TASD HOWL Newsletter: Winter 2020

IN THIS ISSUE

Superintendent Message THS Art Award Winners Spotlight on: TASD Tech Team TASD Retirees Honored Message from BOE President

Official Community Newsletter of the Tomah Area School District

OUR VISION We will provide excellent academics and co-curricular activities that develop life-long learning skills for all students preparing them for our community and world wide experiences.

Students at Lemonweir Elementary enjoy a salad grown in a hydroponic garden they planted in December. (pg. 7)

DELAY/CLOSURE ANNOUNCEMENTS For the most up to date information on school delays and closures, follow us on Facebook & Twitter

Fourth year students at Tomah Area Montessori School gift hand-made blankets to the Tomah Police Department as part of a community gifting project. (pg. 2)

CHILD DEVELOPMENT SCREENINGS

If you have concerns about your child’s development, free screenings are offered by the TASD for children with birthdays between 9/1/15 - 9/1/18.

SCREENINGS ARE AVAILABLE UNTIL THE END OF FEBRUARY

TO SCHEDULE CALL Heather Lenning at 608-374-7011

Visit our Website for the

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MESSAGE FROM OUR DISTRICT ADMINISTRATOR We hope you enjoy this edition of the “Howl!” We’re excited to feature the incredible gifts and talents of our students, faculty, and community of learners in this edition! It has been an unprecedented year to say the least, but through it all our faculty and students continue to persevere and shine highlighting the district’s commitment to High Quality Student Learning: Every Child, Every Day! We have a fantastic team of educators here at Tomah Area School District engaged in extraordinary work providing meaningful educational opportunities to our students in an environment that changes rapidly. It’s an honor to take this journey with all as we meet the diverse and unique needs of our learners.

Artifacts of innovation and excellence in the educational space are evident in every academic, co-curricular, and operational area of the district. We’ll continue to showcase this commitment to excellence and continuous improvement in future editions of the “Howl”, and our district publications, websites, and social media platforms.

The district is mid-way through the 2020-2021 school year!

Now through this spring, you will hear more discussion of “2021-2022” as we look to the future. One artifact already complete is next year’s school calendar. Please be sure to check out our school district website where you can find the board of education approved 2021-2022 Traditional and Lemonweir 4515 school district calendars. Many thanks to our School Calendar Committee for their work preparing it for our board members.

Crafted similar to previous year’s calendars, we find it brings

STUDENTS GIFT HANDMADE BLANKETS 4th Year students at Tomah Area Montessori School (TAMS) learned the skill of fingerknitting. Using only donated yarn and their busy hands, they each created a beautiful blanket to be given to a local child during the holiday season. This was a community gifting project in partnership with the Tomah Police Department. The students not only learned a new skill, but brought joy to other children through their generous gift.

THANK YOU FOR YOUR HARD WORK & GENEROSIT Y!

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strong structure and balance to the academic year. As we get closer to spring, we’ll share more about upcoming plans focused on the 2021-2022 school year!

Tomah Area School District has a strong tradition and powerful legacy of educational excellence. My top leadership priority moving forward is to support, sustain, and celebrate the innovative approach to education that sets Tomah School District apart making it the school district of choice in our area. Framed around the proud history of excellence and expectations of continued growth while working through a collaborative approach, my goals include: • Path to In-Person Learning: COVID 19 continues to be a factor now and into next year. Taking what we have learned so far this year, leveraging the impact of a vaccine and other health and safety factors, and continuously monitoring district data will help lead us safely to full K-12 in-person learning status • Strategic Planning: Honoring the current strategic plan by incorporating new techniques and opportunities around instruction and operational practices implemented this year and aligning those to the pillars of excellence represented in our strategic Plan - Student Achievement, Service to the Tomah Community, Future Focused, Workforce Engagement, Fiscal and Operations • Build the Brand: Continue to update the Tomah School District brand enhancing outreach through multiple media and community interaction opportunities • Continuous Engagement of Stakeholders and Building Relationships: cultivate, build, and sustain positive relationships in the community at every opportunity Goals take time to achieve and work best through a team effort! I am so grateful for the opportunity to engage in meaningful leadership practices with all stakeholders Tomah Area School District!

