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April 4, 2025
GLPS Families,
Welcome back from spring break! It was wonderful to see your kids back in our schools this week. Spring break always represents that last benchmark before the beginning of the end of the year, and as you know, things will progress quickly from here on out. From scheduling to testing to field trips to end-of-the-year celebrations, April and May are typically a blur, so hang on!
Another important piece of the end of the school year is preparing to ensure that we are staffed properly heading into the next school year, and here at GLPS, we like to be well prepared and have a plan in place to do so. To those ends, we know that research shows that employees choose careers based primarily on location, leadership, and culture, and we work very hard to create a place where people like to work. Our proximity to Michigan State University and the capital, along with our parks, the Ledges, the Grand River, and our communities make the location attractive, and we consistently strive to ensure our leadership and school culture reflect the value that you, our families, and the broader GLPS community place on our school district. That is why our strategic plan has specific goals around learning environment and culture, as well as personnel and leadership. Anytime I am outside the community and folks hear that I am from Grand Ledge, the consistent feedback I get is that the Grand Ledge families and community really support their schools, and that reputation is very important when it comes to staffing our district!
Because of our efforts in these areas and your support, we are proud of the fact that we typically are very successful in filling positions across the board, from teachers to leaders to support staff. In the current labor environment, all districts do not have that same level of success, so we are thankful that Grand Ledge Public Schools is an employment destination for many people. After all, great employees make for great experiences for our kids. Our website contains a specific careers page, where all of our open positions are listed. Remember, these are not just teaching positions, because there are a wide variety of roles and skills that make a district our size run. I encourage you to take a look; even if you are not seeking a career change, or looking to encourage someone in your life to apply for a job here, you may still be interested to see the information we share with potential applicants. There are videos about our community, schools, and leadership, and general information about the district that is useful for everyone, not just those who may work with us someday.
I want to reiterate, again, that GLPS is a great place to work because of the outstanding community in which we are located. Thank you for all you do to support us and our students, and thank you for giving us the opportunity to help them learn and grow every day. I know I am very thankful to have the opportunity to live and work here, and as always, I am #proudtobeacomet!
Dr. Bill Barnes
Superintendent of Schools
