Sticks and Stones.....

Bullying is in the national spotlight and rightfully so.  Most of you who read my pathetic pennings in this forum grew up as I, "Sticks and Stones can break my bones, but words will never hurt me."  Our parents, for the most part, saw the insensitivity, sarcasm and unkindness in these verbal barrages, but bought into it as a sort of "rite of passage."  Something that would toughen us up for the long haul to maturity.  Something that would help us build defense mechanisms for later and the hard, cruel world.  Seems logical.  Seems as if it makes sense.  But the world has changed and we know more about child psychology and sociology than ever before.  We have the results of years of study of the damage insidious bullying, with words, can cause. “Being bullied is not just an unpleasant rite of passage through childhood,” said Duane Alexander, M.D., director of the NICHD. “It’s a public health problem that merits attention. People who were bullied as children are more likely to suffer from depression and low self esteem, well into adulthood, and the bullies themselves are more likely to engage in criminal behavior later in life.” 
Some of you reading this will immediately look at our own experience and proclaim, "Hey, I went through it and look how I turned out?"  And maybe, you have healed.  Maybe other things in your life have been able to replace the shame and guilt of those years that you were under the terror of another.  Or, maybe you were very lucky and it never happened to you.  But, disregarding the evidence of what it does to people short and long term would be criminal of us.  Pair that with the ability of bullies now to offend and disparage with the social media and this is an issue we just cannot dismiss anymore as "Sticks and Stones..".  We have to be conscious of it, we have to be active in finding ways to help the perpetrators understand the hurt they create.  Want some real facts about bullying in our country?  Here they are and they are eye-opening:

77 percent of students say they have been bullied at least once in the past year

35 percent of students say they have been bullied in the last month

22 percent of students say they have been depressed enough to think of hurting themselves due to constant harassment

86% of students said, “other kids picking on them, making fun of them or bullying them” causes teenagers to turn to lethal violence in the schools.

Bullying statistics shows that those who bully and are bullied appear to be at greatest risk of experiencing the following: loneliness; trouble making friends; lack of success in school; and involvement in problem behaviors such as smoking and drinking.

54% said witnessing physical abuse at home can lead to violence in school.

According to bullying statistics , one out of every 10 students who drops out of school does so because of repeated bullying.

Harassment and bullying have been linked to 75 percent of school-shooting incidents.


These are national statistics, however, they are statistics that must lead us to a proactivity in dealing with this problem.

But there are slippery difficulties in attacking this.  First, defining what exactly bullying is has many obstacles.  When we identified bullying strictly as physical, it was easy.  We cannot do that any more.  Here is as good a definition as any:

"Bullying involves a desire to hurt + hurtful action + a power imbalance + (typically) repetition + an unjust use of power + evident enjoyment by the aggressor and a sense of being oppressed on the part of the victim."

How can this definition help ? In the first place, it warns us against a too simplistic a view of what bullying is. We will be less inclined to think that to counter bullying we must believe in the perfectibility of the human race. Christianity has tried for thousands of years to correct our aberrant and distasteful behavior and yet the prisons and papers are full of our frailties.  Secondly, it helps us to focus upon a sub-category of aggressive behavior which almost everyone abhors: the unjust use of force by more powerful persons or groups. We should remind ourselves that what appears "justified" is constantly shifting. If we are to understand and help we need to be cautious in appraising just where differences in power lie. The imbalances may be subtle. Finally, it suggests that we should monitor the emotional reactions of the perpetrator and remember that they can change; and also tune in to the feelings of being oppressed that victims invariably feel, often, but not always, with strong justification.

So - we have a definition with caveats that warn to be fluid and evaluate both the situation and the players in any bullying event.   Now what?  Our difficulty in school is both systematic and logistic.  Where do most of the events take place?  Here are the stats for a high school-aged student:

Overall bullying - 41 percent through social media, 29 percent outside of school, 30 percent in school.

    Social media - 72 percent through face book or other social network accounts, 22 percent through text or cell phone, 8 percent other.

   Outside of school - 68 percent at social functions directly for high school students, 23 percent at retail and restaurants, 9 percent other.

   At school - 75 percent outside the classroom, 25 percent within the classroom.

        Outside the classroom identified as hallways, bathrooms, cafeteria, locker room, etc.

So now we know what it is and where it happens - now what?  With the above statistics in tow, there are several things that have been done and can be done. 

1.  Policy - We have a bullying policy that was adopted by the school board this past summer. I have attached our adopted policy in the column to the right of the blog. It allows a hierarchy of discipline and protects all students.  The language is as explicit as it can be with the difficulty of defining and locating the event.  At the high school, we use the discipline matrix and our discretion to deal with and mete out consequences.

2.  Education - We have had one TAP seminar in relation to bullying and will continue to refresh both staff and students on this issue.  Next week, I will address the entire student body.  In the future, I plan to adopt with the help of our counselors, some programming that consistently and appropriately helps lead students to kind and "Golden Rule" choices.

