We Are 181 Fall 2011

Inside: The School of a Million Chances It Takes a Pirate and Two Newfoundlands A is For Apps — and Achievement A publication of the Brainerd Dispatch

Contents

Features The School of a Million Chances............................... 5 A wide range of circumstances can keep someone from earning a high school degree. The Area Education Center offers students another chance.

By Carolyn Corbett

It Takes a Pirate and Two Newfies...........................9

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Volunteers from the community have a place in many classrooms.

Learn how a pirate and two Newfies support student learning.

By Jenny Holmes

A is for Apps–and Achievement...............................12 While providing differentiated, accelerated and remedial opportunities for students, new technologies in the classroom can also engage and spark their interest.

By Jenny Gunsbury

Proud District Parents..............................................18 Providing learning opportunities for a wide range of abilities, including the gifted student, is a challenge. Here’s a success story.

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By Bev Abear

The Forest at Forestview........................................ 22 With the support of area individuals and organizations, Brainerd schools offer learning opportunities in a wooded setting.

By Pam Landers

In This Issue We are Safe...........................................................7 Priority One: Transportation Safety

By Melody Banks

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We are Factual.....................................................16 Facts for the Future

By Steve Lund

We are Always Learning........................................20 A Community of Learning

By Mary Aalgaard

We are Volunteers...............................................25 From Phy Ed to Fire

By Sheila Helmberger

cover photo by Joey Halvorson

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We Are 181 • Fall 2011

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Opportunities for ALL Students

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ften used within the context of business, the Brainerd Public Schools’ vision statement lays the foundation for how our district — and our community — will undertake the important work in preparing our children for the future.

Recently, we worked directly with members of our community to help redefine our district’s vision statement. During our discussions with community members, “opportunity” became a common theme that emerged from all stakeholders. As a public school district, we are given the important responsibility of providing opportunities for ALL students who come through our doors.

We strive to not just meet their needs; but to exceed the expectations of our students, their families and our entire community.

This responsibility is the cornerstone of our organization.

Every year students come to us with vastly differing needs. Nearly one in five of our students have a learning disability. At the very same time, we are experiencing growth in the number of students who are participating in our gifted and accelerated learning programs. No one student is the same; they all have unique qualities.

They do have one thing in common, however; they deserve equal opportunities to achieve their maximum academic potential. And that is our job.

This issue of We Are 181 contains inspiring examples of these opportunities. To best provide these opportunities, we all need to work in concert — a highly qualified and trained staff with proven results, a trusted group of volunteers, active and engaging parents and many valuable relationships, partnerships and collaborations with businesses and organizations from across our community.

Simply put, not only do we need to come to the party, we also need to bring a dish to pass. The future of our community is dependent on best educating and preparing our future generations. We Are all in this together.

Staff PUBLISHER Tim Bogenschutz EDITOR Meg Douglas ART DIRECTOR Nikki Lyter PHOTOGRAPHER Joey Halvorson

We are 181 is a publication produced in cooperation with The Brainerd Dispatch and School District 181 • For advertising opportunities call Sam Swanson 218.855.5841

E-mail your comments, suggestions or topics to nikki.lyter@brainerddispatch.com copyright© 2010 VOLUME TWO, EDITION ONE FALL 2011

Steve Razidlo, Superintendent 4

We Are 181 • Fall 2011

506 JAMES STREET, P.O. BOX 974 BRAINERD, MN 56401 (218) 829-4705 • www.brainerddispatch.com

story and photos by Carolyn Corbett

After a month at the Area Education Center, Aaron Holmin’s grades improved and he graduated last spring with a B average. Plans for the future include the Army.

I

n ninth grade, Aaron Holmin had a grade point average close to 2.0. He faked sick, didn’t do his homework and was bullied by other students. He tried home schooling for a month and didn’t like that any better than “regular school.” Not wanting to go to Brainerd Senior High School in tenth grade, he turned to the Area Education Center.

“The Area Education Center was all I had left,” says Holmin.

It worked. Holmin fell in love with AEC within a month and his grades shot up. He never had a grade lower than a B and graduated this past spring with a 3.7 grade point average--it would have been higher but for that ninth grade year. Now 18, Holmin is in the Army, waiting to ship out in January.

The classes at AEC are smaller than at the high school and many core classes are held in the computer lab. Some classes require homework every week, but much of the work is completed in class. There is lots of one-on-one time with the 11 teachers on staff. “They know pretty much

everything about you,” says Holmin.

Students work at their own pace and earn units at varying rates based on their class attendance, homework and curriculum completion. Eightyfive units of course activity equals one credit.

General elective courses are also available. Holmin particularly enjoyed Outdoor Adventure. It is a class filled with a variety of activities including a three-day trip to the Audubon Environmental Learning Center.

Other experiences include: hiking, snowshoeing at French Rapids, biking the Paul Bunyan Trail, canoeing, ice fishing and day camping at Crow Wing State Park. Students learn to give back to the community through participating in highway cleanups, planting trees and maintaining trails at the Northland Arboretum. “There’s a lot more to AEC than meets the eye,” he says. “It’s not just a bunch of bad kids roaming around. It’s just normal kids.”

Karla Bock agrees. “People think

AEC is just for bad kids and screw-up moms,” she says. It’s not. The AEC student handbook describes a place where staff are committed to delivering thew best opportunity available to ensure each student’s success. At AEC, they value the desire, motivation and innate ability within each individual to fulfill personal goals.

Bock went to AEC in her tenth grade year and has attended there four years. She didn’t like the high school, skipped a lot and didn’t hand in homework. “The AEC is a better environment for kids like me,” she says. In a smaller setting, there is less “drama” and more opportunities for personalized instruction. Though she was removed from classes twice for attendance reasons, AEC gave Bock another chance when she was ready to try again.

