Thank you for your support

In light of the recent Thanksgiving holiday, I would like to thank the community for supporting Issue 14, our no-tax increase renewal levy.  Passage allows us to maintain our daily programs and operations without interruption and continue our quest for excellence.  Thank you also to everyone who contributed time and effort to the campaign.

In this edition of Images Online, you will see students involved in two important events; the recognition of Veterans' Day and the Cities That Read promotion.  Each provided a valuable learning experience by illustrating the role that determination and sacrifice played in the shaping of our country, the importance of reading as a gateway to learning, and the commitment that our community shows to our district.  Thank you to all of the city officials, business partners, residents, parents, and staff members who participated in these programs.

As there will be no December edition of Images Online, please accept my best wishes for a wonderful holiday season.

ALP TOO

Invention Convention – Greenbriar, Hillside, Shiloh Middle Schools
The Invention Convention has arrived in Parma at Greenbriar Middle School – with three entertaining, informative, and interactive assemblies presented to each middle school by the Invention Team on Monday, November 6, 2006. Invention Convention is a program designed to inspire, encourage, reward, and recognize students while combining creativity and problem solving.  Six student inventors from each middle school will move on to compete at the regional competition held at the great Lakes Science Center on February 17, 2007. Go to  http://www.just-think-inc.com/cleveland/media/parma1/index.htm   to see more photos of the Invention Convention Assembly in Parma.

Opera Cleveland –Shiloh
ALP TOO, Drama Club, and Fine Arts students will pool their talents this school year to write and produce their own opera with assistance from Opera Cleveland.   Students will begin by studying the opera AIDA over the next two months and then, with assistance from an opera-in-residence artist, they will explore the process of writing and creating an opera of their own beginning second semester in January.     

Power of the Pen –Greenbriar
Greenbriar Middle School will compete for the fourth consecutive year in Power of the Pen.  The District Tournament will be Saturday, January 20, 2007 at Shiloh Middle School, with the Regional Tournament held March 10, 2007 in Cleveland Heights.  Team member selection is currently under way.       The 7th and 8th grade Power of the Pen writing teams are coached by teachers Allison Gannelli and Polly Bowman respectively.

School/Community Partnership – Hillside
Twenty-five students will embark on a journey into the world of retail in our community thanks to an opportunity afforded by Dick’s Sporting Goods and Parmatown Mall.   This November the students will be guests of the business world.  They will spend an afternoon learning about the day to day operations of both a retail store and a mall complex.

GED TESTING CENTER

The GED (General Educational Development) Test provides many Ohioans who did not finish high school an opportunity to earn an Ohio High School Equivalence Diploma.

Like a regular high school diploma, the GED diploma enables the diploma holder the opportunity to obtain employment, to apply for career advancement, to pursue higher education goals, or to reach a personal goal.

The test covers the academic areas of language arts-writing (including a written essay), social studies, science, language arts-reading (literature), and mathematics.

Parma City Schools is a designated GED Testing Center. We offer several avenues for an individual to explore in order to earn an Ohio High School Equivalence Diploma.

These can be found at:

www.parmacityschools.org/gedtesting

GED Preparation Class schedules and GED Testing schedules can be found at:

www.parmacityschools.org/gedtesting

We appreciate the patience of everyone who is or has been affected by the various projects taking place around the district.  Please be assured that they are being handled as quickly and as efficiently as possible.  As always, the goal is to contribute to an ever-improving environment for our students and staff.

THANK YOU!

All of us associated with Byers Field would like to thank everyone who participated in our calendar of events for 2006.  Whether as an athlete, a band member, a cheerleader, a parent, a volunteer, a fan or otherwise, your interest in our programs, our schools, and our community is appreciated.  

The Parma City Schools has sponsored tuition-based childcare programs since 1983.  We care for children of working parents before school from 7:00 - 9:00 AM and after school until 6:00 PM in all elementary buildings.  We have three sites offering Kindergarten care from 11:45 AM - 6:00 PM, and provide care for Infants, Toddlers, and Preschoolers from 7:00 AM to 6:00 PM in our Day Care Center housed in Normandy High School.

