Featured News - October 2007
All Urbana School District #116 Third-Graders Receive a Dictionary
Gift Courtesy of Local Rotary Club Promotes Literacy
[posted 10/31/07 - 11/01/07]
Every third-grader in Urbana School District #116 is the proud owner of a Student Dictionary thanks to the Illini After 5 Rotary Club. The club presented the dictionaries to third-graders Tuesday at all Urbana elementary schools.
U of I Soccer Coach Janet Rayfield is a member of the Rotary, and she presented the dictionaries to Wiley students. “There are other Rotaries (across the country) that have started this program in terms of addressing literacy. Literacy is one of the issues Rotary clubs address worldwide, and this is a way we feel we can impact the community here,” Rayfield says. According to Rayfield it’s gratifying to give the dictionaries away. “You see the faces of the third-graders as they open up the dictionaries and start looking up words or the places they came from and it’s a lot of fun,” she explains.
Published by The Dictionary Project, Inc., the Student Dictionary not only includes word definitions, but it also includes a geography section, metric system section, civics facts, and even the periodic table of the elements.
Wiley Principal Barb Sartain says many of the kids she saw were excited to receive their new dictionaries. “I love the idea that they can take it home and can use it across the years. It’s a reference book that some families may not have on their shelves, particularly one that is designed for children,” Sartain explains.
At Prairie Elementary, third grade teacher Stacie Guido thinks the student dictionaries will be a valuable tool for her kids. “This will be a great (addition) because it will help with their writing, because in third grade we’re doing a lot of expanded writing using synonyms and antonyms for our words as well as replacing simple words with more difficult words. Also, we do a lot of dictionary skills to get them ready for the ISAT (achievement tests). This will be a great benefit for our classroom and the student’s home,” Guido says.
This is the first year the Illini After 5 Rotary Club (http://www.illiniafterfive.org/) has distributed dictionaries to school children.
For more Information about The Dictionary Project, Inc., please see http://www.dictionaryproject.org/.
Urbana High School Students Recognized for Academic Excellence
16th- Annual Academic Monogram Celebration Salutes Over 250 Students
[10/30/07 - 10/31/07]
It takes hard work for high school students to achieve and maintain a 4.0 grade point average each semester. So it’s fitting that Urbana High School recognizes student academic achievement with the Academic Monogram. Over 250 UHS students were recently recognized for high academic achievement.
Students in grades 10-12 are eligible for the award on a yearly basis. Pupils must earn a 4.0 grade point average in each semester of work in an academic year with no “F’s.” Summer school credit is averaged into next fall’s semester. Students must be enrolled in at least four classes in addition to physical education. First-year honorees receive a monogram. If a student earns the award again, they will be given a shield and an academic pin.
“Earning a 4.0 average is a special accomplishment that requires sacrifice, dedication, and perseverance. It involves participation in learning activities that are exciting, interesting, and fun. Sometimes it involves assignments that require students to push themselves just to complete them. To achieve at this level often requires a student to sacrifice something else in life that the student would prefer to do,” says Urbana High School Principal Dr. Laura Taylor.
In addition to the Academic Monogram, the high school gives out the Academic Book Award to recognize the students with the top five cumulative grade point averages from each class. Sophomores received Mountains Beyond Mountains by Tracy Kidder. Juniors received Founding Mothers: The Women Who Raised Our Nation by Cokie Roberts. Seniors received An Inconvenient Truth: The Planetary Emergency of Global Warming and What We Can Do About It by Al Gore. This year’s Urbana Scholars Book Award recipients are:
Class of 2008
Chester Dols
Sarah Mustered
Justin Nguyen
Samantha Schwartz
Megan White-Domain
Class of 2009
Luncie Anselin
Judy Gaylen
Alexander Mouschovias
Julie Weatherhead
Claire Williams
Class of 2010
Jordyn Harriger
Christina Helregel
Zita Hubler
Magdalena Nilges
Ou Zhao
Superintendent Dr. Preston Williams was the keynote speaker at the awards ceremony. Williams says, “I always enjoy the evening because it celebrates what we are about and should be about as a district - academic achievement. It also celebrates the commitment by parents who challenge their children to be their best in the classroom.”
