AHS Weekly Update- Week of October 29th, 2012

Happy Halloween! Please take a moment to review the following updates:

Student-Led Conference

Upcoming STAC Elections

FLC Concurrent Enrollment

AHS Facebook Page

Upcoming Events

Student-Led Conferences

SEMESTER ONE STUDENT-LED CONFERENCES will take place this THURSDAY, November 1st from 4:00 to 6:30 pm at Animas High School. Please see grade level details below.

 Semester one freshman SLCs will occur on Thursday, November 1 from 4:00-6:30 pm.  SLCs will be scheduled in 20 minute intervals and occur here at campus.  A letter from the 9^th grade team including more details and scheduling information was sent home with students last week. If you have any questions about 9th grade scheduling, please contact Sara Price at sara.price@animashighschool.com

Semester one sophomore SLCs will be take place on Thursday, November 1 from 4:00-6:00 pm.  SLCs will be scheduled in 20-minute intervals, and will be held in the lodge.  A letter with SLC details and scheduling information has been sent home with your student. If you have any questions about 10th grade scheduling, please contact Colleen Dunning at colleen.dunnig@animashighschool.com We look forward to seeing you all here for some great conversations!

Student-Led Conferences for our juniors will provide an opportunity for students to reflect on their academic journey thus far (freshmen through junior year). They will focus on the following 5 categories: Academics, LINK, "The Balance," My Identify, and College & Beyond. As a parent/guardian, you can expect to hear thoughtful reflections from your student about questions related to these topics. Questions regarding 11^th grade SLCs should be sent to Ashley Carruth at Ashley.carruth@animashighschool.com

Although Seniors will not be required to participate in Student Led Conferences, 12^th grade Humanities teacher Matt Hughes would like to be available that evening to address any urgent student-related needs.  It is not required that your son/daughter attend, though it is highly recommended.  20 minute appointments can be set up with Matt between 4:20 and 6pm on a first-come, first serve basis.  If you would like to set up a meeting, please email him directly at matt.hughes@animashighschool.com.

Upcoming STAC Elections

It’s campaign season and the action is heating up at Animas High School. On Wednesday afternoon, all candidates for Student Advisory Council will be given a final opportunity to address our community during election-eve campaign rally. Be sure to check out the candidates, their platforms and campaign videos at: http://ahsstac.webs.com/ and be sure to visit the official STAC Facebook page at: http://www.facebook.com/STAC2012?ref=hl

FLC Concurrent Enrollment

A representative from Fort Lewis’s Concurrent Enrollment Department will be visiting Animas High School on November 14^th. FLC will be reviewing options and opportunities for concurrent enrollment with students in our Junior Humanities classes. You can learn more about concurrent enrollment at Fort Lewis College here: http://www.fortlewis.edu/concurrent/Home.aspx

AHS Facebook Page

Congratulations to us! We have hit 300 “likes” on the Animas High School Facebook fan page!  Remember, we update the school’s Facebook page daily and this page is where you can keep up with all the action in real-time, Additionally, donors and philanthropic foundations are visiting non-profit’s FB pages to gauge community interest and stakeholder support. Let’s see if we can increase our social media and online presence. Please visit http://www.facebook.com/AnimasHighSchool and “Like Us” Better yet, share our page with your social network and help us hit four hundred likes!

Upcoming Events

 10th Grade Humanities Exhibition Students will present their Truth of War projects on Wednesday, November 7th from 5-6:30 pm at the Durango Public Library.

Over 100 million people have been killed by wars in the 20th century alone.  After war is over, soldiers often struggle to communicate their experiences to a larger audience, and to make the public understand what war is, beyond the messages they see in newspapers and other media. In this project, students will grapple with the question of: "What is the truth of war for soldiers?"  To help them answer this question, they will take a close look at the literature of WWI and WWII, and will examine that literature through a historical lens before creating a carefully crafted writing piece that attempts to express the truth of war. 

The 4th Annual Fall Fundraiser is Wednesday, November 14 at the Henry Strater Theatre in Downtown Durango. The event starts at 5:30 PM and includes Student Displays and Presentations, Hors oeuvres and Cash Bar. Please RSVP to pac@animashighschool.com.  We’ll see you at the Strater!

