Senator Square: Solutions classes through CHS offer extra help to all students

Solutions is in full swing, and Carson High School is the only high school in Nevada with this amazing grant. The grant money provides out-of-school-time supports for at-risk students. At risk, a broad term in this grant, includes students who are at risk of not passing a class, at risk of becoming truant, or just in need of a safe-place after school.

A part of the CHS culture is to make sure late work or missing assignments are completed in a Solutions classroom with a Solutions teacher’s signature in order to even be considered complete by the classroom teacher; this places the burden, a mandatory requirement for students failing two or more classes, on the at-risk students to take time out of their day to attend Solutions after school.

One of Solutions’ offerings is morning homework help every Monday through Thursday at 6:45 a.m. with Mr. Hagar in his classroom, which is open to all students and ineligible athletes to finish assignments, whether or not they are required to be there. The after-school Solutions classes are another aspect of the grant, available Tuesday through Friday with many options for students.

Bridget Gordon-Johnson, CHS Solutions Site Coordinator and CHS School Counselor Intern, said, “Solutions offers help in math, English, and science as well as Individual Education Programs (IEP) help and Career and Technical Education (CTE) support.”

Gordon Johnson also said, “I bring in new groups every grade check, so if teachers or parents have a student who is floundering, they may reach out to me, and I will enroll them at any time.” This much-needed program has been benefiting CHS students for several years and is another reason why Nevada Magazine called Carson High School the best Rural high school in the State of Nevada.
 
PHOTO FINISHED
The Capital City Arts Initiative announces its exhibition, Photo Finished, at the Community Development Building The Brick, 108 E Proctor Street in Carson City. Eleven artists from CHS have work in this exhibit, which is free and open to the public, available from Jan. 14-March 31, Monday-Friday 8:00 a.m. to noon and 1:00 to 4:00 p.m.

Due to the current and upcoming storms, the reception scheduled for Jan. 17 was moved to Jan. 24 from 5:00 to 6:30 p.m. The artists are all students in CHS Photography teacher Kara Ferrin’s Advanced Photo class. Ferrin said, “The work is the students’ Capstone Project, a culmination of all four years of photographic work and knowledge focused into their own artistic interpretations with very few limitations.”

Participating CHS students include Gilberto Avina, Kaelah Bowman, Kyla Cox, Jazlyn Duran, Haley Garver, Ben Granados, Andrea Lathrop, Dez McGilvray, Gabe Morton, Amber Rangel, and Sarah Woods. Sharon Rosse, CCAI Executive Director, said “CCAI is delighted to present this exhibition and grateful of the opportunity to work with Carson High faculty and students; we are proud of the professional level of the students’ work and of their teacher who encouraged and nurtured their imaginations and skill levels.”

CCAI is an organization committed to the encouragement and support of the arts and culture of Carson City and the surrounding region. CCAI is funded in part by the John Ben Snow Memorial Trust, National Endowment for the Arts, Nevada Arts Council, John and Grace Nauman Foundation, Carson City Cultural Commission, NV Energy Foundation, Nevada Humanities and National Endowment for the Humanities, and U.S. Bank Foundation. Contact Sharon Rosse at 721-7424, or visit CCAI’s website at www.arts-initiative.org for more information.

ROBOTICS TEAM RECEIVES SUPPORT FROM GNCU
Greater Nevada Credit Union recently presented a sponsorship check to the CHS Robotics team, Cyber Mafia. The funds will be used by the club to purchase team shirts and attend competitions. These students are responsible for designing, building, and programming their robots to compete in an alliance against other teams. They learn about working teambuilding, communication skills, and competing fairly while being supportive of their competition. The CHS team started in 2012 and went to the World Championship that year in St Louis, and the program has grown tremendously since then. In 2017, the team won the State competition in Las Vegas and competed at the Super Regionals in Tacoma, WA. They then moved on to compete at the World Championship in Houston, TX. This year, the team plans to compete at the State competition in Las Vegas in February. Interested in sponsoring the team, contact Sherri Kelley at skelley@carson.k12.nv.us.

FORMER CHS GRADUATES SHARE THEIR COLLEGE EXPERIENCES
January 17 brought "The Real Life of College Through the Eyes of Former CHS Grads" to the current seniors of CHS at 5:30 p.m. in the Library. This fun and informative night, sponsored by the CHS PTSA, was a great opportunity to speak with current college students with inside experience about what to expect.

BASKETBALL KNOCKOUT
CHS’ Fellowship of Christian Athletes invited students to join them Jan. 15 at lunch in the Big Gym for a game of Basketball Knockout. This game is performed by first forming a single file line and handing the balls to the first two players in the line. Everybody's first shot must be take from a determined distance away from the hoop, typically the free-throw line. If the first shooter makes a basket before the second, they hand the ball to the next person in line, and if the second shooter makes the basket before the first, the first is knocked out. The game is simple, fast-paced, and fun.