Our programs are licensed by the Ohio Department of Education and staffed by trained childcare providers.  Each program offers a variety of activities to support the healthy development of young children in an out-of-school environment. 

For additional information and tuition rates, please visit our websites:

http://www.parmacityschools.org/daycare
http://www.parmacityschools.org/edc

Veterans' Day

Several recognition ceremonies were held throughout the district in honor of the servicemen and women who have fought for our freedom.  The photos shown here are from Pleasant Valley and Parma Park.

Cities That Read

In recognition of American Education Week, schools, businesses, and residents throughout Parma, Parma Heights and Seven Hills participated in the 1st annual "Cities That Read" campaign.

In cooperation with various city officials and business people, the students and staff in each of our 21 schools stopped what they were doing and read from 1:15-1:30.  Everyone was encouraged to rediscover the joy of reading.

The School Nutrition Association is an association of professionals working in the school nutrition field. It has been advancing the availability, quality and acceptance of school nutrition programs as an integral part of education since 1946. The Association strives to see that all children have access to healthful school meals and nutrition education. SNA has added a parent information page to it's national website. Parents interested in viewing this great resource can go to www.schoolnutrition.org/parent.aspx?id=1981 to learn more about school nutrition programs and childhood nutrition.

Please join us in remembering Bill Ronan, who was a teacher, assistant principal and principal for the Parma City School District.  Bill passed away last week at the age of 79. 

Our thoughts and prayers go out to the Ronan family and also to those who had the pleasure of knowing him.

NOT ONLY A DRIVER

Every school day, a driver from the Production Printing Department comes to your school to pick up the United States mail, the inner school mail, videotapes, electronic equipment, printing and Copy Center requests.

The same driver that picks up and delivers to your building also fills the Copy Center requests, enters the information into our computer system and delivers the completed work back to your building.

In addition, the driver also assists with printing, works in the bindery, orders stock and maintains the equipment in the Production Printing Department.  The drivers have to follow a very strict schedule to go to all 21-school buildings, Arlington, the Transportation Department, the PEA office, the PSE Credit Union, the Parma Regional Library and the Central Office.

The district is divided into two routes.  One route covers all of the buildings west of West 54^th Street.  The second route covers all of the buildings East of West 54^th Street.  In a few weeks an additional stop will be on the delivery schedule when departments from the Central Office begin moving to their new home in the front of Parma High School.

For those following the Copy Center count, we passed 5,000,000 clicks on Thursday, November 16.  We have filled nearly 25,000 requests.  That averages out to a little over 400 requests filled per day.  We have had 67 jobs returned for not being properly filled which is less than one half of one percent. 

We want to thank everyone for their exceptional cooperation in helping us fulfill our mission of providing instructional materials to teachers in the fastest and most efficient manner.  Also, our best wishes for a wonderful Thanksgiving.

PARMA COUNCIL OF PTA's

Membership: Remember to join your local schools' PTA unit this month. Joining a Unit means you support the PTA mission and the efforts of those members on behalf of the children. Have extra time to offer your skills, talents as a parent, staff or community member? Give it a try.

Volunteers are needed before, during and after evens and programs; as well for the business operation of the Unit with audits, judging contests, fundraising and legislative issues. PTA is here for "Every child, One voice."

Reflections: This month starts the kick-off for Units to publicize this national PTA Cultural Arts contest. This year two more categories have been added to mirror the talents and merging technology available. Please check with your school PTA President or Cultural Arts Chairperson to attain a packet with categories, forms and deadline information. Deadlines vary in each school from mid-December to early January.

Open Enrollment Reminder

The district's open enrollment period is November 15th through January 15th.  Only students entering 1st through 7th grade need to reapply if they are already attending school under the Open Enrollment/Special Transfer Options.

In honor of Veterans Day, on November 10 the students and staff of Dag Hammarskjold shared a special ceremony with many of our veterans of the armed forces.  With the United States Coast Guard as our honorees, an uplifting program was presented, one that included the Coast Guard Color Guard, students singing many patriotic songs, inspirational messages, and student projects.  Much appreciation is in order for our students, who performed admirably and behaved extremely well.  The culture of good citizenship that is pervasive at Dag Hammarskjold was clearly evident throughout the program.

