March 8, 2001
Volume 11, No. 4
Parents, please be on the lookout for your student's high school registration materials, which will be distributed during the week of March 12 at Summit. The Fairview counselors will visit on Tuesday, March 13, and the Boulder High counselors will visit on Thursday, March 15, to provide students with course booklets and registration instructions. Summit core subject teachers will then meet individually with their 8th grade students during class to give course placement recommendations and sign off on high school registration forms. Parents should review these recommendations, help their student finalize course selections, and sign the forms.
Please note that Summit teachers give careful thought to each student's core course placement for next year. Recommendations are based upon an assessment of the student's progress in the subject, the teacher's past experience with course placement, feedback from current high school students who have attended Summit, and in-service training. While it is not appropriate for parents to ask a teacher to change a recommendation, parents are welcome to discuss these recommendations with Summit teachers or the school counselor. Past experience and reports from high school students indicate that overriding teacher recommendations is risky, especially when a student takes a course at a higher level than the one recommended!
On Tuesday, March 20, the Fairview counselors will return to collect students' signed and completed registration forms. The Boulder High counselors will return to collect these on Thursday, March 22. Students who do not bring their forms or who have not obtained the signatures of their core subject teachers and parents will have to complete these at a later date and deliver them to the high school they plan to attend. Students who will be attending high schools other than Fairview or Boulder High will need to see Ms. Bartley to obtain course booklets and registration materials and then make an appointment with the counselor at the school they plan to attend to complete the registration process.
The high schools listed below will be holding academic planning nights to assist 8th graders and their parents in choosing appropriate courses for 9th grade. All students and parents are encouraged to attend these evening events to gather information about placement, course offerings, and registration procedures, as well as extra-curricular activities and athletics.
Information regarding course offerings and registration materials will be provided at each high school meeting. If you have any questions regarding high school registration, please feel free to call Kendra Bartley at 499-9511.
Planning is underway for a fun and festive graduation celebration for Summit 8th graders. The graduation party will be on the evening of Friday, June 8, following graduation that afternoon.
What we don't have yet is a suitable location for the party. We need to find a reasonably priced (even better, FREE!) venue that would provide enough space for a buffet dinner, seating for dinner and conversation, and a DJ and dance floor. This could be in an office building, a meeting room, a special events location, other commercial space, etc.
If you have access to such a location, or can be a contact with someone who does, please call Janet Christensen at 303-499-5786 or Barbry Hogue at 303-665-3798. Thanks in advance for your help in creating a memorable evening for our soon-to-be Summit graduates.
A regular meeting of the Summit Board was held on Monday, March 5 in the Summit library. Several Summit teachers attended for discussion of staff issues and topics of interest. Dr. Sikora presented a proposal for a new elective science class, and other elective class suggestions will come to the Board before the next regular meeting. The teachers present asked questions about the allocation of core classes and average class sizes.
Parent Astrid Ogilvie has arranged for a special presentation of the Smithsonian exhibit "Vikings" to Summit students on April 9. The teacher evaluation process was discussed. Summit's 2000-2001 Annual Report to the BVSD was submitted on February 28. Graffiti on the building should be removed within 24 hours.
Chair Jim Cederberg reviewed information about a possible temporary gym structure and potential funding sources. Administrator evaluation interviews have been completed and information from the interviews will be compiled for Board review. So far, three candidates have committed to running in the Board elections. Additional interested parents will be encouraged to run to provide sufficient choice on the ballot.
To date, a total of 119 new students have accepted enrollment at Summit for 2001-2002. More students will be admitted, to a maximum of 305 total enrollment. "Student For A Day" has been tentatively scheduled for May 1 and May 2.
The next regular meetings of the Summit Board will be on Monday, March 19 and Monday, April 2, beginning at 7 PM in the Summit library. Stop by and see what your Summit Board is up to!
There was a great concert Tuesday night. Thanks to all our wonderful and talented music students at Summit. You all did a great job. Special thanks to Dr. Burkhart. His commitment to our kids really shines on stage!
There were also many people working behind the scenes to help this concert run smoothly. Thanks so much for your hard work, great smiles, and delicious food. Our kids had a good experience because of you: Sherri and Kevin Stough, Maribeth Schultz, Linda Parkhill, Janet McDaniel, Mary Kay and Greg Wilson, Arlene Miller, Leslie Grady, Susan Nedell, Debbie Feyh, Laurie Eason, Sharon Atcheson, Susan Becker, Kathy Inman, Cindy Scott, Merry Mungo, Nancy D'Ippolito, Pamela Phillips, Anita Gonzales, Barbara Miner, Susan Karpatkin, Jean Luce, Julie Dotson, Helen Beylkin, Nancy London, Sally Benjamin, and Cheri Belz. Thanks again!