Thank you so much for your support of our school district!

Although COVID has changed much about the way we do things, we want to stay deeply connected and engaged with our community celebrating the gifts and talents of students and faculty built on the rich tradition of excellence over the years! Best to all!

- Dr. Hanson

THS ART STUDENTS PLACE AT ANNUAL STATE ART SHOWCASE Three Tomah High School students were recognized by the Wisconsin Association of School Boards and the Wisconsin Art Education Association at the Wisconsin Art Exhibits and Awards showcase for their original artworks (pictured).

“For the 2021 challenge, middle and high school students throughout Wisconsin were invited to create an original work of art that depicts what “Continuing the Journey” means to them personally. Where is their journey taking them? Where do they want it to go? What is the impact of their journey on others?” (WASB.org) Masculinity, femininity, it’s all so subjective. Culture and trends go in and go out, so why bother keeping up with the norm? My drawing which utilizes mixed media of charcoal pencils and colored pencils shows the journey of self-expression. A man is portrayed applying makeup as you see in his reflection.

The colorful makeup stands out amongst the grey of the surrounding figures. In modern day, men are forced into a tiny box that requires them to be strong, fearless, show no emotion, and God forbid, present themselves in any “feminine” manner. This man’s journey is to break the norms and live simply the way he wants to, even if it means taking blows from outsiders along the way of his pursuit of happiness.

-Madeleine Kline (5th Place)

When I think of a journey, I think of my family. They’ve always been there to help teach and guide me through the journey of life. They picked me up when I felt alone and succumbed in darkness and have given me reason to continue my journey. Without their help I would not be who I am today. Being a senior in high school I feel as if my journey has ended, but in reality it has just begun.

My family has nurtured me into who I am today and now I will soon set off to continue my journey without being under their wings. My art piece depicts a journey as it showcases the people that have helped me in my journey and given me reason to continue it. The array of colors used represents each person’s individual uniqueness that helps to guide me. Their array of colors have brightened up my path so I am able to step with confidence knowing they are there for me. The black fog surrounding them represents the darkness I feel without them and what they have gone out of their way to fight through in order to help me. Where I will go in life and if I will be successful is a mystery to me but I know my journey will not be made alone. - Arianna Hohenstein (8th Place)

“At night, our brains find ways to transport ourselves to other worlds through a complex series of neurotransmitters and chemicals; otherwise simply stated as ‘dreaming’. I often find that in these dreams- although mostly random- are magnificent worlds that could exist, waiting to be explored. With this, I draw inspiration from these sources to create art and poetry in our physical world. The 3D elements in this art works well as the blue of an abstract sky contribute to the idea that whatever happens in our dreams has the great potential to be both a portal to the dream real, as well as a wakeup call to new possibilities. With endless promises of new findings, I believe that to dream is to journey without limits and to create is to do the same.” - Amelia Cavaness (3rd Place)

Arianna Hohenstein (senior), Amelia Cavaness (senior), and Madeleine Kline (junior) of Tomah High School submitted their original works of art to be judged against others throughout the state of WI. All three were recognized for their creativity and interpretation of the “Continuing the Journey” challenge. These students use their art as a form of expression and communicating their emotions visually. They all agree that art will remain in their lives following high school and enjoy experimenting with various mediums and methods to create.

Arianna Hohenstein, Ameila Cavaness, Madeleine Kline

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SHINING THE SPOTLIGHT ON: TASD TECH TEAM We have a Tech Team that has adapted our district to digital-based learning and a 1:1 technologyto-student ratio in a matter of months. The team provides specialized assistance to not only staff, but to students and parents as well. The department has adopted a philosophy of selfreliance, meaning they run and maintain everything from the network wire itself as well as install and manage the networking equipment throughout the school district. Director Paul Potter also writes and develops applications for district use. Their knowledge and skill base saves the school district an estimated $120,000 annually on software alone. By producing the software themselves, district funds are left available for other THE TEAM FIELDS ON technology resources AVERAGE 16 WORK and purchases.

REQUESTS EACH DAY DISTRICT-WIDE

NE T WORK EQUIPMENT: - 53 Switches - 252 Access Points - 33 Servers - Several Firewalls, Filters & Routers

Faculty members rely on the technology to connect with students while learning virtually.

