Students were split into two groups and rotated through two panel discussions with four professionals who gave information about their careers and answered job-specific questions for the students, who are all enrolled in Future Focus and careers courses during their third trimester at the alternative school.
The Canby Educational Foundation and the students of Ackerman Academy would like to thank these professionals for their participation in the panel:
Dr. Dax Miler of Birch Street Animal Clinic
Shatrine Krake of Krake Designs
Kate O'Neil of OMSI
Peter Hostetler of Ken Hostetler Construction, Inc.
John Meyerhofer of JM Mechanical
Roger Reif of Reif, Reif and Thalhofer
Sloan and Jessica of Adorn Body Art
Chelsea Boehler of Dream Team Events
Students ask questions of Dr. Dax, the new owner of Birch Street Animal Clinic.
Shatrine Krake brought visuals for students and discussed the varying job duties of a graphic designer.
OMSI exhibits were of great interest to the students, especially because of Kate O'Neils enthusiasm for her topic!
Students especially enjoyed the opportunity to grill the panel for information regarding skills and experience necessary for careers in their field.
All students at Ackerman Academy enjoyed renowned gardening personality and TV host Mallory Gwynn on Friday, May 11, as part of their plants in life class.
Gwynn brought a hands-on experience to the class, who will be planting two flower beds for Canby Telcom in late May.
"I should have never graduated high school," Gwynn told the group. "I hated school. There was no inspiration for me."
What Gwynn was inspired by, however, was gardening. After graduating high school and going on to a career, he became fascinated with gardening and learned all he could about the subject.
"If you dream it, you can have it. You just have to go after it," he said. "You learn by doing. It takes guts and courage to do that."
Gwynn took his interest in gardening to work at a garden store, first sweeping the floors, and doing menial tasks, all the while beefing up on his knowledge through reading, studying, and talking to professionals.
One day, Gwynn answered the phone at the garden store and it was a TV producer who was looking for an on air garden personality, and the rest is history.
Gwynn's spirited presentation to the group discussed plant species and four important principles of landscape design, structure, color, texture, and fragrance. After discussing each of these terms with the group, students broke up into small groups and created their own potted plant compositions (as pictured below).
Last week, student designs for the Canby Telcom beds were presented to Kaye Bilyeu, who selected a winner from the group's compositions. Some of the plants that Gwynn brought on site were similar to those in the winning design.
Student Tiffany Nichols smells a sweet allysum, one of the plants she used in her design, which was chosen by Canby Telcom to fill the flower beds on Highway 99.
Students Aaron Walker, Alex Emry, Rosario Sanchez, and Amey Carlson work on their potted plant arrangement.
Gwynn uses these two plants to discuss texture with the group.
Johnathan Mays, Zody Aalberg, Ashley Nichols, and Justin Isom pose with their potted plant design.
As part of the program, holocaust survivor Alter Wiener visited Ninety-One School on April 25 to present on his experience in concentration camps and liberation from the Nazis.
Students were captivated by Mr. Wiener's presentation, and were very inquisitive after the talk was finished. Each student was given the opportunity to shake Mr. Wiener's hand and thank him for visiting the school, as well as see some pictures and newspaper articles about the famed survivor who has dedicated his life to spreading the story of the Holocaust.
Copies of Mr. Wiener's book were made available for the school library, and students who are reading Elie Wiesel's Night were able to connect their reading to real-life experiences.
Alter Wiener spoke with all 7th and 8th graders.
Students were given the opportunity to shake hands with Mr. Wiener after his presentation.
Mr. Wiener poses with 91 Principal Skyler Rodolph.
Landscaping Classes Visit Fred Meyer Garden Center
Steve Fearing's landscaping classes got a chance to visit Fred Meyer Garden Center last week, in preparation for their landscape design for Canby Telcom.
Each student viewed annual plants and selected species for their proposals, and also got a chance to see fertilizers first hand to research factors necessary for planting.
Fred Meyer generously donated a fushia or a gardenia start to students to take home, and many students planted their free plants at Ackerman Academies.
Ackerman Academy student Aaron Walker poses with his plant.
Academy students are learning about plant species and botany in their science course this term.
Attached is a copy of the program newsletter, which will be mailed out this week to program partners, teachers, and volunteers. This newsletter provides info on the program work done to date, as well as goals for next year.
This newsletter will also be featured on the district and Canby Educational Foundation's website, so that everyone who visits our district on the web can find it.
http://blogs.canby.k12.or.us/uploads/saadg/11X17 Newsletter.pdf
I had a chance to meet with Elaine Poole and Sharon Terry, science teachers at Baker Prairie Middle School, to discuss my position and how I could support them in their science classes. One outcome of this meeting was the scheduling of a "Science in Careers" day for all 8th grade science students.
