Today members of the Elk's Club from Whitehall continued their over 20 year tradition of delivering dictionaries to every 3rd grader. The students were very excited and thankful!
FHGS Safety Patrol has officially started! Our 6th graders have started "walking the beat" during arrival and dismissal to support SOAR behavior in the halls. We are very excited to have these patrols supporting FHGS!
Yesterday, Fourth Graders traveled to the Granger House on Castleton University's Campus. They were able to take part in the college's Hidden History Archaeology Project.
One of our own was the School Superstar Spotlight yesterday morning on MyNBC5! Congratulations to Mrs. Mead!
https://www.mynbc5.com/article/school-superstar-spotlight-shannan-mead/45622887
Yesterday we held our last of this fall's Coffee & Conversations at Buxton's Store in Orwell. It was a nice turnout with about 10 community members stopping in to chat with district administrators and school board members. We will be sharing dates soon for our Listening Tours that, as in years past, will be held at the district schools during evening hours.
This week throughout Slate Valley, all of our schools took part in some experiential learning. Benson Village School’s fourth graders went to Castleton University and learned about the Hidden History Archaeology Project. Orwell Village School’s grades 4, 5, 6 traveled north to Isle La Motte and visited Goodsell Ridge Fossil Preserve. Castleton Elementary School’s 3rd graders walked along the main street of Castleton, visiting local sites connected to the traditionally read story, “The Blue Cat of Castle Town”. Fair Haven Grade School enjoyed performances by singer / songwriter Jared Campbell, who through humor and engaging music, shared messages about being a good friend, finding your passion, and making a positive impact in the world. Fair Haven Union Middle & High School’s Theatre Group invited all district elementary students to the high school to see performances of various short skits themed around fairy tales. The younger students had a wonderful time. Just a few of the great things happening in Slate Valley!
Throwback Thursday: Going back 50 years to construction of an addition for Fair Haven Union High School.
Where Are They Now Wednesday: Highlighting Adam Kent - Class of 2004
FHUHS Alumnus Adam Kent lives by his favorite quote, "Work hard in silence, let your success be your noise." Since graduating from Fair Haven Union High in 2004, Adam has been off and running developing a trade that led to establishing his own company. In November of 2004, he started working as an apprentice for a mason. In July of 2015, Adam became owner and lead mason of his own sole proprietor company called Kent Masonry, LLC in Montpelier, VT. His business is still going strong today.
While at Fair Haven Union High School, Adam ran cross country for 2 years, played soccer, football, basketball, baseball, and participated in chorus.
When asked if there were any teachers in particular he would like to give credit in helping him toward his success, he replied, “I had a lot of great teachers, but actually had no idea Masonry was even a workman's trade prior to 2004 when I started. I would say Business Math with Mr. Cavacas and Speech and Debate with Mr. Hier have been the most helpful, and useful, classes for me today as a business owner.”
Currently, Adam lives in Washington Country, near Montpelier with his wife Danielle, daughter, son, two dogs and a cat. He still actively participates in sports such as mens league baseball and obstacle course runs like Spartan races. Last year he started coaching some area youth sports teams.
The advice Adam would give to our current Slate Valley student body is, “Whatever life throws in your path, just take a deep breath, stay calm and keep moving forward. Always believe in yourself. There is nothing you can't do if you put in the work and set your mind to it.”
Great words of wisdom Adam, and obviously ones you have taken to heart.
Where Are They Now Wednesday: Highlighting Adam Kent
FHUHS lives by his favorite quote, "Work hard in silence, let your success be your noise". Since graduating from Fair Haven Union High, Adam has been off and running developing a trade that led to establishing his own company. In November of 2004, he started working as an apprentice for a mason. In July of 2015, Adam became owner and lead mason of his own sole proprietor company called Kent Masonry, LLC in Montpelier, VT. His business is still going strong today.
While at Fair Haven Union High School, Adam ran cross country for 2 years, played soccer, football, basketball, baseball, and participated in chorus.
When asked if there were any teachers in particular he would like to give credit in helping him toward his success, he replied, “I had a lot of great teachers, but actually had no idea Masonry was even a workman's trade prior to 2004 when I started. I would say Business Math with Mr. Cavacas and Speech and Debate with Mr. Hier have been the most helpful, and useful, classes for me today as a business owner.”
Currently, Adam lives in Washington Country, near Montpelier with his wife Danielle, daughter, son, two dogs and a cat. He still actively participates in sports such as mens league baseball and obstacle course runs like Spartan races. Last year he started coaching some area youth sports teams.