October/November Events at Dentzler School

Disability Awareness Day – On October 20^th all of the kindergarten through sixth grade students experienced various disabilities as they did activities at the following eight learning stations:

·        Sign Language Activity – Hearing Impairment – Students learned hand positions for each letter of the alphabet.

·        Puzzle Activity – Visual Impairment – Students wore masks and put puzzles together.

·        Fine Motor Activity – Physical Disabilities – Students wore gloves and tried to count change and pick up paper clips.

·        Learning Disabilities – Students had to trace a shape while looking into a mirror.

·        Charades – Hearing Impairment – One student would act out a need with another student to see what it would be like not to hear and to determine what the student wanted.

·        Egg Carton/Riddle Activities – Visual Impairment – The primary students duplicated Braille letters using plastic eggs and egg cartons and the intermediate students solved riddle answers that were in Braille.

·        Clothes/Arm Restraints – Physical Disabilities – Students had one arm in a restraint and had to put on various articles of clothing.

·        Wheelchairs – Physical Disabilities – Students used wheelchairs to navigate through an obstacle course.

Janet Smith, learning disabilities teacher, organized this outstanding event.

Halloween Parade – Students enjoyed parading through the school hallways prior to their Halloween parties.  Parents provided games and treats for each classroom’s party.

Everyday Math Family Night – On November 2^nd kindergarten, first and second grade families attended a make-it/take-it family night.  Games were created for the new math series which our school district’s primary children are now using for their math lessons.  Some of our primary teachers and students from Dentzler’s Math Club played math games with the families and helped the younger children make math games which could be used at home to strengthen math skills.

Veterans’ Day – Dentzler recognized and honored our veterans as well as our troops who are currently serving our country.  All classrooms did various activities for Veterans’ Day.  Hugh Groseclose, a World War II Navy veteran, visited Mrs. Paltani’s and Miss Hausler’s fifth grade classrooms to tell stories he experienced while in the service.  The students especially enjoyed seeing pictures of the ship he sailed on as well as the medals he received while in the service.

Green Valley Partners with Parma Area Morning Kiwanis Club

Green Valley is proud of the fact that we have an official K-Kids Club. The K-Kids Club is sponsored by the Parma Area Morning Kiwanis Club. The Kiwanis Club, for adults, is a global service organization comprised of business people, educators, and general citizens that has the goal of "changing the world one child and one community at a time." The K-Club is an internationally sponsored club for elementary students. Over half of our students in grades 1 - 6 have joined the Green Valley K-Club! Our K-Club has a board of directors and officers. Our K Club is also serving as the collectors and sorters at Green Valley for the annual PEA/PTA Food Drive. K-Kids worked booths during the school's fall festival, cleaned up the land lab, and supported U.S. Troops, to name a few of their service activities. The Green Valley K-Club is sponsoring a gift drive with the hopes of presenting a holiday gift to students in grades K, 1, and 2 at another Parma elementary school! If you are interested in participating in the holiday project please purchase and wrap a $10.00 to $15.00 gift, mark the gender and general age for which it is intended. Drop it off at Green Valley before December 13!

Bravo to our faculty advisors: Mrs. Knerem, Miss Connors, and Miss Olenick for their vision and leadership abilities in making the Green Valley K-Kids Club so successful!

A huge thank you to the Parma Area Morning Kiwanis Club (current President, Mrs. Linda Laski, and Immediate Past President, Dr. Christina Dinklocker) for supporting, encouraging, and sponsoring the Green Valley K-Club Service Organization!

OUR NEW DISMISSAL PROCEDURE:

On Wednesday, November 8th we put in our new dismissal procedure. We are happy to report that it is working well. Thank you to all the parents who are helping us. Thanks to the planning of our sixth Grade teacher, Mr. Brian Majkrzak our student dismissal is more efficient but more importantly it is safer because children are no longer walking in the parking lot unattended.

