Transportation

Information

Any questions regard-

ing transportation or to

make arrangements for

alternate stops due to

daycare issues, please

call the Bus Garage at

828-4539 or 828-4096.

Volume 27 — No. 6 October/November 2009

JAY NEWS

SHEPHERD PUBL IC SCHOOLS

SMS Partners with MDE For

Superintendent’s Dropout Challenge

Shepherd Middle School has partnered with the

Michigan Department of Education and will be taking part in

the Superintendent’s Dropout Challenge. This fall State Su-

perintendent of Public Instruction Mike Flanagan issued a

challenge to Michigan's 4,000 public schools. "Today, one

out of every four Michigan children fails to graduate with

their class," said Flanagan. "This challenge is the first step in

helping thousands of Michigan students stay in school."

Each Michigan school committing to the Dropout

Challenge was asked to use their existing student achieve-

ment, retention, attendance and behavior data to identify 10-

15 students with multiple early warning dropout signs and

provide appropriate research-based supports and interven-

tions. Shepherd Middle School has a Pyramid of Interven-

tions in place to insure that there are ways to help students

with these at-risk warning signs.

The Pyramid of Interventions includes an After

School Program - which consists of a Homework Lab and a

highly successful group counseling program called Positive

Teens. During the day reading classes (in addition to the lan-

guage arts classes) are in place for students at the 6th and 7th

grade level who are not proficient in reading. Students may

be placed in a Study Skills class for one or more marking

periods if they are struggling in two or more classes. A man-

datory lunchtime Ketchup Room for any students who have

not completed and turned in homework is in place. For stu-

dents who consistently are behind in their work in one or

more classes, there is a Focus Room with consistent teacher

support. Response to Intervention Teams/Study Study

Teams meet every three weeks to monitor at risk students

and to put in place/revise students’ intervention plans.

Because of Shepherd Middle School having the Re-

sponse to Intervention programs in place for students at risk,

failure rates and retention numbers have dropped dramati-

cally. Shepherd Middle School feels that they are up to the

Superintendent’s Dropout Challenge!

Sherry & John Bruder Honored as

Grand Marshals of the Homecoming Parade.

Superintendent's

Corner . . .

Shepherd Public Schools

Administration 2009-2010

Terry Baker.……………….....……………Superintendent

Kevin Kolb…..Asst. Superintendent, Finance & Personnel

Doug Bush………………………………….H.S. Principal

Wendy Bridges….…Asst. H.S. Principal/Athletic Director

Phyllis Hall….……………………………..M.S. Principal

Thomas Ryan..……………………………Elem. Principal

Dan Alexander .…………………….Asst. Elem. Principal

Kim Stegman .....Winn Elem. Principal/Spec. Ed. Director

Kelly Miscikoski……………Odyssey/Com. Ed. Director/

K-12 Curr. Dir.

Board of Education 2009-2010

Tim Wilmot…....……………………………….President

John Cline…...….………………………...Vice President

Gina Gross….…….……………………………. Secretary

Ryan Hohlbein…….…………………………. Treasurer

Matt Showalter……...…….……………………..Trustee

Sarah Cuthbertson ....…...…...…………………..Trustee

Lisa Myers………...………………….………….Trustee

Terry Baker

2009-2010 Board of Education

Meeting Calendar

Date Location Program

Nov. 17 HS/MS Media Center Board

Dec. 15 Shepherd Elementary Shep. Elem.

Jan. 19, 2010 HS/MS Media Center Board

Feb. 16 HS/MS Media Center Board

Mar. 16 HS/MS Media Center Board

April 20 High School Gym. MEAP

May 18 HS/MS Media Center Board

June 15 HS/MS Media Center Board

All meetings begin at 7:00 PM

unless otherwise noted.

Page 2 Superintendent’s Corner October/November 2009

ed-2-go On-Line Classes

Shepherd Community Education

Offers Hundreds of Online Courses

Shepherd Community Education has a program

that makes it easy for you to take high-quality, non-credit

online courses—no matter where you’re located Shep-

herd Community Education has partnered with ed2go to

offer hundreds of online, instructor-facilitated courses.

Through well-crafted lessons, expert online in-

struction, and interaction with fellow students, you’ll gain

valuable knowledge at your convenience. You'll have the

flexibility to study at your own pace combined with

enough structure and support to complete the course. And

you'll be able to access the classroom 24/7 from any-

where with an Internet connection.

New sessions of each course run every month.

They last six weeks, with two new lessons being released

weekly (for a total of 12). The courses are entirely Web-

based with comprehensive lessons, quizzes, and assign-

ments. A dedicated professional instructor facilitates

every course; pacing learners, answering questions, giv-

ing feedback, and facilitating discussions.

Shepherd Community Education is pleased to

offer this catalog of courses, which provides the most

convenient, affordable, and accessible non-credit courses

available anywhere.

