Liberty Newsletter Volume 29
May 1, 2019
Liberty High School
Email: kibby.scott@iowacityschools.org
Website: https://www.iowacityschools.org/LibertyHS
Location: 1400 South Dubuque Street, North Liberty, IA, United States
Phone: 319-688-1350
Twitter: @LibertyHS_Kibby
Liberty's Smore Newsletter
Thank you for your support in a wonderful school year. While we still have 5 weeks left the spring does give us time to reflect on the growth we've made as a school community. On behalf of the Liberty teachers, staff and administration, THANK YOU. We absolutely feel the support from our community and we do not take it for granted.
As always if you have suggestions for my twice monthly newsletter you may simply email me. I am open to feedback and am always looking to get better and grow our Liberty Experience.
A reminder that in June and July we move to only one newsletter per month at the first of the month.
Thank you
Scott
Scott Kibby
Principal
Liberty High School
Iowa City Community School District
The S in BOLTS is for Safety
When you bring together 1000 teenagers in one space (that's bigger than many small Iowa towns) there is bound to be conflict. We added the S in Safety because we recognized that conflict was an issue at Liberty during the 18-19 school year. We are pleased to report that our office referral numbers have been cut by over 1/2 from last year to this year. Physical aggression and disruptive behavior do not belong in an educational environment and the staff have done a wonderful job of minimizing these situations this year.
Safety is a fundamental need, like nourishment and belonging to get the best from students. Whether it has been our increased efforts to build relationships with kids or initiatives like WALK AND TALK or our PBIS BOLT matrix, Liberty is safer. It is a commitment of ours to have this be a priority for this school year and years to come.
5 original bolts set to retire
Kathy Bresnahan
Diane Dvorak
Kate Jacobson
Kay Nigg
Marcy Wardenburg
E-cigarettes, Vaping, Juuling are on the rise with youth
Vaping is on the rise with youth state-wide and at Liberty. I was recently asked to complete a survey for the the Iowa Attorney General's office regarding E-cigarettes. And, in my focus groups with students this is one of the student's top concerns. So, I decided to share some information with families today. I have attached 2 articles for your consideration. As I continue to learn and see the rise of in the student usage it causes me to read more about the impact it has on the kids we serve.
1) The products used to vape or juul are highly concealable and therefore very difficult for us to see/track. When we learn of situations at school we meet them head on. Like cigarettes it is against school policy.
2) Many kids are under the impression that it is safer than smoking a cigarette. The drug in cigarettes (nicotine) is present in almost all vaping products. In fact, one cigarette has approximately 1.5 mg of nicotine. One juul pod (usually sold in packs of 4) has 59 mg of nicotine. If a student were to consume an entire pod in one sitting (and some do) they are ingesting the equivalent of 40 cigarettes worth of nicotine. Said differently, to have the equivalent of one cigarette a person would have to consume 1/40th of a juul pod per sitting. This very rarely happens as that is a very small quantity. Even light users are consuming more nicotine than one cigarette at a time. Nicotine is a highly addictive drug.
3) In the second linked article, the American Lung Association is finding evidence that juuling (especially with flavored juuls) is leading to a rise in "Popcorn Lung" which is a scarring of the lungs. This is due to the additive in flavored juuls named "diacetyl".
My goal today is to simply help parents be informed of this rising trend with our youth.
Govenor's Scholar Program
National Merit Scholarship Program
Chamber's Excellence in Education Awards
Sakinah Ellickson (pictured here on stage) is a chemistry teacher, National Honor Society sponsor and a key member of our PBIS team. She earned the INSPIRE award.
Marcy Wardenburg (pictured earlier) earned the Administrative/Support Staff Excellence Award for her leadership in Liberty's planning as well as her daily contributions to the positive climate at Liberty.
Proud Talent Show
Thank you to the students and adults that performed and organized the event.
Harlem Symphony Orchestra Chamber Players
Band Trip to Kansas City
The Liberty Band traveled on their first ever band trip this past week. They traveled to Kansas City for two days and two nights they visited the Kansas City Zoo, attended a professional dinner theater of the show "Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story" and performed at a workshop on the campus of the University of Kansas. The students represented Liberty with pride and performed great!
Catch the Liberty Band at their concert on Wednesday, May 1st at 7:30pm in the Liberty Auditorium. The students are doing extremely well and are excited to share this concert with our Liberty community. Tickets are available at the door for $2 for adults $1 for seniors/children. Don't miss it!
