FHUHS Administration

We are now, officially, in the second week of the second semester. With the weather forcing two cancellations last week, this should be the first week of everyone being fully up and running. Or course, that is provided the weather forecasted for tomorrow does not cause this week to be disrupted also. With home events scheduled every night this week, as well as Saturday morning, the school will see a tremendous amount of positive activity occurring throughout our building (I mean this literally as the Track and Field team uses nearly every open space for running, training, drills, etc. and the Science Fair will be setting in anticipation of next week).

As just mentioned, the Fair Haven High School Science Fair is Thursday, February 14th. We are expecting around 300 projects to be on display from 3:00 pm to 6:00 pm that afternoon. We hope to see you there.

Students in Mr. Woods’ CP Chemistry have been growing crystals in gel in order to study the concepts of Crystal Growth, and Chemical Reactions. The crystals have been growing nicely over the last several weeks and are very colorful. They have been growing Copper crystals that many students have commented look like a miniature coral reef, two types of lead crystals with one the traditional grey color one thinks of with lead and another a bright yellow because of its bonding with Iodine. I was fascinated with the variety of design, color and application of the crystals when visiting the class.

Next week Mr. Woods’ General Science class will be testing designs of air propelled pinewood cars (rocket cars) for their science fair project. We, and our students, hope some of you in the community will be able to stop by and see some our students’ projects.

Moving with Vision and Purpose (MVP) students completed a three-page evaluation of the program for their midterm exam. MVP is a selective class in which students learn various strategies: for academic learning, studying that material, writing papers and reports, taking tests, and so on. Part of the week is spent applying those strategies to their current work. Many MVP students were pleased to pass exams and courses that were at risk previously. On the MVP midterm evaluation they contributed many good suggestions for the improvement of this valuable program.

The following students would have participated in the Green Mountain Music District Festival had it not been cancelled due to the ice storm. Katelyn Phillips, Gwynneth Roberts, Jessica Wood, Carly Schneider, Sarah LaFleche, Garry Brown, and Jon Kuehne made the High School Concert Band. Jon Murray, Reggie Schulman, David Brown, Cassandra Papandrea, and Christina Papandrea made the wind ensemble. Dieter Ekstrom made the orchestra. The students auditioned for the bands in November. The cancellation was made by the state and not by FHU (or we would have found some way to make it work!). These students put in an amazing amount of in and out of school time in order to be able to excel in their respective fields. Over fifty hours of time, according to Mr. Lennox, were devoted to prepare for this festival so obvious disappointment is being felt. When you see these students, please congratulate them on earning the right to have participated.

Vermont Indoor Track State Championships will be held Saturday Feb. 9th at Norwich University beginning at 11 am. Both the Slater boys’ and girls’ squads are expected to be at or near the front of the pack, with several individuals having opportunities to bring home state championships. The New England Indoor Championships will be held on Feb. 29th at the Reggie Lewis Center in Roxbury, Massachusetts. As mentioned in my opening, these athletes have had to train using the halls, stairs and occasionally the gym to prepare for this meet which shows their dedication.

FHU would like to give an official welcome to Samuel Appelt, the English student teacher from the College of Saint Joseph. Mr. Appelt is co-teaching several of Mrs. McCuen’s English classes and he will be here for the remainder of his semester which ends in May. It has been great seeing him in the halls conversing with staff and students and seemingly feeling at home at FHU.

For those wanting to hear some our students voice their talents, the following students will be competing in Poetry Out Loud during 6th and 7th period this Friday in the Band Room:

• Adam Cecil
• Gwen Roberts
• Matt Couture
• Brittany Griffis
• Emily Rampone
• Carly Schneider

Good luck and I look forward to hearing the performances.

On Tuesday, February 5th, Peer Mediators will be meeting during 4th period in the Conference Room. Although this was mentioned a while back, the effectiveness and importance of this group is greatly appreciated as it clearly helps form a positive climate at FHU. Thanks also go to Anne Genier for helping take care of all the details needed to make this proactive group work well. FHU Peer Mediators are:

• Krista Bird
• Garret Hewes
• Kasey Beebe
• Katie Corcoran
• Heath Genier
• Keith Schneider
• Angelia Smith
• Patty Danahay
• Maeghan Hutchins
• Carly Schneider
• Amy Sessock

Please join us for a Community thank you party for Charlotte Morris on Sunday, February 10th, from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m., at the Fair Haven Union High School Cafeteria. Charlotte has donated countless hours to the community, and we want her to know how much it means to us.

For further information, please contact Diane Flood, Fair Haven Union High School, 265-4966, Ext. 202, or by e-mail – floodd@fhuhs.org

Have a great week and feel free to stop by the school for any of the above.

Brett C. Blanchard, Fair Haven Union High School Principal