Message from Stu

Thank a teacher

This is teacher appreciation week!!! Our teachers have worked extremely hard this year and truly deserve this recognition. Let’s all take a moment to let them know how much we appreciate their hard work and dedication. A note from a parent, a student, or a community member lets our teachers know that we truly do recognize and value the work they do. When they are recognized for making a difference in a child’s life, it means the world to them.

We’re also kicking off our new and improved Fayette County Teacher of the Year Awards program this week. Information is included later in this edition of Stu’s News, but I encourage you to take a few moments and nominate a deserving educator for this honor.

And I want to take this opportunity to say thanks to the teachers in Fayette County for all you do to educate and develop our kids! There is no measure to the lasting impact of a talented, caring teacher on the life of a student. Thank You!

In an effort to raise awareness about the Fayette Education Foundation, some staff members and I will be taking two vacation days to ride our bicycles to every school in our district. In total it will be more than 100 miles over the two days. The Education Foundation is a public-private partnership committed to raising money to support our schools as we work to provide an excellent education for every single student.

Aquafina has agreed to donate $10,000 to the foundation through the ride, but it is important that the community see that we’re willing to support our schools too. We’re asking everyone in the district to help raise money for this endeavor – through nickel wars, quarter drops, or whatever means your school decides to raise money that will go back into our classrooms. The Foundation has stepped to the plate to help our schools and we need to do our part too. There will be more information about the ride in this edition of Stu’s News but I wanted to encourage each of you to get involved and help our kids!

Today I will be going over to Ashland Elementary for our “All Star” Kids Say the Funniest Things end of the year program. Some of our most precocious students from past shows this year will be invited back to provide us with their words of wisdom and give advice to incoming kindergarten students. Be sure to watch this one!

The Evansville, Indiana Chamber of Commerce will be taking their annual Chamber trip to Lexington this year and we have been invited to share the great things that have been going on in our district. It sure feels good to have other cities coming to learn from us.

Have a GREAT week!

Volunteers help make new school shine

A big thanks to Lexmark employee volunteers who qualified for $2,500 in funds to donate to the new Athens-Chilesburg Elementary School opening this fall. The money, which was part of the Lexmark Make It Happen Fund grant, will be used to purchase playground equipment needed to help make the new school complete.

The Lexmark Make It Happen Fund grant has also supported Lexmark employees volunteering with Bryan Station High, Henry Clay, Lafayette and Paul Laurence Dunbar bands and Lexington Traditional Magnet Schools.

Students win scholarship, will study abroad

Four FCPS students have been awarded Congress Bundestag Youth Exchange (CBYX) scholarships by The Council on International Educational Exchange, a world leader in international education and student exchange. As part of the award, they will spend a year of discovery and learning in Germany on a full academic scholarship.

Winning students are: Hilary Allen, Jordan Murphy and Dylan Powell from Lafayette High School and Sarah Weck, from Paul Laurence Dunbar High School.

In July, the students will become “Youth Ambassadors” of the United States as CBYX scholars. The program begins in Washington, D.C. with a two day orientation and is followed by a month-long cultural and language immersion program in Germany. During the academic year, each will live with a carefully selected host family, which will allow them to gain a greater understanding of German culture by becoming a part of a German family.

Started in 1983, the Congress Bundestag Youth Exchange program (CBYX) has enabled more than 17,000 ambitious young people the opportunity to expand their global perspectives and gain real-world views. Sponsored by the United States Department of State and funded by the United States Congress and the German Bundestag, the CBYX program has helped build a stronger partnership between future generations.

More National Merit winners announced

Eight Fayette County Public School seniors are among 2,500 winners of National Merit Scholarships announced this week. They will receive one-time grants of $2,500, underwritten by the National Merit Scholarship Corp. and corporate and business sponsors.

Henry Clay High School: Valerie L. Dodd and Aaron M. Wedlund
Lafayette High School: Christopher P. Menard and Jacquelyn Weittenhiller
Paul Laurence Dunbar High School: Winston Y. Li, Austin J. Tzou, Rachael M. Winchester, and Jason Wu.

Winners were selected from a talent pool of about 15,000 finalists by a committee of college admissions officers and high school counselors and were judged to have the strongest combination of accomplishments, skills and potential for success in college.

This year’s competition for Merit Scholarship awards began in October 2004 when more than 1.3 million juniors in nearly 21,000 U.S. high schools took the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test, which served as an initial screen of program entrants.