EACH ONE OF OUR TEAM MEMBERS HAS THEIR OWN SPECIAL SKILL SET AND KNOWLEDGE BASE THAT CONTRIBUTE TO THE OVERALL SUCCESS OF THE DEPARTMENT.

OUR TASD TECH TEAM (Scott Hurd, Ryan Brookman, Paul Potter, Renee Stroh, Renae Bullen, Theresa Payne, Sandra Brown)

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We appreciate the tech team this year more than ever. The success of our school year has largely to do with the hard work and care of this group of professionals. They are diligent in their craft and continue to explore new technology and ways to keep the TASD moving toward a technology-savvy student (and staff) population.

Tomah High School students utilize technology in their classroom studies.

The Tech Team is a key part of nearly every facet of school district operations. Things like: granting/ denying access to doors, maintaining the systems that control the HVAC, as well as the systems used to facilitate the transportation of students all fall under the team’s list of responsibilities.

W E L O O K F O R WA R D TO S E E I N G W H AT THEY TEACH US NEX T!

TASD HAS NEVER HAD A MALWARE OUTBREAK OR BREACH IN OUR ELECTRONIC SECURIT Y Even our younger students at Camp Douglas Elementary use devices to enhance their learning experience.

TOTAL NETWORK-BASED DEVICES: 3,941 Windows Devices 730

The district utilizes an announcement system called “Informacast” which runs off of 495 network-based speakers.

Each unit requires routine maintenance from our tech team.

iPads 1,628 Chromebooks 1,583

The transition to 1:1 Technology to Student was achieved over the summer of 2020 (grades K-12).

The team integrated 639 devices to reach this ratio.

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TASD & THE BOE RECOGNIZE RETIREES During the Board of Education meeting on January 18th, three retirees were honored with certificates signed by the state superintendent, plaques from the school district, as well as lifetime passes to TASD events. We congratulate Jeanette Boehm (24 years), Steve Storkel (30 years), and Lin Goodenough (33 years) on their well-deserved retirement.

Their supervisors stood in front of the board and spectators to speak about their service in light-hearted and sincere messages.

Jeanette’s story-telling, jubilant personality, and skilled driving were some of her mentionable career highlights. She was commended for driving some of the most difficult routes through the Clifton area. She received the David Martin Award in 2013 for her devotion to her career.

Jeanette Boehm

Steve Storkel

Steve was a reliable and ready custodian, groundskeeper and bus driver. He could be seen throughout the community at any of the facilities performing tasks that may have been sprung on him abruptly. He is known for his willingness to help the team and patience for the expeditious work environment in the school district.

Lin was said to have a deep connection with the students she worked with both in transportation as well as food service. These relationships would last through the students’ years at the school and follow to her working with those student’s children; she served our school district through generations of families.

Thank you for your hard work and dedication to the students of TASD. You have touched many lives and were a pivotal part in the success of our operations. You will be missed greatly, best of luck in your future endeavors!

Lin Goodenough

THS ACADEMIC DECATHLON TO COMPETE AT STATE LEVEL

This year has been a groundbreaking year for Tomah’s Academic Decathlon team. Last year the team finished 14th in the state in our first ever appearance at the State level competition. This year Tomah has improved by making the state competition for a second time and achieving the 9th highest score statewide. In Tomah’s region, we placed 3rd out of 9 competing teams. Joy Hilson, Landon Habeck, and Matthew Hennessey all scored ribbons at the competition including 1st place finishes in the essay from Landon Habeck and Joy Hilson. Devon Aquino and Kendall Frederick each took home two ribbons, including a first place finish from Kendall Frederick in Science. John Reiff took home 6 ribbons and was awarded top competitor, and Collin Dowson won 7 ribbons and was the top competitor in the entire region.

Tomah competes with 20 other schools statewide in March. Good luck and way to go!