Urbana High School Winter Sports Ready to Tip-Off
Students Have Until End of Month to Sign-Up
[featured 10/29/07 - 10/30/07]
Between 125 and 150 student athletes will take part in winter sports (boys and girls basketball, boys swimming, wrestling, and cheerleading) at Urbana High School this year. Students have just a few more days to sign up for winter sports before the October 31 deadline.
Urbana High School Athletic Director Greg Hall says this winter promises to be an exciting one. “The girls’ basketball team is looking to win regionals for the second year in a row and advance further in the state series. The wrestling team has several wrestlers who have the potential to advance to sectionals (Jack Leclair, Jake Tammen, Nick Gordon, and Shagun Pradhan) and a few more wrestlers who have a chance to go to state (Zach Kulczycki and Caleb Blaney). Swimmer Chester Dols should qualify for state and break several school records. Boys’ basketball has a talented team coming back and Coach Terrence Gray has high expectations for them this year,” Hall says.
The high school welcomes two new coaches this year. “Charles Trabaris will be a first year head coach with the wrestling program. He is taking my place as head wrestling coach. Michelle Zimmerman will be head boys’ swim coach for the first time in her career,” Hall explains.
Hall also says winter sports are a great entertainment value for the community. You can see wrestling and swim meets for free (invitational meets excluded). Girls’ basketball is $2.00 for adults and $1.00 for students with a valid high school ID. Boys’ basketball is $3.00 for adults and $2.00 for students with a valid high school ID.
For more information about Urbana High School winter sports please see http://www.usd116.org/uhs/athletics/winter.htm.
Urbana Middle School Students Learn to Mediate Conflict
[featured 10/26/07 - 10/29/07]
Rumors, jokes, friendships, slights, break-ups, teasing; middle school can be hard on students as they transition from childhood into adulthood. Conflict is inevitable, and the Urbana Middle School Peer Mediation Program has students helping resolve disagreements among their fellow classmates.
“Students recognize the actions they take affect other people, and in the process of mediation students learn that. It’s also a process where students realize they don’t have to react and fight back; they learn constructive conflict resolution,” says Beth Simpson, Peer Mediation Coordinator at Urbana Middle School. Simpson says student mediators can understand the conflict between their fellow students and can offer solutions. “Mediation works best when there are student mediators because the students who are involved in the conflict can say things that they can’t say in front of adults…so they’ll talk more freely and be more real,” Simpson says. All mediation sessions are kept confidential.
In peer mediation, both parties have to agree to take their conflict to a student mediator. The student mediators then sit down and hash things out, listen to the issue, and resolve the conflict between the two disagreeing parties. At the end of the mediation session, the students sign an agreement that they will abide by to end the problem. Simpson says the students also end the session with a handshake and give each other their word to resolve and end the conflict. “In this day and age of people’s words not meaning so much, it means a lot with these kids,” Simpson explains.
Students go to peer mediators to deal with conflicts that include rumors, teasing, fights, or damage to personal property.
This past week Simpson trained new student mediators. Almost all interviewed said they wanted to be a mediator so they can help people. UMS student Dida-su Bilgin says, “I think (mediation) can be helpful for me to control my own problems, and I just like helping people.” Ryan Gatsche wants to help his fellow students get along, and he says he’s learned to stay neutral when he mediates a problem. “You can’t take sides and you have to go with what they say,” Gatsche explains.
Simpson says ultimately the peer mediation program can increase student academics saying, “If students can be in their class focusing on their subject rather than worry who will harass them in the hall they will be able to pay attention a lot better.”
The peer mediators meet every Wednesday and Thursday at Urbana Middle School. About 30 students have been trained as peer mediators this year.
Prairie Elementary School Students Meet Pen Pals
Students Learn Writing Skills in Senior RSVP Program
[featured 10/25/07 - 10/26/07]
Third and fourth grade students at Prairie Elementary School in Urbana will hone their writing skills this year with the help of a senior citizen. This week, students were paired with a senior citizen as part of the Senior RSVP Program. In its 27th year, the Senior RSVP Program pairs some of the community’s seasoned residents with elementary students in a pen pal writing program. The students at Prairie Elementary will write to their pen pal all year, and the kids will have a party with their pen pals at the school this coming spring.
