Mar Lee School responds to heightened security concerns in wake of national tragedy

The following letter was sent to the Mar Lee community by the Superintendent, Randy Davis.

December 20, 2012
Dear Parent/Guardian,

​This past week, following the horrific event in Newtown, CT, has been one of shock, sadness, and concern for our nation. I know you join me and the world in keeping the families and the innocent lives affected at Sandy Hook Elementary in our thoughts and in our hearts.

From all reports, the elementary school administrators and teaching staff made heroic efforts in following their lockdown procedures to keep their students safe; in many ways at their own peril. We honor our colleagues and their sacrifice. Without their efforts, many more young lives could have been lost.

This week we, like every other school district in America, have been thinking through the current safety measures we have in place and whether more needs to be done in securing our building. We have completed our walkthrough at Mar Lee and audited our procedures and protocols. Incidents like Sandy Hook create an increased awareness of our need to be mindful and focused at all times to the safety and security of our teaching and learning environment.

​You will notice upon returning from the holiday break some subtle, but important practices in our building that need your support. Our staff will be wearing school district IDs during the school day. We will continue to keep external doors locked for entrance from the outside, except for the main entrance doors that are monitored for visitors. We will continue to study the east entrance and annex to create a more secured and monitored situation. Also, every visitor to our buildings while classes are in session must follow our existing procedures to check in at the office for a visitor's pass. We realize these measures can be a bit inconvenient, especially for those who routinely visit our school. We are asking for your patience and cooperation.

​If you have any questions, or need support in working through your concerns in the aftermath of this recent tragedy, please don't hesitate to contact our school administration or our school counselor. Incidents like Sandy Hook are stark reminders of the evils in this world. They also serve as reminders for us all to be ever vigilant. We will be doing just that. As always, thank you for your continuing support.

Sincerely,

Dr. Randy Davis
Superintendent

School-wide Celebration for Positive Behavior

First year principal Chad Holt always goes to the wall for his students. Recently, he did this quite literally. As a part of Mar Lee School's Positive Behavior System, Mr. Holt granted each student that had earned 80+% of their points for meeting the School Wide Expectations a piece of duct tape. Over 300 students earned this right. Then it was time to see if students could tape Mr. Holt to the wall. 300 plus pieces of tape later and Mr. Holt was stuck to the wall. When asked why PBS and these types of celebrations are important to Mar Lee, Mr. Holt responded "it's important for schools to teach positive
behavior and set high standards and then to make sure students are celebrated when they achieve their goal." Next time students will need to earn 85% of their points to earn
the next mystery celebration.

Fredonia Grange presents dictionaries to Mar Lee students

Every student in teacher Tina Rocco's 3rd grade classroom at  Mar Lee School received a gift of a personalized dictionary from the Fredonia Grange.  The generous donation is part of a project to deliver 570 dictionaries to 3rd grade students throughout Calhoun County. " The students and staff of Mar Lee School are greatly appreciative of the efforts of these fine folks," said Chad Holt, school Principal. The Grange raised the money through donations and an auction. 

Pancake Tent at the County Fair earns record sum for Washington D.C. trip

Kara and Kirsten Hall in front of the Pancake Tent

Mar Lee middle school students planning their annual 7th grade trip to Washington D.C. can look back with pride on their fundraising effort this summer at the Calhoun County Fair.  With help from parents, Mar Lee faculty and staff, the Mar Lee Pancake Tent grossed over $11,000, the largest amount yet. Mar Lee teacher Chris Henke notes that several local sponsors helped out as well. For example, Crystal Flash donated propane for the entire week.

The next fundraiser for the trip is a carwash at Autozone Marshall on Sept. 15 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Mar Lee Band To Broadcast Live

This year the Mar Lee Band will be broadcasting their spring concert live via the web!  Beginning at 6:50 p.m. on May 30th, viewers may tune in to http://www.ustream.tv/channel/mar-lee-band-concerts to view the 5th-8th grade students perform. 

Band director Dustin Stoner said he is excited to be able to share the concert this year with family and friends of students that could not make it to the school. Bailey Hoffman, 6th grade tuba player, is happy because more of her family can see her play. “My family from Detroit can now watch my concert via the Internet.” Other students have family farther afield who will be tuning in. Case Miller, 6th grade saxophonist said, “I have family in Florida that will be able to see me play for the first time.”

Guitar bonanza transforms Mar Lee music classroom

A guitar for every student. That’s the vision that Dustin Stoner, music teacher at Mar Lee School has now made possible through a generous grant from the Calhoun County Arts Council.

“Most people will never be a lifelong trombonist,” said Stoner, referring to a traditional band instrument, “but if you learn to play a guitar you will be able to enjoy music making throughout your life.” Stoner says he noticed several years ago how excited students were about guitar playing when he began his after-school “school of rock” program. He wanted a way to bring this excitement to the regular classroom.

Now twenty four new guitars make it possible for each student in a large class to have an instrument. “It’s fantastic,” said student Autumn Hazel. “I like learning to play an instrument that can be applied to so many songs.”  So far, the class has only mastered a few chords, said student Rebecca Filmore, but they seem eager to learn more. “Switching chords is hard,” said student Matthew Dunn, “but I really like playing.”

Their teacher is equally excited. “After 5th grade, you don’t get music unless you’re in band,” Stoner says. The new guitars are a way to extend the enjoyment of music beyond the usual group of students. Stoner is proud of how much he was able to accomplish with the grant. The guitars themselves have a suprisingly beautiful sound for inexpensive teaching instruments, and at the end of the day they inhabit a rack, handmade by Stoner for a total cost of $25.

Mar Lee students become digital animators

Five iPods have temporarily transformed the Mar Lee art classroom into an animation studio. Working in teams, 7th-grade students assemble hand-drawn sets populated by old toys, cutouts, and other found objects. Their digital magic turns these humble materials into amusing stop frame animated commercials.

Thanks to a generous grant from the Calhoun County Arts Council, art teacher Michele MacInnes was able to purchase the iPods and animation software in late January. “I’m always trying to find new ways to improve the art program,” said MacInnes. “iPods are a tool that kids are familiar with and find fun to use, and animation teaches many neglected aspects of art such as sound, motion, and lighting.”

Students have enjoyed the project. “The most fun part was being able to make the set,” said student Erika Martinez. Her group’s drama is about the adventures of “Ducc Tape,” a colorful bird made of scraps of duct tape.

Another commerical is about a construction worker and a hobo named “Little Bill.” “His old home gets destroyed, and then a new one appears,” said student Colten Persons. The hardest part? “Keeping everything you don’t want out of the frame,” said Persons.

Students have also learned how difficult the animator’s job is. “It’s tedious work,” said student Maria Ruedisueli. “I don’t know if I could take it all day!”

MacInnes looks forward to using animation more frequently. “Projects like this connect with so many important language skills,” she said. “Students are reading, writing while thinking about a story line, characters, narrative, and dialog. It’s an amazing and complex creative event.”

Here is one of the commercials the students created.