Southridge High School Newsletter
August 2016
From the desk of Mr. Sickbert:
Good communication is vital to the success of any organization, and the same thing applies to our school. If you have any issues or concerns about your child's progress, I encourage you to contact your child's teacher as soon as possible to make sure that we can work together to address those issues early. (Teacher emails can be found on our school's website.) Additionally, if you have any questions about our school and activities, or if you're interested in becoming involved as a parent, I encourage you to contact me so that we can discuss your interests. We want to work together to make your child's experience a success, and that starts with open channels of communication.
Thank you for the opportunity to serve your students.
Welcome New Staff to SHS
Ms. Kaitlyn Lynch
Hi, my name is Kaitlin Lynch and I am the new English teacher at Southridge High School. I graduated from the University of Evansville and was previously teaching in Evansville for the past five years. I love animals and enjoy reading in my spare time. I am excited to be a Raider and can't wait to see what this year brings for our staff and students!
Mrs. Annette Altmeyer
Ms. Christina Sergesketter
reACT to Bullying
The students at Southridge High School experienced a reACTion on the first day of school!
reACT to Bullying is a high-energy, audience-interactive presentation which helps students and adults recognize bullying and communicates a practical 3-step method to help reACT appropriately and effectively.
Matt Hart, a former theatre arts teacher, uses storytelling, videos, audience volunteers and even live music to deliver a remarkable experience to his audience. His message helps schools create a positive culture and equips them with the tools to reACT to Bullying.
Matt's anti-bullying program takes his audience on a journey through his own life story. After enduring nearly 2 years of intense bullying, he summoned the strength to call on a coach who helped him end the situation in a positive way. If you ask Matt why he does what he does, that's his answer -- to help others break free from their own bullying story and, ultimately, help others.
But that's not all. The opportunity to travel to so many schools and present to tens of thousands of students has given Matt countless stories of schools, groups, and individuals who have used his methods and changed their own lives and the lives of others. By "flipping bullying on its head", students and even schools can create a remarkably supportive environment!
Contact information -- http://www.reacttobullying.org
reACT to Bullying on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter
PBIS News
Submitted by Mrs. Fowler
What a great start to the 2016-2017 school year when the high school (and middle school) hosted Matt Hart as our back to school speaker. Matt shared his message about the importance of being a leader and the importance of speaking up when you see someone being bullied.
Matt’s message was sincere passionate and heart-felt. As a victim of bullying, Matt remembers how it felt and what it was like to live in fear of what his “bully” said and did to him during his high school days.
Matt reminded students that the definition of bullying is: 1) the harm was intentional (not just joking around or being rude) 2) it happened more than once and 3) there was an imbalance of power (bigger, older, more friends, or part of a group)
In the event of a bullying situation, he encouraged the students to: “ACT” Act Calm & Confident and walk away - Call on someone who can help you -Tell someone (an adult).
SOUTHRIDGE HIGH SCHOOL
A PLACE WHERE
We don’t all have to be the same. We don’t all have to think the same. We don’t all have to act the same. We don’t all have to talk the
same. We don’t all have to dress the same. We don’t all have to believe the same things. WE HAVE THE RIGHT TO BE OURSELVES.
We like that people are different. We know that our differences make us interesting and unique. We honor different ways of being, acting, and believing – even when we don’t agree with them.
We do our best to solve problems peacefully. We speak up if we see others being treated unfairly. We treat each other the way we’d like
to be treated
WE TREAT EACH OTHER WITH RESPECT
Counseling - Student Services
Submitted by Mrs. Pulley
Information for Seniors
Make sure you join Google Classroom for Class of 2017 Guidance Information. Many students joined when I visited the senior English classes. If you were absent the day I presented, I will help you sign up individually. My goal is to post all important information for your senior year here (i.e., test dates, scholarship deadlines, etc.). Parents may also join if interested. Contact me at pulleya@swdubois.k12.in.us if you are a parent who would like to join. Parents are always welcome to contact me with any questions.
The online application for the Lilly Endowment Scholarship is now open. The Lilly Endowment Scholarship pays full tuition, fees, and an annual stipend of $900. You must be a resident of Dubois County, have attended all four years of high school in Dubois County, be working toward an Academic Honors Diploma, have a GPA of 3.5 or higher, and plan to attend a four-year college in Indiana. The application is located at www.dccommunityfoundation.org. One student from a high school in Dubois County will receive this scholarship. The application deadline is October 1st.
If you plan to attend Indiana University Bloomington, you may be considered for the Wells Scholars Program. This prestigious award pays the full cost of attendance for four years at IUB. Southridge High School is allowed to nominate two seniors who may be considered for this competitive award. Seniors who plan to attend IUB next year and are interested in this scholarship should see Mrs. Pulley by September 9th.
Pay attention to college application deadlines! Colleges and universities have their own deadlines for college admittance and scholarship consideration. Please keep an eye on those deadlines so you do not miss out on any opportunities. Many colleges have a priority deadline of November 1st for maximum consideration of scholarships.
