Week 23 at New Albany High School!

parent-teacher-conference.previewWe held winter Parent/Teacher Conferences last week and I received a number of positive comments from teachers and parents about the quality of the conversations. The conversations were centered on strategies and enrichments to maintain or enhance student performance. The timing of conferences was perfect for our school counselors because we are in the beginning stages of course selections, so parents who had questions were able to schedule individual time to meet with them. This should make the scheduling process even smoother.

Students gained access to online scheduling Monday, February 15th. I want to thank Steve Gehlert, Jennifer Grand-Pierre, Beth Johnston, Shelly Santantonio, Lisa Stiles, our School Counselors, and Department Chairs for their hard work on this all-important process.

Staff News
Congratulations to College Counselor Stefanie Drugan and her husband who are expecting their first child!

Congratulations to Alspach for winning the Pennies for Patients Drive! Pleasant Hill and Wagner came in very close for second and third places. Congratulations to all houses.

The school yearbook is one of the best ways to preserve memories and purchase a piece of history. With the use of social media and otheron sale now Web 2.0 tools, students are able to upload images that they would like to include in the yearbook so that it is much more of a collaborative process. The school yearbook is still a major artifact of the high school experience and one that is cherished years after graduation. English teacher and Yearbook Advisor Thom Cross has worked closely with students to increase advertisements, market The Eagle yearbook in more creative ways, and provide a way for students to remember their New Albany years.

There is still time to buy a NAHS 2016 yearbook! The last day to submit an order with a personalized cover is April 30th, 2016, and the last day to purchase a yearbook is July 30th. Please visit www.yearbookforever.com and address all questions to Yearbook Advisor and English teacher Thom Cross at cross.1@napls.us.

Students As Learners
handshakeAs part of her Physics class, Science teacher Jessica Whitehead is facilitating mini “How to Adult” chats. So far, they have discussed mortgage payments and the basics about home buying. They have also discussed business-casual verses business professional clothing and interview questions from top companies. Finally, she focused on the importance of a firm handshake. To do so, she invited members of the administrative team to greet her students outside her door to shake hands with them as they entered the room. This is a simple, yet creative way to embed “soft skills” into the curriculum.

I learned this week that several teachers provide opportunities for students to retake tests to ensure they can demonstrate what they haveRedo learned. This is a challenging concept for many to embrace because it goes against the traditional culture of school and deadlines. However, I support this approach to assessment because it makes learning the constant and time a variable. Additionally, it gives teachers an opportunity to discover what needs to be retaught based on the data gathered from assessments. With office hours, Academic Coaching Time (ACT period), study centers, and online learning platforms like Schoology or Google Classroom, there are many opportunities to reteach content in a variety ways before students retake takes or quizzes.

Something for us to consider is should students receive half or full credit for making test corrections or retaking a test? If a student does not show up for re-teaching opportunities, should they be given the chance to retake a test or make test corrections? These are simply points to consider and certainly are not something that will become an overall school policy. Considering how we use information gathered from testing to influence future instruction involves contemplating how we will vary approach. This is one consideration. It would be an interesting discussion to know how various teachers approach this and share ideas on this topic.

Teen ViolenceSeniors Ruthie Lewis and Miranda Derflinger facilitated a Teen Dating Violence Prevention presentation for our freshmen during ACT last Wednesday and Thursday. Ruthie organized this event last year and enhanced it even more this year by including a self defense presentation by Miranda and inviting Gahanna Lincoln High School senior Kaylah Casuccio to share her story. It was an engaging and relevant presentation for our students.

A couple of weeks ago, I was approached by a few students with large cameras hanging around their necks and iPhones in their hands. Theyinstagram-logo proposed an idea to create an Instagram account called, Humans of New Albany (@HumansofNewAlbany). They were inspired by the Humans of New York (@Humansofny) Instagram account, which shares peoples’ stories in a visually, compelling way. They explained that they want to bring to light the fascinating stories of students and staff in our school community. They want to celebrate our unique differences and commonalities that unite us as human beings. So far, their work is impressive! If you have an Instagram account, I encourage you to follow them to learn more about the humans of New Albany. I appreciate their initiative, empathy, and desire to tell story visually.

Athletic Update
Congratulations to our Boys Basketball team for winning OCC Capital Division title! Congratulations also to a host of NAHS Swimmers and Divers for qualifying to the district championships after a successful sectional performance on Saturday!