Regional World Language Festival winners announced

The following article was submitted by Alicia Vinson, a world language specialist for the district.

On April 13, Lafayette High School hosted the Fayette County Public Schools Regional World Language Festival. World language students from Booker T. Washington Academy, Northern Elementary, SCAPA Bluegrass, Bryan Station High, Paul Laurence Dunbar High, and Lafayette High eagerly participated in academic and non-academic categories.

The festival gives FCPS German, French, Latin and Spanish language students an opportunity to use their target language outside their classrooms.

Students in grades 4 through 12 competed in categories including oral proficiency, drama, chorus and folk dancing. Congratulations to all the participants and their teachers for their hard work.

View a complete list of those students qualified to compete at the Kentucky World Language Festival taking place on May 13 at the University of Kentucky.

Teacher of the Year nominations open

Every day in this school district, hard working, talented teachers are making a difference in the lives of our kids. There is no more important calling in our society than for those who help our students set goals, aim high and discover their dreams. And so it is fitting that this week, dubbed National Teacher Appreciation Week, we are officially kicking off the new and improved Fayette County Teacher of the Year contest.

The new competition will begin with a nomination phase. Teachers can be nominated by anyone – students, parents, peers, principals, past students, community members. No self nominations are allowed.

Nominations are due by 5 p.m. June 15th. Forms will be available at all Fayette County Public Schools or by contacting the district communications office by calling 381-4108 or emailing toy@fayette.k12.ky.us. Or simply use our online submission form.

Once nominated, teachers will be invited to formally apply. Judging will include application review, a classroom observation and an interview. Winners for the 2005-2006 school year will be announced in September.

Riding for kids

About two years ago, the Fayette Education Foundation was established by community, school and business leaders committed to raising money to help support the efforts of the Fayette County Public Schools to become a world-class school district.

So far, the foundation has raised more than a million dollars in cash and in-kind donations designated to outfit the new Bryan Station High School with top of the line technology, provide scholarships for future teachers and promote schools and programs that eliminate achievement disparities while raising overall student achievement levels.

Last year, the foundation awarded $5,000 each to Veterans Park Elementary and James Lane Allen Elementary and this month, two more schools will receive cash awards in recognition of their educational gains.

As our district moves forward with the 2020 Vision project, we expect the foundation will play a tremendous role in helping support the new programs and initiatives that will propel our district ahead.

To support the work of the Foundation and raise awareness about its tremendous potential to help our schools, we are about to kick off the first annual “Ride for Kids.” Superintendent Stu Silberman, flanked by representatives from IAKSS and the community, will ride by bike to all 54 schools in Fayette County over two days! That’s a little more than 100 miles. All participants in the fund-raiser will be using vacation time to participate in the event.

To add a bit of fun to this exciting fundraiser, we’d like to invite all students and staff to get involved in the excitement and show the community that we’re willing to invest in our kids. The ride will take place on May 19 and 22 and we’d like to encourage all schools to do penny drives, nickel wars, quarter drops, or whatever they like so that when Stu and the crew arrive at your school, they can pick up a donation for the foundation.

This is also the kick off for a new way for our employees to support our schools through payroll deductions. Contributions would be earmarked for the Education Foundation and go to support our kids, teachers, schools and classrooms. Deductions would begin in August. Information about how to access the online contribution process will be sent to all employees in an upcoming email. All donations to the Fayette Education Foundation are tax deductible.

For additional information about the Fayette Education Foundation, visit www.fayetteeducationfoundation.org (a website designed by one of our kids!) or call Marianne Blodgett at 226-1602.

Science and Engineering Fair winners announced

Congratulations to the winners of the Kentucky Science and Engineering Fair held at Eastern Kentucky University recently. Henry Clay High School student Navid John Soleimani Meigooni won the Overall Best of Fair – Physical Science Award and was granted a full scholarship to either the University of Kentucky or the University of Louisville for winning the award and will go on to compete in the International Intel Science and Engineering Fair in Indianapolis in May.

