On Monday evening, the Board of Directors of the Martensdale-St. Marys Community School District named Ashley Kraber its next Business Manager.

Kraber moves from the Pella Community School District where she serves as a School Business Official. She also works for the North Mahaska Community School District as part of an operational sharing agreement with the District.  Kraber has Bachelor of Science in Accounting from Purdue University and a Master of Science in Accounting from Maryville University.

Kraber, who takes over for Josh Jacobs who departs the District after just over two years, will begin her work on February 3, 2025.

Science teachers Ms. Happ and Mr. Sinn hosted their annual Science Fair today at Martensdale-St. Marys.

This event showcased the work of primarily 7th and 10th grade students, although others in grades 9-12 did participate. 

Students and community members had the opportunity to see the work of our budding scientists this morning in the gym.

Registration for Transitional Kindergarten for the 2025-2026 School Year will open on March 3, 2025.

Download more information here: TK Flyer

Overview

With the 2024-2025 school year, the Martensdale-St. Marys Community School District began offering Transitional Kindergarten (TK) as an option to families in a setting like our Kindergarten classrooms. 

TK is an educational program designed for children who are ready for school but may benefit from an extra year of learning and development before entering traditional Kindergarten.  TK provides a bridge between preschool and Kindergarten, focusing on the social, emotional, academic, and physical skills your child needs to succeed.

Eligibility

• To be eligible for TK, students must turn 5 years old by September 15.
• This program is open to those resident students of the MSTM School District and those that complete open-enrollment paperwork in a timely manner.
• This program is limited to 20 students.

Criteria

These criteria are used to decide on student qualification for TK:

• Student readiness:  some students demonstrate the need for more development in social or emotional areas.
• Age:  To be eligible for TK, students must turn 5 years old by September 15.  Often those students with birthdays closer to that September 15 date benefit from TK as it provides more time to grow.
• Preschool (PK) recommendation:  For those students who attend Preschool at MSTM, our PK teachers will work to shar information with parents regarding the potential benefits of TK for their child.
• Parent request:  If you feel your child is not ready for Kindergarten, the District will take that into consideration.

Curriculum

• The TK program is based on the Iowa Core Kindergarten Standards, and includes focused instruction in literacy and numeracy with a strong emphasis on self-regulation and social engagement.
• Kindergarten standards, assessment and reporting activities will be applied in the same way as all other kindergarten classrooms; however, the TK teacher will be able to slow the pace of instruction to allow more time to meet the needs of the students.
• The students will be introduced to kindergarten math & literacy standards, but with the slower pace, we would not expect students to meet all of the kindergarten standards by the end of the school year.
• Students ARE considered kindergarten students by the State of Iowa and will be required to participate in state-wide kindergarten assessments.

Questions

Contact MSTM Elementary Principal Beth Happe at 641-351-7400 x517 or via e-mail at [email protected].

The Martensdale-St. Marys Community School District offers both a 3-Year-Old and 4-Year-OId Preschool Program.

Registration for the 2025-2026 School Year for Preschool begins at 9:00am on Monday, February 3, 2025.

Key Dates

February 3:  Preschool Registration Begins

March 3:  Preschool Student / Parent Meet and Greet – 10:00am – 11:00am

MSTM 2025-2026 School Calendar:   MSTM 2025-2026 Calendar

Enrollment Priority

Students will be enrolled in the following order of priority:

• Students residing in the district.

• Students with siblings who attend school in the district (district or non-district residents).

• Students out of the district.

• Birthdate (oldest students will be given priority).

3-Year-Old Program

• Students who are 3 may enroll in the 3-year-old program.

• This program meets Tuesday – Friday from 7:55am – 11:15am.

• 3-year-old students are not eligible for district provided transportation.

4-Year-Old Program

• Students who are 4 may enroll in the 4-year-old program. Students who turn 5-years old before September 15 must enroll in Transitional Kindergarten or Kindergarten.