200 Medley Relay
Grace, Kelly, Emili and Lauren S.
Brennan, Jack G., Steven and Victor

200 free
Blake, Abbie, Carson, Pearson

200 IM
Lauren L, Grace, Kelly, Jessica V.

50 Free
Jessica Z., Lauren S., Emili, Olivia, Harrison, Gage

Diving
Nikki, Georgina

100 Fly
Emili, Sydney, Jessica V, Midori, Carson

100 Free
Jessica Z, Blake, Olivia, Lauren S., Pearson, Harrison

500 Free
Abbie, Jane

200 Free Relay
Blake, Jessica, Lauren S and Olivia
Harrison, Pearson, Gage and Carson

100 Back
Grace, Sydney, Isabel

100 Breast
Kelly, Lauren L, Victor, Jack G.

400 Free Relay
Blake, Jessica Z, Abbie and Olivia
Pearson, Harrison, Gage and Carson

Upcoming Events
Wednesday, February 17th- Department Meetings 7:15-7:50 a.m.
Thursday, February 18th- Department Meetings 7:15-7:50 a.m.
Saturday, February 20th- Winter Formal 8:00-11:00 p.m. in the Gym

Articles Worth Reading
Stop Humiliating Teachers– The rhetoric around public education the last ten years has been toxic. The author of this article provides an historical account of what has led to the negative perception of teachers and identifies the root cause of the problem. The article is also inclusive of solutions to overcome it.

3 Huge Industries Facing Death Because They Won’t Embrace Radical Ideas– In the Information Age, change comes often and rapidly. Like Blockbuster, industries that refuse to adapt to new ways of accessing content and embrace change are less fluid. Therefore, they are in danger of no longer existing. What are the implications, if any, for education?

Video Worth Watching
I encourage you to watch the following spoken word video by artist Shane Koyczan. He tells a dynamic story about his school experience and that of others who may feel the same way. More importantly, he presents a way to eliminate the conditions that lead to students feeling as if they simply do not belong: empathy.

Be Great,

Dwight

Week 21 at New Albany High School!

curriculum nightThere was a great deal activity at New Albany High School last week, which included a number of activities for our school community. Midweek, we held our Curriculum Extravaganza in the MS/HS cafeteria and it was standing room only!

Our School Counselors and Department Chairs organized the event because we wanted to create a much more engaging, informative, and interactive experience for parents and students who attended. The scheduling process can be daunting due to our diverse course offerings and several new changes to graduation requirements and credit attainment.

Representatives from each department were available to answer questions, provide course sequence advice, and be a listening ear as parents and their children perused the cafeteria. The school counselors provided a formal 35-minute presentation that reviewed graduation requirements and the entire scheduling process. Parent and staff feedback has been extremely positive as can be seen in the following e-mail from a staff member:

“I am not sure to whom this should go as I am sure many were involved, but last evening was wonderful. What a great addition to the scheduling process. It was well worth the time spent. It was nice to help the parents, even when they were not the parents of current students. I think it was a prime opportunity to show our commitment to the community and the schools. I have heard only good things from the staff and the parents. To you and to all involved, this was an excellent move. Thank you!”


Staff News
Thanks to everyone who submitted cards and notes to send to staff members who need a word of encouragement! #NAHSCommUNITY!

A big shout to our secretarial and custodial staff for helping us to organize and prepare for the Curriculum Extravaganza! Additionally, thanks to all teachers who were able to assist parents in your respective departments. #NAHSCommUNITY!

Thanks to our coaches and Athletic Director Kevin Reed for leading our student athletes to earn a 6th straight Ralph Young Award!

Thanks to Assistant Principal Steve Gehlert, our Department Chairs, and secretaries Shelly Santantonio and Jennifer Grand-Pierre for completing the Program of Studies and Schedule Grid.

Students As Learners
Audacity_Logo.svgBand teacher Darren Falk has found a creative way to integrate technology during instruction in a way that allows students to provide feedback to their peers in a collaborative manner. After several minutes of warm-up drills and practice playing a particular piece of music, Mr. Falk uses Adacity to record the students playing, uploades it to the class Schoology page, and asks students to provide feedback after listening to the recording. This enables him to check for student understanding as they strengthen their listening skills. It also creates a greater sense of community because each section of the band provides support to one another in a constructively critical, yet professional manner. This is a fantastic formative instructional practice that incorporates student voice!

