I have been at Homer High for 13 years and have done morning bus duty nearly every day and I love it. I admit, when it is pouring rain or blowing snow I may wish I was cozy inside. But I get to have great conversations with students, parents, teachers and community members as I stand there. I try to say good morning to every student and maybe ask how things are going. I actually get to know many students pretty well from talking to them in the morning. I can also figure out if a student actually made it to school or are running late.

My favorite thing to do in the morning is to share my favorite "principal jokes" with students. My second favorite thing to do is complain about the weather. A "Principal Joke" is like a "Dad Joke" only worse. Many student laugh, some groan, and some roll their eyes. What the students don't know is that a groan or eye roll is just as good as a full belly laugh for me.

I also like bringing up with students why I think Monday is the best day of the week. I won't bore you with the details, but I do get more work done on Monday's than any other day of the week. Just saying.

Earlier this year I was counting the number of days in a row that it rained and was wondering if it was a Homer record and Lily asked me if I was a Bot? I asked her what she meant. She said, "All you do is talk about the weather. You are just like a bot!" For those that don't know, bots are automated text responses that are meant to look like it is a person, but it is actually a computer program. Needless to say, I had to improve my game.

Another student came up to me one day when I didn't make it outside in the morning and said, "Where were you? When you weren't there to say good morning to me I knew it was going to be a terrible day!" I apologized, and after school when I saw her I asked, "So how was your day?" She said it was actually pretty good!

I love morning bus duty because I get to know the kids and personally welcome them to school each day. It especially makes my day when parents get out of their car, walk over, shake my hand and thank me for being out here every day. And when I have a great informal conversation with a teacher it feels so satisfying.

If you have any suggestion or comments about these aspirations or have concerns about any other issues at HHS, please email me at dwaclawski@kpbsd.org, call at 907-235-4600 or set an appointment through Kristin Metz at that same number.

Positively yours,

Douglas Waclawski

Principal

907-235-4600

dwaclawski@kpbsd.org

5/2: Soccer vs Kenai: Girls JV 1:00, Boys JV 3:00, Girls Varsity 5:00, Boys Varsity 7:00

5/2: Softball vs Soldotna TBA

5/3: Senior Scholarship awards ceremony 6:30pm in theatre

5/4: Soccer vs Grace Christian: Girls JV 1:00, Boys JV 3:00, Girls Varsity 5:00, Boys Varsity 7:00

5/4: Site Council Meeting 4:10pm in Library

5/5: Softball Bash on the Bay TBA

5/5: Baseball vs Houston: JV 3:00, Varsity 6:00

5/6: SAT testing 8:00am

5/6: Softball Bash on the Bay TBA

5/7: Senior Baccalaureate ceremony 7:00pm in Theatre

5/8: Spring Concert 7:00pm

5/9: Softball vs Kenai: JV 4:00, Varsity 6:00

5/10: Mariner Athletic awards & Yearbook distribution assembly FOL

5/10: Baseball vs Soldotna: JV 3:00, Varsity 6:00

5/10: Softball vs Houston: JV 5:00, Varsity 7:00

5/11: Baseball vs Wasilla: JV 3:00, Varsity 6:00

5/11: Softball vs Colony: JV 4:00, Varsity 6:00

5/12: Baseball vs Palmer: JV 3:00, Varsity 6:00

5/12: Softball vs Kodiak TBA

5/12: Seniors last day of school

5/13: KPBSD Track and Field Championships 10:00am

5/13: Softball vs Kodiak TBA

5/15: Class of 2023 Graduation Ceremony 7:00pm in the gym

5/18: Students last day of school

5/18: Baseball vs Kenai: JV 3:00, Varsity 6:00

5/19: Teachers last day of school

5/19: Baseball vs Redington: Varsity 3:00

AP Advanced Placement Exam Schedule

5/1 8am AP US Government

5/1 AP noon Chemistry

5/3 AP noon Comparative Govt

5/8 AP 8am Calculus

5/8 AP noon Computer Sci Principles

5/9 AP 8am English Language & Comp

5/11 AP 8am World History Modern

SY 2024 class registration

Every student should have completed their course requests for next year. These are viewable in PowerSchool by following the instructions sent out via email March 9th. If you have questions, please contact Ms. Sue (9th graders) or Mr. Story (10th and 11th graders).