3.  Parental intervention - above, you can see that 70 percent of bullying occurs outside of school.  If that is the case, we have to rely upon parents to help regulate, identify and correct behaviors.  You can also see that a large percentage of bullying is now occurring through cyberspace.  I have had this conversation with parents and on several occasions the response has been, "I am treading on their privacy."  I am perplexed?  I will only speak for myself, but my children will either divulge every bit of information I wish to have whenever I wish, or the will have not access or technology to use.  We HAVE to monitor what is going on in these communications.  The safety of your sons and daughters is at stake along with the issue of bullying.  Just watch 15 minutes of, "To Catch a Predator" some time.  If you don't know what is going on in your son's and daughter's cyber-lives, you don't know them at all. 

4.  Persistence.   Staff have to be aware and deal with these issues.  Even absorbing parental criticism when the acts may seem trivial.  Students who observe bullying occurring and do not assist the victim or report it are buying into the culture. Students have to either handle it, walk away, or report it.  Certainly, we hope students have enough esteem to not allow a bully's words to have affect on them - but if it is not the case, it has to be reported.  Immediately.  If it is texted or emailed, it has to be printed and given to a teacher or administrator or a parent.  Allowing it to go on and on without dealing or notifying will only make it worse later on.

 I have to say, with these issues - harassment, particular - because it is sometimes hard to detect or define, raising the level of consciousness can have the effect of making "everything" an issue of bullying.  So be it.  Is it better to have a tormented student react in a tragic way that deeply affects all we do forever - or is it better to take seriously even those small incidents that may be very borderline in effect and take up some part of a day to fix?    At Harrisburg High School, we will take each and every case seriously and do our best not only to protect and assist victims, but to show perpetrators the error of their ways and attempt to move them to more positive futures.   

But it can't be done without all of you out there.  We will do our part.  But please examine what really is going on as objectively as you can.  Don't lose the prism of love and affection you look through regarding your sons and daughters.  It is natural to defend and advocate for them.  But any level of discomfort another is feeling because of the words, intonations, gossip, rumor-spread, etc. - will be dealt with here as bullying.  We are very simply a no-bullying zone.   Talk to your sons and daughters about it.  Raise their level of awareness.  We have well-intentioned people with big hearts.  No one wants to see a student attending Harrisburg High School with dread, with fear, intimidated.  No one would wish that on any student.  It will take all of us to make that so.

Parent-Teacher Conferences will be held in the High School Commons beginning at 2:00 PM until 8:30 PM on Thursday evening.  I hope you will all be able to attend.

Veteran's day is November 11th.  Freedom comes at a cost.  A sacrifice of youth, a sacrifice of time and innocence…and tragically, a sacrifice of life.  It is only right that we celebrate and honor those sacrifices.   Our engagements around the world, have preserved and created freedoms for millions..  We pay our debt, and we pay our respect with humility on November 11th.   Harrisburg High will  hope that this humble thanks lingers with us every day of our lives, and continues to be and inspires us to the righteous acts modeled by those we honor on Veteran's Day.    A long-standing Harrisburg tradition will be paired with what is hoped will be a traditional event is scheduled for Harrisburg High School, November 11^th.    A Veteran’s Day program featuring Mr. Clarence Kooistra will begin at 10:00 AM in the large theater.  Mr. Kooistra, a veteran marine of the Vietnam War and a Garretson teacher of 35 years will be the keynote speaker.   The high school band, choir, trumpeters and much more will be included in the 45-minute program honoring our country’s heroes.

      At noon, in the high school commons, the traditional pre-Thanksgiving meal for citizen citizens will be held at noon.  Turkey and all the fixin’s will be free of charge to any Harrisburg District resident senior citizen.  The senior high choir will perform also.

       The Veteran’s Day program is open to the public.  Doors will open to the theater at 9:00 AM.

As play-offs begin in volleyball and football, remember that passes will not be honored.  These events are sponsored by the SDHSAA and all attendees will have to purchase a ticket.  Tuesday night, adults are $5 and Kids are $3.  Kick off is at 6:30 vs. Vermillion.   The game will also be on 1230 AM and 1570 AM radio.

Students who are using the NovaNet system of curriculum delivery will not receive quarter grades.  As this system is for credits upon completion, when completed they will receive semester grades only.  Students at the CTE academy will receive quarter grades.  Grades will be finalized on Wednesday this week.

Another plea to remind all drivers to pay special attention in and around our school.  As I mentioned earlier, we have asked the local police to patrol whenever possible and we will not hesitate to take numbers of offending autos and pass on to the local authorities.  It has happened a few times already.  Please take care.  An automobile can be a weapon.  Don't use it that way.

Remember that the Sioux Valley News covers our high school with a two-page insert each week.  If you desire a subscription, please get in touch with them.  They are always looking for advertisers as well.

Events this week at Harrisburg High School:

Monday - BEGINNING OF A NEW QUARTER

                   Red Ribbon Week - Drug and Alcohol Awareness

                   4:15 - 9th football at Sioux Falls Washington(end of season)

                   5:00 Volleyball - Vermillion - Home

                   6:30 - Board Meeting  -  Liberty Library

Tuesday -  8:10 - ASVAB testing - all juniors - gymnasium

                   12:30 - All School Assembly - Red Ribbon Week

                   4:00 - After School Novice Interp. at Sioux Falls

                   6:30 - Football playoffs vs. Vermillion - Home - No passes accepted

Wednesday - 8:30- All State Chorus performance - large theater - open to the public

Thursday - Early Release - 1:05

                    Parent-Teacher Conferences - 2:00-8:30 - High School Commons

Friday - No Classes

               SDHSAA All State Chorus and Orchestra - Aberdeen

Saturday - SDHSAA All State Chorus and Orchestra - Aberdeen(can be seen on public TV)

                   9:00 - Oral Interpretation - Yankton

Sunday - Halloween!!!

