Comet CourierVolume 18, Issue 4 May 2015

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This year has gone by very quickly, perhaps, because of this being my final year at Cassville, but more than likely because life goes quickly when you are “having fun”. The seniors will eventually know that their 14 years in school were, indeed, fun. They will look back in fond memories of their time with their friends and peers, working with their teachers, and enjoying all the benefits of a small high school experience. They will graduate on Saturday, May 23rd at 1:30 p.m. and their life will never be the same. I will remember this group as 7th graders in my first year at Cassville.

Meanwhile the rest of our students will go to school through May 29th. It is always interesting for me to watch the younger students replace the seniors at the “senior” table in the lunchroom. They are already thinking about being the leaders of the school. It is my wish that they indeed become leaders their senior year and continue as they go through life. Elementary and high school are the first steps in their quest for adulthood and the rest of their lives. We strive to provide those tools for our students to succeed in that endeavor.

As I look back at this year, the highlight certainly was the passage of our newest referendum. It is proof that this community appreciates this school district and all that it stands for. The referendum had strong support and will help our school to continue to provide a quality education for years to come.

I would like to thank the community, the school board, and the students for their hard work for this school to succeed. Many of our students were active in supporting the referendum. I would also like to thank Mr. Luster for his hard work and wish him well as he starts his journey next year as the new district administrator at Cassville. I know he will do well and continue the strong tradition of a great school district.

Mr. Lee KullandSuperintendent

Hopefully the last months of school will continue to bring us warm temperatures and sunshine. Students are continuing to do a great job in both the classroom and in their extracurricular activities. The F.F.A. will be starting the annual flower and plant sales. Our students guided by staff, Mr. Boyum, and Ms. Mai are doing an excellent job working through the Badger 3-8 testing. Nice job and thank you parents for helping us with this task!Christal Bean and Zoe Gotzinger each qualified for the state forensics competition this spring. Payton Brinkman, Andrew Ihm, Gus Hetcher, and Ben Wheeler all qualified in the state solo ensemble. These finalists each brought home a truck load of Gold and silver medals at state! These state qualifiers will perform on May 19th, at our Fine Arts/MS-HS Concert. This night will undoubtedly be full of great performances. Please join us! Nice job and congratulations everyone. Seniors attended the Reality Check April 22nd and saw first-hand how fast money goes away when paying for needs and wants. The junior class held a very nice prom and their parents held a post prom lock-in that also went off very well. Thank you to the junior advisors and parents for all your work and assistance for our students. There were a lot of positive comments about the dance and the post prom activities. It was a great time for all!!

Our spring teams are doing a wonderful job. Thank you to all the athletes and coaches for your hard work and sportsmanship. Looking ahead, there are still some big events we hope you can join us. On May 8th, we will finish the Coins for a Cure drive that is led by Mr. Lavelle and his multi-age group. They will have a balloon release on the football field around 10:00 a.m. This event will help raise financial support and cancer awareness. Then on May 12th at 9:15 a.m., we are having an assembly to thank businesses, support staff, students, and volunteers in the high school gymnasium. This spring the Cassville School district received the best form of support from the community with the passage of a five year referendum! Thank you to all of our families, supporters, and friends around this district to show such faith and commitment to our school, staff, and children!The final month of school is a big one for all of our students, but of course the seniors will rise to the top in regards to their final days here in the halls of Cassville High School. We wish them the best and look forward to all the great things they will do here in Cassville and abroad! Class night will be held on Wednesday, May 20th and our graduates will receive their diplomas on Saturday, May 23rd, starting at 1:30 p.m. Final Exams in the high school will be on May 28th and 29th. The last day for all students will be on May 29th with a 1:00 dismissal.

Have a great summer!!! Mr. John Luster, Principal

A Word From The Principal: Finishing Strong From the Office of the Superintendent:

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High School NewsEarth ScienceStudents in Mr. Lavelle’s Earth Science Class and Mrs. Boyum’s 4th Grade Elementary Class celebrated Arbor Day and Earth Day by planting five Red Maples on the Cassville School Campus. The high school students and elementary students broke down into smaller groups to work on the tree planting project.

The planting sites were predetermined and Digger’s Hot Line was notified. Their survey revealed no obstacles to the areas that were selected for planting. The students dug the hole to a depth of twelve inches and to a width of twenty–four inches wide. The excess soil was placed on a tarp and was mixed with organic soil in even proportions for the next part of the planting process. The Red Maple was placed in the hole and the mixed soil was packed around the root ball.