To review once more:

1) All students who walk home will be dismissed from the front doors at 3:15 PM.

2) All car riders will be released from the back door exiting the multi-purpose room. Parents should park their cars on the playground and meet their children by the back door.

3) Bus riders will continue to meet in the Multi-Purpose room and wait for their bus to be called.

Thank you again for all your support and cooperation.

BURGER KING NIGHT:

Our first Burger King Fundraiser night was held on Thursday, November 16th. The Burger King located at 6671 Pearl Road donated 20% of all sales made from 4:00 - 8:00 PM. Profits from this Fundraiser will go towards the purchase of new choir shirts. Thank you to everyone who joined us for some good food and a good cause.

Student Council continues to be active and busy in the month of November. Student Council provided a scrumptious lunch for our Seven Hills VFW Veterans on November 6th. Our Veterans gave interesting presentations throughout the day to our eighth graders discussing their experiences as a soldier during World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War. We thank our veterans for their service.

The Canned Food Drive is also going strong and runs from November 6th through November 17th. Students are eagerly filling the main showcase with a variety of canned and food items. If the students are able to fill the showcase , Mr. Cook, our Principal has agreed to work a full day in the showcase!

The Operation Phone Card Campaign for the U.S.S. Stennis will be conducted through the 7th and 8th grade Social Studies classes. Student Council has provided each Social Studies class with a collection container. Students in all the Social Studies classes will be writing to the servicemen and servicewomen on the U.S.S. Stennis.

In appreciation of our cultural heritage and with great pride, Hillside's Life Skills students shared their ethnic pride through food!  A long time Hillside tradition continued as each student prepared at home an ethnic dish to share with not only their classmates but with staff as well.  A typical classroom buffet would include such ethnic specialties as chicken paprikash, cabbage and noodles, sauerkraut and kielbasi, spaetzles, pasta and sausage, spanish rise, pasta fagiole, beef strogranoff, kolacky's, cannoli's, baklava, pizzelles, German chocolate cake, just to name a few. Of the 105 Life Skills students this semester, students shared their heritage from 38 different countries.  What a life lesson to realize and appreciate the melting pot of culture in our Parma City Schools community.

John Glenn Fall Fun

John Glenn students were treated to a wonderful Fall Festival, Parade, and Room Parties through our very supportive PTA volunteers. Thanks to all who put together and participated in the good times! The photos speak volumes!!

Veteran and Student Recognition

On November 10th, our school honored Veterans of Post 7609 and high achieving students during our Quarterly Sundae Bar. It was an interesting reversal of roles, since the Veterans of Post 7609 typically come to treat and honor our students at the end of each Quarter. The afternoon was filled with music and poetry thanks to Ms. Jenna Hall and her choir students and John Glenn Student Council president, Vungelia Glyptis. A surprise visit by Seven Hills Mayor Bentkowski really made it a festive event!!

Fifth Grade Economic Incentive Program:

To help reinforce key concepts related to economics, fifth-graders at John Muir Elementary School are participating in a very exciting CLASSROOM ECONOMY! Their teachers, Heather Canzurlo and Paula Stadalsky, assigned each child a classroom occupation with a salary. Each week, students are issued paychecks, ranging from $7.00 to $15.00 if they complete their jobs. However, children are fined for misbehavior at the rate of $2.00 an infraction. Students also earn bonuses for positive choices. At the end of the week, children "cash" their paychecks for classroom money at the class bank, and then the students decide if they want to shop for items in the fifth-grade store, or if they want to save their money. After the store closes, the economist leads the class in a discussion of supply, demand, surplus and scarcity to talk about the shopping experience. It's been a great "real-world" application of the economics concepts found in our fifth-grade standards. The students are highly motivated, eager to avoid fines, and demonstrating a great understanding!

John Muir celebrated their first Sundae Bar celebration for first quarter achievements. More than 350 students attended for the following reasons:

1. Academic Achievement

2. Perfect Attendance

3. Rising Star- showing improvement

4. Outstanding Citizenship

5. Musical Award

6. Athletic Award

7. Artistic Award

Our community partner, Immanuel Church of God arrived with ten volunteers to scoop ice-cream and congratulate our John Muir Vikings!