"Beware those things that disturb direction, the path away must be recovered and that time spent is lost indeed."

Education....one pizza at a time...

A roommate of mine worked in a pizza factory, on the assembly line, making pizzas.  About every two weeks, he would bring home some pizzas that did not pass muster on the line.  They might have deformed crusts, or no sauce, etc.  He told me that there was a giant refrigeration bin of these “rejects” and most were thrown away.  “It’s just business,” his manager told him - and the loss of this did not hurt the bottom line, in fact it was already factored in as part of the cost of doing business in the pizza industry.  I had another friend who worked at a fast-food restaurant.  Each night, they threw away a pretty good portion of sandwiches, fries, onion rings, etc. that weren’t sold or had loitered under the heating lamp too long.  They had to put them in a locked garbage bin to keep away people who may want to get at them.  I tell these two stories because first, it always seemed like such a waste and really played on my sense of fairness when so many in the world are hungry, yet we just see it as a cost of business.  But second, these are business plans that have been incredibly successful.  The fast-food industry in our country made over 42 billion dollars in 2008.  The frozen pizza industry over 16 billion dollars in 2007 according to the national Chamber of Commerce website.  Wow.  This efficient way of doing business, is wildly successful, obviously.  In recent years, models of fast-food and other successful business strategies have been either overtly or inadvertently tried in education. In fact, right now our U.S. department of education with President Obama’s blessing is focused on merit pay for educators, a business plan mostly opposed by teachers and educators.  It would work this way:  test scores would be the basis for extra pay.  Students would be tested at the beginning of school on some sort of standardized instrument, if they scored higher at the end and also scored higher compared to other schools, a teacher would win more money.  In a business sense, this goes on every day.  If you produce more, if you are ahead of other outside or company competitors, you get more reward.  Seems to make sense, doesn’t it?  Shouldn’t that spur teachers on to better quality of work?  Shouldn’t we be able to put a score on what a teacher does and reward them for improving that score?

Let’s go back to the pizza model.  My roommate made more money if he turned out more quality pizzas.  He found out early though, that if there was a pizza with even a little irregularity, he might as well toss it rather than try to fx it.  It took much less time to make a new pizza then try to fix one that needed fixing.  And, the company was OK with that, they simply wanted more pizzas made and they knew that some were going into the reject bin.  It was the cost of doing business.  So let’s put that in an education model.  To reward teachers for higher scores, wouldn’t it make sense for a teacher to spend a lot more time with the higher-achieving students.  After all, they will score the highest and can then raise the average.  This would make certain the teacher received more money.  The “rejects’ in the class would just be the cost of doing business.  In fact, this has already happened in places where merit pay has been introduced.  My roommate was also supposed to have a particular meat-to-cheese ratio on every pizza.  This made up for the rejects he had to throw away.  If merit pay is introduced, teachers will focus on the meat and cheese ratio, the curriculum that most matches the test.  Tests provide insight on what a student has memorized.  But teachers worth their salt, try to have students develop characteristics of initiative, creativity, imagination, conceptual thinking, curiosity, effort, irony, judgment, commitment, nuance, good will, ethics, reflection, critical thinking…which test measures these things?  And if a teacher wants to earn more money and be seen as successful, in a business model – that teacher must quit teaching the above traits.  The teacher would have to match instruction to the test, which can’t possibly measure the above.  So merit pay, a business model, will do two very important things – toss out the rejects and narrow the curriculum.  I guess it really comes down to:  do you want schools to be assembly lines of products churning out identical items and throwing away the rejects?  Or do you wish for your school to be one that only sees itself as a pathway, a place for processes and discoveries, a place that is hard to quantify but in pursuit of individual diversity that enriches, stabilizes and ambitiously pursues the wonder in a kindergartner’s eyes?  For teachers, it isn’t that they don’t want more pay – it is just that they understand the ramifications of trying to imprint Henry Ford’s ideas on a third grade science class.  It will not work.  Schools are a mass of variables, more complex than any business could ever dream of being.  A business plan, even business ideas, coexist barely in this chaos called school.  And one thing we can never, ever do is substitute efficiency for effectiveness.  No matter how messy, no matter how disorganized at times – that is learning.  Learning is not efficient.  Learning does not punch a time clock.  Learning does not have tangible properties.  We can either respect this, trust that the teachers are doing their best to help every student find what they need – or, we can promote a business model that only serves a few, and destroys the possibility for so many.  The next time a politician or a newspaper or a pundit waves a business idea for education in the air bashing teachers and calling all schools failing, remember the pizza factory and you decide if that is what you want for your children.  I don’t know about you, but if my son doesn’t have enough sauce, I hope a teacher will not toss him in the reject bin.  I hope that teacher will show him where he can get all the sauce and cheese and toppings he needs, and he can pick the kind of pizza he wants to be.