Information for Sophomores
This week, I will visit sophomore English classes and have students join Google Classroom for Class of 2019 Guidance Information. My goal is to post all important guidance information here (i.e., test dates, websites, etc.). Parents may also join if interested. Contact me at pulleya@swdubois.k12.in.us if you are a parent who would like to join. Parents are always welcome to contact me when they have questions or concerns about their students.
COUNSELOR’S CORNER
Submitted by Mrs. Fowler
PSAT
On Wednesday, October 19th, Southridge High School will be administering the PSAT (practice for the SAT) to all sophomores and juniors who are on track to graduate. Registration for the test will take place on Monday, October 10th during homeroom. The State of Indiana has agreed to cover the cost of the test.
ASVAB
The ASVAB is a career interest inventory administered by the military. This test is used to determine acceptance into the military but can also be used by those students who are interested in learning about careers for which they are well suited. Juniors who are interested in taking the ASVAB may sign up to take the test in the counseling area. The test will be administered on Wednesday, October 26th. The test if free. Interpretation of the test results/career interest inventory will take place at a later date.
JUNIORS
Mrs. Fowler met with the Class of 2018 during the last week of August. Juniors were given a “to-do” list which contained the following suggestions:
*PSAT – the importance of doing well on 10/19
*Register for the ASVAB (if needing some direction for careers)
*Attend the college fair on October 3 at VUJC (6 – 7:30)
*Register for dual credit courses (last week of August and again in January)
*Schedule a college visit each semester of your junior year
(paperwork can be found in Mrs. Allen’s room or the counseling office)
*Register to take the ACT and SAT by the 2nd semester
*Meet with admissions counselors of the colleges (who will soon be visiting SHS) that you are interested in attending – sign up is in the counselors office
*Listen to the daily announcements
*Register with parchment (e-transcript company)
FRESHMAN
Mrs. Fowler has been out in the classrooms meeting with the Class of 2020. The students have started on their four year plans and will continue to update and review them each semester of high school. The Freshman took part in a “C2G” ceremony (Commitment to Graduate) that was conducted by Jostens. The freshman witnessed a presentation on the importance of a high school education and the benefits of earning a diploma. Each freshman then made a written commitment by signing the pledge banner. They also made a verbal commitment to graduate to their principals, their homeroom teachers, and their freshman mentors. Sincere thanks to Reid Sakel/Jostens for their commitment to the students at Southridge High School.
DUAL CREDIT OPPORTUNITIES
IVY Tech courses – Ms. Hasenour, Mr. Satterfield Ms. Wagner, and Mr. Wibbeler will assist the students in registering. Those classes include Pre-Calculus, Trigonometry, Automotive Technology, Agriculture classes, PLTW classes, and Welding Classes. Students will not be charged.
Oakland City University – Registration for dual credits (Psychology and British Literature) with OCU took place on Friday, August 26, in the counseling area. Students registered on line and returned the parent permission form along with their payment. ($25.00 per credit hour)
In addition, there will be a spring registration for dual credits from OCU in January of 2017.
University of Southern Indiana – This year registration will take place on-line. In addition, the students will need to print their registration and get parent permission to take the class. At a later date, USI will then send the student an invoice for payment. (Anatomy & Physiology, Advanced Composition and Spanish IV)
FCA (Fellowship of Christian Athletes)
Submitted by Mr. Schaefer
The Raider FCA held its kick-off meeting on Monday, August 29 where participating members heard from this year's Exec Team consisting of Harrison Stecker (President), Justin Reed (Vice-President), and Jayce Harter (Treasurer/Secretary). The meeting focused on what FCA is all about, some of our objectives for this school year, and the revealing of this year's t-shirt design. Coming up on September 19, the Raider FCA will welcome guest speaker, Ryan Kramer, who has an important message to share with the group!
Student Activity Fair
Double Trouble
SADD CHAPTER
PING PONG CLUB
Freshman Mentors
Freshman Mentors are upper classmen who are interested in helping our freshman succeed. Freshman Mentors are instrumental in ensuring that our freshman have a smooth transition to high school. This year’s freshman mentors attended training on Sunday, August 7th followed by freshman orientation on August 8th.
Media Center News...
Mrs. Bardwell presented the Eliot Rosewater Book Award program to each English class. The presentation included explaining the program and encouraging students to read the 2016-17 Rosie nominees. For each nominee a student reads he/she is encouraged to fill out a voting ballot. Students that read 5 of the nominees will be invited to a pizza party at the end of the school year. Students also watched book trailers about the books at the following link: https://sites.google.com/site/rosies20162017/ More information about the Rosies and a list of this year's nominees may be found at the following link: http://www.ilfonline.org/?page=eliotrosewateraward
Read a Rosie!!!
New Makerspace!!
Last year Mrs. Bardwell applied and received a $1000.00 grant from Toyota Manufacturing to buy supplies to start a makerspace in the media center. National Office Furniture heard about the grant and offered to redesign a conference room space into a makerspace by recreating the space and supplying new furniture. A huge thank you to National Office Furniture!! We love our new space! We also painted one wall green to use as a green screen for video production. Our new space is coming along and will always be changing throughout the year.
Below, students from Mr. O'Brien's class are working on a group project. The second picture is of students taking apart and exploring old computers. Much more about the makerspace will be featured in upcoming newsletters.