Rebel Thunder Rebel Thunder

Volume 10, Issue 1
Page 1
Rebel Thunder
Visit us on the Web @ www.re3j.com
September 2014
Welcome to WCHS 2014-2015!!
We welcome parents, students and staff to the 2014-15 school year. Each
year brings new experiences, opportunities and challenges to each of us. As
we go through the year, we hope that you feel welcome to come and be part of
our school and programs. The staff at the high school works very hard to keep
the safety of the students at the forefront of their decisions. We thank all the
parents that support these efforts and help to make our school a great place to
be.
Dale Fleming, Principal
Schools in Colorado are being challenged to have students leave high school
Post-Secondary Workforce Ready (PWF). This should be an expectation that is realized and we
will work to achieve this task. Our staff is working to build assessments that show that our students are mastering learning targets in the classrooms. We are pushing rigor in the classrooms
to challenge the students to move to the goal of being ready for post-secondary options. We
have talked with students about becoming more responsible and accountable for their academics. We ask that the community and parents support us in these endeavors this year and into the
future.
Weld Central High School Accountability Committee Meetings
Meetings for our building accountability committee will be the first Monday of the month with the
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September 15-20 .......................................................................................... Homecoming Week
September 20 ...............................................................................................Homecoming Dance
September 26 ...................................................................................................... School Pictures
October 10 .........................................................................................................Midterm Reports
October 15 .............................................................................................................. PSAT testing
October 15 ...................................... Financial Aid 101, 5:30 p.m. (English), 6:30 p.m. (Spanish)
October 15-16 ................................................................................ Parent/Teacher Conferences
October 17 .................................................................................................................. No School
October 20 .................................................................................... No School, Teacher Inservice
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HOMECOMING 2014–SEPTEMBER 15-20
This year’s theme is “Let it Go!” Whatever is holding us back from being successful…
Let it Go! Hats are allowed ONLY if it is part of their costume! No face paint is allowed.
Monday: Favorite team day! Wear your favorite shirt, hat or jersey supporting your
favorite team!
Tuesday: Favorite Disney Character. Wear a costume of your favorite character or
from your favorite Disney movie!
Wednesday: Class Color Day: Freshman wear orange, Sophomores wear purple,
Juniors wear green, Seniors wear silver. Wednesday night is the traditional Powder
Puff game from 6-7:30 p.m. on the football field and Peach Fuzz in the gym from 7:30
– 9:00 p.m.
Thursday: “ Frozen”: You can dress as a character from the movie or wear your winter hat, scarves, mittens…There is a home volleyball game. Come and support our
girls!
Friday: Rebel Day: Show your school pride and sport your Rebel gear, or any combination of red, white, and blue! We will have one lunch (12:00-12:30—boxed lunches
available that day) carnival from 12:30-1:50, talent show/pep assembly from 1:503:00, and from 3:00-3:20, there will be time to wrap up any last minute float details.
The Parade starts at 4:00 from the park in Keenesburg. The football game is slated
for 7:00.
Saturday: the dance! It is from 8-11 in the commons! It is a semi-formal dance (NO
baseball hats or tee-shirts are allowed) Jeans are fine—with a collared shirt. Tickets
are $10/single and $15 for a couple PRIOR to the dance and $15/single and $20/
couple AT THE DOOR. Students must be eligible prior to the dance in order to attend!
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MORE NEW STAFF AT WELD CENTRAL
Hello! My name is Kayla
Gerkin and I am an English teacher at Weld Central High School. In addition to teaching English, I
am also one of the coaches for the Speech and Debate team. I was born and
raised in Keenesburg and
am a former graduate of Weld Central.
During my time here, I was an active
member of the Weld Central Poms Dance
Team, which took the state championships twice. I attended Colorado State
University in Fort Collins, where I earned
my Bachelor’s degree in English Education. I am a very colorful person and enjoy
doing various activities like dancing, knitting, singing, and being outdoors. I am
overjoyed to have been given a position at
Weld Central and am happy to be part of
the community I know and love once
“Alex Hall – or the Obstinate Carp as he is
known in the Wu-Tang Clan – is an English teacher at Weld Central High
School. Mr. Hall is from Greeley, CO and
went to Greeley Central High School in
Weld County, which is apparently a different school from Weld
Central. He received his
bachelor’s degree in
English Education at
Colorado State University, where he helped
manage the campus
radio station and took
Cam the Ram out for
walks on brisk autumn
days. Mr. Hall enjoys
basketball, knitting, two-necked guitars,
running a mile in a marathon and then
quitting, and his family. As Mr. Hall claims
he once said, ‘Be the change you wish to
see in the world.’”