Traffic around the school is always a concern and problem.  Please remind your sons and daughters to take it easy on the roads.  In the past two weeks, we have had to report individual license plates to the local authorities for reckless driving around school.  It is a big responsibility and it will take just one mistake to ruin several lives.  As the weather becomes colder and more treacherous, time to even take more care. 

Parent/Principal Connection (PPC) will meet tomorrow night at 7:00 in the commons at the High School.  Hope you can make it.

Career Cruising, a topic written of before in this post, was completed by all TAP groups last week.  All students at Harrisburg are asked to take the "Matchmaker" survey which will create a possible list of job opportunities, matched to post-secondary and/or careers.  The Argus Leader spotlighted some Sioux Falls students working on this program last week.  We are proud to have a school that is pro-active in helping all students establish future goals.  As parents, you can access this site to see how your son or daughter is doing in the program.  Just call or email to Mr. Schmidt or Mrs. Kooima for a password.

Teacher standards have been written for 35 states.  South Dakota is not one of those.  Hence, a committee was formed, at the behest of the legislature to work on these standards with the ultimate result of a format for consistent teacher evaluation.  I serve on this committee as one of two principals, along with community members, Board members, teachers, etc.  It is great work and I think the benefits will be many for South Dakota education in the years to come.

Senior projects began on Friday.  Seniors will be creating their proposals in the next three weeks.  Beginning their service or refining service they have already participated in following that, then working on their paper and presentation next semester.  If you need any further information, please don't hesitate to call or write.

Jim Valvano, the legendary coach of North Carolina State who died of cancer, said in his last public appearance that a perfect day is when you think, laugh and cry.  As he said, "That is a heckuva day."  Every day is one of those days for me at Harrisburg, and Friday was particularly poignant.  Laughing with students all day as they anticipated their weekend.  Thinking as an inherent part of the job.  And, early in the AM, being surprised by our staff with a gift for Boss' Day.  My first thought was, "You know, I have been here like five weeks and some of you have been on the job for 35 years, what makes you think I deserve anything?"  But this is how it is in Harrisburg, people care so much that they want to find ways to celebrate all the time.  Since I have been in this place, every day, some one has made an attempt or several to make me feel part and welcome.  Every day.  As I tried to choke the tears and issue some fitting thank you to this incredible staff - not many words came and those that did were so beneath what I wish I could conjure in gratitude.  Just another symbol of the nature of this time and these people - so full of wanting to give, they know no other way.  So I just wish them and all of you, what Coach V. said, I hope every day you think, get to laugh and get to cry.  You have given me so much so fast, I don't know how I will ever repay.  But I will do my best to try.  Thanks to all of you.

Events at Harrisburg High School

Monday - 6:30 PM - JV Football - Home - Roosevelt

                 7:00 -  PPC - High School Commons

Tuesday - FFA National Convention - Indianapolis

                 2:00 - Extra Help announced - Final list of quarter

                 4:00 - After School Novice Interp - Sioux Falls

                 5:00 - Volleyball - Home - Tri-Valley

Wednesday - FFA National Convention

                      3:00-3:30 - Extra Help

                      7:30 - Tiger Nation Meeting

Thursday - 3:00-3:30 - Extra Help

                 4:00 - After School Novice Interp - Sioux Falls

                 4:30 - FFA Chili Feed

               Dakota Valley vs. Tea Area (5:15pm kickoff)

          Gates open for ticket sales at 4:15

         Dell Rapids vs. Harrisburg (7:45pm kickoff approximately)
        Ticket sales for Harrisburg game will begin at 6:30pm
         Parents of Harrisburg Senior Football Players & Senior Cheerleaders will be
        recognized during starting lineups of 2nd game.
           Tickets purchased for the Dakota Valley/Tea Area game will be honored for
            the Dell Rapids/Harrisburg game.  Admission prices are $5 for Adults and $3  for Students.

Friday - END OF FIRST QUARTER

            FFA National Convention

            5:00 - Volleyball at Lennox

Saturday - 8:00 AM - Saturday School

           8:00 AM - Oral Interp. Sioux Falls

           9:00 - JV Volleyball at Elk Point

           1:30 - Cross Country State Meet - Huron

            

465 points of light...

Doing the right thing cannot be overstated.  A normal week at Harrisburg High School with the labyrinth of procedure and regulation deemed obligatory to govern the business of education, necessitates the stereotypical "trip to the office".  Any given day, behavior issues can dot an office schedule or fill it.  An atypical day, upsetting the norm, generally produces more turbulence and common usurping of school rule.  So -  when Mr. Rollinger was duty-bound in another part of the building, it was time to clear my schedule in anticipation of ombudsmanship for the complications of teen life that was sure to come my way. But... the crickets chirped in the office.  Like the old Maytag repairman, there was just nothing to fix.  A day of kids dressed, auctioned-students doing who knows what, the excitement and suckers of Homecoming, and all that goes with it...yet, NOT ONE OFFICE REFERRAL?  It startled me and should not have...32 school days on this job, a few more in employment, and... one precipitous day that should make every parent of every Harrisburg student provide whatever is your standard means of showing your pride, approval and redress of each of your sons and daughters.  They make doing the right thing so universal it becomes the ordinary.  They deserve your overt pleasure at their action - but even more than that, they deserve your trust and the respect of the young adults they show themselves to be.   So, 465 of them came to school on a Thursday, and not one of them made a poor decision.  Where else can that happen?  Nowhere.

