam High School. Mr. Cramer has increased enrollment in FFA, and has fostered strong community relationships resulting in an effective and inclusive agricultural education program.

“Jake is a genuine and positive person. He comes to work every day with a great attitude and a passion for his content area that is motivating,” said Mark DiSteafano, Beaver Dam High School Principal. “His professional demeanor is poised and he expresses a sincere concern for his students and colleagues.”

WAAE is the professional association for agricultural educators in Wisconsin. Members include 295 middle school, high school, technical college and university educators. The focus of the association is to provide professional development, legislative support and educational resources for teachers to enhance their local agriculture education programs.

Please join the Beaver Dam Unified School District in extending a most heartfelt and well-earned congratulations to Mr. Cramer.

District's Top Business Official to Serve as President of State Association

The Wisconsin Association of School Business Officials (WASBO) announced today that Robert Avery, the Director of Business Services with the Beaver Dam Unified School District, has been elevated to serve as WASBO President for the 2015-16 school year.  Previously, Mr. Avery has served as a member of the Board of Directors (2011-2014) and he serves on a variety of committees.

Mr. Avery has worked in public education for 18 years, having served as a school business official for nine of those.  Prior to joining the administrative team in Beaver Dam, Mr. Avery was the Director of Business Services at the Wisconsin Heights School District and the Director of Business & Operation for the Somerset School District.  Additionally, he worked for the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction (DPI) as a school finance consultant.  Mr. Avery has an M.S.Ed. degree in school business management from the University of Wisconsin – Whitewater and is a DPI licensed school business manager.

“I am honored to having been selected to lead this great organization and look forward to serving my colleagues in the coming year,” Mr. Avery stated.  “We have engaged in some significant activities at the board level in the last few years, including the implementation of policy governance.  In ‘15-‘16 we will wrap that work up and focus on our strategic plan.  WASBO provides 15 conference and professional development opportunities annually for its membership. Strengthening the skills of business officials, bookkeepers, and directors of ancillary service departments can only benefit the districts we work for and the children we serve. Our theme for the year, ‘Reaching Out, Pulling Together’ reinforces the core of our mission: professional development, networking and advocacy.”

About WASBO

The Wisconsin Association of School Business Officials (www.wasbo.com) was founded in 1947, WASBO has a membership of over 1,300 school district professional, service affiliate, student and retiree members.  District professional members include persons employed in Wisconsin school districts and other educational institutions who serve in the areas of business administration, accounting, building and grounds, transportation, food service, purchasing, and many other job descriptions on the non-instructional side of school district operations. The mission of WASBO is to provide professional development, to foster a network of support, and to advocate for funding that ensures outstanding educational opportunities for all children in Wisconsin.