Early release times for half-days of classes for all of Monroe Public Schools will be changing as of November 25.  Here are the new early release times listed in the right column.

     Monroe High School is one of only 100 high schools across Michigan selected by the Michigan College Access Network (MCAN) to receive a $5,000 grant to boost efforts to help students to pursue education beyond high school. 

     “This grant assists us in focusing on the college portion of post-secondary planning,” said Mrs. Sandra Kreps, principal, Monroe High School. 

     “The biggest benefit in receiving the grant is that it helps us to be more strategic and intentional about how and where we can improve the career- and college-ready initiatives and culture at Monroe High School,” said Monroe High School Post-Secondary Planner Savannah Garcia, who had submitted the application for the grant. “We are seeing it work already because just recently we used a portion of the money to offset the cost of sending 50 students to visit Central Michigan University.

     “Without this grant, we would not be able to offer as many college visits to our students.  We also look forward to having the grant renewed next year if we meet all of the terms this school year,” Ms. Garcia said.  “All of our efforts that support our career and college-ready culture help make Monroe High School the place where your child succeeds.”

     Called the Reach Higher grant, it is a first-year program of MCAN, the network which last school year provided a grant allowing MHS to hire a college advisor who now is on staff, although the grants are not related.   MHS now has a college advisor and two post-secondary planners to help students.

     The Reach Higher Grant addresses four elements of a high school strategy.  They are:

--Establish a post-secondary advisory council to lead the college access strategy.

--Conduct a self-assessment to measure the effectiveness of career and college readiness counseling, support and programming.

--Participate in three college-access events by planning and involving seniors in college access events such as College Application Week, College Cash Campaign and College Decision Day on May 2.

--Evaluate the school’s college-going culture using success access mapping tools.

Monroe High School already was participating in several of the activities.  In fact, recently it was the first county school to have a Career and College Readiness Day as part of College Application Week. 

Mrs. Kreps praised the work of the post-secondary planners and the response from the students.

     “Just last week, with assistance from our planners, Ms. Garcia and Manuel Hoskins, and college planner, Jaclyn Sawasky, we had 54 Monroe High School students apply to the University of Toledo,” said Mrs. Kreps.

     MCAN’s goal is to improve the number of Michigan residents who have earned post-secondary degrees or certificates to 60 percent.  The state’s rate now is 38.4 percent, a modest gain from a year earlier.  The national average is 40 percent.  Last school year, 88 percent of Monroe High School’s grads had a post-secondary plan, many of which involved college, employment, the trades or the military.

This is a paper that Monroe Middle School 8th grader Jayme Laney wrote in honor of Veterans Day.  It is being entered into a patriotic writing contest.  Given the events in France on Friday, its words take on a far more important, urgent tone. Thank you, Jayme, for sharing your thoughts.

 Freedom.  The choice everyone wants to have.  The most priceless thing in the whole universe.  Even though people want it, that doesn’t mean that people understand it.  So that sparks a question, what does freedom mean?

          Freedom means to have your own opinion, your own house, your own life.  Freedom is not something that should be taken for granted.  But we all forget who have which brought this freedom to us and fought for it.  We are using the freedom that our brave and fierce soldiers strive for.  This luxury is truly something worth fighting for.

          But what if we did not have our soldiers at all, no one to fight for us.  That means no freedom, no luxury.  For instance, my uncle was a paratrooper in World War II.  What would America be today if he had not parachuted onto the legendary beaches of Normandy, June 6, 1944.

          You might not have had the freedom or ability to have an opinion about these words I’m saying.  You couldn’t talk.  You couldn’t walk.  You couldn’t think for yourself.  You would be a puppet for a tyranny government and would not like any second of it.  In this world today, we still have places under abusive control.  The world would be a better place if we all had freedom.  But unfortunately, the world we live in today would fall apart in riots and protests if we all combined into one government.  Thus this paper concludes that I shall – we shall – declare that freedom is the most honorable piece of our country and society today.  But the most important thing of all is to not take freedom for gated, not something to be abused, and not something that everyone is handed on a silver platter.  Because our country – our lives – were based on liberty and freedom.

