New golf program at Zemmer

A new morning golf program is open to 6th-8th grade boys and girls at Zemmer Middle School.

Three pros from Lake Nepessing Golfland and four teachers have volunteered their time to work with the students. The Golf Club currently has 18 students participating.

The club meets on Tuesdays from 7:45 to 8:45 am in the Zemmer gym. Club dues are $10 for the program, which runs through the remainder of the school year.

Space is limited, but there are still a few spaces left. Students can contact Mr. Reitz, Mr. Brinker, Mrs. Peacore or Mrs Yderstad for more information. Students must have a permission slip and dues paid before they can participate.

LCS students perform in honors band concert

More than two dozen high school and middle school music students from Lapeer West, Lapeer East, Zemmer and Rolland-Warner performed in the Michigan School Band and Orchestra Association District III Honors Band Festival on Saturday, January 29, at Brandon High School.


Lapeer West High School students participating in the District III MSBOA High School Honors Band Festival included Kayla Haneline, Stephanie Wilcox, Taylor Harvey, Ashley Nugent, Tim Waelde, Deanna Childress, Aidan Smith. Lapeer East High School students included Dakota Hart, Sarah Powers, Whitney Harvey, Hannah Hastings, Keefer Maresh, Alison Gonda, Lillian Miller, Mason Sorenson, Alex Frederick.

Rolland-Warner Middle School students who participated included Sara Burns, Vanessa Sparks, Mark Lutz, Desmond Doneen and Emily Gillis. Zemmer Middle School participants inlcluded Morgan Combs, Shawn Deverell, Blake Clements, Serra Seib, Emily Dice, Meredith Henderson, Mark Lutz.

The Middle School Honors Band was conducted by Roger Weyersberg, director of the Lions of Michigan All-State Band, Low Brass Instructor at Saginaw Valley State University and the retired director of Music in the Ovid-Elsie area schools.

The High School Honors Band was conducted by Scott Boerma, associate director of bands, director of the University of Michigan Marching Band and professor of Conducting at he University of Michigan. He is also an avid composer. The band performed Glimpses, one of his original compositions, at the performance.

The students were nominated by their director and chosen from hundreds of entries around the Thumb, based on outstanding musicianship and participation in solo & ensemble.

Rolland-Warner Band Director Heather Hundt noted, “Their participation is an honor, and they did a wonderful job representing our school and our district and gave an awesome performance Saturday night.”

To view photos from the concert, please visit the Lapeer Community Schools Picasa photo albums at: https://picasaweb.google.com/LapeerCS/MSBOABandFestival#

Middle School PTCs meet November 11

The Middle School PTCs for both Rolland-Warner and Zemmer Middle Schools have scheduled evening meetings on Thursday, November 11th..

The Zemmer Middle School PTC will meet in the Zemmer Media Center at 6:00 pm. The Zemmer PTC executive board will meet at 5:30pm.

The Rolland-Warner Middle School PTC will meet in the Rolland-Warner Media Center at 6:30 pm. The Rolland-Warner PTC executive board will meet prior to the general meeting.

The PTCs at both schools encourage any interested parents to please consider coming to see what the PTC is all about. This is a great way to stay involved and be a part of your child’s school.

At the conclusion of the Zemmer PTC meeting a Parent Advisory Council meeting also will be held in the Zemmer Media Center at 7:00pm. The purpose of the PAC is to both educate parents on topics that are important to them as well as provide a forum for our parents to talk directly with school administration regarding current issues.

The PTC welcomes any interested parents wishing to attend to join them.

Prosecutor Byron Konschuh offers A Warning for Parents

On September 13 Zemmer Middle School hosted Lapeer County Prosecutor Byron Konschuh and Deborah Pascoe of the Child Advocacy Center in a frank discussion with parents about a number of topics that affect adolescents, including the use of cell phones, texting and social media such as Facebook and MySpace. The discussion also outlined the legal ramifications of bullying and hazing.

Middle School PTC meets Thursday night at 6:30

The Rolland-Warner/Zemmer PTC will meet Thursday, Sept. 16, at 6:30 p.m. in the Zemmer media center.

Video: Zemmer Middle School Ribbon Cutting

Zemmer hosts evening with Prosecutor Byron Konschuh

Zemmer Middle School will host an evening with Lapeer County Prosecutor Byron Konschuh on Monday, Sept. 13, at 7 p.m. in the school cafetorium.

Konschuh’s discussion will focus on several topics that affect adolescents, including the use of cell phones, texting and social media such as Facebook and MySpace. He also will outline the legal ramifications of bullying and hazing. He will be joined by a representative of the Child Advocacy Center.

