As the Rotary Student of the Month for January, Presley Gabram has been honored with both academic, athletic and community service awards...
Rotary Senior
As the Rotary Student of the Month for January, Presley Gabram has been honored with both academic, athletic and community service awards. She has received four-course awards in AP English III, honors chemistry, introduction to business and accelerated algebra, earning her an academic letter. As a gymnast and athlete, she was honored as the 2021 News Herald Gymnast of the Year, twice earning News Herald Player of the Week honors and Scholar Athlete honors. As an involved community member, Presley has received the President’s Award for Academic Excellence for the past three years.
Presley balances her academics and extracurricular activities. She is a three time state qualifier and proud member of the gymnastics team and state runner-up 2021 gymnastics team. She also is committed to serving her community. As National Honor Society’s service project coordinator, she works with local community organizations to provide volunteers to support local initiatives. She has also devoted her time as a Bomber Bash Lead Crew member working to raise funds for “A Kid Again” charity. She has also been a member of choir and the Spanish Club.
Outside of school, Presley has competed in club gymnastics for Renzi Gymnastics Academy and qualified for the 2021 Level 9 National Team. She also dedicates her time to coaching young gymnasts. As a Chagrin Valley Lutheran Church member, she has participated in mission trips and service projects within the community. Presley has been part of the fundraising committee for the Leukemia Lymphoma Society Student of the Year program.
Presley plans to attend The Ohio State University and study health sciences, with aspirations of becoming a nurse practitioner or physician’s assistant.
Science Olympiad
Kenston Science Olympiad team competed in person at the Mentor Tournament. Congratulations to Division C team members on their fifth place finish. The team will compete at regionals on March 5.
Those placing individually were: first place – Dynamic Planet – Alex Ensign and Leah Jarmolowicz; first place – Green Generation – Viktoriya Taran and Maddie Worsdall; third place – It’s About Time – Sam Koltas and Mason Miller; fourth place – Cell Biology – ViktoriyaTaran and Maddie Worsdall; sixth place – Codebusters – Jack Beclay, Cooper Timmons and Sophie Voudris; sixth place – Disease Detectives – Jack Beclay and Lindsey Myshrall; seventh place – Ornithology – Ava Intelisano and Maddie Worsdall; and seventh and eighth place – Write It, Do It – Lisa Markoff, Lindsey Myshrall, Sam Snyder and Viktoriya Taran. The Science Olympiad Division B team, including freshmen, placed eighth at the Mentor Tournament. Placing in individual events were: first place – Food Science – Ben Fink and Michael Thompson; second place – Anatomy & Physiology – Ben Fink and Michael Thompson; third place – Experimental Design – Ben Fink and Chloe Syslo; fourth place – Write It, Do It – Ben Fink and Michael Thompson; sixth place – Sounds of Music – Chloe Syslo; seventh place – Bio Process Lab – Michael Thompson and Sam Wordsall; and eighth place – Crave the Wave – Chloe Syslo.
Contact Tracing
On Feb. 9, Kenston communicated to families and staff the new Geauga Public Health and Lake County General Health District recommendations. As a result, universal contact tracing was discontinued. However, the district will still assist the health department with any investigations or notifications as requested.
The district asks that parents continue to report COVID cases and absences to their school building. In addition, the district will continue to update the Dashboard and notify via email “Positive COVID Cases” as needed.
Professional Development
On Feb. 18, while students had the day off from classes, Kenston staff participated in a professional development day that focused on district and building needs, training requirements through the Ohio Department of Education and teacher professional goals with sessions planned to meet these priorities.
At the district level, sessions that met Ohio Department of Education requirements included: crisis prevention and training to meet requirements of positive behavior intervention and support (PBIS) law; high-quality student data as a component of the newly required Ohio Teacher Evaluation System (OTES 2.0); the District Dyslexia Committee to plan for the 2022-23 implementation of the new dyslexia law; and understanding the emotional needs of gifted to meet the requirement for professional development for teachers who have gifted students in their class.
Additional district sessions on the district technology plan and curriculum materials in math, English language arts and health and physical education were available for teachers.
In addition, principals created agendas and presented sessions that aligned with building-specific curriculum work.
