Champlain Valley Union High School
  • CVU

January 2013

1/16/2013

 

Youth Risk Behavior Survey

    Every two years, our Supervisory Union administers the Youth Risk Behavior Survey to students to gather information about various health risks facing young people.  In February or March, all of our schools will participate in the Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS), sponsored by the Vermont Department of Health, through the Division of Alcohol and Drug Abuse Programs.  The survey is designed for 8th through 12th graders and will include questions about nutrition, alcohol, and tobacco and other drug use, physical exercise, injuries, and sexual behavior.  Since 1995, our students have been taking the survey which was developed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and has been approved by many national organizations, including the National PTA.  Survey results are used to prioritize needs, plan new prevention programs, and secure future funding.
    The YRBS is given anonymously, and survey procedures have been designed to protect your child’s privacy.  No names are ever written on the survey, and individual responses are not disclosed to anyone.  We would like all students to take part in the survey; however, the survey is voluntary, and all students will have the right to decline participation if they choose.
    As a parent or guardian of a student eligible to participate in the YRBS, federal law affords you the right to inspect the survey before it is administered and to opt your child out of taking the survey.  Each school will have a copy of the survey in the main office for you to preview.  Should you decide that you do not want your child participating in the YRBS, please inform us in writing no later than February 27, 2013.  The form is attached below.  CVU students will participate in the survey on Wednesday, March 6.
    If you have any questions, please contact Tim Trevithick at 482-6951.
youth_risk_behavior_survey1.pdf
File Size: 18 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File


All-Eastern Honors Ensembles

Congratulations to Chris Jordan and Robyn Leary who were accepted to the All-Eastern orchestra and band (respectively).  They will be among the 16 students to represent Vermont at the Eastern Division Music Educator's Conference in Hartford, Conn. in April.

This opportunity is only offered every other year and is open only to juniors and seniors. Students needed to apply last spring for acceptance.

CVU Shines at Princeton Model Congress

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This past November, 40 CVU students attended the Princeton Model Congress in Washington, DC. Almost 1,000 students from schools from all over the nation participated in this rigorous legislative simulation. This year's delegation continued CVU's proud tradition of excellence with three students being recognized with awards:

Lucas Hilker, House Armed Services Committee - Gavel
Alden Fletcher, Cabinet - Secretary of Transportation - Honorable Mention
Will Keve, Senate Appropriations Committee - Honorable Mention

Congratulations to all of our delegates.


Public Speaking Contest

On Friday, December 14, Lucas Hilker, Conor McQuiston, Chris Petrillo, and Caroline Jones participated in the annual Rotary Public Speaking Contest sponsored by the Charlotte/Shelburne Rotary club.  Each student wrote and presented a five-minute speech on the theme, "Peace Through Service."   They did an amazing job, and the winner was Caroline Jones.

She will continue to the next round in January, where she will compete with students from clubs in our area. If she wins that level, she will continue on to compete with student winners from rotary clubs in the district, spanning parts of Quebec through New Hampshire. 


2012 "Cafe for a Cause" Successful

For the ninth year, all proceeds from the cafeteria on one day were donated to a non-profit.  The Student Council chose the Vermont Food Bank to be this year's recipient.   The CVU community was encouraged to eat breakfast, lunch, and snacks to support the Cafe for a Cause on Friday, December 14. Almost $6,000 was raised - enough to provide over 30,000 meals to hungry Vermonters.

All proceeds - including what was collected through the machines - was donated.  Over the years, over $39,000 has been raised during the once-a-year event. Great thanks to Food Services Director Leo LaForce and his hardworking staff who partnered with the CVU student council. Vice President Alec Distler was the leader of the student council group.

Below are the organizations that have been supported in the past.

2004-2005 Unicef for the South East Asia Tsunami family relief
2005-2006 Red Cross for Hurricane Katrina family relief
2006-2007 Santa Night in Burlington for kids who need gifts
2007-2008 Split between Heifer International (food for families in other countries) & an Orphanage that CVU students visited in Greece
2008-2009 COTS in Burlington for homeless
2009-2010 Operation Tribute for children of parents in military
2010-2011 VT Refugee Resettlement Program
2011-2012 VT Relief Agency for families affected by Hurricane Irene
2012-2013 Vermont Food Bank

Eighth Grade Parents

All future CVU students in the Class of 2017 are encouraged to attend a special program, along with their parents, on Wednesday, January 30, at 6:00 p.m.  Opening remarks will be made in the CVU gym.  The evening will be an introduction to CVU.