- Robert Joyce (THS Principal)

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Pictured above: The TASD Academic Decathlon Team (Devon Aquino, Rachel Boulden, John Reiff, Joy Hilson, Katelynn Bailey, Kendra Lene, Landon Habeck, Matthew Hennessey, Kendall Frederick, Collin Dowson, Jayda Zhu, Hannah Zhu)

LEMONWEIR ELEMENTARY STUDENTS EXPLORE HYDROPONIC GARDENING Students at Lemonweir Elementary are enjoying

sunlight year-round! The school received three hydroponic gardens in November. After assembling them, the students had their first crops planted midDecember. They harvested their first crop of leafy greens mid-January and enjoyed a salad they grew themselves with their classmates. The gardens can be found standing tall outside the main office. The gardens create their own desirable growing environment with a self-contained light source and a self-regulated water source. Students can study the gardens up-close when they are wheeled into their classrooms. The gardens are an interesting way to journal and record data as well as practicing the scientific method. They promote healthy eating and understanding where our food comes from.

The students look forward to trying other fruits and vegetables in their hydroponic gardens. The young gardeners will use these

hydroponic gardens even in warmer months to start their crops that will be transplanted to their outdoor garden on school grounds. Follow Lemonweir on Facebook to follow along as the students (and staff) learn about the interesting and innovative practice of Hydroponic Gardening!

Photos are courtesy of Lemonweir Elementary’s Facebook page & Mrs. Michelle Briner’s 4th grade class.

MESSAGE FROM OUR BOARD OF EDUCATION PRESIDENT Hello TASD community! My name is Aaron Lueck.

I am the President of the Tomah Area School Board. Well, we made it through the first semester of this school year! It has been a very difficult year; however, we have managed to keep our students in school for most of the year. I want to thank the staff and administration for their work in this difficult year.

I also want to thank the parents and students for dealing with a challenging year. We will continue our current mitigation practices and cohort methods to try to keep the students in our current learning model. Thanks, - Mr. Aaron Lueck

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21-22 SCHOOL YEAR

4K & 5K

REGISTRATION

when to register: the month of February

8:00am - 4:00pm during regular school days

who to register: children who turn 4 years old on or before 9/1/21 - Register for 4K children who turn 5 years old on or before 9/1/21 - Register for 5K children already enrolled in TASD programs do not need to register to receive registration paperwork: pick up at the District Office via email (contact District Registrar) via mail (contact District Registrar) immunizations & birth certificate:

it is preferred to present your child’s immunization record & birth certificate at the time of registration. if not at registration, the records will be required before the first day of school.

point of contact for registration: Kelli Janusheske, District Registrar

608-374-7009 kellijanusheske@tomah.education

TASD District Office 129 W. Clifton Street Tomah, WI 54660

ONCE COMPLETED, DROP REGISTRATION PACKET OFF AT THE DISTRICT OFFICE OR EMAIL TO DISTRICT REGISTRAR

AREA SCHOOL DISTRICT High quality student learning. Every child. Every day.

we are committed to OUR VALUES INNOVATION: continuous improvement by seeking innovative methods, strategies and programs to meet the needs of our 21st century learners and prepare them for their future.

INTEGRITY: fostering open, honest, and transparent communication between all school staff and with students, parents, and community members. We will promote an environment of compassion and understanding in order to demonstrate equity and fairness for each individual and to build trust within and outside of our schools.

RESPECT: building respect by assuming positive intent in the ideas and suggestions presented by others and by recognizing the inherent value of each person. All members of our school community will be held to high expectations and we will provide supportive practices and policies which demonstrate our belief that ALL students can learn.

PASSION: the value of public education and the important learning which occurs in our schools each and every day. We will demonstrate enthusiasm in pursuing the work we do and perseverance in turning challenges into opportunities. We will strive to inspire each other and our students to pursue excellence in all endeavors.

LEADERSHIP: building leadership at all levels through collaborative teamwork, partnerships with all stakeholders in the community, and accountability for individual and collective actions and decisions.

TO GET ENROLLMENT PACKET: CONTACT DISTRICT REGISTRAR - 608-374-7009 - kellijanusheske@tomah.education

TASD IS HIRING! We have openings for various positions!

Visit https://wecan. education.wisc.edu to view opportunities and apply!

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129 W. Clifton St. Tomah WI 54660 608.374.7004 www.tomah.education 608.372.5087 Tomah Area School District @TomahAreaSchools page | 8

HIGH QUALITY STUDENT LEARNING.

EVERY CHILD. EVERY DAY.