Senator Square: Carson City's superintendent gives teachers shout out for peaceful, safe spring break

Editor’s Note: Richard Stokes is the Carson City School District Superintendent.
Dear Friends, I wanted to send my very best wishes to each of you for a peaceful and safe Spring Break. During the past three weeks, I have marveled at the professional services and selfless acts of kindness you have delivered during one of the most incredible events of my career.

Regardless of assignment, I have observed you stepping forward to work and assist in any activity where there was a need. In every case, I have observed you doing anything and everything to support our students or bolster the development and delivery of a new system of teaching. I have never been more proud to be associated with a group of like-minded individuals who were asked to do such an impossible task in such a short amount of time.

The response and professional quality is nothing short of spectacular, and I am so very grateful you are part of our team. I hope you are able to enjoy some well-deserved rest and relaxation from your work and efforts of the last three weeks. I continue to receive large numbers of compliments from our community leaders, parents, co-workers, and citizens describing your acts of kindness, your quiet generosity, your unquestioning student support, and your genuine care for others.

You have been asked to respond to a brand new set of rules to do your jobs, and, from what I have observed, your efforts are nothing short of spectacular. I have observed the faces of students who came back to their schools and were so excited to see friendly school faces. I watched dedicated staff assembling and organizing packets, all from the appropriate social distances too. I watched thousands of meals being prepared, packaged, and delivered, 2,020 to be exact. I watched lessons being developed, refined, and posted. I saw good-hearted staff selflessly doing whatever was asked of them in support of our students. I have heard from all of the principals and supervisors across the District and to a person, we are ready to apply our remote learning platform.

A tremendous amount of work has been accomplished through a very short period of time, all being accomplished with a variety of unanswered questions and with a great deal of uncertainty. Regardless, the work was completed and a monumental task accomplished. In the coming weeks, we will do what all good teachers do, monitor and adjust. I am so proud of the collective efforts of our people and want you to know how proud I am to work with you. I know there have been many communications, emails, and official press releases regarding the current health crisis. If I could add only one statement before turning off the lights for Spring Break, I would simply say how grateful I am to be your colleague; I hope you have a peaceful and safe Spring Break. Richard

AMERICAN SIGN LANGUAGE INTERPRETERS STAYING BUSY
According to CHS Language Arts Department chair Cheryl Macy, “CHS American Sign Language interpreters are doing a great deal during these strange times.” Specifically, Macy said, “Brittany Duncan and Joel Alle are sitting in on Google Meet and Zoom classes and interpreting, and when they are not needed for this, they are going onto YouTube and adding closed captioning to teachers' videos.”

It is highly important to Carson City School District teachers the Community of Carson City know its teachers are busier than they have likely ever been. Macy added about the ASL teachers, ‘They are truly rocking it, and it is a side of education many people are not acknowledging right now; they are working innovatively and problem-solving what is and what is not working for the deaf and hard of hearing students they serve.”

SPEECH AND DEBATE
Carson High School debate members Mary Milburn and Kieran Dazzo have qualified to compete in the National Speech and Debate Tournament this June. Originally planned for Albuquerque New Mexico, the tournament has been moved to an online format to protect all the participants. Since our district tournament was also cancelled, qualifications were determined based upon who has been the most consistently successful in each event this year. Dazzo qualified to compete in Dramatic Interpretation. DI is a ten-minute event where contestants develop a cutting from a published work.

The pieces are generally serious in nature and usually highlight a social problem. Dazzo’s cutting from the book: Redemption: A Story of Sisterhood, Survival, and Finding Freedom Behind Bars by Stacey Lannert and Kristen Kemp looks at the story of an 18-year-old who shot and killed her long time sexually abusive father and is sent to jail for murder. Mary was one of only two students in the league who qualified in three events: Lincoln Douglas Debate, Program Oral Interpretation, and Informative Speaking.

Since she may only compete in one main event, Milburn has selected her POI, unique in interpretation events, as it must be developed from multiple published pieces of literature, drama, poetry, and news that focuses on a single topic and develops a narrative. Milburn’s piece, titled “Heartbeat”, draws from a wide range of sources to look at the issue of abortion and the need for both sides to be able to have a conversation and both sides to have validity.

COLLEGE APPLICATIONS AND SCHOLARSHIPS
Senator Scholarship Scoop is online at carsonhigh.com by clicking Academics, Counseling Department, and The Scoop on the left. The CHS Guidance Office is also there to help students by calling 283-1915, or emailing counselor Amanda Chambers at achambers@carson.k12.nv.us to make an appointment.

