George Washington High School
EAGLES ARISE February 2021
ARISE - Safe
"Safe" is the fourth ARISE expectation (Accountable, Respectful, Involved, Safe, Excelling). In addition to looking after general safety for students and staff, we concentrate on two specific areas: peace through mediation and coming to school sober.
Lisa, our school social worker, helps students sort out tension with one another to maintain calm and prevent fights. As issues of conflict, drama or bullying come up she meets with the involved students and/or staff to resolve the issues directly and safely. Along with mediating, she teaches a class called The Truth About Drugs, which teaches students to make healthy choices when faced with life stressors and develop coping skills instead of self-medicating. The class includes information on healthy relationships and self-regulation. For students who aren't enrolled in Lisa's class, there are frequent lessons about the importance of coming to school sober taught during our Advisory classes.
We're proud that our students report feeling safe. How Safe? According to our recent survey results, our student response places us 18% higher than the district average and one of the safest schools in Ogden City School District and the nation falling in the top 1% of schools surveyed by Panorama Education.
Before and After Pictures Drawn by Lisa's Students after learning the dangers of meth
Attendance
It is very important for students to stay home when they are ill. However, when they are well, we expect them in every class, every day.
COVID - 19 Quarantine
If your student has to stay at home, it is vital that your student is still engaged in learning. The attached letter details the resources and procedures to continue learning at home during quarantine.
Student of the Month - Caleb Baker
After dropping out of his previous school Caleb started GWHS with a fresh work-ethic, a commitment to regular attendance and a desire to succeed. This year Caleb has earned more than 3.5 credits with an impressive school year GPA of 3.56. In fact, he has made up enough credit to not only graduate, but graduate early! He has been such an awesome part of our school. Some of the comments provided by faculty were: “He is so kind to everyone, I am excited to see him every day,” “He stands for what he believes in and knows when it's important to say something and when it's right to remain silent.”
After graduation, Caleb plans to move to Texas where he wants to work part-time and attend Cosmetology school part-time with the ultimate goal of him owning his own salon within 5 years.
"We Need" by Caleb B. (written in Ms. Durham's class)
We need change
Change in mindset,
Change in how we view others
We need change
We need kindness
Kindness for all people
Kindness towards ourselves
We need kindness
We need equality
Equality for all people
Equality for all colors and sexualities
We need equality
We need love
Love for our environment
Love for the life we have
We need love
Mark your calendars! ACT - March 9, 2021
All Juniors will take the ACT (college entrance exam) on March 9, 2021. There will be no school for Sophomores or Seniors for that day only. Juniors need to be here before 8:00! After the test is done we're going to have a food truck here at school to unwind and celebrate. The test is free and is helpful when applying at Otech, Weber State University and other colleges and universities.
Principal's Message - In School Suspension
Life can be challenging and being in school is no exception, which is why we have worked to create an In School Suspension (ISS) system that is designed to help support students as opposed to punish them. In the past ISS was a place you were sent if you misbehaved and essentially sat in there as a timeout. Often that would result in an out of school suspension which would lead to missing school and often failing classes. Several years ago we worked to create something different; something that would allow for students to learn from their mistakes and make a commitment to do better. Now students go through a 15 step process to identify what school rule was broken, what triggered, a plan to improve, and commitment to do better. Over time the new system has resulted in half the amount of missed class time and out of school suspensions. Thank you to all the staff, students, and guardians for supporting this process so we can turn mistakes into learning opportunities. And, as always, Go Eagles!!
Meet Ashlyn Carter - ISS Coordinator
GWHS is happy to welcome Ashlyn Carter as our new In-School Suspension Coordinator. She is currently a senior at Weber State University in the Family Studies program. She chose this course of study after she took Adult Roles and Human Development classes in High School and found she liked the subjects because of their applicability to life and family. At first, she thought that in-school suspension would be a type of punishment, but she found that GWHS's ISS room is more about reteaching and helping students define success. She tries to be real with students when they have been sent to ISS and hopes they have a meaningful experience with her and leave feeling hopeful.
Ashlyn and her husband have a one-year-old Cocker Spaniel named Ruby. She hopes to have more dogs, goats and alpacas one day. She loves puns and Hispanic food. Welcome Ashlyn!
GWHS Reads
Three years ago Mr. Carrier decided we would dedicate time during our Advisory period to read together as a class. He asked me to choose books and put together a plan. We really wanted the program to be fun to draw in our reluctant readers, so I selected several high-interest titles from many different genres for students to choose from. Each Advisory class gets to choose a book and the first 20 minutes of the class period are spent reading aloud together. It's amazing to see how those minutes add up; many of our classes are already reading their third book of the year. One class is actually starting their fourth! The reaction from students has been positive. They are engaged in the story and highly opinionated about book choice, characters and plot. Many students have been shocked to find themselves enjoying a book. My favorite reaction was from one student who said, "I love it! It's like a movie in your head." Reading together has become an important part of our school culture and has resulted in GWHS leading the district in reading growth in secondary schools.
SafeUT Crisis Chat & Tip Line
Are you or is someone you know experiencing emotional crises, bullying, relationship problems, mental health, or suicide-related issues? SafeUT answers crisis calls, and chats - about yourself or someone else - 24/7/. These free services, provided by University of Utah Health, are confidential. You can learn more at: