NORSEMEN NEWS from the Desk of Dr
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March 2021 THE NORSEMEN NEWS From the Desk of Dr. Boswell: Inside this issue Greetings Norsemen Learning Community! Well, Principal’s Page ....................2 the days are starting to get longer so Spring is fast ap- Social Worker Notes ............3 proaching. The next couple of months are going to be Counselor Pages ...................4 Senior Highlights .................7 busy as can be. I wanted to share some highlights for TV Show Review .................8 everyone. Sports Return .......................9 The Biebs was Born ...........10 • Congratulations to the Newark Girl’s basketball team History of St. Patrick’s .......11 for winning the Little Ten Conference Championship. Spring 2021 Trends ............12 Great job ladies and coaches! IVVC Interviews ................14 COVID-19 Anniversary .....15 • Congratulations to the Newark Boy’s basketball team Copycat Shamrock Shake ..16 for placing 3rd out of 10 in the Little Ten Conference Music Review ....................17 Tournament. Great job gentlemen and coaches! Lunch Menu .......................24 • On March 1st, soccer and volleyball will be starting with practices and then competitive matches soon after. • Parents! Please be sure to complete the 5 Essentials Survey for us. This is a State required survey and we need at least 20% of our parents to take the survey to get results. We are close to 15% as I type this to you. The link can be found on our home web-page. • We are currently in discussions for end of the year activities such as prom and graduation. We want to be sure we can give our students the ultimate experience while following the current restrictions in place. We hope to see improvement in the Covid restrictions by event time. I will be meeting with students soon to discuss some ideas and get their input. Please reach out at any time. I am here to serve and be available for our community. Have a great March and upcoming Spring Break. Be well. Dr. Boswell The Norsemen News March 2021 Still in the Principal’s Office? Hello Newark Community, Here is a brief update on what happened in February and what is on the horizon for March: • Our teachers’ Professional Learning Communities (PLC’s) are currently working on PSAT / SAT prep, student engagement, and encouragement of students and staff. • HEY JUNIORS…an Illinois State mandate requires that any child entering 12th grade shall show proof of receiving one dose of meningococcal conjugate vaccine (Meningitis) after the age of 16. If you feel that your child has had the appropriate dosages of the vaccination, please contact your Health Care Provider and request the most current immunization records be faxed to Newark High School at (815) 695-5752. Failure to comply with these requirements will result in your child being excluded from school on October 1, 2021. For information about this mandate, please visit the IL Dept of Public Health website http://www.isbe.state.il.us/pdf/school_health/idphmeninimmstartmemo1213.pdf. If you have any questions regarding this letter please contact the Newark High School Nurse’s office at (815) 695-5164 x 229. Thank you! • Girls Basketball won their 3rd straight Little Ten Tournament title. The Boys team finished in 3rd place and played very well. Both teams should be proud of their accomplishments this year. • Student of the Season Breakfast went very well on ZOOM. • FFA Week was February 21-27 and it was a huge success! The FFA Banquet will be rescheduled. • Spring Sports begin March 1st. Sign- ups are February 27th at 11am. • 5 Essentials Survey info: 15% of our parents, 95% of students and 100% of staff completed the survey. • Course Registration went well and we are building the Master Schedule based upon the registra- tion numbers of all the high school students. • IHSA Solo and Ensemble is on March 6th. The Spring Musical is Charlie Brown and will hit the outdoor stage from April 15 - 17 at a time TBD. • State Science (4/21) and PSAT & SAT (4/13) testing are on the horizon. Try to get a good night sleep and eat a good breakfast before taking these very important tests that help open doors to your future. • Booster Trivia Night is TBD. • IVVC interviews were held and it looks like we have about 20 students going next year. • If you ever have any questions or concerns please don’t hesitate to call or e-mail me. Well, I think that is all for now! Mr. Jim Still 2 The Norsemen News March 2021 Notes from the Social Worker Happy March Norsemen, To think, we are just a couple weeks away from SPRING BREAK!! Holy Cow! As I reflect on my thoughts from the beginning of the year, I consider how far we have come and how resilient our students