Chagrin Falls School Superintendent Robert Hunt's Student Advisory Committee is hosting a Halloween Festival on Oct. 25 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.…
SAC Halloween Festival
Chagrin Falls School Superintendent Robert Hunt’s Student Advisory Committee is hosting a Halloween Festival on Oct. 25 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the intermediate school. It is a festival for the entire community with fun activities, candy and refreshments. It is $2 per student or a canned food item donation. All proceeds will go to a local charity.
Healthy Eating Tips
This past September, students at Gurney Elementary School were treated to a presentation on healthy eating by representatives from the Heinen’s store in Bainbridge. Students from every grade learned about healthy eating and trying new foods. Gurney librarian Mary Jo Czerr, who said the program was a huge success, welcomed classes to hear the presentation in the library.
“The presentation was great and the characters and game really excited our students,” said guidance counselor Dale Tschappat.
Students agreed.
” I liked it,” said first-grader Brooke Lawrence.
“The food looks yummy,” said Ella Laneve, another first-grader.
Theatre Students Honored
On May 19, nine dedicated theatre arts students from Chagrin Falls High School were inducted into the International Thespian Society (ITS). The students received this honor by achieving more than 100 hours of work in theatre arts beginning with the summer following their eighth-grade year. During those 100 hours, these students learned valuable skills such as creativity, critical thinking, problem solving, effective communication and teamwork, which will help them in their future careers. In addition, all inducted students were required to participate in at least two Chagrin Falls High School drama productions.
The following is a list of current, active members of Chagrin Falls High School ITS Troupe: Jessica Feucht, Meghan Furlong, Eammon LaMonica, Dineen Markey, David Marquette, Emily Norton, Sarah Relyea, Tori Shell, Molly Carroll, Cassidy Cooke, Jordan Kriegel, Julian Kruyne, Katherine Kvacek, Emily Muckle, Lena Nazelli, Katherine Rouru, Hayley Thompson, and Natalie Welch. The troupe director is Youssef Hamid, who also is the CFHS drama director and 7-12 vocal music director.
The ITS was created in 1929 as an honorary division of the Educational Theatre Association. It currently serves over 4,200 schools around the world and has an active student membership of more than 100,000 students. There are over 2.2 million thespians and thespian alumni such as Jane Lynch, Tom Hanks, Julia Louis-Dreyfus and John Goodman.
Gurney Recycling Contest
The first week of October was all about the importance of recycling at Gurney Elementary School. In order to stress the importance of recycling, students in kindergarten through third grade participated in a recycling contest.
Each grade level had a specific recyclable product to bring in from home in order to help with the competition. Kindergarten and first grade had plastic and second and third grade had cardboard. At the end of each day, the classrooms totaled the amount of recyclables and the classroom with the most items would be declared the winner of the day. These winners were then awarded with a free book for their room from the upcoming book fair.
Also, with the help of the third-grade service club and Bridget Rini, Justin Cannon and Sheryl Halagan, new school-wide recycling efforts were also put into place. Some of these include classroom recycle bins and separate recycle bins for specific materials in the cafeteria.
Rotary Student of the Month
Laurel Jackson, senior at Chagrin Falls High School, was chosen for her service and leadership qualities as the October Chagrin Valley Rotary Club Student of the Month.
She has been on the honor roll all semesters, is a National Merit Commended Scholar and an Advanced Placement Scholar with Distinction. Her AP classes include: AP United States History, AP United States Government and Politics, AP English Language, AP Calculus AB, AP Physics 1, AP English Literature, AP Calculus BC, AP Statistics, AP Chemistry and AP Seminar. She was also named the AP English Language Student of the Year for 2015.
When Laurel is not working hard in her classes, she is active in extracurricular activities. She is a member of the speech and debate team, where she was an OHSSL state qualifier in United States Extemporaneous Speaking for 2015. She is also involved in International Club, Fellowship of Christian Athletes, choir, Key Club and the high school orchestra.
She is a cheerleader for the football season. Laurel also is involved in many out-of-school extracurricular activities such as girl scouts, dance and the Student Worship Team at Parkside Church.
She is aspiring to be a mathematics major at a four-year university. Laurel was recognized at a recent Chagrin Valley Rotary Club meeting.
Energy and Roller Coasters
Mrs. Alison Hinesman’s eighth-grade class has been simulating the creation of roller coasters while learning about gravitational potential energy (GPE) and kinetic energy (KE).
“They are beginning to understand that an object can have both kinds of energy at the same time,” said Hinesman. “This coaster simulator allowed them to figure out how to increase an object’s initial GPE to have more to convert to KE, making a more exciting coaster. After taking some initial recordings of data, we then competed in who could score the most points for the most exciting, successful coaster. It was a great time!”
“This lab is an excellent example of Chagrin Falls teachers integrating 21st century learning,” said Chagrin Falls Middle School Principal David Wessel. “It gave our students an opportunity to explore something we never could have done had we not had technology.”
Jeppe Boys Visit Chagrin Falls
By Thomas Preston, CFHS freshman
From Oct. 6-12, 24 boys from Jeppe High School in Johannesburg, South Africa, visited Chagrin Falls, thanks to a partnership between their school and Chagrin Falls High School.
Before they arrived in Chagrin Falls, the Jeppe students visited Washington, D.C., to experience the city, tour the museums and visit the historic monuments. When they arrived on Oct. 6 to Chagrin Falls, they attended a welcome dinner catered by the Burntwood Tavern.
The host families and support organizations were integral in making this a memorable trip. Students visited to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame thanks to the Chagrin Dads’ Club, a soccer game and Chipotle tailgate sponsored by the Chagrin Falls Educational Foundation and they even had lunch downtown at Thompson Hine law firm courtesy of one of the host parents. The visit also included a tour and classroom interactions with all of the Chagrin Falls schools. The most cherished time, however, was spent with their host families, carving pumpkins, playing paintball and enjoying the shopping and restaurants of downtown Chagrin Falls.
The students seemed to enjoy all that Chagrin Falls had to offer.
“I enjoy the freedom around school and the friendliness,” said Kyle Grundlingh, a student from Jeppe High School.
Many agreed with this and many didn’t want to leave Chagrin Falls or their host families who added a certain warmth to an enjoyable visit.
“We are very thankful for our host families because they are helping to build bridges for our students and carry on the tradition of excellence in Chagrin Falls,” said Chagrin Falls High School Principal Steven Ast.
During the Jeppe boys visit, they learned first-hand about a completely different culture. They experienced the similarities and differences between South Africa and America, including the education system and the food.
One Jeppe student even said, “I want to stay in America, I like Starbucks,” and “I like not wearing uniform.”
Jeppe High School is recognized as one of the top 20 schools in South Africa with an amazing education system. When mentioned in the book Historic Schools of South Africa, it stated, “perhaps more than any other Johannesburg school, it reflects the history and changing character of the city and has always been a melting pot for children of diverse socioeconomic, language and cultural backgrounds.”
Chagrin Falls Exempted Village Schools thanks all the staff, students, and host families for opening up their homes and classrooms for this experience that benefited not only the students from Jeppe High School, but also our entire Chagrin community.
