January 27, 2000
Volume 9, No. 2
Student Council chose to provide lunch for all Summit students on January 24 because there were no food services available. We all enjoyed sub sandwiches and chips.
If you have not returned your Summit Parent Satisfaction Survey, please take a few minutes to fill it out and return it to the Summit office as soon as possible. You could win the raffle by doing so!
The Yearbook committee is now collecting baby pictures from the eighth graders. In order for the picture to be in the yearbook, it needs to be turned in to Ms. Molenaar by February 15. The picture which you submit can not be returned. Thanks.
The students and faculty would like to ask your support in sponsoring our 1999-2000 yearbook. Your sponsorship of $40.00 per page would help us keep the cost of the yearbook down and will get the name of your business into the homes of our students, friends, and extended family. We will print your business or family name, including logo, address, phone number, or internet address. Forms are available in the Summit office. For more information please contact Ms. Molenaar at 303-499-9511 or Laura Durocher at 303-449-2382.
The Summit Board of Directors met on Monday, January 24. Bernie Grove reported that the semester is off to a good start, and that scheduling has gone fairly smoothly this semester. Peak to Peak representatives gave a report on the opening of the new elementary school and on progress which has been made to acquire land for the new middle and high school campus.
Ron Goldfarb then presented summaries of pending state legislation relevant to charter schools. The status of pending and existing grants was reviewed. The Board voted to purchase Summit shirts for the faculty to be worn at official functions, and Board members will have the option to purchase their own logo shirts. Tasks were then assigned to Board members that will allow the Summit Annual Report to be completed in a timely fashion.
The Board also voted to admit the first 75 6th graders currently on the waiting list. At this time, no 7th and 8th grade students are being admitted, pending further data on the full enrollment picture for the 2000-2001 academic year. The faculty review scheduling process was also completed. The Board then continued its ongoing discussion on site options.
The next Summit Board meeting will be held on Monday, February 7 at 7 PM in the faculty workroom.
Have you been searching for a way to recognize and thank our outstanding Summit teachers and administrators? Here's the perfect way to do just that!
Attached to this newsletter is an Amgen Award for Teacher Excellence nomination form. Amgen will award $10,000 each to two Boulder County teachers and to one principal or assistant principal who have been inspirational and innovative educators. We strongly encourage you and/or your child to think of one (or more) of our own outstanding teachers and administrators to nominate for this generous award, to highlight their hard work and the commitment that makes Summit so successful for our children. WE know they're exceptional and wonderful … let's tell Amgen and Boulder County, too.
If you would like to nominate more than one person, just make additional copies of the nomination form. As noted on the form, nominations can also be submitted via theAmgen website at: http://www.amgen.com/corporate/AmgenTeacher
The deadline for submitting Amgen award nominations is February 25, 2000.
Due to the high volume of schedule change requests made during the first few weeks of a semester, please do not call or visit the counseling office to request a schedule change. Instead, make your request in writing, be sure it is signed by a parent, and submit it to the office. Forms for this purpose may be obtained in the office. If there is a problem with granting your request, Ms. Bartley will get back to you or your student. Otherwise, your student's new printed schedule with the requested change will be delivered to your student at school.
Note: Students may not change the classes they attend until they receive a new printed schedule from the counselor's office. Core course change requests will be processed first, and elective course change requests last. Due to scheduling conflicts and the need to balance class sizes and teacher loads, schedule change requests cannot always be granted. Please be patient in waiting for schedule changes to be processed.
Several area high schools will be holding academic planning nights to help 8th graders and their parents choose appropriate courses for 9th grade. I encourage all students and parents to attend these evenings at the high school they plan to attend to gather information about placement, course offerings, and registration procedures. Students who will attend Boulder High or Fairview High will be able to register for their high school courses at Summit during the third week in February. Students planning to attend any other high school must make an appointment to register with the high school counselor at school they plan to attend.