Other winners were:

1st place
Behavioral and Social Sciences – Elizabeth Riley from Henry Clay High School
Physics – John Meigooni from Henry Clay High School
Biochemistry – Sourav Dey from Beaumont Middle School
Zoology – Kylah Rymond from Morton Middle School

2nd place
Best of Fair – Sourav Dey from Beaumont Middle School
Zoology – Ann Cooper from Lafayette High School
Botany – Loretta Arosemena from Lexington Traditional Magnet School
Chemistry – Abigail Clayton from Maxwell Elementary School
Microbiology – Rahul Joseph from Winburn Middle School

United Way of the Bluegrass honors FCPS volunteers

United Way of the Bluegrass recently honored those who give of themselves to make the community a better place to live at the Breakfast of Champions, part of the Central Kentucky Volunteer Awards recognition. Forty-five nominees were identified in six categories: Individual Service Award, Group Service Award, Family Service Award, Youth Service Award, Nonprofit Organization Award and Faith-based Organization Award. Although difficult, one nominee in each category was chosen to receive top honors for their volunteer work. Among this year’s winners were volunteers that do great work for kids in our district.

Bill and Ruth Ferzacca were recognized with the Family Service Award. The Ferzaccas, known at Veterans Park Elementary School as the “Story Spinners,” work with 19 upper and lower primary classes every Tuesday. Using children’s books, fairy tales and folktales, they have rewritten the stories and developed scripts to act out short plays for the classes, and they work with students in acting out plays for their classmates. While the students think they are just being entertained, the Story Spinners are also incorporating much of the terminology in the Arts and Humanities curriculum of the Kentucky Core Content.

Booker T. Washington Academy volunteers Jessica Berry and Betty Simpson were also nominated for the awards. Ms. Berry is the school’s PTA president and volunteers in the school office answering the phone. She also helped with the vast needs of a student body that includes five preschool units plus six classes each of kindergarten through second grade. Ms. Simpson recruited a number of volunteers, arranged for training and prepared the necessary materials to kick-off a program called Great Leaps, which is a reading intervention program.

LTMS students, Philip and John Cockriel were named as one of this year’s three Family Award nominees. Along with their mother, Mary, Philip and John have been volunteering in the Beaumont YMCA’s Shaolin Kids martial arts program since 2004. Under the guidance of Grandmaster Hiang Kwang The, the Cockriels help children ages 4 through 7 learn basic Chinese martial arts skills in a fun environment where kids can gain self-confidence, develop a heathly lifestyle, and practice discipline.

For more information about volunteer opportunities in Central Kentucky, call United Way 2-1-1 at 313-5465.

Henry Clay High School JROTC honors cadets

The annual Henry Clay High School JROTC Awards and Promotions Ceremony was held recently at the school’s auditorium. Congratulations to the cadets for their accomplishments this year. View a complete list of this year’s honorees.

Fred sightings

Fayette County school employees are placing a renewed emphasis on excellent customer service. We have encouraged everyone in our district to put those little personal touches on their work by going the extra mile and showing the people we serve every day that we care about our kids and constituents.

We call folks who provide excellent customer service “Freds,” inspired by the book, “The Fred Factor” by Mark Sanborn about a very service-minded postman named Fred. Anyone can be a “Fred,” just by going above the call of duty in serving the public. If you spot a Fred, please call, write or send me an email.

Testing made easy

I just wanted to let you know about a positive thing happening in our school during “testing time!” Our counselor is new to the school this year and she has done an amazing job organizing our booklets and laying out exactly what the teachers need. I am very pleased to say that testing has gone extremely smooth. Dana Moses has placed paper clips and brightly colored STOP pages against the pages the students are not supposed to look at. The paper clips are a friendly reminder to the students as well as a little stress reliever for the teacher! We also have bins with our own testing materials in it that Dana comes and picks up each day to ensure that our test booklets are safe and only teachers are handling them.

Submitted by Megan Giles, Teacher
Garden Springs Elementary

Dispatching with dedication

I have been with the transportation department for the past eight months as a driver’s assistant. In the past eight months I have encountered four people who play a vital role in the transportation department. These fine people are Mary Calia, Sammy Davis, David Boston, and Marsha Wagner. These people are the dispatchers who have the difficult task of coordinating employees on a daily basis, monitoring radio calls from drivers, communicating with parents, and ensuring the safety of students. They are usually the first to arrive to work in the mornings and the last to leave in the evenings. These dispatchers are under constant pressure, but they always seem to have a smile on their faces. They always find time to listen to drivers, driver assistants, and other vital employees in the department.

My hat goes off to these fine people for their dedication to the students and the community. Thank you again for everything you do for the district. We could not do this without your leadership.

