FALL 2014 - DATES TO REMEMBER Oct. 4 Oct. 5 Oct. 8 Oct. 10 Oct. 13 Oct. 15 Oct. 13-23 Oct. 24
Coaching for Character Conference (Jesuit HS, 8:30 am - 3 pm, www.jesuitportland.org/manresa) Open House - 1-4 pm Fall Choir Concert - 7 pm (Moyer Theatre) No Classes - State Inservice Parents in Partnership - 11:30 am Financial Aid Luncheon - 11:30 am - 1 pm Coat and Blanket Drive St. Ignatius Liturgy (Dress-up Day) – 8:35 am
Nov. 6 Nov. 7 Nov. 6 Nov. 10 Nov. 13 Nov. 23 Nov. 26 Nov. 27-30
Parent Conferences (4:30-8 pm) No Classes - Parent Conferences (8-11:30 am) Opening Night for PROPOSALS Veteran’s Day Observed – No Classes College Financial Aid Night – 7 pm Mother/Son Mass & Brunch – 9 am Thanksgiving Liturgy – 8:35 am Thanksgiving Holiday
Here are some important dates for seniors and their families: • Monday, October 6, 2014: Senior Yearbook Photos (all day, Library). Students will receive an appointment time on their school locker. Men should wear: dress shirt, black or dark jacket and tie. Women should wear: black or dark blouse or top, no cleavage. • Wednesday, October 8, 2014: Last day to turn in cap and gown orders for Jostens (senior hallway, both lunches). • Tuesday, December 2, 2014: Senior Yearbook Photo Retakes (all morning, outside Canisius Chapel).
Please Attend Our Annual Financial Aid Luncheon Wednesday, October 15 - 11:30 am - 1:00 pm - JHS Knight Center Guest Speaker: Adrienne Rankin ‘99
Founder of Wind Over Water, Executive Pastor of Beaverton Foursquare Church.
www.jesuitportland.org
September, 2014 Jesuit High School www.jesuitportland.org
DOWNPLAYING A RADICAL UPDATE: THE 1-1 TRANSITION, SO FAR
Countdown to Graduation!
Jesuit High School 9000 S.W. Beaverton-Hillsdale Hwy. Portland, OR 97225-2491
Principal’s Newsletter
NON-PROFIT US POSTAGE PAID BEAVERTON, OR PERMIT NO. 663
Yes, we downplayed it a little. You received emails, letters, and attended parent info sessions about Jesuit’s transition to a 1-1 program. But we deliberately did not issue press releases, hold Oprah-esque “Look under your chair—it’s an iPad!” celebrations, or make too big a deal out of our 1-1 rollout. At every opportunity, I emphasized that Jesuit is not becoming an “iPad school,” but remaining an Ignatian school that has added iPads as an important instrument in our educational toolkit.
• When you ask parents to pay significantly more in tuition to help fund 1-1, that’s a big ask. • When the Board of Trustees agrees to invest hundreds of thousands in infrastructure, that’s requires what the Jesuits call a major discernment process. • When you ask 1285 teenagers to adapt to a whole new way to engage with their texts, their teachers, and the world of information at their fingertips, you know that is going to take time and effort.
We spent the past three years preparing assiduously for this transition, because we knew that rolling out 1285 individually-tailored digital devices to the JHS student body was going to be a monumental challenge, and we did not want our students to be the beta test!
I am happy to report that, despite some technical glitches and gremlins, the rollout at Jesuit High has gone remarkably well. In fact, Steve Nelson, the Apple representative who was here for the first week of school marveled at the quality of our process. Steve told us that Jesuit’s was the smoothest rollout he had witnessed, especially given the number of iPads, apps, and ebooks we distributed.
So we visited a dozen Jesuit schools around the US, some of which had smooth 1-1 rollouts, and some that experienced digital train wrecks. We consulted colleagues at Thomas Edison (85 students) and St. Mary’s Academy (600+) and learned a lot from their smooth launches. We also observed the mayhem that ensued when the LA Unified School District tried to give iPads to over 600,000 (!!) students in the Los Angeles public schools.
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But now, a month into what is indeed a new era, I must acknowledge that yes, going 1-1 is a very big deal. To wit: • When a school is filled with dynamic, experienced teachers who inspire students to reach amazing academic heights, it’s tempting to say, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” • When you ask those same teachers to spend weeks in workshops learning new programs, apps, and ways of managing a class filled with iPad-wielding teenagers, that’s serious business. • When an academic powerhouse like Jesuit moves 90% of its textbooks to an interactive, digital format, that’s a major educational leap. • When students give up 35 lbs of textbooks for a 1 lb. tablet, it’s a big load off.
I am not going to claim, as LA Unified Superintendent John Deasy did, that a 1-1 program centered on the iPad will “phenomenally . . . change the landscape of education.” In the spirit of St. Ignatius, who insisted that Jesuit schools use the best practices of the day, we firmly believe that our 1-1 program will allow our students to pursue excellence and better fulfill their God-given potential. 466 years ago, Jesuit schools followed the Socratic method and the Ratio Studiorum. Today, we still use the Socratic method, but also the Socrative quiz app! Going 1-1 meant that the changes came fast and furious at the start of the year, as we worked to get 1285 students set up on their iPads. The students downloaded more than six terabytes of apps and books to their iPads over the span of a week, and transitioned to a completely new medium for textbooks. Teachers and students alike rode a steep learning curve. Some of the lessons were new, like how to organize and save notes in “the cloud” or turn in assignments online. Other lessons are timeless,
Educating Men & Women for Others in the Catholic, Jesuit Tradition Since 1956