Fall Festival

Check-out our Fall Fest pictures, we had a great time!

Recent Events:

Family Fitness Night - Thursday, November 16, 2006 6:30-8:00 p.m.

There were fitness challenges for the whole family to try. Families were able to play math ball and scooter trash ball. Nutrition information and health screenings were available in order to help us make healthy decisions. To top off the night, Mr. Daniel, the principal, made fruit smoothies.

Family Math Night: Monday, November 20, 2006 6:30 - 8:00 p.m.

Refreshments, math games, and prizes were provided for all! Each family received a math kit to take home. There were grade level activities, great links to math web sites, and free fun for the whole family!

The Normandy High School Student Ambassadors hosted a Welcome Luncheon on October 25 for students who are new to our school district. The newcomers were seated with Ambassadors in our Sword and Shield Restaurant where they enjoyed turkey croissants, chips, beverages, and dessert. Our new students came from other Ohio districts, out of state, including Missouri, Florida and California, and even other countries, including Serbia and the Philippines.

On November 16, the Normandy High School Drama Club sponsored a Senior Play and Breakfast for the Senior Citizens. Breakfast was prepared by the culinary program at Normandy High School, and served by the Ambassadors. The breakfast consisted of bacon eggs, and pancakes. Ms. Jayjack welcomed the seniors and informed them of upcoming events.

Parkview Treats
On Halloween Parkview's first graders went to the Parma Senior Center to go trick or treating!  They welcomed us with open arms, plenty of goodies and treats to share!  Following a brief parade through the central meeting area, the students performed some songs and poems for our audience.  We celebrated "The Thirteen Nights Of Halloween" and sang about the pumpkin that became a jack-o'-lantern "just like that!"  Great fun was had by all as the students had time to mingle and chat with the seniors.  This was definitely a day of treats for everyone . . . no tricks in sight!

Catch a Dragon by the Tale

Correction: The dragon in our kickoff assembly was graciously donated by Dag Hammarskjold and not Green Valley as previously noted. Our apologies to Dag.

The following students have completed 2000 reading minutes as of October 31, 2006:

Salah Lamsettef, Jesse Cianciolo, Kayla Flaherty, Ravneet Kaur (207), Ravneet Kaur (208), Kyle Krempa, Alla Kunish, Lauren Kwan, Sarah Toler, Anthony Bias, Samantha Knoblock, Evie Likos, Dylan Palfy, Jeff Petruska, Kyle Zapotechne, Randy Groleau, Adam Kiewel and Emilie Scanlon. Congratulations and keep on reading!

Students of the Month: October

Each month a student is chosen from each grade level by his/her noon monitor for displaying good behavior and making wise choices. The winners for October are: back: Tome Vukov grade 6; Mackenzie Saunders, grade 4; Danielle Spurgeon, grade 5. front: Vinny Zubal, grade 1; and Bailey Scacchi, grade 2. Not pictured: Shannon Doane, grade 3.

Parma Park Happenings

Parma Park students participate in a variety of activities. Students in Mrs. Craig's room have been very helpful in counting out materials for the office. Students in Mrs. Harvanec's room have been busy constructing quilts are part of a unit featuring Sarah, Plain and Tall. They are pictured here with their finished product.

Veterans' Day at Parma Park

Veterans' Day at Parma Park was a memorable occasion. The Parma Heights VFW Color Guard was present and conducted a 21-gun salute to honor fallen solders. The gentlemen further described for students the numerous patches and medals that are a part of their uniform. Our veterans were presented with thank you letters written by first graders. As a finale, the entire student body sang "God Bless America" for our veterans. Special guests at this event were Dr. Sarah Zatik and Bob Verdile, Economic Development Director for Parma Heights.

Images Online Report from Parma High 

- National Honor Society Inductions were held on November 2, 2006. Over 30 students were honored for their hard work, and dedication to service. This years faculty speaker was former PSH social studies teacher, Mr. Preston White.