AHS Weekly Update- Week of October 22nd, 2012

 

It’s a huge week at Animas High School. With so many student events and exhibitions in the near future, please be sure to check-in with this week’s updates:

Jake Update

Senior Exhibition Opens Online

Student-Led Conferences

The Friday Show

Ospreys are CO. MTB Champs!

AHS Sweeps Press Day

Upcoming Events

Sex Ed

Annual Fall Friendraiser

Jake Update

Greetings from the Front Range! Cat and I miss all of you, AHS and Durango a lot. But I still need to be near my doctors in Denver for now. Despite my numerous injuries, recovery is going well. I have been walking for a few weeks now; and yesterday I started to ride a recumbent bicycle short distances around town. Altogether, I am in high spirits and I cannot wait to be back home with all of you!

 

I attribute my improvement, in large part, to the incredible love and support Cat and I have received from all of you. This experience has helped me understand how truly special our town and school community is. From the moment I was injured, we have been blessed to receive life-saving professional care and heart-warming personal support from AHS community members. I am grateful beyond words to be a part of such a wonderful community. Thank you for everything.

As I said earlier, we are both excited and anxious to return to Durango. Our hope is that I will be strong enough to come home by Thanksgiving. I also hope to be back at AHS part-time second semester. Everyday I am motivated by the thought of getting back in the mix with all of you!

Thank you again for all of the incredible love and support Cat and I have received. I wish you each the best and we will see you soon. (From Jake Lauer’s 10/20 email to the HOS)

The Final Week for Jake is here!  Lets give it our all and support him!

This Week’s Events:

Cuckoos - Tuesday, October 23rd - All Day - 10% of Sales to support Jake!

The Palace - BURGER NIGHT SPECIAL!!! - For every burger bought on Thursday after 5pm, The palace will donate $3.50 to Jake - A portion of every True Blond and all soft drinks will also go to Jake. If we get 100 people, that's $500 for Jake!!!

During Tuesday and Thursday evening, Maria's Bookshop will donate 10% of sales from 7-pm-9pm!

Go celebrate our matching donor by checking out the R.H. Crossland Historical Museum downtown!

Senior Exhibition Opens Online

The First Amendment Media Project is now online!  Stop by http://ahshumanities12.webs.com/ to view the first-ever AHS Senior Humanities exhibition.  For this project, students engage in an analysis of our Constitution and Bill of Rights through an in-depth look at the 1st Amendment.  From our homepage you can weigh in on who should take home the 1st Amendment Video Competition trophy, and access student exhibition sites.  On the student web pages, you'll find videos, blogs, and personal explorations related to our First Amendment freedoms.  Look us up and give our 1st Amendment some love!

Student-Led Conferences

Semester one freshman SLCs will be happening on Thursday, November 1 from 4:00-6:30 pm.  SLCs will be scheduled in 20 minute intervals and occur here at campus.  A letter from the 9^th grade team including more details and scheduling information will be coming home with your student this week. If you have any questions about 9th grade scheduling, please contact Sara Price at sara.price@animashighschool.com

Semester one sophomore SLCs will be happening on Thursday, November 1 from 4:00-6:00 pm.  SLCs will be scheduled in 20 minute intervals, and will be taking place in the lodge.  A letter with more details and scheduling information will be coming home with your student on Monday, October 22.  Please have your student return the relevant scheduling information no later than Wednesday, October 23.  If you have any questions about 10th grade scheduling, please contact Colleen Dunning at colleen.dunnig@animashighschool.com

  We look forward to seeing you all here for some great conversations!

Student-Led Conferences for our juniors will provide an opportunity for students to reflect on their academic journey thus far (freshmen through junior year). They will focus on the following 5 categories: Academics, LINK, "The Balance," My Identify, and College & Beyond. As a parent/guardian, you can expect to hear thoughtful reflections from your student about questions related to these topics. Questions regarding 11^th grade SLCs should be sent to Ashley Carruth at Ashley.carruth@animashighschool.com

Although Seniors will not be required to participate in Student Led Conferences, 12^th grade Humanities teacher Matt Hughes would like to be available that evening to address any urgent student-related needs.  It is not required that your son/daughter attend, though it is highly recommended.  20 minute appointments can be set up with Matt between 4:20 and 6pm on a first-come, first serve basis.  If you would like to set up a meeting, please email him directly at matt.hughes@animashighschool.com.