We held the State of the Eagles Address on Wednesday, January 27 and Thursday, January 28 duringIMG_6115 Academic Coaching Time. We recognized students who earned a grade point average of 3.0-3.49, 3.5-3.99, and 4.00+. We also asked students who improved at one or more grades by one letter grade from 1st quarter to second quarter. Following this brief spotlight experience, we shared our overall grade levels and school grade point average for second quarter:
· Class of 2019 – 3.11
· Class of 2018 – 3.37
· Class of 2017 – 3.37
· Class of 2016 – 3.33
· Overall – 3.29

We share this information with students because we want them to know how important each person’s performance is to our overall success. This was also a good introduction to our new zones that are available during Academic Coaching Time (ACT Period).

Students who met the grade, attendance, and discipline criteria can attend four different zones based on their needs:

· Silent Zone: Library – this is for students who want to work independently in absolute silence. With the study nooks, variety of seating arrangements, and design of the library, it is the perfect setting for silent study.
· Quiet Zone: Jefferson Room – this is for students who want peer assistance or the opportunity to work on group projects that require some talking and interaction.
· Collaboration Zone: high school cafeteria – this is for students who want to have an informal club meeting to finish projects, continue the planning process for upcoming projects, work more openly with their peers, or to socialize in a less formal setting.
· ACT Room– a majority of students like the environment that has been created in their current ACT Room with their academic coach and peers, so they can remain in this room.

Students who need additional coaching based on second quarter data have been assigned to a content area academic coach and will report to their coach every Wednesday or Thursday during ACT. It is an intentional and purposeful opportunity to support students during the school day and take advantage of a significant block of time.

Upcoming Events
Monday, February 1st – 8th grade Registration Week
Royal Shakespeare Company play: Henry V
Wednesday, February 3rd – Department Meetings at 7:20 a.m.
Thursday, February 4th – Department Meetings at 7:20 a.m.
Friday, February 5th – Black History Month Assembly
Saturday, February 6th – ACT
Monday, February 8th – BOE Meeting at 6:30 p.m.
Tuesday, February 9th – P/T Conferences
Thursday, February 11th – P/T Conferences
Monday, February 15th – Presidents Day Observance: No School
Tuesday, February 16th – Staff Professional Learning Day
College Credit Plus Meeting at 6:30 p.m.

Articles Worth Reading
Combatting a Culture of Learned Helplessness
Skills Learned in School Differ From Those Demanded at Work

Video Worth Watching
Mark Modesti: The Argument for Trouble

Be Great,

Dwight

Week 19 at New Albany High School!

Dr. Martin Luther King’s legacy lives through us all. He led during a time of great turmoil in our country and there were significant cultural, legal, and regional barriers that prevented unity from existing in our country. As we work to overcome some challenging times in our country, let’s remember the words and actions of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.


Staff News
I was out of the building quite a bit last week, yet Assistant Principal Steve Gehlert and Kip Greenhill did an excellent job taking the lead. Mr. Gehlert worked with several teachers to find other classrooms to conduct class when faced with a water leak, they both met with a group of students to work through a conflict, and Mr. Gehlert attended an important meeting about the Global Scholars Program. I want to publicly thank them for their leadership!

http://highlanderdistrict.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/online-real-estate-classes.jpg
http://highlanderdistrict.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/online-real-estate-classes.jpg
English teacher Ann Trotter, Physics teacher Greg Morris, and AP US Government teacher Kirk Hilbrands hosted several administrators from Worthington City School District to share their experiences with blended learning. Each presented a different delivery model for their blended learning classes, which is a unique component of differentiating how they meet the needs of students. The Worthington cohort was impressed by the variety of approaches, the focus on student learning, and what they heard from students as they shared they enjoy most about having a blended class. This form of differentiation is by no means an easy process, yet the collaborative support provided during the training has proven to be invaluable. It’s a reminder that to work in isolation is merely a choice and working together in a Professional Learning Network leads to significant learning for teachers and students.

Students As Learners
Science Olympiad Advisor Sudha Ganesan provided an update on the resent success of our Science Olympiad Team after they competed at the Kenston Science Olympiad Invitation on Saturday, January 16, 2016. She states:

“Our two high school teams were off to a great start at the Kenston Science Olympiad Invitational. I am2016 KENSTON TROPHY proud to share that our students’ hard work helped them win medals and ribbons in eight events and brought home the over-all Eighth Place Trophy! Our teams placed 11th and 37th out of 48 schools, including the top eight schools from Ohio and the top schools from Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Virginia. This is an amazing start considering we played with only 14 members on our Varsity team and 10 members on the Junior Varsity team. Even as we walked out of the Kenston High School building our students were already talking about what they needed to do to make sure they come home with a team trophy at the next invitational, too.”