Anyone may play, and everyone feels welcome. CHS Advisor Ty McMillen looks for every opportunity to get students involved in academics, in activities, and in FCA. Leaders of CHS FCA include teacher and advisor Ty McMillen, Charles Mann, Joe Clark, Nate Girdner, Billy McHenry, and Phil Brady. Also supporting FCA are FCA Area Director Tim Plummer and Kurt Katzorke, Youth Pastor at Hilltop Community Church.

HOSA BLANKET DRIVE
Future Health Professionals (HOSA) is collecting new or gently used blankets to donate to the homeless community. Help someone stay warm this winter; please drop this donation to CHS teacher Kelly Gustafson’s, room 206, from Jan. 22 through Feb. 14. Make arrangements by emailing her at kgustafson@carson.k12.nv.us.

SPEECH AND DEBATE
Carson High Speech and Debate is hosting its annual tournament this coming weekend January 25th and 26th. We are looking for volunteers to judge at this important event. Judging is both entertaining, educational, and rewarding. New judges do not need any special background but we will have training available at the event. Volunteers can participate for an hour or an entire day. Carson High award winning culinary program will be catering the event. Anyone interested can contact the coach Patrick Mobley at: pmobley@carson.k12.nv.us.

CARSON CITY HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
The deadline has been extended for the Carson City Health & Human Services art contest. Remember, they are remodeling their clinic and need student art work. The competition will award the top three with prizes and their work will be displayed in the new clinic.

The theme is ‘Carson City Winter’, and any form of art is acceptable as long as it is able to hang on the wall, is no larger than 20" x 20", contains the artist’s full name and home address on the back, and is submitted to Mrs. Gustafson in room 206 by Jan. 25.

SAFE GRAD SOBER 5K
The CHS Safe and Sober 5k Run/Walk is just around the corner. Interested walkers and runners may find the application at carsonhighsafegrad.com, and it needs to be filled out by Feb. 9. The Safe Grad Committee is looking for sponsors and raffle prize donations too, so call Social Media Advertising Coordinator, Nubia Leon.

POETRY CLUB
Carson High's newest creative opportunity, Poetry Club, meets Fridays after school in the library with snacks provided. Students talk about inspiration, get feedback on their work in progress, and close the afternoon with an open mic opportunity.

STUDENT OF THE WEEK
The CHS student of the week is Neen Nattanan Hongakkraphan, a foreign exchange student from Thailand. CHS Journalism student Kieran Dazzo interviewed Neen and asked her some questions about her experiences at CHS so far. Neen said her favorite classes are, “Science, like forensics, anatomy, and astronomy, as well as English and math.” Neen went on to say, “I switched my classes to anatomy and forensics because my last classes, graphic design and ceramics, I learned all I could and I wanted to learn more.” Dazzo said Neen likes sports, and right now she enjoys skiing, mountain biking, and rock climbing because she has never been able to do these things in Thailand, and now, Neen said, “I love them…and I like to read.”

Dazzo asked Neen about how hard she had to work to learn English and how difficult her classes were at first. Neen said, “So hard; I am still working, and I think I am trying to work hard all the time, practicing reading a lot and practicing to speak too. I talk to people. I like to listen because it is helpful.” When asked about her life’s motto, Neen said, “Happiness is not out there, it is in you.”

Dazzo chose to interview Neen because, “She works so hard in her classes, always googling words and doing her work to the best of her ability; she even does it better than the native English speakers in my classes, and she wants to make the most out of her time in the U.S., and I admire that a lot.” About Neen, Dazzo also said, “She tries new things all the time and is not afraid to ask for help.”

SENIOR SPOTLIGHT
This week’s Senior in the Spotlight is Cindi Redus. Cindi has a Cumulative Grade Point Average of 3.52 and a Weighted GPA of 4.19. Cindi is taking a full load of courses, which include three Advanced Placement classes, Advanced Publication, Trigonometry and Pre-Calculus, Photography III, and French II. After graduation, Cindy is planning on going to college at UNLV to study Film. Someday, she would love to be a screen writer. Cindi has been a part of National Honor Society (NHS) for the last two years and this year is a member of SkillsUSA. Ms. Redus is planning on going to this year’s completion in Photography.

Currently, she is the Assistant Editor for the Carson High School Yearbook. Outside of school, Cindi has volunteered her time to support the Carson City School District McKenney Vento Program, which is an organization that helps students in transition.

The McKinney-Vento Act originally consisted of fifteen programs providing a range of services to homeless people, including emergency shelter, transitional housing, job training, primary health care, education, and some permanent housing. Congratulations to Cindi Redus for her many accomplishments and her desire to take the road less traveled.

— Senator Square columnist Phil Brady is an English teacher at Carson High School in Carson City, Nev.