The advice Adam would give to our current Slate Valley student body is, “Whatever life throws in your path, just take a deep breath, stay calm and keep moving forward. Always believe in yourself. There is nothing you can't do if you put in the work and set your mind to it.”
Great words of wisdom Adam, and obviously ones you have lived by.
Please join us this Friday, October 20th at Buxton's Store in Orwell for Coffee & Conversation from 7:30 to 9:00 AM.
Trivia Tuesday: Did You Know?
Mr. Rose, from Horace Mann, visited FHGS this morning to see the drums his company donated through the Donors Choose program. Music Teacher, Mrs. Hutchins, put in the request and was extremely thankful to Horace Mann for granting her wish. She brought a group of students together, along with Principal Infurna, and invited Mr. Rose to participate in their "Drum Circle Where Everyone Belongs". Thank you to Horace Mann for the countless hours of musical activities they have given our students.
Students at FHGS enjoyed performances by Jared Campbell today. Jared is a singer/songwriter from upstate New York who has performed for hundreds of schools, shared the stage with famous musicians, and has been acknowledged by Billboard magazine as one of the top independent musicians of the northeast.
Through humor and engaging music, Jared shared messages about being a good friend, finding your passion, "practice makes progress" and making a positive impact in the world. "I Wanna Be A Superhero" is one of our favorite songs. Use this link if you would like to learn more about Jared and his music. https://jaredcampbell.com/about/
Meet Slate Valley Faculty & Staff Monday: Featuring Teann McCrea
Tonight - October 16, 2023
You’re invited to the Slate Valley Unified Union School District Board Meeting at 6:30 p.m. in the Fair Haven Union Middle and High School Library. This meeting will be in person. You can virtually connect by going to: https://meet.google.com/knx-qncn-pxy
Or dial: (US) +1 484-452-4714 PIN: 869 578 711#
October 9, 2023
Dear Slate Valley Families and Staff,
I hope this message finds you well. We wanted to take a moment to address the recent incident that has occurred in our local community and to reassure you about the safety measures we have in place to protect our school community.
As many of you may be aware, there was a tragic incident near the Castleton University Campus, resulting in a manhunt which has understandably raised concerns in our community. The safety and well-being of our students and staff remain our top priority, and I want to assure you that we are taking this situation very seriously. We have been in contact with law enforcement on a regular basis. We take our direction from them.
We plan to hold school as normal. However, there are some safety precautions we have implemented or enhanced at Castleton Elementary, Fair Haven Grade School and Fair Haven Union Middle/High School in response to this incident:
Outside Activities: We will determine whether or not to hold outside activities based on advice from law enforcement. This includes sporting events and outside recess at the MS/HS, FHGS and CES. Right now we are proceeding with outside activities and we will have additional supervision as appropriate.
Bus Stops: Please consider waiting with your child at all bus stops or driving them to and from school. Consider walking in pairs/groups to and from school. Of course this decision is up to you as a parent but that is the advice we are being given.
Communication: We will continue to keep you updated with any relevant information about the situation.
Counseling Services: Our school counselors are available to support students who may be feeling anxious or upset due to recent events. Please do not hesitate to reach out if your child needs support.
If you have any concerns or questions about our safety precautions or would like additional information, please feel free to contact our school. We are committed to providing a safe and secure learning environment for all our students and staff. Your cooperation, understanding, and vigilance are greatly appreciated as we work together to continue to ensure the safety of our school community.
Thank you for your continued support.
Sincerely,
Brooke Olsen-Farrell
Superintendent
Last night, the Lakes Region FreePress held their Best of the Best 2023 Awards Ceremony, honoring those who were voted into the top of their categories by our community. Slate Valley was well represented with Fair Haven Grade School's Applefest placing second for the Best Annual Event! Slate Valley also had 3 out of the 7 teachers who made it into the finalist voting, they were Castleton Elementary's Amy DeSantis, and Fair Haven Union High School's Ashleigh Sanborn and Jennifer Clement. Ms. Sanborn finished in second place to Mrs. Clement, who was awarded highest honor as the community's favorite teacher! Congratulations everyone!
NOTICE FOR TODAY, FRIDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2023: Due to the concern in our communities, it has been directed to CANCEL all activities HOME and AWAY for our athletes 5th - 12th grade for Fair Haven Union Middle & High School AND all other Slate Valley Schools.
Therefore:
***ALL PRACTICES are CANCELED - 5th - 12th grade
***5/6 Boys and Girls Soccer AWAY at Middlebury - CANCELED
***7/8 Boys and Girls Soccer HOME vs. Barstow -- CANCELED
***VG Soccer HOME vs. Mt Abe 6pm - CANCELED