On May 21, Superintendent John Steach, a former nuclear engineer, and food scientist and educator Ryan Still will teach students all about how science is relevant to life after school. They will cover education requirements, how science is used in real life, and even throw in an experiment or two for good measure!
Also planned for sometime in May, a career panel for Ackerman Academy students who are enrolled in Future Focus this term will pinpoint skills necessary to compete in the global economy. All students will participate, and a wide variety of careers are to be represented. Professionals will provide a brief background on their career, and students will be able to ask questions of panel members in order to learn more about the education required to achieve success in specific fields.
Career Fair planning has also continued, with the committee meeting April 16 to discuss budget, promotion, and student preparation.
If you are interested in sharing your career with Canby students, please call me at 503-266-0008 or 503-929-6244, or email me at saadg@canby.k12.or.us.
The event is designed to raise money for Feed the Children, while offering high school students affordable prom dresses and accessories. Prom dresses, shoes, and accessories are being collected at The Canby Center and at CHS until April 10.
After all the items have been collected, the clothing will be available for sale April 11 through April 13. Sales will be open on each day during lunch (11:30 to 12:30), Wednesday from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., Thursday from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m., and Friday from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.
The Canby Center extended a hand to partner, as the Women of Willamette Valley Country Club made the non-profit their official charity for the year. When the center found out about Dresses for Hope, they thought that it would be a great opportunity to connect the women's group with students who needed help.
Club member Sierra Pruitt attended a meeting of the ladies' group, and presented her club's need for help.
Sierra provided a history of the club, as well as the needs O-Ambassadors had for help with the event.
The Canby Center also connected the club with a graphic designer who was able to create wonderful posters for the event.
Program volunteers helped print and cut the fliers and posters for use around town and at the high school.
This project definitely flexed the critical thinking prowess of club members, and will continue to help them analyze and problem solve until the event's end. This will also be a big help during next year's planning, as the students will continue this event year after year.
Thanks to the Canby Center for helping out, and make sure to support the O-Ambassadors in this great event!
Planning for Spring term has begun! We are working on community projects, enhancements, and special events for April and May, so if you are interested in being involved or are a teacher and would like to schedule an activity, please contact me at 503-929-6244 or saadg@canby.k12.or.us. Below is a preview of some of the activities we are currently planning.
Landscaping Project with Canby Telcom
Steve Fearing's science classes at Ackerman will enjoy working on a capstone project in conjunction with Canby Telcom this Spring. Students will put their knowledge of botany, soil preparation, and landscape design to the test when designing and planting two beds managed by Canby Telcom.
The students will work in design teams to propose a budget, schedule for maintenance, and overall design concept and pitch their ideas to a group of volunteers from Canby Telcom, who will select the top two designs from student groups. Beds will be planted mid-May, and an unveiling is planned for the end of the year.
![[Dahlias]](http://blogs.canby.k12.or.us/uploads/saadg/Dahlias.tiff)
Students might select dahlias to adorn the Canby Telcom bed. The business will provide a list of plants they would be interested in using, as well as a program budget that students will need to work within.
Native American Visit to Canby High School
The Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde will visit Canby High School to discuss the impact of American settlement on Native American culture. History teacher Isabeau Waia'u's U.S. history class will be treated with a presentation on Native culture and how the history of the U.S. has affected it's development.
![[Grand Ronde Logo]](http://blogs.canby.k12.or.us/uploads/saadg/Grand Ronde logo.tiff)
Artists to Teach Techniques
Canby Artist Association professionals will visit Baker Prairie and Ninety-One School this spring to teach varying techniques to groups of middle school students.
Dennis Stafford, the self-proclaimed "Redneck Artist," focuses on landscapes and rural life in his colorful paintings. He will teach Baker Prairie students about working in the arts as a profession, and demonstrate techniques for students.
Heather Anderson will teach Ninety-One students sculpture techniques during her two visits in late spring. Anderson is a teacher at Reedsport High School, and owns her own studio, where she works on ceramics and drawing.
Dora Gourley will also teach her well-received Zen Tangles lesson again in James Nosen's art class in April.
Other Projects
Another banner project will begin April 1, and Canby High School art students will work on 10 banners to be unveiled in the downtown core as soon as the end of the month. Make sure to check out the current banners in the previous blog.
An engineer will speak in Marian Geist's class at Baker Prairie, regarding using math in his career. Making math "real" is an important part of student learning in the subject. I understand that oftentimes students do not realize that they will someday likely use math in day-to-day tasks, as well as in their careers! We are excited that HG Schlickler and Associates has volunteered their time to help educate students!
Check out this video that provides information about careers in mathematics and help prepare your Baker Prairie student!
