October 20, 2015
"Have You Seen the Owl Today?"
Welcome to a special edition of the Wise Owl, which is coming out this afternoon because of some very big news for Union Elementary! "What news?", you say? Well, take a look at this...
We have known for a number of weeks that Mrs. Koch was a finalist for this prestigious honor, and it was just today that Dr. Ricca and I joined Susan at Hartford High School for the official announcement that she was the top candidate. What a special day for Susan, her students, and the whole UES community!
And the celebrations and kudos are just beginning! Among many other things, Susan can look forward to a special assembly here at Union on Tuesday, November 17 where she will be presented with her award -- all are welcome to attend, and we'll have more details about this ceremony as the date gets closer. Finally, Susan will join other Teacher of the Year candidates from the other 49 states at a special reception this spring at the White House where she'll get to meet President Obama! Wow! It can't be possible that any of these other 49 teachers are as talented and student-centered as Mrs. Koch, right? We should all be so proud and happy for her -- this honor is so richly deserved. Here is an action shot from moments ago when Susan was officially announced as the top candidate:
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| Secretary Rebecca Holcombe, Dr. Ricca, Mrs. Koch, and Mr. Hennessey |
Finally, here is a link to the Vermont Agency of Education site that gives more details on the TOY program:
A few other "Hoot-Worthy" Announcements:
Walking School Bus Tomorrow! Don't forget... the Walking School Bus leaves tomorrow morning from Shaw's, the State House steps, and the college green at 8:00 sharp. We hope to see you all there!
Have You Seen the Gym? If you haven't visited the UES gym yet this year, you will be amazed the next time you do! For the first time in the 75 plus year history of our school, the gym floor was sanded, repainted, and resurfaced this summer! Many decades of wax and dirt had accumulated to the point that the floor was almost un-cleanable. Well, that isn't the case any more! It looks beautiful, and our gym is finally worthy of the outstanding Physical Education program MJ and Mr. Williams put in place for our children every day. You'll also notice that the damaged tiles on the surface of the walls (that were 50+ years old) have been replaced by beautiful light green and gold acoustic panels that not only make the gym look better, but sound better too! A big kudos and Hennessey Hoot is due to Todd Keller and the crew for getting these panels up in the middle of the busy, busy school year. We expect the gym to be completely done by early November. If you can't stop by, take a look at this great photo to see the progress that we've made:
Giant Pumpkin Visits UES! Once again, a big thank you is due to UES granddad Kevin Companion for sharing his gigantic, champion pumpkin with the children of UES! This year, Mr. Companion outdid himself by growing a pumpkin that weighed in at, get this, 1,332 pounds!! Here is Mrs. Slesar's class being overwhelmed by the awesome hugeness of this big orange monster:
Have You Seen the Gym? If you haven't visited the UES gym yet this year, you will be amazed the next time you do! For the first time in the 75 plus year history of our school, the gym floor was sanded, repainted, and resurfaced this summer! Many decades of wax and dirt had accumulated to the point that the floor was almost un-cleanable. Well, that isn't the case any more! It looks beautiful, and our gym is finally worthy of the outstanding Physical Education program MJ and Mr. Williams put in place for our children every day. You'll also notice that the damaged tiles on the surface of the walls (that were 50+ years old) have been replaced by beautiful light green and gold acoustic panels that not only make the gym look better, but sound better too! A big kudos and Hennessey Hoot is due to Todd Keller and the crew for getting these panels up in the middle of the busy, busy school year. We expect the gym to be completely done by early November. If you can't stop by, take a look at this great photo to see the progress that we've made:
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| Shiny and clean at last! |
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| Um, I think he's gonna need a bigger truck... |
UPP News For those who don't know, the Union Playground Project (UPP) is alive and well! There are a lot of great things going on -- here are a few updates:
I'd like to share a few action shots of some parent and community volunteers who came in at the end of the summer to spruce up our lower playground by putting in two straight twelve hour days the weekend before school started. Thanks are due to UES moms Terry Holloway and Jenny Sheehan for planning and organizing this event. Their dedication was (and remains) truly extraordinary! Check it out:
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| UES dad Gary Holloway using elbow grease to get the bricks looking as they should. |
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| Chainsaw artist extraordinaire and UES mom Billie Quittner |
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| Kindergartener Winter says, "Mr. Hennessey, can I have the keys? Please? What could go wrong?" |
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| UES dad Gampo Wickenheiser shows off his wood working skills. |
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| Nothing better than a shirtless test drive! |
Meanwhile, future UES mom and UVM professor Stephanie Hurley had her landscape design class pay a visit to the playground last week, and they have agreed to take on the design of our new playgrounds as a class project! You may have noticed more than twenty college students with clipboards walking around the property taking notes last week, and we can all expect to see more of these folks throughout the fall.
That's it for now -- I'll have more UPP updates in each future edition of the Wise Owl!
* 4th grader Bethany Brush, who has entered a beginner's cooking contest with Uncle Ben's Rice and could win $30,000 for UES! All winnings would go specifically to kitchen upgrades at the school. It's a social media contest so please click on this link and vote for Bethany! You are able to vote once per day - please support her and UES!
* 4th graders Girija and Yolanda for taking the lead on the UES compost program every day! I joined our first graders for lunch yesterday, and I got to see these girls in action -- sheparding 80+ young children through the multiple steps of finishing lunch and composting isn't an easy task for anyone, and they were calm, organized, and industrious. Thank you Girija and Yolanda!
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| Still smiling... even at the end of lunch! |
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