Congratulations to the following Science Olympiad team members:

Medal Round:
· First place gold: Wind Power – Aditya Mistry and Bhagee Ganesan
· Ribbon (4th – 8th) Round:
· Fourth place: Anatomy and Physiology – Bhagee Ganesan and Shankar Pattabhiraman
· Fifth place: Protein Modeling – Aditya Mistry, Nikhil Pramod and Shankar Pattabhiraman
· Sixth place: Bridge Building – Parker Lehmann and Jonah Callinan
· Seventh place: Wright Stuff – Gunnar Wielinski and David Tan
· Eighth place: Cell Biology – Bhagee Ganesan and Nikhil Malakalapalli
Forensics – Shota Nemoto and Olivia Samson
Air Trajectory – Gunnar Wielinski and Nikhil Malakalapalli

Rigor/Relevance Framework
Rigor/Relevance Framework
Students in our Theatre Program participated in 24 Hour Theatre over the weekend! Theatre Teacher Elliott Lemberg gave participants three themes in which they had 24 hours to prepare a performance. The themes were: appearance verses reality, change, and order and disorder. Students selected their teams and applied everything they’ve learned first semester to create a number of skits that they performed in front of a live audience. This is such a unique learning opportunity and it exemplifies our students ability to think critically and creatively, communicate effectively, and collaborate to solve problems!

Athletic Update
Our Girl’s Varsity Basketball Team is coming off 2 big wins last week. First,Girls Varsity BB they avenged an earlier loss to a 10-2 Mount Vernon team. Second, they upset a 12-1 Watterson team. Currently, their record is 9-5. The team is led by seniors Meche’la Cobb, Caitlin Coss & Liza Hernandez. They beat Olentangy Orange Friday night, but lost to Upper Arlington on Saturday.

Our Bowling Team is off to a great start! Coach Damian Hammond provided the following images of our bowlers in action!
Bowling 1

Bowling 2

Bowling 3
Upcoming Events
Tuesday, January 19, 2016 First day of second semester
Wednesday, January 20, 2016 Department Meetings 7:15 am
Thursday, January 21, 2016 Department Meetings 7:15 am
Saturday, January 23, 2016 A Cappella Cabaret

Articles Worth Reading
Managing Stress: Creating Calm In Your Career

10 Smart Leadership Solutions for Everyday Challenges

Be Great,

Dwight

Week 18 at New Albany High School!

BetterI shared this image with my staff last week because it challenged my thinking about goal setting and starting over. As educators, we are given the unique opportunity to start over at the beginning of each grading period or after long scheduled breaks, such as winter break or spring break. As each new year approaches, we are encouraged to set resolutions, but the message in the image reminds us to focus on doing something BETTER, not necessarily NEW. As we approach second semester and 2016, I encouraged staff and faculty to continue to think about the ONE THING each of us can do better rather than adding something new to our plate. We had a great first week back, which is captured in this brief Storify!

Staff News
As we approach the second semester, it is a good time to review some general expectations and procedures.
cropped-evaluate-adjust-12ez65e-20ujkf6.jpg

Expectations:
-Be Punctual- Punctuality is a sign of respect.
-Be Prepared- Prior planning prevents poor performance.
-Be Present- Be here daily and also be in the moment.
-Be Professional- Professionalism is knowing what to do, how to do it, and
doing it in a high quality manner.
-Be Positive- To change your situation, change your attitude.
-Play- Don’t take yourself too seriously. Continue reading

An Open Letter To My Students

“What Should We Expect of You?”

At the beginning of the school year, I shared with your families a brief list of what we expect of you. This list is essentially our core values: respect for self, respect for others, respect for the learning environment, and respect for the community.

Several months ago, we gathered in the gymnasium during Academic Coaching Time (ACT period) where you were asked an essential question: “What should we expect of you?” The reason why we asked you this question is because your voice matters. You matter, and your level of engagement is directly related to how you feel about being a New Albany High School Eagle.

Once we explained the directions, we asked you to organize yourselves into smaller groups, spread out, and sit on the gym floor to brainstorm a list of behaviors we should expect of you. The School Counselors and Administrators gathered your lists and we compiled the data, which were put into the following Wordle:
What We Expect of Students (1)

The highlighted behaviors would make any parent or educator proud. You understand how important it is to demonstrate respect towards others, our learning environment, and the community. You also stressed the importance of being on time, prepared, and open-minded. The more we all demonstrate these behaviors on a consistent basis, the better our learning environment will become.