Mathematics Video
Art students in Jennifer Dorsey's Canby High art class created 17 banners for a project with the City of Canby.
The banners will be used to beautify the downtown area, and Dorsey's basic design class, as well as Canby High's art club, worked on vinyl material with acrylic paint to create the colorful designs relating to the theme, "Canby, the Garden Spot."
Professional artist members of the Canby Artist Association also created banners as part of the project, and student and professional designs will intermingle on 2nd avenue as early as this week!
Dorsey had students work in collaborative design teams, where they brainstormed ideas that went along with the theme, created several designs, and integrated their ideas into one piece of art. The banner project was used to enforce ideas of contour lines in the basic design class, and art clubbers of varying levels worked on skills related to the artistic discipline.
Professional artists who work in varying mediums were excited to try something new. Several of the artists had never worked with acrylic before, or specialize in realism, or other techniques not normally used on outdoor art. The results were fabulous!
You can see all of the student banner designs here and here.
Below are some photos of the banners and the judging process. First, second, and third place winners will be announced at an artists' reception on March 20. Make sure to check out the banners downtown soon!
Renate Mengleberg, a City employee, Laura Sattler, and Annie Tran judge student banners.
Professional banners were also judged based on quality, and how well they embodied the theme.
Student banners will be hung this week!
I didn't have much to do with the planning for this event, but I did arrange for Canby Herald Education Reporter Peggy Savage to attend at Lynda's request. I think this is a perfect example of a teacher using me as a resource, and I wanted to share it with the rest of the teachers in the district.
In this situation, Lynda was planning an activity, but didn't have time to arrange all of the speakers she wanted present. She emailed me and asked me to contact Peggy and the mayor. I was able to get Peggy on board, and it was as simple as that. This is an easy way that I can help you in your classroom. If you have an idea for an activity, but don't have time to arrange it, I can do the leg work for you!
The event Lynda had planned was a wonderful accompaniment to work that her students are doing surrounding a book called Nothing But the Truth by Avi. The documentary novel explores an incident in a New Hampshire school where a boy is suspended for humming along with the National Anthem in direct opposition to a school board policy to stand silent and respectful during the tune. Lynda's 2nd and 3rd period classes have been reading the book and discussing rights of teachers, students, and citizens, while working on accompanying activities.
To compliment this lesson, Lynda held a forum, which included Superintendent John Steach, Ninety-One Principal Skyler Rodolph, School Board Member Kristin Downs, and Herald Reporter Peggy Savage. Forum participants explained their background and their duties in education, and then listened as students read the scenario from the book.
A student was not allowed to run track because of his poor English scores, which he felt were a direct result of his relationship with his English teacher. In order to get kicked out of her class, he began humming the National Anthem every day to get under her skin. He was written a series of referrals, and eventually suspended.
A candidate for school board, and a neighbor of the boy, got wind of the story and alerted the media. The story blew up into national news, blaming the district for being "unpatriotic."
The forum asked participants to explain how they would react to this situation, both as it happened and after the damaging national news story appeared.
After each participant responded to the scenario, students were allowed to ask questions, of which there were many. You could definitely tell that students were thinking critically about student rights, and the appropriate responses in this situation. Lynda obviously had her class well-prepared for this experience!
See pictures of this event below. If you have an idea for an activity that would involve guests or volunteers, please let me know, and I will be happy to arrange it for you! Call me at 503-266-0008 or 503-929-6244, or email me at saadg@canby.k12.or.us.
Forum participants explain their backgrounds and duties in education
A student reads the scenario from the book for forum participants
Students ask questions of forum participants
We will meet this Thursday at 7:30 a.m. to discuss what types of businesses and institutions we will want to include in the fair, but I wanted to put out a formal call for businesses interested in participating.
We hope to have businesses representing a variety of fields, including medical, dental, cosmetology, science, math, photography, manufacturing, marketing, human resources, and more! If you are interested in representing your business at the half-day fair in October, please call me at 503-266-0008 or 503-929-6244, or email me at saadg@canby.k12.or.us.
There will be a full list of fields we are looking for available in about a week, so I'll post again with more information on what we're looking for, as well as the schedule of events that we are trying to fill.
Thanks again for your support! We hope that you and your business will be represented at next year's fair!
Also, below I have included a spreadsheet that lists the current opportunities we have available in the program, including the grade level, subject area, possible standards that can be addressed, and sponsoring organization of each activity. This document also includes whether or not speakers are available from these organizations. Remember, activities can be customized for teacher curriculum, and I can easily pursue activities that aren't on this list. If you have a particular activity in mind, give me a call and I will do what I can to set it up.
You will also see the flier below hanging around town. If you know anyone who is interested in volunteering in any way, please let them know that they can contact me and we'll get them set up to go.