The Friday Show

The Friday Show from 10/18/12 can be seen here:

http://youtu.be/NrY-K3gmA6s

Ospreys are CO. MTB Champs!

Congratulations to the Animas High School Mountain Biking team on their successful showing in this year’s Colorado High School MTB League. The Ospreys took the top spot in division two wrapping up an incredibly successful season with the state championships in Fruita this past weekend. Stay tuned for more news and highlights from an incredibly successful season.

AHS Sweeps Press Day

Forty-six students and their newspaper/yearbook advisers participated in The Durango Herald’s 16th annual Four Corners Press Day Wednesday, October 17^th at Fort Lewis College. Among other activities, the middle- and high-school students wrote news stories based on a talk by Joe Hanel, the Herald’s Denver correspondent. Hanel discussed his experiences covering this year’s national Republican and Democratic political conventions. Congratulations to all the AHS participants especially Jamie Wanzek and Cori Gianniny for their second place win. AHS Quill correspondents Hannah Williams and John Rhoades took first place on the day. You can read their winning article here:   

http://www.durangoherald.com/article/20121017/NEWS01/121019566/0/SEARCH/Press-day-offers-students-glimpse-into-news-gathering

Upcoming Events

Isabelle Tonso (AHS 2013) and Biology teacher Colleen Dunning are coordinating the 3rd Annual Blood Drive at Animas High. It will be held in the Animas Lodge on October 24 from 1:30 to 5:00 pm. We’re still looking for more donors between 3:00 and 4:45! Questions or concerns? Please email Blood Drive student coordinator at ahs.blooddrive@yahoo.com or call the AHS Main Office at 247-2474

9^th Grade Physics Students will hold a Rocket Launch Exhibition, Wednesday, October 24th at the La Plata Fairgrounds NORTH field from 4:30 - 6:30pm  

11^th Grade Humanities Exhibition will take place on Thursday, October 25^th from 6-8pm Come discuss students' proposals for how the government should resolve various political issues, not based on what Democrats or Republicans espouse, but based on what is morally and politically JUST.  Our goal is to open up a dialogue that transcends political party lines and gets to the heart of the matter: Justice. Two locations: College Drive Durango Joes 6:30-8:00pm & El Camino College Drive across from Natural Grocers: 6:00-7:30pm

 SEMESTER ONE STUDENT-LED CONFERENCES will take place November 1st from 4:00 to 6:30 pm at Animas High School. Please see details above.

 10th Grade Humanities Exhibition will take place on Wednesday, November 7^th from 5-6:30 pm at the Durango Public Library. Stay tuned for more details.

Sex Ed

9^th Grade students will be participating in our annual Sexual Education program on October 24^th and 25^th at campus. An informational handout and an opt-out form was distributed to ninth grade students during advisory on October 17^th. Please contact colleen.dunning@animashighschool.com with all questions and/or concerns.

Annual Fall Friendraiser

The 4th Annual Fall Fundraiser,  is Wednesday, November 14 at the Henry Strater Theatre in Downtown Durango. The event starts at 5:30 PM and includes Student Displays and Presentations, Hors oeuvres and Cash Bar. Please RSVP to pac@animashighschool.com.  We’ll see you at the Strater!