“My name is Ben Ellis and I am one of RE3J’s new School Psychology Interns. I’m
currently enrolled in the Child, Family and
School Psychology program at the University of Denver and will be finished with my
degree after spending the
year in Weld County. This
year, I’m working as the
school psychologist for
Hoff Elementary and Cardinal Academy alongside
the High School. I grew up
in rural Northern Illinois
and have since lived in St.
Paul Minnesota, Denver
and Glendale, before moving to Brighton. I
have already had a lot of fun and met
many new students, parents and teachers
and look forward to the rest of the year
working in RE-3J.”
My name is Karen
Boyle and I am the new
Transition
Counselor
for Weld Central Middle
School and Weld Central High School. I will
be assisting the 8th and
9th graders make the
jump from middle school to high school. I
recently moved to Colorado from the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania area, where I attended Rosemont College. While at Rosemont, I majored in Psychology and earned
my Bachelor’s degree in 2011. I continued
on at Rosemont to earn a Master’s degree
in both Professional Counseling and
School Counseling K-12. I am very excited to be working for the Weld Re-3j
School District and look forward to having
a successful school year!
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Nathan Schleicher, new Assistant Principal/Activity Director, grew
up in St. Paul, Minnesota where he graduated from Mounds View
High School. He met his wife Eve while earning a his teaching certificate and Bachelor’s degree in English from the University of North
Dakota. Mr. Schleicher spent the first four years of his career in education teaching English at Minot High School, Central Campus. He
later moved to Fargo where he served as teacher, department chair,
and curriculum coordinator for Fargo South High School. While living in Fargo, Mr. Schleicher earned a Master’s degree in educational leadership from North Dakota State University. Nathan, his lovely
wife, and their new baby girl, Vera, moved to Colorado in July.
Scott Richardson, new Assistant Principal/Athletic Director, is from
Corpus Christi, TX. He attended W.B. Ray High School where he was
a multi-sport athlete all through high school. After high school he attended McMurry University in Abilene, TX, where he competed on the
Track and Field team as a hammer and discus thrower. While competing, Scott earned three all-conference titles, was a part of three team
conference championships, and won an individual conference championship in the hammer throw. He graduated McMurry with a B.S. in Exercise Science and Sports Studies with a minor in History. After that,
he attended Baylor University in Waco, TX, where he received a
M.S.Ed. In Sports Management and coached throwers on the Baylor Track & Field
team. He then moved back to Corpus Christ, TX to teach and coach. While there he
met his wife Samantha. They have been married for 4 years and have one son, Luke,
who is 2 years old.
My name is Sarah Rhodebeck, and I’m one of the new teachers in the
English department this year. In addition to English, I teach the theatre class and am a co-director of the Weld Central Drama Club. I’m a
2011 Weld Central grad myself, so I’m incredibly excited to have returned to Rebel Country for my first year teaching. I’m really enjoying
getting to know the students and staff at Weld Central and I look forward to being a part of such a GREAT school this year!
Chris McDonnell is new to Colorado. A teacher of 13 years, Mr.
McDonnell comes to us from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He is a proud
graduate of Penn State University. An avid sports fan, Mr. McDonnell
combined his love of math and baseball to own and operate a successful fantasy baseball business for several years before merging it with
another company. Mr. McDonnell currently teaches Algebra I and Algebra II at the high school and is loving his time in Colorado and at
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exceptions of January and April. Please come and be involved with this committee.
We will have discussions on new programs that we implement, the high school improvement plan, and other concerns that come up over the school year. Please come
and be part of the solution to the challenges that our school needs to address.
Homecoming-Week of September 15th through 20th
Just a reminder: Homecoming Week will be September 15 th through September 20th.
Our student council is busy organizing the events for the week so please watch the
high school web page, wchs.re3j.com, for the dates and times of the festivities. The
students have chosen the theme of “Frozen” for this year. We invite the community to
come and share the energy and enthusiasm that comes with Homecoming. Please
come out and support our Rebels!!!
Web Page Information-wchs.re3j.com
We are moving toward being less reliant on paper as a school and district. In order to
help with this, we need to have parents and community members utilize our school
web page as often as possible. We put our daily announcements on the web page so
that you can receive the same information that is given to the students over the intercom system. Any upcoming events are also posted on the page. There are links to
applications to our on-line program, up to date sports schedules, and other important
internet web pages. The website even gives you information on ways to provide feedback to the webmaster of our school in order to improve the web page. Please utilize
this page so that you can know what is happening at the high school.