The students watered and added more soil into the hole until the desired height was achieved. A water permeable membrane barrier was placed around each tree. The students completed the project by adding mulch on top of the barrier.

A special “Thank You’ goes out to the American Transmission Company for funding this important project.

CriminalisticsThe students in the criminalistics class will put their new found knowledge to the test when they enter into the crime scene room. The students will generate a “Murder Book”, which may or may not help them figure out “Who Dunn It”. Good Luck Detectives!!!!!

Life ScienceThe students are learning about the organ systems of the human body. Recently they built a full size digestive tract, which was placed on display throughout the science room. Each project was very unique and the students did a terrific job. Way to Go!!!

Coins For a CureThe Cassville Coins for a Cure is off to a slower start this year than normal, but recently, the activity has been picking up. REMEMBER that the Balloon Release will be held on May 8th, 2015. Signing of Honor Shirts will take place prior to and after the balloon release. There will be a limited number of T-Shirts for sale at the event as well as donation boxes. EVERYONE is WELCOME!

Telegraph Herald Tour

On Thursday, April 9, students in Mrs. Oswald’s Desktop Publishing, Intro to Business, and Accounting classes toured Dubuque Telegraph Herald. Many careers are housed in that building from Accounting & IT to Graphic/Web Design, Journalism, Photography & Sales/Marketing--even a bit of Social Media Marketing. Students had a bit of fun as well on the bus ride and eating at McDonald’s after.

The PlungeOn Thursday, April 9, 2015, six sophomores attended the “Plunge” in Lancaster, Wisconsin. The “Plunge” is a simulation experience that begins with an alcohol related “mock accident”, and then follows the victims from the intial arrival of first responders through several community service providers as the consequences of the accident unfold. The Backstrom family—who lost three sons due to an alcohol-related crash—spoke at the event.

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FFAThe FFA Judging competition on March 26. went well! Noah Fure placed 7th individually out of 256 participants in the Wildlife Category. The rest of the Cassville students had decent scores and did well in their competitions. Cassville had four teams compete including: Wildlife (Noah Fure, Kaitie Kinyon, Hayley Williams, and Brad Klein), Horses (McKayla Winkers, Brielle Baliff, Luke Kirschbaum, and Nick Murray), Poultry (Tarka White, Brandon Kinyon, Luke Baliff), and Dairy Products (Andrew Ihm, Ally Clauer, Jenna Baliff, and Tyler Harris.)

Ad Sales Campaign Winners!

1st Place - Keegan Morley2nd Place - Rylie Laufenberg

3rd Place - Taylor Ploessl4th Place - Andrea Okey

Congrats!All Win a Free Yearbook!

Physical EducationMr. Reising’s 5th-12th grade Physical Education classes recently completed pickle-ball, badminton, indoor archery and are presently involved with a golf and softball unit.

The 9th grade Health students completed their PowerPoints on a wide variety of related topics. Presently, they are taking the Heartsaver 1st Aid/CPR and AED training. At the completion of the training each student will receive an American Heart Association CPR card, which is valid for two years.

The Personal Fitness classes continue to work hard in the fitness room and gym to improve athletic performance, reduce incident of injury and develop positive, lifelong health and fitness habits. The following have earned their way into the clubs.

Gold Club (Bench and Squat 160% of body weight):

Dillon VogtDallas Esser

Silver Club (Bench and Squat 135% of body weight):

Colton ReynoldsLuke Kirschbaum

Christian ReynoldsTodd Haverland

Jeff Walker

Bronze Club (Bench and Squat 110% of body weight):

Noah FureCaleb DahseJeff WalkerDylan JohlHunter Nix

James HaasWill Baliff

Keegan MorleyCam JensenGus Hetcher

Enjoy the nice spring weather!!!!!! Mr. Reising

Students of the Month

April

EnglishBrandon Boxrucker

Most Improved EnglishCaleb Adams

Art EducationChase Lopez

Technology EducationCaleb Dahse

ScienceDylan Ganahl-Johll

AgHayley Williams

ScienceKendra Rouse

Special Recognition8th Grade Class

May

Good CitizensProm Committee

Business EdJesica Yang

Business EdCaleb Dahse

Yearbook Ad Sales Campaign Winners

TAKami Kedley

Teen of the Week

March: Kayla Mumm

April: Caleb Adams

May: Caleb Dahse

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MarchBand

Chase Lopez

Social StudiesKayla Mumm

Special Recognition Desktop Publishing Class

Foreign LanguageJack Jensen

ScienceJames Haas

EnglishMakayla Bennett

MathDalton Pojar

Herb Kohl ScholarshipA $3000 Herb Kohl Educational Foundation 2015 Excellence Scholarship was presented to Andrew Ihm, at a recognition luncheon hosted by U.S. Senator Herb Kohl (Retired).