465 points of light all week.  At Coronation, ten honored royalty members, spying our hearing- and vision-impaired student in the corner by himself and all ten walking over to have a conversation with him.  On Tuesday at the auction, good-natured ribbing of all the auction-ees and the assistance of seniors to freshman all day in conversation and action.  Uninhibited displays of student talent all week with spirited support of an entire student body at Mr. HHS and mini-olympics.  Hundreds of thank you's and thousands of smiles.  Great weather and loud cheering at parades and under the lights.  A dance of fury and fun and "I See You" from the Avatar thing, I have to figure out, I guess.  And at the end of this week - a Homecoming Queen dancing with a freshman who had never danced a dance in his life - something not only he will never forget, but something that will carry him just a little farther than he ever imagined.  465 points of light.  They will blind us if we let them.  How about we let them?

They call her "Rebbie" and somehow she landed here.  Lucky for us...all week long, I just kept asking myself,  "..where would we be without her?"  And, now, even though it is not immediate, I can't help thinking, "...how can we ever replace her?"  With so much care and undying devotion to student and school, she prepares and prods and produces a week so incredibly orchestrated, so positive in culture and so influencing of our students taking heavy measures of pride in this school.  The model she presents of hard work and patience and continued sensitivity to every student, even as we get bigger and bigger...she leaves her students breathless, her colleagues thankful, her community the better for her presence and work.  It was 12:18 on a Friday night(Saturday morning), and the students she leads flew to her like the moth to the flame after helping clean up the school at the end of an extraordinary but exhausting week, and yet they did not look fatigued as their leader addressed them. They looked as they always do when around her, uplifted by some magic wind.   She told them how much they meant to her, how much they had done for the school and so many.  And as she spoke, unconsciously they moved closer and nearer to her - demonstrative respect, admiration, pure faith in this veteran English instructor and staff leader and indispensable part of our kids' lives.  We need so many Mrs. Rebnord's and yet there is only one.  I don't want to think any more of the vacuum she will leave when she decides it is time to explore much deserved other things, we just need to be so grateful and stand in humble awe of her effort and transforming success.  Like those students after the dance, I stand continually transfixed...admiring a teacher immortal in all she has touched.  I can't call her "Rebbie", it doesn't fit my antiquated sense of value, but all you have to do is hear the affection and deference in that word from any colleague, student now or student past, and you know you are in the shadow of greatness, a life built without pretense or a single care that is not directed to another.  It was superhero week, Mrs. Rebnord.  And a fitting end to the week, at 12:30 AM, at the end of the week, the real superhero was the last one to walk out of the building.

PS - Mrs. Rebnord - "Nice Bike."


Bryce's Schroeder's family understands the pain of tragedy and the miracles that can make us stronger.  Below is a poignant thank you from the Schroeder family.

The Odds Are….

The Odds Are… You will never be notified that your 13 year old son was involved in a motor vehicle accident and suffered traumatic brain injuries, and that your 15 year old son was driving the car.  You will probably never have a doctor look you and your wife in your eyes and state that he does not expect your 13 year old son to live.  You will never hear how your 15 year old son held his brother in his arms until the EMT’s arrived, and later find out that his actions were very instrumental in his brother’s survival.

The Odds Are…You will never have a group of friends step up and support you and your family in so many ways that you cannot begin to list all their good deeds.  You will never know how so many friends where with you within minutes, not hours, of the accident and spent nights and weeks with you and your family.

The Odds Are…You will never have a Poker Run, a rummage sale, a free will offering, a silent auction, all put on for the benefit of your son.  You will never be a part of a school district where the teachers, administration, coaching staff and the student body helped raise funds along with local business to help support your family while your wife is on a leave of absence. You will never receive anonymous gift cards, support cards, and other donations from people you will you never meet.

The Odds Are…You will not be on a first name bases with an amazing group of medical staff, including nurses, neurologist, therapists, surgeons, and other specialists.  You will never understand and appreciate the quality of our local volunteer EMT’s and how their actions literally helped save your son’s live.  You will never work for an employer whose understanding management enabled a father to work from his son’s hospital bedside for weeks.

The Odds Are…You will never hear about the wonderful actions of this amazing community and its people in any media outlet.  You will never be as humbled as our family has been over the past months with the unwavering caring and support that Harrisburg and the surrounding communities has brought to us.

The Odds Are… We will never be able to thank each and every one of you for all that you have done for our family.  Lately however…we like defying the odds!!!!

Thank you!!!