Liberty Sports History
Liberty Sports History
AP Testing
Advanced Placement testing will take place the second and third week of May (May 6th-May 17th). Students will receive a testing handout of test time, location, and testing procedures of the day. Several tests start promptly at 8:00 am (before regularly scheduled classes), students are responsible for their own transportation. For any AP testing questions, please contact AP Coordinator/School Counselor Jenni Naughton at naughton.jennifer@iowacityschools.org.
8am, Monday, May 6th US Government
8am, Tuesday, May 7th Spanish Language
12:30pm, Tuesday, May 7 Physics
12:30pm, Wed., May 8th French
12:30pm, Thursday, May 9th Psychology
8am, Friday, May 10th US History
8am, Monday, May 13th Biology
8am, Tuesday, May 14th Calculus AB/BC
12:30pm, Tuesday, May 14, Human Geography
Wed., May 15th, None
8am, Thursday, May 16th World History
Student Check-In will start at 7:45 am for AM tests and 12:15 for PM tests. Testing will start promptly at the times listed above.
NOTES:
*AM tests starts before regularly scheduled school- Students are responsible for your own transportation.
* PM Testing- starts during a lunch shift, make sure you have eaten lunch before you report to testing. Make arrangements with 4th hour teacher if necessary.
Seniors/Counseling Office News
Senior Dates & Deadlines
May 1st- Senior Lists of Awards document due to Main Office (Mr. Bergmann sent an email with this link)
May 16th- 9:45 am Senior Recognition Ceremony Liberty High School Auditorium
May 10th- Deadline to reserve Graduation Reception Table in Grand Commons (form available in main office)
May 20-22nd- Senior Final Exams
May 22nd- Senior Locker Clean Out
May 23rd- 9:00 am Graduation Rehearsal- mandatory (meet in gym)
May 25th- Graduation at Liberty High School at 1:00 pm (seniors meet in Band room at 12:30 pm)
Who's My Counselor? (by students last name)
A-G Troy Bergmann, bergmann.troy@iowacityschools.org
H-N Jenni Naughton, naughton.jennifer@iowacityschools.org
O-Z Mayra DeVries, devries.mayra@iowacityschools.org
Important Dates
AP Testing: May 6-16
Senior Awards Assembly: May 16 (9:40am)
Seniors Last Day/Graduation Rehearsal: May 23
Graduation: May 25, 1pm
Memorial Day (No School): May 27
Last Day of Classes: May 31 (noon dismissal-lunch is available)
2019-20 School Year
New to the district Registration: August 12 (8:30-11:30am)
Registration grades 9-10: August 13 (8:30am-4pm)
Registration grades 11-12: August 14 (8:30am-4pm)
New Student Orientation: August 20 (9am-2pm)
First Day of Classes: Friday, August 23
Recall, Liberty along with the schools of the MVC run all their activity schedules and calendars through a company called Rschool Today. You can look up game schedules for specific sports as well as performing arts performances. My favorite feature is "Notify Me". On the middle right hand portion of the page you can sign up to receive notifications for any changes that occur in YOUR child's activities. You will only get what you want. No season has more changes that Spring in Iowa. With the notify me feature you'll know before the media if a game is delayed, postponed or changes.
https://mississippivalleyiowa.org/public/genie/80/school/2671/
Required immunization
Per Iowa law, incoming 12th grade students must have a Meningococcal Vaccine (to prevent meningitis, a bacteria that infects the brain, blood and spinal cord) Please check your child’s immunization record or call their health care provider to find out if they had the MCV shot after age 16 and make an appointment if needed. Johnson County Public Health provides immunizations at no cost to children with or without health insurance. Call 319-356-6042 to make an appointment.
Garden Club needs your help
Due to construction the current garden space is slated to be moved. We are running out of room for our tomato seedlings that have sprouted and don't have a garden into which we can move them. So, we are selling our tomato seedlings for $1 each to help fund the completion of our new garden space. We have about 15 varieties of cherry, mid size, and full size tomato seedlings. Iowa weather can be a little crazy, so the seedlings probably shouldn't go into the ground for another couple of weeks, but it would be amazing if you would claim your tomato plants, give them a sunny window spot, take over watering watering responsibilities.
You can contact Jenny Saylor saylor.jenny@iowacityschools.org or Beth Long at long.beth@iowacityschools.org to claim an inexpensive plant.