Deana Anderson (a pseudonym respecting Alcoholic Anonymous privacy guidelines) dropped out of Brainerd High School in her junior year. Being in class for eight hours We Are 181 • Fall 2011

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The Area Education Center is available to students under age 21 with a variety of specific life situations who are willing to take an active role in their education. Students must meet one of the following criteria:

•

Perform substantially below performance level for students of the same age in a locally determined achievement test •

Are at least one year behind in satisfactorily completing coursework/ obtaining credit for graduation •

Are pregnant or a parent •

Have been assessed as chemically dependent •

Have been physically or sexually abused •

Have been homeless sometime in the past 6 months •

Have limited English proficiency or speak English as a second language •

Have been referred by a school district for enrollment •

Have experienced mental health problems •

Have been chronically absent or have withdrawn from school •

Have been excluded or expelled a day wasn’t working for her. She skipped classes daily and was late to those she did attend. She chose not to participate in assignments and was failing everything except pottery class. She’d heard that she could get a class schedule to fit her needs, so she decided to give it a shot.

For a month or two it went great.

Great, except she continued to skip classes, was doing drugs and drinking on a regular basis. “I thought everyone got drunk on the weekends and smoked marijuana daily,” Anderson says. “What I didn’t know was that I was in the first stages of full blown drug and alcohol addiction.”

AEC has a strict attendance policy and one by one she was dropped from her classes. She got angry and she got drunk, furthering the cycle of self-destruction. Graduating from high school was not a top priority. She figured she had plenty of time for that.

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We Are 181 • Fall 2011

Number one on her list was partying and feeling good.

Anderson returned to AEC only to lose all of her classes within a few months. This went on for four years, though eventually she had come to want that diploma. She was supposed to graduate in 2008. Her last failed attempt at AEC was the beginning of hitting rock bottom. She had no money, no job, no diploma and little hope.

She found Alcoholics Anonymous and realized she could have a better life, but though she stopped drinking, she continued using drugs. When her life didn’t improve, she broke down and told her mother she needed to go to treatment.

Over the years, AEC had given her chance after chance after chance over the years so she called the school to discuss her situation. She wanted to get assignments to work on during treatment. She was angry when the

answer was no. She was told to focus on recovery and take care of herself— AEC would be there when she came home.

She did and it was. Anderson realized how badly she wanted that diploma. She had nearly enough credits, but she had to earn it by December 2011, before her 21st birthday. After that she would be too old for the alternative program and would have to redirect her goal toward earning a GED diploma. Her options for earning a high school diploma were running out.

After 59 days at an in-patient treatment program, Anderson returned to Brainerd hopeful and sober. She met with staff members at AEC, was honest about her past and apologized for all the lies. She was told she still had a shot at a diploma.

Anderson graduated in spring 2010 and is now a full time student at Central Lakes College. “I owe it all to AEC. The staff believed in me when I didn’t believe in myself. It truly is the school of a million chances.”

Prior to playing with words for a living, Carolyn Corbett taught elementary school for 14 years. At 35, she resigned and sailed off into the sunset. Literally. Along the way she became a contributing writer for a number of sailing magazines.

Today, as a freelance writer/editor, she has over 200 articles published in cruising, parenting and general interest magazines. Her web site is at www.carolyncorbett.com.

C a w

story and photos by Melody Banks

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Children riding in school buses are nearly 2000 times safer than when riding in the family car.

he Brainerd School District understands that a child’s safety is top priority for every parent.

While students took some time off to enjoy the summer, ISD 181 was busy taking steps to ensure that student transportation is as safe as possible.

Studies have shown that children riding in school buses are nearly 2,000 times safer than they are when riding in the family car. “School buses have the best safety record of any form of student transportation,” says transportation coordinator Kala Henkensiefken, “but our district recently invested in new technologies and hardware to offer an even better advantage and provide parents, students and our transportation staff added peace of mind.”

“A growing trend in school transportation is the installation of surveillance systems on buses,” said Henkensiefken. “This summer we had Seon Bus Camera Surveillance systems installed on all of the school district’s contracted regular and special needs buses. This system was also installed on all the vans and Suburbans we use to transport students.”

According to Henkensiefken, “The district made the initial investment in the new technology and hardware with the understanding that our contractor will make installations of the equipment on any buses they may acquire in the future. The bus camera surveillance systems can help promote a safer environment for both students and bus drivers by recording and providing feedback in the event of a concern expressed by a parent, student or driver.”

Seon has become a leader in mobile video surveillance systems.

The systems have helped the transportation industry with issues of passenger safety, incidence management, risk reduction and financial limitations.

We Are 181 • Fall 2011

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This summer the school district installed the Seon Bus Camera Surveillance system on vans and buses to promote a safer environment for students and bus drivers.

Another technology added to all regular and special needs buses this summer is the Dorn Child safety check safety system. “This device prevents a child from being mistakenly left on a bus at the end of a route,” said Henkensiefken. “The system must be deactivated at the back of the bus. If a driver fails to turn off the system and exits, the horn will sound reminding

What parents can teach students about bus safety Children should:

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•

Be ready and waiting for the bus before it arrives •

Stand a safe distance from the curb when a bus is approaching •

Wait until the bus is completely stopped, the door open and the driver says it is okay before boarding •

Stay a safe distance from the bus to be sure the driver can see you •

Never walk behind a bus

We Are 181 • Fall 2011

the driver to return and check every seat for any children that may still be on board.”

The third safety measure taken was the installation of crossing arms on all contracted regular school buses. The crossing arms are mounted to the front bumper and are activated and extend nearly six feet in front of the bus when the bus driver turns on their warning lights and opens the bus door. This encourages children to walk a safe distance from the school bus.

While some may realize that school busing is the safest form of student transportation, Henkensiefken says she’s seen the evidence first hand, “I’ve visited the national school bus crash test site in Indiana and seen how well school buses hold up in a crash.

It was amazing. School buses are compartmentalized and reinforced with steel frames.” The steel reinforced compartments create a safer passenger environment and added crash protection. In a roll over, school buses can support up to 1.5 times their own weight.

Crashes are rare because buses and drivers must meet state and federal standards. Equipment and

vehicle safety inspections are required each year along with and mandatory training for every driver. “The State Patrol can stop a bus to perform onsite inspections of the vehicle and driver at any time,” said Henkensiefken. “All of our drivers, including teachers and coaches who transport students, must have specialized training. Teachers and coaches are required to take annual training. District drivers that provide transportation to and from home in our vans and Suburbans are required annual training and a physical every two years.

Drivers of the big yellow buses must have a commercial driver’s license, take annual safety classes, pass a written driver’s test every four years and a physical every two years.”

Parents can also play an important role in teaching students to be safer.

See sidebar.

Finally, motorists need to stay alert, slow down and watch for children. Remember flashing yellow lights mean a bus is preparing to stop.

Red flashing lights with an extended stop sign indicate the bus is stopped and children are boarding or exiting.

Motorists shouldn’t pass until the red lights stop flashing, the stop sign is withdrawn, and the bus begins moving.

“We transport a lot of students and cover a large territory,” says Henkensiefken. “Our goal is to keep each one of them safe.”

Melody Banks lives in Nisswa.

She has been working professionally as a graphic artist and writer since 1987 and owns Black Sheep Family History Publishers. She enjoys writing articles and contributing photographs to area publications.

b y Jenny Hol me s p hotos by Joe y H a lv o rso n

It Takes a

PIRATE

2

and

NEWFOUNDLANDS Dogs in the classroom can be an effective tool in getting and keeping students’ attention.

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hese days, it isn’t unusual to see a pirate swashbuckling through the halls of an elementary school or a dog lapping up more attention than the teacher in another. To those in the education field, it has proven to be an effective tool in getting and keeping, students’ attention in a fun and functional way.

Susan Rogers, Adult Programming and Volunteer Coordinator with the Brainerd School District, said volunteers have always been an integral

part of the school day, but a growing number of individuals are making an even-bigger impact by carving a unique niche in their presentation by dressing up or using props.

“It’s pretty cool. The kids get excited and the volunteer can play another part other than themselves,” Rogers said, noting she has witnessed, firsthand, the excitement in the classroom when a volunteer— especially in costume—visits a class.

“I think it’s just a great opportunity for

the community to come in and have fun with the kids.”

For 13 years, Greg Skoog, better known to students as “Black Jack the Pirate,” has volunteered during the fall and spring with first grade students in the district’s five elementary schools.

“The kids just gravitate to him,” Rogers noted of the fun-loving pirate.

Beginning in late summer, Skoog, or rather Black Jack, begins the process of growing out his gnarly beard to completely fit the part.

We Are 181 • Fall 2011

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Left, Greg Skoog, aka “Black Jack the Pirate,” reads to first graders throughout the district. Shirley Lintner and her husband Larry, bring their certified therapy-trained Newfoundlands, Albert and Lily to listen to first grade readers at Garfield.

“It’s a long story,” Skoog said of his beginnings. “When my son was in kindergarten, I did my obligatory day of volunteering and actually enjoyed doing it.” A few days later, Skoog got a call from the school asking if he could come back and read to first graders one morning a week for two hours. “I enjoyed it so much, I started doing it two mornings a week.”

Then, “for kicks and giggles, shimmies and shakes,” Skoog decided to volunteer dressed as a pirate. Using an old wig left over from the 1970s, a pair of stretched out sweatpants fashioned as pantaloons, a red sash, eye patch, tin foil buckles on his boots and, of course, ‘arrrr’gyle socks—Black Jack the Pirate was born.

Armed with the book “Pirate Soup” and a thick pirate-esque brogue, Skoog was a hit and word began to spread about his popularity; so much so that soon he was asked to visit all of the first grade classrooms throughout the District.

“It’s fun. It is really fun,” Skoog said of his time spent with students.

“It warms my heart. Especially when they’re reading to me. I get to know them quite well over the course of a year. The pirate though, he has lots of funny, silly things happening to him.”

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We Are 181 • Fall 2011

Skoog said the most popular request is to “see his eyeball,” which according to Black Jack’s story was lost to the thrash of a shark’s tail, but only after that same shark bit off part of his finger, all while he was tickling the fish’s tummy in the ocean.

Black Jack visits all District elementary schools twice a year in the fall and then returns in the spring, but Greg Skoog, as himself, visits Harrison Elementary every Wednesday and Thursday beginning the third week of school. In addition to sharing his stories, Skoog, and Black Jack, give lessons in learning the ABC’s in the fall, as well as the importance of reading and having a library card. And after 13 years, Skoog said most students who are now seniors in high school were once visited and read to by Black Jack as first graders in Brainerd.

For 15 years, Shirley Lintner worked as a physical education teacher at Lincoln Elementary and, no doubt, recognized the importance of volunteers. So when she retired from the District three years ago, it wasn’t a surprise to find her back in the classroom. But this time, she traded in her whistle for a leash.

Lintner and husband, Larry, are proud owners of two Newfoundlands,

Albert, 9, and Lily, 7. Both are certified therapy dogs through the Therapy Dogs International organization and have undergone rigorous training to ensure they pose no threat to students.

The dogs are also covered by liability insurance through TDI. These massive dogs may look a lot like big black bears, but they have the temperament of a gentle giant.

Initially, the Lintners and their dogs read with first grade students at Lincoln, but since the school’s closure, they now frequent the first grade classes at Garfield Elementary.

From October to April, the couple and their dogs visit the school once a week for an hour and a half, spending 30-minute sessions with each of the three first grade classrooms. Typically, students will take turns sitting in the “reading chair” and will read aloud to an attentive Albert and Lily.

“The dogs don’t put them down when they read a word wrong,” Lintner said. “ The kids will come in and say that they practiced at home because they wanted to read well for the dogs.

One kid, I remember him from Lincoln, had just transferred to Garfield. He was a hesitant reader, and he really liked the dogs. One day, he got up to the reader’s chair for the first time and was

having a difficult time with some of the words… His classmates got so into the story he was reading that they began to encourage him. They wanted to hear more of the story. And Albert and Lily were just thumping their tails. It was a success story taller than that boy was.”