Animas High School

AHS main #- 970-AHS-AHS4

www.animashighschool.com

www.animashighschool.blogspot.com

www.facebook.com/AnimasHighSchool

Animas High School Values:

•   Rigorous academics, where all students are prepared for college success

•   Culture of excellence, where students are held to high expectations

•   Strong faculty-student relationships, where students are well known  

•   Engaging learning, where students see the relevance of their education

AHS Weekly Update- Week of October 15th, 2012

Please take a moment to review the following updates:

Jake Update

School Safety Update

Upcoming Events

Sex Ed

Annual Fall Friendraiser

Power Lunches Continue

Setting Your Student Up for Success

Jake Update

Great news from Fort Collins where our Assistant Head of School, Jake Lauer, is recovering from a serious rock climbing accident sustained over Labor Day weekend. We’re happy to report that Jake is making amazing progress and is transitioning from the initial recovery stage into some serious rehab efforts! After numerous surgeries and 4 weeks in bed, Jake has now begun physical therapy and is taking daily walks with his wife Cat and their trusty dog Otis. 

“I’m still moving pretty slow and I’m working to manage a lot of pain but the doctors continue to be impressed and encouraged by my rate of healing. Although I’m far from being out-of-the-woods, transitioning from the hospital to my moms and regaining the most basic of daily privileges like sitting up, home-cooking and walks outside in the Colorado sunshine make me feel pretty lucky! I look forward to returning to Durango this fall and seeing everyone at Animas soon! Please continue to share with everyone my thanks and appreciations for all the well wishes and encouragement. I love all of you and definitely feel supported and cared for in this difficult time.” (Jake’s 10/10 email update to the HOS)

Remember, we’re continuing to hold fundraisers for Jake throughout the month of October. Please reference the upcoming event schedule at the bottom of this update.

Additionally, many of you have asked about donating to Jake directly. If you’d like to share a card, gift or send your best to our AHOS, please drop off what you’d like him to receive at our Main Office. If you plan on making a financial donation to Jake’s recovery efforts, please make checks payable to Jake Lauer and the school will facilitate the deposit of funds. Thanks to everyone in our community for all their kind words and continued support of Jake and Cat Lauer!

Upcoming “Day for Jake” Events in Durango:

Cyprus Cafe and Eno: Monday, October 15th - 5pm to 10pm - 10% of all sales to Jake

Ore House: Wednesday, October 17th - 5pm to 10pm - 10% of all sales to Jake

East by Southwest: Sunday, October 21st, Monday, October 22nd, Sunday, October 28th, and Monday, October 29th -  All day, each day (exclude happy hour items) - 10% of Sales to Jake

Maria's Bookshop: Monday, October 15th and Wednesday, October 17th - 7pm to 9pm - 10% of all sales to Jake

       

Cuckoo's: Tuesday, October 23rd - Both Locations - All Day - 10% of Sales to Jake

The Palace: Thursday, October 25 - 5pm to close (burger night!) - 10% of Sales to Jake

The R.H. Crossland Foundation and Historical Museum: They are a big matching donor! Go visit the museum downtown at - 835 Main Ave, Suite 108 - or online at - www.rhcfoundation.org

     

School Safety Update

Fire drills, lock down drills, safety inspections, a locked front door, signed student handbooks; it may seem like the efforts to safeguard our students, staff and our campus never end! However, we are committed to keeping our students as safe and secure as possible.

As you may have learned from media reports, a Westminster student named Jessica Ridgeway, age 10, is believed to have been abducted when she was walking to school last Friday, October 5. It has since been determined that Jessica was found deceased, and Animas High School sends its deepest condolences to the Ridgeway family during this difficult time.

In light of this terrible tragedy, we want to reassure you that school personnel at AHS are always on alert for suspicious behavior and we ask that parents and guardians report any suspicious behavior to your local law enforcement agency and/or to teachers and administrators at Animas High. Below, please find resource materials from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children

Tips for Going to and From School Safely (English)

Tips for Going to and From School Safely (Spanish)

Thank you in advance for your efforts to keep our community and our school safe.

 Upcoming Events

9^th Grade Humanities students will present their "Socialization and Identity" Project Exhibition at the La Plata fairgrounds on Wednesday Oct. 17th from 5-7 pm.

PSAT/NMSQT will be offered at Animas High School on Saturday, October 20^th from 8am to 11am. See TESTING UPDATE section for more details. 

Isabelle Tonso (AHS 2013) and Biology teacher Colleen Dunning are coordinating the 3rd Annual Blood Drive at Animas High. It will be held in the Animas Lodge on October 24 from 1:30 to 5:00 pm. You must be 16 to donate, and sign-ups and guidelines are in front of the 12th grade Humanities room. For more information on the Blood Drive talk to Isabelle Tonso or Colleen Dunning.

