#ASMSA March 2022 Quarterly Report

March 1, 2022 To the Members of ASMSA’s Community of Learning: ASMSA lost one of its earliest Hot Springs advocates last month with the passing of Helen Selig. Selig died Friday, Feb. 18, 2022, after a long battle with Alzheimer’s.

She was 84. Selig served as mayor of Hot Springs from 1994-2000 during the early years of the school. She was a prominent leader of a community group that lobbied for the state to choose Hot Springs as the school’s home in 1992. The Arkansas General Assembly established the school in 1991 without a home site picked for the program. A site selection committee received more than 50 applications from cities and towns across Arkansas hoping to serve as the host for the new school. Hot Springs was eventually one of seven finalists considered for the site.

Hot Springs supporters adopted the slogan “Clear As A Bell,” signifying that the city was the obvious choice to host ASMSA. In cooperation with the City of Hot Springs and the Garland County community, a plan to house the school in the recently vacated St. Joseph Hospital was proposed. The building became vacant when a new hospital, the current CHI St. Vincent Hot Springs, was built. Among those leading the charge was Selig.

Selig and other volunteers convinced the city to make a big commitment to the project to win the selection committee over. The city agreed to buy the building from the hospital and committed to perform maintenance on it. She also began pursuing civic support for the project. When the committee announced its selection of Hot Springs, Selig was overjoyed. “It lifted everybody’s spirits. We knew then that we had the support of the entire state of Arkansas. It was wonderful,” Helen’s husband John noted in a Tangents article in 2017.

Selig, along with her family, continued their support for ASMSA throughout the decades. In January 2017, the eponymous Helen Selig Promise Kept Endowment was established. John Selig and other members of the Selig family made a $20,000 gift to ASMSA to create the endowment in her honor. It was the single largest gift to establish an endowment in the school’s history. The gift was matched by one of the family members’ employer to initially establish the endowment with $40,000 total.

The endowment provides an annual grant to an ASMSA faculty member.

I only knew Helen in her twilight years, but her love for ASMSA and Hot Springs was evident in each conversation we shared. Few Arkansans have left a greater impact on our school than Helen. Without her extraordinary leadership and persistence, the school would not be what it is today. Generations of students to come will continue to benefit from her example.

Sincerely,

Corey Alderdice ASMSA Director

Office of the Director March 2022 Quarterly Report Corey Alderdice, ASMSA Director By the Numbers • All seven ASMSA seniors who were named National Merit Semifinalists last fall have advanced to the Finalist stage. To be considered for the National Merit Scholarship Program, students take the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test as a junior. The nationwide pool of Semifinalists represents less than one percent of U.S. high school seniors.

• ASMSA experienced 35 total cases of COVID-19 on campus during the spring 2022 semester to date. That figure is up from 8 total cases during the Fall 2021 semester and highlights the specific challenges of the Omicron variant.

• ASMSA’s 28th Commencement Ceremony honoring the Class of 2022 will be held on Saturday, May 21, 2022, at 2 p.m. at Bank OZK Arena in the Hot Springs Convention Center.

ASMSA Eases COVID-19 Protocols Amid Declining Cases Ongoing updates are available at https://www.asmsa.org/asmsa-covid-19-updates/.

In late February, the University of Arkansas System leadership provided an update to campus executives regarding masking policies. Based on declining case numbers statewide and revised guidance from the CDC, the Trustees and System administration have recommended that masks should still be encouraged as part of our efforts to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 but should no longer be a requirement.

ASMSA’s campus COVID-19 Workgroup met shortly thereafter to discuss this recommendation, review campus-level data for the month of February, and consider further easing of restrictions that were implemented amid the rise of the Omicron variant in December and January.

Effective Tuesday, March 1st, masks are no longer required on the ASMSA campus. While masks have been a central component of ASMSA’s efforts to date and have helped to almost completely eliminate transmission in classroom settings, we are now entering a transitional period where our policies must become sustainable into the future. Testing, quarantine, and isolation protocols will remain the same for both students and employees.

The school continues to maintain a robust supply of free KN95 masks, which are available at the RLO, Director’s office, Dean of Academic Affairs’ office, and the lounges on each floor of the Academic and Administration Building. Masks are still strongly encouraged, and the COVID19 Workgroup may review circumstances and special events on campus where it is potentially in the best interest of all parties that masks be required.