With a number of accomplishments and accolades under their collars, including American Kennel Club and International championships, and water rescue, don’t be fooled. Albert and Lily are right at home sitting on the story rug being loved and scratched by dozens of little hands.

“I think dogs are just so nonjudgmental,” Lintner noted of Albert and Lily’s popularity. “It is not a detriment to the students learning. In fact, it can really improve their reading scores. It’s been real fun. And of course we’ll see kids down the street or in the grocery store and they’ll say, ‘Aren’t you Albert and Lily’s mom and dad?’”

Rogers said the District has

been fortunate to have a long line of volunteers who recognize the importance of giving their time and talent in the schools. In the past, older women have transformed into Grandma Goose, coming in costume complete with a bonnet and apron to work with students on worksheets and reading.

Times Before Television has also been a popular program coordinated by Rogers, providing an intergenerational opportunity where seniors visit fifth grade classrooms and teach about the finer times ‘before television’ with hobbies such as butter making, quilting, spool racing, spinning, woodcarving and more. Rogers said she works closely with Marcia Ferris and the Foster Grandparent program connecting interested seniors with classrooms.

A limited window of time during the school day makes it difficult to fit in additional unique opportunities such as these, but Rogers said she strives

to accommodate anyone interested in volunteering in one way or another. In fact, according to Rogers, during the 2010-2011 school year, nearly 1,400 individuals volunteered in the Brainerd School District, equaling an impressive 17,759 hours.

Those interested in volunteering in the schools can contact Susan Rogers at (218) 454-6929 for more information.

Jenny Holmes, a 1994 Brainerd High School graduate, is a former reporter with the Brainerd Dispatch and owns a freelance public relations and communications company. She lives in Nisswa with her husband and two children.

We Are 181 • Fall 2011

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p hotos b y Jo e y H a lv o rso n

by Jenny Gunsbury

Aa

is for Apps – and Achievement Children listen attentively when Blair Jedinak, second grade teacher at Lowell, explains some newly purchased technology.

A

large, brightly colored rug lies in the middle of Blair Jedinak’s second grade classroom at Lowell Elementary School.

Two students sit cross-legged on it. One holds an iPod Touch, while the other waits intently beside him, looking over his friend’s shoulder. They take turns passing the device between them, quietly discuss the math problems on the screen and encourage each other as they get correct answers. They are focused, engaged and having fun learning.

This fall the district began several new pilot programs that place new technology opportunities directly in the hands of learners. “Many students already use iPods, iPads, or netbooks at home,” explains Pam Dyson, Director of Technology for ISD 181.

“Bringing them into the classroom for educational purposes is very exciting.

They are a wonderful, cost-effective way to support and enhance the 12

We Are 181 • Fall 2011

curriculum that’s already in place.”

At Lowell, each Kindergarten, first and second grade classroom received two Apple iPod Touches.

The iPod functions like a small, mobile computer. It has a touch screen interface, accesses the internet via a Wi-Fi network and runs apps. An “app,” or application, is a software program that is installed on a device via the internet and runs on computer, smartphone or other electronic device.

There are literally thousands of apps available for educational use to supplement any subject area.

“Handwriting is a big part of our first weeks of school,” says Tracy Czeck, first grade teacher at Lowell. “We have an app that demonstrates correct letter formation then allows the student to practice. If they don’t get it right, they have to try again.” Second graders in Jedinak’s class use the “Top It” app for math and “Leaf Snap,” a sciencethemed app, to reinforce concepts in

their plant unit this year.

For reading, students can record themselves reading a book using the iPod’s voice recorder program.

Playing it back and listening to the story in their own voice and words is a powerful tool for building fluency.

Jedinak and fellow teachers hope to start building a recorded library of read alouds made by students, parents, teachers and community members.

Apps also help teachers to provide differentiated learning in the classroom. “We’ll use certain apps that help support at-risk learners with more practice on particular skills and we will use some apps as extensions to help challenge others,” explains Ashley Kunesh, Lowell first grade teacher. Each student can have a set of apps suited specifically to their needs.

At the middle school level, Forestview is implementing a pilot program using netbooks, devices that have screens and keyboards but are

smaller a n d l i g h t e r than laptop or notebook computers.

Fifth grade teachers Brenda Sannes and Helen Danielson will each get a classroom set of netbooks for their classrooms. “All students in the class will have access to the netbooks which gives us the opportunity for whole class activities and differentiated assignments. It’s exciting that the tools will be available at all times; we’ll be able to dig into student questions and teachable moments as they occur in the classroom,” explains Sannes.

“Our district has adopted the Pearson Reading Street curriculum which includes a number of webbased components to supplement instruction,” says Danielson.

Above: Students are using a curriculum which includes a number of web-based components to supplement instruction.

“Students will use the netbooks to access apps that feature animated video clips on literary elements and grammar skills, vocabulary activities, story response activities and journaling. We’ll also use them for internet research, word processing and editing.” In addition, the teachers see opportunities in the future for students to turn in assignments digitally.

“Each student will be assigned a netbook that will be theirs to use while in the classroom. The netbooks won’t

leave t h e rooms; they’ll be stored in charging stations and used with the next group of students,” says Sannes. Even with almost 400 students using the netbooks, Sannes and Danielson are confident the devices will be used appropriately and responsibly. Internet monitoring software has been installed in the netbooks, giving teachers the capacity to monitor and interact with students.

Students with special learning needs are also benefiting from new technology.

Harrison Elementary recently introduced seven iPads into their special education sections. The Apple iPad is considered a tablet computer, which is significantly larger than a smartphone but smaller than a laptop. It is controlled by a touch

We Are 181 • Fall 2011

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screen instead of a keyboard.

The iPad runs apps, functions as an e-reader or electronic book, and connects to the internet.

Harrison Special Education teachers Noelle Bussler, Amy Haag, and Tracy Bluth use the iPads with 45 students in K-4 that have various abilities, strengths and growth needs.