This is the third year of the RSVP Program visiting Prairie Elementary. “Writing letters is an authentic way for children to learn how to write paragraphs and the letter-writing format. Students also benefit by learning about their senior citizen pen pal. We also use excerpts from the seniors' letters as a model showing how good paragraphs can be written. Students become better writers as they practice the writing process from rough draft through a completed letter. Students will also work on computer skills as they learn how to type some of their letters and even create a greeting card,” says Prairie Elementary fourth grade teacher Jacqueline Martin.
Michelle Bailey teaches third grade at Prairie Elementary. “I think this will help students make more of a connection with the community. It will also help them with their writing skills and their communication skills,” she explains. Bailey also says it a fun and interesting way for her students to learn writing and communication skills. “I’m glad they’re excited about writing,” Bailey says.
Martin says the students really get into the pen pal program. She says, “I can't answer for the seniors, but I know the students love their pen pals and can't wait to hear ‘you've got mail!’”
Low-vision students learn basic home skills at CASE activity
[featured 10/23/07 - 10/25/07]
Low-vision students had the opportunity to learn basic home skills at the 11th annual Central Affiliation of Special Education (CASE) Fall Low-Vision Activity. The event entitled "Home Maintenance and Repair" was held Monday at the Delta Gamma Sorority House on the University of Illinois campus. CASE serves low-vision students in 14 area counties and is based in the Urbana School District. Students from Thomas Paine, King, and Leal Elementary Schools along with Urbana Middle School attended the event.
CASE Vision Coordinator Pam Duda explains, "Our students with visual impairments often need instruction in the expanded core curriculum areas such as daily living skills, recreation and leisure, and socialization. The skills that normally sighted children learn through observation alone needs to be deliberately taught and guided for their peers who are visually impaired. The parameters of the typical school day often prohibits teachers of the visually impaired to address the vast needs in the expanded core curriculum. Hosting vision activity days was founded in order to address these needs."
Since CASE serves 14 area counties, Duda says several schools outside District 116 were represented at the event in Urbana. There were approximately 75 students, teachers, and parents at the "Home Maintenance and Repair" event. "By bringing students together from a large area the numbers of attendees...enabled students and parents to network with others who may have similar situations," Duda says.
Students learned how to change a light bulb, fix a dripping faucet, hang a picture, unclog a toilet, and change batteries. "A primary goal was to provide students with visual impairments with new experiences which will allow them to engage in physical exercise, positive social interactions, recreation and leisure activities, and self-help skills," Duda says. She continues, "Ultimately we strive for our students with visual impairments to develop skills to help them become powerful self-advocates and contributing members of society."
Urbana School District Teachers Always Learning
District 116 Teachers Participate in Professional Development Programs All Year
[featured 10/19/07 - 10/23/07]
Urbana School District #116 students aren’t the only ones learning during the school year. District 116 teachers also take time out of their schedules to devote several hours to becoming better instructors by taking professional development courses. These activities, offered by the Urbana School District, take place during in-service days and also on the teachers’ own time. The Urbana School District works closely with its teachers to help them grow in their profession.
“The members of Urbana School District’s Staff Development Office offer a wide range of opportunities for teachers to learn, grow, and share with their peers. We have a variety of optional offerings including workshops, mentoring, book discussions, study groups, fellowships, lesson study, and institutes,” says Katherine Barbour, District 116 Director of Staff Development. She also says the teachers are very willing to work, study, and learn to be better instructors. “I am thrilled at how interested and active Urbana teachers are when it comes to professional development opportunities. Teachers have a wide variety of professional development needs and desires, but when we make an effort to meet those needs and desires, we are rewarded with enthusiastic and engaged teachers,” Barbour explains.
Barbour wants faculty to talk with each other and learn from each other. “One of my goals is to model good instructional practice during professional development activities. I want to be as creative as the teachers who I serve, so you will rarely find a workshop that includes only one mode of instruction. It is wonderful when we can encourage the teachers who are attending a workshop or other event to actively participate,” Barbour notes.
Barbour explains that it is important for teachers to keep learning, even if they have been in the classroom for decades. “Urbana teachers are eager to learn new ways of reaching their students and to share what they know with their colleagues. They want to keep up with new initiatives and curriculum changes, but most of all they value learning, not just for their students, but for themselves,” Barbour says.
So the next time students are out of school for an in-service day, know that teachers are working hard learning to hone their craft.
