Monday,
31 October 2011
Greetings
Upper School Community:
Since
wintery weather seems to have arrived at last, here is a late-October edition
of “Articles of Interest” to warm your reading enjoyment.
Monday, October 31, 2011
Late-October Articles of Interest: 7-Billion of Us, Steve Jobs' Lost Sister, Twitterology, Complete World Knowledge, & Tom Keith
According
to global demographers, sometime today, the world’s population crossed the
7-billion mark for the first time.
The Economist provides an interesting graphic depicting the
guess-timated amount of actual space 7-billion people could occupy, addressing
the larger question, where will we all fit?!?
In A Sister’s Eulogy for Steve Jobs, writer Mona Simpson describes the discovery of her famous adoption-separated
brother.
The growth of
“Twitterology” as a new science; fascinating information found by tracking
language and semantics in microblog posts.
And for loyal listeners,
two recent stories from National Public Radio:
Robert Siegel’s conversation with factoid-obsessed funnyman John Hodgman (the “and
I’m a PC” guy from the Mac commercials and Jon Stewart’s “resident expert”)
about publication of the final installment of his trilogy of “complete world
knowledge,” That Is All. Mayan
end-of-days and jock-nerd convergence explained.
Happy reading,
and bring on November!
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Girls Soccer, Fall Term Exams, Packets Coming Home, & 2012 Immersion Groups Posted
Thursday, 27 October 2011
Greetings Upper School Parents:
Greetings Upper School Parents:
Following the thrilling 1-0 win (in over-time!) against Preble Shawnee on Monday, our girls varsity soccer team plays tonight at Springboro Stadium against Mariemont; game start is 7:00PM. Stay hungry, Rams! With the approach of fall exams and other autumnal activities in the Upper School, here are some reminders for the coming weeks.
Class Deans distributed
school picture packages this morning; please ask your child to be sure your
packet makes it home. Picture
re-take day, for those who want them, is Thursday,
10 November. To ensure proper
credit, the original photo package must be exchanged on re-take day. 2011 MVS Yearbooks, for students who ordered them, were distributed
during Advisory.
Sally Foster Gift Wrap packages from the MVS Parents Association were also distributed. This fundraiser supports numerous student
and teacher programs, so your orders are appreciated.
Fall Trimester exams run Tuesday-Thursday, 1-3 November. The exam schedule is available on the documents section of the upper school homepage. Although students are not required to be on campus until 30 minutes before a scheduled exam, most students arrange to study in groups here at MVS during the day. Additionally, the Library will remain open until 6:PM through Thursday, 3 November.
Since Freshmen and Sophomores (as well as upper classmen without privileges) do not have open campus privileges, if they wish to depart from campus between exams (to go out to lunch or study at a friend’s house), written parent permission must be submitted to the upper school office the day of such a request. Due to obvious safety concerns, permission cannot be phoned in.
Friday, 4 November is designated as College Visitation Weekend, providing an excellent opportunity for
students to visit, tour, and perhaps interview at a college or university as
part of their college selection process. Friday is also a faculty
professional development and assessment day. Teachers will attend a 2-hour morning professional
development meeting, followed by grading exams, composing end-of-term comments,
and planning for the start of Winter Trimester.
Next Wednesday through Friday, I will be away from MVS presenting at the Annual Conference of Independent School Association of the Central States, better known as ISACS. ISACS, the largest regional organization within the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS), is also the accrediting body for MVS. The annual conference, this year held in Detroit, always provides excellent opportunities for professional growth, collegial networking, and discussing topical school matters.
Next Wednesday through Friday, I will be away from MVS presenting at the Annual Conference of Independent School Association of the Central States, better known as ISACS. ISACS, the largest regional organization within the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS), is also the accrediting body for MVS. The annual conference, this year held in Detroit, always provides excellent opportunities for professional growth, collegial networking, and discussing topical school matters.
