Staff at the state’s smallest school district continues to benefit from national technology-based programs. Washington Island School District teachers recently participated in a session with mindSpark Learning earlier this week through a sponsorship from Samsung. It is just the latest opportunity the district has benefit from since teacher Miranda Dahlke’s eighth-grade class won the 2019 Samsung Solve for Tomorrow state-level contest by addressing the island’s wastewater concerns during the high and low tourism times. In the year since, Dahlke has traveled across the country participating in trainings with other educators and has gotten involved with a nationwide cohort teacher academy. Dahlke says the opportunity has allowed students and teachers access to the same technology tools other bigger and wealthier school districts get to use.

The extra information comes at a crucial time for Dahlke and other staff members at Washington Island School District as they have been forced to adjust to virtual learning options due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Washington Island School will open for in-person instruction on September 1st, but parents still concerned about their kids’ safety can opt for virtual instruction.

Picture courtesy of Washington Island School District