Visit the Staff Development section of our website for more information.
District 116 Elementary and Middle School Students Benefit from Mentoring Program
[featured 10/17/07 - 10/19/07]
For the past three years Urbana School District #116 and the Champaign School District partnered in a grant program that increased the number of students who were paired with a mentor. The grant program, which ran out September 30, has been deemed a great success. In fact, it has been such a success that the Urbana School District will continue to fund the program for District 116 mentors and students.
"Grant funds were utilized to hire part-time staff in each C-U elementary and middle school. Their primary role was to recruit, match and support school based mentors. Mentors were matched one-on-one with students in grades 6-8 who demonstrated the need for additional adults in their life: kids 'on the brink of success,' " says Barbara Linder, Urbana Middle School Mentor and Volunteer Coordinator.
The program requires a commitment by both the mentor and the student. "Mentors meet for one hour per week on school grounds during the school day. We want mentors to commit for one year with the understanding that our hope is that they will be able to follow their student through high school graduation," Linder explains.
The grant goal was for 260 students in C-U schools to be matched with a mentor. At the end of the grant a total of 370 students were matched with a mentor. The grant also required by 2007 that 30-percent of the students paired with a mentor to see significant academic improvement in at least one core subject within a year of being matched with a mentor. The program smashed the 30-percent goal by having 71-percent of mentored students showing demonstrated academic improvement.
The mentoring program also helped improve the students' outlook on school as a survey indicated that 93-percent of pupils surveyed stated that their mentor "helped me feel good about coming to school."
Once the grant expired on September 30, the part time staffers weren't funded anymore. However the Urbana School District has decided that the program needs to keep running and will fund it with district monies. "Because of the presence of these coordinators in our buildings we are able to continue not only to support the existing matches, but to recruit new mentors and start new pairs," Linder says.
Urbana School District #116 Superintendent Dr. Preston Williams stresses the importance of the mentoring process saying, "Research shows mentoring has a very positive effect on the students who are fortunate enough to have a positive adult influence in their formative years. We are very appreciative of the mentoring program and the mentors who volunteer their time with our students."
The site coordinators who handle the mentoring program are Jane Cain (Leal & Prairie), Kellie Anderson (Wiley & Thomas Paine), Lori Ellinger (Yankee Ridge & Urbana High School), Sandra Carter (King) and Linder at Urbana Middle School.
Visit the volunteer section of our website to learn more, including contact information for the coordinators listed above.
Urbana Middle School Art Project Brightens Hallway
Student Project Stresses Cooperation
[feature 10/16/07 - 10/17/07]
Students, teachers, staff, and visitors have a new art project greeting them near the main office at Urbana Middle School this fall. Renee Cooper's class developed life-sized cardboard cutouts using UMS students as models and used different colors of magazine paper to bring the cutouts to life.
"We told the students 'we need you to pose in these different positions,' and we talked about what was more interesting—sitting or standing," Cooper explains. She continues, "We wanted it to be exciting, and the kids posed. We took digital pictures, we chose 16, and we projected them using a new LCD projector. We projected the picture on the cardboard and cut the figures out." The figures portray the students standing, sitting, running, studying, playing sports - and defying gravity! Cooper's classes took about two days to tear out the magazine paper and sort out the different colors, and the classes then glued the paper on the figures. Cooper says the students really got into the project because the cardboard cutouts portrayed their classmates. She is also proud that the project highlights the diverse student population at the middle school.
Cooper hopes the students learned collaboration during this project. "We talked to the kids about how it was so cool that we had an idea - we then communicated that idea to them, and through their collaboration of tearing magazine pictures, others gluing them on, and then other people coming back and adding more details - that together we collaborated and came up with this, and they were really excited when they saw (the project) up," Cooper says.
Several staff members at Urbana Middle School have commented on how life-like the figures appear. One staff member even says it took a few days to get used to the display while walking in the building after hours - they would round the corner, see the project, and be startled to see "students" there!
Wiley Elementary Teacher, Social Worker
Receive State Awards
Illinois State Board of Education Announces “Those Who Excel”
[featured 10/15/07 - 10/16/07]
Wiley Elementary First Grade Teacher Jill Quisenberry and Wiley Social Worker Kimberly Fitton have been named recipients of the 2007 “Those Who Excel” award from the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE). Quisenberry and Fitton were presented with their awards at the ISBE banquet in Decatur on Saturday, October 13, 2007.