Barring any unforeseen circumstances, the CSAP tests will be given to all Summit students on March 7-9. Please do not plan vacations or medical appointments for those days.
The trip to Costa Rica will take place on Tuesday, June 14th through Sunday, June 25th. Ms. Donaton and Ms. Stough, along with Robyn Fernandez from Educational Destinations, invite students and parents to attend an informational meeting about the trip on Tuesday, February 15th at 7 PM in Ms. Stough's room. We will discuss the flight times and international travel preparations, distribute a detailed travel itinerary and payment schedule, and answer any questions. ¡Nos vemos!
The Art Department could use:
If you have a CD ROM writer, Ms. Hanckel needs you to help to make a CD composite of various types of dance music. Please contact Ms. Hanckel at 303-494-0914 as soon as possible for details. Thanks!
If you have any CDs or videos you can lend or donate, please label them clearly with your name and phone number. Bring them to the Summit office for Lisa Hanckel. Ms. Hanckel also welcomes your ideas and expertise in any dance form. If you would like to share a dance with us, please leave a message in the office for Ms. Hanckel.
Music is needed for the following dance forms: Jitterbug, Swing, Lindyhop, Salsa, Merengue, Chacha, Bolero son, Mambo, Rumba, Breaking, Mashed potato, Twist, Stroll, Jerk, Swim, Limbo, Chicken, Alleycat, Bunnyhop, Virginia reel, Samba, Samba reggae, Afrocuban, West African, North African, Balkan, Tango, Cancan, Reggae, Native American, Charleston, Contra, Hiphop, Hora & Israeli folkdancing.
I'd like to thank the many wonderful volunteers who have helped with our Beginning Spanish activities during the first semester. Our tortilleria field trip and cooking days could only have been successful with your help!
A special thank you to Susan Brownstone, Gail Heinzman, Carol Pahlke, Ann Reid, Lucy Buckley, Sheryl Tippit, Mimi Yanus, Laura Spalding, Marylou Oppenheimer, Carol Dreselly, Brenda West, and Mary Kay Wilson. Many thanks, as well, to the unknown volunteers (including the known Margie Riksheim) who covered books and found and built bookshelves to allow us to have a shared classroom copy of our texts! Accept my apologies (and let me know!) if I've inadvertently omitted anyone.
Thank you to the following parents for providing refreshments for the Open House on January 12: Cathy Woods, Anne Wells, Penny Toothman, Sheryl Tippit, Cathy Burchette, and Nancy London. They added a nice touch to our welcome for prospective families.
The following are tips offered to sixth graders by older students for the long weeks of January, February and March. Read them to your students and incorporate the wisdom.
Nicholas Thomas, Summit alumni and brother of sixth grader Matthew, spent an inspiring and exciting Martin Luther King weekend in Atlanta, with his father as guest of Coretta King. Last summer, the entire Thomas family visited Mrs. King at her home.
Mrs. King and the boys' grandmother, Frances Thomas, were close friends for more than 58 years. Fran was a music teacher in Marion, Alabama (1941-43) and taught 14-year-old Coretta and her elder sister. Fran also helped the girls get college scholarships to Antioch, which led to graduate study in Boston (Conservatory of Music) where Coretta met Martin in 1952.
Nicholas attended the Annual King dinner which, this year, honored Oprah Winfrey. He also attended services at the old and new Ebenezer Churches, had two lunches with the King Family, met Maya Angelou, Walt Belamy, Andrew Young, Hank Aaron, and Vice President Gore.
The Thomas Family would love to share stories and resource material with anyone who is interested. It could be a great resource for next year's MLK weekend, history projects, or civil rights units in American History
Congratulations to the following National Geographic Geo-Bee winners from Summit history classrooms:
Chris Dole, Jessi Boulet, Brendon Horton, Marek Sotola, Tory Webster, Max Carey, Barrett Scott, James Templeton, Alan DeGrand, Katia Heinzman, Andrew Jarmon and Andrew Scott. These twelve participated in the all-school Geo-Bee which was held on January 14.