• Classes will meet from 7:55am- 2:15pm on Tuesday – Friday. (Statewide Voluntary Preschool Program) hours only are 7:55am - 11:15 am. Wrap-around care will be provided free of charge between 2:15pm and 3:45pm (the end of the school day).

• The preschool program will follow the Martensdale-St. Marys CSD school calendar, but the preschool start date may vary.

• 4-year-old students are eligible for district provided transportation.

We are now accepting applications for Open Enrollment for the 2025-2026 School Year.

If you live outside the boundaries of the Martensdale-St. Marys Community School District and wish to have your student be a Blue Devil next year, you must complete this application by March 1, 2025.

Download an Open Enrollment application here: 

2025-2026 Open Enrollment Application

If you have questions, please contact us at 641-351-7400.

We passed the Bond Referendum in November – now what?

Here is a brief overview of where things are at:

• Final design is underway on the Science Room Renovation.  Bid documents will be shared on January 30, 2025, and bids are due February 27, 2025.  Construction will begin once school is out in May and be complete prior to the start of the 2025-2026 school year in August.

• We are working on the initial design of the Softball Field which will be constructed on the site of the stadium in Martensdale.  We anticipate work will begin this spring or early summer and be complete in the fall.

• We are nearing the finalization of a furniture package to be purchased, delivered and installed this coming summer.

• We are in the initial design phase for the new bus loop and parking lot, the new safe and secure entrance, and the new gym.  We anticipate having design documents complete next fall with bidding in October 2025.  We will then begin construction on these projects in the spring of 2026 with completion in the fall or early winter of 2027.

• We are in the initial stages of the design phase for improvements in HVAC, electrical services, and fire safety.  We anticipate this work to begin in the summer of 2026 with work complete in the summer of 2027.

Students and staff in the Martensdale-St. Marys Community School District will head out on Winter Break following the completion of the school day on Friday, December 20, 2024.

There is no school between December 23 and January 1; offices will be closed on December 24-26 and January 1.

We will welcome students and staff back to school on January 2, 2025.

We constantly monitor current conditions and the forecast for inclement weather. Through this process, we consult with the National Weather Service, the Iowa Department of Transportation, and other local schools. While every situation is different, we will do our best to communicate changes to the school schedule due to weather in a manner that provides as much advance notice as possible.

In general, we will work to decide before 9:00pm the night before, no later than 5:30am the morning of, or by 11:00am for an early dismissal.

Communication Plan

When a decision is made, we will communicate accordingly:

MSTM Staff

• We will initiate our phone tree among District leaders who will then communicate directly with their teams.
• We will e-mail all staff using their mstm.us e-mail account.

MSTM Students and Parents

• We will initiate communication with all families via JMC in the format of a text message, phone call, and e-mail.

• We will post the information to the district website.

• We will post the information on these X (Twitter) accounts:

  @MSTMSupt and @MSTM_BlueDevils

• We will share the information with these media outlets: WHO Radio 1040am, WOI TV Channel 5, KCCI TV Channel 8, WHO TV Channel 13

District Services

Bus Routes

When we have a 2-hour weather delay, bus routes will coincide with this delay and buses will pick up students 2 hours later than their normal pick-up time. When we have an early dismissal, bus routes will coincide with the early dismissal in that buses will pick up students from school earlier than their regular dismissal time and will drop off students earlier than their normal drop-off time.

Daycare Services

• If school is delayed, Daycare services will open as scheduled unless there is an issue with the building itself.
• If school is dismissed early, Daycare services will be offered for 90-minutes unless otherwise communicated.
• If school is cancelled, Daycare services will be cancelled.

School Start Times

When there is a 2-hour delay, school will begin at 9:55am at both the Elementary and Junior High School / High School.

Preschool will follow the Elementary Schedule; if school is delayed, there will be NO 3-Year-Old Preschool.

In most instances, we will utilize 1:00pm as our early dismissal time for weather-related dismissals.

Activities

• If school is delayed, morning activities are cancelled.
• If school is dismissed early, a decision on activities will be left to the discretion of the Superintendent.
• If school is cancelled, all activities are cancelled with limited exceptions left to the discretion of the Superintendent.