The presentation is open to the public and parents of all middle school students. It will include a question-and-answer session.

Visitors are asked to park in the rear parking lot and enter through the events entrance at the north end of the school at 1920 W. Oregon in Lapeer.

Car Wash for middle schoolers

Rolland-Warner/Zemmer Middle School PTC group will be hosting a car wash fundraiser on Friday, August 27, 2010 from 11:00 am-3:00 pm at The Farmhouse Restaurant on M-24 in Lapeer. In addition to the car wash, The Farmhouse will be donating a portion of their proceeds inside the restaurant during those hours back to the middle school PTC group. Car washes are by donation.

Discounts for athletic tickets

Students and parents can cheer their favorite teams to victory and save money as well by purchasing a Lapeer Community Schools athletic Punch Card.

The cards are priced at $25 and can be used to purchase $50 worth of admission to school sporting events. That’s a 50% discount.

Each card provides 50 punches, worth $1 each, when paying for admission at the gate. The punch cards can be used on any school sporting event within the Lapeer Community Schools, including all high school and middle school athletic contests.

Cards are available for purchase at the school offices at Lapeer East High School, Lapeer West High School, Rolland-Warner Middle School, Zemmer Middle School and in the Operations Dept. at the Lapeer Schools Administration and Services Center.

Zemmer orientation moves to Rolland-Warner

Because of construction complications, plans to open the new Zemmer Middle School to student tours on Aug. 26 and Aug. 30 have been cancelled.

The building will not be open to students until the first day of school on Sept. 7.

Zemmer students will be able to pick up their class schedules and orientation packets from noon to 7 p.m. on Aug. 26 (last names from A-L) and Aug. 30 (M-Z) in the gymnasium at Rolland-Warner Middle School, 333 DeMille Boulevard, Lapeer. (Rolland-Warner students also will be able to pick up their schedules and orientation packets on the same days in the cafeteria.)

Only certified school district staff will be allowed into Zemmer prior to a state fire and building inspection, scheduled to take place on Sept. 2. No students, parents or other members of the public can enter the building until the inspections take place.

Both the state fire marshall and the state building inspector will not be able to visit Zemmer until Sept. 2 because of scheduling conflicts.

“We want to assure parents and all of our students that we will provide plenty of support for students to find their classrooms and navigate our new building on the first day of school," said Zemmer Middle School Principal Matt Olson.


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Ribbon cutting at Zemmer Middle School

Lapeer Community Schools will celebrate the completion of construction on the second of its two new middle schools at a ribbon-cutting ceremony and open house at 6 p.m. August 12 at Zemmer Middle School, 1920 W. Oregon, Lapeer.

Lapeer voters approved a $56.7 million bond issue in 2007, a portion of which financed the renovation of the former Zemmer Junior High School into a new middle school. Construction of the new Rolland-Warner Middle School was completed last fall, expanding the facilities at the former Woodside School. This fall will mark the first time the two new schools will house 6th, 7th and 8th grade students with new, innovative middle school programs.

“We are extremely happy to be able to open these new facilities,” said Debbie Thompson, Lapeer Community Schools Superintendent. “Wired from top to bottom for today’s technology and the technology of the future, these two campuses are ready to serve the students of Lapeer for generations.”

Matt Olson named Principal of Zemmer Middle School

An experienced administrator who believes middle school students have unique educational needs has been named principal of Zemmer Middle School.

Matt Olson, currently principal at Sherman Middle School and Richert Intermediate School in the Holly School District, will begin his new job with Lapeer Community Schools on July 1, 2010.

Mr. Olson said he was interested in the Zemmer position because his philosophy matches that of the district in terms of educating middle school students.

“I am a middle school guy through and through,” Mr. Olson said. “When I saw what Lapeer was doing and the groundwork in the program they are establishing, all the effort to create a true middle school that is not older elementary school or young high school, I wanted to join.

“I believe they (middle school students) are truly unique and have unique needs. The district feels the same way.”

Lapeer is launching a new middle school program designed to be a better bridge between the elementary and high school years and to help students prepare and meet the Michigan Merit Curriculum requirements for high school graduation. Mr. Olson said he is eager to become involved in that program.

“I am incredibly excited about this,” he said. “It’s a great position and I can’t wait to start.”

Mr. Olson earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Michigan-Flint and earned his master’s degree in educational administration from Michigan State University. He currently is pursuing an educational specialist degree from Oakland University.

He also has worked in the Mt. Morris and Carman-Ainsworth school districts.

New athletic fields, interior construction progresses at Zemmer Middle School

Take a peek at the continuing construction progress at Zemmer Middle School.