Spring Drama Production

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Spring Drama Production
This year’s Spring play will be THE MIRACLE WORKER, the story of Annie Sullivan’s struggle to teach the blind and deaf Helen Keller to communicate.  There is more information about the show and the characters on the theatre website.  Please check it out and consider getting involved. There is still a need for more help on the Crew, so if you're a student interested at all in drama productions, please contact Candy Padula or Tim Duvernoy.  https://sites.google.com/a/cvuhs.org/cvu-theater/home/the-miracle-worker



Mid-Year Exam Schedule


Click HERE for the January 2013 mid-year exam schedule.

CVU School Calendar
for 2012-13

Please check out the CVU School Year Calendar on our homepage.  This calendar has the Red and White day schedule, early dismissals, vacation days, sporting events, etc.  Please check it on a regular basis.  We will update it as needed.  You can also access it by clicking:   http://learn.cvuhs.org/course/view.php?id=10&page=128.org

1/2 Day Inservices for 2012-2013

There are half-day inservices throughout the school year with students dismissed at 12:30 p.m.  Below are the remaining dates for inservices for the 2012-2013 school year: 

Wed Feb 13, 2013: 1/2 Day School for Students. Dismissal at 12:30 pm
Wed Mar 13, 2013: 1/2 Day School for Students. Dismissal at 12:30 pm
Tue Apr 9, 2013: 1/2 Day School for Students. Dismissal at 12:30 pm
Wed Apr 10, 2013: 1/2 Day School for Students. Dismissal at 12:30 pm
Wed May 15, 2013: 1/2 Day School for Students, except 10th Graders. Dismissal at 12:30 pm VIEW/MAPS 10
Wed May 29, 2013: 1/2 Day School for Students. Dismissal at 12:30 pm

Direction Center News

Advisory Council
    The Direction Center needs your help.  Our goal is to form a Direction Center Advisory Council in order to gain feedback and solicit new ideas about our school counseling programming.
    Our Advisory Council will represent the dynamics of our community and will include representatives who are affected by the school counseling program. Our Council will be composed of leaders in the community as well as parents and students and is tasked with making recommendations regarding student and community needs and advising the school counseling staff as it strives to meet these needs. The Advisory Council will meet twice a year.
    Sound interesting? Have a bit of extra time? Please call Patti Tomashot, Director of Student Service,s at 482-7137 or email ptomashot@cvuhs.org

Seniors
FAFSA Forms Workshop – January 24- REGISTRATION REQUIRED
    The Vermont Student Assistance Corporation (VSAC) was created to help students and parents obtain information about colleges and financial aid, as well as to help with the distribution of grants and loans.  On January 24, VSAC and CVU will facilitate a forms night for all senior parents who would like assistance completing the FAFSA (Federal Financial Aid) Form. Please call Helen Shepard at 482-7137 to register for a session.  (The first session starts at 5:30 p.m.) Once you register, she will email you a list of what to bring that night.

BEWARE of FAFSA scams!
Several students have reported that they have paid money to file their FAFSA (on fafsa.com).   Please note that filing the FAFSA is free; you should never pay money to file this financial aid form.  Watch out for companies that offer to file this form for a fee! The correct FAFSA website is: www.fafsa.ed.gov

Juniors/Sophomores
    SAT and ACT deadlines approach quickly. College testing requirements vary widely, so students should double-check which tests are required by each college to which they will apply. Please make note of the dates below. Students register for the test directly with the testing companies through their websites (collegeboard.com for SAT and act.org for ACT) or by completing the registration packets which may be found in the Direction Center. Register early to ensure a spot in the testing location you prefer. CVU’s CEEB (testing) code is 460-175. Please remember that colleges require official test scores. Be sure to request that your scores be sent directly to the college by the testing company.
                                            2012 - 2013 SAT Test Information
Test Date                   Tests Offered                       Regular Regis.         Late Regis.
March 9, 2013          SAT Test Only                  Feb. 8, 2013            Feb. 22, 2013
May 4, 2013             SAT and Subject Tests      April 5, 2013            April 19, 2013
June 1, 2013            SAT and Subject Tests       May 2, 2013            May 17, 2013

                                        2012-2013 ACT Test Information

Test Date                        Regular Registration                 Late Registration 
February 9, 2013               January 11                             January 12 - 18
April 13, 2013                   March 8                                 March 9 - 22
June 8, 2013                    May 3                                    May 4 - 17

Below are dates for a few of the exciting workshops we have planned for juniors.