More than 300 third- through eighth-graders are expected to complete in the First Lego League meet on Saturday, November 21, at Monroe High School.  Competition starts at 9 a.m. 

     The event is expected to draw 31 teams with 20 of them representing Monroe County schools.  Teams are comprised of up to 10 students in grades three through eight.  Seven of the teams will qualify to advance to the state meet on December 12.

     Monroe County schools competing are:  Eyler, Ritter and Sterling elementaries and Wagar Middle School from Airport Schools; Bedford’s elementary schools; Monroe Catholic Elementary Schools; Waterloo Elementary from Monroe Public Schools; Ida Middle School; Dundee Elementary School; and Meadow Montessori Schools.

     “Each year students are given a topic of study, and a robot playing field is developed around that topic which this year is ‘Trash Trek,’” said William Hite of the Monroe County Intermediate School District who is coordinating the event, leading a group of about 100 volunteers.  “In the past few months, teams have been researching innovative solutions to problems related to trash and recycling.  They also have designed, built and programmed autonomous robots to accomplish several missions on a four-foot by eight-foot playing field.”

     The meet is not all about robotics.  There are four elements in all, Mr. Hite said.

     Teams will give a presentation to a panel of judges about their research and the innovative solution they developed.  They will be issued a teamwork challenge and judged on how their team exemplifies First Robotics’ core values.  A third category is how they demonstrate their technical skills in building and programming their robots.  Lastly, they will be judged on how their robot performs on the playing field. 

     The event is free and open to the public.

The Monroe Composite Squadron, Civil Air Patrol has awarded Waterloo Elementary School a grant totaling nearly $4,600 to help support the schools’ STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math) program, the only program of its kind in a Monroe County elementary school.

            “We are extremely pleased to present this Aerospace Education STEM grant to Waterloo Elementary School,” said Major Jeffrey L. Hutchison of the Civil Air Patrol.  “Waterloo and its STEAM program are extremely deserving of our support.  We at the CAP are confident that Waterloo’s students will realize a tremendous benefit from this support and we are happy to provide it.” The award was announced in ceremony at Saturday’s CAP Aerospace Day at Monroe Custer Airport.  “Our cooperative activities with Waterloo and other schools represent the bulk of CAP’s local external outreach,” said Capt. George Low, Squadron Aerospace Education Officer.

            Back in the 2013-2014 school year, the Waterloo staff decided – after a very thorough study – that it wanted to offer a STEAM-focused curriculum to its students starting in the 2014-2015 school year. 

            “We really appreciate the support of the CAP,” said Mrs. Meghan Gibson, principal, Waterloo Elementary School.  “This grant will enhance our STEAM experience for our students by providing each grade band of teachers with high quality Engineering is Elementary (EIE) kits which were developed by the Museum of Science in Boston.  These kits align well with our state curriculum across each grade level and they will blend well with our program.”

            The EIE kits made available with the CAP sub-grant, provide read-aloud texts about a real-life scenario that student engineers work to solve. Information about the real-life type of engineering that would be used to solve the problem is provided in the kits.  In addition, the kits include materials that young engineers would need to solve the problem.  A variety of resources for teachers also is included. The Monroe Squadron submitted a grant request as a Project Lead the Way/Walmart Foundation initiative.

Mrs. Gibson said initially the staff aims to see an observable increase in persistence in problem solving and that the students will gain knowledge about the different types of engineering disciplines.  They also want their students to experience working in collaborative groups, as engineers do, and to understand Aerospace Education and related career opportunities.

            “Our hope is that students will become interested in these areas which will lead them into post-secondary education, career opportunities and a chance to land a great job when they become adults.” Mrs. Gibson said.

            Among the topics made possible by the grant are designing such products as solar ovens, lighting systems, parachutes and plant packages, and engineering rockets and rovers, earthquake-resistant materials and aid-drop packages.

            The CAP is the auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force and has three main missions in serving America – Aerospace Education (AE), Cadet programs for youths aged 12 to 20; and Emergency Services for disaster relief, search and rescue, and homeland security. The AE mission, in which Waterloo now is involved, is to educate, inspire and instill an appreciation for and understanding of aerospace in our world.

