[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 107 (Tuesday, September 5, 2006)]
[Senate]
[Page S8960]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               WABASSO PUBLIC SCHOOLS, WABASSO, MINNESOTA

 Mr. DAYTON. Mr. President, today I honor the Wabasso Public 
Schools, in Wabasso, MN, which recently earned an Award for Excellence 
in Education for exceptional and innovative achievements in educating 
children.
  The Wabasso Public Schools are truly a model of educational success. 
The district is a small, rural district that has a single building for 
its entire program, prekindergarten through grade 12. Superintendent 
Ted Suss describes the District as the ``center of local activity, the 
most important institution within its community, and the emblem of 
community pride.'' Wabasso Public Schools have demonstrated that 
quality education can be provided in a small, rural school district. 
The district prides itself for its success in academics, athletics, and 
the arts.
  Wabasso Public Schools' amenities include a comprehensive early 
childhood education program, a formal prekindergarten for 4-year-olds 
and an all-day kindergarten. In the high school, Wabasso offers a full-
year physics class and a full-year calculus class. The vocational 
agriculture department offers additional opportunities for students to 
earn science credits, including hands-on learning in floriculture, 
agriculture, crop science, and animal science. The district will begin 
offering advanced placement classes next year, which very few rural 
districts are able to do.
  The Wabasso community is proudest of a Future Farmers of America 
Chapter in which 25 percent of all students in grades 9 through 12 won 
the opportunity to compete at the FAA State Convention; the Wabasso 
High School choir, which won three ``superior'' ratings, the maximum 
possible under Minnesota State High School League rules; the Wabasso 
High School Rabbits, which have an extraordinary record of success, 
including State championships in girls' fast-pitch softball and 
basketball; the boys' wrestling team has qualified for the State 
tournament in 2 of the past 3 years, winning second place in 2001 and 
reaching the semifinals in 2003; and the football team has also 
advanced to the State tournament in 2 of the past 3 years. The success 
of the football team is even more impressive, given that the school has 
opted to play in the more competitive 11-man league even though the 
small enrollment would have allowed them to compete in the 9-man 
league.
  To control costs, the Wabasso School District has hired a single dean 
of students to serve as the principal for the elementary school, middle 
school, and high school. A site council makes many of the decisions 
traditionally made by a school principal.
  The Wabasso Elementary School received a four-star rating in math and 
a five-star rating in reading from the department of education, while 
the high school received three-star ratings in both math and reading. 
Last year, every 10th-grade student passed the state MCA writing test 
on the first attempt. Well over 90 percent of the class of 2005 
continued on to a postsecondary education program or entered the 
military.
  Much of the credit for Wabasso Public School's success belongs to its 
superintendent, Ted Suss, its dean of students, Amy Iverson, and the 
dedicated teachers and staff. The students and staff at Wabasso Public 
Schools understand that, in order to be successful, a school must go 
beyond achieving academic success; it must also provide a nurturing 
environment where students can develop the knowledge, skills, and 
attitudes for success throughout life. All of the faculty, staff, and 
students at Wabasso Public Schools should be very proud of their 
accomplishments.
  I congratulate Wabasso Public Schools in Wabasso for winning the 
Award for Excellence in Education and for exceptional contributions to 
education in Minnesota.

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