Current Project List
Volunteer Flier
Danielle Reeber's health class learned about the dangers of peer pressure, consequences of drug use, and ways to say no from the former educator turned policeman, who has been an officer for over a decade.
Above: Officer Larrison met with 3 health classes on February 2nd.
Students asked questions, and Larrison offered insight on what it is like to be a police officer in Canby.
Above: Students passed around a special case that helps in the identification of illegal substances.
Reeber's health class will also have volunteer visits during the Cycle of Life unit in March, to help students understand the stages of life during pregnancy and more.
*****
Other updates to the calendar include:
ENHANCEMENTS
A political forum will be held in Lynda Robert's language arts class on February 28 at Ninety-One School.
Alter Wiener will visit Ninety-One school in April.
PROJECTS
Jennifer Dorsey's CHS basic design class will paint banners for the City of Canby, to be revealed after Spring Break.
Heather Roberts' CHS O-Ambassadors club will work with the Canby Center on their Dresses for Hope project in April.
Steve Fearing's Ackerman landscaping course will work with Canby Telcom to design a flower bed during Spring term.
Lori Craig's Baker Prairie Middle School life skills class will visit American Steel for a group tour at the end of February.
HIGHLIGHTING STUDENTS (Special Events)
The Career Fair is scheduled for October 23, 2012.
The Community Arts Show will likely be an expansion of CHS's art show or BPMS's battle of the bands event in April.
MORE UPDATES COMING SOON!
If you are interested in helping out, please call me at 503-266-0008 (office), 503-929-6244 (cell), or email me at saadg@canby.k12.or.us. Together we can make a difference!
We held a design conference, where members of the community, teachers, administrators, and parents got to together to discuss how they could work together to help schools do what they do best - educate students. Starting with a broad focus, we were able to narrow down ways that the community could work with the schools in a meaningful way. Then, a core team created a framework for the pilot program, which will be improved each year.
Since that framework has been developed, an outpouring of community support for Canby Schools is helping our new volunteer-led education program get off to a great start!
I have been welcomed by more than a dozen community organizations that are willing to help schools. I am blown away by how willing the Canby community is to work with students to create meaningful learning experiences.
To improve critical thinking, we have to target our work. Critical thinking is really ‘thinking about thinking. It involves analysis, application, self-reflection, and communication, and teachers are already working on these skills with their students day-to-day in the classroom.
Organizations are offering their time to provide a variety of activities to enhance the work that is going on in Canby classrooms, such as discussions or forums on topics like immigration or the economy, workshops on budgeting, writing business plans, or creative writing, and hands-on activities in nearly every subject.
Organizations are also willing to help students complete community projects, working one-on-one with classes to develop an idea that helps meet community needs. Currently, the City of Canby, the Canby Arts Association, Canby Livability Coalition, and Wallflowers Framing Gallery are working with Canby High art teacher Jennifer Dorsey and her students on a banner project to help beautify the downtown core.
Local organizations that have expertise in nearly every area of study in middle school and high school have offered their skills to provide hands-on projects. In the "files" section, you will find a list of current project ideas and their sponsoring organizations. If your business or group has a project available that you would like to see on the list, please let me know.
In addition to helping teachers in the classroom and the community at large, the program will also include highlight events that will require student planning and reflection. For example, the school district and Canby Educational Foundation are currently planning a career fair for the fall in conjunction with CHS' school to career and Future Focus programs. An expansion of the art show at the high school is also an event possibility.
There are also many other volunteer opportunities, ranging from classroom help to event support and after school tutoring. There is a place for everyone in this program.
Schools need all the help they can get, and we can find a place for anyone to help, regardless of their time commitment and skill level. This program is for anyone who cares about Canby students!
If you are interested in being involved in the new volunteer program, give me a call at 503-266-0008 or email me at saadg@canby.k12.or.us.
Below:
Laura Sattler of Canby Arts Association, Annie Tran of Canby's Main Street program, Pam Casciato of Wallflowers, JillMarie Wiles of Canby Livability Coalition, Renate Mengelberg with the City of Canby, CHS student Tiffany Douglas, and art teacher Jennifer Dorsey discuss the beautification of downtown Canby through art.
![[CHS student Tiffany Douglas, CHS art teacher Jennifer Dorsey, Annie Tran and Renate Mengelberg of the City of Canby, JillMarie Wiles of Canby Livability Coaltion, Laura Sattler of Canby Arts Association, and Pam of Wallflowers met to discuss the beautification of Canby through art. ]](http://blogs.canby.k12.or.us/uploads/saadg/Group Meets.jpg)
Dora Gourley teaches Ackerman students card-making and Zen Tangles in their art elective.
![[Dora Teaches]](http://blogs.canby.k12.or.us/uploads/saadg/Dora Teaches.jpg)