Submitted by Lance Kirkland, Driver’s Assistant # 319
Yandell Bus Terminal

Going beyond at the bus stop

Mr. Pete, Bus 451 – Stonewall Elementary – is the most fantastic soul out there. Being a first time kindergarten parent, I was both nervous and cautious. From the very beginning, Mr. Pete has proven to be a thoughtful, generous, and caring person. He takes true ownership of the responsibility to our children and serves as a great mentor and adult role model. He knows exactly who is to drop off and pick up my child at the stop, and always greets my son (and the adult with him) with a cheerful and sincere smile, calling John by name. He is quick to settle down any potential conflicts – such as the time my son was seat-hopping – in a stern, yet loving way (and letting us know about it). I feel Mr. Pete respects and supports our family. My son has thoroughly enjoyed his bus riding experience, and I attribute that completely to Mr. Pete. I absolutely can’t say enough about Mr. Pete, other than I hope you never let him retire!

Submitted by Amy Compton, Parent
Stonewall Elementary

After hours help is appreciated

I’m a Fayette County bus driver and I would like to give a BIG THANKS to Harrison Elementary teachers Ms. Graham and Ms. Brown for riding with me at night on several ESS runs. They did this because there were so many students on the run and to get all the children home safely the teachers rode with me on Monday and Wednesday nights. Thank you both so much.

Submitted by Debbie Stone, Bus #806
Liberty Road Bus Garage

Recognizing “Frednas”

All year long, I have enjoyed reading FRED stories that different people have submitted for Stu’s News. At this point, as the year comes to an end and I reflect on those who go above and beyond, I have to submit three names for the FREDNA Sightings. I say FREDNA, because the women I recognize are so special and unique, they deserve their own special name. For the women in our district, I suggest we create a special FREDNA AWARD for them.

Since being hired at Stonewall, I have been blessed to have three wonderful women, each distinctly different, working in the front office of Stonewall. Together, they have almost 60 years of dedicated service to Stonewall Elementary and the families who have been fortunate enough to come through this school. Together, they create a remarkable team that keeps Stonewall running. I know it, they know, now the world should know it.

I will start with Shirley Murrell. She has been here the longest; thirty seven years to be exact, and counting. She is not even close to retiring. I politely refer to her as my “Ching Ching Princess” because she takes care of the money. She counts it, shines it up, recounts it, balances it, deposits it, and protects it like it were one of her own. She reeks of integrity, for she will let the bank know if a mistake is in our favor or in theirs. Everything must balance to the penny, and it always does. Financially speaking, she is the Alan Greenspan of Stonewall.

Next comes Claudette Albrecht. She is my Administrative Assistant, but she is more like my “at school sister”. She just calls it like she sees it. She keeps me on the straight and narrow. We have found it easier to communicate by simply yelling back and forth from desk to desk. The office seems empty when she is not here. She tells me when things are due, she reads the Principal Packet when I forget, she fusses at me when I do things wrong and basically keeps me in line. Everyone should have a Claudette in his/her life.

Last, but certainly not least, I recognize Mary Ann Strobel. She is our attendance clerk. She has a heart that never stops. She is kind and caring. She manages the attendance, the medicine, the prufreading for me (see why I nead hir?), the van riders after school, parents who are upset with attendance letters, and ANYTHING else that comes her way. She reminds me of Melanie from “Gone with the Wind”. She prides herself in doing an excellent job and raises the bar for those of us around her. We all know we can always count on Mary Ann.

Submitted by Bill Gatliff, Principal
Stonewall Elementary

A school full of Freds

Yesterday, two of our volunteers, along with our volunteer and this writer, spent the day as judges in a truly inspiring History Day program at Clays Mill Elementary. Created last year by social sciences coordinator, Regina Dawson, with the support of Clays Mill Principal Edwina Smith, this competition among the classes of fifth grade teachers, Grant Davis, Diane Dever, Scott Skeets and Karen Stewart showed a campus-wide enthusiasm for a new way to learn. We came away truly impressed by the commitment of these teachers and the talents of the students – a competition in which there were no losers!

The four of us and the other judges were also appreciative that not only were those main players and their students exceptional, but other students, teachers, staff, and the parent volunteers obviously supported the program and were partners in dealing with the inevitable little disruptions to a normal school day. If “Freds” can go to a whole school community, Clays Mill is more than deserving. I am sure Regina Dawson joins us in feeling her imaginative leadership was widely supported and much appreciated. We hope to be invited back to History Day 2007.

