Message from the Superintendent

In the Maple Heights City Schools we strive to build and sup-port learning environments where every student’s unique assets, skills and qualities are recognized, valued and developed. In this edi-tion of the Community Connec-tions, we are proud to highlight a few examples of how that takes place in the District at each school building in a variety of ways. From post-secondary coursework at our high school and STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) opportunities for all stu-dents, to programs which help stu-dents learn to “dress for success” and create positive messages through “bucket fillers,” all of our students have many opportunities to showcase their abilities to their fullest extent. I hope you enjoy reading this edition, and thank you for your continued support of our students, parents and staff.

Community Connection

Maple Heights City Schools

Board of Education

5740 Lawn Avenue

Maple Heights, Ohio 44137-1023

Board of Education

Pamela D. Crews, President

Dale Walter, Vice President

Robert F. Dober

Rosalind Moore

Mustang Fall Sports Update

Football This season has gone very well. Each week the team, led by Coach Devlin

Culliver, gives great effor t trying to earn a playoff bir th. Senior captains,

Tristen Battle-Hardy, Kierre Hawkins, Brian Lumbus, Armond Brown, and

Derrick Brumfield lead the Mustangs into the final weeks of our season.

Volleyball The team finished its season with a 17-6 record. Winning their seventh con-

secutive Lake Erie League Championship, the Mustangs now have claimed

10 League Titles. They placed first in the Maple Heights Invitational Tournament

held in September. With no seniors on the squad, the team was led by junior mid-

dle hitter/blocker Ammaarah Williams and Taylor Brown who combined forces

for a total of 501 kills and 295 blocks during the regular season. Additionally,

juniors Bobbie Forte’ ran the offense with 530 setting assists, while Sydney

Dunn led the defense with 140 digs. The Mustangs send all their opponents a

message for the next season, “We’ll be BACK!”

Cross Country The girls and boys’ teams put in a lot of miles this season. Although junior

Sydney Angel was the only member of our gir ls team, she showed dedication

and grit and represented our team with class and grace all season and at the Dis-

trict Meet. Meanwhile, the boys team had 5 returning letter winners; Juniors

Jaylen Womack, Cory McGoughy, Adonis Pugh, Ronald Bright and Zion

Kristoff. Womack, our #1 runner and two time all LEL Conference, raced to

a best time of 18:27, and placed 5th at Districts while McGaughy, our #2 runner,

got his best time and was all LEL Conference with a 6th place finish. Pugh, also

LEL Conference, finished 10th. Team leader Bright had his best time at Districts

while Kristoff, also a district qualifier, filled out the top 7 for Varsity. The boys

team also included first year junior runners, Manny Lopez, Devon Cochran, and

Marcus Childress, and Sophomore Isaiah Thornton. Lopez was all LEL Con-

ference while Thornton achieved his best time at Districts. Cochran and Childress

were great additions and are part of the team’s great future potential. The boys’

finished 2nd in the LEL Conference and placed 11th at Districts.

For more information, visit our website at mapleschools.com or call 216.587.6100.

