Ghost Update
Back to School: August 2021
Dear RU Families,
Hopefully, you have all had a chance to relax a little and enjoy the summer! We have been hard at work getting ready to welcome students back to Randolph Union. We are excited for students to once again be a part of our strong advisory program. Also, our science and math departments have put in a lot of time aligning their curriculum with the elementary schools and taking part in professional development to more effectively teach their content areas.
Grade level teams have gathered to discuss what made us stronger as educators during the pandemic and how we can grow from last year, which was incredibly challenging in many ways, but also an opportunity for growth! Those changes include recess for middle schoolers and open campus opportunities for our Juniors and Seniors.
Survey
We need your help to help us make our advisory program stronger.
Student Services Information
Kara Merrill: kmerrill@orangesouthwest.org
Bev Taft: btaft@orangesouthwest.org
Coming Soon: a new Learning Management System
RU Welcomes New Staff!
Pictured Above: the New to RU Crew
Third Row: Sarah Hardy and Nick Exler
Second Row: Jordan Stevens, Flora Powell Quevedo, Kate Morris, Lissa Fox, Heidi Schwartz
Front Row: Deborah Schaner, Rachel Donegan, Erik Sievert
This year, for reasons ranging from teachers taking jobs closer to home, through opportunities to fill needs within our school community using ESSER funding we have been able to hire staff to fill positions throughout our school.
Rachel Donegan, Innovation Center - Rachel joins Ken Cadow in the innovation center. She brings with her enthusiasm for maker spaces and a strong science background.
Nicholas Exler, Music Director - Nick is excited to begin working with students to make music in the band room and digitally! He will teach chorus and band for grades 7-12, as well as other musical offerings.
Lissa Fox, Senior Project Coordinator & HS English - Lissa comes to us with lots of experience in hands on, experiential learning as well as English. This makes her an ideal candidate to lead our students throughout their capstone experience.
Dakota Garrow, Physical Education - Dakota is returning to RU after attaining his degree and teaching certification. We are thrilled to welcome him back to this district. He will teach some elementary classes as well as classes at the middle/high school.
Sarah Hardy, Grade 7 Science - Sarah comes to us as a veteran 7th grade science teacher. She brings with her knowledge about the developmental needs of 7th graders and a love for science and the outdoors.
Kate Morris, Social Worker - Kate is joining our Student Services team and brings a vast breadth amount of experience to our campus. She joins us most recently from Norwich University, she will be able to work with student one to one and in small groups.
Flora Powell Quevedo, Grade 10 Math - Flora joins us with more than a decade of high school math experience. Although, she has been away from Vermont for several years, and has not been a teacher in Vermont. She is happy to be returning home.
Deborah Schaner, Grade 10 Science - Deb is a veteran researcher and life long learner and teacher. She is excited to share her knowledge and love of science with our sophomores and AP Bio students.
Heidi Schwartz, Grade 11/12 Special Education - We are thrilled to have Heidi join our Special Education Team. She has worked within our district at the elementary level for the last several years and is excited to see where our littlest learners end their journeys with the OSSD.
Erik Sievert, Grade 7 Social Studies - Erik joins us after spending last year as a teaching intern at Mount Abe in Bristol, VT. Previous to that he has worked as a lobbyist advocating for protection for our water.
Jordan Stevens, Grade 10 Special Education - Jordan returned home to Vermont at the beginning of the pandemic and we are so glad that she did. She was able to intern with Dana Decker last year, and we feel fortunate to have her join us as a special educator this year.
Mary Rizos, World Languages - We first got to know Mary in the 2019/2020 school year as a long term sub for Simona Talos who went on sabbatical. As happy as we were to have Simona back it was bittersweet because we had to let Mary go. However, we feel fortunate to have been able to bring her back to work with us full time this year.
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Gratitude
Please join us in offering our sincere thanks to people who worked through the summer to make the start of school go smoothly.
Ken Cadow - Ken has been hard at work this summer planning a variety of programming for the IC and working with Tina Scheindel to launch STEM/STEAM work across the district.
Tina and The Tech Department - If you see Tina, Charlie, or Todd, please thank them for their work. This summer they have worked on returning old computers, distributing new ones, tracking down machines that students held on to, as well as making sure that we have the apps and software we need to successfully start the school year.
Student Services - our Student Services team, especially Karen Johnson, has been tireless in their efforts to connect with families, share records for student transfers, meet with incoming students and connect with families who need a little extra support. Kara and Bev have made sure that there is regular coverage for their office all summer, which we are extremely grateful for.
Office Team! We have such a strong office team. Donna, Lisa, and Kelly, have spent the summer collaborating with one another to make sure that handbooks are ready to go. Communication with families happens in a timely manner and managing the day to day operations of a busy school in the summertime. They have pitched in on a variety of projects not related to their everyday jobs, and the school is better for that work.
Facilities - this team, led by Bob and Wes, have been hard at work all summer. They have rolled with whatever challenge they have faced that impact plans for work in various sections of the building. Please thank facilities personnel as you see them throughout the building. Their work makes this school a clean, safe place to be!
Our OSSD Facilities Team
Register now for fall extracurriculars!
Matsuri Music Festival
The RUHS Japanese exchange program is hosting the "Matsuri Music Festival" from 2:00 - 6:30 on 8/21/21 (8/22/21 rain day) at Farr's Hill, in Randolph!
This group of students were scheduled to travel to Japan last summer and had their trip cancelled due to Covid-19. They have reorganized and continued their efforts to make their trip happen in the summer of 2022.
The Logger, Rusty DeWees will M.C. our event showcasing four local musicians. Abby Sherman and The Way North, Ed McGee, AliT, and Cobalt and Titien will perform!!!
Parking is free and available at the event.
Tickets are $20 for adults; $5 for students (10 to 18 years old); Children 9 years old and under are free.
Tickets are available for purchase at the event or in advance through visiting our website (www.rujapantrip.com).
We hope to see you all there for this fun community event to help support our local students traveling to Japan!
Thank you for your support!!!
Contact Us!
or call (802)728-3397