Quisenberry received the Award of Merit for Classroom Teacher, and Fitton received the Award of Excellence for Student Support Personnel. Both were nominated by recently retired Wiley principal Joan Fortschneider. “I am excited to be part of such a wonderful group of educators. It is an honor to be nominated by my building administrator,” Quisenberry, a 16-year teaching veteran, says. Fitton, in her 14th year as a school social worker says, “I feel blessed (in receiving this award). The staff and administration at Wiley are intensely committed to providing a positive environment for our students. The commitment and collaborative effort by the staff and parents should be lauded as the true winner of this award.”
Current Wiley Elementary Principal Barb Sartain says, “Even though this is my first year at Wiley, I have quickly come to admire Mrs. Fitton, our social worker, for her ability to really listen to students and connect with their families. She helps support our students and reaches out to other staff members and the community in many different ways. Mrs. Quisenberry is a wonderful first grade teacher whose passion for science and for learning is inspirational.”
The ISBE “Those Who Excel” Awards Program annually recognizes and honors people who have made outstanding contributions to public and non-public elementary and secondary education. A committee meets each summer to consider the nominees. For more information, please see http://www.isbe.net/news/2007/sept26.htm.
King and Leal Elementary Students Learn About Recycling at Chautauqua
[featured 10/13/07 - 10/15/07]
Members of Martin Luther King and Leal Elementary schools learned about recycling at Crystal Lake Park this past week as part of the Urbana Park District’s Chautauqua. The lessons took place under bright sunshine and perfect weather conditions.
The second-grade students learned the value of recycling and how it helps keep the community clean and helps preserve the environment. Members of the Urbana Park District staff demonstrated what can and what can’t be recycled, and the students then played a recycling game that promotes a clean environment.
King teacher Bryan Lake says it’s good for his students to get out into nature to learn. “We try to get out as often as we can. We’re going to have another field trip next week so we can get out of the school building,” Lake commented.
For more information about the Urbana Park District’s Chautauqua please see http://www.urbanaparks.org/special/Chautauqua.html.
Leal Elementary Students Celebrate Latino Heritage Month
[featured 10/12/07 - 10/13/07]
Students at Leal Elementary School learned about Latino Heritage Month at a special all-school assembly Thursday. The assembly was conducted in both English and Spanish. Latino Heritage Week began in 1968 and was expanded to a month-long celebration (September 15 to October 15) in 1988. Latino Heritage Month is for Americans to celebrate the culture and traditions of U.S. residents who trace their roots to Spain, Mexico and the Spanish-speaking nations of Central America, South America and the Caribbean. It was decided to begin Latino Heritage Month on September 15 because Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua gained independence on that day. Additionally Mexico declared independence on September 16 and Chile on September 18.
This was the first year Leal Elementary recognized Latino Heritage Month with an assembly, and the idea started with some Leal parents. “We have close to 100 kids from Hispanic heritage (at Leal), and that’s why they decided we needed to do something this year,” says Lucia Maldonado, Latino Family Liaison for Urbana School District #116.
Many students participated in the assembly reading about the history of Latino Heritage Month, modeling traditional attire and singing songs. “The kids who participated sang, dressed up and really enjoyed it. It’s the only opportunity they have for some of them to get close to their heritage. A lot of them were born here. These events are important to make them feel proud of where they have come from,” Maldonado explains.
Many parents were in the audience and enjoyed seeing their kids perform. Maldonado says events like this help the school district reach out to Hispanic parents. “Sometimes that’s all it takes. We want parents to participate. We want parents to feel comfortable coming to school, and these types of events help make that (participation) possible,” Maldonado explains.
Maldonado hopes this first-annual event grows in the future saying, “We are hoping we can build it bigger, and we can not only dedicate a few hours but even a day in the (school) year.”
Urbana Middle School PE Unit Stress Teamwork Skills
[featured 10/10/07 - 10/12/07]
Physical Education students at Urbana Middle School took time out from physical fitness tests, kickball, flag football, and soccer games to take part in team-building exercises during their PE class. The 7th Graders in Patrick Zimmerly's first period class split up into teams and used different and unique equipment in different relay races.
