Spring 2010 - White River Valley Schools

PRIDE
the white river valley
Spring 2010
A Publication of White River Valley School Corporation
The White River Valley School Board of Trustees does what’s best for students, parents, teachers, staff and our community. Pictured (from left) are Jason
Davidson, Jerry Murdock, Vice President Brian Blackmore, President Glen Cundiff, Secretary Roger Shake, Andrew Graves and Shari Hostetter.
In this issue:
>> Switz City
Offers Small-Town
Atmosphere in a
Great Location
Spring 2010
inside
Unsung Heroes
3
Superintendent’s
Message
Layton Wall,
Superintendent of Schools
Switz City Offers
Small-Town Atmosphere
MAPP Program
Athletes Help
Elementary Students
Contact Us
4
6
7
8
Above: Maintenance staff Cindy Fields,
Mark Woodruff, John Osborne,
Bob Hancock and sub John Shake
clean up at WRV Jr/Sr High School.
Unsung Heroes story, page 3.
WRV basketball players Tyler Resler,
Eli Crites, Austin Shadoin, Cody Pines,
Mark Beaver and Hailey Gregory “Have
a Ball Reading” with Worthington
Elementary students. Story, page 7.
2
One of my favorite times of the
school year comes when we honor
student academic excellence and
achievement. We proudly acknowledge
via awards programs and graduations all
the effort and study that has taken place
this school year. I strongly encourage the
WRV community to attend the following
end-of-the-year events.
WRV Lyons Elementary School will have
its Honor Day on Friday, May 28.
Classroom teachers will present students
with awards for honor roll, perfect attendance, citizenship, accelerated reader,
accelerated math and upper-elementary
sports. The programs will take place in the
gymnasium —at 9 a.m. for kindergarten
through third grades and 1 p.m. for fourth
through sixth grades.
The WRV Lyons ceremonies will include
the S.P.L.A.S.H. (Students Pushing Learning and Academic Success Higher) awards.
All students who meet SPLASH criteria
receive a book and an activity award. Also,
one boy and one girl on each level will win
a bicycle/scooter through a drawing. The
grand prize is a swimming pool.
WRV Worthington will have its honors
program for first through sixth grades at
9 a.m. Friday, May 28, in the gymnasium.
Students will receive honor-roll certificates,
attendance awards, special recognitions
by each teacher for the most accelerated
reader points, the most improved student,
and various other awards.
The WRV Worthington PTO will give
special awards for accelerated reader
points and sponsor an afternoon of outdoor activities for kindergarten through
sixth-grade students.
Other special events include:
• WRV Senior Awards, 7 p.m. Monday,
May 24, in the gymnasium, White
River Valley Jr/Sr High School
• The eighth-grade honor program,
1 p.m. Tuesday, May 25, in the gym
• The WRV Jr/Sr High School final exams,
periods one, three, five and seven on
Wednesday, May 26, and periods two,
four, six and seven on Thursday, May 27.
• Graduation, 10 a.m. May 29
Again, I invite parents, grandparents
and community members to celebrate our
award-winning students by attending these
events. Show our children you appreciate
and care about their success!
PARENTS
Interested in preschool or daycare?
Do you want to send your child to pre-school and/or daycare?
Financial assistance and transportation are possible.
Please contact Kim Downey or Layton Wall at (812) 659-1424.
White River Valley Pride
America’s Teacher of the Year
to Inspire Students, Teachers, Community
On April 26,
Dr. Guy
Doud—America’s Teacher
of the Year in
1986—will come
to WRV! In 1986,
as a high school
language arts
teacher in Brainerd, Minnesota,
Dr. Doud was chosen from more than 2½
million teachers as the National Teacher of
the Year.
Since then, he has become a noted
motivational speaker and author of books
including Molder of Dreams, Joy in the
Journey and Living Beyond Regret. His
books and video will be available for purchase during his WRV appearances.
In addition to speaking to students and
teachers in separate gatherings (see box),
Dr. Doud will deliver a free 7 p.m. presentation, “Molder of Dreams,” open to
everyone in the community.
