Chagrin Falls School News

February 11, 2021 by Staff Report

District Recognized for Clean Audit

Chagrin Falls Schools once again received Auditor of State Keith Faber’s Auditor of State Award with Distinction for a “clean” audit report.

“This award recognizes the hard work of fiscal offices to keep clean, accurate records,” said Auditor Faber. “Their efforts go a long way toward making Ohio more efficient, effective and transparent.”

The Auditor’s Office presents the Auditor of State Award with Distinction to local governments and school districts upon the completion of a financial audit.

Entities that receive the award meet the following criteria of a “clean” audit report:

The entity must file financial reports with the Auditor of State’s office by the statutory due date, without extension, via the Hinkle System, on a GAAP accounting basis and prepare a CAFR (Comprehensive Annual Financial Report); the audit report does not contain any findings for recovery, material citations, material weaknesses, significant deficiencies, Uniform Guidance (Single Audit) findings or questioned costs; the entity’s management letter contains no comments related to ethics referrals, questioned costs less than the threshold per the Uniform Guidance lack of timely report submission, bank reconciliation issues, failure to obtain a timely Single Audit in accordance with Uniform Guidance, findings for recovery less than $500, public meetings or public records issues and the entity has no other financial or other concerns.

Full copies of these reports are available at ohioauditor.gov.

Tigers of the Semester

The Tigers of the Semester Award is presented to students who exemplify a positive attitude, work ethic, achievement in the classroom and service to fellow students and teachers at Chagrin Falls High School. Teachers nominate one student from their classes that impressed them with their achievement, attitude, hard work, willingness to help others and growth during the first half of the year.

First semester Tigers were honored with a virtual presentation. The award program is sponsored by Interact Club and advisors Karen Sindelar and Janet Coriell who together organized the interactive presentation that featured personalized messages from each teacher who nominated a student.

Tigers of the First Semester of the 2020-21 school year are Graceson Brustoski, Jillian Bunker, Elliott Burke, Elise Concannon, Ella Deuberry, Charlie Frederick, Marley Gabriel, Mike Galicki, Ella Goyzman, Sam Grobelny, Maryann Hoelzel,  Ali Holtz, Will Keegan, Kelsey Long, Max Mignogna, Emily Nemunaitis, Abby Orazen, Sam Peck, Caroline Reeder, Jenna Santamaria, Brandon Shinkawa, Hansen Song, Trey Taylor, Jake Thompson and James Wilkinson.

“Given the structure of education, it is easy to point to test scores and athletic achievements when recognizing students, however, recognition like this is important as we want to celebrate characteristics like kindness, compassions, work ethic and service,” said Principal Monica Asher. “I am thankful to work in a school where I see these qualities demonstrated daily by our students–these students embody these qualities without expecting recognition.”

CFMS Students of the Month

The mission of the Chagrin Falls Middle School Students of the Month is to acknowledge and reward students for exemplary performance. The students depict Tiger Techniques: Think, Integrity, Grit, Effort and Responsibility.

Each month, the seventh- and eighth-grade teams collaborate and choose a male and female “Tiger of the Month” and the students receive personalized tiger water bottles from the PTO. January’s Students of the Month were Alexa Apshago, Ethan Johnson, Emily Shisila and Alexander Burnight.

Seventh-grader Alexa Apshago brings a burst of energy with her every time she enters the room, and her insightful questions help make our class a fun place to learn. She notices interesting patterns and puts great care into her practice work. She interjects life and interesting perspectives into all class discussions and always makes the class smile with her observations and predictions. Alexa is a leader in the violin section of the seventh-grade orchestra. She has such a wonderful attitude and is consistently prepared for rehearsals. She has improved immensely this year and is a pleasure to have in class.

Seventh-grader Ethan Johnson stands out with his active listening and effort. He always has a positive attitude and good energy. He is a leader in the classroom and always completes assignments with integrity. Ethan consistently participates and encourages others to do the same. In the English classroom, Ethan is organized and prepared every single day. He has a quiet command of everything that is being analyzed, read or discussed and shares interesting observations that help kids to see things in a new perspective.

Eighth-grader Emily Shisila has always been an assertive leader of her classmates and is serious about her work. Emily is very invested in her learning and always participates wholeheartedly in all class discussions, debates, reading and writing activities. She appreciates suggestions and applies that feedback to her next step in the process. She is an asset to the classroom. In band, Emily demonstrates many of the qualities of a great musician: focus, determination, expression and self-reflection. She is a leader in the classroom and a model student for others. Emily always has a positive attitude and is engaged in class, whether at home or in person. She works hard and takes pride in the work she puts forward. She is a great role model to those around her.

Eighth-grader Alexander Burnight is kind, polite, attentive and focused. He is willing to ask questions and keep working until he finds success. He shows perseverance on a daily basis, and we are lucky to have him in class. He has a positive disposition that is infectious to those around him. Alexander does a great job of engaging in the classroom. He advocates for himself when needed and can always be counted on to participate in class, whether at home or in person. We appreciate Alexander’s positive attitude and his willingness to do his best. He always is respectful to his teachers and peers.

Power of the Pen

The Chagrin Falls Middle School Power of the Pen team participated in the Lake Erie College district tournament on Jan. 9. They competed against seventh- and eighth-grade students from 15 schools in the surrounding area. The following students received recognition:

Seventh-grade individual awards include: Hailey Haddon, sixth place overall; Patrick Davidson, second place overall; and Marie Cain, first place overall.

Fraya Brattebo won seventh place overall in eighth-grade individual awards.

Seventh-grader Marie Cain won best of round awards in round one for “Hope.”