To learn more, visit them online at

www.ed2go.com/odyssey or call Shepherd Community

Education at 773-9473.

In an effort to bring you up-to-date

on the progress being made on the build-

ing project, I am including the October

Construction Manager’s Report at the

end of this edition of the Jay News. It

includes many photos showing the cur-

rent status.

October/November 2009 October/November 2009 Main Elementary Page 3

Johnathan Rand

Shepherd Elementary stu-

dents assist author Johnathan

Rand during his visit to the school

this fall. The author told students

how he became a writer and en-

couraged them to read and write.

The presentation was made possi-

ble by the Shepherd Elementary

PTO.

End of the Rainbow

There is a new gym, cafeteria and office addition sitting at the end of the rainbow. This

part of the elementary renovation should be ready for use mid-year.

Student Council

Page 4 Middle School October/November 2009

Middle School students and staff enthusi-

astically returned to school. Although we are still

early into the year, many events and activities

have already taken place. 7th and 8th grade girls

are playing basketball, Spirit Week has come and

gone, boys are playing flag football, Student

Council is up and running, we held our Parent

Open House, rehearsals have begun for the MS

musical and school pictures have been taken

(retakes will be Thursday, October 29).

The choirs and actors are rehearsing for their per-

formance of “The Ever After…A Musical.” You can see

them at their very best on November 6th and 7th. The ex-

act time of the performances will be announced at a later

date but mark your calendar to see our Middle School

students act, dance, and sing for your enjoyment.

Busy Start To School

The Ever After…

A Musical

The Middle School Student Council has nomi-

nated officers for this year. Co-Presidents are Seth

Davis and Hollie Dickman. The Secretary is Chelsea

Ball, and the Treasurer is Stephany Pardy.

Citizens of the Month

The following students received the honor of be-

ing “Citizens of the Month” for October, 2009: Brenan

Curtiss (6th), Heather Huber (6th), Josh Cline (7th), Jacob

Darnell (7th), Charliene Bryant (7th), Hollie Dickman

(8th), and Sean Yesmunt (8th).

The MEAP

To kick-off MEAP testing the Middle

School held a motivational assembly encouraging

students to be prepared and do their very best. A

humorous skit by the faculty clearly illustrated

how not to approach MEAP testing.

Students Visit CMU

On September 20th Taylor Neyer (8th), and

Nick Sponseller (7th) traveled with Mr. Nestle to

Central Michigan University. Taylor and Nick

spoke to a group of almost 70 college students

about what life is like in the Middle School. For

an hour and a half the college students asked

questions to Taylor and Nick and they fielded an-

swers explaining how young adolescence think

about school and their daily lives. They both did

an excellent job representing our school.

Delays & Cancellations

Once again it is that time of the year when

the potential for delays, early releases and possible

school closings is upon us. As in the past, every-

thing possible will be done to make the decision in

regards to school delays/closings in a timely fashion.

Once the decision is made to either delay or

close school the following television and radio sta-

tions will be notified.

T.V. stations:

Channels 5, 9/10, 12 and 25.

The radio stations are:

WCEN-FM 94.5 WCFX-FM 95.3

WFYC 1280 WCZY-FM 104.3

WMLM 1520 WUGN-FM 99.7

WIOG-FM 102.5 WCMU-FM 89.5

& 90.7

You are encouraged to watch or listen to one

of the above-mentioned stations for information

about possible delays and closures.

October/November 2009 Middle School Page 5 2009

The Student Council began their responsibilities by planning Homecoming Spirit Week with the cul-

mination of the Homecoming Assembly on Friday. Each day had a theme; Class Color Monday, Twisted

Tuesday, Dress Up Wednesday, Sports Accessory Thursday, and Blue and Gold Friday. The highlight of the

assembly was the return of retired MS teachers, Mr. and Mrs. Bruder, who traveled from their home in Florida

to serve as Grand Marshall for the weekend festivities.

Upcoming choir events:

Nov. 6 & 7 Middle School Musical (6-8th grade

choirs with cast) in MS gym

Nov. 11 Veteran's Day Assembly in HS gym in

the morning

Nov. 12 Concert Choir, Women's Chorus, 8th

grade and 7th grade competition in

Farewell in the evening

Nov. 21 Concert Choir and Women's Chorus

Madrigal Dinner in MS gym at 6 pm

Dec. 3 Madrigal Dinner Cast Performance for

Alma Shriner Members

Dec. 7 Christmas Caroling for business in

downtown Shepherd

Homecoming Spirit Week

Page 6 Winn Elementary October/November 2009

On October 23rd, the HS

Marching Band, Concert Choir,

Women's Chorus, 8th Grade Band and

8th Grade Choir will perform together on our new

football field during the Shepherd Varsity football

game. This Shepherd Fine Arts performance will

feature over 200 Shepherd students during the half

time show. This will be an amazing performance.

You won't want to miss this. Come cheer on the

Shepherd Varsity football players and enjoy the mu-

sical performance of our bands and choirs!

