January 25 - 29

  D.C. Everest Senior High School Staff Update

Weekly Happenings

I want to take a moment to send a HUGE thank you to Holly Hartwig! Holly is completing her second long-term substitute position for us this year.  We are lucky Holly was willing to help us out in F/CS and Math!  If you see her around subbing please say thank you!!!

I would also like to say thank you to Renee Bucholz! Renee filled in early for us in English when our numbers got way too high!  We are very thankful Renee was willing to come back to help us out!

I would like to welcome Caitlyn Filtz, our new Math teacher to the building! If you get a chance to swing by Caitlyn please give her a Hello and a Welcome!  

Lastly, welcome back Kathryn Larson! Kathryn is rejoining us for this semester from the Middle School. We are happy to have her back!  

Please Offer congratulations to the following students for their participation in DECA's District Career Development Conference held this month. 

In the Business Finance series: Mike Brierton earned two medals and placed 1st overall in this series. 

In the Entrepreneurship series: John Belton and Liberty Christianson each earned a medal. Liberty placed 4th, and John placed 2nd overall in this event. 

In the Food Marketing series: Autumn Lippert earned a medal and placed as an Honorable Mention in this event. 

In the Human Resource Management series: Emma Footit earned two medals and Rylee Hommerding earned one. Rylee placed as an Honorable Mention and Emma took 1st place in this series. 

In the Principles of Hospitality and Tourism series: Emma Schueller earned two medals and placed 3rd overall in this event. 

In the Principles of Marketing series: Morgan Stenstrom earned two medals and placed 1st overall in this event. 

In the Quick Serve Restaurant Management series: Ashlyn Lewis is a medalist and placed 4th overall in this event. 

In the Restaurant and Food Service Management series: Kayleigh Oestreicher medaled two times and places 1st Overall in this event. Aidan Morgan is a medalist and earned an Honorable Mention in this event. 

Eleven members move on to compete virtually at DECA’s State Career Development Conference this March. They compete at State to move onto DECA’s International Career Development Conference later this spring. 

Congratulations to the Dance team who a week ago placed first in division one Pom at the Kaukauna classic.  That was their first competition of the season.

News story this week on the progress of the wrestling team. Link here.

News story on Colton Hall being selected as the Athlete of the week by WAOW - Link Here

Interesting Information

I came across this article from the American Psychological Association. As we reboot second semester, please take time to talk with your students about healthy living, successful study habits, and the soft skills necessary to find success.  This part of their education is as important as any part.

Resilience guide for parents and teachers

Children’s problems include adapting to a new classroom, bullying by classmates, or abuse at home, but resilience is the ability to thrive despite these challenges.

We tend to idealize childhood as a carefree time, but youth alone offers no shield against the emotional hurts, challenges, and traumas many children face. Children can be asked to deal with problems ranging from adapting to a new classroom or online schooling to bullying by peers or even struggles at home. Add to that the uncertainties that are part of growing up in a complex world, and childhood can be anything but carefree. The ability to thrive despite these challenges arises from the skills of resilience.

The good news is that resilience skills can be learned.

Building resilience—the ability to adapt well to adversity, trauma, tragedy, threats, or even significant sources of stress—can help our children manage stress and feelings of anxiety and uncertainty. However, being resilient does not mean that children won’t experience difficulty or distress. Emotional pain, sadness, and anxiety are common when we have suffered major trauma or personal loss, or even when we hear of someone else’s loss or trauma.

10 tips for building resilience in children and teens

1. Make connections - Teach your child the importance of engaging and connecting with their peers, including the skill of empathy and listening to others. Find ways to help children foster connectivity by suggesting they connect to peers in-person or through phone, video chats, and texts. It’s also important to build a strong family network. Connecting with others provides social support and strengthens resilience.
2. Help your child by having them help others - Children who may feel helpless can feel empowered by helping others. Engage your child in age-appropriate volunteer work or ask for assistance yourself with tasks that they can master. At school, brainstorm with children about ways they can help others in their class or in grades below.
3. Maintain a daily routine - Sticking to a routine can be comforting to children, especially younger children who crave structure in their lives. Work with your child to develop a routine, and highlight times that are for school work and play. Particularly during times of distress or transition, you might need to be flexible with some routines. At the same time, schedules and consistency are important to maintain.
4. Take a break - While some anxiety can motivate us to take positive action, we also need to validate all feelings. Teach your child how to focus on something that they can control or can act on. Help by challenging unrealistic thinking by asking them to examine the chances of the worst case scenario and what they might tell a friend who has those worries. Be aware of what your child is exposed to that can be troubling, whether it’s through the news, online, or overheard conversations. Although schools are being held accountable for performance or required to provide certain instruction, build in unstructured time during the school day to allow children to be creative.
5. Teach your child self-care - Teach your child the importance of basic self-care. This may be making more time to eat properly, exercise, and get sufficient sleep. Make sure your child has time to have fun, and participate in activities they enjoy. Caring for oneself and even having fun will help children stay balanced and better deal with stressful times.
6. Move toward your goals - Teach your child to set reasonable goals and help them to move toward them one step at a time. Establishing goals will help children focus on a specific task and can help build the resilience to move forward in the face of challenges. At school, break down large assignments into small, achievable goals for younger children, and for older children, acknowledge accomplishments on the way to larger goals.
7. Nurture a positive self-view - Help your child remember ways they have successfully handled hardships in the past and help them understand that these past challenges help build the strength to handle future challenges. Help your child learn to trust themselves to solve problems and make appropriate decisions. At school, help children see how their individual accomplishments contribute to the wellbeing of the class as a whole.
8. Keep things in perspective and maintain a hopeful outlook - Even when your child is facing very painful events, help them look at the situation in a broader context and keep a long-term perspective. Although your child may be too young to consider a long-term look on their own, help them see that there is a future beyond the current situation and that the future can be good. An optimistic and positive outlook can enable children to see the good things in life and keep going even in the hardest times. In school, use history to show that life moves forward after bad events, and the worst things are specific and temporary.
9. Look for opportunities for self-discovery - Tough times are often when children learn the most about themselves. Help your child take a look at how whatever they’re facing can teach them “what am I made of.” At school, consider leading discussions of what each student has learned after facing a tough situation.
10. Accept change - Change often can be scary for children and teens. Help your child see that change is part of life and new goals can replace goals that have become unattainable. It is important to examine what is going well, and to have a plan of action for what is not going well. In school, point out how students have changed as they moved up in grade levels and discuss how that change has had an impact on the students.

