Redskin Rumbling
November 2014
DISTRICT CHAMPS!
The Lady Redskins made Utica proud
by bringing home the first volleyball
district title since 1988. The girls
received 2nd place in the LCL and took
their talents all the way to Millbury
for the regional semi-finals. Finishing
their season as one of the top 16
teams in the state, these ladies
accomplished their goal to start
unknown and finish unforgettable.
Their 22-5 record and numerous
accomplishments will not be
forgotten by Utica. Congratulations
girls and thank you for all that you did
to make Utica proud!
Sports Dates
Daily school
announcements in your
home.
Page 2- What’s NeW
Important Dates
- 11/11 - 11/12 Freshman Trip
- 11/13 - 11/15 Seussical the Musical
- 11/16 - FFA Farm Toy Show
- 11/26 - 11/28 Thanksgiving Break
For information on school
closings and delays go to
Channel 4, 6, 10 or 28,
T-100, WMVO, WTVN
or sign up for One Call Now.
The Wilds
Students recently enjoyed an
educational and interactive visit
from The Wilds. They had the
opportunity to meet animals from
home and around the globe and
learn about the tools those
animals use to survive in their
diverse habitats. Photos page 4.
11/17 - Wrestling Practice Begins
After-School Intervention
After-School Intervention is back at
UHS! After-School Intervention
provides an opportunity for students
to stay after school in a small group
setting with a teacher to catch up on
work and tests. Intervention is held
four days a week and is facilitated by
Mrs. Fairbanks and Ms. Vonck. No
more than five students may be
assigned to a single day which allows
for more personalized help and
instruction from the facilitator. UHS is
proud to offer another opportunity to
help our students succeed in the
classroom. Please contact Ms. Vonck
at [email protected] with any
questions.
Questions
for the Principal?
Please e-mail me at
[email protected].
In the subject line type
“Question for you.”
If you do not want your
question published
please state that.
September Students of the Month
th
9 grade - Makenzie McComb,
10 grade - Grace Brubaker & Kamaya Palumbo
th
11 - grade Kallen Alsdorf
12th -grade Rachel Londot
th
What’s New
Daily Announcements
Now Available Online
Thanks to Kallen Alsdorf and
our computer tech classes, you
can now listen to the UHS daily
announcements from your
computer. Just go to the High
School website, look for
Kallen’s picture and click on
play. You will hear the same
announcements that our
students listened to that day.
(Requires Quick Time)
UHS Band has Best Performance of the Season
On Saturday, October 11th the
UHS Marching Band travelled to
the Watkins Memorial Mid-Ohio
Classic Band Competition. The
band performed their show
entitled Frankenstein to a very
appreciative crowd. Audience
members, other band students,
and other directors alike
commented on how amazing the
bands show was and how well
they performed. The band
received 1st place in class C and
First Place Percussion in Class C.
It was definitely their best
performance of the season! I'm
very proud of all the hard work
and success the band has had this
season!
Utica FFA attends Conference
The Utica FFA program was chosen by the North Fork Local
School District as one of its outstanding programs that
presented during the 16th annual Student Achievement Fair
on November 11th at the 2014 Ohio School Boards
Association (OSBA) Capital Conference and Trade Show. OSBA
showcased 100 innovative programs at this year's fair, held at
the Greater Columbus Convention Center in downtown
Columbus. The Utica FFA represented this district by
showcasing their achievements in the State FFA Agriscience
Fair (1- 1st place, 2- 2nd place, 2- 3rd place awards).
Additionally they talked about their accomplishments as a
growing agricultural education program, highlighted their
2014 FFA American and State Degree recipients, and
discussed their participation in several FFA career
development events (CDE) this past year.
"As a program we are honored to be chosen by NF Schools to
participate in this event. We were able to not only brag about
our accomplishments this year, but also had the pleasure of
meeting school board members from past generations that
were former officers and leaders in FFA." -Miss Wilbur
Congratulations to this entire program on their hard work!
Attendees along with Miss Wilbur, FFA Advisor, were four FFA
officers and Agriscience award recipients- Taylor Orr (President),
Emily Wesley (Vice-President), Taylor Osborne (Reporter), and
Quincie Parkinson (Alt-Secretary).
Student Government
Helps the Community
Members of the Utica High School
Student Government volunteered
during the 20th Annual United Way
of Licking County Week of Caring
September 22nd - 27th. The
students staffed and operated the
drop-off site in Utica located at the
local BP Duke and Duchess, as local
community members dropped off
donation items, including books,
baby needs, toiletries, animal
needs, coats, and clothing.