As we near the end of the first semester and kickoff the second half of the year in less than two weeks, let’s refocus on what you said we should expect of you. Following are some specific ways you can do that:

1. Be punctual daily
2. Be prepared by completing your assignments in a quality manner
3. Throw your trash away whether you’re in the cafeteria, hallways, Jefferson Room, Library, or outside.
4. Be where you are supposed to be at all times.
5. Be nice.

You make me proud to be your principal daily and I look forward to what is in store for second semester!

Be Great,

Mr. Carter

My Choice to be G.R.E.A.T!

Make it a great year

As I embark on another year and reflect on 2015, I am reminded that I can truly only control two things: my attitude and my actions. In fact, that’s all any of us can control. To make 2016 a G.R.E.A.T year, I will be:
1. Grateful– demonstrate an attitude of gratitude for the “problemtunities” that come my way (opportunities disguised as problems), my loving family, supportive network of friends and colleagues, and God’s daily blessings.

2. Relational– Focus on the people in my life who have breathed life into me with words of encouragement, constructive criticism to help me grow, and remember that, “no significant learning occurs without significant relationships.” I can improve relationships with others by being an active listener, reserving judgement, being present, and demonstrating empathy.

3. Enthusiastic-It is often said that, “nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm.” I firmly believe this and have seen it happen in my life and in the lives of others. I plan to begin each day enthused about the opportunity to positively change lives and impact the future of others!

4. Authentic– It takes too much energy to be someone or something that you are not, thus, I have found it so much easier to be me, the real me, in every situation. However, I am still working on growing in this area.

5. Teachable-To learn is to lead and lead is to constantly learn. The more teachable spirit I have, the better person I can become for myself, my family, friends, and my staff and students.

Be Great,

Dwight

Weeks 14 and 15 at New Albany High School!

The Carter Family, Thanksgiving 2015
The Carter Family, Thanksgiving 2015
Thanksgiving is my family’s favorite holiday! We enjoy the combination of the fall colors, cooler weather, and time to reflect on our lives independently and collectively as a family. It’s also a time for us to gather with family to break bread, laugh, listen to stories, and just relax. Let’s continue to focus on gratitude, love, and fellowship as we prepare for midterm exams and winter break.

Staff News
Congratulations to teachers Elliott Lemberg, Darren Falk, Karrie Horton, Jessica Whitehead, and ReginaKiss Me, Kate Poster Morlan and the entire cast and crew of Kiss Me, Kate for stellar performances over the weekend! There were a variety of solo and group performances that showcased our talented students.

Thanks to our Social Committee for hosting another successful OSU-Michigan Tailgate Party in the Jefferson Room on Tuesday, November 24th! The outcome of the game was not what we wanted, but it was nice to gather as a staff to enjoy good food and good company!

Art teacher Juliette Montague recently facilitated two presentations at Morehead State University. Her first presentation was on the importance of concept drawing for product design to group of STEM students. She showed them examples of how Industrial Designers and Architects use perspective drawing for concept ideas. She also gave a brief hands-on perspective drawing lesson to the class. Her second presentation was to the Arts Entrepreneur class in which she made a presentation using her own work and experiences marketing, promoting and selling artwork. She had great experiences interacting with the students both during and after the presentations. It is rewarding to share our expertise others outside our classrooms because it’s another opportunity to serve others.

Students as Learners
Last week in Claire Monk and Jessica Dorman’s physical science classrooms, students explored concepts related to force and motion in an authentic and active manner by maneuvering a bowling ball through an obstacle course. Students were tasked with a mission to complete an obstacle course by applying a force (with a hockey stick or broom) to the bowling ball, and to graphically represent the relative magnitude and direction of the motion of the bowling ball throughout the course. They were assessed based on successful completion of the course and were penalized for applied force infractions and inaccurate representations of vectors on their motion map of the obstacle course. Next week, students will relate this task to Newton’s Laws of Motion and continue to explore balanced and unbalanced forces.

Students in Lorin Love’s Biomedical Science course, while learning about biomolecules, diabetes and the insulin-glucagon cycle, celebrated a with a Plant Strong feast. Accounting for nutrients in plant-strong choices, students compared their meal with the standard American diet. At the conclusion of the feast, students were polled about what they learned. Following is a summary of their thoughts gathered on Polleverywhere!