Zimmerly's class had to rescue a rubber chicken from an island in the middle of the gym floor without their bodies touching the floor. They could use only a scooter, rope, and their brains. The class then used tarps to try and shoot a ball into the basketball hoop. The teams also all stood on their tarp and tried to flip it over without stepping on the gym floor. The popular rubber chickens then made an encore appearance as the teams used the tarp to make their chicken "fly." The team who launched the chicken closest to the target received bonus points.
"It’s not the traditional PE sports that we all do and will all continue to do. These games are to give the kids a little break and to work on their teamwork, communication, and cooperation skills," Zimmerly says. He also adds that these non-traditional team-building games are beneficial to those students that aren’t good at or don’t like sports. "There are a lot of kids here that say 'I don’t like football and I'm not playing' and their grade suffers. So when they see something like this they enjoy themselves and they can participate," Zimmerly explains.
Zimmerly wrote a grant that helped pay for the equipment used in the teambuilding exercises. Not only do kids get a physical workout, but Zimmerly hopes the games build character for the boys and girls to be good students and citizens. Zimmerly says, "People see kids fighting, they see kids not communicating, or they see kids getting upset for no reason. I think (games like this) will help kids learn teamwork and how to get along."
Urbana Middle School Waterworks Class Has Lesson at the Boneyard Creek
[featured 10/9/07 - 10/10/07]
Urbana Middle School students in Gary Apfelstadt’s Waterworks class recently went wading in the Boneyard Creek in east Urbana to see for themselves what they learned in the classroom. The Waterworks class is a unique science and community exploratory class at UMS that provides a year-long experience in building skills, learning about water systems and nature, industry, and community, while developing awareness of technologies, careers, conservation concerns, and public works careers. This is the fifth year of the Waterworks class.
The trip to the Boneyard Creek was to study macro invertebrates—or something you can see without a microscope. Students and Apfelstadt would hold a net in the creek flow and stir up the bottom to see what they could catch. Students were able to find fish, crayfish, and leeches. But Apfelstadt says the trip isn’t just to catch animals, it is to study water quality. "Certain things live in certain qualities of water, and based on what we can find and sample they can get better idea of the quality of stream that is here," Apfelstadt explains. "There’s a lot of excitement and enthusiasm for (taking field trips to study science), and hopefully it will trigger their interest in science, the environment and society," Apfelstadt says.
The students really took to the water. Myles Kelley says he enjoys applying what he learns in classroom outdoors. "I like all the field trips. You get to see it in real life instead of seeing it in a picture," Kelley says. Clarence Facer says he and his classmates took a trip to Homer Lake recently for similar research and he enjoys seeing nature. "I think it’s a lot of fun. It’s cool, and you know, you get to go out and look at all the stuff, and you get to go outside and enjoy the beautiful day. I like how we learn all this stuff in the classroom and then we get to actually see what they are out here," Facer explains.
For more information about the Waterworks elective program at Urbana Middle School, please visit www.usd116.org/waterworks/index.htm.
Urbana School District After School Program Hosts Monster Trucks at Yankee Ridge
[featured 10/5/07 - 10/9/07]
Have you ever seen one of those monster trucks up close? The tires are almost as tall as an adult, and everything is “super sized.” Over 350 students in the Urbana School District #116 After School Child Care Program got to see the “Raminator” up close and personal at Yankee Ridge Elementary School. The truck is owned by Mark Hall of Thomasboro.
“Most of the kids who are in our program don’t have the ability to see them (monster trucks) when they come to the area and this just brings the trucks to them,” says Tara Gourley, after school site coordinator at Yankee Ridge. This is the fourth year the “Raminator” has come to Yankee Ridge.
The students were allowed to see the truck up close, touch it, climb on the wheels, ask Hall questions, and get autographs.
Hall says he enjoys bringing the truck to Yankee Ridge. In addition to showing the truck at shows and schools, he also races it. “Sometimes kids think it’s a big toy and it’s kind of interesting to hear the questions they have. So, it’s a lot of fun—it’s pretty neat,” Hall says.