“Along with reading, writing, math, science and social studies, there are apps that support fine-motor skill development as well as social skill lessons,” says Bluth. “iPads support multiple learning styles

including kinesthetic, visual, and auditory; when we incorporate various styles into our daily teaching practice, interests and achievement increase,” explains Bussler.

“Our students love learning with iPads. They are digital learners and are motivated to use the latest technology,” says Bussler. “Since much of how we communicate, operate, and navigate is a great deal through technology, this will enhance skills not only in school but in real life,” adds Lisa Morgan, Harrison Elementary Principal.

“Some of the apps our students use include “Dragon Dictation,” an app that allows a student to dictate a writing assignment instead of typing or handwriting it; “Bills and Coins,” a math money counting game; “ABC Tracer,” which reinforces letter knowledge, formation of letters, and basic sight words; and “Talking Tom,” for social skills,” explains Haag.

Ellen Uglem, Speech Language Pathologist at Garfield Elementary, has been using iPads since last February.

Her students have a variety of communication disorders, some severe, related to autism or neurological disorders. “The iPad is versatile, portable, interesting and motivating. The quality of the video, auditory and visual activities is incredible!” says Uglem.

She uses apps to help students work on speech sound production, s e n t e n c e structure and ease stuttering.

Students don’t share adults’ hesitancy in tackling new technology, they dive right in.

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We Are 181 • Fall 2011

Her nonverbal students use an app developed to speak for them so they can make simple requests and commands.

“I always use the iPad and the apps as a way to work on communication skills, so we are constantly talking while we use the apps. And, I interact with the student while we are using the iPad to be certain that the activity pertains to specific speech/language objectives.”

To get these pilot programs up and running this fall, staff members attended several training sessions on the devices last summer. “It has been a work in progress and will be ongoing this year,” says Dyson.

District administration is also working closely with the school board on assessing the best way to provide and put infrastructure in place for future wireless capability needs. The pilot programs sprinkled throughout the district this year will supply valuable information for these decisions as the district moves forward

on this initiative. As technology can be a means to an end of providing differentiated, accelerated and remedial opportunities, Dyson adds, “The more we can engage, spark, and be part of students “owning” their learning experience, the more they’ll achieve. And they may not even realize they’re learning.”

Back at Lowell in Ms. Jedinak’s class, the iPods are being collected so the kids can go to recess.

“Can I play again? I don’t want to stop!” exclaims a student. Case in point.

Jenny Gunsbury enjoys writing freelance articles for area publications. She recently retired her Sony Walkman and entered the 21st century music scene by purchasing an iPod. Her teenage kids only had to help her a bit to set it up.

We Are 181 • Fall 2011

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Vote November 8 C omm gs ommuuni ni ttyy M e e ttiinng

The Levy Questions

Mark your calendar to attend a community meeting to gather information and ask questions about the upcoming operating levy election on November 8.

October 24, 2011 – 7:00 PM Forestview Middle School in the Cafetorium October 27, 2011 — 7:00 PM Brainerd High School in the Community Room November 1, 2011 — 7:00 PM Nisswa Elementary School in the Community Room

Voter approval of Question #1 will renew the district’s current operating levy approved by voters in 2001. The district’s current operating levy provides $199 per student, which is a total of $1.87 million per year. If Question #1 is approved, the current operating levy will continue at its current rate for another 10 years.

Voter approval of Question #2 will increase the district’s current operating levy by $200 per student for the next five years. This will add $1.37 million in funding per year.

The Facts

District “Per Student” Operating Levy Comparisons

The levy funds provide the district with a source of stable and predictable funding at a time of state and federal funding shifts and shortfalls.

Outstate districts of similar size and community/student demographics $856

$850 $700

$676

$199

$555

Brainerd

Alexandria

Saint Cloud

Mankato

Wilmar

Moorhead

$390

Little Falls

MN AVERAGE “PER STUDENT” OPERATING LEVY

$936

The state average for a local operating levy is $936 per student.

Brainerd Public Schools’ current operating levy is $199 per student.

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We Are 181 • Fall 2011

Funds support educational priorities such as: Class sizes of 24 at grades K-4, 31 at grades 5-8, and 33 at grades 9-12 A wide variety of elective courses such as visual arts, music, building trades, welding, and world languages Targeted support for struggling learners College prep academic opportunities High-quality staff training Comprehensive sports and activity programs Transportation with a one-mile “no bus” zone Six neighborhood elementary schools A five-day school week

Operating Levy Information The Cost What’s at Risk Renewal of Question #1 will result in no new taxes.

Failure of Question #2 will require budget cuts in excess of $1 million. Failure of both questions will require budget cuts in excess of $2 million. While a list of cuts has not been formalized, the following examples illustrate what the district will be forced to consider if funding is reduced:

What will Question #2 cost?

Increasing Class Sizes

The annual and monthly tax impact of Question #2 is outlined in the table below. Taxes are based on taxable market value, not estimated market value.

Taxable Market Value

Tax Impact of Question #2 on Current Tax Bill Annually

Monthly

Residential Homestead

Impact: Many crowded classrooms resulting in decreased teacher/student interaction Impact: Decreasing academic support for every student Question #2 Fails: Projected class sizes of 26+ at grades K-4, 32-34 at grades 5-8, and 35-38 at grades 9-12 Questions #1 and #2 Fails: Projected class sizes of 27+ at grades K-4, 32-34 at grades 5-8, and 35-40 at grades 9-12

Eliminating Staff and Programs

$50,000

$19.44

$1.62

$100,000

$38.88

$3.24

$144,300*

$56.10

$4.68

$200,000

$77.76

$6.48

$250,000

$97.20

$8.10

$300,000

$116.64

$9.72

Impact: Decreasing elective coursework such as visual arts, music, building trades, welding, and world languages Impact: Decreasing individual/small group support for struggling learners Impact: Reducing school support staff such as custodians, secretaries, education assistants, and administration Question #2 Fails: Projected cuts of 30 teacher and support staff positions Questions #1 and #2 Fail: Projected cuts of 30-50 teacher and support staff positions

Increasing Fees and/or Eliminating Sports and Activities

Commercial Industrial $200,000

$77.76

$6.48

$272,200*

$105.83

$8.82

$400,000

$155.52

$12.96

$500,000

$194.40

$16.20

* The average taxable market value of a home in our school district is $144,300 and of a business is $272,200.