Alan DeGrand, a sixth grader, was our school winner and seventh grader, Jessi Boulet, took second place. If Alan's score is high enough on the written exam, he will represent Summit at the State Geo-Bee. Congratulations to Alan and Jessi!
Thanks to Mr. Tim Trapp, who came to Mrs. Kapsak's American History classes to present Civil War Weapons and Technology. We appreciated the demonstrations and the artifacts.
Thank you also to American Historian, Clare Miller, who has presented "George Washington" in the Heroes and Sheroes section of Mrs. Kapsak's American History classes. We look forward to her return as her schedule allows.
The Summit Science Fair semifinals were held on Thursday, January 20. The Fair was an overwhelming success and the approximately 240 participating students showed enormous effort and enthusiasm through their exhibits. Participation was optional, although the science teachers rewarded the participants with some extra credit.
Students were interviewed during their regular science classes by scientists, engineers, and graduate students from our Boulder community. Approximately 50 judges volunteered a morning, an afternoon, or both, to judge the projects. Special care was taken to avoid conflicts of interest and all students were interviewed by at least two judges. All participating students received a Certificate of Participation, 50 projects received a red ribbon (2nd place), and 45 projects received a blue ribbon (1st place).
After school, a team of ten judges, along with the science teachers, selected 32 projects to continue to the Summit Science Fair finals on February 10. Although the selection was based on the judges' recommendations, the top-ranking projects were reviewed using uniform criteria to adjust for the judges' different grading standards. During the Summit Science Fair finals, approximately 10 projects will be selected to participate in the Regional Science Fair on March 10 and 11 at Centaurus High School in Lafayette.
The following students will participate in the Summit Science Fair finals:
Special thanks to the Science Fair Coordinators: Tony Crone, Pamela Phillips, Julie and Bob Dotson, and Cindy Cederberg. And many thanks to our community members who donated their time as judges. We are fortunate to live in a community which supports young scientists.
Thanks also to the following parents who did set-up, teacher support, and take-down: Bob Baxt, Cindy Baxt, Mary Boulet, Audrey Block, Sally Benjamin, Tony Crone, Kathy Burchett, Ginger Caldwell, Pat Daley, Mary Ann Dangelo, Julie Dotson, Bob Dotson, Lorie Eason, Diana Falloon, Karen Finegan, Karen Fox, Leslie Grady, Barbry Hogue, Patrick Long, Marlene Long, Guynna Manley, Janet McDaniel, Kavita Mahajan, Pam Phillips, Elsie Rivera, Margie Gunter Riksheim, Sally Scott, Laura Spalding, Sheryl Tippit, Renee Von Roenn, Sarah Volkman, Roxy Walker, Emily Weigel.
The following parents served as judges for the fair: Kathy Reims, Randy Reims, Dan Weller, Susan Patton, Paul Brownstone, David Burchett, Stan Benjamin, Shelley Copley, Dan D'Ippolito, Ingrid Fotino, Ron Goldfarb, Steven Goldhaber, Carla Goulart, Cinda Graubard, Chip Hogue, Eric Lindemann, Josh Lipton, Madeleine Meyer, Bill Nedell, Gert Rosenboom, Tom Woods.
Special thanks to the following who assisted in setting up and taking down the fair: Dr. Ingrid Fotino, Cheryle Kapsak, Summit Wrestling team.
Volunteers who helped prepare and serve food - Cathy Woods, Sheryl Tippit, Barb Miner, Lynn Eisler, Audrey Block, Beverly Fest, Hana Sotola, Shemin Je, Bonnie Metler, Emily Weigel, Barbry Hogue, Janet Christensen, Sally Benjamin, Jenny Lucas, Cindy Robinson, Merry Mungo, Jackie Ross, Pat Daley, Lesley Swirhun, Susan Pollak, Laurie Eason, Maribeth Schultz, Jan Markham, Mary Boulet, Dawn Mahowald, Sally Mohr
Special thanks on behalf of all the students and parents to Sharon Sikora, and to her fellow science teachers Mery Molenaar, Greta Frohbieter, and Stephanie Donaton. They put in many extra hours to support the students.