- Several staff members have been honored by various universities for their dedication and outstanding service: University of Toledo- Geschke and Mante, Youngstown State University- M. Armstrong

- Girl Power Group will be having an elegant dinner on December 6, 2006 in the Red Rees room to celebrate their growth as school leaders and to practice their etiquette skills which they learned on October 25, 2006 by our records clerk, Elaine Ross. Jackie Smith of Channel 3 News will be the keynote speaker at the dinner.

- House Parent Meeting were scheduled for last week on November 3rd and Monday November 6th. We are pleased to share that over 60% of our incoming 2006 freshman had one or zero absences during the first marking period. Each team had a reward program to celebrate a job well done.

- PSH WILL have its first a quarterly Recognition assembly for our freshman students.

- Redman Pride breakfast will be held on November 13, 2006 for all the student athletes of the week and the outstanding student council members of the quarter.

- Our media center opened on November 30th. Each student that goes and checks out a book is entered into a daily raffle for a Borders gift card. It looks great.

- Veterans' Day assembly was held during 2nd period on November 10, 2006. This was coordinated by Mr. Saban through their social students classes. This year’s honored veteran was a math teacher at Parma Senior High School, Mr. Edward Borkowski. He delivered a speech to the student body and received a plaque that will be displayed in the media center entryway.

- The pool opened on November 7.  It also looks great!

AR results are in! So far this year, we have read 2,752 words containing 25,233,263 words. Second quarter results thus far are 594 books containing 4,412,985 words. We are continuing to read to break our record!

Student council has been working hard on a Thanksgiving food drive. Collected non-perishable items will go to needy families during this holiday season. Thank you to everyone that donated to the cause!

October was disability awareness month. We honored the month with activities such as “blind painting” and “sign language tag.” Thanks to all that participated. You are a big part a building awareness of disabilities!

In November, we honored our veterans as they shared important information with us such as how to properly fold a flag, how to retire a flag, and how and why we say the Pledge of Allegiance.

Disability Awareness Month

With the help of some parents and siblings, Pleasant Valley is celebrating Disability Awareness month by educating everyone about 3 specific disabilities. We are excited to have 9 volunteers ranging from a 3rd grade sibling and her dad to parents and college age siblings come talk to us. By grade level they are sharing their stories about living with Autism, Seizure Disorders, and Cerebral Palsy.

Our speakers are sharing personal experiences of their lives about the disability. Our goal is to let everyone know that the children with these disabilities are more like everyone else, than different. They all have favorite things, enjoy various leisure activities and even have a favorite book.  They even get in trouble sometimes. By making the disability more human, we hope to build empathy and understanding among their regular education peers. A big thank you goes out to all of our very special speakers.

Veterans' Day

Our annual Veterans' Day Celebration took place on Fri, Nov. 10th. Our students dressed up in red, white, and blue in support of our veterans. Each veteran was asked to come on stage during a medley of military songs. Two current members of the military were our guest speakers, Sgt. Dan Priestly from the 325th Marine Div. of Brookpark and Sgt. Vincent Mancuso from the 612th Engineer Battalion. Our guests of honor, Mayor David Bentkowski of Seven Hills, Mr. Powell Ceaser of Parma, and Mr. Bob Verdile of Parma Hts., along with all of our guest were entertained with a musical tribute by the Pleasant Valley students. With the hard work of Mrs. Pat Zwolinski the idea of a "Wall of Honor" was created by collecting past and present names of military men and women. It is now traveling the elementary schools displaying almost 2500 names of friends and relatives of students and staff from all of the district's elementary schools. A tribute to those who stand and wait was highlighted by our students presenting a package filled with items for our third grade teacher, Mrs. Ranee O'Malley, to send to her husband serving in Afghanistan. Thanks to all who participated.

Cox Cable was here to film this event as was a crew from the PACT Network.  Look for us on Cox Channel 45.

Our Energy Patrol sold hand made candy before and after the program to benefit the creation of our Outdoor Land Lab.