Beginning Friday, March 4th, students may return to checking out each weekend to return home to visit with family. We are appreciative of our parents’ and guardians’ understanding of the need to limit off-campus exposure during peak COVID-19 waves. The last few weeks have seen

ASMSA’s cases and quarantines return to zero, and it is comforting to finally return to a sense of normalcy on this point.

Off-campus privileges will return to their normal format after Spring Break beginning March 28th. Privileges are based on the requirements outlined in the Student Handbook (pg. 34 vehicle, pg. 38 off-campus, and pg. 40 study hours). For students who have underperformed in classes at the start of the semester, this serves as a reminder that there is time to make significant progress in your coursework prior to the mid-term Progress Report on Friday, March 11th. Effective immediately, the restrictions on both on-campus and off-campus indoor dining are eliminated.

To close, I want to revisit the dual themes of shared commitment and shared responsibility that have framed all of our discussions and protocols related to the pandemic. While many of the changes outlined above are based on average daily cases returning to manageable levels, I do acknowledge that our change in the required masking policy will feel too sudden for many. While we can no longer require the use of masks, I anticipate that our community of learning’s commitment to each other will continue.

I want to commend our students, faculty, and staff for how they have taken those values to heart. From vaccinations to unending patience to expressing their observations and concerns in appropriate ways, they have consistently modeled the kind of attitudes and discourse that would significantly improve the outlook and effects of the pandemic if everyone was more like them. For that, I am grateful.

Facilities and Campus Master Planning Renovation work on the former Chapel and Convent continues with an estimated project completion date in late July 2022. Staff have been conducting monthly owner, architect, and contractor (OAC) meetings to assess the progress and make adjustments. The project remains on budget, though the nature of a historic renovation has resulted in a variety of change order requests from the contractor.

Design work on the new campus Administration Building began in February. Employees across admissions, finance, HR, public affairs, institutional advancement, information technology, and facilities management are part of a workgroup collaborating with Harris Architecture to assess the design and program needs for the building. Apart from IT, these units will all be housed in the new facility along with the Office of the Director. Once the project is complete in late 2023, these units will relocate. Faculty currently housed in the Pine Street Wing of the hospital complex will relocate to the current Academic and Administration Building. A preliminary layout as well as exterior concepts are included with this report.

93rd General Assembly Fiscal Session Members of the Arkansas General Assembly convened in February for the biennial Fiscal Session to approve appropriations for the 2022-23 fiscal year. Senate Bill 60, an Act for the University of Arkansas System and Various Divisions (including ASMSA), is expected to receive approval the first week of March.

Preliminary budget planning will begin later this month for FY23. Year to date reports from the Department of Finance and Administration indicate strong sales and use tax collections, which

account for the majority of ASMSA’s funding under the Educational Excellence Trust Fund.

This should result in a net increase in funding, which will not only allow for employee merit salary increases but also for the school to keep up with the costs of products, services, utilities, and other contracts due to inflation.

Three New Positions Announced within Academic Affairs ASMSA will begin advertising this month for three positions within Academic Affairs that represent the continued evolution of ASMSA’s student and faculty support systems. Last year, the school advertised for an Assistant Dean for Curriculum and Instruction. Since the search did not yield a candidate with the appropriate background and experience that aligned with the position as outlined, Dean Flynn and Director Alderdice have taken time to review the objectives of the position and consider alternative scenarios that can bring additional benefits to ASMSA. To that end, we are now seeking applications for both an Associate Dean of STEM and an Associate Dean for Arts and Humanities who will each serve in a hybrid administrative and instructional role. Though ASMSA will cast a wide net to a national audience for the search, current faculty are strongly encouraged to express their interest in these positions and offer themselves as candidates. These hires will not immediately replace our current Department Chair structure; however, it will create an opportunity to realign the roles and responsibilities of Chairs over the next couple of years.

The successful candidates will assist in supervising, evaluating, and supporting ASMSA’s extraordinary team of instructors while creating appropriate performance measures and accountability systems that ensure individual growth, professional development, student success, and institutional progress. The Associate Deans will coordinate with the Dean of Academic Affairs and faculty in the improvement of individual staff competencies and co-chair ongoing accreditation processes.

The positions will also work in conjunction with campus leadership to develop an apparatus for robust institutional research that analyzes and presents institutional data to facilitate data-driven decisions for ASMSA with an emphasis on improving student outcomes while ensuring equity in access to populations statewide. The Associate Deans will also work to strengthen relationships and establish new partnerships with groups across the state and nation to advance student opportunities and institutional prestige within their respective domains. In addition to administrative duties, the Associate Deans will teach up to two courses per semester in their area of specialization.