All Greene County students in grades
7-12 are invited to attend a 1:00 student
presentation. In addition, all Greene
County teachers, Community and Church
member are encouraged to attend.
“I am extremely excited to have this
opportunity to bring a person of Dr. Guy R.
Doud’s experiences and expertise to White
River Valley,” said White River Valley
Superintendent Layton Wall. “The opportunity to collaborate with Greene County
Schools in offering our entire Greene
County community an unforgettable educational experience is exciting to say the
least. We hope all will attend.”
Lee Ann Engelhardt,
Principal, White River Valley
Jr/Sr High School
Osborne, and Mark Woodruff, performs all
school’s network and computers are runthe maintenance essential to school.
ning throughout the day.
Certain areas of the curriculum require in Guidance Secretary Candy Overman crestructional assistants helping teachers. Jeri
ates correspondence and assists in course
Faulk, Karen Lee, April Miller, Patty Tally,
planning, scheduling, and maintenance of
and Kelly Zimmerly support this instruction
the records of all the students, past and
and give much-needed individualized help.
present. Mrs. Overman also manages the
These unsung heroes contribute their
school’s textbook needs.
skills to help provide the community’s chil Sports Secretary April Neff assists Athletic Director J.B. Neill with correspondence dren an education. Without them, school
could not be accomplished without a great
and the coordination of all high school
deal of difficulty.
sporting events.
The White River
Valley Jr/Sr High
School cafeteria
staff—manager
Jean Burgess and
Nancy Dyar, Brenda
Everett, and Lucinda
Sichting—is responsible for feeding 417
students and staff
members breakfast
and lunch.
The maintenance
staff, with Virgil
Jackson overseeing Cindy Fields,
What’s for lunch? Cafeteria staff Brenda Everett, Nancy Dyar, Jean Burgess
Bob Hancock, John
and Lucinda Sichting know.
Dr. Guy Doud
April 26
WRV Jr/Sr High School
Student presentation: Life 101
Grades 7-12
1-2 p.m., Gymnasium
WRV staff in-service
5:30-6:45 p.m., Cafeteria
Molder of Dreams
General Public
7 p.m., Gymnasium
Unsung Heroes of the School
The vision of White River Valley Jr/Sr
High School is to deliver a well-rounded,
world-class education necessary for all
students to achieve personal and academic
excellence.
Our mission is to challenge all students
to achieve grade-level mastery as defined by
district and state standards.
Teachers are the most recognizable
part of realizing the school’s vision and mission. However, a number of key individuals
serve in the background and make sure
that teachers’ ability to teach is unimpeded.
These are the unsung heroes of White River
Valley Jr/Sr High School.
In the office, Secretary Terri Davidson is
a warm, caring presence, performing her
many duties with skill and organization.
ECA (Extra-Curricular Activities) Treasurer
Sarah Warner is responsible for all the
building’s financial activities. Technology
Coordinator Shawn Brown insures that the
White River Valley School Corporation
3
SwiTZ ci
4
White River Valley Pride
ity
Switz City is a quiet town. Top
right: Rick Graves of Graves
Plumbing compares antique and
modern blowtorches. Middle left:
Jerry Holtsclaw works on equipment
at Holtsclaw Sales and Service.
Offering Small-Town
Atmosphere
in a Great Location
Jerry and Rita Holtsclaw like living in Switz City because, as Jerry puts it,
“everybody knows everybody.”
He’s not exaggerating. Switz City has about 300 residents. Many of them grew
up in the town and raised their own families there, too.
The Holtsclaws, for example, met in sixth grade when Jerry’s family moved
from Lyons to buy a diary farm. Rita’s family had been in the area since her
grandfather came to work in the coal mines. Rita, who Jerry calls Janie, went to
school and church with Jerry. They have been married for 51 years. They raised
their two children in Switz City.
“Switz City is a great place to raise a family,” Jerry said. “Everybody’s
friendly, and everybody knows everybody. It’s like the old gentleman who was
on Johnny Carson one time, and Johnny asked what was great about living in a
small town. The old gent said, ‘We never have to use our turn signals because
everybody knows where you’re going.’”