The United Way Week of Caring
was a huge success! Across Licking
County, over 1800 hours of
painting, cleaning, landscaping,
operating drop-off sites, and more
were performed. Several thousand
items were donated to local food
and baby pantries, as well as two
animal humane societies. Plus,
hundreds of coats and hoodies
were given to the Salvation Army.
Student Government volunteers left to right: Cole Collins, Emily Ellison, Taya Bigler, Alexis Bailey
The dedication to improving the
community across the county is
tremendous, and it was wonderful
to have some of our very own
students take an interest in caring
about our community to help make
a difference!
Other members who volunteered
but are not pictured: Kallen
Alsdorf, Jacie Fondriest, Jamee
Jordan, Katie Landis, and Zachary
White.
Left to right: Falesha Stanley, Shanae Gayheart, Katie Ford and Jealynn Holtz
Londot to Sign with Long Island University-Post
UHS Senior and Scholar Athlete, Rachel Londot, will sign a National Letter of Intent to
play volleyball at Long Island University-Post.
Rachel is a 5’9” outside hitter who got her 1500th kill on senior night in the game against
Licking Valley. In addition, she has been awarded the following:
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
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LCL - Player of the year
Central District - Division 3 Player of the Year
Central District Volleyball Coaches Association Division 3 Scholarship winner
All-Ohio 3rd Team
Rachel played in the Central District All-Star Game on November 9 and will be playing in
the All-Ohio All-Star Game on November 16.
She has been on the honor roll all four years, is a member of the National Honor Society and
received Rotary Student honors.
Way to go Rachel!!
Educational Concerns in Ohio
I receive these bits of information from Ohio E & A [email protected] If you would like to be on their mailing list
just email them.
Mark Bowman
Are competition and punitive school "reform" measures suitable responses to equity and adequacy (i.e.) Court-ordered
"thorough and efficient"?
The DeRolph school funding lawsuit was focused on equity and adequacy of educational opportunities. It was about a
"thorough and efficient system of common schools." The Court ruled in 1977 that "Ohio's elementary and secondary
schools are neither thorough nor efficient"; thus the system does not meet the standard of equity and adequacy.
Seventeen years after the Court order in DeRolph, the state still has not addressed the equity and adequacy issue. But,
state officials have foisted market principles and punitive "reforms" on Ohio's education landscape, none of which
addresses the problems the Court said to correct. An unconscionable response!
Both equity and adequacy are essential. The achievement of equity at an inadequate level does not meet the
constitutional touchstone. A system that is adequate (equal to need) for all students will also meet the standard of equity.
Adequacy for all requires substantial funding to achieve. Raising the bottom without lowering the top is a costly, but
necessary proposition, and many public officials (at least, those in charge of the Statehouse) reject the concept of
adequacy for all. It is easier for them to accommodate the flawed choice movement and collect campaign contributions
from choice advocates.
Those state officials that won't bite the bullet on the constitutional requirement of adequacy for all are conveniently
attracted to the rhetoric that competition and punitive school "reform" measures will substitute for "thorough and efficient"
and thus "adequacy and equity."
Such notions and so called "reforms" as competition from a failing charter school industry, teacher evaluation primarily
based on student achievement and high stakes testing are proffered as substitutes for the demand of adequacy for all.
These failed "reform" policies are kept intact by the clamor of the promoters of the privatization of the public common
school system. Meanwhile Ohio's public school system remains unconstitutional.
The U. S. Government's Race to the Top and Ohio's competitive Straight A Fund are examples of politician's substitute for
an adequacy for all.
Jack Burgess, a retired Columbus teacher and former Executive Director of CEA, appropriately framed this matter in the
piece below.
"The charter movement was a shift away from the honest efforts to improve (not "re-form") public schools, and it was a
slight of hand from the efforts such as ours in Columbus to develop alternative schools within the public framework. Well
intentioned politicians, such as Ted Kennedy, responded inappropriately to the real needs for more equality of opportunity
by saddling us with No Child Left Behind-which seriously damages public education. This misguided effort was followed
with another misguided effort, Race to the Top. Both of these programs build on the false notions of A Nation at Risk-as
Diane Ravitch has pointed out. But it seems clear that people want public education for our state and nation and they
want good schools for their kids and others."
It is becoming obvious to the general public that the "reform" agenda based on competition choice and punitive measures
is a failure. A citizen's movement is required to save the public common school. The Ohio administration and legislature
will not restore the public common school to its rightful place because public schools are not permitted to use public
money for campaign contributions (and never should be), but for profit charter operators are among the biggest
contributors in Ohio politics. The source of their vast contributions? Guess.