March 16, 2013 – VSAC’s Pathways to College
    This annual daylong program offers a series of workshops that teaches you everything you need to know about finding a great college. It’s held on Saturday at St. Michael’s College. For more information and registration, go to vsac.org. Other dates/locations include March 23 at Castleton College and April 6 at Lyndon State College.

April 8, 2013 from 11:30 A.M. – 1:30 P.M. – CVU’s Annual College Fair
    Everyone is welcome to attend this college fair – the only spring fair in the Chittenden County area.  Meet admissions representatives from over 125 colleges.

Naviance Instructional Tutorials
    For those juniors and/or parents who are interested in learning about Naviance, we have created a series of tutorial videos that will introduce many aspects of this program.  To see them, visit the CVU homepage, then click on Instructional Support and then Direction Center.  On the left under Quick Links is Naviance.  Once you choose that option, you will see information and links to these Tutorials. Take a look! (https://sites.google.com/a/cvuhs.org/cvunaviance/home/cvu-students)

Sophomores
    Students are encouraged to utilize resources to learn more about potential careers.   The following are great places to start:
1.         The PLAN website.  Use the information from your PLAN interest inventory to learn more about careers that you might enjoy.  Go to www.planstudent.org
2.         CVU’s Naviance Program. Use this site to explore career clusters (groups of careers with common features and skills), college majors associated with these careers, colleges that offer these majors and much more.  Access through the Direction Center link on www.cvuhs.org
3.         Vermont Guidance Central at www.vsac.org. This is a very comprehensive career exploration site that provides in-depth career descriptions, interest inventories, information about college majors and more.
4.         CVU’s Job Shadowing Opportunities.  Contact the Direction Center for more information.

Freshmen
    Counselors will be co-facilitating workshops related to respecting differences during the exam week.

Course Registration for 2013-2014
    The scheduling process for 2013-2014 will begin at the end of January. We are excited to offer some new courses in addition to almost all of last year’s offerings. Students will be meeting with their house counselors for assistance in course selection. Students have received their appointment date/time from their Advisors.  It is important to review the  2013-2014 course catalog available online. Start checking out these course offerings!

Attention Juniors and Seniors!
    Don’t miss the opportunity to earn college credits while still in high school! High school students can enroll in college courses (online or on campus) during the academic year or during the summer. Study in core areas such as Math, Science, English, Languages, and the Arts. The programs available are:
  • Dual Enrollment Program--through the State of Vermont and allows every VT high school student one college course tuition free;
  • Academically Talented program--through the University of Vermont which offers VT high school students to take courses at 50% reduced tuition until they graduate. Some restrictions apply, and you do need to be approved by your guidance counselor.
 Please contact Nichole Hathaway at Nichole.Hathaway@uvm.edu or 802-656-4682 for more information or visit our website http://learn.uvm.edu/high-school-2.  Spring course information will be available to view in mid-October and registration will open early November.
    Another great college option: Community College of Vermont – Introduction to College Studies

Wednesdays, starting in January from 4-6 PM.
    The class focuses on all the skills that are needed to be successful at college: study/test taking skills, organization, financial aid, and communication skills. Students who complete the course can earn ½ English credit and ½ elective credit at CVU. Plus – they also get a voucher to take a free college course. On Wednesdays, we provide a bus to CCV for any students interested in signing up for this free class. See Jane Krasnow, call 482-7137 or email:jkrasnow@cvuhs.org in the Direction Center get more information or to sign up today!