Impact: Reducing choices in sports and activity programs Impact: Increasing cost burden for local families

Expanding the “No Bus” Zone The district may need to expand the “no bus” zone from one to two miles in order to save transportation costs.

We Are 181 • Fall 2011

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by Beverly Abear

Parents Bill Mohs( left) and Jann Kline, appreciate all the effort from ISD 181 principals, teachers and coaches that enabled their son to graduate from Yale University in 2011.

L

Logan Mohs gave the commencement address at his BHS graduation.

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We Are 181 • Fall 2011

ogan Mohs was a 2007 BHS grad, a National Merit Scholar, National AP Scholar and now a 2011 graduate of Yale University. He gives high praise to the schools and teachers that provided so many opportunities for learning.

Logan was picking words out of the newspaper at age 3 ½ and from then on, he was reading constantly. His dad says he’d find his son in all sorts of positions as he read, even hanging upside down.

Counting themselves lucky to be in ISD 181 when their son was of school age, Bill Mohs (Brainerd) and Jann Kline (Battle Lake) credit a long line of principals, teachers and coaches as a big part of Logan’s success.

With flexibility, understanding and creativity, they went the extra mile for Logan and—Bill is quick to add—many other students as well.

In kindergarten, when playing the ABC train, Logan was bored and started getting into trouble. Instead of sitting him in a corner, the teacher sent him to Principal Roger McHaney who insightfully substituted algebra lessons for alphabet time. Logan went on to compete in math. In 5th and 6th grade on the 1st place Regional Math Masters team, he took 1st in individual competition. In

Logan began reading early and often.

7th grade he won 1st in the Minnesota Math League competition.

Bill says that what stood out with the enrichment program at Lowell was first, that it was even available. One of Logan’s favorite teachers was Patti Uppgaard (now deceased) who taught his 4th grade gifted class at Lowell.

In an interview in June, she clearly remembered him as a good student and helper.

Bill was amazed at the way the school met any additional wants and needs they expressed. For example, when Logan wasn’t challenged enough, they allowed him to take reading in the class level above. They also suggested the Alternative Education Center where he went a couple hours a day during 3rd-5th grades for science and math.

In junior high, Logan says, “They moved me around to different schools, which was not a regular practice for students.” His principals wanted to find the best fit for Logan’s educational needs and were always willing to try new things. Logan says how appreciative he is that everyone helped him.

The school gave released time for Youth In Government at the YMCA.

“My interest in politics started when I joined a program called YIG in the 8th grade, a program that completely changed my life.”

Learning the political process intrigued him. While still in high school Logan was selected to represent Minnesota at the Youth Conference on National Affairs, traveling to North Carolina. He is still an advisor for Youth and Government.

His mother Jann says, in high school, the wide variety of Advanced Placement classes were phenomenal.

They were a good challenge for him.”

Logan did independent studies in Calculus BC, Environmental Science, and AP Statistics. He says, “Nearly everything I asked for academically, they were able to accommodate.” Jann says this allowed Logan to “progress at his pace which really helped in his ability to succeed in independent studies and time management.” The most diverse class he experienced was in TV Productions with Mr. Henschke.

Logan was involved in non-school activities, said Jann. She appreciated how teachers and principals were very accommodating. He loved the Knowledge Bowl competitions, community theater at CLC and high school drama and speech competitions

at the district and regional levels. He also played the trombone, lettered in down-hill skiing and competed in figure skating.

At Yale, Logan received a degree in political and ethical philosophy.

He hopes to go to law school the fall of 2012. “I’d like to specialize in intellectual property and copyright law. It fascinates me. A lot of copyright and patent law is incredibly broken and actually hurts the average person.” He just interviewed for a paralegal position at the Federal Trade Commission.

Logan says, “To invest in our schools is to invest in the community.

They were incredibly valuable, teaching students how to think and to enjoy learning.” Students who experience this “will be able to recognize interesting things in daily life that a lot of people miss.”

Baxter resident, Beverly Abear is a retired English teacher and now keeps busy with volunteer work, watercolor painting and freelance writing.

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photos by Joey Halvorson

by Mary Aalgaard

Local Chefs Tom Kavanaugh and Matt Annand teach a number of popular food related Community Education classes.

Y

ou wait for it, checking the mailbox, knowing it should arrive soon. Then, one day, you open your box, and there it is, the Community Education Guide! You rush into the house and pour through it before you let anyone else know it’s there, thinking, “What classes will they offer for me?”

While the summer guide is considered the youth and golf edition, the Fall and Winter/Spring Guides offer a wide variety of classes for learners of any age. Now that the Guide is in your house and you have a minute to yourself, you get out your highlighter and start marking the classes that catch your eye. Looks like the good, old stand-by Bake’em and Take’em Cookies class is offered again. This is one that’s been around for at least 25 years. It’s so popular that they offer several sections of the class, which often fill and recommend calling to be put on a waiting list in case they need to add more sections.

Food preparation classes and specialty cooking draw a crowd, especially with Matt Annand, Executive Chef of Prairie Bay, sharing his mastery of tantalizing treats like Simple Sushi and Sashimi, Unique Appetizers and Chef’s Secrets, and Build Your Own Bruschetta. Get your registration in early for that one! Many members of gourmet 20

We Are 181 • Fall 2011

groups take these classes together as part of their culinary journey.

Classes that appeal to the guys are also popular. Recent additions are Follow the Bone Deer Cutting, where they bring an actual deer carcass in for demonstration, Homebrewing 101, and Bread Baking for Men. The guys like knowing this class is just for them, so they can relax and find their own way around the kitchen. There’s also a brewing club for the men (and women) who want to learn more about growing hops, harvesting and new brews.

If you’d like to take a class with a friend or spouse, dancing, hiking and kayaking seem like good choices.