Rigor/Relevance Framework
Rigor/Relevance Framework
Students in Anne Stidham’s Public Speaking course shared their policy change speeches last week. Students and teachers from other courses were invited to attend, as well as building and district administrators, which created an authentic audience for those delivering speeches. Students were asked to select a school topic of interest, such as ACT Period, House, school lunches, and the bell schedule. They then did research on what similar schools are doing, conducted interviews, summarized their findings, and persuaded administrators to consider their policy change suggestions. This was a great example of Quadrant D (high rigor, high relevance) activity because students selected their topics and had to apply their knowledge to solve an unpredictable situation. Additionally, they had to synthesize their results and present them in a compelling manner. It was a culmination of the skills they’ve learned in this course throughout the semester.

Upcoming Events
Monday, December 7th: Ohio Model United Nations Conference
Wind Ensemble Concert at 7:00 p.m. – McCoy

Tuesday, December 8th: Band Concert at 7:00 p.m. – McCoy

Saturday, December 12th: ACT

Article Worth Reading
11 Tips Successful People Use When Dealing With Problems in Life

Be Great,

Dwight

Week 13 at New Albany High School!

Staff News
Congratulations to Concord Counselor, Brandy Smith, and her husband as they are expecting their first child!

Substitute teacher Shannon Book shared with me the following information to let me know how our students feel about our Math Department:

Dear Teacher“I was subbing for Mrs. Morlan’s AP Calc AB class this morning and as the students were working diligently on a small group assignment, they started an impromptu discussion about how our math department is “stacked” (their actual quote) with talent. I overheard one student say, “Unfortunately, I got an A- that year but I learned so much I can’t complain.” The students named all of the teachers they had up to this point and they had great things to say about each one. Many of these kids plan to become engineers and, although they pointed out many people drop out of engineering programs after the first year, they felt they would be well prepared.

The best part about this conversation was it wasn’t prompted by anyone. It was a very candid and reflective conversation the students had on their own about the quality of education they have received at New Albany. Priceless.”

Students As Learners
Chemistry teacher Mary Cook facilitated a uniqueTeaching Cycle lab for her students a few days ago. It included formative assessment strategies that guided her instruction and required students to not just acquire knowledge, but also apply it to unknown situations. She states,

“College Prep Chemistry students are starting our unit on gas behavior and these lab stations are the first activity where students explore relationships between different variables by taking observations at different stations. After students collect observations, they identify the variables and constants for each station and then develop a particle level explanation and visual diagrams that support their collected evidence. Students then present their explanations at the particle level during white boarding group discussion to come up with the best explanation and visual representation (particle level and graphical). They then apply these explanations to more real world scenarios.”

BettsSpanish teacher Lisa Betts designed a lesson to help students apply the language to real-world scenarios during class last week. Following is a description of the activity:

“My students were given the task of creating a skit with at least a doctor, nurse and patient. The patient had to seek help for at least two ailments; the doctor and nurse had to gather information from the patient about what was going on, what symptoms s/he has, what occurred, what injury they might have, how it happened, etc. An exam had to be given to ascertain a final diagnosis, and then the doctor had to give some sort of course of action to help the person feel better. It was a total riot!”

Art teacher Juliette Montague’s students havegrowth-ahead made significant progress in their drawing ability! She recently shared a few artworks as evidence of student growth for her Student Learning Objective. I applaud the students’ attention to detail and perseverance. Check out this brief video that captures where students started and where they are now!

Veteran's Day Thank You Cards
Intervention Specialist Taylor Pinnick used Veterans Day as an opportunity for her students to send a care package to her boyfriend’s unit in the Army National Guard, who are currently deployed. Students from the Special Education Department at New Albany, from elementary school to high school, as well as SLC F in the 2-5 building, wrote letters and created cards to send to the unit. Students collected over 100 cards to send, as well as some special treats to help with the heat!
Veterans-Day-Pinterest-Pictures
Humanities teachers Sara Hric and Rachel Braswell celebrated Veterans Day by asking students to interview a current soldier or veteran and capture their experience. This assignment corresponds with their reading of Homer’s Iliad and The Odyssey where they are discussing the experience of the soldier/veteran. Students will also participate in a Socratic Seminar to discuss their findings. I observed a few groups of students perform skits about scenes from The Odyssey and a major part of the skit summary was to explain the connection to the soldier as they highlighted Greek values.