The Schroeder’s

 Life on the berm is odd and wonderful.  Middle School kids doing what adolescents have to do, moving in packs and flipping glances at the other gender, pushing a friend around a bit, bursts of energy and wide-eyed astonishment at what someone is wearing or saying.  Mid-elementary kids tentatively talking and still anxiously looking around for affirmation and their parents.   Cheering after a play when they are aware, staring in awe when they are not.  Toddlers taking shaky step, rolling around and away, climbing and clinging and crying.  It is quite a night on the berm.  At Harrisburg football games, the administrative team regulates the berms and all of that activity.  Last week, the poll question asked readers to respond - whether students should be allowed to play and run and tackle, etc. at activities.  Sixty percent no, 40 percent yes.  As I admitted last week, I love letting the kids play - it is part of a rite of passage for us.  But, we just can't do it at Harrisburg.  With over 2200 students, 1700 hundred of them middle school and lower, we just don't have the capacity to keep them all safe.  In just a few years we will be 2500-3000 students.  We are becoming one of the largest schools in the state.   Last night, a fifth grader walked by me covered in blood.  I mentioned last week the young man that almost fell 20 feet to the track and the young man who lost a kidney at one of our conference schools.  The reality is this:  something terrible is going to happen and we are all going to wonder why we didn't do something.  So we have.  The playing and running just have to cease and parents, I need your help.  Thanks so much to all of you who did help last night.  Thanks to Mr. Holbeck for his considerate messages.  Thanks to Mr. Brown for getting the signs and to all the administrators for helping regulate.  We just have to...as much as my nostalgia of my own youth whims for the old days of "kill the carrier" and dreams of being on the big field by playing next to it on Friday nights...we just can't do it any more.  The days of small crowds where everyone knows your name, they are gone.  As much as I would like to stop time and watch my third-grade son learning the toughness and confidence gained in scoring a touchdown in the shadows just past the end zones - it is over.  We just can't.   If there is another solution, don't hesitate to write or call.  But for now, respect the signs and keep our kids safe and unharmed.

Reminder...Parent/Principal Community  forum at the high school commons, Monday, Oct. 18th - 7:00 PM.

Events at Harrisburg High this week....

Monday - no school

                 4:15 - JV football vs. Vermillion - Home

Tuesday - No school for students - In-service for teachers and some staff

                 4:00 - Quiz Bowl at Brookings

                 5:00 - Volleyball vs. Dell Rapids - Home

Wednesday - SENIORS - cap and gown ordering - lunch 

                      6:30 - School Board Meeting - Liberty 

Thursday - 2:30 - SSR and TAP

                  4:00 - Novice Oral Interp. at Sioux Falls

                  4:15 - 9th football at Lincoln

                  5:00 - Volleyball vs. West Central - Home

Friday - 2:30 - SSR and TAP

                  3:00 - Region Cross Country at Lennox

                  7:00 - Football at Luverne, MN

Saturday - 8:00 AM - Saturday School

                 8:00 - Oral Interp. at Sioux Falls

                 4:00 - Volleyball vs. Garretson - Home


EIGHT SCHOOL DAYS UNTIL THE END OF THE QUARTER!!!!!!!  Check your grades!!!!!

Teachers make it happen....

Teacher’s tenuous tasks involve the incredibly complex work of trying to avoid frustration, yet compel self-motivation.  To do this, a teacher has to continually evaluate exactly where a student is, where they can go and what they can use to get there.  And they must do this for 15-25 students all at once every second of every day.  Because of this impossible job, teachers never reach their goal.  There is never an ending to the pursuit.  There is never a moment when a teacher can stop and say, “It is done.”  Teachers do stand back once in awhile during the artificial segments we create.  The end of a period, the end of a day, the end of a quarter, semester, year, graduation…and when they do, for a very brief time, they can take stock and try to make sense of it, try to feel that progress can be and has been made.  But mostly, teachers just keep on – with a complete dissonance of time, task and worth.  Can you imagine living like that?  In a society that rewards product, teachers cannot define product.  In a society that lives on a balance sheet, teachers live in a world without even momentary balance let alone a fiscal year.  So, we try to quantify education, we try to sound-bite it into something that can be generally compared and conceived.  But it cannot be done,  the variability and vulnerability of each second confounds any experimental research to a chapter of limitations that dismiss the research as invalid.  Even the simplest education scenarios are so completely confusing to understand, we can only ever see the product and have no inkling of how it arrived.  And yet, teachers do this job with patience, with perseverance, and with humor and wonder.  They do it while maintaining sanity, decorum, ambition and ideals.  They do it with humor, sincerity and enthusiasm.  The burden of this job would crush some.  The giant weight of this work would frighten most into stress and retreat.  But they do it with grace and courage and humility.  Mr. Rollinger and I completed the first round of observations and evaluations of teachers this past week.  Above is reference to all teachers.  But Harrisburg's teachers are even more than all of the above as I consider them the very best.  After watching them at work this past week, in random drop-ins to their rooms, it is astounding the quality of influence they extend to our students.   I hope you find the time to say a thank you to a teacher that they likely will not accept any way.  I hope you find time to and continue to support their toil and effort at home.  I hope you realize that these professionals are the underpinning of all we hope for and are.  We have the greatest system of education in the history of man and as it continues to evolve, be a proud participant in the process.  Never stop thanking and never stop thinking.  

Career Cruising is a free state-provided program that Harrisburg School uses to assist students in identifying future possibilities.  This week and in future weeks our students participated, or will participate in a “matchmaker” program that lists jobs according to a 40 to 115-question survey.  Students then select one or two and investigate the opportunity more closely, looking at required education, salary, etc.  This will lead students to think in terms of what they may like to attempt for class choices.  We are moving toward each student’s personal learning plan(PLP), which will allow students insight into clusters of employment and life choices.  This can be accessed from home.  Ask your son or daughter to show you what they have done.  Ask our counselors for your user name and password if you wish to take a look.  Simply email Susan.kooima@k12.sd.us or Lyle.Schmidt@k12.sd.us for a username and password.  Ten tap groups began Thursday, 8-10 more will participate this Thursday and we will continue until all have this opportunity.