Fall Festival

Pleasantview students and their families enjoyed a fun-filled evening at the annual Fall Festival held in the school's multi-purpose room on Thursday, October26, 2006. Student were awarded prizes for costumes and snacks were tasty and fun. Student and their parents competed in a limbo dance. This event was organized by the school's fabulous PTA.

Halloween Parade

Pleasantview students paraded around the community on Tuesday, October 31, 2006 to show off all of the clever and exciting costumes they wore in the afternoon.

Renwood had a wonderful sundae bar on Thursday, Nov. 7. We had 101 students from grades 1-3 and 76 students from grades 4-6. A fun time was had by all and we certainly hope these numbers grow with each quarter. Many thanks to Mrs. Coyle, Mrs. Bramley, Mrs. Arthur, and Mrs. O'Malley for helping out on this day.

We are looking forward to Nov. 17 when we participate in "The City That Reads." Our whole school along with everyone else in the district is going to DROP EVERYTHING AND READ between 1:15-1:30 p.m. Our guest readers on this day will be Mr. Tim Dobeck, Law Director, and Deanna Donnell, Asst. Law Director.

We have many heroes in our lives, but on Friday, Nov. 10 Renwood celebrated Hero Day with police officers, firemen, and a Vietnam War Veteran in our cafeteria during lunch. We served hero sandwiches and the students had a wonderful time having them join us for lunch. Many thanks to our cafeteria manager, Mrs. Ratusnik, as she made the hero sandwiches and always makes our cafeteria a great place to eat.

Parents please be reminded that the Open Enrollment application period is between Nov. 15, 2006 through Jan. 15, 2007. If you have any questions do not hesitate to call our office and ask for our secretary, Mrs. Lees.

Remember that the district is currently broadcasting programming 4 times daily every Monday - Friday on COX Communications Channel 45 at 9:30 a.m., 1:30 p.m.,6:30 p.m., and 7:30 p.m. It is a great way to keep up with various facets of the district and events that have or are taking place.

Our sincerest wishes to all for a most wonderful Thanksgiving day and break.

Student Council is well on its way at Ridge-Brook.  This organization does a lot to help our community.  Student Council advisors are Ms. Shirak and Mrs. Prosinski.  Here is a list of our 2006-2007 Student Council members:

Nathan King, Sean Hagerty, Ben Muniz, Tommy Paul, Joey Talpas, Brooke Hagerty (Vice President), Brendan Bowling, Ally Kugler, Kyleigh Horvath (Treasurer), Michael Miller, Krystina Horvath, Alex Hogan (Secretary), Mackenzie Feiler, Abigail Collins (President), Danielle Wagner.

Congratulations! 

Music is in the air - We are very pleased to announce that Ridge-Brook has Band, Orchestra and Choir again this year.  Mr. Stretch directs the band, Mrs. Hoss directs the Orchestra and Mrs. Churavy is the Choir director!  Please mark you calendar for Thursday, December 14, 2006 for our winter evening concert!

Birthday Book Club If you would like to participate in our Birthday Book Club, this is how it works.  For a donation of $3.00 or more, your child will choose a library book, and a nameplate with their name will be put in the front cover.  Their name will be added to the Birthday Book Club bulletin board.  They will be the first to borrow it from the media center and they will receive a bookmark.  At the end of the school year, all children in the Birthday Book Club will be invited to the "Birthday Book Club Party".  Students receive information on how to join during the month of their birthday.  We have recently sent home our November birthdays.  If your child's birthday has already passed, they can still join!

A Star is Born - Krystina Horvath a fifth grader in Mrs. Merker's class, was chosen for a children's part in the Cincinnati Ballet's "Nutcracker".  Krystina was one of 100 children receiving parts.  Three hundred children were auditioned.  Krystina will play a "Ginger Kid".  The "Nutcracker" will be at the Playhouse Square's Allen Theater in December.  We here at Ridge-Brook are very proud of Krystina.  This will be a wonderful experience for her.  "Best Wishes"!