Okay dear MPS website readers.  It is time to take a step back and go to high school again.  Wednesday, November 11, is Veterans Day.  To ensure that her students knew what Veterans Day is and to underscore its importance, Monroe High School Principal Mrs. Sandra Kreps developed a lesson to be shared during Trojan Family time. Check out the piece below and click on the links to see what the high school kids are seeing this week.  And then think about writing a Facebook post to a veteran.  Enjoy, and thank you Mrs. Kreps for your great lesson plan.  May all ages learn from it.

History of Veterans Day

Excerpt from  http://www.va.gov/opa/vetsday/vetdayhistory.asp

World War I – known at the time as “The Great War” - officially ended when the Treaty of Versailles was signed on June 28, 1919, in the Palace of Versailles outside the town of Versailles, France. However, fighting ceased seven months earlier when an armistice, or temporary cessation of hostilities, between the Allied nations and Germany went into effect on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month. For that reason, November 11, 1918, is generally regarded as the end of “the war to end all wars.” In November 1919, President Wilson proclaimed November 11 as the first commemoration of Armistice Day with the following words: "To us in America, the reflections of Armistice Day will be filled with solemn pride in the heroism of those who died in the country’s service and with gratitude for the victory, both because of the thing from which it has freed us and because of the opportunity it has given America to show her sympathy with peace and justice in the councils of the nations…"

Veterans Day Tribute to the American Solider by Ryan Kohler

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a77DhwalG6A&index=3&list=RD1lG8GDYdKsc

What Veterans Day means to you

Who in your class has a relative, friend, teacher or neighbor that is a veteran? 

Which branch of the military did they serve in?  When did they serve?

If you wrote a Facebook post or a note to them on Veterans Day, what would you say?

Please take a few moments today in class or on your own to write your post or note.

This week, please take a few more moments to post or send your note to the Veteran.

That warm, holiday melody you hear wafting through the air throughout this holiday season just might be coming from one of Monroe Public Schools’ musical groups performing throughout the community.

     The number of performances averages out to almost one daily from now through the last day of school before the Christmas break.  That number also likely will increase because some additional performances are expected to be requested and scheduled between now and Christmas.

     Here is a listing of the musical presentations on the schedule now.  If a time is listed, the public is cordially invited. 

Nov. 12 – 5th/6th grade strings, 7 p.m., Monroe Middle School Auditorium

Nov. 17 – Beginning band concert, 7 p.m., Monroe Middle School

Nov. 21 – Monroe High School Marching Band, 2 p.m., Monroe Holiday Parade, downtown Monroe

Dec. 1 – Custer Elementary School, 7 p.m., vocal concert by two groups of upper elementary grade students, Monroe High School auditorium

Dec. 2 – MHS Expressions, 6 p.m., Lights Before Christmas, Toledo Zoo

Dec. 3 – Custer Elementary School, 7 p.m., vocal concert by two groups of upper elementary grade students, Monroe High School auditorium

Dec. 4 – MHS Generations of Sound, elementary school tour

Dec. 5 – Monroe High School Jazz Band, 12:30 p.m., Matthes Evergreen Farm, Ida

Dec. 5 – 6th grade strings, 3 p.m., Matthes Evergreen Farm, Ida

Dec. 5 – Frenchtown Fiddlers, 3:30 p.m., Matthes Evergreen Farm, Ida

Dec. 5 – MMS Jubilation, 4 p.m., Matthes Evergreen Tree Farm, Ida

Dec. 5 – MHS Chamber Strings, 5 p.m., Christmas in Ida Spaghetti Dinner, St. Joseph Hall, Ida

Dec. 6 – MHS all choirs, 1 p.m., Matthes Evergreen Farm, Ida

Dec. 7 – Middle School Orchestra, 7 p.m., MMS Auditorium

Dec. 9 – MHS Generations of Sound, abbreviated Madrigal concert for MHS Students, MHS Auditorium

Dec. 10 – MHS Orchestra and MHS Chamber Strings, 7 p.m., Candlelight Classics, St. Mary Church, Monroe