Texting and driving kills.  This past week, there were at least two instances I know of, one fatality and one near fatality directly related to the use of cell phones while driving.  Friday afternoon, two of our students Andrea Schoewe and Jessica Galinanes, as part of their FCCLA project, organized a "mock" crash in our parking lot.  Local law enforcement, medical staff and EMT personnel, and even our local undertaker were present to add authenticity to the event.  It was a "scared straight" kind of experience that seemed to really hit home with our students and staff.  Thanks to all who participated and to Jessica and Andrea for raising our level of consciousness about this very preventable type of tragedy.

Early release Wednesday focused high school staff on Professional Learning Communities(PLC's).   This idea has gained much momentum in the past several years as we continue to focus on results and on the learner.  The practice is founded in the belief that the experts are among us, that if given the chance, our own staff can act on the best practices they already know work with their own collaborative efforts.   Utilizing the research of Richard DuFour and Mike Schmoker, Harrisburg High will move forward with candid leadership and self-managing teams of teachers.  Harrisburg High understands that the number one factor for academic achievement is instruction.  Mortimore and Sammons(1987) found that teaching has 10 times the impact on achievement than all other factors combined.  Marzano(2003) shows that teaching is the life-changing difference in numerous studies.  William Sanders found that just three years of effective teaching account for 50 percentile points of testing improvement.  Hanushek(2005) underscored the incredible gains and lasting gains of five years of above-average instruction.  With due respect to former President Clinton, "It's about teaching, stupid."    Researcher after researcher conclude that improved classroom instruction is the prime factor of student achievement.  So, these professional learning communities will begin to examine and form a consensus, first of philosophy of mission, and then real change in instructional delivery.  Two things frame this opportunity for Harrisburg High to go from very good to great:

1.  Instruction has the largest influence on achievement.

2.  Despite our best intentions, much instruction is not as effective as it could be but can improve significantly and swiftly through ordinary and accessible arrangements among teachers and administration.

To this end - we will investigate four things:

Literacy - students read and write only a fraction of what they need to think critically and to write effectively(Allington, 2001: Graff, 2003; Olson, 2005) - One program already in place is SSR and the accountability added this year.

Curriculum - Matched and coherent curriculum that gives priority to agreed upon purposes must be a priority(Popham, 2004: Hess, 2004) - This will be examined at length in the coming months.

Instructional supervision  - Consistent and purposeful evaluation with response from instructors and plans for growth can lead to startling increase in learning(Elmore, 2000; Marzano, 2003).  -  Drop-ins and formal evaluation is and will continue to be learner-based and topical to refining and improving instruction.

Teamwork and Professional Learning Communities - Despite the universal agreement that teaming is incredibly important to improvement, teachers are not given opportunity to work in teams, develop lessons and assessments together or examine assessment results - this has got to change(Wagner, 2004:  Schmoker, 2005).

Dr. Deb DeBates of SDSU helped us get started at our early release.  Now it is time to do the work.  October 12's in-service will be a continuation of that effort.

This scrutiny of who we are and who we could be is not without discomfort.  Not without difficulty.  But it would be criminal to stand on the possibility, opportunity and on the brink of greatness, and not try.  I will keep you updated on our progress.

Fellowship of Christian Athletes meets periodically throughout the school year.  Coaching leaders are Mr. LeLoux, Mr. Stoebner, Mr. White, Mr. Langerock and others.  Coach Bob Young, the legendary retired leader of the University of Sioux Falls football program, spoke with coaches last week.  His inspiration and true goodness create such enthusiasm for just doing the right thing.  My personal life has been shadowed so many times by those like Coach Young who passionately provide us with a model of how much we can be.  The "huddles" led by our students, teachers and coaches are another reach for the kindness and compassion we all have at our disposal.  The meetings are very early in the morning, and, of course voluntary - we encourage any student or staff member to attend.  A simple way to walk a path filled with the confidence of treating our fellow man with respect and love.

Bracelets urging our assistance and awareness of the terrible affliction of breast cancer were in the news for several weeks.  In most of our surrounding communities, these bracelets, with good message intention, but perhaps a bit discomforting in their overt symbolism, were subsequently banned.  In Sioux Falls, any student wearing such a bracelet has it removed and destroyed.  I am certain other schools are making a statement of lack of empathy for the cause, however, there are some students who display the bracelet not in support but as a way to show off their misguided individualism.  I am sure those who have had to share or suffer so much pain to this dastardly disease, do not support those who wear it more for the show than the cause.  So, Harrisburg came up with a fair compromise.  Students may wear the bracelets, as long as the anatomy depiction is turned inside.  Students can show their support without the distraction.  It is a good compromise and we are one of the few schools to allow this.  Please show respect for our school environment and at the same time the passion for the cause by following the policy.  Harrisburg High completely supports erasing this  deadly and crippling disease.  But we won't enable those who simply want to create humor in your cause by flashing these symbols in disrespect.