The Expanding Your Horizons program for middle school girls will not be held in the spring this year, but will instead move to a late autumn date. You can also watch the website for up-to-date EYH 2000 information: http://bcn.boulder.co.us/community/aauw
The Boulder Valley School District Talented and Gifted Office is sponsoring a presentation on "Motivating Underachievers." Carolyn Coil will address this topic on Wednesday, February 9, 2000 from 6:30 to 8:00 PM in the Board Room at the BVSD Education Center, 6500 E. Arapahoe Road, Boulder. All interested parents are invited. Please RSVP at 303-447-5067.
Bolder Girls is a newspaper that is written by girls and published in the Boulder Planet. Girls have the opportunity to work with professional journalists and newspaper staff to learn about all aspects of newspaper production, including writing, photography, layout and design, and advertising sales. Participants are asked to submit two stories and/or photographs for the final publication. Bolder Girls is open to girls ages 9 - 14 and will meet on Thursdays, February 10 - April 27 from 4:00 to 5:30 PM at the YWCA. Call 303-443-0419 to pre-register, volunteer, or for information on the Mother/Daughter Brunch.
Supervised skiing is available for students on school holidays. A variety of packages include all-day lift tickets, transportation, lunch, all-day lessons, and/or rental skis. The bus picks up at your school at 8 AM and drops off at 5 PM. Pre-registration and information are available at 303-440-8700 x243.
Embassy Music of Nashville, Tennessee is conducting its 6th Annual Artist and Song search. Entries are due by February 29. Call 615-846-1700 for entry information or go to: www.embassymusic.com
The Parent Professional Partnership is a BVSD program for Special Needs Students. Upcoming forums include:
Information is available at 303-447-5176
Concordia Language Villages (CLV) is a program of Concordia College in Moorhead, Minnesota. CLV offers summer programs at various sites in Minnesota for six days, 13 days, or one month.
Languages offered include Chinese, Danish, Finnish, French, German, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian, Russian, Spanish, Swedish, and English. The six-day session, for ages 11-15, includes initial language instruction, cultural activities, arts and crafts, sports, and more. The 13-day session, for ages 8-18, is for beginning, intermediate or advanced language learners with various activities encouraging immersion in the language. The one month session offers one year of world language credit at the high school level (grades 9-12) upon completion of all course work. Students study speaking, writing, vocabulary, and grammar in depth. Sports, cultural activities and role play are included.
Costs range from $440 for the six-day program, $925 for the 13-day program, to $2040 for the one month program. Deadline for financial assistance applications is March 1, 2000. For a catalogue, application, or information, call 1-800-222-4750. For more information, go to: www.cord.edu.
Open Space Communications is sponsoring "Beyond Giftedness VII," a conference for parents and educators who live and work with gifted children. The keynote presentation, "Underserved Gifted Populations: Young Gifted, Gifted Girls, Multicultural, Bilingual, Highly Gifted" will be given by Joan Franklin Smutny of the Center for Gifted at National-Lewis University in Illinois. There will be many presenters and topics at all levels.
The conference will be held on Friday, March 3, 2000, 8 AM - 4:30 PM, at the Arvada Center for the Arts and Humanities. Early Registration, before February 4, 2000, is $85. Registration includes a continental breakfast, lunch, and materials. Contact Dorothy Knopper, 303-444-7020, or go to: www.openspacecomm.com, for more information.
The next deadline for Summit News is February 7. Articles may be sent to LDParkhill@aol.com or be left in the box in the staff workroom.
http://bcn.boulder.co.us/univ_school/summit/