Submitted by Ed Houlihan, President
Lexington History Museum

Men of the hour

I would like to take a moment of your time to compliment three outstanding Leestown heroes. Darrell Fisher, Steven Johnson and Wade Branscum are paraeducators at Leestown. Recently I worked with these outstanding men. Wade Branscum is a paraeducator in the Safe and Plato room. Wade provides consistent and fair discipline in his room. He is very kind and caring towards the kids and provides stability in this area. He has no problem taking over the program when the regular teacher is not available and the kids respect him. This past year the kids have seen teachers come and go. Wade helps the kids with their Plato classes and has stepped up to the plate in the Safe room. In addition, Wade goes out of his way to help teachers and substitutes with challenging classes. He is almost like having another associate principal in the building.

Steve Johnson and Darrell Fisher are paraeducators who travel from class to class all day. They are amazing individuals. To the children of Leestown, these men are strict, but kind and loving. The first time I worked with Mr. Fisher, he immediately let the kids know that learning was going to take place and demanded 100 percent perfect behavior from the children. To many young men, Mr. Fisher and Mr. Johnson are the only male role models in their lives. The kids love and respect them, and know that these men have high expectations for all kids. In one instance, Mr. Johnson stepped up to the plate and taught a math lesson and the kids gave 100 percent that day.

These three men play an important role in the lives of the children who attend Leestown. Personally, I am very grateful for the help and guidance that they provide for me as a substitute teacher. They have definitely made a difference in the lives of the children and the adults at Leestown. They will do anything to help the kids and deserve a standing ovation for their work. These men are true heroes in the lives of Leestown kids and one substitute.

Submitted by Dan Schwartz, substitute
Leestown Middle School

This week's Kudos go to...

To Millcreek Elementary School student Nick Farler for having his persuasive letter about global warming published in the Lexington Herald- Leader’s letters to the editor section in April.

To Clays Mill Elementary School fourth-grader Abby Slone. Abby’s poem, “How Do You Feel?” was awarded second honorable mention in a contest sponsored by the Kentucky State Poetry Society.

To Henry Clay High School’s yearbook staff for placing second in Class 4A general excellence for their 2005 yearbook during the Kentucky High School Journalism Association’s conference in April. The staff also placed first in writing style, second in overall design, photography, and overall coverage.

To LTMS seventh-grader Rebecca Kelly for winning third place in the Kentucky State Poetry Society contest for her poem “The Captain’s Corner.” Her work will be displayed at the Kentucky State Poetry Society Convention in October.

To the newly published poets at Crawford Middle School whose work will appear in A Celebration of Young Poets: Casey Brock for the poem “What Friends Are Made Of,” Cindy Garcia, for the poem “On a Beautiful Summer Day,” Hunter Justice for the poem “True Trust,” and Savannah Troxler for the poem “A Baby.” They are in the running for more than $3,000 in prizes that will be awarded to the Top 10 Poets from the contest.

To Crawford Middle School students, Whitney Scott for winning third honorable mention for her poem, “Where I’m From,” and Christie Cummins for winning second place for her poem, “Checking” from the Kentucky State Poetry Society.

To Fayette County Public Schools’ Chief Operating Officer Mary Browning for being awarded the Dean’s Award, in recognition of exceptional achievement on the Certified School Financial Management Examination, from the University of Kentucky’s International Business and Management Center at the Gatton College of Business and Economics. Only six other people have been awarded this honor in the state.

To Paul Laurence Dunbar High School for winning the Siemens Advanced Placement Award in Kentucky.

To the following middle school dance teams who took honors in the Fayette County middle school dance team showcase competition: the team from Morton Middle placed 1st in the Jazz division, dancers from Tates Creek Middle placed 1st in the pom division, and dancers from Leestown Middle placed 1st in the funk division. The Leestown team was also named the Grand Champion.

To Paul Laurence Dunbar High School students Amber Allen, Jordan Bolte, Laura Brown, Michael Colliver, Eric Coriell, Anne Evans, Taylor Foley, Kendall Goffinet, Kyle Johnson, Brian Riehl, and Ben Scott for being selected to participate in the 2006 Kentucky Ambassadors of Music Europe tour. Students were nominated for this honor band and choir based on their musicianship, leadership and character qualities.

