College For All

Last week, Jennifer Mitchell and I attended a conference in Pharr, Texas at Pharr-San Juan-Alamo (PSJA) Independent Schools.  Our trip was a part of the Lilly Counseling planning grant that we received a few weeks ago.  Pharr, Texas was a high poverty community 6 minutes from the Mexican Border!!  (Interestingly enough, they already have a wall on the border – but a lot of the economic growth was dependent on Mexico.)

PSJA, even though a much, much larger school corporation, had a lot of similarities with Perry Central.  PSJA is in their third year of being an Early College High School.  They worked to build a culture at their school grades K-12 with the expectation that all students would earn an Associate Degree, Technical Certification or at least 15 hours of dual credit in an academic or technical area.  As you can imagine, with the population of students at this school, a very, very large percentage of students are first generation and/or come from high poverty homes.   The core leadership of this school realized that education was the ticket of making their community better.  Just 6 years ago, gangs were ruling the streets with drive-by shootings, fights, etc.  Now, as the school and community has evolved, they are a very safe campus with a rapidly growing population of students who are earning a college credential. POWERFUL!

Jennifer and I took away a lot of great ideas on how we can take our Early College program to the next level, but I think for me, it was just a reminder of how powerful education is.  I am reminded of Nelson Mandela’s quote, “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.”  Early College is more than a recognition of the programs we have in our school, but it is a ticket for many of our students to have a better quality of life.  This visit gave me a deeper drive to making sure we put supports in ensure students can be successful and a deeper appreciate for our faculty and staff and the change makers that all of you are.  You are providing a foundation that will last a lifetime.  Thanks for all you do!!     

School Notes: 

Boys Varsity Basketball team will play Forest Park Tuesday night in sectional play.  A pep session will be held on Tuesday!  Go Big Green!!

Mike Bishop is working on Career Day.  Career Day will be held on March 10^th during 3^rd and 4^th periods for students in grades 8-10.  More details will follow soon!

Thanks to some extra funds we received for the after school program, a group of 33 students will be traveling to Purdue University for a college visit.  Students will be leaving at 1:00 p.m. on March 7 and returning late on March 8^th.   A list of students will be posted this week. 

Important Dates:  

Monday, February 27 – ISTEP testing grades 7,8 10  (please see email for schedules)

Tuesday, February 28 – Boys Varsity Basketball Sectional/  Pep Session

Wednesday, March 1 -  ISTEP testing grades 7,8 10

Thursday, March 2 - ISTEP testing grades 7,8 10

Presidents' Day was originally started back in 1885, in honor of our founding father's birthday, George Washington.  Over the years, the day has been changed to recognize all Presidents and to give working Americans a three-day weekend.  I believe Presidents' Day is a day to honor those individuals who served our country by leading the American people and often provided us with a moral compass to live by.  So in honor of this special day, I have left a few of my favorite Presidential quotes that have impacted how I view my role as an American!  Hope all of you enjoyed your long weekend!

"Whatever you are, be a good one." -  Abraham Lincoln

"We are the change that we seek." - Barack Obama


"We can't help everyone, but everyone can help someone."  - Ronald Reagan

"If you believe you can, and you are half way there."  - Theodore Roosevelt

"Those who dare to fail miserably can achieve greatly." - John F. Kennedy

"It is amazing what you can accomplish if you don't worry who gets the credit." - Harry Truman

"Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country." - John F. Kennedy

"We need to live in a world with fewer selfies and more #otherpeoplies" - Kid President


School Notes: 

* We would like to welcome Kevin Koeling to Perry Central!  He was hired last week as an instructional assistant.  We are happy to have him as apart of our team!

* National FFA Week!

* Boys Sectional Draw: Feb. 28th - 1st game: North Posey vs. Mater Dei    2nd Game:  Perry Central vs. Forest Park (7:00 p.m. start)   South Spencer will play the winner of the first game on Friday and Tell City will play the winner of our game.  Come out and support the Commodores!

* We will have a pep session on Tuesday, February 28th to cheer on the Commodores!



Important Dates: 
Monday, February 20 - Presidents' Day - NO SCHOOL

Tuesday, February 21 - Faculty Meeting - 7:20 a.m. /  Commissioner Meeting for seniors - 9:00 a.m. in high school library

Thursday, February 23 - Perry Central Health Fair

Friday, February 24- Boys Varsity Basketball @ Heritage Hills  6:00 p.m.

- Countdown to ISTEP!!  Three weeks until the ISTEP window opens!  Students in grades 7,8 and 10 will be testing.  A testing schedule will be coming soon!  (Testing window: February 27 - March 10th)

This quote by Hellen Keller reminded me of our Trauma Informed Care training this week.  Teachers and assistants alike gained background knowledge of the impact of trauma on our brains and the why behind student reactions.  We know the demographics of our student population is changing.  We are seeing more students involved in the Foster Care System, a larger percentage of free and reduced lunch families and a larger percentage of students who have had at least one parent incarcerated within the past year.

