Friday, October 12, 2018--Issue #22
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Pierz Schools Breaks Ground!
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Last spring, the voters in Pierz School District approved a referendum to support additional classroom space, physical education space, a new band room and expanded kitchen and cafeteria for our students and community.
Our schools and community are thankful for many of you who have done “heavy lifting” to make our communities and our school system an excellent place to experience your K-12 Education and an excellence place to raise a safe and supported family. The process for defining the greatest need, and the process for targeting our resources and investments toward what matters most to deliver academic success involved many meetings and input from community members and a comprehensive survey to seek the opinions of all community members. Our staff, students and young families are thankful for those responses and thankful for your willingness to help them continue the Pierz Pioneer traditions.
See the new plan here
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Vocational speakers for sophomores
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During Ramp Up this week, Healy sophomores listened to presentations from Melissa Scherer of RTVision on technology careers; Chief Deputy Jason Worlie from Morrison County on law enforcement careers; and Mike Solinger from Unity Bank on careers in finance. The speakers talked to the tenth graders about requirements for working at their companies. The most important qualities: being trustworthy, the desire to learn and the ability to communicate!
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Courage Retreat brings together youth and schools
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Above: Sophomore and Junior Peer Helpers with Youth Frontiers saying "hello" to the 8th graders with high fives.
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saac Otte, a Junior, had an idea last year and with help of Adam Funk, Simon Gruber, Cody Kimman, Peter Schomer, Brandon Stuckmayer, Zach Yanta, and Mason Zajac they organized the Courage Retreat presented by Youth Frontiers, Inc., an organization that
partners with schools to build positive communities where students can thrive socially, emotionally and academically. Their vision is to change the way young people treat each other in every hallway, lunch line and classroom of every school in America so that today’s young people can make tomorrow’s world better.
Staff from Youth Frontiers, the eight organizers and 35 Peer Helpers met at Holy Trinity on Thursday with the entire 8th grade class. Each of the eight leaders had a different reason for wanting to be involved but agreed that it was important to build relationships and work toward an atmosphere that welcomed all students.
Peer Helping at Healy is about helping other students with a wide variety of things from homework help to social skills to a friend in need. Peer Helpers are there for students by choice, meaning they want to help out students in their school community. Some of the duties a peer helper has are guidance for students, a friend in need, homework help, and working on skills, student interaction, and many more. To see more about Youth Frontiers,
click here.
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**Meet the Team**
(Find out what makes Pierz Schools so successful--our employees!)
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Joel Pohland, Healy Band Director
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Hi! I’m Joel Pohland, Band Director at Healy High School. I grew up in Glencoe, MN and attended Glencoe-Silver Lake High School before moving to Iowa my senior year and graduating from Western Dubuque High School.
I spent a year at the (quiet and cold!) Canadian border town before interviewing and committing to the vision of Pierz Schools. I fell in love with vision of this district and what they wanted in the music department. Diane Hauan sold me on the students’ willingness to learn and wanting to be the best, and I knew I wanted to be a part of a program like that.
The best part of teaching in Pierz is the support I receive from the staff and the community. It is incredible how much everyone gets behind what you are doing.
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Carl Mathwig, Pioneer Band Director
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Hi! I’m Carl Mathwig, and I teach beginning band at Pioneer Elementary and help out with all of the musical opportunities in Pierz.
While I was traveling this summer on a church music trip, I received a message from Mr. Pohland telling me about an amazing teaching opportunity that would be available in Pierz. This was exciting news because I have known Mr. Pohland since we were both in high school: his older brother was actually my high school band director! After coming to Pierz and getting to speak with the teachers here, their passion was evident and their vision was something that I had to be a part of. The energy and enthusiasm at Pierz Schools is contagious, and I am happy to be part of a team that is so invested in their students and their futures.
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Pioneer Elementary School News
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After learning about different elements from the periodic table, the 6th graders chose an element to bring to life. They had to Identify the 3 sub-atomic particles (protons, neutrons and electrons). They also had to learn what state of matter their element is at room temperature. The names of some of the elements pictured are: Iron, Krypton, Neptunium, Sulfur, and Gold. It was amazing to see all the creativity at bringing these atoms to life!
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Descriptive writing in sixth grade
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How important is it to be able describe something accurately? Sixth graders put their descriptive writing skills to the test. Students had to draw a monster and write a descriptive paragraph about their creation. In an entirely different classroom, a classmate had to read the paragraph and create the same monster by only reading the description. It was interesting to see the differences in creations!
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Fire prevention week brings students to the Pierz Fire Hall
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First graders visited the Pierz City Fire Hall during Fire Safety week to learn about fire prevention and ways to safely get out of their house if it were on fire. The volunteer firefighters put on their full gear to show children not to be afraid of them if they see them coming to rescue them. Students also got to tour the fire trucks, run the water hose, and ask all kinds of important questions of our firefighter volunteers!
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**Student Spotlight**
Featuring students in grades 5-12 selected by their teachers for being awesome humans.
We wish we could feature ALL our hard-working students!
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Nominated by Mr. Mathwig: "Gabe has been doing awesome in band, the day after he got his clarinet he came into school early to show Mr. Kruse & I what he had learned. Gabe also has been watching videos online to learn more about the clarinet, and he had some great ideas on how he could help out his classmates and make it easier for them to learn!" Keep up the great work, Gabe!
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Nominated by Mrs. Strohmeier: "Kloe is a fantastic student who comes to class prepared and ready to learn! She is kind, hardworking and is always giving 110%. She has a bright smile on her face and is friendly to all. Kloe is a joy to have in class! Keep up the excellent work and continue to have such a positive attitude! I truly appreciate it!"
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Essential Experience:
Start Living
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Our lives are filled with so many toxins...are you ready to detox your home and ditch some
of those products for something healthier? Start living above the wellness line! From waking
up excited and vibrant to improving your wellness and vitality, discover which essential oils are
for you! Come and learn how to identify and eliminate the most toxic products in our lives and
take a step toward being chemical-free using essential oils!
Instructor is Beth Kunstleben
Monday, October 22, 6:30pm
FACS room, High School
Deadline to register October 18
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Barn Quits -- October 25, 6:00pm
4 hour AARP -- October 30 5:30-9:30
Love and Logic -- October 30
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College Financial Aid Workshop
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Pierz Healy High School is pleased to offer a free FAFSA Completion Workshop on Monday, October 15th from 5:00-7:00pm, in the Choir Room at Healy High School for current seniors.
The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is required for any student seeking federal and state financial aid – including grants and loans – to attend any college in the United States. This FAFSA Completion event offers detailed answers to questions and line-by-line application assistance.
Students who attend this event also have the opportunity to enter a drawing for a $500 scholarship!
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What:
Beginner piano lessons with Beth Stuckmayer; Advanced piano lessons with Cindy Lochner
When:
Beginners on Fridays; Advanced on Wednesdays
How:
Registrations will be taken online through the Web Store. You will be able to start registering on Monday, October, 15 at 8pm.
Log in with the same email you use for lunch if you pay online.
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Parent/Teacher Conferences--
Pioneer: October 15 and 16 (Book Fair Open!)
Healy: October 15
No School MEA break-
October 18 and 19
Ultimate Frisbee on the south practice field--
October 20, 9-11am (high school students and adults welcome,
FREE
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Choir Concert--
October 29
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Pierz Public Schools #484
District Office: 320.468.6458
112 Kamnic Street, Pierz, MN 56364
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