The final position for which we are advertising is a Coordinator of Scholar Development that will report to Bret Vallun as Associate Dean for College Planning. The addition of this role is the final step in the transformation of our Student Success program by including two professionals in each of the three established domains: mental health, college planning, and advising/intervention.

The successful candidate will provide encouragement, support, and resources to exceptional students at ASMSA that broadens their opportunities for recognition and competitive success while best positioning them for an increasingly competitive landscape of selective college

admissions. In short, they will help students build compelling overall profiles and narratives through research, service, extracurriculars, and other activities over the course of their sophomore and/or junior years that lead into the college admissions process during their senior year at ASMSA. The position will also steer ASMSA’s sophomore early entrance programs tailored to the needs of diverse populations of gifted, talented, and highly-motivated students. This includes developing, implementing, and evaluating programs for students enrolling as sophomores for the purposes of academic acceleration. The coordinator will also guide the new HELIX Prep Academy program that addresses the needs of “transformational” students from geographically, racially, and socio-economically diverse backgrounds in partnership with groups committed to equity in access.

More information about these and other available positions can be found online at: https://www.asmsa.org/employment-opportunities/.

ASMSA Joins ARE-ON Network ASMSA recently completed its connection to the Arkansas Research and Education Optical Network (ARE-ON), allowing the campus to increase its internet bandwidth by ten-fold among other benefits.

ARE-ON is a not-for-profit consortium of all of Arkansas’ two- and four-year higher education institutions as well as several select organizations such as Arkansas Children’s Hospital, the National Center for Toxicological Research, Arkansas PBS and the Winthrop Rockefeller Institute. It provides a high-speed fiber optic network throughout the state to its members and other affiliates, including regional optical networks and commercial service providers.

Joining ARE-ON’s network provides ASMSA with access to a 10 gigabit Ethernet connection, a ten-fold increase from the previous 1 gigabit service the school had. A gigabit allows up to 1 billion bits of data per second to be downloaded by the user. Faster download speeds and larger bandwidth permissions allow students to access great amounts of information in a shorter period of time. Upgrading the internet connection helps ASMSA provide the best learning and residential experience it can for its students.

The campus has made great strides in increasing the bandwidth provided to campus over the past decade. In 2012, the campus bandwidth was 28 Mbps. Those speeds were too slow to allow video streaming or music streaming much less interactive gaming and social media sites. The school moved to the gigabit service in 2019. Investments have also been made in specialized labs throughout campus for both academic and social purposes. The Arvest Digital Arts Lab serves as the main classroom for graphic arts and design courses as well as the journalism course, which focuses on the digital design of the yearbook. One lab serves as the home court of sorts for the school’s esports team. The Arkansas Activities Association has officially recognized esports, allowing high schools to form teams to compete against each other. For as many students are members of the esports teams, there are likely many more playing games online from their rooms.

ARE-ON engineers and ASMSA Information Technology staff coordinated to execute the connection transition in December 2021 to allow students to return to campus with upgraded benefits that include access to top-tier cloud services and connections to individual peers in addition to the increased internet speed.

Computer Science Program Receives Silver Medal Awards ASMSA was one of only six high schools statewide recognized by the Arkansas Department of Education Office of Computer Science for its computer science program. ASMSA received Bronze level recognition for the first year of the Computer Science Gold Medal School Program which included the 2020-21 academic year. The initiative, announced in the fall of 2020, is designed to recognize Arkansas high schools for outstanding work in supporting and implementing the Arkansas Computer Science and Computing Initiative. Schools were ranked on rubrics centered on criteria from Governor Asa Hutchinson’s five-year computer science education goals and the recommendations of the 2020 Arkansas Computer Science and Cybersecurity Task Force.

In addition to ASMSA, Bentonville High School and Bentonville West High School received Bronze recognition. Three schools — Arkansas High School in Texarkana, Russellville High School and Springdale High School — received Honorable Mention recognition. Schools may attain a Gold or Silver ranking, but no school received higher than Bronze recognition. Six other schools that applied received no ranking.

ASMSA offers a wide range of computer science courses and out-of-school enrichment programs that are not available at any other Arkansas high school. Since ASMSA’s opening in 1993, all students have been required to take computer programming but have also had the opportunity to take game creation, modern manufacturing, artificial intelligence and robotics, web applications and other college-level computer programming courses. ASMSA students have consistently finished highly ranked in various computer science competitions, including the Governor’s All-State Coding Competition, the Air Force Association’s CyberPatriot cybersecurity competition, the Congressional App Challenge and various robotics competitions, including BEST Robotics state and regional competitions.