When the Holtsclaws were growing up, Switz City was bustling for its size.
There were a bank, post office, two general stores, a hotel, a hatchery, a car
dealership, a school and the Indiana Rail and Indiana Southern Rail companies.
The railroads still run through town, but the other businesses today can be
ticked off on your fingers: Holtsclaw Sales and Service, Graves Plumbing, Cathy’s
Beauty Shop, Gibco Trucking, Oodle Inn, plus a newly opened Creamy Cup Café.
Still, Switz City’s location means residents can work in Terre Haute, Bloomington, Bedford and other cities while enjoying a small town where you like your
neighbors, you can see the stars at night and you don’t have to lock your doors.
That location has made for good business for Graves Plumbing. Norbert
Graves started the business in Linton in 1964, working out of his home by himself with one truck providing home repairs. The company outgrew its facility on
South Main Street in Linton and purchased 12 acres west of Switz City in 1985.
Today, Graves Plumbing has 12,000 feet of warehouse and office space, 30
employees and 18 trucks and provides commercial maintenance and installation services from Lafayette to Anderson, Louisville to Evansville, and “anywhere in-between,” said Norbert’s son, Rick. “When you’re out in the middle of
nowhere, as we are, everywhere else is the same distance away, so you might
as well go work there,” he said.
“I like the idea that there are fewer rules and regulations here. If we have
a problem or a question, we know how to approach government officials for
answers. You can ask the mayor or a county government directly. You can’t do
that in a bigger city.”
A small town might seemingly offer its children fewer opportunities, but the
Holtsclaws and Graves say the opposite is true of Switz City. Graves pointed
out that three of his four boys went to Butler University on scholarships and
graduated.
His son A.J. is Switz City’s most famous native son. A leading scorer, the
guard led the Bulldogs basketball team to its best season ever in 2007. (His
brother Matthew is currently assistant coach.) USA Today wrote of him: “If A.J.
Graves didn’t exist, he would have to be invented. He’s the small-town boy who
grew up shooting baskets from dawn to dusk in a rustic backyard amid cornfields and coal mines, fulfilling the myth of Indiana basketball.”
“All my kids could do anything they wanted,” Rick Graves said. “White River
Valley (School Corporation) was really good to them. They could compete
against anybody who graduated from any other school in the state.”
5
MAPP Program De-Mystifies Math
Kurt Lentz,
Principal,
Lyons Elementary School
Second-grade teacher Laura File
draws this analogy: Would you learn how
to bake a cake by having someone tell you
how to do it—or by doing it yourself with
that person’s help?
Doing it, of course. And that’s one
of the techniques being used by the
Greene County Math Advancement
Partnership Project (MAPP). Three White
River Valley Lyons teachers and their
assistants, along with teachers from
five other school districts in Greene
County, are collaborating with Indiana
University to improve math achievement
in kindergarten through sixth grade.
“We adapt material currently being
used to incorporate questioning, listening
and communicating algebraically,” said
Mrs. File, MAPP lead teacher for Lyons.
“With MAPP, kids discover the answers on
their own. As a result, they remember the
information better.”
With MAPP, currently in the second
year of a two-year grant from the
Indiana Department of Education, the
Indiana University Math Department
and the School of Education’s faculty
“With MAPP, kids discover
the answers on their own.
As a result, they remember
the information better.”
and graduate students provide on-going
professional development, lead monthly
classes, are consultants and provide
additional math assessment.
The Greene County Grant and
Professional Development Consortium
has allotted money for the use of
substitutes so that grant teachers can
visit other math classrooms and different
schools, or be able to team-teach a math
lesson in various classrooms. Teachers
can also have math-in-service days during
the summer.
Math coach Lauren Rapacki visits all
the Greene County schools and provides
ideas for instruction and demonstrates
lessons. “Teachers feel comfortable
having her observe their teaching
practices and willingly incorporate
her suggestions,” Mrs. File said. “The
students are excited to see her because
she always comes with new activities.”