Birdscaping Your Home and Extreme Couponing are classes where the whole family could reap the benefits. New this year, is an online webinar for learning how to play the guitar. Of course, computer classes are popular with anyone wanting to learn more about using current programs. These courses are offered at the high school.

People take classes for a variety of reasons. Some people challenge themselves to learn a new skill and step out of their comfort zone a little. If you’re new to the area, it’s a great way to meet people, and if you’ve been here a while, it’s a great way to widen your circle of friends. Taking

exercise classes and skills classes challenge your mind and body. You might feel a bit out of your element at first, but as you gain skill and knowledge, your esteem builds.

Susan Rogers is the adult enrichment coordinator for the district and surrounding Brainerd lakes area. She’s been connecting with instructors, setting up classes, and registering learners for over 15 years. She says the best part of her job is meeting new people and providing classes that help people learn a new skill and make new friends. She has asked gifted and talented friends to teach classes, as well as recruited instructors from outside the area. Some people contact her with course offerings and sometimes she seeks out instructors from requests from the community. If you’ve ever taken a community ed. class, you were asked what classes you’d like to see offered and if you have interest in offering a class.

If you’d like to sign up for classes, you can do so online at www.isd181.org. Follow the links for Community Education. You can also mail in your registration, or call the office at 218-454-6929. If you’d like to register in person, the office is open Monday through Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. at Forestview Middle School, entering by the gym.

Many of the classes are held at Forestview Middle School in the 7th grade wing. A bonus for the staff since

they are in the same building and can make sure everything is set up and ready, including the cookies and refreshments offered at most classes.

It’s a real treat to learn within your community.

If you have something to offer, give Susan Rogers a call for Adult Enrichment, or call Lisa Stawarski, 218-454-6950, for youth classes. You can share the Community Ed. Guide with the kids, now that you’ve chosen the classes for you.

Both men and women are attracted to Community Education pottery classes.

Mary Aalgaard is a freelance writer in the Brainerd area, where she lives with her four sons and cat Leo. She teaches piano lessons, works with kids and dramas, and writes plays. She manages two blogs. Her personal blog is www.maryaalgaard.blogspot.com, and the one for the LAMAA group, www.memoryadvocates.blogspot.com.

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photos by Joey Halvorson

“W

hat does a forest have to do with learning?” asks a Forestview Middle School parent. A great deal, according to Robin Halverson, science teacher at Forestview Middle School.

The Dean Makey School Forest is the newest school forest in Minnesota and also the most used. New Minnesota Science Standards require student sto identify trees, habitats, plants and wetlands. What better place to

By Pam Landers

connect to an indoor classroom than in an actual forest says Halverson?

“Science and other subjects become relevant, when students can actually use their knowledge,” she continues. They can see, touch, hear, and smell for themselves what the book lessons are trying to teach. “The kids have those ‘aha’ moments when it dawns on them that they can use their classroom learning to answer questions and get jobs done.”

A variety of curriculums can be taught in the forest says Halverson.

Students write stories and poems about the forest for language arts, develop sample plots and count and measure trees for math, learning firsthand about the science of living things.

Halverson believes students remember more information when you get them involved. “Our school forest gives us a way to do that,” she says.

A popular activity in the elementary

The Dean Makey School Forest at Forestview is a 60-acre learning laboratory for students of all ages. The newest school forest in Minnesota, it is the most used.

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We Are 181 • Fall 2011

schools is taking a “Shrew’s Eye View” class and would not do his work. When physical education classes use the of life in the woods. “By learning to the class started planting trees, he trails in the forest for cross country ski find and describe the tiniest life in changed his behavior and his attitude. training, and natural resource students the forest, the kids see the incredible Halverson thought it was because in from Central Lakes College, under the variety of life that exists there and how caring for his tree and the forest, he supervision of Professor Gary Carson, those lives interact to keep the forest was doing something for which he help teach fifth graders about the forest. strong and growing.” Students learn could see the results. He began to take In teaching the younger kids, the CLC to use magnifying glasses, record what pride in all his work. students hone and reinforce their own they find, then knowledge. draw pictures or On a day in write stories. “In the third week of this one activity, each September, they are building the school hosts their powers Forestry Day for of observation, all 500 to 600 learning science, fifth graders language arts, in the system. visual arts and Local community the concept of organizations interdependency, and agencies a key concept in gather students social studies.” around learning They’re also stations in the having fun! forest where they Halverson take advantage believes students of the wealth of care about this expertise among forest because Students gather around stations and learn from DNR “experts” and others in the our community they invest community, using their seeing, hearing, smelling senses to enhance the learning residents. themselves in process.

Professor Gary it, both in the Carson’s first and learning activities they do out there and Supervision of students in the forest second year students staff two of these because they help it grow. The fifth is like the classroom. Says Halverson,“If stations, leading students through graders plant a tree to follow and care they don’t behave in class, they don’t orienteering (how to use a map and for through their school years. Trees get to work in the forest.” Kids often compass), how to use tools such as an with names like; Al, Bob and Justin behave better in class, she says, not increment borer to judge a tree’s age, Bieber are all growing in the forest. wanting to jeopardize their time in the and a clinometer to judge its height, Halvorson says that sometimes the kids forest. and how to evaluate the potential of a even talk to their green charges. “I’ve Students at all levels can and do piece of land for tree planting. Foresters even had kids ask if they can come out use the forest for learning and use from the Crow Wing County Land to the forest on their own time or in the forest to learn to work with each Department teach tree identification the summer.” other. High school biology classes and the Natural Resource Conservation One student was in trouble in every study ornithology, the high school Service guide the students in wetland

We Are 181 • Fall 2011

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aid teaching could benefit the school’s mission and be a value added to the community.

He had already found a 60-acre tract that was ideally located within walking distance of the school. In February of 2004 the board formed a committee to explore the concept. In March of 2005, the school board submitted its application to the DNR, and the school forest was reality.