ASMSA’s Coding Arkansas’ Future initiative has provided opportunities for school districts across the state to meet Governor Asa Hutchinson’s challenge for increased access to computer science coursework since its creation in 2015. The initiative has provided educators professional development sessions that prepare them to teach computer science in their own districts as well as seek state licensure while also conducting interactive sessions with educators and students throughout the school year. Since the creation of the governor’s initiative, nearly half of all licensed computer science teachers in the state have received some form of professional development from ASMSA. ASMSA to Participate in Challenge Success Cohort of NCSSS Schools ASMSA will join fellow member schools within the National Consortium of Secondary STEM Schools in administering the Challenge Success survey instrument this spring.

Challenge Success is a research study on students’ social, emotional, and physical well-being, as well as on students’ educational goals and their views on the academic climate and expectations at their school and at home. Challenge Success is a non-profit affiliated with the Stanford University Graduate School of Education that provides schools and families with proven strategies that promote well-being and engagement with learning in order to transform the student experience into one where all kids can create their own paths to success.

With additional emphasis being placed on students’ wellness and mental health not only at ASMSA but across NCSSS schools, the instrument will help participating schools provide an enriching, rigorous academic experience, without sacrificing student well-being.

Brown Earns Certified Fundraising Executive Designation Sara Brown, Ph.D., director of institutional advancement for the Arkansas School for Mathematics, Sciences and the Arts, recently was named a Certified Fund Raising Executive by CFRE International. The CFRE designation is the only accredited certification for fundraising professionals and is recognized as the global standard for fundraising professionalism.

Individuals granted the CFRE credential have met a series of standards set by CFRE International which include tenure in the profession, education and demonstrated fundraising achievement. They have also passed a rigorous written examination testing the knowledge, skills and abilities required of a fundraising executive and have agreed to uphold accountability standards and the Donor Bill of Rights. About 7,500 professionals around the world hold the CFRE designation.

Moore Named Director of Finance Whitney Moore has been selected to serve as ASMSA’s Director of Finance. Moore is currently in her sixth year at ASMSA and previously served as Assistant Director of Finance. She earned an M.B.A. from Henderson State University. The Finance Department has conducted a search for a new Assistant Director who will begin on March 14th.

REVISIONS

OFFICE 10'X11'9"

JAN.

LOBBY 20'X20' DO WN

PRINT 6'X7'

OFFICE 10'X11'9"

OFFICE 10'X11'9"

IT

BREAKROOM 10'X11'9"

LOBBY 20'X20'

DO WN

PRINT 6'X7'

OFFICE 10'X11'9"

BREAKROOM 10'X11'9"

MECH

OFFICE " 9'3 24'4"X1

OFFICE 19'4"X12'

OPEN TO BELOW

CONFERENCE 24'X12'8"

OFFICE 19'4"X12'

OFFICE 9'6"X12'

47'x12'

CE S OFFI R O T C DIRE "X27'10" 23'0

OFFICE 9'6"X12'

OFFICE 19'4"X12'

OFFICE 9'6"X12'

OPEN TO BELOW

CONFERENCE 24'X12'8"

SECOND FLOOR

THIRD FLOOR

1/8" = 1'-0"

1/8" = 1'-0"

STORAGE 355 SF 15'x20'

LOBBY 25'X27' UP

OFFICE 19'4"X12'

OFFICE 9'6"X12'

OFFICE 9'6"X12'

OFFICE 9'6"X12'

HOT SPRINGS AR, 71913

47'x12'

ASMSA – ADMIN BUILDING

UP

JAN.

BOARD ROOM 606 SF 24'x25' RE CE PT IO

N

STORAGE 510 SF 29'x17'6"

AREA CALCULATIONS FIRST FLOOR HEATED: 2,700 SQFT SECOND FLOOR HEATED: 3,970 SQFT FLOOR PLANS

THIRD FLOOR HEATED: 3,970 SQFT FIRST FLOOR 1/8" = 1'-0"

02–23–2022

TOTAL: 10,640 SF

A100

HOT SPRINGS AR, 71913

ASMSA - ADMIN BUILDING

REVISIONS

SITE PLAN

SITE PLAN 1/8" = 1'-0"

02-23-2022

C100

Office of Academic Affairs March 2022 Quarterly Report Stuart Flynn, Dean of Academics Employees reported back to campus on January 3rd for a week of professional development, and we delayed meeting classes until January 10th to help limit possible Covid transmissions on campus. Over the course of several weeks from mid-January to mid-February, we experienced a surge in Covid transmissions that required quarantining students on campus and at home.