To Lafayette High School’s Speech Team for their outstanding year. The team placed second in regional competition and placed second in the state in the Kentucky High School Speech League (KHSSL) State Tournament held at Western Kentucky University in Bowling Green in March. In addition, three speech team members completed the regular season as State Champions. David Jackson and Mat Leonard took 1st place in Duo Improvisation and Lauren Fibel took 1st place in Original Oratory. Seven members of the Lafayette team will continue their season by securing positions in the Kentucky delegation that will compete at the CFL Grand Nationals in Chicago over Memorial Day weekend. The following students will represent Lafayette and Kentucky: Rob Strobel – LD Debate, Simon Powell and Lauren Milam – Congress, Joe Elswick – Prose/Poetry, Lauren Fibel – Original Oratory and David Jackson and Mat Leonard – Duo Interpretation. The Lafayette Speech Team is coached by James Combs, James Fore and Charles James.

To Lafayette High School’s band for raising $550 to donate to the Paris High School band after they lost items in a warehouse fire. The donated money will help the Paris band pay for an upcoming international trip

To Morton Middle School students Conor Breen, Steven Breen, Sarah Bugg, Haley Burke, Thomas Desrosiers, Max Dubocq, Hannah Halbert, Lucas Hansen, Adrain Kirkland, Christopher Laporte, Katie Murray, Alexandria Nelson, Bridget Newton, Abby Omlor, Frank Sininger, and Alec Stoess for winning Best Country/Best Representation of a Country and Best Native Attire for their representation of Kyrgyzstan at the Kentucky United Nations Assembly Junior East in Louisville recently. Three of the students also won individual awards at the event. They are: Steve Breen, Sarah Bugg, and Thomas Desrosiers.

To SCAPA Lafayette junior ballet major Nick Avdiushko for being awarded a two-year full merit scholarship to attend the United World College School in Wales. Nick is one of only 50 students in the country to receive this honor.

To Paul Laurence Dunbar High School for being named one of the top 1,000 high schools in the nation by Newsweek. The school ranked 886 nationally, based on the number of students taking advanced placement exams or international baccalaureate exams.

To Paul Laurence Dunbar’s state championship economics team for placing third in the Midwest Regional Economics Challenge competition out of nine states in Chicago last week. The competition consisted of individual written tests in Microeconomics, Macroeconomics, and a group test in current events and international economics. Team members are Fan Zhou, Zachary Kratzer, Jordan Etscheidt, and Austin Tzou.

Parlez Vous Francais? Latin?

Eleven students from Henry Clay High School have ranked nationally in the 71st annual National French Contest. Le Grand Concours is a national competition sponsored by the American Association of Teachers of French. Students were evaluated for their written, oral and listening comprehension skills in French. More than 100,000 students in all 50 states competed in the 2006 event.

Students earning national recognition were Stephen Fritz, Bettina Jones, Miguel Andrade, Margaret Lutz, Gracia Mayuyu, James Vestal, Nika Larian, Erin Wrightson, Mac Staben, Le Zhang and Elizabeth Riley. Ten additional students also earned state ranking in this contest: Rosanna Smith, Leah Schlackman, Sarah White, James Moreau, Chelsea Mullins, Dan Richey, Mike McNary, Justin Kirchner, Jordan Sharpe and Shane Kirby.

Henry Clay High students also competed in the National Latin Exam. Winners were:

Latin I

Maxima Cum Laude
Kevin Breen
Stephen Fritz

Cum Laude
Connor Denny
Ned Peters
Elizabeth Poindexter

Latin II

Summa Cum Laude
Brian Burdine

Maxima Cum Laude
Elizabeth Gay
Rachel Ross

Magna Cum Laude
Bailey Johnson
Jeremy Jones
Jeremy Shannon

Latin III

Maxima Cum Laude
Shelby Lawrence
Etel Sverdlov

Cum Laude
Mengting Li
Maggie Merk
Rachel Simon

Students win community service awards

Congratulations to the following Fayette County Public School students for being named recipients of Community Action Council’s 2006 Outstanding Community Service Award. Winners received a check for $100 a plaque recognizing their service and a copy of John F. Kennedy’s Profiles in Courage.

This year’s winners are:

Jacquelyn Weittenhiller – Lafayette High School
Monica Swartzentruber – Paul Laurence Dunbar High School
Abbie Gaston – Tates Creek High School

Sign up for summer camp!

Looking for something educational and fun for your child to do this summer? Why not sign them up for one of these cool summer camps?