Public invited to Zemmer Middle School ribbon-cutting, open house in August

A new era in education is about to be launched at Lapeer Community Schools, and the District wants to celebrate with the community that helped make it happen. Before the opening of Rolland-Warner Middle School last summer, it had been more than 30 years since a major school building project was completed.

The opening of the new Zemmer Middle School, 1920 W. Oregon Road, will be celebrated at a Ribbon-Cutting and Open House at 6 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 12. Members of the public are invited to attend to mark not only the opening of the state-of-the-art school their support helped build, but also the launch of a new educational program designed to better prepare middle school students for high school and college.

Zemmer will join Rolland-Warner as the District’s middle schools. The schools will house students in grades 6-8, and the District will debut a new curriculum designed to better integrate those grades into students’ academic and social preparation for graduation and college.

But first, the open house will be a chance to view the beautiful new school built with voter support.

“It is hard to believe we are at the end of a community-based initiative that resulted in a successful bond vote in May 2007 and the completion of these two beautiful buildings,” said Superintendent Debbie Thompson. “We hope the community will join with us in this celebration of these new schools and what they will mean to our students now and in the future. We again thank our voters for making this possible.”

The new facility includes separate science and computer laboratories for each grade and a large shared media center. A cafeteria space includes a stage for band, drama and musical performances. New art and music rooms also are included.

Zemmer Middle School construction update - April 2010

New current photos of the construction work at the future Zemmer Middle School are up on the photo gallery.

Stop by and see the progress being made for the exciting opening of two new Middle Schools in the fall.

The photo gallery album is here.

Zemmer Middle School construction update - March 2010

We've been back over to visit the ongoing construction work at the future Zemmer Middle School. Work is progressing on schedule for a fall 2010 opening. If you'd like to peek over our shoulder at the work go to the District photo gallery for a few more photos.

Photo at right shows a completed skylight in one of the new classroom wings.

'World class' program coming to Lapeer middle schools

“The Forgotten Middle” will be transformed into a solid bridge to the future in the Lapeer Community Schools.

Timed to launch with the start of the Fall 2010 semester at Rolland-Warner and Zemmer middle schools, the district will debut a new curriculum designed to better integrate grades six through eight into students’ academic and social preparation for graduation and college. The curriculum is designed to be a better bridge between state requirements for curriculum at the elementary and high school levels.

Lapeer Community Schools Superintendent Debbie Thompson called the initiative a “world class” addition to the district’s instructional program.

Members of a district-wide committee helping to shape the curriculum presented highlights of it to the Board of Education and public during a meeting at Schickler Elementary School on Thursday.

The plan focuses on a flexible core block of classes with a team approach. Teachers will share teams of 120-130 students and will work together to develop class schedules and address needs of their students.

The I-Connect component will allow time for students to talk to each other and a trusted adult about issues they might be facing outside of the classroom. It is designed to improve communication between students, teachers and parents.

Committee member and Zemmer at Rolland-Warner Acting Assistant Principal Merideth Collins said for many years middle school has “simply been tagged on” to the elementary and high school programs.

“While students have been taken care of on either side of the middle … we need to focus on what we will do for those kids while they are there in order to bridge that gap between early education and high school reform,” Collins said.

Collins said research has shown that building sustainable relationships with students in the middle school grades makes a significant contribution to their academic and social success.

“It gives them the skills and tools necessary to be successful during their high school years,”she said.

Committee member and Zemmer at Rolland-Warner Assistant Principal Joe Shoopman said it is important to develop strong relationships with students early to help them graduate and be successful in college.

“The path to graduation does not start in high school, it begins in kindergarten,” he said. “Current research suggests that when there are not behavior issues, when students are attending at 95 percent, that their chance of graduating at the end of 12th grade is tremendously improved.”

New Zemmer Middle School construction photos

Take a look at some new construction photos from Zemmer Middle School. New steel framing for the main south entry has been installed.

Zemmer Junior High School renamed officially to Zemmer Middle School

Zemmer Junior High School officially became Zemmer Middle School in a vote by the Lapeer Board of Education Thursday night.
Opened as Zemmer Junior High School in October 1969, the school is currently undergoing a major renovation to convert it into a 21st Century Middle School. Voters approved a bond in May 2007 that financed the construction of Rolland-Warner Middle School, Zemmer Middle School, District wide technology improvements and other facility improvements.

A ribbon cutting and grand opening ceremony is planned for late summer 2010 with the first classes in the new school to begin in September 2010.

Zemmer Middle School construction progress update - Photos from December 2

New photos of the ongoing work at the future Zemmer Middle School were taken on Wednesday, December 2nd and are available for viewing at the District photo gallery.