Grove Street Campus Volume 13, Issue 4

Positive Forces at Rutland High School By Dan Eiland and Hailey Young

June 2021

I N S I D E T H I S I S S U E :

Positive Forces at Rutland High School

1

A Unique Firs t -Year Experience

2

Pizza Box Wall Art

2

Campus Chatter School -to-Work

3

3

Important Dates 4

Class of 1957 Scholarship In Our Own Words

4

4

NEWSLETTER

Check out our

Special

June Graduate

Insert

Assistant Principals Jennifer Wigmore and Bianca McKeen are two members of the Rutland High School Leadership Team, working alongside Principal Schillinger and Assistant Principal Sampson. Wigmore is responsible for Special Education and related support services, while McKeen is in charge of issues related to curriculum, instruction, and assessment. Both administrators have had a career-long progression of leadership, education, training, and experience, which has been a tremendous help in preparing them for their current roles in educational leadership.

Assistant Principal McKeen credits her experience as a classroom teacher as the key to preparing her for her new role as a school administrator. “Having been a student, a parent, and a teacher, as well as the administrator for a Pre-K through 8th grade building, I feel that I have had a variety of experiences that help me best support students and teachers in my current role. My goal each day is to help students to be successful and to support the work we need to do in schools.”

Assistant Principal Wigmore believes her family background and business management experience, as well as her previous position as Director of Guidance, have helped lay the foundation for her position as assistant principal. Along with her career path, Wigmore states, “I think my own family background helped me to understand that students come from a variety of backgrounds and that no family is truly typical. This helps me to understand their individual circumstances when working with struggling students. My goal for each day is to help support our teachers as they support students in attaining their goals.”

It is evident that both women realize the value of making connections with students. A ‘good day’ at school for Wigmore is “any day I have a positive day interacting with students. When I see the pride on their faces it makes me smile.” McKeen believes “a good day is one where students are engaged in their learning and getting the support they need to help them to be successful and access their classes...one where students have new experiences and we all learn from one another.”

The job of assistant principal has its rewards; however, it also comes with challenges. For McKeen, “some of the most challenging things that we encounter as administrators have to do with how individuals are treated and sometimes how communication is interpreted. If we all have the same goal of supporting students, there is always a way to find common ground and move forward with the student’s best interest in mind.” Wigmore has the same sentiment, adding, “things in a school are constantly changing and sometimes we need to ‘turn on a dime’ with new information. The big thing I learned is when handling challenging situations, you need to be flexible.”

So where do these administrators find their inspiration? Wigmore is motivated by great teaching, noting, “When I get to observe a teacher in a class where the students are engaged and learning, it is an amazing thing to see.” McKeen is “inspired daily by the students that I interact with and their hopes and goals for the future, as well as my own children and family members.”

It is clear how much McKeen and Wigmore do to help with the overall management of our high school through their expertise, compassion, and support of teachers and students. They are positive forces at Rutland High School.

Jen Wigmore and Bianca McKeen

Assistant Principals

Rutland High School

Page 2

A Unique First-Year Experience at Rutland High School

By Hailey Young

Pizza Box Wall Art: Turning Food Cardboard into Canvases

By Morgan Washburn

Many of you might not realize that a pizza box makes an excellent canvas on which to paint. Below, you will see some of the masterpieces created out of pizza boxes by Grove Street Campus students. A special “thank you” goes out to Ramunto’s Pizza for donating the pizza boxes!

As a follow-up to our coverage of the management of COVID-19 in Rutland City Public Schools, we interviewed Caitlin Sartor, another one of our front-line heroes. Sartor is a new face at RHS and was eager to share her perspective on this unusual first-year experience at our school.

While she was not part of the Rutland Public Schools Reopening Plan, she congratulates her coworker, Justine Franko, for coordinating with wonderful precision, which allowed RHS to operate this school year. Normal school procedures changed drastically this year, as well as all aspects of her work life and personal life alongside it. Working around the clock to manage information on the virus left many school nurses, Sartor included, exhausted and concerned for the mental health of both their coworkers and the students they care for. Sartor mentioned that “anxiety, depression, and suicidal thoughts have been reported by 65% of the students.”

Nurse Sartor stressed that this year has been very tough on all of us; however, nurses and other healthcare professionals have had quite a unique experience bearing witness to the ravages of the coronavirus firsthand. In time, as more and more people get vaccinated, Nurse Sartor and her coworkers hope to be able to return to normal for the 2021-2022 school year and most importantly, reconnect with their loved ones once again.

Nurse Caitlin Sartor

Pizza, Anyone?

By Daniel Eiland

Should Students Hold Jobs While In

High School?

By Morgan Washburn

Campus Chatter

By Gillian Cook

What is one positive thing you have experienced during the COVID lockdown?

Page 3

Many students attend school and successfully hold down a part-time job at the same time. While there is much debate over whether students should hold jobs while in high school, I believe there are benefits to having a job. Through employment I have learned time management skills, responsibility, p rob lem so lv ing , and mos t importantly, I have actually learned things I cannot learn in school.