Johnathan Rand A Huge Hit With Students

Students enjoyed a great presentation from

Michigan Author Johnathan Rand. We all learned

how to do a spooky voice (pictured above). The

“Chiller” van was also a favorite for the students.

Mr. Rand and his wife live in Topinabee 25 miles

south of the Mackinaw Bridge. If you are in the In-

dian River area you can check out the

“Chillermania” store at 1651 S. Straits Highway,

Indian River. Don’t forget to check out

www.americanchillers.com web site!

Art Reach Helps Students

Gordon Szczubelek a local artist with Art

Reach helps fifth grade students with paper mache

projects for the Fall Festival. Winn Elementary

would like to thank him for his time and expertise.

Gordon Szczubelek (above) drew a fabulous picture for

students on their whiteboard.

Over 200 Fine Arts Students

To Perform Half-time Show

October/November 2009 High School Page 7

Shepherd Blue Jay News

Hits The Airwaves Were you in attendance at the dedication of the new Veteran’s Memorial

Field? Did you see Homecoming Queen Cassie Conroy adeptly catch her crown

shortly after she was chosen as our new queen? These and other memorable

events have been aired weekly on the new Shepherd Blue Jay News television

show. The show is being produced as a service project of National Honor Soci-

ety students, advised by Merrie Hammel, and Multi-media class members, taught

by Caroline Pramuka.

Students Trevor Schafer, Travis Schafer, Jacob Aldrich, Travis Clem-

ishaw, Alexa Newell, and John Freedman attended summer workshops coordinated by Carey Hammel of

MAC3 TV in order to be better prepared in filming and editing techniques required by MAC3 TV, the local

access channel of Charter Cable System. A new Shepherd Blue Jay News show is being produced every two

weeks and airs on Charter Cable Channel 3 three times weekly. The show times are Tuesday at 3:30 pm,

Wednesdays at 8 pm, and Sundays at 9 pm.

Knowing that we have many families in our school district that do not have access to Charter Cable

Television, the Shepherd Public Schools Webmaster Corey Grim, has also posted the shows on the district

home page. Alumni and friends of the district that are not located in the mid-Michigan area are also able to

view the shows as well. It is hoped that everyone enjoys this brief glimpse of life at Shepherd High School.

50 little girls participated in the three hour clinic that focused on learning cheers, jumps, gymnastics,

skills and stunts. Each girl received a t-shirt and had the opportunity to perform at the Varsity football game

vs. Ovid-Elsie on Oct 16th. About 30 of the 50 girls showed up to the game to perform. (I think weather had an

affect on the turnout) Overall it was a great time and the girls, both little and varsity had a blast.

Little Girls Enjoy Cheer Clinic

Odyssey MS/HS October/November 2009

News from the Woods...

Kelly Miscikoski

We are off to a great start at Odyssey! Students are reading and writing like crazy in all

of their classes. The staff has begun discussing student writing and what we can do to help kids

improve their writing ability. Teaching writing is difficult. It is especially difficult for those of

us who are not language arts teachers. How do we cover all of the required high school content

(science, math, social studies and English) while also teaching writing at the same time? This

is the question that we are struggling with right now. It will take us all year to come up with an

answer…but we will come up with one.

Over the last two years, I’ve seen what the Odyssey staff is capable of. The reading in-

struction that is currently occurring in all classes every day is a result of teachers’ hard work

and commitment. Together, we figured out how to teach reading while teaching our content.

It’s not something we do in place of teaching content, it’s something we do while teaching our

content. Most importantly, we have seen the results. Our students are better readers!

The constant learning and adjusting how we do things is messy, frustrating, sometimes

downright painful, stuff. Teaching is not easy; GREAT teaching is even more challenging. Od-

yssey teachers are GREAT teachers. They struggle through because they truly care about their

students and want them to be successful. To us, “successful” means at minimum that our stu-

dents are good readers and writers when they graduate from high school. We are willing to do

whatever it takes to make sure that our students are successful. This philosophy is the founda-

tion and heart of a professional learning community.

It is truly a pleasure to work in a school where the focus is always on doing what is best

for students. Sometimes, I don’t want to give the STAR reading assessment. I’m very busy,

you know. I have many responsibilities to the district. (In case you missed it, this is me whin-

ing.) My teachers will not let me slack off. Believe me, if STAR testing is on the calendar, they

will remind me. In the same way, I will remind them that they need to document which reading

strategies they are using each day. If I’m to be truly honest, we annoy the crap out of each

other; and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

So, I would like to thank Taleen, Brian, Mandy and Peter (Will). Keep up the great

work! You guys are awesome. You are truly making a difference.

2009

Page 12 F.Y.I. September 2009

September 2008 F.Y.I. Page 13 September 2009

Page 14 F. Y. I. September 2009

September 2009 F.Y.I. Page 15 2009