Kids inspired to reach for stars
Green with envy. Unabashedly jealous. Wondering “what if.”
EnlargephotoSTEVE LEWIS/Durango Herald Jennifer Snead, a math teacher at Animas High School, talks to a group of parents, supporters and students at the Henry Strater Theatre for a benefit for the school on Nov. 2.
EnlargephotoSTEVE LEWIS/Durango Herald
Sophomores Elliot Mink, left, John Rhoades, center, and Hanna Martens built an electric guitar to demonstrate some of the principles of sound they learned in their physics class. The three spent a month on the project, constructing the guitar out of oak. Jim Judge, right, discusses the project with the students during a fundraiser for Animas High School on Nov. 2 at the Henry Strater Theatre. Elliot is the son of Thea and David Mink, John is the son of Joan and Bill Rhoades, and Hanna is the daughter of Lynn and Chuck Martens.
EnlargephotoSTEVE LEWIS/Durango Herald
Aimee Birgenheier, front, and Michelle Hayo, back, attend a fundraiser for Animas High School at the Henry Strater Theatre on Nov. 2.
That’s how I and many other adults felt at Animas High School’s “friendraiser” Nov. 2 at the Henry Strater Theatre.
A packed house of parents, students and school friends old and new checked out student projects and heard from teachers and parents about the school’s culture and project-based learning philosophy. And all of us were trying to imagine ourselves being as poised, thoughtful and engaged as the AHS students were when we were teenagers.
The stories about families who jumped through hoops for their children to attend AHS were numerous and impressive. Two families from Pagosa Springs share a house here so their children can attend the public charter school. Another family was planning a move from Long Island, N.Y., and the mother flew out early to volunteer in getting the campus up and running to ensure her child a place.
United Airlines pilot Joan Rhoades’ son, John (with husband Bill), is a sophomore, and she said she’s never seen him so engaged. Rhoades, brother Mike Olson, mother Lucy Olson, and uncle Mike Elliott are all Durango High School grads, so it was a bit of a wrench for her when John wanted to attend AHS instead. No more.
John and his collaborators – Hanna Martens, daughter of Lynn and Chuck Martens, and Elliott Mink, son of Thea and David Mink – were on hand at the event to show off an electric guitar they built as freshmen. It was a physics project to demonstrate various sound concepts. Not only did they get to work with power tools and electricity, they learned to work together on a difficult task. Physics in a real life project, they said, taught them concepts they’ll use in the future.
Other students working on the same assignment created a light show, worked with lasers and built drums for a performance similar to Blue Man Group. One student made a violin replica from circa 20 B.C. Persia.
This year, their science course is biology, and students are working on projects to promote biodiversity, including one group that’s creating a management plan for the Durango Nature Studies property in Bondad, which it will present to a board of biologists.
How does their high school experience compare with their friends attending DHS?
“The whole outlook is completely different,” John said.
Hanna said, “We really want to be at Animas because it’s such a safe place to learn.”
That’s a feeling shared by Hannah Williams, 17, the daughter of Bruce and Judi Williams. She had a tough time in eighth grade with some girls in her class. In part because of that, and also because her parents noticed Hannah did better in project-based learning instead of a history class where the work was all textbooks, movies and tests, she chose AHS. It’s been an experience beyond her expectations.
Her classmate Cooper Stowers, the son of Mick and Bridget Stowers, who came to AHS from St. Columba Catholic School, agrees.
“My parents were the primary driving force,” he said, “and I can’t thank them enough.”
He wasn’t so sure on his first day of school, which was also AHS’s first day of school.
‘There were wires dangling from the ceiling, and I was wondering, ‘Is this going to work? Or is this going to go up in flames?’” he said. “Now it’s blossomed into what it set out to be, with great teachers and great relationships.”
India Waller, the daughter of Katie and Mark Waller, and Robin Austin, the daughter of Sue and Dave Austin, both 15, talked about the reading and writing they do, including numerous rewrites of essays. They particularly like learning critical thinking skills and considering different opinions, as was the case on their food project last year. Not only did they read The Omnivore’s Dilemma, they read statements released by the meat industry and other organizations, then grew a garden beginning with sprouting their own seeds.
Juniors Lily Oswald, the daughter of Mary and Bob Oswald, and Stephan Davoust, son of Tracy and Bob Davoust, remembered having to paint the fire hydrants the first week of school.
Lily is clearly interested in taking on the school that inspired AHS, High Tech High in San Diego. She said their goal is for 100 percent of the students to receive college acceptances next year, when their class will be the first to graduate from the school. Not everyone will go, she said, but they want every class member to be accepted.
Stephan, meanwhile, is anticipating his upcoming internship with professional mountain biker Travis Brown. He’s going to ride with and build bikes with Brown, and Stephan is already coming up with ideas for his own bike designs. One of those will require the invention of a new composite material, and he speaks knowledgeably about bonding and particle sizes.
Not everyone is thriving at AHS, but their fellow students put the responsibility squarely on the students’ shoulders. You “have to commit,” “engage yourself,” “be self-motivated,” were the recurring responses.
Michael Ackerman, the head of school, remembers the summer of 2009, before the school opened, meeting with one family at a time to assure them this was going to be a great school. Now he’s already hearing from the parents of third- and fourth-graders who are hoping to score a spot when their kids are ready. What a difference success makes.
Organizers held the event with the goal of fulfilling two matching grants – $12,000 from one student’s grandparents, and $5,000 from another’s parents. By the end of the evening, not only had they met their matches, they had brought in another $15,000 in pledges and gifts, including one from a woman who is so impressed by the school, she’s going to donate the most she can, $5 a month, for a total of $60 a year.
I encourage folks to ask for a tour and get to know this school by calling 247-2474 or visiting the website at www.animashighschool.com. The website includes digital portfolios for those who’d like to see the level of work the students do.
If you’d like to make your own tax-deductible donation, mail it to AHS at 3206 Main Ave., Durango, CO 81301.
If you have children who might like to attend, enrollment opens Jan. 3, 2012, for the 2012-2013 school year for the freshman and sophomore classes.
Whether or not you have children who might attend some day, this public school offers a significantly different and successful type of education, and our kids deserve the chance to attend if they so choose.
See Ann Butler's article in the Durango Herald here: http://www.durangoherald.com/article/20111112/COLUMNISTS03/711129978/Kids-inspired-to-reach-for-stars