We are fortunate to welcome Jeff Wolfsberg back to MVS in starting the Winter Trimester. Jeff Wolfsberg, drug education and wellness specialist, will return during the week of 15-18 November, including a special evening parent meeting on Thursday, 17 November in the Alumni Theatre. The event will begin at 7:00PM with a brief Parents’ Association Meeting.
Student groups for 2012 Immersion Programs will be posted this Friday, with some preliminary organizational meetings between students and facilitators beginning in November. Official group meetings, including parent information sessions, will likely follow in December. Great appreciation goes to the Immersion Committee, led by Rachel Moulton, which facilitated the timeliness, processes, and over-all attentiveness to this capstone of MVS experiential learning.
Thank you for your support in what has been a great Fall Term in
the Upper School. I look forward
to seeing you at an up-coming MVS event.
With sincere regards,
Sam Wagner
Head of Upper School
Sunday, October 9, 2011
Early-October Articles of Interest: Steve Jobs, 2011 Nobel Peace Prize, assessing Virtual Schools, & Rugby World Cup
Sunday,
9 October 2011
Greetings
Upper School Community:
Here
is early-October’s edition of “Articles of Interest” for your reading enjoyment.
In
Sunday’s Business section of the NYTimes, Steve Lohr pens a worthy tribute to the
legacy of Steve Jobs in “The Power of Taking the Big Chance”. Also of note are Thomas Friedman’s
eulogy/essay “Where Have You Gone, Joe DiMaggio?”
and
Steve Jobs’ “my three stories,” from the 2005 Stanford University Commencement Address, delivered in the visionary’s own
words.
Last
April, the MVS chapter of Amnesty
International showed the film “Pray the Devil Back to Hell” to the upper school community. The film narrates the grass-roots
efforts of women, spanning diverse ethnic and religious backgrounds, in uniting through non-violent protest against the exploits of Liberia’s then dictator Charles
Taylor (now deposed!). One of the leaders of that
movement, Leymah Gbowee, will share the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize. How very cool (and typical of MVS) that our students are aligned with
the Nobel Prize!
The
increase of on-line and virtual schooling organizations, and the promises they
claim towards boosting student achievement, has made for heated discussions. Today’s NYTimes front-page story, Grading the Digital School: Inflating the Software Report Card, provides interesting perspective to the on-going
debate:
And
with the Philadelphia Phillies now sadly out of the Playoffs, my
attention returns to the 2011 Rugby
World Cup, underway in Wellington,
New Zealand. Here are a couple
stories to better familiarize you with the unique draw of international sports:
· The Official Rules of Rugby, from ActiveNewZealand.com:
·
(also note the video: 2011
Travel Warning. NZ truly is more than a nation of 16 million sheep):
· With Rules Tweaked, Rugby Recaptures Attacking Spark,
·
And the main website of the International Rugby Board.
Enjoy
October’s delicious weather, happy reading, and keep in touch!
Sam
Wagner
Head of Upper School
Friday, October 7, 2011
Parent Signature on Immersion Application (Due Mon, 10 Oct) & Steve Job's 2005 Stanford Commencement Address
Friday,
7 October 2011
Greetings
Upper School Parents:
A quick reminder that Immersion
applications are due this Monday, 10 OCTOBER, by 3:30PM in the upper school
office. Immersion applications require
a parent signature, so if your child has not recently discussed her/his
Immersion selections with you, you can prompt a discussion by asking to
sign the application. Immersion deadlines
are firm; applications submitted after a deadline
will be placed at the bottom of the selection process, regardless of the
student’s grade level.
The link to all applications, procedures, and program
descriptions for Immersion 2012 are available on the “School Announcements” section of theupper school homepage.
With the passing of Steve Jobs this week, I have been replaying
the video of the sage words he delivered at Stanford University’s 2005Commencement Ceremony. The video
can be viewed at the TED website at: http://www.ted.com/talks/steve_jobs_how_to_live_before_you_die.html
Best wishes for a restful, no
homework weekend!
Sam Wagner
Head of Upper School
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