Students in quarantine switched to virtual learning during their quarantines, and that switch allowed them to keep up course progress. Some students remained in quarantine longer than others due to multiple exposures at home, and for those students the extended time in virtual learning created challenges to completing work. SSCs for those students met with students and teachers to make sure the students had organized plans to catch up on missing work. As of now, all students have returned to campus, and we currently have no students in quarantine.

By the Numbers • Seven National Merit Scholarship finalists.

• Three student qualifiers for the International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF).

• Two winners in the national Scholastic Art & Writing Awards.

• Seventeen student qualifiers for the state FBLA Conference in Little Rock.

• Eighty-three students took the ACT on campus March 1st.

Science Fair Out of concern for the Omicron variant wave, we hosted the 2022 Science Fair in a virtual format on February 24th and 25th. Science Fair represents the culmination of our STEM students’ research projects, and students competed in twelve categories: Animal Science, Behavioral and Social Science, Chemistry, Computer Science, Earth Science, Engineering: Electrical & Mechanical, Engineering: Materials & Bioengineering, Environmental Science, Medicine & Health Science, Microbiology, Physics/Astronomy, Plant Science. Fifty ASMSA students received recognition for their projects, including three overall winning students who will compete at ISEF in Atlanta this May. Student Progress Reports The Academic Office compiled the Spring Semester’s first progress report on February 11th. Our Student Success Coordinators (SSCs) intervened with students whose grades fell below a C and with students who had multiple missing assignments. Early semester interventions include parent contact, meetings with instructors, tutoring, and required study hall for students who are behind because of missing assignments. We will compile our 3rd quarter progress report on March 11th, and at that point students will be placed on academic probation for grades below a C in any course. Students on academic probation must attend study hours in the CIC, which includes study sessions with Peer Mentors, must meet weekly with their SSCs, and must attend teacher tutoring sessions at least once a week for those courses where grades drop below a C.

Academic Job Searches We currently have three searches in progress for additional instructors in Music, Chemistry, and History. Finalists for the Music position were on campus from February 21-25, and finalists for the Chemistry and History positions will be on campus March 1-7 and March 8-14. The campus visits include meetings with Human Resources and the Dean of Academics, a second interview with respective hiring committees, lunch with departmental representatives, and presentations to students and faculty. These searches reflect the continued growth of our academic programs and the need to expand our faculty to offer students even broader opportunities for academic exploration.

Office of Student Life March 2022 Quarterly Report Rheo Morris, Ph.D., Dean of Students The ASMSA office of Student Life has remained vigilant in our fight against COVID-19 community spread. We are geared to continue the fight as restrictions have been lifted and masking has become optional. The staff and students are geared up for Prom and all of the excitement that entails. We have hit the recruitment trail for an Assistant Dean, Residential Experience Coordinator positions, and have recently hired a Residential Mentor who will begin mid-March. There has been a change in the Aladdin on campus leadership with the employment of a new Head Chef and new Food Director.

By the Numbers • 39 of our students participated in the COVID-19 booster in February.

• Counseling data for November o 146 individual therapy sessions o 3 crisis interventions o 9 group therapy sessions • Counseling data for December o 85 individual therapy sessions o 5 crisis interventions o 8 group therapy sessions • Counseling data for January o 109 individual therapy sessions o 0 crisis interventions o 5 group therapy sessions • Counseling data for February o 130 individual therapy sessions o 6 crisis interventions o 7 group therapy sessions • 127 students have participated in mental health services since the beginning of the school year.

Residential Curriculum The Residential Life staff has continued focusing programming, events, and interactions based on Social Emotional Learning (SEL). Between October and February they have been able to cover topics within four of the five focus areas of the SEL. For relationship skills the staff addressed the topic of consent to help students understand and appreciate the importance of consent in any relationship. Students were taught that consent is an agreement or permission expressed through affirmative, voluntary words or actions that are mutually understandable to all parties engaged.

The self-management activities included how to study for tests, managing emotions, and stress relief. Of these three, stress relief was the favorite topic for all since it included ice cream, facial

masks, sugar scrubs, and pedicures. It gave students a much needed chance to learn healthy habits to fight stress.