The event was open to all students in the after school program, so they were bussed in from the other elementary schools. “They (students) love this kind of stuff. They live and die for this kind of excitement and new stuff they have never experienced before. Most of these students would never have a chance to see a monster truck up close,” says Sandy Davin, Urbana School District #116 After School Child Care Program Director. Davin says there will be several more programs for the students to enjoy this year, including the haunted house, the food for families drive, the world’s largest banana split, and a super soaker event from the Urbana Fire Department. “Too much fun for kids to be allowed to have,” Davin joked.
Urbana High School Student Donates Thousands of Dollars for Literacy
Bar Mitzvah Gifts to Upgrade Urbana School District Libraries
[featured 10/4/07 - 10/5/07]
Urbana School District libraries will benefit from a 9th grader’s generosity. Last year Daniel Downie decided that instead of gifts for his Bar Mitzvah, he wanted to give something back to the local schools. “’Mitzvah’ means ‘good deed’ so I had to do something that would help others. For my mitzvah project, I decided to help raise funds to purchase children’s books. I believe that without a diversity of books, a child’s desire to read is decreased. I want the proceeds to go to books because I think reading is important,” Downie says.
When he went to Leal Elementary and Urbana Middle Schools, Downie wanted to read science fiction and fantasy books, but he was disappointed with the selection. He now hopes the donations can be used to buy more books from his favorite genre. “The types of books that I would like to be purchased are mainly fantasy books and books that many people would be interested in reading,” Downie says.
Downie’s guests donated a total of $6,600; $1,085 went to the Leal Elementary School Library, $1,275 to the Champaign-Urbana Schools Foundation, and $4,300 went to First Book, a national non-profit organization that distributes new books to children of low-income families to read on their own. The CU Schools Foundation has already donated the money it received from Downie to the Urbana Middle School’s high interest library.
Yvonne Vitosky’s 4th grade class at Leal was so impressed with Downie’s generosity that they made a thank-you card for him. Daniel repaid the gesture by visiting Ms. Vitosky’s class to answer questions about his fundraising project and to talk about reading.
Downie hopes that his donation will help more students read books. “It really makes me feel good to promote literacy,” he says.
Urbana School District #116 Schools Participate in International Walk to School Day
[featured 10/3/07 - 10/4/07]
Instead of riding the bus, or having someone drop them off at school, several hundred Urbana School District students participated in International Walk to School Day Wednesday. Students who normally ride the bus to school had the driver drop them off a few blocks from schools and they walked the rest of the way. Many parents, grandparents, brothers and sisters also participated.
International Walk to School is designed to promote the benefits of walking and exercise. District 116 schoolchildren joined millions of students from around the globe in participating in the event. The day promotes a healthy lifestyle through walking and hopes to create safe neighborhoods where people can walk.
At Martin Luther King Elementary School in Urbana, parents and students walked to school in perfect weather and then enjoyed a breakfast. Parents and students also learned about bike and pedestrian safety, and parents filled out a survey about the “walk ability” of their neighborhoods.
For more information about International Walk to School Day please visit http://www.iwalktoschool.org/.
Illinois Judge’s Association Gives Urbana Sophomores “7 Reasons to Leave the Party”
[featured 10/3/07]
Urbana High School Sophomores received the cold hard facts about the consequences of irresponsible behavior and were encouraged to make the right choices when it comes to drinking, driving, and drugs at a special assembly sponsored by the Illinois Judges Association.
The presentation, entitled “7 Reasons to Leave the Party” was presented by Adams County Judge Mark Drummond. “By the time a teen hits the courthouse, it is too late. This is our attempt as judges at preventative law. Most teens want to do the right thing, and hopefully they’ll encourage their peers to do the same,” Drummond says. He continues, “A majority of teens don’t drink and don’t do drugs so we’re hoping to give those students the reasons to get their friends out of those parties (where there is drinking and drug use).
During the assembly Drummond warned the students that if they are convicted of alcohol or drug crimes they will forfeit their freedoms, money, car, driver’s license, privacy, trust, clean record, and even their life. “We try to hit them from all different angles, and then we just try to tell them as many stories as possible of what happened to young people (who made the wrong decisions).”
Urbana High School Principal Laura Taylor invited Drummond to speak saying, “Most young people experience times in their lives when they have to make a difficult, sometimes life altering decision in the face of peer pressure. UHS students are no different - and it is important that they are exposed to the reality of the consequences of their actions and the impact that their decisions can have on themselves, their families, and loved ones. Judge Drummond’s message is an important one. I am hoping that each of our students gain a better understanding of the hard facts surrounding alcohol, drug use, and unprotected sex.”