Understanding our students is the first step in helping them overcome these barriers and give them the tools they need to be successful in life.  We must remember to stay calm, do not take what students say personally and always do our best to be a good listener.  We are so fortunate at Perry Central to have faculty and staff members that care so much about our students and are willing to go the extra mile to build important relationships with children.

I know the training may have left you with more questions than answers.  Please know we will be doing a follow up at our next faculty meeting on February 21st.   If you have questions between now and then, please ask!


School Notes: 

* Thursday, Feb. 16th is 8th grade and 10th grade Guidance Night for parents and students.  Thank you to Carol Schwoeppe, Julie Berkhouse, Sean Risse, Carrie Guillaume, Vanessa Johnson, Bo Gibson, Lou Ann Backer and Angie Lubbehausen for helping with the event!  We are trying something new this year, where families will be able to hear from business leaders in the industry as well as teachers.  The event will start at 5:30 and end a little after 7:00 p.m.  It is sure to be a great night!

* After School Programming - we continue to add after-school programming for students.  We have added math and English tutoring, student academic support groups (for students who struggle getting homework completed on time), guidance counseling sessions/activities, and social/emotion counseling as well.  Thank you to: Cheryl Linne, Abbie Brockman, Sean Risse, Diane Plassmeyer, Heidi Zellers, Dana Harris, Kelly Cash, Southern Hills Counseling Center, Maria Sweat, and Jamie Guillaume for making this happen!  Also a shout-out to Mary and Tara for making the funding possible.  These are important supports for our students!

Important Dates: 

- Monday, February 13th - School Board Meeting, 6:30 p.m. High School Library

- Tuesday, February 14th - Happy Valentine's Day!  Don't forget about the sweet treats in the high school office!  

- Thursday, February 16th - Freshman Orientation for 8th grade students and High School Planning for 10th grade students @ 5:30 p.m.

- Friday, February 17th - SENIOR NIGHT- Boys Varsity Basketball vs. Paoli 5:30 p.m./ NHS Silent Auction

- Saturday, February 18th - Boys Varsity Basketball @ Tecumseh 5:30 p.m.

- Countdown to ISTEP!!  Three weeks until the ISTEP window opens!  Students in grades 7,8 and 10 will be testing.  A testing schedule will be coming soon!  (Testing window: February 27 - March 10th)

  

Putting Community First

February is the month of communication.  There are many types of communication: verbal, written, visual and non-verbal (body language).  Effective communication is important as we work to understand and connect with the people around us.  It allows us to build respect and trust and resolve our differences. Communication is also a very important trait of leadership.  It is important for leaders to lead with their actions as well as their words in order to have the greatest influence on others.

At Perry Central, I believe we are fortunate to have many great leaders across our faculty, staff and student body.  We are constantly reminded by their actions the importance of putting others first and that kindness should be at the forefront of who we are.  As I reflect on the special environment that Perry Central embodies, I am reminded of the actions of kindness that our students and staff have exhibited over just the past few weeks:

* Mr. Walsh and Victor Vazquez participated in the polar plunge to raise money for special education

* Mrs. Ball's student led Fed-Ex Project that will be collecting items for children in Foster Care
* Zosha Roberson's Christmas Toy Drive for children in the hospitals
* Advocate's Club who are very active in supporting our students with special needs (even voting in three special needs students to homecoming)
* Student Council's projects to gather food and money for families in need
* Faculty and staff that come to school everyday with a belief that all students can learn

These are only a few examples of the wonderful ways we communicate at Perry Central.  I am so thankful to work in such a giving environment that promotes kindness and caring by their actions.  

School Notes: 

- Faculty Meeting after school today will be led by Lauren Blake, Jennifer Mitchell and Shelly Kunkle on Trauma Informed Care.  We are thankful they are willing to share their knowledge with us.

- On Thursday, we will be hosting schools from across the state and sharing our guidance program with them.  We were chosen as a model school for the Lily Counseling Initiative.  Schools across the state have been awarded money from Lily to research promising counseling practices.   Thanks to Tara, Phil, Lou Ann, Mike and Jody for welcoming our guests and sharing our program with them!

- Countdown to ISTEP!!  Three weeks until the ISTEP window opens!  Students in grades 7,8 and 10 will be testing.  A testing schedule will be coming soon!  (Testing window: February 27 - March 10th)

Important Dates: 

Monday, February 6th - After School Faculty meeting from 3:00 - 4:00 p.m. in high school library

Wednesday, February 8th - Study Island Advanced Training - 3:00 p.m. in Mr. Linne's room

Thursday, February 9th - Lily Counseling Site Visit

Friday, February 10th - Assistant Training (Trauma Informed Care) Lunch/WIN  
                                      Boys Varsity Basketball @ home against Northeast Dubois  5:30 p.m.

Saturday, February 11th - Jr. High Valentine's Dance/ Boys Varsity Basketball @ North Posey 3:00 p.m.