Dear Palmer Community:
Second semester is in full swing as we prepare for State Assessments and end-of-year activities which will
lead up to graduation. Staff and Students alike are approaching this semester with a clear focus on the
learning that needs to take place between now and the end of the year.
During this semester, freshmen and sophomores will take CSAP in March and MAP testing in April. Juniors
will take the ACT in April. AP and IB students will be preparing for spring testing in April and May.
Testing of students is very much a part of our lives as the decisions that we make about curriculum and instruction
are a result of individual student performance on these assessments.
Assessment data is not only used to measure student achievement, but it also indicates a school’s level of
proficiency in delivering a standards based curriculum as reported by the state in the School Accountability
Report. As you know, Palmer has received a rating of "High" on the SAR for the past seven years. To continue
Palmer’s standard of excellence, we must not only assure that each student does his or her best, but we
must also test at least 95% of our freshmen and sophomores on the CSAP and MAPs and juniors on the
ACT. Your help in making sure that your children are in attendance on testing dates, in addition to encouraging
them to do their best, would really help Palmer. We will be talking to freshmen and sophomores
about the importance of state testing and striving to do their best.
The annual Palmer Beautification Day will be held on Saturday, May 15th. This day is dedicated to
"sprucing up" our school. Please join other parents, students, staff and alumni in cleaning, painting, planting
flowers and fixing up our campus. This is a great opportunity to get involved and meet other members of
the Palmer High School community. We want our pride to show!
Please feel free to call me or stop by and visit at any time. I appreciate everything you do for our students
and for our Palmer community.
Warmly,
Tom Kelly
Principal