have been! I also consider our staff, how ABOVE AND BEYOND they have all gone, to continue to provide an excellent education and support to our students, regardless of their learning method. So shout out to you ALL, for making this year memorable and successful! Spring is beautiful. For me, it reminds me that even after trials and tribulations, there is life, watching the trees grow new leaves, flowers weather winter storms and bloom into beauty, and hibernating animals survive harsh winters. It is a reminder to me, that we are ALL CAPABLE of healing, of growing, and of overcoming difficult and challenging times. For the month of March, I will continue to push into academic enrichment classes to share a quick video our TALK leaders have made! They worked so hard and did an excellent job putting together a quick clip of each TALK leader, defining and explaining TALK, and sharing their per- sonal experiences being apart of the program and event! I am hoping that this video will encour- age more students to join in on the fun! Next month, I will be sharing in detail what TALK is and how it works. So if interested, be on the look out! Every St Patrick’s Day I run the S.O.B. (Southbank Original Barbecue) race, which benefits CASA in Kendall County. This organization provides supports and resources to youth who are SURVIVORS of abuse and neglect in the juvenile justice department. They are huge advocates and do beautiful things for our young in the community. The run is followed by good ol’ fashion Irish music, dancing, and food! If interested, please see the link below! Wear your green and bring your shoes--you’ll be in for a fun filled, festive day! https://www.trisignup.com/Race/IL/Yorkville/RUNSOBRUN Fun Fact: I am quite Irish...maybe that is why I am so short? Happy Spring Everyone! Kindly, Alyssa Olin, MSW, LCSW School Social Worker NCHS 3 The Norsemen News March 2021 Notes from Student Services Spring Testing for Freshmen Through Juniors Spring standardized testing will be here before you know it. The State of Illinois requires all freshmen, sophomores, and juniors to take the PSAT 8/9, PSAT 10, and SAT. Newark High School students will par- ticipate in testing beginning April 13, 2021. Please make sure your child does not have any appointments on April 13. Testing is required, and juniors MUST take the SAT in order to graduate from high school, so it’s very important all students are present on the day of testing. Juniors will test in the gym beginning at 8:00 a.m. on April 13 and should finish between 1:00 and 1:30 that afternoon. We will NOT break for lunch, so students should bring snacks to eat during the testing breaks. Sophomores and Freshmen will take the PSAT beginning at 8:00 a.m. and will be spread out in rooms across the high school. Students should finish testing by noon and will have a school-sponsored activity in the afternoon. Special education students may test just on April 13, or may test over two days April 13 & 14, depending on accommoda- tions. More information will be distributed as we get closer to the testing date. Spring College Visit and Job Shadow Day for Seniors Seniors will not be in school during state standardized testing on April 13, so this would be a great time to visit colleges, take placement testing, and job shadow. Students planning to enlist in the military can use this time to do physical testing with the recruiter. JJC and WCC typically require students to spend at least a ½ day on campus for placement testing and registration for fall classes. This day provides a great opportunity to get that accomplished. Should Students Study for the SAT and PSAT? The answer is a resounding YES! Students would never consider walking in to a class to take a test and expect to do well without studying. The same goes for standardized testing! Students should spend time every week using Khan Academy to prepare for these standardized tests. Doing a little at a time is much better than cramming all at once. Mrs. McAnally also has some study materials in her office for the SAT. These can be checked out from Mrs. Nuzzo in the school library on a first-come, first-served basis. Both Khan Academy and the study books provide full-length practice tests for students. These tests will allow students to see what their current scores would be and what they still need to study to improve their scores. The SAT and PSAT tests have five sections – English Grammar and Rhetoric, Reading, Math with Cal- culator, and Math without Calculator. There is also a writing section at the end of the test. The tests are scored by providing an overall score on the English, Reading, and Writing sections called ERW, and the math sections are combined for a math overall score.