| PANTHER SPOTLIGHT |
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This month we're highlighting the wonderful things happening in the high school's Math Department.
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| Ask the Principal |
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Opportunity to get your questions answered!
Each month our high school principal, Del Garrick, will answer one or two of your questions. Email your question to the building secretary, at cwallace@wpsdk12.org by the first Friday of each month.
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Greetings from the high school staff and administration! I would like to start by welcoming you to our first e-newsletter. One of the goals for our school this year is to improve communication with all stakeholders of the school system. That includes communication with parents, students, and community members as well as communication within our own building. We are trying to relay as much information about the happenings in our school through this venue. I would encourage you to invite everyone you know to sign up for the newsletter through the link provided on the district website ( www.wpsdk12.org). You will notice a link on the newsletter that allows you to contact our office with any concerns or questions. I would encourage you to take advantage of this communication pathway so that we can establish an open line of communication. There is also a place where you can submit questions that you may feel would be of benefit for everyone to know. This area will be titled "Ask the Principal". As we strive to improve communication, any information we can receive from you will help tremendously. Finally, I would like to express how fortunate I am to be working with such great students and outstanding staff. The atmosphere is great and the opportunities provided our students are incredible and growing. If you get a chance to visit, please come by and see the great things that are going on. Sincerely, Del Garrick Principal, Woodland Park High School |
| Counseling News |
 To senior parents,
We're off to a rousing start for the seniors from the counseling office. I will be following your student all through the year so don't hesitate to call me @ 686-2072. I visited all eight senior English classrooms for an initial chat with the kids and they have been responding by coming by my office and getting involved with the post-secondary and college planning.
One thing they can be getting started on is acquiring a pin number for the financial aid program (FAFSA) that begins in January. This program is the gateway to grants and possible assistance for your family in the financial realm. The website is www.pin.ed.gov. and your student and you need to go online now and get those started.
Another excellent program out there is our local College Opportunity Fund (COF) for our students attending a Colorado college next fall. This is a stipend that comes back to your family which helps with tuition and it can be accessed through another cool website called www.CollegeinColorado.org.
Our college night will be held on October 15th, from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. right here at the high school. That's about it for now and, once again, I have been real impressed initially with this senior class and would love to be of assistance for all students regardless of where there are heading next August.
Thank you,
Mark Martin, Senior Counselor
686-2072 direct line
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| Parent Group Corner |
1st Meeting of the Year!
The High School Parents Group held their first meeting on September 9, 2008, our guest speaker was Mr. Del Garrick. Mr. Garrick is the Interim Principal at the High School for 2008-2009. The following topics were discussed: Positions to be filled with the High School Parent Group, 21st Century Committee representatives, and Building Advisory Committee representatives. Parents were asked to complete the Volunteer Checklists and return them to the High School Office. It was explained that the school uses the information from the Volunteer Checklists to make contacts. The Parent Group creates their email data base from them as well. If you need to obtain a checklist you can pick one up at the High School office or print one off from the Message Board on Infinite Campus. Mr. Garrick introduced "Career Pathways", a new direction the high school will be looking at when establishing classes. The process will be determined this year. Mr. Garrick also discussed his desire to improve communication between parents and the high school. Parents brought up the need to communicate directly to them. The following ways were discussed and are in place at this time: email, phone messaging, high school web site, Infinite Campus Message Board, and electronic newsletters. The Parent Group suggested taping their meetings, school committee meetings and then provide parents the ability to watch them via Pod Casts. The Parents Group will look into this option. The parents had a lot of questions regarding the Counseling Department and the new alignment this year. Mr. Garrick also discussed the need to do more to prepare our senior students to apply and enter college. For example, filling out applications, tips on essay writing and interviewing techniques. Mr. Garrick will return to speak at our meeting on January 13, 2009, to discuss the progress towards the above mentioned goals. On October 14, 2008, Mr. Mark Martin from the Counseling Department will be the guest speaker. All parents please mark your calendars, the meeting will begin at 6:30 in the high school library. Parents that volunteer at the schools within our district can obtain a "Volunteer Badge" by completing a Background Check Form. The high school office staff has the required form; please contact them directly to begin the process. On behalf of the WPHS Parents Group, we would like to thank Mr. Del Garrick for coming to our meeting and informing us of the topics the high school is working on this school year. We hope to see you at our next meeting in October. Remember to bring a friend with you so they can keep informed as well! Please call with any questions. Sincerely, Leticia Watters 687-0467 Co-President Tracey Cannella 330-8442 Co-President
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| Announcements |
Attention Parents of Seniors!
- Don't forget that senior baby ads are due soon! This is a great way to honor your senior by commemorating their years in school. The deadline for color ads is October 31st, so hurry to get your senior's baby ad in!
- Don't forget that senior pictures are due by November 7th. Pictures should be submitted to Mrs. Stocking the bookkeeper.
- For more information, have your senior pick up an information sheet outside the front office, room 225, or the library.
CSAP and ACT Student Reward
Because we at the high school were so proud of our students' performance last year on the CSAP and ACT tests, all 10th, 11th, and 12th graders received an ice cream sandwich. What a cool way to recognize student achievement.
We need your input...
If you have ideas for future newsletters or information you'd like included as a regular article, email the HS Building Secretary, Cindy Wallace, at cwallace@wpsdk12.org.