Dec. 10 – Manor Elementary School 4th, 5th and 6th grade singers, 7 p.m., “Twelve Days of Christmas,” Monroe High School Auditorium

Dec. 11 – MHS Generations of Sound, 6:30 p.m., 33rd annual Madrigal Dinner, St. Paul’s United Methodist Church

Dec. 11 – MMS Jubilation, 7 p.m. caroling at the Toledo Walleye game, Huntington Center, Toledo

Dec.  12 – MHS Generations of Sound, 6:30 p.m., 33rd annual Madrigal Dinner, St. Paul’s United Methodist Church

Dec. 13 – MHS Orchestra and MHS Chamber Strings, 11:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m., Monroe Senior Citizen Center

Dec. 13 – MHS Wind Ensemble, Concert Band and Jazz Band, 3 p.m., annual Christmas Concert, MHS Auditorium

Dec. 15 – MMS Choir Concert, 7 p.m., MMS Auditorium

Dec. 16 – MMS Jubilation, performing at the Monroe Kiwanis luncheon

Dec. 17 – 7th and 8th grade band concert, 7 p.m., Monroe Middle School

Dec. 20 – MHS Choirs, including the MHS Orchestra, 3 p.m., annual Christmas concert, MHS Auditorium

Dec. 22 – MMS Music Concert for the MMS student body, MMS Auditorium

Dec. 22 – Generations of Sound, 6 p.m., Village Holiday Nights at Greenfield Village

The 33rd annual Madrigal Dinner of the Monroe High School Vocal Music Department will be held at St. Paul’s United Methodist Church, 201 S. Monroe St., on Friday, Dec. 11, and Saturday, Dec. 12.  The event begins at 6:30 p.m. each night.

     The event, one of the popular annual highlights of the holiday season in Monroe, features the talents of the Monroe High School Generations of Sound performing familiar carols and songs of the Christmas season.  The Royal Court has been summoned for the amusement of the guests and the Court Jester will have his bag of tricks with him, too.  The Royal Court Chefs also will prepare a meal fit for a king, and his queen.

     The dinner includes salad, rolls, pork roast, stuffing, cranberry sauce, sweet potatoes, green beans, pumpkin pie and a wassail toast.  The public is invited to come and share the festive meal in the spirit of the Yuletide season in Merrie Olde England. 

     Tickets are $25 each and are limited to only 150 guests per night.  Early registration is suggested because these programs typically are sold out early.

     To order tickets, see the order form which is attached to this posting.

Throughout the months of November and December, students at Monroe Public School’s five elementary schools will get a spelling lesson every day, just by going to their schools’ salad bars at lunch time.

     Called the A-Z Salad Bar, Sodexo, food service provider for Monroe Public Schools, will feature a different fruit or vegetable available for students every day.  It started with asparagus on November 2, broccolini on November 3, cantaloupe on November 4 and so on.

     “We are excited about this program,” said Mark Havericak, Sodexo’s food service manager for Monroe Public Schools.  “This is a fun and educational program designed to explain the many benefits of eating fruits and vegetables, while introducing children to some new varieties of produce, too.”

     Among the different types of fruits and vegetables to be featured each day are:  fennel, jicama, edamame, and papaya.  Of course they can enjoy other more traditional fare, such as olives, lima beans, honeydew melon and iceberg lettuce.

     “Focusing on our students’ health is something we do throughout the school year.  In fact, this program will be beneficial for both our students and their parents or guardians.  During A-Z Salad Bar, we at Sodexo also will distribute interesting educational materials on fruits and vegetables for the adults to use and enjoy, while the students will receive special activity sheets with fun games and information created specifically for them,” Mr. Havericak said.

     The five elementary schools of Monroe Public Schools – Arborwood, Custer, Manor, Raisinville and Waterloo – are the only Monroe County Schools participating in a healthy eating activity like this in the remaining two months of the calendar year.  Having healthy food choices in each school cafeteria is another reason why Monroe Public Schools is where your child succeeds.

WTVG-TV Channel 13 reporter Kristian Brown visited Monroe High School recently to see what was going on at school with Career and College Ready Day.  Copy and paste the following link into your browser to see the story she filed. 

http://www.13abc.com/video?videoid=3323083