Resilience and high schoolers

Although your teens may tower over you, they still are young and can keenly feel the fear and uncertainty of both the normal stresses of being a teen, as well as events in the world around them. Emotions may be volatile and close to the surface during teen years, and finding the best way to connect to your teen can be difficult.

Talk with them whenever you can, even if it seems they don’t want to talk. Sometimes the best time to talk may be when you are in the car together; sometimes it may be when you are doing chores together, allowing your teen to focus on something else while they talk. When they have questions, answer them honestly but with reassurance. Ask them their opinion about what is happening and listen to their answers.

Find a place that your teen can create as their safe place, whether it’s their bedroom or somewhere they find comfort. In high school, emotions can intensify, and rejection, taunting, or bullying can also be present. A space of their own can serve as a constant and a place for them to have as their own. Your children may prefer to be with their friends rather than spend time with you, but be ready to provide lots of family time for them when they need it and set aside family time that includes their friends.

When stressful things are happening in the world at large, encourage your teen to take “news breaks,” whether they are getting news from the television, magazines or newspapers, or online. Use what they’re seeing and hearing as a catalyst for discussion. Teens may act like they feel immortal, but at bottom they still want to know that everything will be ok. Having honest discussions of your fears and expectations can help your high schooler learn to express their own fears. If your teen struggles with words, encourage them to use journaling or art to express emotions.

Many teens are already feeling extreme highs and lows because of hormonal levels in their bodies; added stress or trauma can make these shifts seem more extreme. Be understanding of feelings and emotions, but also be firm when teens respond to stress with angry or sullen behavior. Reassure your child that they will be ok and you are looking out for their best interest

The journey of resilience

Developing resilience is a personal journey, and you should use your knowledge of your own children to guide them on their journey. An approach to building resilience that works for you or your child might not work for someone else.

If your child seems stuck or overwhelmed and unable to use these tips, you may want to consider talking to someone who can help, such as a psychologist or other mental health professional. Turning to someone for guidance may help your child strengthen resilience and persevere during times of stress or trauma.

Announcements/Week Ahead

Restarting the Semester - As we restart the semester please take time to go over your expectations within your classroom.  Let's set students up for success from the beginning!

Quarter 2 SH Pat on the Back Winner - Congratulations to Elizabeth Mammano for winning the senior high quarter 2 $50 Pat on the back drawing.  The next drawing will be the last week of quarter 3.  Recognition to a co-worker goes a long way and only takes a minute.  Here is the link again for your convenience.  https://patontheback.dce.k12.wi.us/

A note from Sunshine - A sympathy card was sent to Michelle Bahr for the passing of her mother-in-law. Our condolences go out to Michelle and her family.

Dr. Nye Listening Session - Dr. Nye will be in the senior high on Wednesday, January 27th, from 12:30-3:30 pm in the conference room 210.  Stop by and see him if you have any questions, concerns, or would like to touch base on anything.

Superintendent Listening Sessions - Dr. Gilmore will have one more Listening WebEx session on January 26th.  Refer to Ellen Suckow's email on 1/6/21 for links, access codes, and meeting passwords for each session.  

Early College Credit & Start College Now applications for Fall 2021 are due to counselors by Monday, February 1st.  This is a change as the applications must be approved during the February Board meeting. Please remind any of your students you know that were planning on filling out an application.

Parent-Teacher Conferences on February 25th - Conferences on February 25th will be from 3-6:30 p.m. through WebEx or phone call.  There will not be an early release on this day. Teachers then will have an additional 3 hours for parent-teacher contact from March 1 - 10.  Contact refers to Webex, phone calls, or emails.  We have chosen not to schedule these hours to increase the flexibility for both faculty and parents.

Semester 2 Cohort A & B Schedule Updated - Since there will not be an early release day on February 25th, it will be a normal Cohort B all day schedule.  We will not have an altered schedule.  Here is a new copy 2020-21 Updated Semester 2 Cohort A & B Schedule

Grading Reminder - S1 grades will be due by NOON on Tuesday, January 26th. Any grades need to be entered or changed after NOON on Tuesday, January 26th will have to be emailed to Melissa. S1 grades will be posted to report card and transcripts on Thursday, January 28th and will be available on the parent portal. S1 Report Cards will not be printed.

Important Dates, January:

25       Quarter 3 Begins

26       Superintendent Listening Session, 6:30pm, see Ellen Suckow's email for WebEx Info

27       Dr. Nye Listening Session, 12:30-3:30, Room 210

27       BLT Meeting, 2:50pm

Important Dates, February:

1         Early College Credit & Start College Now applications for are due to counselors, BLT, 2:50pm