Responsible decision making tackled the topic of choice in an effort to teach students that they always have a choice and there are consequences to every decision. Making choices and decisions is something they encounter daily so they should learn how to take time to make good decisions.

Finally, in February the staff placed some focus on Black History Month through bulletin boards that highlighted the theme; Black Health and Wellness. The bulletin boards and Black History trivia acknowledged the legacy of Black scholars and medical practitioners in Western Medicine as well as birth workers, doulas, midwives, and herbalists. This topic focused on the social awareness goal.

Staffing Challenges We have begun interviews to fill our vacant spots within the department. We have interviewed and hired a Residential Mentor who will begin March 15 on 2nd Floor Nichols. There are interviews scheduled for the Assistant Dean position and the Residential Experience Coordinator positions.

Food Service Contract ASMSA and Aladdin’s regional management decided to take the on campus leadership in another direction after various service complaints. They have a hired a new Head Chef and have replaced the Food Service Director. The goal is to improve the vegan and vegetarian options, catering, and overall communication with their on campus personnel.

Student Leader Selection Student Leader selection has begun for the 2022-2023 school year and is open to all Juniors. The fours positions are Community Leader, Admissions Delegate, Student Ambassador, and Peer Mentor. The Community Leader and Peer Mentor positions will focus on our internal stakeholders (enrolled students). On the other hand, the Admissions Delegate and Student Ambassador positions will focus on our external stakeholders.

Office of Admissions and Outreach March 2022 Quarterly Report Charlie Feick, Director of Admissions The deadline for this year’s application cycle was Tuesday, March 1, 2022. Admissions staff members will spend the month of March reviewing application materials in preparation for semifinalist interviews in April.

The applications for Summer at ASMSA and our new Summer Acceleration Academy launched February 1. Both programs have an April 1 priority application deadline.

By the Numbers  6 Preview Days held this cycle with a total of 152 students in attendance, an increase from 5 Preview Days held last cycle with a total of 94 students in attendance.  47 individuals participated in our January Applying to ASMSA Online Information Session  317 students have begun their application to attend ASMSA beginning fall 2022.

AGATE Last month ASMSA had the privilege of serving as the platinum sponsor for this year’s Arkansans for Gifted and Talented Education conference which took place in Rogers, Arkansas.

During the conference we were able to meet GT educators from around the state and promote our varied outreach programming in addition to our residential early college program. Many of the educators were unaware of the resources available to them and their students including our free field trip programs and free summer learning opportunities for students and ASMSA’s STEM Pathways and Coding Arkansas’ Future initiatives for educators.

Following the conference, we also participated in AGATE’s Family Engagement Day. While the majority of families were from northwest Arkansas, there were families from as far away as El Dorado participating. We had students from Pre-K through ninth grade join us for our session on color and chemistry. For most of the children and their families this was their first introduction to ASMSA. We received favorable feedback and had families request additional information about our summer camps.

Summer at ASMSA This year our residential summer camp programming for rising sophomores will take place July 10-16, 2022. These camps not only serve the state by providing academic enrichment opportunities to students across Arkansas, they also function as one of our strongest recruitment opportunities. After spending a week on campus engaging with academically motivated peers and current ASMSA students serving as camp counselors, many campers opt to apply to the residential early college program.

We have four returning camps this year: AEGIS Biomedical Sciences Summer Institute, Computer Science Camp, Research in the Park Camp, and Studio Arts Camp. This year we have also received an additional grant to launch the AEGIS Japanese Language Intensive.

Summer Acceleration Academy ASMSA is launching an online Summer Acceleration Academy this year thanks to receiving an Arkansas ARP ESSER III Afterschool and Summer Learning Competitive Grant. Rising ninth through twelfth graders are eligible to take one of our free, 100% online courses for full highschool credit. All courses are offered in an intensive virtual format that enables motivated students to earn a credit normally completed in two semesters in an eight-week course. Classes offered include Computer Science 1 and 2, Economics and Financial Literacy, Geometry, as well as Trigonometry/Precalculus. The courses run from June 6-July 29, 2022.

By providing online learning in STEM disciplines the Academy aims to eliminate opportunity gaps that exist for students in districts across the state that limit students’ pathways to advanced science and math coursework. Offering rigorous and meaningful courses over the summer can not only accelerate students’ learning but also stave off learning loss.