CARNETA BUDDY ADS AVAILABLE FOR STUDENTS AND PARENTS
Friends and parents of soon-to-be graduating seniors, do not miss celebrating by writing a personal message or submitting friend and family photos and Buddy Ads to the 2020 Carneta yearbook staff. Buy a personal ad to congratulate a graduating senior or student.

Parents may submit family photos, and the Carneta staff then design and place these Buddy Ads in a special section of the yearbook. Often, senior friends get together and buy an ad, collecting photos which hold memories of their favorite times through the years. Buddy Ads are still being accepted, but this is the last opportunity. Email Journalism and Language Arts Teacher Patt Quinn-Davis at pquinn@carson.k12.nv.us to order an ad. Ads may also be purchased online.

10TH ANNUAL SAFE GRAD RUN AND WALK STILL A POSSIBILITY
CHS’ Safe and Sober 5k Run and Walk is April 25 beginning at 8:30 a.m. at the Carson Middle School track. Interested walkers and runners may find the application at carsonhighsafegrad.com. The Safe Grad Committee is looking for sponsors and raffle prize donations too.

Register early by mailing in a form and check payable to Carson High Safe Grad Booster, PO Box 486 Carson City, NV 89702. Regular fee is $30 until April 27, and $20 for students or younger. After April 28, there will be a late fee per category plus $5 processing fee and no t-shirt guarantee. Check-in is from 8:30 to 9:00 a.m., and the 5K begins at 10:00 a.m. Safe and Sober 5K is organized by volunteers of the Carson High Safe Grad Booster.

The CHS Safe Grad program has been an annual tradition in Carson City since 1988, providing graduating seniors with a safe and sober, all night celebration on the eve of their graduation, followed by a trip to the Six Flags Discovery Kingdom amusement park in Vallejo, California. This event has been a tremendous success in that not one graduation night fatality for a CHS graduate has occurred since its inception.

COUNSELORS AND SAFE SCHOOL PROFESSIONALS AVAILABLE TO STUDENTS
School counseling and Safe School Professional (SSP) support is available while students are home. Experiencing a mental health emergency, please contact the Nevada Crisis line at 784-8090, text HOME to 741741, the crisis text line, visit the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline suicidepreventionlifeline.org/, call 911, or go to the nearest hospital emergency room.

Want to contact an SSP or CHS Counselor? Though counseling is best done in person, there are systems in place to support students, answer questions, and hold meetings digitally. Below are links to set up digital meetings on Google Meet or by phone. If a student makes an appointment, the student will receive a link or an invite to the Google Meet for the time of the appointment, so please check emails, and make sure to stay connected to Google Classroom for important updates.

If a student did not get to meet with a counselor to schedule classes for next year, send an email along with a picture of the registration paper and list of desired classes. Scholarship applications are going to be digitally uploaded to carsonhigh.com/new/main/scholarship-apps.html page too, so check there regularly.

Students may take a photo and email it to Lynn Garrett at lgarrett@carson.k12.nv.us. Direct scholarship questions go to CHS Counselors Amanda Chambers or Bridget Gordon-Johnson. Students need to check Google Classrooms, daily, for assignments as teachers will be maintaining an A-B day schedule.

AP teachers will be pushing out information from the College Board to help students prepare for tests. Video and phone appointments may be made by going to Schedule a Google Meet Appointment Here: calendly.com/ and typing in the counselor’s last name after the backslash.

Also, send an email to CHS Counselors Amanda Chambers at achambers@carson.k12.nv.us, Susan Grunert at sgrunert@carson.k12.nv.us, Nicole Hendee at nhendee@carson.k12.nv.us, Fawn Lewis at flewis@carson.k12.nv.us, Cynthia Reyes at creyes@carson.k12.nv.us, Monica Weaver at mweaver@carson.k12.nv.us, or Bridget Gordon-Johnson at bgordon@carson.k12.nv.us to let them know an appointment is desired. Safe School Professionals are Kelly Edmundson, kedmundson@carson.k12.nv.us, Erik Tedrowe, etedrowe@carson.k12.nv.us, Rob Olivas, rolivas@carson.k12.nv.us, or bilingual and Spanish SSP Alejandra Ayala-Ayala at aayala-ayala@carson.k12.nv.us.

STUDENT OF THE WEEK
The Student of the Week is Karina Novoa Diaz, nominated by her English teacher Cheryl Macy. “Karina is extremely hardworking and driven” Macy said, and “She strives to do her best in every assignment.” Macy went on to say about Karina, “She is polite and easy to work with, and her peers enjoy her company.” Congratulations to Karina Novoa Diaz for her dedication to her education and helping others. Employees within Carson City School District nominate CHS students for Student of the Week, and it is often the students’ teachers who do the nominating though anyone in the district may do so by sending an email to Senator Square columnist Phil Brady at pbrady@carson.k12.nv.us.

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