Contact Information

Abraham Lincoln School 6009 Dunham Road

216.438.6030

Dawn Besteder, Principal ext. 5001

Main Office ext. 5021

John F. Kennedy School 5933 Dunham Road

216.438.6010

Zelina Pames, Principal ext. 6001

Main Office ext. 6003

Barack Obama School 5800 Glenwood Avenue

216.438.6020

Matthew Bryan, Principal ext. 4001

Main Office ext. 4003

Milkovich Middle School 19800 Stafford Avenue

216.438.6000

Frank Major, Principal ext. 2001

Valencia Thomas, A/P ext. 2011

Nick Kaliszewski, A/P ext. 2010

Main Office ext. 2002

Maple Heights High School 1 Mustang Way

216.438.6400

Aaron Newman, Principal ext. 1001

Main Office ext. 1018

Shay Price, F/A Principal ext. 1340

F/A Community Office ext. 1624

Robert McGruder, S2C Principal ext. 1320

S2C Community Office ext. 1026

Deanne Miklovic, A3 Principal ext. 1330

A3 Community Office ext. 1332

Athletic Director ext. 1320

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MAPLE HEIGHTS, OHIO 44137

Fall 2015 Edition

Dress for Success at Milkovich Middle School

A “Dress for Success” type store for kids who demonstrate a need for clothes, shoes, back packs and school supplies is open for students at Milkovich Middle School. The M3 classes who have Mrs. Vann and Mrs. Sherman have worked hard to collect, sort, hang and fold donations of new and gently used clothing and shoes to pro-vide them to our students in need so that their main focus can always remain on learn-ing. The students got the idea after the teachers brought back treasures from the Cleve-land Kids in Need store and began distributing those items in class. The students are nominated to shop by staff members anonymously and are allowed to shop private-ly with one teacher present. The students who have shopped so far are grateful and hap-py with their new outfits and book bags. The students involved in setting up the experi-ence have also been tasked with writing thank you notes to the donors and are proud to be giving back to other students to make Milkovich a learning centered environment.

High School Post-Secondary Partnership with Ashland University

We currently have 16 high-

achieving seniors enrolled in the Post-Secondary program with Ashland University. This program exposes college-bound seniors to college-

level coursework while still in high school. It prepares these scholars for the rigor and demands of college while providing additional supports to ensure this is a successful experi-ence for each participating student. During the first semester, students take Composition 1 and Psychology. The second semester will consist of Composition 2 and Philosophy.

Participating students take a total of 4 college classes taught by Ashland University professors on site at the high school. Each class is 3 credits with students receiving a total of 12 college credits by the end of the school year. These credits are transferable to any public and most private colleges in the State of Ohio. Students will also take “exposure” trips to Ashland’s main campus to become better acquainted with all as-pects of campus life. Many students have already expressed interest in matriculating to Ashland for college and it is the hope of administration at both schools that such aspira-tions come to fruition.

Superintendent, Charlie Keenan

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Be A Bucket Filler Like Lincoln School

Everyone is a Bucket Fillers at Abraham Lincoln School. The idea of bucket filling is based on the book “How Full is Your Buck-et? For Kids” by Tom Rath and Mary Reckmeyer. The lesson for students is we all carry an invisible bucket that contains our feelings. The book explains how a Bucket Filler is someone who says or does nice things for other people. By doing this, they are filling other people’s buckets and at the same time filling their own bucket.

At Lincoln School we fill buckets by following school and classroom rules, showing respect and kindness, helping others, shar-ing, being nice and caring, and so much more. When students are caught being a Bucket Filler they receive a “drop” or pompom to place in their personal bucket. When their bucket is full they re-ceive a reward. Additionally, each classroom has its own bucket. The students work as a team to fill the classroom bucket. When the class-room bucket is full, the entire class receives a reward. Finally, there is an office bucket. Each class dumps its classroom bucket into the office bucket. When the office bucket is full, students will receive a school-wide reward.

Being a Bucket Filler is a con-cept that we hope the students will carry with them when they leave Abraham Lincoln School. So when your child comes home from school each day, ask them, “Have you filled someone’s bucket today?”

STEM in the Schools have Students Engaged 6th Graders take part in “Genius Hour” Students in Mrs. Braaten’s sixth grade class are participating in a learning activity called "Genius Hour". The practice of genius hour comes from Fortune 500 Companies such as Google and Apple where they put their top minds in a room, give them a problem, and they are to come up with the most creative solution they can to the problem. Mrs. Braaten has adapted this practice to her own classroom and utilized it as a writing, presentation, and research activity.

Students spend an extended period of time within their language arts block working together as "pods" or teams to come up with highly creative and innova-tive solutions to real-world problems that they are interested in researching and de-veloping solutions for. This activity changes the way traditional language arts is taught and integrates STEM principles into the block for students to strive towards excellence and extend their thinking!

