Examples of Excellence (Oct 2022)
October 2022
Overview
USD 231 is proud of the daily accomplishments in our classrooms and buildings. We are frequently notified of awards, generous donations by community members, and other occasions that warrant special attention. The USD 231 'Examples of Excellence' newsletter is produced to share the stories of our student and employee successes!
Do you have a 'feel-good' story or accomplishment to share? Let us know by submitting the information HERE.
KU High School Design Competition Results
Last week, our gifted teacher, Meg Hunting traveled with three students to the KU High School Design Competition that is sponsored by the KU School of Engineering. Connor Gunderson and Kaiden Duarte both submitted entries for the Mechanical Competition. Lenora Little submitted in the Chemical Competition, and she won first place, which landed her a $2,000 scholarship to KU and a summer internship with Kiewit!!
All three students put countless hours into their designs and competed fiercely. Along with the testing of their devices, they all had to create presentations as well; we're sure they'd love to share some of those specifics with any interested party. Enjoy some photos from the day and thanks for congratulating these students when you see them!!
GEHS Student Places Third in Video Production for the Kansas Scholastic Press Association
Please help us recognize senior Brennan Cook, who placed third in Video Production for the Kansas Scholastic Press Association monthly contest for August/September 2022. Brennan put together the Intro for the high school's weekly broadcast, earning third place in the contest. Brennan is one of the producers for the Blazer Network Center this year, and part of the team that will compete in the 4-State Video Production competition this weekend, with teammates Aaron Hails and Chase Walker.
USD 231 Secondary Teacher of the Year Announced
Congratulations to Matthew Mayeske, social studies teacher at Gardner Edgerton High School, who was selected as the USD 231 Secondary Teacher of the Year!
Matthew is in his fifth year as a high school social studies teacher within the Gardner Edgerton School District, teaching freshmen geography, honors geography and sophomore world history. Mr. Mayeske is also a graduate of Gardner Edgerton High School (2013). Matthew has been an assistant coach for the Blazers Track & Field team for the past two years, assisting in sprints and specializing in hurdles. Before coaching at the high school level, Matthew coached at Wheatridge Middle School during his first two years in the district. Matthew holds a Master of Science in Teaching, with a concentration in English Language Learning education from Pittsburg State University, and a Bachelor in Secondary Social Studies Education from MidAmerica Nazarene University.
Matthew is involved in various leadership teams and groups at Gardner Edgerton High School, including the Building Leadership Team (BLT), Site Council, Climate and Culture Committee, and the Freshmen Focus Group (2018-2022). Matthew is also the sponsor of multiple clubs and student organizations at GEHS, including Anime Club, Geography Club, Gay-Straight Alliance, Table Top Club, Ping Pong Club, Philosophy Club, and the newest GEHS Club, American Sign Language! These clubs meet regularly and allow high school students to socialize, bond, and engage with one another in growth-oriented, specialized ways.
Matthew is proud to be a USD 231 employee. Daily, he strives to personify his philosophy of education – model to students what positive, academically-minded, and honest human interactions can look like. Matthew invests time and effort in demonstrating to students that there are adults who care deeply about them – beyond their grades and talents. Matthew is honored to be chosen as the District Secondary Teacher of the Year and wishes to make the Gardner Edgerton School District proud!
Matthew will now move to the state level and participate in the Kansas Teacher of the Year (KTOY) selection process. The KTOY Program recognizes a Regional Finalist for each of the eight regions. From the eight representatives, a Kansas Teacher of the Year is selected. As a team, these designees are provided professional learning opportunities, visit school districts around the state, advocate for education at the state level, and represent teachers across Kansas. The Kansas Teacher of the Year is nominated to represent Kansas in the National Teacher of the Year Program. For additional information about the state program, visit www.ksde.org.
Congratulations, Matthew!!!
USD 231 Elementary Teacher of the Year Announced
Congratulations to Michelle Uptegrove, special education teacher at Edgerton Elementary, who has been elected as the USD 231 Elementary Teacher of the Year!
Michelle has taught for three years in the Gardner Edgerton School District. She currently serves as an Interrelated Resource teacher at Edgerton Elementary, embarking on her 30th year in education. Michelle has taught in high-incidence and low-incidence settings during her tenure as an educator. Michelle’s career-long commitment to the profession focuses on helping students and their families that need differentiated learning environments and the highest levels of support and encouragement.
Michelle is a valued member of the Climate and Culture Committee, Parent Involvement Committee, and student support team at Edgerton Elementary. Michelle’s passion for advocating for all children plays out in her community involvement when volunteering for Special Olympics in the Kansas City metropolitan area and supporting students in their extracurricular and church activities.
Michelle holds a Bachelor of Science in Education and a Master of Science in Curriculum and Instruction from Avila University. She has elementary certification with an emphasis in ED/BD, Cognitive Impairments, and Learning Disabilities. She is humbled to represent USD 231 as Elementary Teacher of the Year.
Michelle will now move to the state level and participate in the Kansas Teacher of the Year (KTOY) selection process. The KTOY Program recognizes a Regional Finalist for each of the eight regions. From the eight representatives, a Kansas Teacher of the Year is selected. As a team, these designees are provided professional learning opportunities, visit school districts around the state, advocate for education at the state level, and represent teachers across Kansas. The Kansas Teacher of the Year is nominated to represent Kansas in the National Teacher of the Year Program. For additional information about the state program, visit www.ksde.org.
Congratulations, Michelle!!!