9^th Grade Physics Students will hold a Rocket Launch Exhibition, Wednesday, October 24th at the La Plata Fairgrounds NORTH field from 4:30 - 6:30pm  

11^th Grade Humanities Exhibition will take place on Thursday, October 25^th from 6-8pm Come discuss students' proposals for how the government should resolve various political issues, not based on what Democrats or Republicans espouse, but based on what is morally and politically JUST.  Our goal is to open up a dialogue that transcends political party lines and gets to the heart of the matter: Justice. Two locations: College Drive Durango Joes 6:30-8:00pm & El Camino College Drive across from Natural Grocers: 6:00-7:30pm

 SEMESTER ONE STUDENT-LED CONFERENCES will take place November 1st from 4:00 to 6:30 pm at Animas High School. Look for more details in future weekly updates.

 10th Grade Humanities Exhibition will take place on Wednesday, November 7^th from 5-6:30 pm at the Durango Public Library. Stay tuned for more details.

Sex Ed

9^th Grade students will be participating in our annual Sexual Education program on October 24^th and 25^th at campus. An informational handout and an opt-out form will be distributed to ninth grade students during advisory on October 17^th. Please contact colleen.dunning@animashighschool.com with all questions and/or concerns.

Annual Fall Friendraiser

The 4th Annual Fall Fundraiser,  is Wednesday, November 14  at the Henry Strater Theatre in Downtown Durango. The event starts at 5:30 PM and includes Student Displays and Presentations, Hors oeuvres and Cash Bar. Please RSVP to pac@animashighschool.com.  We’ll see you at the Strater!

Power Lunches Continue

 

STORIES OF WOLVES: THE LOBO RETURNS 

Who: Elke Duerr, filmmaker and wolf activist for the Web of Life Foundation will share footage from her documentary, “Stories of

Wolves,” as she discusses the importance of the Mexican Gray wolf in terms of both ecology and our cultural heritage.

When: Thursday, October 18th

Where: 11:30-12:00 in Nick’s Humanities Room & 12:35- 1:10 in Matt’s Humanities Room

What: Myths like “Little Red Riding Hood” and “The Three Little Pigs” perpetuate damaging myths about the wolf. Come and learn the truth about the important role this endangered keystone predator plays in the ecosystem!

Questions: Contact Rachael Sands at 259-3013.

Setting Your Student Up for Success

A common question we constantly ask our students and teachers is “Are you setting yourself up for success?” Faculty utilize this question to evaluate their teaching methods, classroom management techniques and strategies for differentiation. Likewise, our students audit their organization, time management and effort through this same filter.

Are you setting your student up for success? It is a question we all should be asking often. Here are some simple guidelines to think about.

If you….

·       …are reviewing your student’s grades with them on a weekly basis, you are setting them up for success!

·      …are confirming your students completion and submission of homework and assignments, you are setting them up for success!

·      …inquire as to what your student is discussing/exploring/learning in each of their classes, you are setting them up for success!

·      …challenge your student to articulate key take-aways and enduring understandings related to their studies, you are setting them up for success!

·      …are asking them what college they plan on attending and having them share with you admission and grade requirements to get into that school, you are setting them up for success!

·      …are attending exhibitions, SLCs, POLs and taking a sincere and consistent interest in these experiences, you are setting them up for success!

·      …are in touch with your students teachers, their advisors, their coaches, their administrators and anyone else involved with their growth and development as young adults, you are setting them up for success.

·      …hold your student accountable to the policies and procedures found in the Student Handbook, you are setting them up for success.

·      …are helping your student arrive in time for school, making sure they are well rested and fed and encouraging them to do their best, you are setting them up for success.

·      …are helping them stay afterschool for extra help and encouraging them to reach out to teachers, advisors, administrators, etc…you are setting them up for success

·      …are volunteering your time at AHS, participating in the direction and creation of our school and modeling complete commitment to Animas, you are setting them up for success