Shiloh Middle School Salute to Veterans –“Operation Phone Home”

Shiloh MS for the second year is collecting funds to buy phone cards for our military troops.  Last year, Shiloh students collected $2000, which purchased phone cards to support the men and women onboard the USS Regan in its maiden voyage overseas.

This year, the school has adopted the USS Stenis and has set the goal to collect $2500.00 to purchase phone cards for the USS Stennis and family members of our students who currently are serving in the armed forces.  This service project was started to allow Shiloh students an opportunity to honor Veterans and all men and women current and past who serve our in armed forces.

Social studies teachers Paul Gigliotti and Nancy Rundell designed and organized this project which now is widely supported by all staff and students.  One raffle held to raise funds featured an opportunity for the winner to paint the Assistant Principal’s bald head with either a Michigan Helmet or an OHIO STATE emblem.  The drawing was Friday 11/17 in which the student took delight in painting the Buckeye O on Mr. Rockwell, our resident Michigan fan.

Please know that Shiloh MS is accepting donations to our “Operation Phone Home” campaign thru December 1^st. 

Student Council is coordinating a student of the month program. Each month we will pick one student per grade to be nominated. Each month we will focus on a different aspect of school behavior and academics. Here is a list of all the different categories we will be using:

September – Good Character – Respect Award

October – Attendance Award

November – Math Award

December – Good Character – Honesty Award

January – Social Studies/Science Award

February- Good Character – Responsibility Award

March – Reading Award

April – Good Character – Caring Award

May – Good Character – Expectance of others Award

We would like to recognize the following students for student of the month. For the month of September these students showed good character of respect. Congratulations to Andrew Jones, Cody Ruple, Nick Szafarski, Grace Bihun, Sarah Shamburger, Deanna Levtonyuk, Megan Kasperczyk, Tyler Dreher.

Is he coming or going?

This was Mr. Hartland's gift to Mrs. Bender's 3rd grade class for winning the canned food challenge. Matt Frost got to have his art project painted on Mr. Hartland's head!

Safety and Security Update

Thank you everyone for your cooperation with the new entrance and exit procedure. Students, teachers, parents and staff did a great job pitching in and getting off to a great start! We realize that this change in procedure has caused some extra traffic in the front lanes and parking lot. As a result, please be cautious around the cones set out to keep the bus lane clear. This ensures the safety of pedestrians and vehicle occupants. Additionally, it is essential that we keep the lobby and hallways clear, which means that people picking up children must remain outside.

Computer Based Report Cards

The first quarter of this school year was the start of a new way in which teachers enter grades for a student’s report card. All grades are now entered into a new computer-based system. With the exception of the now printed grades, the layout of the report is the same as last year.

The Report Card itself is based on the Ohio State Standards. It not only reports on the grades that a students receives, but also points out on what standards are being covered and the progress being made within it. Please feel free to contact the school if you have any questions.

A Message from the Principal

Thank you for supporting our renewal levy. These funds were necessary to keep our current programs in place. You made it possible for us to continue on the road to excellence.

With the holidays upon us it takes an extra effort on everyone’s part for the school day to run smoothly. Keeping routines during this time is especially important for children. Regular bed, meal and homework times help our children stay productive, happy and make good decisions.

We hope to see you at the Santa Breakfast on 12/2 and at our Music Concert on 12/5. Have a wonderful and safe holiday season.

Cities That Read

Our visitors were State Representative Tim DeGeeter and from Parma City Hall, we had Shelley Cullins from the economic development office who is a grant writer. They read to two 2nd grade classes, Mrs. Sepik's and Mrs. T. Sedlak's class.

Valley Forge PTA Council Report

Texas manor fruit cakes now on sale through the Valley Forge music boosters.  For orders call Jayne @ 886-0757. The deadline for Christmas orders December 1, 2006

Audiences were treated to the combined talents of the Valley Forge orchestra, senior choir and the Tri-C choir as they performed Mozart’s “Requiem” on October 24.

Parent conference night is fast approaching on November 15.

Installation of our new scoreboards, painting of the gym, refinishing of the gym floor a, installation of new bleachers and installation of new lights will be completed this week as we get ready for winter sports.  It looks like a brand new facility.