JFK’s Language Arts STEM Project

At John F. Kennedy Elementary School students receiving pull-out services are integrating reading and language arts with weekly STEM projects. Students were divided into multiple groups based on similar reading levels. They then read through leveled passages with differing structure and difficulty, but covering the same information. The students then worked through filling out graphic organizers about the material they read. The difficulty of the organizer, and the level of teach-er assistance, was based on the students’ individual needs and skills.

When the graphic organizers were finished, the students then began working on the STEM project. They broke into groups of two or three, using materials se-lected by the teacher, to make a device that would allow them to bob for apples. Since the experiment was to be completed during class, it needed to be done with-out having to put their faces in the water. The actual construction of the bobbers was a two-day project, with the majority of the design phase and construction of the apparatus being done on the first day. The finishing touches, and application of their creations are handled on day two.

Obama School Students Design Airplanes

Students at Barack Obama School completed an engineering STEM activ-ity where they had to design, test, and redesign an airplane and to see whose airplane would travel the furthest. Stu-dents talked about Newton's Laws and had to think about what they had learned when designing their airplane.

Additionally, there was a math connection which included measuring the dis-tance traveled, converting the measurements from yards to feet and inches, and then back to yards. Students concluded the activity with a reflection component where students had to reflect on why their airplane performed the way that it did and how it could be improved if they participated in the activity again.

Obama School’s Summer Reading Students celebrated for completing program

Barack Obama School celebrated stu-dents who completed requirements for the Summer Reading Program. The reading pro-gram required students to read and complete various activities relating to the story they se-lected. The Summer Reading Program illus-trated the importance of reading year-round, and students and parents acknowledged that it was a deep and enriching activity. Congratula-tions to our students who completed the Sum-mer Reading Program!

New Science Curriculum Promotes hands-on learning at Lincoln

Abraham Lincoln School adopted a new science curriculum this year for kindergarten and first grade stu-dents. The goal is to make learning hands-on and engag-ing for students. Right now in first grade science, it is all about ants. Students are learning that all living things have basic needs, which are met by obtaining materials from the physical environment. Each class received its very own ant farm to further explore this concept.

In addition, students are busy exploring the many sources of food and water in an animal’s habitat. They are learning the different reasons that animals need shel-ter and space, and they are matching plants and animals with the environment that they would be found. This unit also includes a class fish bowl and water plants and the use of a pumpkin to complete various activities. When the students are finished with this unit they will have a few classroom pets to observe for the rest of the year.

High School Chosen to Participate In Kent State’s College Bound Initiative

Maple Heights High School was one of the few schools chosen to participate in the Kent State College Bound Initiative (CBI). Thirty-one students, who were selected by guidance counselors, administration, and athletic coaches, meet twice a month. The first meeting is as a group to discuss various topics such as selecting the right college, financial aid, scholarships, and out of state fees; while the second meeting is a one on one with the Kent State program counselor to discuss student issues or to answer questions. At the end of the program, students will take a 2-day visit to KSU where they will shadow students, meet with professors, at-tend a luncheon and complete a hands-on task, such as making a video about the program.

The CBI program ties into the District’s new vision statement, educat-ing our students, through expectations of excellence to prepare them for success. The CBI program will help prepare those junior students for col-lege as they will become familiar with the process of selecting a college and challenges they may face when preparing for college.

Family Fun Night Hosted by JFK School

John F. Kennedy School

strengthened the bond between the

school’s stakeholders, with its

family fun night, that took place at

Chuck E. Cheese in Mayfield on

October 6. The official event did

not start until 6 p.m., however

Mrs. Pames got things star ted

earlier in the day by having Chuck

E. visit the students and staff

while school was in. The fun cen-

ter mascot visited classrooms and

took pictures with students to raise

awareness about the night’s festiv-

ities. That evening, parents and

students alike arrived at Chuck E.

Cheese to enjoy a night of games,

play, and relationship building

with the JFK staff.