How do I do it? It’s all about time management. If you use your time wisely, everything should go smoothly. Don’t be afraid to ask for help. Most teachers and employers understand and will work with you. You also need to make sure you are taking care of yourself by eating right, staying hydrated, and getting plenty of sleep. This is the formula for success.

I am a pizza cook at Cara Mia’s Pizzeria, serving delicious pizza, calzones, wings, grinders, salads, and pasta nightly, delivered to your door in their famous oven heated delivery trucks. I heard about the job from my girlfriend, who works there as well.

When I started this job, I’ll admit the fast pace was a little intimidating; on a good Friday night, we have 160 or more $30.00 - $160.00 orders. Needless to say, the kitchen is extremely busy and everyone has to keep the pace in order to get the orders to the customers in a timely manner.

I really enjoy most of my coworkers; many of them are friends of the owner and his sons. We are able to joke and have fun while still getting all the orders out. It makes the time at work more pleasant when everyone gets along and you enjoy what you are doing. I work full-time, getting about 35 hours a week.

The only downside to working at Cara Mia’s is the long nights. Restaurant business can often leave your body sore the next day!

I spent more time with my family.

- Jon Lamb

I was able to get in to Grove Street Campus because I couldn’t do online at the main campus.

-Joe Walsh

I spent more time taking care of myself in a healthy way.

- Carolyn Ravenna

Important

Dates:

Underclassmen Awards:

June 9, 2021

Last Day of School:

June 16, 2021

Senior Awards:

June 16, 2021

Graduation:

June 17, 2021

ACT:

July 17, 2021

Page 4

Birthdays

July Jon Lamb—July 6

Morgan Washburn—July 9

Carolyn Ravenna– July 19

Trent Duprey– July 21

Maylee Lambert—July 28

August Ashley Cecot—August 12

TJ Moran– August 13

Darisha Yoder—August 18

September Ciera Sharp—September 2

Ethan Corey—September 8

Wyatt Rappaport—September 9

Shaun Baker—September 10

Jerimiah Schutt—September 16

Brianna Longley—September 20

Gloria Marino—September 26

Daniel Eiland—September 30

RHS Class of 1957

Scholarship

In 2007, the Rutland High School Class of 1957 Alumni established scholarship awards for deserving Rutland High School-Grove Street Campus seniors. Any Grove Street Campus senior planning to pursue a post-secondary education is eligible to apply for this scholarship. The intention is to help a student who needs financial assistance in pursuing a post-secondary education. Selection for this award is based on academic progress, financial need, and potential for success in a post-secondary education setting.

Grove Street Campus is proud to announce Darisha Yoder as the recipient of the Class of 1957 Scholarship Award for the Rutland High School Class of 2021. Her goal is to combine her love of science with her caring attitude toward all animals, pursuing a degree in veterinary science.

The scholarship award will be formally

presented to Darisha at Senior Awards Night on

June 16, 2021. Congratulations, Darisha!

Darisha Yoder

In Our Own Words: Parting Thoughts

Senioritis

By Daniel Eiland

Beginning with the second half of the school year, Senioritis is a problem for most seniors. When they contract this disease, they start to lose interest in their schoolwork and lose the motivation to do well in their classes. While not all seniors experience this, I have this disease. I can’t wait to leave and be cured of this disease.

Graduation

By Morgan Washburn

For some, graduation may be an exciting time; however, for others it is scary. Thinking about your future and what you are going to do after graduation is both exciting and frightening at the same time. For seniors at Grove Street Campus, the answer for what lies ahead varies. Like me, some students are choosing to continue their education; I am planning to attend college to become a teacher. Others have chosen to go straight into the work world. Whatever path each graduate chooses, I wish them the best.

To Our Readers

We welcome your thoughts! Do you have an opinion you would like to share? If you wish to submit an article for the next edition of our newsletter, please email your thoughts to Carolyn Ravenna at :

Carolyn.ravenna@rcpsvt.org

Class of 2021

Advice from our June Graduates

“All you have to do is come to school and do your

work. It’s not that difficult here, just don’t fall behind.

All your hard work will pay off.”

“Don’t be afraid to ask for help; everyone here is

willing to help you. Don’t get frustrated with

yourself about finishing assignments. Most of all,

if you are having a bad day, tomorrow is a new

one.”

Morgan Washburn

“Don’t let anybody tell you that you can’t do it. If

other people did it, you can do it, too. Chase your

dreams and don’t give up.”

“Make sure you don’t slack at all. Show up

for school on time so you can be prepared

to start the day.”

Dakota Stafford

Class of 2021

Advice from our June Graduates

“Don’t give up, even if it’s hard. It pays off in the

end.”

“Do your work and stay caught up.”

Jonathan Desautels

“Be patient with yourself and others. It’s only

temporary.”

Ariel Siliski

“Make sure you get to school stay focused on what

you’re there for, ask questions, and don’t use your sick

days up in a week. If you follow my advice, things will

turn out well.”

“Make sure to put in the work; it really pays off.”

Melody Henry