Dr. Jim McCall

Valparaiso Community Schools is touting its highest graduation rate in recent memory. The graduation rate for the 2021-2022 school year was 98.53 percent.

Valparaiso Community Schools teachers are set to get a pay raise. The proposed teacher contract for the 2022-2023 school year raises the starting salary for new teachers to $51,000, a $4,000 increase. Returning teachers would get a $4,500 raise, plus a one-percent, referendum-funded retention stipend at the end of this semester and another $500 stipend next June.

Valparaiso's outgoing school board president is being recognized as a steady hand and a financial "wizard." Karl Cender attended his final board meeting Thursday, after 12 years of service.

Valparaiso's school superintendent is set to remain with the district for at least three more years. The school board finalized a new contract Tuesday with Superintendent Dr. Jim McCall. It keeps him with Valparaiso Community Schools through June 2025, with the possibility for automatic extensions through June 2030.

The Valparaiso School Board is looking to extend the superintendent's contract.

Valparaiso Community Schools' superintendent is promising improvements to special education. Dr. Jim McCall presented the findings of a third-party review of the Porter County Education Services (PCES) cooperative, during Thursday's school board meeting.

Valparaiso Community Schools is making the final push for its operating referendum. Superintendent Dr. Jim McCall says the district has a tremendous amount of support heading into the May 3 ballot.

Advocates are urging Valparaiso Community Schools to take concrete steps to combat racism. A group called Allies Against Racism presented a Change.org petition to the school board last week.

Advocates are calling on Valparaiso Community Schools to examine its policies, after a transgender student said school leaders denied his requests to use the men's restrooms and locker room. The American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana recently filed a lawsuit on behalf of high school senior Jasper Wisecarver, alleging the school corporation violated Title IX of the Education Amendments Act and the Equal Protection Clause of the U.S. Constitution.

The Valparaiso Community Schools superintendent remains hopeful that the school corporation can revisit its mask requirement soon, but for now, it's helping keep students in the classroom.