How would YOU like to select your child's teachers? At Summit, you can do just that by volunteering for the Hiring Committee! This committee is made up of parents and staff, and reviews resumes and applications from candidates, observes teaching demonstrations, conducts candidate interviews, and makes hiring recommendations to the Summit Board.
With enrollment increasing by 50 students next year, we know that we will be hiring new teachers for core class areas and possibly also for elective class offerings. Our teachers are truly the "backbone" of our school, and the selection of each and every one is carefully considered. Now is the time to form the hiring team for 2001-2002. If you are interested in this important volunteer committee opportunity, please call Barbry Hogue at 303-665-3798.
Now is the time to step forward to express your interest in running for the Summit Board of Directors! This is an exciting opportunity to serve our school and help make the decisions that affect the future of Summit. Our Board has broad responsibility for all issues involving Summit, including budget, facilities, hiring, curriculum, enrollment and accountability. The Board also relies on members' experience in other areas, including human resources, communications, computer programming, scheduling, law, grant writing, and negotiations. We especially seek candidates with finance and operations expertise.
What is most important is a commitment to Summit's mission and a willingness to dedicate time and energy to the success of our school. If you have a strong interest in the continued success of Summit and in making important decisions that affect the entire Summit community, please consider running for a Board position. Remember, this is your child's school and serving on the Board provides you with a unique opportunity to make a real difference for all Summit students and staff.
This year there are four seats open for election. There will be a "Meet the Candidates" forum on Wednesday, March 21, with ballots due by April 6. Summit families and staff elect Board members to two-year terms. Board terms begin on June 1, and newly elected members are expected to attend Board meetings starting in April.
Contact Scott Smith (phone 303-499-1816; e-mail scott@massively-parallel.net) as soon as possible for complete candidate information and to receive a candidate questionnaire.
Kendra Bartley, our esteemed school counselor, has attained certification as a National Certified Counselor (NCC) through the National Board for Certified Counselors, Inc. (NBCC). She joins more than 30,000 NCCs who are certified through the NBCC. As a newly designated NCC, Ms. Bartley has fulfilled the requirements for the NCC credential, including a graduate degree in counseling from a regionally accredited institution, supervised post-Master's counseling experience, and a passing score on the National Counselor Examination for Licensure and Certification. Congratulations, Ms. Bartley!
March 19-22 (exact date TBA): Starlight and Select Strings will play in the community, and Silver Rain will combine with the Summit Choir for a community performance.
April 26: Silver Rain travels to Greeley for the UNC Jazz Festival adjudicated performance, a workshop with one of the judges, and a special treat before we come home. The performance will be at 5:00 PM (the Silver Rain alumni group, Intensity!, will perform at 5:30 PM).
April 28: Jazz Band 2 and Jazz Band 3 will travel to Greeley for their performances at the UNC Jazz Festival. Adjudication, workshop with clinicians, and our own special treats await us! (Parents, please note that there is no school on Friday, April 27, so this event will not cost our musicians class time!).
Mark your calendars! The Summit spring musical, "Bye Bye Birdie," will be performed at the Boulder High School Auditorium on May 18 and 19, at 7:00 PM each night. Tickets will be $3.00 each (preschool-age children are free). Bring friends and neighbors to this fun-filled show. Order your tickets through the school office soon as we expect sold out performances!
OK - we're back online with a new trivia question this week. Can you guess:
Which staff member used to be a machinist and rebuilt his/her Volkswagen engine on his/her kitchen table?
We're lacking a few details on this one, such as, was the table set? Were forks and knives used in the process and of course the obvious - when is dinner ready?
Anyway..... Email your guess to tomwhiteoc@earthlink.net and win your treat at the school store!
Our Summit team finished in 4th place in the District Mathcounts event. Ryan Hamerly qualified for the state Mathcounts competition. Way to go, Summit Mathletes!
Summit eighth grader Devin Bartley has qualified to participate at the state level of the National Geographic Geography Bee, sponsored by the National Geographic Society. Students who qualify at the state level must have participated in and won a contest at the school-level. State champs go on to compete at the national level. Good luck, Devin!
Summit students did extremely well at the recent District Science Fair. The list of winners is almost too long to list here!
