At Reaching Heights
Thank-A-Teacher
Who are the teachers who made a difference in the
life of your student? Was it a classroom teacher,
music or art teacher? Maybe a coach, guidance
counselor, librarian or principal touched the life of your
student.
Honor the work of these skilled and dedicated
teachers with the gift of appreciation. It is simple to do.
Click here to download and complete the
Thank-A-
Teacher form including a note to the teacher and send
it to
us with a donation in the teacher's name.
We will send the teacher a formal letter with your kind
words and we will use the funds for grants to teachers.
Grant Deadline Approaching: Apply by June 30
Attention CH-UH teachers! Grant funds are
available for projects implemented next school year.
School Team Grants provide
up to $1500 for projects that improve student
achievement. Community Connection Grants provide up to
$150 for projects that link the school or its students
with the community or parents.
Grant deadlines are June 30 and October 31,
2008. See the Reaching Heights website for
detailed information about grant guidelines.
If you want to be inspired by creative teachers who
designed innovative projects to help students achieve,
attend the Grant Reporting Meeting on Tuesday,
May 27, 7:00 p.m. at Canterbury School.
Twenty-one teams of teachers implemented projects
that included a book club for struggling readers,
outdoor science camp for middle school students and
a drama club at Heights High. These creative
teachers designed innovative projects that help our
students achieve.
Heights Summer Music Camp
Know any musicians in 5th-8th grades? Looking
for things to keep your student busy and happy this
summer? Enroll them in Heights Summer Music Camp, June
16-21 at Wiley Middle School. Click here for more information and an
application.
Experience Defeats Youth in 17th Reaching Heights Spelling Bee!
The 17th Annual Reaching Heights Community
Spelling Bee came down to a thrilling contest
matching age and experience against youth and
energy. Experience won, as the Upper Case team of
Case Western Reserve University faculty members
defeated a team of Cleveland Heights High School
students.
Upper Case team members Pat Crago, Jeff
Janata, and Lynn Singer correctly spelled
perchlorinate in the ninth round while the SMRT
Team of Rachael Collyer, Chris Hoffman, and
Lewis Pollis stumbled on
orthorhombic. The two teams slugged it out for
three rounds before the thrilling conclusion. The
SMRT Team took its name from The Simpsons.
Earlier in the competition, the audience was stunned
when two-time defending champions OOPS, featuring
members of the Cleveland Orchestra, went out in the
first round on fuselage.
The 17th annual bee involved 24 teams of three
spellers each. Each team paid an entry fee of at least
$500 to earn the chance to compete. The friendly
competition raised more than $15,000 to support
School Team Grants - a Reaching Heights program
that provides grants to CH-UH teachers and staff for
innovative strategies to bolster student achievement.
Reaching Heights awarded the Friend of Public
Education Award to Andrea Freeman for
her many years of volunteer service to the students of
our district. Big Fun owner Steve Presser
once again
served as emcee for the evening, while Notre Dame
College theater professor Tony Zupancic
served as
pronouncer. Judges for the competition were Federal
District Court Judge Solomon Oliver, CH-UH
school
Superintendant Deborah Delisle, Canterbury
Elementary School Principal Kevin Harrell,
and The
Rev. Dr. Louise Westfall, pastor of Fairmount
Presbyterian Church.
Be sure to watch the bee on Channel 22. The bee will
be back in 2009.
In Our Schools
This Friday, May 16 at 7:30 PM: Heights High Vocal Music Concert
Spend an evening enjoying the students from the
award winning Vocal Music Department at Heights
High School. The annual spring concert has become
a community favorite sure to entertain young and old
alike.
