Dear Thompson Community:
Welcome to the 2024-2025 school year! It is hard to believe how quickly the summer has passed and that we will welcome students back into our buildings in just a few days.
First, I want to extend a sincere thank you to all of our first responders for their actions in extinguishing the regional wildfires as quickly as possible and helping keep our community safe. I also want to thank the many staff members within Thompson School District who worked so hard to assist our families and maintain our campuses during this challenging time. Your care and support mean so much.
It has been a very busy couple of months here in Thompson. As we head into the new school year, I want to provide you with a quick update on some of the projects that have been underway.
- As we entered the summer season, the Bohemian Foundation and Larimer County announced that they are awarding $2 million in grants to Thompson School District and Poudre School District to enhance regional workforce development. Each entity provides $1 million to each school district, for a total of $2 million per district. The grant from Larimer County is being provided through funding allocated by the American Rescue Plan Act. Here in Thompson, the funding will be utilized to construct and develop a new emergency medical technician pathway for students.
- Our TSD Summer Scholars program was highly successful, with over 1000 K-8 students participating in this year’s summer classes. We had a great time working with the students, and we look forward to putting together yet another robust program next year.
- Our facilities team has completed some air cooling improvements at several schools within our district, which will help to mitigate heat impacts on our campuses further. The team has also completed several school infrastructure projects to help make our campuses more accessible.
- Staff members have been busy putting the final touches on our last remaining 2018 bond projects. I am exceptionally proud of our entire bond crew and our contractors and partners who assisted us with these projects. By utilizing grant awards, the sale and reinvestment of targeted district assets, and bond premium and earned interest, the district was able to increase the original $149 million taxpayer investment into over $208 million in project development and improvements throughout the district.
- Our staff members have been engaged in professional development activities, training, and other planning exercises to prepare for the upcoming school year.
This upcoming school year will undoubtedly be filled with excitement and accomplishment for students across TSD. I look forward to connecting with you throughout the school year, informing you of important events, celebrating accomplishments, and sharing news and exciting updates. This is an incredible school district, and I could not be any prouder to serve as your superintendent.
On behalf of our staff and Board of Education members, thank you for your continued support. We look forward to seeing you later this week!
Sincerely,
Dr. Marc Schaffer
Superintendent
Thompson School District