Representatives to State Science Fair: Robert Glissman, Thatcher Heumann, and Clark Patton
District Category Winners: Grant Anspach, Thatcher Heumann, Robert Glissman, Tovë Smith, Katherine Herman, Clark Patton, Logan Callihan, Miranda Daigle, Emo Hess and Madison Walker
Special Awards: Ruth Jacobs, Thatcher Heumann, Katherine Hermann (4 different awards!), Logan Callihan, Miranda Daigle, and Robert Glissman
Discovery Science Award Nominees: Thatcher Heumann, Clark Patton, Tovë Smith, Katherine Hermann, Emo Hess, Grant Anspach, Robert Glissman, and Madison Walker
Congratulations also go out to Tim Nyugen, Tegan McGillivray, Annie Lewis, Matthew Licht, Erin Grady, Meghan Robertie, and Allison Aragon for their excellent projects and for representing Summit well.
Thanks to all students who worked so hard on their Science Fair projects. Many thanks also to our devoted Science teachers who contributed so much time and expertise to our student scientists.
Prospective students and families interested in Summit are invited to join a Summit tour at 8:10 AM on March 13, April 10, or May 8. Tours last approximately 45 minutes. At the end of each tour, there is time for questions and answers.
Also, if you know of families that are interested in finding out more about Summit, have them call the office at 303-499-9511 to receive a brochure and other Summit information.
The North Boulder Recreation Center hosts Friday Night Live, an open house for youth 9 to 14 years old, from 7 to 10:30 PM on Fridays. For more information, call the Rec Center at 303-413-7260 or go to www.fnl-nites.com.
Concordia Language Villages provide summer camp sessions in 12 world languages for students between the ages of 7 and 18, along with credit sessions both at the villages and abroad for high school and college students. Through the village experience, the program's mission is to prepare young people for responsible citizenship in the global community.
Languages offered range from Norwegian to Japanese and Chinese, to French, Spanish, and German - and even English for students from abroad!
Wendy Blakemore, one of our own wonderful Spanish teachers, has taught at the Spanish village for two summers and each of her two children has attended CLV for several summers. She would be pleased to chat with anyone who thinks they might enjoy this world language camp experience. Contact her at school or at home (303- 530-7173).
Order your copy of the Summit Yearbook today. Bring a check for $20 to the school office. Orders must be in by May 1 to guarantee this price.
That's right. To almost any question you may ask, the answer is - grocery certificates. Try it and see. "Mom, can I go over to Julie's house?" You say, "Grocery Certificates." It's easy. You don't have to think anymore. Soon your kids will stop asking you questions, knowing what the answer will be. You'll have lots of free time. It is the answer. Just try it and see. In fact, to make it even easier discover how wonderful grocery certificates really are, we will be selling King Soopers Food Certificates in the Summit parking lot from 2:50 to 3:10 PM Thursday afternoons. So, bring your money and look for the parent volunteers with the signs. They know the answer to your question: "Grocery Certificates!"
As always, you can also stop by the Summit office to purchase your grocery certificates. If you can't make it to the office, call Joan Jacus at 303-499-3013. Joan will make arrangements to get grocery certificates to you. Thanks for supporting Summit with this ongoing fundraiser.
This is a new section of the newsletter where we highlight a humorous quote
that was heard around the school recently. I guess nothing funny happened
these past two weeks, we didn't receive any submissions :-(
Students and staff, please send humorous and printable material that you've
heard around the school to: tomwhiteoc@earthlink.net.
Design a class or school project for Earth Day 2001 that helps create a clean, healthy, prosperous future, and win a "Greenie." Check out last year's winning "Greenie" projects on the NCAR Green Pages at: http://www.ucar.edu/outreach/greenie. The deadline for entries is March 16. Call Linda Carbone at 303-497-11185 for more information.
If you are not receiving your newsletter via e-mail and wish to, or if you would like the newsletter sent to a different or an additional electronic address, simply send a message to <marthagorman@att.net>. Electronic distribution is fast, easy and saves postage and trees. What a deal!
Upcoming deadlines for submissions to Summit News are March 19 and April 2 . Articles may be sent to Tom White-O'Connor at tomwhiteoc@earthlink.net or left in the Summit News file in the Summit office.
Check out the interesting website created by Summit librarian, Juilane McMurtrey. It is full of useful information and research resources on a wide variety of topics. The website address is: www.bvsd.k12.co.us/schools/summitlibrary/SMSLhome.htm
http://bcn.boulder.co.us/univ_school/summit/
How long a minute is depends on what side of the bathroom door you're on.
Call 303-938-9090
Faculty Extensions:
English Department Wed. 3:10 - 4:00, Rms. 107 & 108
Foreign Language Department
Music Department Mon. and Wed. 3:10 - 4:00
Math Department
Science Department Mondays 3:10 - 4:00
Social Studies Department