Location: Cleveland Heights High School - corner of
Lee and Cedar Roads
Help Your Kids Stretch This Summer
"The Art of Robotics," "Building a Dream House,"
and "Cooking Up Math" are just a few of the courses
available this summer through a special enrichment
program. CH-UH students entering grades 6-12 in the
2008-2009 school year will have the chance to stretch
their minds with the Summer S.T.R.E.T.C.H.
program
(Stretching Through Enrichment, Thinking,
Challenges, and Hands-on investigation), held at
Cleveland Heights High School from July 21, 2008
through August 8, 2008. More information and
registration forms can be found at
http://chuh.org/news/news_05_01_2008.shtml
Tour Heights High May 31
On Saturday, May 31, at 10 a.m., Lita
Gonzalez, PATH (Parent Ambassadors to Heights)
Project Coordinator and Stephen Shergalis, Director
of Business Services, CH-UH City School District, will
co-host a tour of Heights High. Learn about the
school's history and the evolution of the building over
the last 80 years. Explore its architectural beauty and
take in its interior detailing including Tiffany
chandeliers in the auditorium. Learn about recent
efforts to rehabilitate this historic structure and, at the
same time, accommodate the educational needs of
today's student body.
The free tour is sponsored by the City of Cleveland Heights Landmark
Commission, FutureHeights
and The
Cleveland Heights Historical Society.
Reservations are required and the tour is limited to 30
attendees. Call 216-291-4878 to RSVP
In Our Community
Ten Heights Alumni Honored
Congratulations to the 2008 inductees into The
Cleveland Height High School Alumni Foundation's
Hall of Fame. Honored on May 8 were Alexis
Abramson, PhD (Class of 1991), Kathy Simkoff
Blackman ('86), Manuel Freeman, DMD ('54), Judye
Robbins Groner, MSW ('60), Ellen Newman Heyman,
RN ('60), Jerry Hirshberg ('57), Robert H. Jackson, JD
('55), Jed K. Margolis ('69), Greta Rothman, ('90), and
Toni Milano Starinsky ('72).
Read about their accomplishments at ht
tp://www.heightsalumni.org/hof/index.shtml
LWV to Discuss Foreclosures in the Heights
Neighborhood blight, home values, lost tax
revenues and city services, copper thievery - the
housing crisis and resulting rampant foreclosure
rates affect everyone. The city of Cleveland has one of
the highest foreclosure rates in the country. The crisis
has been moving outward into Cleveland suburbs,
affecting Cleveland Heights for a number of years and
now moving into University Heights and beyond. All
communities need to address this problem
aggressively. How are City Hall and the community
confronting this problem? Come and hear what our
two speakers, who work closely with the issue, have
to say.
The Heights
Chapter of the League of Women Voters Cuyahoga
Area will address these issues at its annual
spring meeting on Thursday, June 12, 2008, at
7:15 pm. The event will take place in the
Cleveland Heights City Hall Council Chambers.
Speakers will be Rick Wagner, Manager of
Housing Programs for the City of Cleveland Heights,
and Kathryn Lad, executive director of the Home Repair Resource
Center. More information is available at
http://www.chuh.net/lwv
/.
In Education News
Ohio Education Overhaul Plan Due Next March
Major changes in Ohio's K-12 public school system
are evolving as Gov. Ted Strickland fields ideas from
business, academic and civic players around the
state, according to recent Cleveland Plain Dealer
article by Janet Okoben. The governor said in his State
of the State speech in March that he would have a plan
to reform education by next year. A few of his wishes,
notably the creation of a governor-appointed director of
education position, are known. Even more dramatic
changes are possible. Strickland spokesman Keith
Dailey pointed out that the ideas suggested so far are
not endorsed by the governor, but everything is being
considered at this stage. A formal plan is scheduled
to be unveiled next March.
Among the ideas outlined at recent "shareholder"
meetings that are being considered:
- Impose a 22-mill base for school taxes
statewide.
- Make median income the factor in determining
how much local school taxes must be paid, or use a
combination of median income and property valuation
to determine the local share.
- Get rid of the Ohio Graduation Test and instead
make graduation based on a combination of ACT test
scores, high school grades, a senior project and a
community service project.
- Create a statewide teacher-pay scale that would
recognize entry-level, midcareer and senior-level
teachers.
- Make teaching a year-round job by requiring
summer classes, tutoring and professional
development.
Full text of Okoben's article is available at http://blog.clevelan
d.com/openers/2008/04/gov_ted_strickland_collects_i
d_1.html
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