As set up in the management plan, the school forest is overseen by a volunteer team. The team Each year classes of students plant trees in the forest, is a mix of school posting a sign that identifies the species of tree, the class, board members, the teacher and the year planted. teachers, students, interested members observation.

In 1949, a far-sighted legislature of the community and professionals in passed a bill that created the School wildlife and forestry.

Some areas of the tract did not Forest Program, giving it to the Department of Natural Resources naturally reforest after Potlatch, the (DNR). For schools that take part, previous landowner, logged them. The the DNR now provides a wealth of students decided to give the forest a expertise, materials and support, hand, and planted new trees where the including a forester to work directly old ones had been cut down. In 2005, students who are seniors now planted with the school coordinator.

School board member Kent the very first trees. Seven years later Montgomery persuaded the school they have planted 5000 tree seedlings board that having a school forest to on eight acres. Each year’s planting

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We Are 181 • Fall 2011

is labeled with a sign that identifies teacher and class, year of planting and tree species planted.

In 2007, the school forest was named for Dean Makey, A DNR forester, honoring his hours of work, his expertise in developing the management plan and his continuing enthusiasm for and commitment to the project and the kids.

Organizations and agencies in the Brainerd lakes area put their backs and money into helping the forest thrive and become a valuable teaching tool. The DNR helps students with planting, watering, and learning to care for the forest, including putting caps on the young trees to protect them from hungry deer, and releasing the seedlings from competing plants when needed. The DNR has supplied native tree species for planting, and the Brainerd Public Utilities helps with site preparation for new trees. The Central Lakes College gave Forestview a grant to build an observation deck to assist with student learning activities.

The Brainerd Nordic Ski Club helped developed, and now, in the winter, grooms the cross-country ski trails used by students and community members alike.

For the school system and the community, the forest is a 60-acre gem. For further information on the School Forest Program, go to http:// www.dnr.state.mn.us/schoolforest.

Pam Landers, Nisswa, was an environmental educator for over 20 years and now writes on environmental issues.

photo by Joey Halvorson

By Sheila Helmberger

From Phy Ed to Lowell teacher and on-call firefighter Sam Marohn sometimes has to leave daughters Camylla (left) and Camdyn to go out on a fire call.

S

am Marohn is a teacher in District 181. He’s also a husband and a father who risks his life for all of us as an on-call firefighter for the Brainerd Fire Department.

Marohn says a couple of years ago he was looking for an opportunity that would let him give back to the community where he grew up. He wanted to do something in his spare time that would help people— something he’d already been doing for the past 12 years in his career as a teacher at Lowell Elementary School.

When he put his application in at the fire department two years ago he thought, “If it works out then it’s where God wants me to be.” It must have been. Within two months he was a paid on-call firefighter. “I absolutely love it,” he says, even though there must have been more safe opportunities.

“It’s kind of funny—I don’t worry about that,” he said about the risk of going out to a fire call, but he admits his wife, Jill, the Literacy Collaborative Coordinator at Garfield Elementary School, does. “I have a very, supportive spouse,” he says, “You couldn’t do this without a supportive spouse. When you go out at night there’s a chance your pager could go off. When you sit down at the dinner table, your pager could go off.” Marohn has been reading a bedtime story to his daughters, Camdyn 6, and Camylla, 4, and has had to leave. “Sometimes it’s a house fire or a grass fire. Sometimes it’s a car accident. The Lord has blessed me not to have to deal with a child yet,” he says. “The best part for me when my pager goes off is that I know it’s not just me. I’ll be meeting my team there.

We’ll be working together.”

“They are excellent,” says Brainerd Fire Chief Kevin Stunek of his department’s seven full-time fire fighters and about 36 on-call ones. The department responds to one or two calls a day says Stunek, between 500550 calls a year. As a paid on-call fire fighter Marohn has to respond to 33 percent of them.

“We have to go to weekly training too,” he says of the department’s 6:30-8:30 Monday night sessions.

“Those help us become one as a fire department. We’re all pretty proud of what we do. Although you get a little bit of a rush sometimes, you always feel bad for the homeowners,” he said.

It also keeps life a little unpredictable, “I have come home at 7 a.m. jumped in shower and gone off to school. Stunek said his on-call staff includes members of all kinds of professions. “We have We Are 181 • Fall 2011

25

nurses, carpenters, bankers, ambulance workers, police officers, a little bit of everything.”

The training process for on-call workers is a rigorous one.

Once they pass the screening process it includes a civil service test, a background check, physical and agility requirements, and a psychological test. “I sit them right down before I hire them and I ask them if they are sure,” said Stunek, “Your family has to know what you’re doing. For me family is number one. Your job is number two. They have to know they might get called out from Christmas dinner, Halloween with their kids, church, whatever they’re doing at the time.” Marohn says the unpredictable schedule was actually part of the attraction for him. “Every day is different.

I’m a person of change so I like that.” This school year Marohn makes a change at work too—from teaching the fourth grade at Lowell to teaching physical education.

Being a part of the fire department lets Marohn do exactly what he set out, to give back to the community. It also meant a chance recently to do something he was honored to, participating in the 9/11 memorial service. Another rewarding thing about working for the fire department said Marohn is the chance to be a positive role model for his students. “I like it that I can bring that back to my school.”

Sheila Helmberger lives in Baxter, is married with three children and contributes to many area publications.

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We Are 181 • Fall 2011

We Are 181 District Planning Team Pam Dyson Director of Technology Tim Edinger Science Teacher – Forestview Middle School Ellen Fussy Physical Education Teacher – Brainerd High School Heidi Hahn Special Education Director Judy Jensen Community Education Director Deb Lechner Director of Curriculum and Instruction Steve Lund Director of Business Services

Casey Miller Math Teacher – Area Education Center Steve Razidlo Superintendent Denise Reeser Agricultural Instructor – Brainerd High School Lisa Roberts Kindergarten Teacher – Harrison Elementary Trudi Storbakken Licensed School Counselor – Forestview Middle School Denise Sundquist Health and Safety Coordinator Kris Wyman Second Grade Teacher – Baxter Elementary