Dual credit college classes

In addition to the long-standing JumpStart program whereby 11th and 12th graders can take courses through KPC that count for both high school and college credit at a discounted rate, there is now the Kenai Peninsula Middle College program whereby juniors and seniors may take those same classes for free. The only difference is that Middle College students have to complete a short application, which opens March 31 and available via this link, and demonstrate one of the following college readiness measures: qualifying ALEKS math score, qualifying ACCUPLACER writing score, prior successful completion of a 100-level KPC course.

Our local KPC campus, Kachemak Bay Campus, is hosting an open house for interested high school students and their families Thursday, April 20 between 4:30 and 6pm. Informational Flyer.

April is a busy month for some students in the art room who choose to submit entries for the regional, state, and local art show. Olivia Etzwiler’s Day at Duncan, 27”x21” won 3rd place at all-state in the painting category. Leah Dunn’s Sailing Through Time, 48”x48” received an honorable mention in the same category.

At the district show, “Visual Feast,” Leah Dunn’s Self-Portrait with Giant Turnips won 1st in the painting category and Olivia Etzwiler’s 12A.M. won 2nd. Also at the district show, Emma Grimes’ cardboard relief painting, Opal, won 2nd in the open category and Cassidy Carrol’s plaster mask, Hidden Danger, won 3rd in the same category. Frida Renner’s Northern Lights plates won 3rd place in the ceramics category.

Some other students entered their work in a local noncompetitive “Jubilee” show that could be seen at Homer Council on the Arts. Daisy Walker submitted her Homer Mask, Charity Martin submitted her stacking bear mugs, BBBB, and her Hamburger Mug. Amber Gilbreath submitted her set of 3 bowls titled Toes in the Sand.

Other submissions to All-state and the “Visual Feast” that did not receive awards, but were featured in the shows include Emma Grimes’ painting, “Simple Beauty,” Jasmine Lurus’ sculpture, Fruits of Labor, and Alexandria Sweeney’s ceramic lantern Three Sides of Life.

Here are artist statements for Leah and Olivia’s paintings that won awards at all-state. Feel free to include them if you would like.

Here are two Artist Statements that were submitted to the Art Contests:

“This acrylic painting is a series representing the technological evolution of boats through history. To illustrate the passage of several centuries of time, the four paintings move from night, to sunrise, to day, and finally to sunset. Throughout the day, the boat models progress in technological advancement starting with a Viking ship, to a pirate ship, to a sailboat, and a modern seining boat. Paralleling this passage of time, the mood of the ocean slowly calms, illustrating how the modernization of boats has made them safer and more efficient to use.” Leah Dunn

“When I started this painting, I had no clue the hours, work, and back pain that would come with creating it, however I did not let that stop me from bringing my vision to life. This painting was commissioned from my boss at the Duncan House Diner and the only guidelines were that I have fun with the process. The layout is referenced directly from a picture I took of the restaurant, and the animals at the bar were my lively touch. The medium of choice was acrylic paint, and I utilized a grid method to transfer the rough draft into the bigger finished piece. A lot of my inspiration came from a perspective artist named Paul Heaston, who helped me understand point of views and create a more immersive piece. In total this painting took me three months, with over 70 hours of painting time, and I can safely say this was the most challenging canvas I have ever taken on. While it was a steep task, I loved the process and believe this is my best work yet. It has inspired me to keep pushing myself out of the comfort zone with my paintings to see how far my talents can go.”

Olivia Etzwiler

Why are there toilets in the vaping room?

Well, the good news is that vaping is less harmful than the 7000 chemicals in cigarettes. But vaping is not vapor and it is not harmless. E-cigarettes produce an aerosol that has particles in it that include heavy metals like tin, nickel and lead, ultrafine particles that can be inhaled deep into the lungs, flavorings that are linked to lung disease, volatile organic compounds, and cancer-causing chemicals.

Since 2017, vaping has increased exponentially in teens. When asked, about 20% of Alaska high school students report using vapes in the last 30 days. Teen nicotine use was decreasing in the US before 2017, but then vapes came along and were heavily advertised to appeal to teens. In addition, they are easy to hide from adults, they appear cool and harmless, they have fruity and candy flavorings, and they are rumored to decrease stress and anxiety.

What is a parent or guardian to do? Staying connected to your teens and doing things together as a family is a significant protective factor. Also talking to your teen about stress and how to relieve it—doing fun things together and with friends-camping fishing, hunting, moving your body, sleeping enough, getting a pet, talking about hard issues that come up.

If your teen is currently vaping, there are a lot of resources to help them stop and treat withdrawal symptoms as they quit. Let them know that vapes bought off the streets can be especially dangerous with unknown substance in them like THC, Vitamin E acetate or fentanyl.

Nurse Gorman