5/13/26 Update

Good afternoon,

Happy Earth Day!

In the Rockford Public Schools, we can celebrate because all of our elementary buildings are certified “green” schools. As part of being a Michigan “Green School”, each school has to complete at least 10 or more environmental activities within an academic year. Green schools aim to foster environmental stewardship and reduce their ecological footprint. Our outdoor education program lead, Tara Dzirbowicz, deserves credit and thanks for helping educate our students and lead our staff in this process.

Items of note from our 4/19/26 Board of Education meeting:

• Approved the hire of an art teacher for Rockford High School.
• Passed a staff appreciation resolution to recognize our Rockford Public School staff for their contributions to our school district.
  • Staff appreciation week is the week of May 4th.
  • Staff Appreciation Day is May 5th.
• Approved the purchase of new iPads for grades K-1. 
  • The cost of these were paid from the sinking fund.
  • The devices will support assessment and instruction.
  • The devices replace devices purchased in 2019.
• The Rockford Education Foundation provided the Board with an overview of their support for our district.
• Our Early Childhood leadership provided an update on our early childhood programming.

Tricia Anderson, board trustee since 2022, resigned from the Board this week. Ms. Anderson has been a strong voice for students and the district. We wish her well as she moves forward.

As a result, there will be a board opening. Per policy the board has 30 days to fill the vacancy. More information on what that process will look like will be coming out later this week.

Spring sports started slowly in the wind, rain, and cold, but things are picking up this week.

Frozen Jr., our 8, 9, and 10 grade student play, will run May 7, 8, and 9. I saw the students practicing yesterday. They are working hard. Tickets are available at Ludus - ROCKTIX – rocktix.org.

In addition, our theater students are also directing and starring in one act plays April 29, 30, and May 1. These shows will be in the Blackbox theater at Rockford High School. Tickets also available at Ludus - ROCKTIX – rocktix.org.

Enjoy the nice weather!

Steve

Dr. Steve Matthews, Superintendent

Rockford Public Schools

Good afternoon,

As you are aware our Rockford High School boys’ basketball team beat Northview High School in a thrilling game on Tuesday night. This win catapults the Rams to the Division One semifinals on Friday, March 13, at noon, at the Breslin Center in East Lansing.  

Congratulations to Coach Clough and our Rockford High School boys’ basketball team!

After careful consideration, I wanted to alert you that school will be in session on Friday.

All students will have school on Friday, March 13, including preschool and child care.

If you want to make a different choice for your student and have them attend the game, please be sure to call in their absence and it will be excused.

I understand that there are many families who will want to attend the game. I have been to the Breslin for our girls’ basketball team on a Friday school day each of the last three years, and it is awesome to see the tremendous crowd that Rockford brings to the game.

We have adjusted schedules in the past. The first time the boys made the semifinals in 2012, school was cancelled. Then the girls made the semifinals and school was cancelled. Then the girls made it once more and, again, we pivoted to a half day for secondary. For each of those choices there are complications. 

For 9-12 high school students, we will judge the interest in having a high school student fan bus. This will offer high school students a chance to be safely transported to and from the game. Look for a survey from Mr. Clark.  

While I would like to see as many Rockford Rams in the Breslin Center as possible, we recognize the importance of having school for students and families. Keeping schools in session is positive for student learning. Canceling school inconveniences many of our families.

Therefore, after careful evaluation, I have decided that we will have school as planned on Friday, March 13, 2026.

I made this decision for the following reasons:

• We have no state forgiveness days left.
• The majority of DK-12 students historically have not attended the game.
• Our families depend on the schools every day.

To be clear, we will have a regular school day on Friday, March 13.

If you and your children want to attend the game, please call in their absence and it will be excused.

Go Rams!

Steve

Dr. Steve Matthews

Superintendent

Good afternoon,

This week marks the end of our second trimester. This is more important at the Freshman Center/Rockford High School level as classes often change each trimester. But for all of us, this reinforces that this school year is moving quickly.

I wanted to highlight a couple of things:

First, our mid-year assessment data of K-8 students continues to demonstrate that great things are happening in our classrooms. Our Fall ’25 to Winter ’26 achievement shows high achievement.

It is evident that our teachers are teaching and our students are learning! Well done!

Second, Lifetouch, the school photography provider, has been caught up in some rumors circulating on social media. We have reviewed these rumors and feel confident that they are false. Lifetouch has been a trusted partner and we expect them to continue to be for the district.

The CEO of Lifetouch has responded in this recent post: Public Statement from Ken Murphy, Lifetouch Group CEO, on recent rumors around student privacy. - Lifetouch

I share this because I wanted you to know that we are aware of these rumors and have spent time evaluating them. Student safety will always be a priority for us.

Finally, the high school theater production of Les Misérables is coming March 13 – 15 and March 20 – 22. Tickets are available here: Ludus - ROCKTIX

Our wrestling, bowling, basketball, gymnastics, hockey, boys’ swim and dive, dance, and cheer teams have had a tremendous winter season. We wish them all good luck as they head to postseason and to their end of season tournaments.

Believe it or not, our spring sports seasons will begin in just a few short weeks.

Steve

Dr. Steve Matthews, Superintendent

Rockford Public Schools

Good afternoon,

Highlights of the Board of Education meeting on Monday, February 9, include the following:

• Approved purchasing of 7 new buses.
• Approved opting into two School of Choice programs:
  • Kent ISD Collaborative School of Choice Program (students from any Kent ISD school district)
  • Section 105c School of Choice Program (students from contiguous ISDs).
    The School of Choice application window opens in April; details can be found on district webpage: Enrollment Procedures - Rockford Public Schools
• Approved classroom furniture for the Freshman Center and Rockford High School.
• Approved policy changes to public participation at Board meetings:
  • The public can sign up to speak via a google form linked within the meeting notice for each board meeting date. This signup must be done by 5:00 PM on the day of the meeting.
  • The public can sign up in person at the RPS Admin Building starting 30 minutes before the meeting. In-person signup will begin at 5:30 PM for the 6:00 PM board meeting.
• Outdoor education presented a report on their activities this year.

As a reminder, Board of Education meetings now begin at 6:00 PM.  Board of Education meeting information can be found on our district website including a link to a video of each meeting.

This week there was an incident across the street from Rockford High School. In consultation with the Kent County Sheriff’s Department, it was determined that the Freshman Center, the high school, and Roguewood Elementary should go into “secure mode.” Our students and staff responded well and there was no panic or concern at any of the buildings. This is a good reminder of why we practice our safety protocols. Information can be found on our district website: Security - Departments - Rockford Public Schools

As a reminder, we have Standard response Protocols that we follow to keep us safe. Our response to an incident is determined by the incident. In this case, the incident was not a direct threat to the school and was outside and away from the school. Thus, we went into secure mode which means there is not a direct or immediate threat. We kept students in the building, they were free to travel inside the building, and we monitored the doors to ensure that the threat did not escalate.

The Rockford High School production of Les Miserables is scheduled for the weekends of March 13 – 15 and March 20 – 22. Tickets are available at Ludus - ROCKTIX

The state budgeting process will begin shortly. To remind the community, the Governor first proposes her budget, then the House and Senate propose their budgets. Then the three parties work together to reconcile and develop a final budget. Governor Whitmer was scheduled to unveil her proposal February 11.

As a reminder, our district must have an approved budget for the 2026-2027 school year by June 30.

Our mid-winter break is scheduled for this weekend – February 13 – 16. School will resume on February 17.

Steve

Dr. Steve Matthews

Superintendent

Rockford Public Schools

Good afternoon,

Our weather in January certainly has been challenging for everyone.

I understand the difficulty of closing schools. For working parents finding childcare or caring for children while trying to work is challenging. But I am equally aware of the challenges that come when we keep schools open. Sending buses onto snowy roads and having high school drivers navigating those same snowy roads comes with its own set of problems. In addition, we must ensure that staff can get to school in a timely manner so that they will be able to greet students as they arrive.

So, as I said, winter is challenging.

The extended forecast is not encouraging. But as I have learned in my 18 years as a Superintendent, you make the best decision you can and you focus on keeping everyone safe.

Our snow days start early. Kyle Forman, our district mechanic, drives the roads – east to west and north to south. Allison Clements, our Assistant Superintendent of Business and Operations, consults with me as well. Shawn Hayward, our Director of Maintenance and Operations, keeps track of the plows and those who shovel the snow. And our transportation team – those that drive our buses – are invaluable in weather like this. All of these people are greatly appreciated.

In January, our K-8 students have been testing with our NWEA assessment. These assessments in math and reading help us both evaluate our instruction and identify how to help each student. Our teachers work with our students to help them understand how these assessments are valuable in showing the progress that each student makes. The assessments give us insight into each student and help our teachers in their grade level and department teams make sure that each student is receiving what they need to continue moving forward.

Our Fine Arts program had a chance to shine this past week. At the Michigan Music Conference, Allie Holden, our North Rockford Middle School orchestra teacher, was recognized by the Michigan Chapter of the American String Teachers Association with their Early Career Recognition Award. Mandy Scott and Jed Scott led several of our students in all-state choirs. Jenny Allen, our East Rockford Middle School orchestra teacher, led a session helping other teachers learn to be better orchestra teachers. In addition, we had several students selected to perform with all-state ensembles.

The Rockford Education Foundation is hosting their annual spring gala – The Taste. This event highlights the great work that the Rockford Education Foundation does as a partner with our district. If you can participate in this event on March 5^th I would encourage you to make your plans now. Information can be found on the Rockford Education Foundation website: The Taste

Here’s wishing for sunshine and warmer temperatures.

Steve

Dr. Steve Matthews

Superintendent

Rockford Public Schools