Dragon News - 05.06.22
Principal's Message
Over the last couple of weeks I’ve been thinking a lot about the IB Learner Profile trait of being balanced. I was noticing the stress of many of our seniors as they approached IB exams, and I’ve been talking with our counselors and our social worker about the trait of perfectionism that many of our students carry. I’ve realized that being balanced doesn’t mean being perfect in multiple arenas. Rather, being balanced means that you engage in activities purely for fun and enjoyment.
Last Friday one of the teachers organized a 3-on-3 basketball tournament for high schoolers. The teams were required to be mixed genders on the court at all times, and many of the teams were mixed student and staff members. It was some of the worst high school basketball I have witnessed over my 25 years in education. It was also some of the most fun basketball I’ve both watched and played in. Similarly, we’ve had a ping-pong table set up outside the cafeteria for the last couple of months. Students rotate in and out playing with each other, and the skill levels range from “barely able to keep the ball on the table” to “adept with spins and smashes.” The screeches and laughter coming from the table area demonstrate the students’ balance, and I’ve yet to see a conflict or ill feelings stemming from the games played there.
Evan, our social worker, was sharing with me his thinking around the difference between perfectionism and pursuit of excellence. One of the qualities of perfectionism is that your identity is tied to achieving external outcomes, and when these are not achieved it is seen as a personal failure. Striving for excellence means you can engage in the process fully, and you are able to walk away from the end of it regardless of outcome with your sense of self still intact. Being balanced means pursuing excellence rather than perfection.
In the “Dragons in the Spotlight” section below, you will read about many examples of students pursuing excellence. They’ve engaged in activities for the love and fun of those activities. They are balanced.
Andrew Gilford
Principal
Upcoming Events
- May 11 - FRISB Zoom Meeting; 5:45 - 7:00 pm
- May 12 - MYP Celebration Night; 6:30 - 8:00 pm
- May 19 - High School Choir Concert; 6:30 - 8:00 pm
- May 21 - Prom; 8:00 - 11:00 pm
- May 26 - Early Release Day; students let out at 12:05 pm
- May 26 - Band Concert; 6:30 - 8:00 pm
School Rankings
COVID Update
8th Grade Dance, June 3rd from 2:15-4:00
All 8th Grade students are invited to celebrate the end of middle school at the 8th Grade Dance on June 3rd from 2:15-4:00. We will have a DJ, photobooth, food, and drink. There is no charge for this event and parents/guardians must provide transportation home after the dance.
Pre-ACT Scores for 10th Graders
This week during Advisory we handed back students’ Pre-ACT results from the test they took on April 5th. This test predicts how students might do on the official ACT, which is an exam often required in the college admissions process, although many colleges and universities have gone “Test Optional” since the pandemic. Along with their results, students were given a handout explaining their scores, as well as their test booklet which allows them to look back on the questions that were asked and evaluate their answers. Teachers also went over this Google Slides presentation explaining their results and how they can be used. Also listed in the presentation are free test-prep resources that students can use. There are many outside resources that students can use as well, but do cost money, such as Huntington Learning Center, Saturday Academy, PCC, Stumptown Test Prep, and Sylvan Learning Center. Students will be taking the official ACT in the Spring next year at school for free. Students can register on their own for additional ACT or SAT exams. Students who qualify for Free or Reduced Lunch can request a fee waiver from their counselor. Many colleges require the ACT or SAT (one or the other, not both) for college admission; however, a list of schools that are “Test Optional” (ACT and SAT are not required for the application) can be found at http://www.fairtest.org/university/optional.
College preparation and help with the application process is part of our counseling curriculum over the years. Students will continue to receive information in classes on this topic and other post-graduation topics throughout high school, however, please feel free to reach out to us with any questions.
Thank you,
Kathryn Hirsch, Counselor Last Names A-L
Tracy Muilenburg, Counselor Last Names M-Z
Ready to Work Spring Events
Are you a senior interested in Construction, Manufacturing, IT, or Healthcare? At the Ready-to-Work Career Fair on May 19th from 6:00-7:30 pm at Merlo Station High School, students can learn about careers that do not require 4-year degrees, but instead short-term certificates, associate degrees, apprenticeships, and on-the-job training.
Blood Drive - May 23rd at the Clear Auto Showroom
ISB's Activism Club is partnering with the Red Cross to host a blood drive on Monday, May 23rd, from 9am to 3pm (see flyer below). Each pint of blood we collect can help save up to three lives and will touch the lives of so many more. What a great way to pay it forward and make an impact on people in our community and across the country. We are very excited about the drive and I hope you are too.
https://www.redcrossblood.org/give.html/drive-results?zipSponsor=BeavertonToyota
Dragons in the Spotlight
Congratulations to Helena Lieu who recently won the annual Herzog Meier Senior Art Show Scholarship of $1,000 for a digital drawing. Also, to Alesya Zaytseva who earned an honorable mention for her graphic design work.