MAPP lead teachers meet once a month
and all the teachers in a “grade band”
(such as kindergarten through second
grade) meet once a month to share ideas
and success stories about the techniques
they’ve tried.
“It’s wonderful getting the ideas from
other teachers,” said Mrs. File. “I’ve been
teaching 25 years, and MAPP has really
been a great experience for learning new
things.”
With MAPP as a guide, aide Tabitha Patterson leads students on an adventure through numbers.
6
White River Valley Pride
Worthington fifth-graders A.J. Jackson and Abby Denhan explore online
with Webmaster Linda Mowery.
School is “sweet” for Superintendent Layton Wall and Worthington sixthgrade teacher Wes Franklin.
Athletes Help Elementary Students
Have a Ball Reading
Kevin Keller, Principal,
Worthington
Elementary School
school boys let the smaller kids win.)
Students score accelerated reader points
that will determine which class gets to
have a pizza party and shoot hoops with
the players at the end of the school year.
Currently the sixth-grade class is in the
lead, with Mrs. Stoner’s third-grade class
close behind.
“I felt that it was a great program
because it gave the elementary kids a
way to learn and have fun,” said senior
Jared Shelton. “I know we had a good
time with the program and I hope it’s
continued next year.”
Senior Levi Hostetter agreed: “It was fun
interacting with the kids.”
The high school players enjoy all the
students, but have a particular affinity for
the younger ones. “They really like the
kindergarten kids,” Mrs. Stoner said.
Every time the White River Valley Jr/
Sr High School basketball team comes to
Worthington, the players score points—
with elementary students and teachers.
Since September, the players have
participated in a new program, Have a Ball
Reading. The last Friday of each month,
they spend 30 to 40 minutes reading
books, playing games and doing crafts
with students in one class. The players
visit a different class each month.
“The players really seem to enjoy it,”
said third-grade teacher Sabra Stoner. “At
first they seemed timid, but they always
leave with big smiles.”
Mrs. Stoner, a sports enthusiast,
dreamed up Have a Ball Reading as a
way to beef up student reading, make a
connection between the high school and
Worthington Elementary School and interest elementary students in sports.
The activities selected by teachers range
from social studies trivia to a stick horse
race up and down the halls of the school
Hoops players pass the reading bug to elementary students.
with kindergarten students. (The high
White River Valley School Corporation
7
PRIDE
white river valley
Contact Us
Administration Center.(812) 659-1424
Fax............................... (812) 659-2278
White River Valley School Corporation
PO Box 1470
Switz City, IN 47465
Non-Profit Org.
US Postage
PAID
Indianapolis, IN
Permit #6783
Jr/Sr High School........ (812) 659-2274
Fax............................... (812) 659-2283
Worthington
Elementary School..... (812) 875-3839
Fax............................... (812) 875-2199
Lyons
Elementary School..... (812) 659-3915
Fax............................... (812) 659-2599
*****ECRWSS
Postal Customer
Our Website
www.wrv.k12.in.us
Board of
School Trustees
Glen Cundiff......................... President
Brian Blackmore...........Vice President
Roger Shake.........................Secretary
Shari Hostetter.......................Member
Andrew Graves......................Member
Jason Davidson.....................Member
Jerry Murdock........................Member
All-School Calendar 2009-2010
Mar. 22–26
Apr. 2
Apr. 28
May 7
May 17
May 27
May 28
May 29
May 31
Spring Break (No School)
Good Friday ( Make-up Day 5)
Progress Reports
Snow Day ( Make-up Day 3)
Snow Day (Make-up Day 4)
Last Student Day
Teacher Work Day (Half Day)
Graduation
Labor Day (No School)
Any student days missed beyond the five make-up days will begin on May
27. Any make-up Days beyond Labor Day, for both students and staff, will
commence on Tuesday, June 1.
B
BLOOMFIELD
Non-Discrimination Statement
White River Valley School Corporation has a policy of providing equal opportunity. All
courses are open to all students regardless of race, color, sex, handicapping conditions,
or national origin including limited English proficiency.
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Worthington third-grader Monica Tilley “slides” into fun at recess.