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| Upcoming Events & Meetings |
 September/October9/22 District 21st Century Committee Meeting 9/24 ½ Day Collaboration Homecoming bonfire at Gateway 9/26 Homecoming Parade and Game 9/27 Homecoming Dance 10/2 Fall Play 10/3 Fall Play 10/4 SAT test date (fees involved) 10/8 ½ Day Collaboration School Board Meeting Choir Concert 10/9 BAC 10/10 End of First Quarter 10/14 Parent Group Meeting 10/15 Parent/Teacher Meetings (HS regular schedule) 10/16 Parent/Teacher Meetings (HS amended schedule) 10/17 No School (Break) 10/18 PSAT test date (fees involved) 10/23 Beta Club Induction 10/25 ACT test date (fees involved) 10/29 ½ Day Collaboration PLAN test Haunted House 10/30 Haunted House Treat Street 10/31 Haunted House Back to Top |
| Panther Actitivities & Athletics |
 Updates from Brian Gustafson Greetings, Panther fans! Obviously, the new school-year is well underway and we are very excited to have well over 400 Woodland Park High School students participating in extra-curricular activities this fall.
Panther athletes prepared relentlessly over the off-season to develop physical strength, increase speed and improve sport-specific skills necessary for success on the playing field. This is a dedicated group of young men and women eager to represent this school and community with Panther Pride. Be sure to get out and support these student-athletes as they participate in Cheer, Cross Country, Football, Golf, Softball, Soccer and Volleyball. We applaud the commitment of these young people as well as that of their coaches and sponsors who devote countless hours building competitive programs.
Speaking of competitive programs, if you haven't seen the marching band perform be sure to catch their tribute to Las Vegas at half-time of home varsity football games. It is a family-friendly Vegas show condensed into 8 minutes. What a treat! You can also catch the band and glimpses of other clubs and organizations at this year's Homecoming Parade on September 26th.
Homecoming week kicks off September 22nd and runs through the 27th. As always this promises to be quite a festive time as WPHS will celebrate with assemblies, athletic events, a massive bonfire and of course, the dance. All WPHS alumni are invited and encouraged to attend Friday night's football game. It promises to be an exciting evening as the Panthers and Rock Canyon Jaguars battle it out on the gridiron.
As we head into October, playoffs in many of the fall sports will appear on the horizon and I'm sure there will be many exciting accomplishments to announce in the next e-newsletter.
Until then,
GO GREEN!
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| Library Information Center |
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Web Page Access! Woodland Park High School Library Information Center has a Web page that provides easy home access to all of our databases and our electronic catalog. Be sure to bookmark this address in your Favorites!
Library Media Access Online
The Username for ALL of our Databases is: wpsd2
The Password for ALL of our Databases is: panther
Gale databases include:
Student Resource Center: Full-text magazine and journals
Biography: Thousands of biographies
Opposing Viewpoints: Get both sides (and more!) of any current issue.
Literature Resource Center: Everything you need to get an A in English!
WorldBook Online is more than an encyclopedia. It is appropriate for all levels and subjects, and returns not only encyclopedia articles, but also articles from other magazines and especially relevant Web sites. Check it out!
The Encyclopedia of Daily Life covers hundreds of cultures and every time period throughout recorded history. You can search the database by region, time period (including timelines), or subject. The subjects include domestic life, economic life, intellectual life, material life, political life, recreational life, and religious life.
The CQ Researcher Online is a product of the Congressional Quarterly, and is comprised of weekly in-depth analyses of crucial and timely issues. It covers all sides of the issues, includes a history of the issue, as well as a timeline of how the issue developed. It makes recommendations for the future, and also provides a bibliography for further reading.
Podcast Address: http://podcasts.wpsdk12.org
Your school email address is: YourNetworkLogin@wpsdk12.org
For example, student Jane Marie Doe's school email address would be: jmdoe@wpsdk12.org
Back to Top |
 Getting to know... |
 The Math DepartmentWoodland Park High School is blessed to have dedicated, caring, and professional people leading our classes and mentoring our students. The math department is no exception to this. The department is made up of teachers who look not only at CSAP scores, but the development of the entire student. They realize that answering questions on the state test is just a small part of learning math and that the curriculum requires much more depth than is tested.
They will, again, be looking at the results of our mandated tests in order to identify areas in which they can collaboratively make a difference. The department, led by Lois Devaux as department chair, is making collaboration a priority in order to improve student learning. Curriculum alignment, best practices, and the development of mastery units are all strategies being investigated through collaboration.
The math department includes Michele Burke, Lois DeVaux, Roger Duroux, Teresa Hutchison, Cindy Meyer, Armando Quintana, John Critzer, and Lisa Alexander. Back to Top |
| Collaboration |
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September 12, 2008
Math: Planning began on visiting other schools to research best practices. Each math teacher will visit another school in order to observe different practices, curriculums, and strategies for improvement. Alignment remains a top priority. The use of standards-based units, or mastery units, is being developed and will be implemented in the future. Language Arts: Worked to establish relationships and team building with the social studies department in order to improve and develop integrated units. Continued work on common assessments as well as shared units within the department. CTE (Business and FACS): Continued to look at the types of classes needed to be available within the department to better prepare students for their chosen pathway. Also continued working toward implementing identified 21st Century skills. Social Studies: Worked with Language Arts. Science: Continued work on podcast models. Worked to align curriculum to anticipated state standards. Physical Education: Met with district physical education teachers. Foreign Language: Developed and improved the use of podcast units. This frees up class time for authentic practice and evaluation. Began the process of cross-collaboration with the Language Arts and Journalism department. Counseling: Identified career opportunities as related to each pathway a student may choose. Researched collaborative models used to transition students from middle school to high school. Began development of assessment tool to measure effectiveness of counseling department. Alternative Education: Developed a job performance evaluation. Established systems and procedures for placing students within the department. Reviewed possible course choices on the NOVANET system. Special Education: Created career pathways as related to the individual needs of students. Reviewed Medicaid reimbursement procedures. Fine Arts: Met with district art and music teachers. Library/Media Service: Worked with the math department on book selection. Met with district librarians to establish protocols for future collaboration. Back to Top | |
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