11th grader Caleb Bello was selected as a national semi-finalist in the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Essay Contest for an essay he wrote about former Oregon Governor Ben Olcott, who stood up to the Ku Klux Klan in the early 1920s. Here is a link to the essay if you would like to read it. Go Caleb!
Video of "GRADitude"
Class of 2022 parents!
Please join the ISB GN committee via Zoom on May 12th, 7:00-7:45pm. We’ll share information about location, activities, food, and fun. Questions and feedback welcome.
https://harvard.zoom.us/j/92881971895?pwd=TWJ0ako3eEZMSGxPbzlHQkdZd2owUT09&from=addon
We still need more volunteers and we will provide an overview of the different volunteer roles at this meeting as well.
Class of 2022 Yard Signs — on sale now!
2022 Yard Signs are here! $20 includes sign, H stake, and Paypal transaction fee. We are offering these at cost to keep the price as accessible as possible. If you are able to add a $5 to $10 donation to the cost of your sign, please increase the final amount with your desired donation amount when you purchase your sign. To purchase a sign, go to the fundraising page at https://sites.google.com/view/isb-grad-night-2022/home
Graduating Dragons — send in your photos
Please send us digital photos of your Senior for GRAD NIGHT. There will be a slideshow loop projecting photos throughout the party.
WE WANT TO SEE YOU – Your Youth, Elementary, Middle, and High school years (activities, sports, friends, vacations, family)
WHAT TO DO:
- Save your photos using this naming convention: LASTNAME_FIRSTNAME_NUMBER. For example
- GLADNEY_SCOTT_01; GLADNEY_SCOTT_02 etc
- Please send photos to isb.grad.night.committee@gmail.com
- We can only process jpeg and png files
- Please send up to 10 photos
- 1920 x 1080 pixels is the ideal file size, but if the picture looks great on your computer screen it will look great on the projector screen!
All photos need to be uploaded by May 27th.
PLEASE NOTE: Any photos with nudity or inappropriate imagery will not be included.
Annual Parent Survey
Please take a few moments to complete the BSD Annual Parent Survey! Our goal is to ensure that every member of our school community feels welcomed, valued, and informed, so it is important for all parents/guardians to complete the survey.
A link to the 2022 Annual Parent Survey was sent to all valid parent email addresses via ParentSquare on Sunday, May 2. The deadline to participate is Sunday, May 22.
Encuesta Anual de Padres de Familia
¡Tómese unos minutos para completar la Encuesta Anual de Padres de Familia del Distrito Escolar de Beaverton! Nuestro objetivo es asegurar que todos los miembros de nuestra comunidad escolar se sientan bienvenidos, valorados e informados, por lo que es importante que todos los padres o tutores completen la encuesta.
Se envió un enlace a la Encuesta a todas las direcciones de correo electrónico válidas para padres a través de ParentVue el domingo, 2 de mayo de 2022. La fecha límite para participar es el domingo, 22 de mayo de 2022.
Beaverton Safe Routes to School Parent Surveys
It’s data collection time again for Beaverton’s Safe Routes to School program. The purpose of this program is to make walking and biking to school safe, convenient, and fun.
Parent’s and guardian’s input into how students travel to and from schools and their impression of the safety of the route is valuable as the city and county prioritize needed improvements for our roads.
The following links will take you to a district survey and will be combined with classroom tallies to give us a good picture of how students are getting to and from schools throughout the district.
The district survey will be open for responses for four weeks from May 1st until May 31st.
We appreciate your help in giving us information to make the Safe Routes to School program effective for all Beaverton School District students.
Survey Links:
English https://forms.office.com/r/vaCpecR32D
Español https://forms.office.com/r/JmQH2Und5A
اللغة†العربي†ة https://forms.office.com/r/ZAgVPzjGrr
中文 https://forms.office.com/r/LScgXwFDRw
日本語 https://forms.office.com/r/fvpdNUsBhf
한국어 https://forms.office.com/r/hLvG4Qy0QU
Русский https://forms.office.com/r/AJ2W9P3ver
Soomaali https://forms.office.com/r/6TX3seUpFU
Tiếng Việt https://forms.office.com/r/CBbDtCvkLY
CONTACT AND FOLLOW US
International School of Beaverton
IB World School - MYP & DP
Andrew Gilford - Principal
Email: isb_communications@beaverton.k12.or.us
Website: https://www.beaverton.k12.or.us/schools/isb/
Location: 17770 SW Blanton St, Beaverton, OR, United States
Phone: (503) 356-3690
Facebook: facebook.com/isbdragons
Twitter: @isb_dragons
The Beaverton School District prohibits discrimination and harassment based on any basis protected by law, including but not limited to, an individual's actual or perceived race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, national or ethnic origin, marital status, age, mental or physical disability, pregnancy, familial status, economic status, veteran status, or because of a perceived or actual association with any other persons within these protected classes.