2015-16 School Theme
2015-16 School Theme
Fall Sports Wrap Up by Athletic Director Kevin Reed

The New Albany Eagles completed another fantastic fall sports campaign with multiple awards, honors and team accomplishments. Coming off a 6th consecutive Ralph Young all sports award, all eyes were on the Eagles as New Albany athletics has become the envy of central Ohio athletic programs. Of the 11 fall sports New Albany offers, all but 1 finished with a winning record. 15 Eagle athletes were named to the First Team All OCC-Capital teams, 12 were named to the Second Team All OCC-Capital teams, 1 to the Third Team All OCC-Capital, 3 to the Special Mention All OCC-Capital and 11 were named Honorable Mention ALL OCC-Capital.
OCC Capital
The boys golf team wrapped up their 6th consecutive OCC title by completing an undefeated OCC season (28-0). The boys golfers also wrapped up a terrific season by finishing 3rd in the sectional tournament and 6th at the district tournament. Girls tennis head coach Marc Thomas was named OCC-Capital Coach of the Year and Junior singles player Alex Cash was Sectional champion and a state qualifier. Cash was also named to the All State Tennis Team and Player of the Year in the OCC-Capital Conference Senior Amit Greenshtein was named Player of the Year in the OCC-Capital Conference for boys soccer. Four Eagle athletes were named to All District teams:
Alex Cash- girls tennis
Maddy Largent – volleyball
MiCayla Nash – volleyball
Kiana Khorrami – girls soccer

The girls soccer team, under 1st year head coach Kelly Snead, had a great tournament run finishing as District Runner Up with a tough 2-1 loss to Upper Arlington in the district final.
Girls Soccer Team

Senior football player Alex Boffo was named an OCC football scholar athlete. Junior girls tennis player Taylor Selby was a sectional runner-up. Junior Christina Vitellas and Sophomore Makena Romagnano tennis players were sectional runners up in doubles while Junior Jessica Von Zastrow and Freshman Valentina DiLorenzo placed 3rd in the girls sectional doubles tournament.

Aside from the boys golf OCC title, the girls tennis team were OCC runners up. Football, girls soccer and boys cross country finished 3rdin the OCC-Capital. Field Hockey finished 4th in their league. Boys soccer, volleyball and girls cross country finished 5th in the OCC-Capital and the girls golf team finished 6th.

Despite the target on all Eagle athletic teams, New Albany ended the fall season 3rd in the Ralph Young all sports race with 45 points; 12 points behind leader Olentangy and 10 points behind Olentangy Orange. Congratulations to our fall sports coaches and athletes!

Upcoming EventsKiss Me, Kate Poster
Monday, November 16th- #CelebrateMonday; BOE Meeting 6:30 pm Mershad Auditorium
Tuesday, November 17th- #BowTieTuesday
Thursday, November 19th-Kiss Me, Kate 7:00 pm McCoy
Friday, November 20th- Kiss Me, Kate 7:00 pm McCoy
Saturday, November 21st- Kiss Me, Kate 7:00 pm McCoy
Sunday, November 22nd- Kiss Me, Kate 2:30 pm

Video Worth Watching
What Students Really Need to Hear

Be Great,

Dwight

Week 12 at New Albany High School!

Veterans-Day-Pinterest-PicturesOn Wednesday, November 11th, we honor our Veterans by celebrating Veteran’s Day. We do not take for granted our veterans’ service here and abroad. We have several classes that write letters or send care packages to our active servicemen and women! On behalf of the NAHS students, staff, and faculty, we salute our Armed Forces!

Staff News
A sincere “thank you” to the following teachers who have volunteered to be club advisors:
Social Studies teacher Jeanette Milligan– New Albany’s Young Business Leaders and NA Stock Clubs
English teacher Lynnette Turner– Creative Writing Club
Social Studies teacher Paul Locke– Junior Achievement

Students As Learners
Choir teacher Ms. Karrie Horton and the A Cappella Singers had the experience of a lifetime during a combined concert on October 24th. They were joined by choirs from high school choirs from Northland, Whitehall, Pickerington Central, and Capriccio Youth Choir, and led by guest arranger and composer Stacey Gibbs! Following is a video of their performance of “Swing Down Chariots” and all three soloists are New Albany students, Colin Sproule, Ally Blais and Rayna Hutcherson.

After the performance, Mrs. Horton asked her students to reflect on their performance and it is evident they thoroughly enjoyed this experience! Click here to read their responses.

Congratulations to students in Art Foundations, 2D Art, KAP Drawing, and AP Drawing classes for the outstanding art on display in E Lobby!

