Our first Focus Friday highlights the various ways our district schools honored Veterans Day. Patriotic songs were song. A slide show paid tribute to veterans both past and present. The area Color Guard marched in as students respectfully placed their hands over their hearts as the colors passed by. Veterans enjoyed lunch with students. Cards of thanks were made. Slate Valley extends its heartfelt gratitude to all of our veterans.
Every morning, students arriving on busses are greeted with welcoming smiles, waves and now... signs! Mrs. Pierce and Ms. Corliss decided to add this new element, hoping to get a few smiles in return. Rumor has it Monday's signs are going to be funny! Thank you Mrs. Pierce and Ms. Corliss for always bringing the sunshine!
Throwback Thursday!
Fourth Graders created models of imaginary birds with special adaptations of their beaks, feet, legs, wings, and coloring to help them survive in environments around Vermont. Keep a sharp eye out for these fun feathered friends!
"Where are they now Wednesday" a new weekly post featuring a graduate from FHUHS. First up...
Haley Macomber-Creaser, DVM.
FHUHS alumna Haley Macomber is a member of the Class of 2013. Haley has had a very exciting year! This past June, she earned her Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM)!
Haley’s long journey to achievement began right here in her hometown of Fair Haven. She credits her 6th grade teacher, Mr. Stanton, and her 7th and 8th grade teacher, Mr. Crane, of Fair Haven Grade School for getting her excited about science and encouraging her dream of becoming a veterinarian.
While at Fair Haven Union High School, Haley continued to work hard at her studies. She also participated in athletics, playing field hockey and basketball and running both indoor and outdoor track. During her career running track, she earned the state champion title a few times for the 100m hurdles and 4X100m relay!
After high school, Haley attended the University of Vermont, majoring in Animal Science with a concentration in pre-vet studies. She graduated in 2017. Before beginning her graduate work, Haley worked for a year as a veterinary assistant at an animal clinic in northern Vermont. She then attended the Ontario Veterinary College at the University of Guelph in Ontario, Canada, where she recently received her DVM.
Currently, Haley is an associate veterinarian at the Rutland Veterinary Clinic and Surgical Center in Rutland Town, Vermont. She is certified in veterinary spinal manipulation, also known as animal chiropractic certification, and is currently working on being certified in veterinary acupuncture. Haley hopes to see patients for this practice in the new year.
Recently married, Haley lives with her husband and their newly adopted black cat in Ludlow, Vermont. When asked if she had any words of advice for our current Slaters, Haley replied, “If I had an inspiring message, I would tell people to never give up on their dreams, even if they seem impossible. It took me two tries to get into my top choice of veterinary school, and a few of my academic advisors at UVM told me not to bother applying because it’s too competitive a field. While this was upsetting to hear at the time, it made me realize how much harder I would have to work if I was going to make my dream a reality. So I took a year off between undergrad and graduate work to build up my resume to become more competitive when I applied for veterinary school the following year. Although a year away from school was not in my original plan, it ended up working out for me and I was accepted into veterinary school and reached my ultimate goal.”
Slater Nation is so incredibly proud of you, Haley, and we thank you for sharing your story! Your hard work and determination are an inspiration to all.
It's Trivia Tuesday! Did You Know?
CES November Newsletter: Click the link below to see the electronic PDF version.
https://5il.co/1k88s
Meet our SVUUSD's Faculty and Staff! Each Monday we will highlight one of our district employees. First up... Ms. Karla Ramey!
Did You Know?
Mrs. Lucci's and Mrs. Ray's 4th graders are studying "The Importance of Forests." The students have been identifying trees around the school property. A local forester, Kyle Mason, was able to come visit and talk about specific characteristics of forest lands, state forests, and old growth forests. He took 4th grade on the nature trail behind the school. Mr. Mason explained how to measure the height of trees. The class focused on one majestic Northern Red Oak and discovered it was 110 feet tall. Students were then shown how to use a tree auger to determine that the same tree was around 135 years old. The students were amazed and are now very excited to find out how tall the trees are around their own homes.
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The tradition continues, enjoy viewing this year's Book Character Parade! Click the link below or scan the QR Code.
https://youtu.be/_AMAyId3ZJ0
Students in Ms. Burke’s second grade decided to try their hand at some origami after taking out a book during library.
A big THANKS goes out to our Fire Department, EMT, Police and Bus folks who all came for our first annual Community Safety Day! These folks taught us all kinds of safety lessons and even had lunch with the students. It was a wonderful day!
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Dear Slate Valley Families,
I always try to be as transparent as possible about the issues our schools are faced with so we can work together to solve issues. We all want to ensure a safe, welcoming environment for all of our students. As we emerge from the pandemic we have seen a steep rise in the student misbehavior in our school district. The severity of which varies from school to school. Although we are not the only district dealing with these types of issues in the state or country, it is concerning. This coupled with decreased staffing is putting a great strain on our system.
Some of our students and families are really struggling. In the last several years we have increased mental health support throughout our schools, but there is more that needs to be done. Staff are working tirelessly to meet the needs of our students. However, the needs that exist are more than our system can bear at times and there are few resources outside of the school. The schools have been asked to solve all of the problems in our communities and we lack the capacity to do this despite our very best efforts.
In the coming weeks you will receive communication from your school principals on new code of conducts, reminders on expectations, and what the school is doing to teach and reteach those behavior expectations. We would ask that you help us by reviewing these expectations with your children. We would also ask that if you receive a call from the school about a student behavior that you assume good intentions regarding the school staff. Our staff is very dedicated and they all want the very best for our students. While it is okay to question and be frustrated by something, it is never okay to be disrespectful towards our staff. We are always happy to have a conversation with you regarding your child. We are all on the same team.
I often speak about a community caretaking approach. Now is the time for us to come together and support one another. What does it mean to be part of Slate Valley? Some of the behaviors we are seeing in connection to the school do not, and should not, represent what it means to be part of the Slate Valley community. We have many proud Slate Valley traditions, let's all work together to continue the greater good that our district truly represents. We need your support!
Best,
Brooke Olsen-Farrell
Superintendent
CES Spirit Week continues! Thursday was Favorite Shirt Day!