Bluegrass Community and Technical College is now accepting registrations for a one-of-a-kind summer camp experience. Students will learn through fun, hands-on, applied activities in classes designed to help them discover their own talents and interests and build self-esteem. The Summer Youth Program and Junior University is an academic and recreational camp for children in grades one through nine and will be held June 5 through August 11. This year’s camp, Project: Exploration will emphasize science and feature new classes like Forensics, Kid-ventions, Paleorrific, Space Capers and Project Wild. Back by popular demand are favorites such as art, digital photography, and chess success. The Summer Youth Program and Junior University is located at Leestown Campus, 164 Opportunity Way in Lexington, behind Leestown Middle School. The five, two-week sessions offer class flexibility allowing campers to customize their schedule for a truly personalized camp experience. For a free camp brochure or registration materials, call (859) 246-6666 or visit www.bluegrass.kctcs.edu/LCC/CCD/youth_program/php

The Lafayette High School Choral Department is hosting a Vocal Camp for Lafayette High School and all Fayette County middle school students from June 19 through 23 at the school, which is located at 400 Reed Lane. The cost to participate is $50 and includes instruction (except private vocal lessons), a T-shirt and music use. For more information call 381-3492 or visit http://homepage.mac.com/lafayettechoir/vocalcamp.html

High school students will get a chance to create a theater production from a popular book as participants in “Page to Stage” during summer break, a program being offered by the Actor’s Guild of Lexington and the Lexington Public Library. The program will begin with reading the book The Sledding Hill by Chris Crutcher, then working with the staff of the library and the Actor’s Guild to put together the stage production. Participating teenagers will assist with the writing, costumes, and set design and will be the actors. They will present their production to the public in two performances at the end of the summer, one at the Central Library and the other at the Downtown Arts Center. Page to Stage is open to any high school student, including students from outside Lexington. Interested students should register in advance for an informational meeting at 6:30 pm Tuesday, June 6, in the Central Library Theater. To register, contact Kelli Dean at 231-5549 or kdean@lexpublib.org

The Carnegie Center for Literacy and Learning will be hosting several summer camps for rising sixth-, seventh-, and eighth-graders. Camps are $50 per weeklong half-day session. Scholarships are available for those who qualify. The center is located at 251 W. Second Street. For more information or to register, call the Carnegie Center at 254-4175.

Camps offered include:

Project Citizen
July 10 to 14
8:30 a.m. to 12: 30p.m.
“Project Citizen helps bring state government, politics and the concept of representative democracy to life for the next generation of America’s leaders. It may not be as dramatic as “reality TV” but it helps students gain a real life glimpse at how they can make a difference in helping their communities.”

Bi-Lingual Lexington
July 17 to 21
8:30 a.m. to 12:30p.m.
The camp is open to students who speak English, Spanish, or both and will look at the way language and culture effect the lives of Lexingtonians.

Food for Thought
July 24 to 28
8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
From farming to food banking, from starting a restaurant to working as a food critic, this class will explore all the parts of the world of food.

Songwriting Camp
July 10 to 14
1 p.m. to 5 p.m.
Write your own lyrics, design your own CD and produce a hit! Learn from professional musicians about songwriting and the music industry. No previous musical experience necessary.

The Apprentice: Lexington
July 17 to 21
1 p.m. to 5 p.m.
Like the businessmen and women on Donald Trump’s hit show, you can learn the fundamentals of marketing and business, while working with local business leaders.

The Natural World
July 24 to 28
1 p.m. to 5 p.m.
You don’t have to be in the woods to learn about nature. Join us for a week of exploring the environment around you. From water to recycling, find out about the science that surrounds us.

Teacher becomes high school student for a day

The following article was submitted by Michael Feeback, a science teacher at Tates Creek High School.

Think of it as a giant mulligan.

Would you do things differently if you had the chance to do high school over again? Some teachers, staff and parents at Tates Creek High School recently were asked to return to high school as a part of the “Student for a Day” program.

The program was initiated by the school’s Foundations Committee, as a way to gauge the school climate from the students’ perspective. The goal is to find ways to make school warmer and more inviting to young people.

Those selected followed a student schedule for a day and were subject to the rules in place for students. A science teacher, I was selected to participate on May 2, and my cell phone and iPod were turned off at 8:30 a.m.

I followed a few students throughout the day, including student council president Ashley Bell. My schedule included Art I (with teacher Mike Holdren), Geometry (Bo Lankster), Graphic Arts (Mark Willoughby) and French III (Nicki Shelton). Although it was impossible to get a true-to-life student’s perspective, I could at least get a hint as to what a typical day might be like. The classes themselves were engaging, and I learned something in each one of them. I was treated well by the teachers and students.

As I went through my schedule, my top concerns were the same things that affected me as a high school freshman: Will I have someone to sit with at lunch? Will I look foolish when the teacher calls on me? Will I have enough time to get to class?