Students left the assembly with a contract to take home to their parents. The contract says the student will pledge to do their best to be drug and alcohol free and will agree to call their parent/guardian for a ride home if they are ever in a situation that threatens their safety. The parent agrees to provide safe transportation home no questions asked.
Urbana School District Releases 2007 AYP Results
All District 116 Elementary Schools Meet AYP
[featured 10/1/07 - 10/3/07]
The Urbana School District is pleased to announce that all elementary schools in District 116 have met Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP), according to Illinois State Board of Education data. School District administrators and staff will continue to implement intensive strategies to bring Urbana Middle School and Urbana High School test scores up to meet AYP. All students in grades 3-8 take the Illinois Standards Achievement Test (ISAT) and 11th graders take the Prairie State Achievement Exam (PSAE) each spring as way to measure student academic achievement under the federal No Child Left Behind Act.
“In almost all areas, we are seeing progress in increasing student achievement and closing the achievement gaps. At the district and building level, we are taking a close look at the services and programs for special education students, who are required to meet the same high standards and take the same tests as regular education students,” says Don Owen, Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction for District 116.
Each elementary school in District 116 made AYP. Owen says, “All of our elementary staffs and students have been working hard to stay above the ever-increasing target set by NCLB. Prairie school students, staff and parents should be especially commended for showing so much progress over last year in their subgroup scores.” Assistant Superintendent Gayle Jeffries was principal last year at Prairie Elementary when the school made AYP. “This can be attributed to the hard work and commitment of the students, parents, and the staff that worked hard to encourage the importance of learning, attending school daily, and that “all students can achieve!” We hope that this effort continues this year and those students and their parents continue to commit themselves to strive to “achieve” at Prairie School,” Jeffries says.
Urbana High School Principal Dr. Laura Taylor says high school staff will give students intensive and individual attention to make sure they all perform well on the PSAE. Taylor says,
“While we recognize that our students need to improve their overall performance on the PSAE, we are quite pleased with the academic growth our students have shown. Our PLAN and ACT data are beginning to establish a trend that supports our school improvement efforts. Our students have been increasing their academic growth as they progress from year to year in our building, and we are confident that with our current initiatives, this trend will continue.
Current initiatives at UHS provide all students with the opportunity to learn the information needed for academic success and raise the expectations for learning for all students. Remedial classes are gone, and all students are exposed to a rigorous academic curriculum. We have created courses that address explicit literacy instruction and provide additional support for students taking all required mathematics courses. There is a new English curriculum for most 9th -11th grade students that was developed based on the Illinois' assessment frameworks and standards. Tied to this new curriculum is an additional 15 minutes per day of sustained silent reading for all 9th and 10th grade students that serves to increase the time students have in English class. In order to improve instruction, teachers are being exposed to professional development in the areas of content area literacy through a partnership with the University of Illinois' Center for Education in Small Urban Communities, and to differentiated instruction training from the Regional Office of Education. In addition, the faculty is in the process of creating a Professional Learning Community based on relevant research and best practice.”
Urbana Middle School Principal Nancy Clinton remarks that she and her staff will also continue intensive programs to raise student achievement saying,
“We will continue to use our support classes in reading and math which have been successful over the past few years. These courses are providing the backup for the core reading and math classes for many of the students. For those students in the subgroup that has not met the benchmarks, we have intensified our effort. They will now have very individualized plans dependent on the data that surrounds each of them. We are in the process of meeting these students at their particular levels of learning and moving forward from that point. Some students may actually have 2 or 3 classes of reading if that is what it takes to meet their needs and help them to advance their learning. Frequent monitoring of their learning, on an individual basis, and using the results to guide their education is key to the continued improvement in ISAT scores.”
Urbana School District #116 Superintendent Preston Williams commented on the AYP results saying, “I applaud the efforts of our staff in working with students and families to reach the goals of making AYP in our schools. The efforts of our elementary staff and students in making AYP throughout the district certainly needs to be acknowledged and celebrated but we also must keep in mind that the target is being raised each and every year. I also recognize the efforts and hard work of our secondary staff members in challenging our students to improve their state assessment scores; we are not there yet but we have made significant progress in a number of areas.”