Office of Institutional Advancement March 2022 Quarterly Report Sara Brown, Ph.D., CFRE, Director of Institutional Advancement The ASMSA Office of Institutional Advancement began 2022 by welcoming a new Coordinator for Alumni and Community Relations, Mr. Robert Bryant, Jr. After two years of virtual events, we are excited to reconnect with alumni, donors, and sponsors in person at our annual Community of Learning Luncheon event to be held on April 29, 2022. In addition, we continue to work with external stakeholders through grant opportunities that support ASMSA programs and students.

By the Numbers ● The University of Arkansas Foundation, Inc. Statement of Activities Report for fiscal year 2022 (7/1/21 through 02/28/22) includes total gifts received of $81,313, total interest received of $27,216, and a total expense of $44,662.05. ● The ASMSA Foundation’s total fund balance recently surpassed $1 million for a sum of $1,037,035. ● Grants totaling $29,661 have been received for the current fiscal year. The grants are used to support specific student and program needs.

Women’s Foundation of Arkansas Partnership In December 2021, we received a $10,000 grant from the Women’s Foundation of Arkansas to help promote increased access for female students to pursue opportunities in high school computer science. With the grant, ASMSA will host an Equity in Computer Science Summit for school districts across the state in 2022. The new program will intentionally focus on strategies and provide tools to teams of educators to increase female student enrollment within computer science, helping provide them a path from college to career.

Coordinator for Alumni & Community Relations In January 2022, we welcomed the Coordinator for Alumni and Community Relations, Mr. Robert Bryant, Jr. His role will provide general support to ASMSA’s effort to engage with alumni nationwide, collaborate to grow the Association for Alumni & Friends of ASMSA, strengthen relationships with statewide partners, and advance ASMSA’s giving programs that result in private philanthropy. Bryant started his career in education while serving as a residential mentor at ASMSA from 1995 to 2000. While he has kept up with some alumni over the years, returning to ASMSA is a special opportunity to reconnect with many of the graduates from his first tenure.

2022 Community of Learning Luncheon The annual Community of Learning Luncheon will be held on April 29, 2022. After shifting to a virtual day of giving for the last two years, we look forward to hosting the in-person luncheon to celebrate our student and program accomplishments.

Student Government Association March 2022 Quarterly Report Claire Green, SGA President We have had a busy start to the semester. We elected new representatives for our General Assembly and changed representatives in the COVID workgroup. One of our goals is to include as many student voices as possible. Having elections and changing committee assignments at semester is part of working toward that goal. As part of that process, we also conducted an online student survey to gather feedback for the new COVID workgroup appointees. At the end of last semester, our Historian Blake Smith resigned, saying he didn't feel he had enough time to complete the duties of his position. The position was new this year. Legislation is pending in the General Assembly to determine whether we will proceed with a special election to replace him.

We also are in the process of planning a senior trip. Concerns about COVID forced the cancellation of the trip for the past two years, but we are eager to bring it back. We are looking at nearby parks as possible locations. In addition, our three committees have been active. I included more information about their plans in the section below.

By the Numbers (SGA Election Edition) • 12 students applied for the COVID workgroup position. 8 from Faris and 4 from Nichols.

• 119 students voted in the spring representative election • 55 seniors, 49 Juniors, and 15 Sophomores • 49% of voters were from Fair leaving 51% from Nichols • We conducted one runoff election for senior Faris reps.

Wellness Committee: We had a successful movie night, the goal of which was to help everyone destress. We timed the screening to be in the hours after science fair materials were due. We are also planning an event where we teach students the benefits of meditation and nature through a hike in the National Park. This event in part is to honor the late Dr. Ruehle who often preached about the benefits of meditation. During my sophomore year, he regularly taught students on how to begin. He also loved the National Park and encouraged us to explore it.

Activities and Finance: The Activities Committee is planning a large end-of-the-year event for May. This event, details to be determined, will be in addition to their semi-regularly scheduled list of activities which include trivia and karaoke nights. The Finance Committee approved requests to pay for shirts for our Ocean Bowl and Flag Football teams.

Student Affairs/Food: Members of the Student Affairs Committee wrote a bill to clarify the language around heating appliances. Food Committee is establishing a relationship with the new head chef and director of food service. They also are continuing the cafeteria composting project begun in conjunction with the senior Research in the Park class earlier this year.

President's Council: We are brainstorming ways for clubs to be able to conduct fundraising within the current rules which generally discourage direct sales of products to students and faculty. Currently, Future Business Leaders of America students have an exception to this policy.

They sell soft drinks by the can from their rooms as a fundraiser.