Car Show
The GEHS Car Club and Robert Cook Memorial Car Show raised over $10,000 for Votech Scholarships and students entering the skilled trades.
Wheatridge Cross Country Team Lends A Helping Hand
The Wheatridge Cross Country team consisting of 16, seventh and eighth graders spent their last practice of the season picking up trash around their school, on the Greenway Trail, and Winwood Park. They managed to fill their bags and get in a great workout! Coach Bohi and Coach Bonar have been so proud of their team this year and look forward to seeing what the kids do in the future.
Gardner Edgerton Band Gets 1 Rating at ESU Festival
Congratulations to the Gardner Edgerton High School Marching Band for receiving a 1 rating at the Emporia State University Festival!
Sunflower League Cross Country--Blazers make some team history!
On Saturday, most of the Blazer XC Squad wrapped up their season with some exciting performances on a beautiful fall morning at KU's Rimrock Farm XC Course.
On the girls team side--10 Blazer's dropped Rimrock Course PRs and two Blazers, Frosh Olivia Walion (21:33) and Natalie Roberts (24:56), dropped season PRs on one of the most challenging courses in Midwest. The Girls Varsity squad finished 13th in the Sunflower League with impressive performances as 5 of our top 7 girls dropped a course PR. The Blazer Varsity squad was lead by Junior Bella Meili who crossed the 5K finish line at 21:11, followed closely by the Varsity Frosh trio of Cox, Walion, and Shaffer. Seniors Sarah Farrens and Hannah Elliott came through at 5th and 6th place, and Junior Caroline Clarke punched her ticket to post-season by crossing as the Blazers 7th runner on the squad.
On the boys team side--13 Blazer's dropped Rimrock Course PRs and 4 Varsity Blazers ran under 17:00 minutes for 5K at Rimrock which is an impressive showing for our Varsity boys. Varsity Senior Andrew Leach ran a career PR of 16:59, and C-team Frosh Andrew Anderson (23:31) and Parker Prins (26:35) ended their seasons with a career/season PR. The Varsity boys were lead by Parker Walion who finished 6th overall in the SFL with a time of 16:03 and a Course PR at Rimrock. Junior Nick Kilonzo placed 21st just outside of the medals with a Course PR of 16:52. Sophomore Aiden Scherman, Senior Andrew Leach, Frosh Cade Halton, Senior Jackson Elsey, and Sophomore Robert Falkner would come across the finish line in an impressive pack all placing in the top 37 runners of the Varsity meet. All boys set a course PR and earned a TEAM 3rd Place Sunflower League Finish/Medals on the Podium behind Shawnee Mission East (1st) and Olathe East (2nd).
The boys 3rd place team finish in the SFL is the first time in Blazer XC history that the Trailblazers have put a team on the podium stand with a top 3 team finish. The boys demonstrated great tactical and pack running as the final four Blazers all finished within 6 seconds of each other--a truly impressive performance that bested several SFL teams ranked ahead of the Blazers.
The Blazers look to continue their post-season running at the Olathe Regional XC Meet on Saturday morning at Johnson County Community College. Our Regional is the toughest regional in the State on the boys and girls side...wish our Blazers well as we continue working in our hopes to making it to the State Cross Country Championships hosted at KU at Rimrock Farm on Saturday, October 29th.
2022 Foundation Tournament
Everyone was a winner at the First Annual Foundation Tournament on a beautiful Kansas Saturday. Over $3,000 was raised for the WE CARE Fund. Staff member Shay Carter won the raffle, earning her a new USD 231 cornhole board. Thirty teams competed for prize money and bragging rights.
Adult Division
1st - Ruffcorn/Ruffcorn
2nd - Gallagher/Herman
3rd - Hoeven/Hoeven
Youth Division
1st - Gunby/Slife
2nd - Majstorovic/Phillips
3rd - Andrews/Borjas
Many thanks to our lead sponsor, Tim Miller of American Family Insurance. Our cornhole boards sponsors were: Central Bank of the Midwest, Groundhouse Coffee, TradeNet Publishing; Keller Williams Realty (Stormy Meyer), JCCC Foundation, Water District #7, Great Life Gardner Golf, Keith for Kansas, Baxter Orthodontics, Garrison Plumbing, Total Design Tile & Flooring, Law firm of Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner. Price Chopper provided concessions. GEHS alum Bryan Rushing (FlyBryGuy) provided music. CJ Designs built cornhole boards. Volunteers included current staff, BOE administrators, retired staff, and alumni. We also had great support from the GEHS administration, district administration, and district maintenance/grounds staff. Tournament managers were Stacy Swopes (GiveBack2Schools) and PRMS principal John McIntire. Kudos to Candace Moorehouse (Foundation secretary) who played a critical role in many aspects of the tournament.
We had teams from our community, schools, and board office. Everyone had a great time knowing that the proceeds support students and staff during difficult times. Why - because WE CARE. Don't forget to follow us @231foundation on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.
GEHS Junior Visits Space and Rocket Center
Junior Jory Chappell is spending this week at the U.S. Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville, AL, as part of the Honeywell Leadership Challenge Academy Space Camp.
She is one of 30 students from around the world chosen for this great opportunity! She sent me these photos today and has allowed me to share them with you.
1st - Jory with Robert “Hoot” Gibson, a 5 time astronaut and former military pilot
2nd - Multi axis trainer - trains astronauts to be able to redirect themselves when they spin out of control; the one she was on did not have that redirection feature
It's a great day to be a Blazer :)