Technical Center Visit Days
    We're organizing two days on which students can visit the tech centers.  Students need to sign up in advance for two programs they would like to visit and bring in a parent permission slip. A visit is required for all students who would like to enroll in a technical program next year. If your daughter/son is interested, please have the student stop by the Direction Center to sign up and get a permission slip.
    The pre-tech application process for interested 9th grade students will start a bit later in the spring. Feel free to talk with Jane Krasnow in the Direction Center if you have a son/daughter who may be interested: 482- 7128 or email jkrasnow@cvuhs.org.

Try a VHS Course this spring!
    VHS, a non-profit, global network which includes over 500 high schools, enables students to consider 200 online courses. Now that CVU is a member school of Virtual High School, students can pursue specific areas of interest with other students from around the globe.
    Virtual High School’s spring semester starts on January 30th, and we still have a few spaces left for students who would like to enroll for second semester.  (Semester 2 for full-year courses starts January 9th.)
    Most of the work is done independently, so interested students need to make a commitment to the class and be able to attend an Early Block check-in each Wednesday morning. Students should have a good attendance record, be a self-motivated, self-disciplined learner, and have academic skills that will help ensure successful course completion. Each class is challenging and requires students to be actively engaged in their coursework for at least 6 - 8 hours per week.
    Jane Krasnow is meeting with students interested in spring courses right now. Course sign up for 2013-2014 will begin in April.  If your son or daughter is interested in an online option, you are welcome to review the VHS catalogue at www.govhs.org. The next step would be to have students see Jane in the Direction Center to learn more about the application process.

Grad Challenge is in full swing.  Here are a few reminders to seniors:
  • Meet face-to-face with your Community Consultant at least once per quarter. If you have finished your community learning hours, you can discuss research, resources, and whom to interview. You may also wish to discuss what to cover in your paper.
  • Contacting someone and asking him/her to be your Community Consultant is creating a relationship.  Take care to respond to your Community Consultant’s communication.
  • Planning will help you avoid contacting your Community Consultant right before the deadline which is rude (some of them will be unavailable, busy, or out of town).
  • Take great photos. Besides sending 1-5 to MaryAnne, you will have good material for your presentation. Plan ahead.
  • Sign-up schedule for Grad Challenge presentation times will be posted during February in the Direction Center.  Seniors keep an eye out for an email, announcement, and reminder.  Your Advisors will also be notified when the schedule is open.
Talk to your Advisor if you need any help with time management, resources, or communication.

CVU Shadow Program
Great way to help students figure out what they want to study in college or what kind of job/career they want!   Thank you to the following organizations for hosting a student to shadow a professional:
Fletcher Allen nutrition clinic
Qi Veterinary
Hunt Middle School
Hinesburg Police Department
Community Health Center of Burlington
Shelburne News
Shelburne Police Department
Seven Days
U.S. Coast Guard (Burlington station)
UVM Alumnae Office
Kelliher, Samets, and Volk
Stern Center
UVM Pathology Lab
All Souls Interfaith
UVM Microscopy Imaging Center
Seventh Generation
Sheraton Hotels
VCAM
Duncan Wisniewski Architects
Pizzagalli Construction
Dore & Whittier
Dings, Dents, and Scratches
Rehab Gym
Timberlane Physical Therapy
Advance Music
Vermont Business Magazine

Parents:  Your generosity is appreciated. Please consider offering a job shadow experience to a CVU student. Health care careers, architects, engineers, business people, vets--you name it!   MaryAnne Gatos matches students to experiences after conversing with you about your work. You may be specific about what you can offer.  Students typically observe for 1-3 hours. Students participate in a mandatory orientation meeting to cover job skills, research the company or career, and discuss confidentiality and reliability.  To offer a job shadow, please visit the CVU Shadow Program web page under Community Learning Opportunities.  

Buddy Program
Sign up for participation in second semester Buddy Program is open during the first couple days of the semester!  Sophomores, juniors, and seniors are encouraged to be role models for younger elementary school children.  Students go during a free block (Mon-Thurs) to one of our elementary schools and are matched with a younger child to play games, talk, help with homework, go outside, or do craft projects.  Younger buddies come to CVU at the end of the semester for a celebration. If interested, if you have any questions, or you would like an application, please contact MaryAnne Gatos in the Direction Center.



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