ALSO NEW AT
WELD CENTRAL THIS YEAR
Aurelia
Ray-Foreign
Language
This is my 26th year in
education! As a child I
learned
English
and
Spanish, at home my
family and I always
spoke Spanish. My father was a Spanish
Teacher and my mother was also in education for 53 amazing years! I attended
UNC in Greeley, CU Boulder and also
University of Phoenix.
I am so excited to be teaching Spanish at
WCHS! The students are a joy!
Weld Central
Tailgate Party
after the parade Friday
Hosted by
Weld Central High School Booster
Club
&
Southeast Weld
Chamber of Commerce
FOOD, MUSIC & FUN!!
Kickoff off at 7:00pm!!!
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Handsome Tuesday
Chris Mcdonnell, Mathematics
It’s a Handsome Tuesday in Mr. McDonnell’s classroom. Tuesday is the day students
and their teacher dress a little sharper. Dressing up has various effects on a person.
People are nicer to each other when they are dressed up. They have more selfconfidence and are more purposeful in the work they are doing. These are just some
of the attitudes and themes Mr. McDonnell is trying to cultivate in his classroom.
Chris McDonnell is a math teacher at Weld Central High School. This is his first year
in the school district. A graduate of Penn State University, McDonnell recently relocated from Philadelphia, where he taught for the past 13 years. “I want to cultivate a positive culture and learning environment in the classroom,” said McDonnell.
“He makes the week way more interesting. Each day brings your self-esteem up and
others’ self-esteem up as well. Handsome Tuesday makes me feel pretty.” said Deissy Vazquez, a junior at Weld Central HS.
Every day has its own theme in Mr. McDonnell’s classroom. Monday is McConaughey
Monday because that’s when the weekend is over and a new week begins. So they
clap their hands together and in their best Texas drawl say “Alright, alright, alright.”
Wednesday is Participation Wednesday. Thursday is Positivity Thursday and Friday is
Finish Well Friday because in Mr. McDonnell’s class, they don’t watch movies on Friday or coast into the weekend. They finish well.
“The class gives you a sense of positivity and encouragement. You can learn in a fun
and interactive environment without the fear of being made fun of.” said Morgan Salazar, a junior at Weld Central HS.
McDonnell added, “I want to create something that grabs the kids’ attention and inspires them to up their game a little bit every day. Positivity is a theme in the classroom. We don’t put each other down. Students are encouraged to answer questions
even when they don’t have the correct answers because we learn from each other’s
mistakes. Things like participation and finishing well are recognized and celebrated.
It’s all about students learning the material and becoming better people, and I believe
having these themes in place creates an environment where those things can happen.
Plus, it’s fun.”
From left to right: Chris McDonnell, Devon Timmons, Briana Gasparovich, Jazmine Webb, Mercedes Nino, Samantha Shuck, Abigail Arnusch, Moraima Castaneda Magallanes, Austin Abeyta, Kayla DeSimas-Milne, Andrew
McWilliams, Courtney Gerkin, Brennan Zimbelman, Morgan Salazar, James Benvenuti, and Jose Seijo Rodriguez
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WCHS Students Partner with
The Wild Animal Sanctuary!
By Kim Skinner, English Dept.
WCHS English and Strategic Reading classes are embarking on another year of adoption! The Wild Animal Sanctuary
partners with students and staff each year on a mission to
adopt a wild animal. As we enter our fifth year, the students
have chosen to adopt Ursula, a Grizzly.
Ursula and her three cubs, Alex, Sam, and Anna, were rescued from concrete pits in one of Georgia’s roadside shows.
Patrons paid to see Ursula and her cubs in conditions frightful for any animal!
Our students raise the money through a year- long project
by collecting aluminum cans and sponsoring various fundraisers. Students in Strategic Reading travel deep into the
realities of the adoption. Learners will read a novel, and
complete a study on environmental impacts related to the
specie adopted. Students will learn presentation/research
skills and complete many assignments exploring the Writing
Process.
The adoption affords an excellent opportunity for students to
invest themselves personally in a community project by taking ownership of the adoption. Successfully completing the
academic parameters set for the semester in conjunction
with the student’s participation in such a worthy cause will
help them develop into quality school and community citizens.
WE ARE:
STUDENTS ON THE MOVE
AT WCHS!