The Liberty Fund
The first round of bricks will be engraved on the pavers entering the building in early May. We will engrave again in the fall and so if you are interested in leaving a Liberty legacy on the brick pavers please follow the directions on the link below that connects you to the Iowa City School District Foundation.
www.iowacityschools.org/TheLibertyFund
The Liberty Fund has made its first grants to teachers.
Gaining financial support are Business Professionals of America, In Shoc, MLK Day, Storm Show Choir, Garden Club, The Math Team and the Art Club.
ICCSD's Hoover Elementary Celebration
Construction Phase 3
The project is still scheduled for completion in Mid-June 2020 and should be fully functional for the 20-21 school year
1) The project has begun with a satellite bus depot to serve the northern part of the district (on the east side of the campus)
2) Mid-May is the scheduled start for the 21-classroom addition on the east side of the building
3) A fully secure "hard-scaped" courtyard and
4) An additional activity parking lot on the far western portion of campus should be complete before the start of school and football this fall (2019)
Pay to Ride
The Iowa City Community School District Transportation Department would like to notify you of the 2019-20 Pay to Ride Program.
Program details
- The program is provided on a space-available, time-available, first-come, first-served basis. Participation is limited according to capacity as determined by the District, and is available to students in grades K-12.
- The program is only available on existing bus routes and at existing stops. No additional routes and or stops will be considered for pay-to-ride students after the deadline.
- Buses provided specifically for special education students are not eligible for this program.
- Bus stop locations and times are assigned by North America Central School Bus (NACSB).
- Availability of seats and location of bus stops is subject to change based on changes in enrollment, boundaries, and other factors determined by the District or NACSB, and can occur at any time. When changes to routes or stops occur, families utilizing pay-to-ride busing will be notified at the same time that the families of eligible students are notified.
- Students must be picked up and dropped off at their assigned location only. Pick-up and drop-off must be at the same location.
- Requests for a change in a student’s bus stop will only be honored if the student’s address has changed.
- No guest students will be allowed to ride along with pay-to-ride students.
- All students riding the bus are subject to the rules and regulations of conduct and safety established by the District and NACSB. The District and NACSB use video cameras on school buses as a means to maintain a safe environment for students and staff.
- Refunds will be granted for any unused full trimester purchased for the current school year.
- No refunds or rate adjustments will be made for days buses cannot operate because of weather or other circumstances beyond the control of NACSB or the District.
- Payments can be made online via the District’s website or by mailing a check. Fee is charged on a per year basis.
Payment and Fees for Service
- $438 per student, per year, round trip
- $262 per student, per year, round trip, for students who qualify for reduced price lunch
- $0 per student, per year, round trip, for students who qualify for free lunch
- Full payments must be made in advance no later than June 14, 2019, to be included on a bus roster for the start of the school year.
Application Due Date
Payment Due
June 3, 2019
June 14, 2019
· Applications will be accepted after the due dates while capacity remains on existing routes. (Note: Students will only be assigned to existing bus stops and routes; buses will not be re-routed to accommodate requests.)
- Students are not eligible to ride until payment is received and application is approved.
Application Process
- To apply for pay-to-ride busing, please download the following form:
- Pay-to-Ride Student Transportation Application
https://www.iowacityschools.org/Page/18202
- Payment can be made online or checks should be made payable to Iowa City Community School District
https://iowa-city.revtrak.net/
- Mail or bring your application and payment, if paying by check, to the following address:
Iowa City Community School District
Att.: Esme Davis
1725 N Dodge Street
Iowa City, IA 52245
- Iowa City Community School District will begin processing applications upon receipt, in the order they are received. Each application and payment will be kept on file until it is determined the student is eligible for a seat on the bus.
If you are interested in participating in this pay-to-ride program please return the application no later than June 3, 2019 and payment must be made in advance no later than June 14, 2019, to be considered for a bus roster for the start of the school year.
If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact me via email or by phone.
PSTO
PSTO meets at 4:45 on the third Wednesday of the month in the Liberty Library.
2018-19 dates and guest speakers
· May 15-guest speakers Beth Long and Jenny Saylor with the Garden Club
The PSTO has done wonderful work to support the students and staff at Liberty. They'd love to have you join them for meetings. No signup is necessary If you'd like more information you can contact them at libertyhspsto@gmail.com
PSTO board members for 2018-2019:
· President: Sandy DeSchinckel
· President Elect: Marisa Keeney
· Secretary: Deb Wagner
· Treasurer: Shawn Eyestone
· Volunteer Coordinator: Lyse Strnad