PAC Committee March 2022 Quarterly Report Traci French MD, PAC Committee Co-Chair By the Numbers • COVID cases flared on campus immediately after resuming the Spring semester but have been close to zero for the past 2 weeks. Contact tracing revealed only one recorded COVID transmission from a teacher to a student. COVID policy will be reviewed since the case load has dropped but most restrictions will likely stay in place for the remainder of the semester.

•

ASMSA is in the process of hiring for at least 3 new positions for the next school year.

Open teaching positions include history, music and chemistry. The school continues to look for an assistant dean in residence life and for residence life staff.

COVID Updates Director Alderdice outlined current policy for the spring semester. Administration received some feedback pertaining to dropping the mask mandate, but the school leadership feels mandatory masks are effective. There is a low rate of community transmission on campus and it will be difficult to restart the mandate if COVID cases surge again. The school urged students to get a booster shot over the extended weekend. The Covid Work Group meets monthly to assess the current situation and to adapt the Dolphin Ready plan as needed. The faculty are noticing an negative impact on learning caused by the pandemic. It is most noticeable in the first semester new students who are struggling to keep up. There’s also more anxiety overall.

Dean Morris praised students’ resiliency and added she thought the pandemic restrictions on leaving campus at the first part of the semester forced the students to get to know each other better and to improve problem solving skills. The students no longer stay tethered to their sending school as much as they did. More of them are more likely to spend weekends on campus. The students are more bonded to each other.

Director Alderdice updated the group about quarantines, isolations, and the remote-option available through the end of the semester. The number of students testing positive or identifying as close contacts of positive cases has dropped dramatically. Some students have opted for the remote learning option through the end of the January. The absence of these students likely makes social distancing easier. The director is expecting a test of the protocols when students return after the next extended weekend. Director Alderdice believes ASMSA experience is consistent with its peer institutions, although some of them have built-in January sessions separate from their regular semester schedules, which makes it difficult to directly compare.

Campus Updates Work continues on the chapel renovation. The admissions deadline for incoming students is March 1. The school will be piloting a new program aimed at 10th grade students who want or would benefit from a transitional year to better prepare for advanced high school classwork. The school plans to offer four for-credit high school summer classes this year. They will announce the new program later in the month. Food service quality and food service before a break were both discussed.

Teacher/staff appreciation ideas have been a focus in recent meetings. Traditionally, the PAC provides a meal in May. The suggestion was to add an appreciation activity now to acknowledge the extra challenges the staff has coped with. The idea of care packages came up. Dean Flynn suggested sincere notes are often the item faculty most treasure. He said the faculty appreciate both student and parent notes.

College Readiness One of the focal points for this year has been to walk parents through the college/post high school transition process and look for ways for parents to support his/her ASMSA student. To this end, Bret Vallun has met with the committee multiple times to discuss the college planning timeline so parents can prepare for this momentous milestone. We have also had a joint meeting with the ASMSA Book Club and discussed the following book “The Price You Pay for College”

by Ron Lieber. Topics discussed include how to choose a college, the application process and how to finance a college education.

Science fair, research opportunities on campus and the capstone program were the focus of the February meeting. Parents learned about the capstone project development process, science fair format and opportunities for further research and networking for our students.

Association for Alumni & Friends of ASMSA March 2022 Quarterly Report Amy Stvartak (’11), AAFA Executive Board AAFA has just begun working with Mr. Robert Bryant, the new ASMSA Coordinator for Alumni and Community Relations. In coordination with Mr. Bryant, we are in the final stages of planning Spring 2022’s Alumni Pathways Speaker Series and beginning to hammer out details for Homecoming 2022.

ASMSA Coordinator for Alumni and Community Relations The AAFA executive team is thrilled to now be working with Mr. Robert Bryant, ASMSA’s new Coordinator for Alumni and Community Relations. Mr. Bryant served on the Residential Life staff of ASMS between 1995 and 2000. Our first meeting with him was February 26. We look forward to a revitalized alumni outreach program for this year.

Alumni Pathways Speaker Series AAFA will host the next APS series presentation virtually via Facebook Live on March 10, 2022 at 7pm. Dr. Chris Schilling (class of 1998) will be speaking about his work with Google as a Software Engineer and his path from ASMS to his doctorate in physics and on to his current position.

Homecoming 2022 Homecoming 2022 is planned for October 7-9, 2022. At this stage we hope to host Homecoming as an in-person event. Invitations will be sent this spring, further plans forthcoming!