More than one group of people asked me to eat lunch with them, so that wasn’t a problem. No one – including teachers – made me look foolish, although I wish I had a nickel for every time I heard “hurry to class, Mikey.” My classes were fairly spread out, and I had no trouble getting to class before the bell with some time to spare – even with stops on the way.

The biggest hurdles to creating an inviting school are the parts that are the most difficult for an administration to fix. How do we make a student in a school of around 1,700 students feel less awkward? The fear of feeling out of place is fundamental to being a teen-ager.

Some of the people that invited me to eat with them included cross country runners. This tells me that involvement with clubs and teams helps students feel accepted. I would recommend that new students be given a listing of clubs and teams that they could perhaps join immediately. Tates Creek High School already makes a point of encouraging involvement with freshmen as a facet of its Commodore Academy, its ninth grade small learning community.

I usually bring my lunch, so having senior Ashley Bell give me pointers on how to navigate the lunch room choices was helpful. She made me feel less self-conscious. Perhaps we could assign veteran students to help show new students the ropes. This would have to be worked around the veteran students’ schedules, using office aides, for example.

Even with these ideas, the single-most important component to making the school warm and inviting is the classroom teacher. The atmosphere we build in our classrooms goes further than anything else we can do as a school.

“T” for Tango

The following article was submitted by SCAPA Bluegrass dance students Natalie Drucker and Savannah Heltzel.

On May 1st, 2nd and 3rd, the School for the Creative and Performing Arts dance students had the rewarding opportunity of taking part in a tango workshop taught by couples from the Forever Tango Company. The Forever Tango Company was in town for the tour of their 10th Anniversary Performance, created and directed by Luis Bravo. Alejandra Gutty and Juan Paulo Horvath taught SCAPA Lafayette dance majors. Our instructors, Julio Altez and Carolina Garcia, taught the workshop for Elementary and Middle School dance majors at SCAPA Bluegrass. More than 100 students participated.

Tango originates from such styles as folk, African, polka, mazurka, and other native and imported musical forms in the late 19th century. The dancing involves a very smooth-moving technique. Our teachers insisted that our body be kept at the same level throughout the combinations. We found it very interesting to dance in pairs, as we have not had much experience in partner dancing. If you moved together, and didn’t pull on one another, it felt as if you were one; the desired effect in tango. Steps and movements had to be precise, or else the movements came out sloppy. First combinations were simple and basic, made up of eight counts. We were thankful that Julio and Carolina, our instructors, were always able to find what we were doing wrong and give corrections in a pleasant manner. In Spanish, we would say that they seemed muy simpáticos.

It was very interesting to work with Julio and Carolina. They do not speak English; however, their obvious passion for the tango was contagious. Our Spanish teacher Señora Alicia Vinson and a parent Frank Gorena were available to interpret for us. During the class, these instructors would show us the combinations and then we would practice with a partner. As the class progressed, so did the complexity of the combinations. On the second and last day of the workshop, the combinations were faster paced, with many combinations involving quick placing and stepping of our feet in one place. Julio and Carolina continued to show patience as they worked with us demonstrating the intricacies of the tango. They respect this genre of dance so much that they wanted us to perform it correctly.

This workshop was a very good experience for the SCAPA dance majors, and we enjoyed it immensely. We learned many things, as many of the student dancers had never worked with or even seen tango before. We are very grateful to our tango teachers and Luis Bravo, the sponsor of our workshop. It was a success for all of us. We would like to experience more of this genre of dance. Julio and Carolina have left us with a passion for tango.

Leadership lessons from Sam

The Race

Wow, everyone was so excited about this Kentucky Derby thing last week. There was all this talk about hats and roses and a church on a hill, and I just started getting confused, so I asked Dad about it. Dad said the derby is a race between the world’s fastest horses. But then, of course, he had to talk to me about what has to take place for a horse to win a race like this. Dad said that first and foremost it takes very hard work and practice. He said something about “no pain, no gain,” but I immediately dismissed that thought. I’m more in favor of “no pain if you can avoid it.” Dad kept on talking and said that it takes intense focus – which I am pretty good at (when it comes to food). He also said it takes being a strong competitor and having a spirit to be the best. Lastly, it takes dedication. Dad said that the horses have to run and practice even when it’s raining. Wow, I won’t even go outside when it’s raining. I guess I will never win the Kentucky Derby but I sure like the excitement and extra food!

Bow wow…