The Herb Kohl Excellence Scholarship recognizes students who have demonstrated academic potential, outstanding leadership, citizenship, community service, integrity and other special talents.

The Herb Kohl Educational Foundation has been recognizing educational excellence annually since 1990 with $1000 Excellence Scholarships to graduating high school students throughout Wisconsin. In celebration of the foundation’s 25th anniversary, Herb Kohl has tripled the scholarship amount to $3000 per recipient. Since it was established in 1990, the Herb Kohl Educational Foundation has awarded $9 million to Wisconsin students, teachers and schools.

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4K and 5K NewsOn April 20, Isaac Okey from Royal Bank read a book to the 4K and 5K students and talked to them about saving in honor of the 19th Annual National Teach Children to Save Day. The 5K students also be worked with Mrs. Oswald’s high school students on their Mother’s Day gifts and will be showing off their reading skills to their HS multi–age partners by reading books to them. These classes appreciate and enjoy learning from community helpers and working with HS classes.

Elementary News3rd Grade NewsThe Third Graders were excited to make rollercoasters out of pipe insulators. They used the rollercoasters to discuss potential and kinetic energy, gravity, overcoming gravity, variable speed, and to calculate speed.

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1st Grade NewsFirst grader students welcomed the first day of spring by inviting parents into the classroom to watch a performance of The Gigantic Turnip. This play was adapted from a Russian folktale written by Aleksei Tolstoy. The children did a wonderful job of bringing this story of teamwork and positive thinking to life. Students then served their special guests cookies and punch. It was a delicious and fun way to bid farewell to winter!

5th Grade NewsMrs. Wetter’s Fifth Graders from Cassville Elementary wrote essays to Wisconsin Farm Bureau’s Essay Contest on “Why bees are important to Wisconsin’s Agriculture.” Each student received a personal certificate and a $2 bill for participating. However Robby Roe was given a $5 check for his essay. Congrats Class!!!

The Fifth Graders also made Marble Mazes in cooperative groups. Each group planned and built their own maze. The purpose was to have a maze that the marble would take the longest to get from start to finish. This project was at the end of the work and energy science unit.

2nd Grade NewsThe second grade students have been very excited to learn about the life cycle of the butterfly. In science class they learned that the butterfly is a living thing that grows and changes. It has four states in its life cycle. First it is an egg. Then a larva or caterpillar hatches from the egg. Next, the caterpillar becomes a pupa inside a chrysalis. Finally an adult butterfly breaks out of the chrysalis. The students have been watching this process take place with our own painted lady butterflies. We started by putting our own caterpillar into a container with food. After, they watched the caterpillar make its own chrysalis. Now the painted lady butterflies are breaking out into our classroom butterfly net. How neat!

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“Magic of Reading” ShowCassville School District’s Title 1 program sponsored Curtis Hed’s “Magic of Reading” Show! He performed two different acts. The show during the day, was to kick off the evening’s Literacy Night. Mr. Hed stressed the importance of going to the library and practicing reading. He performed tricks in which he invited kids and/or adults to assist him. After the second performance, families enjoyed cookies and milk and kids were able to have a chance at winning door prizes.

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Important UpcomingDates to Remember!!!

Thank You/Appreciation DayMay 12 - 9:15 a.m.

8th Grade Careers TripWednesday May 13

1:00 DismissalThursday, May 14Teacher Inservice

MS/HS Spring Concert &Fine Arts Night

7:00 p.m.

Senior ExamsMay 19 & 20

Senior Class NightWednesday, May 20

7:00 p.m HS Gym

High School GraduationSaturday, May 231:30 p.m. HS Gym

No SchoolMonday, May 25

8th Grade RecognitionWednesday, May 27

7:00 p.m.

Last Day of SchoolFriday, May 29

1:00 p.m. Dismissal