Independent ReadingI observed English teacher Jacqui Loughry’s AP English 12 course and she has created a
great centering activity for students at the beginning of the period. While she takes attendance, students are given 15 minutes of Independent Reading. Every student was engaged in a book of his or her choice and once she completed attendance, Jacqui picked up her book and read as well! I saw a variety of books, from science fiction to biographies and everything in between. She created a handout to explain the purpose of Independent Reading which states, “This year, we will be continuing to build your skills as a confident, capable, enthusiastic lifelong reader. We will be doing this through independent reading time-15 minutes per class period almost every day and 15 minutes every day on your own.”

I applaud Jacqui for creating the conditions for students to foster a love for reading that isn’t specifically tied to a grade or assignment. Additionally, it’s an excellent use of class time to develop global skills.

Upcoming Events
Tuesday, November 10th-#BowTieTuesday
Wednesday, November 11th- Veteran’s Day; National Signing Day at 2:45 Jefferson Room; Senior Financial Aid Meeting at 7:00 pm Mini-Theatre
Thursday, November 12th- Department Meetings at 7:15 am; Eastland CC Field Trip
Friday, November 13th- Eastland CC Field Trip

Articles Worth Reading
Staying the Same is Ultimately Falling Behind
Staff Morale Is Lower Than Ever

Be Great,

Dwight

Week 10 at New Albany High School!

Because I Said I Would
It was such a blessing to have Alex Sheen share his message, “Because I Said I Would”, with us on Friday! He captivated us by sharing powerful examples of what happens when promises are made and kept. He inspired us to not only think bigger, but to be more intentional in our actions to serve others. He made us laugh, cry, pause, and cheer. He then challenged us to take action! Our students will receive 10 Promise Cards and I look forward to the positive impact this will have at #NAHSCommUNITY!

Because I Said I Would

We had a solid final week of the grading period, which was capped with Alex Sheen’s presentation, a Pink Out, and a celebration of our fall senior athletes, band members, and drill team members. For an overview of our week, check out the Week 10 Storify!

Staff News
Intervention Specialist Mike Covey is returning to work on Monday, October 25th!

Please keep Attendance Secretary Karen Brosnan in your prayers as she mourns the loss of one of her dogs last Wednesday.

I want to publicly thank Global Language teachers and Co-Department Chairpersons Kris Fuller and Lauren Jones, Science teacher Greg Flecher, and Elementary teacher Kate Thoma for going to the What Great Educators Do Differently Conference with me last weekend! It was a nice opportunity for us to get to know each other a little better, make connections with educators from 17 different states and Canada, and to learn together. Kate Thoma recently wrote a reflective blog post about her experience!

Students As Learners
I noticed a tweet Math teacher Ashley Langenderfer posted about her Honors Geometry class so I asked her to share a brief summary of the learning activity!

Honors Geometry“Honors Geometry students in my classes completed their first quarter project on “Real Life Math” with the objective to recognize mathematical connections to the world around them and to see how different careers utilize mathematics on a daily basis. Students interviewed someone of their choice (family, neighbor, or community member) about the role math plays in their job. Some interviews conducted by students include: a chef, a Homeland Security Advisor, an engineer, a doctor, a dentist, a CFO, an architect, a business owner, an interpreter, and many more! After their interview, students reflected upon the responses and conversations to develop their own stance regarding questions related to the study of mathematics – such as, “How would you define problem-solving? Describe an instance where you needed to solve a problem in your life.” Upon completion of the interview and reflection, students created an advertisement/visual to depict the job that they learned about through the process. Students enjoyed seeing math in action outside of school. Many of them commented that they were surprised by how much math and what types of math they learned about in the process!

The course demographics consist of mostly freshmen; therefore, Honors Geometry is the first “honors math experience” for many of the students. The project was designed to help broaden their exposure to mathematics around them but also to draw a focus upon problem-solving and making connections as key components that the students can carry with them throughout the rest of their learning experience.”

Thanks to Mrs. Langenderfer for creating this Quadrant D learning experience for your students!

Upcoming Events
Monday, October 26th- First day of 2nd Grading Period; BOE Meeting at 6:30 PM Mershad Auditorium

Tuesday, October 27th- #BowtieTuesday

Wednesday, October 28th- Sophomore Meeting during House; Sophomore “Commitment to Excellence” Assembly during ACT; #ohedchat “Digital Citizenship” at 9:00 PM

Thursday, October 29th- Sophomore “Commitment to Excellence” Assembly during ACT

Monday, November 2nd- Department Chair Meeting at 3:00 PM Professional Library

Article Worth Reading
How To Give Your Child The Gift of Failure

Video Worth Watching
Why Change Is So Hard

Be Great,

Dwight