Homecoming comes once a year - this year's theme is "Once upon a Fantasy".  

Monday - Make a Superhero Day - dress up as a superhero

Tuesday - Dynamic Duo Day - Dress up as a superhero tandem

Wednesday - Magical Madness Day - Dress up in connection to magic

Thursday - Generation Day - Fresh and Sophs dress like babies, Jr. and Sr. like elders - Teachers like teenagers

Friday - School Spirit day and Mr. HHS Day

Also Monday - Coronation in the large theater at 8:00 PM.

Friday - Dismissal at 11:35

   Parade begins from the Middle School at 1:30 with  pep rally at the middle school parking lot following the parade. (The route is at the bottom of this blog).

    Game vs. Vermillion at 7:00

If you have any questions about any of the festivities - please call the office at 743-2567.

Study halls are NOT going away.  However, they will become more scarce in the future and gauged more with student learning in mind and less with a filler in a student's schedule.  There are students who need these study halls with the intense pressure they have on their time.  In particular those who must work and those involved in several activities.  Some students make terrific use of this time, others make zero use and it is a serious waste of resource, personnel and taxpayer money, to be frank.  There will be a common study hall for all.  This will enable students to see teachers if they need assistance.  There will still be some study halls sprinkled about the day for those in need.  They will never entirely go away, but the number and utilization of them at this time is counter-productive to improved learning.  That is the long and short of it.  We are here to assist learning.  We will.

A student lost a kidney at a football game at Dakota Valley.  Did it happen to one of the players on the field?  Did it happen in an accident in the parking lot?  Did the student fall from the bleachers?  NO.  It was some elementary students playing football.  All across South Dakota and likely everywhere, one of the favorite Friday night past times is to have the parents standing around watching the game while their elementary and junior high children go wild at a football game.  Fights.  Kill the carrier.  Full-fledged games.  Tag.  It is chaos.  I must admit, I like it.  My son played all the time at my past location, as did my daughter.  I played until I became a football manager as a 4th grader and then I missed those nights.  Most fields have some wide open areas where this happens.  And the incident at Dakota Valley - obviously the exception - but now it is real and they are being sued.  I wrote to my administrative colleagues on this part of the state to find out their policies and ideas.  Most admitted it was like herding cats.  No matter what you attempt, because it is tradition, and most parents see it as a rite of passage and encourage it, it is going to go on.   However, it just can't at Harrisburg.  We have too many places for students to get seriously injured.  At the Tiger Bowl, after I just had asked some kids to stop running down the berms, there goes another, hit the fence, teetered on the top, and barely caught himself before falling 20 feet to the cement below.  Had he fallen, we would likely be talking about something else here.  But we need to prevent it:  NOW.  Signs will be posted in the upcoming weeks.  Superintendent Holbeck will make an announcement before our game Friday.  We simply do not have the facility to allow all the rolling, running, wrestling and tackling.  It has to stop.  We are going to have to start taking action, and some of that may include asking those who do not sit or stand and watch the game - asking them to leave.  I have to admit I am very conflicted about this - I love to watch kids run and play and have a great time.  Unfortunately, we just cannot do it at our facility.  It does not work.  And someone is going to be severely injured.  Please help us keep this under control.  We don't want to exclude anyone, and we want it to always be an enjoyable activity.  But we just don't have the place for the kids to play.  Thanks in advance for helping.  And, any suggestions would be appreciated and will be considered.

Parent/Principal Connection(PPC) started last Wednesday night.  Great quality, not a big crowd, but excellent in conversation and great questions.  I will try to move this night around so more may attend.  We will meet once per month.  This month, it is scheduled for Monday, October 18th at 7:00 PM in the commons.   I hope you can attend.   And thanks to those who made it last week.

Events this week in Harrisburg...

Monday - FCCLA Leadership Retreat - Rapid City

                State Boys' Golf Meet - Rapid City 

                4:30 - JV football at Madison

                Homecoming - Coronation rehearsal - first period

                  Make a SuperHero Day

                  8:00 Coronation - Large Theater

Tuesday - Boys' State Golf Meet - Rapid City

                 8:00 AM - Senior Class Meeting

                 4:00 - After School Novice Interp. - Sioux Falls

                 5:00 - Volleyball - HOME - vs. Elk Point

                   Homecoming - 6th and 7th period - Student Worker Auction - Large Theater

                     Dynamic Duo Day

Wednesday - Homecoming

                         Magical Madness Day

                         Sucker Day

                          Student Council out first and second period in all schools

Thursday - State Soccer Tournament - Mitchell

                   4:00 - Big 8 Cross Country Meet - Lennox

                   4:15 - Ninth football - Home - Madison

                   5:00 - Volleyball - Home - Dakota Valley

                      Homecoming -  Generation Day

                         Royalty introduced during volleyball game

Friday - State Soccer Tournament - Mitchell

                  11:35 - Early Release

                       Homecoming - School Spirit Day

                         First Period - All students report for attendance

                           Mr. HHS competition - Large Theater

                           Mini-Olympics

                    1:30 - Parade - Middle School

                         Pep Rally - follows parade at Middle School

                      7:00 - Football vs. Vermillion

         Have a great week.

Kevin