STEINMETZ STAR Volume 87, Number 1, September - October 2020 www.steinmetzstar.com 2020 School Year Continues Black Lives Matter On Fully Remote Becomes Global COVID-19 Forces Schools To Stay Closed Since March 17th Movement By Steinmetz Star Staff By Jada Ayala When the final bell rang at 2:16pm on Monday, March 16th, there were many uncertainties. Some thought we would be back in the building in a few weeks; some thought perhaps a month. No one On May 25th, 2020, a man by the name of George Floyd was brutally could have predicted that we would still be out of the school building. On August 5th, Mayor Lori killed by the “hands” of a police officer in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Lightfoot and CPS CEO Janice Jackson announced that CPS would remain shuttered into the altercation began after Floyd was trying to buy cigarettes at a gas station new school year because of the coronavirus pandemic that has sickened over 360,000 and caused who eventually called the police on him for having what they called almost 10,000 deaths statewide. Citing that they made their decision based on science and parent a fraudulent $20 bill. Within 17 minutes of the incident, Floyd was input, Lightfoot said, “The decision to begin the 2020-2021 CPS school year remotely during the first pinned down, already in handcuffs with a grown man’s knee on his neck. quarter is rooted in public health data and the invaluable feedback we’ve received from parents and In the 8 minute and 46 second video, you can see Floyd crying out for families. As we build out this remote learning model and seek to establish a hybrid learning model in the his mother as he was in pain and struggling to breathe. second quarter, we will continue to support and collaborate with parents and school leaders to create safe, sustainable learning environments for our students.” The video of his death went viral on almost every social media plat- form you can think of, resulting in an uproar in the Black Lives Matter Led by Principal Jaramillo, our school administration and staff jumped into action to make sure (BLM) community. Before this, many people may not have known that our students were prepared for the full days of remote learning ahead. They worked tirelessly to the BLM movement had been around for many years. It was originally make sure computers and technology were distributed to those who needed it and keep parents, founded by a group of activists who were, and still are, tired of seeing students and staff well informed. While many students were still mourning the loss of spring’s black people die at the hands of the police. Over the spring and summer, sporting events, plays, field trips, prom, graduation and everything else that typically happens, they many people of all ethnicities, shapes and genders joined together to pro- now had to come to terms with missing out on all of the fun back-to-school activities as well. test with the BLM community. While these movements were happening, the media coverage created a bigger divide because of the different ways Now, here we are approaching the second quarter of the new school year and the news has come they reported on the protests. Some showed them as violent and mis- that we will also begin the second quarter at home. While many have gotten the hang of remote guided, while others showed them as peaceful and justified; all of which learning, many are still struggling to adapt to this challenging new way of life. One thing is for just left some people as confused as ever. sure, our Steinmetz Star staff cannot wait until the day comes when we are all back under one roof. ...continued on page 3 Stay safe, readers! Derrick Svelnys Named New Assistant Principal By Chris Mack After a rigorous interview process this summer, Derrick Svelnys has been named the new Assistant Principal of Steinmetz College Prep. Our school Principal, Jamie Jaramillo, was thrilled to share the news with our school community, “It is my pleasure to an- nounce we have selected Mr. Derrick Svelnys as our new Assistant Principal. Mr. Svelnys will be a great addition to our team as he brings a wealth of knowledge and experience at the high school level in STEM, curriculum and instruction, data analysis, operations, IT, and much more. Most importantly, Mr. Svelnys brings with him a passion for students and creating opportunities for success. His references speak very highly about his dedication, energy, and passion for helping students and colleagues succeed.” Mr. Svelnys joins us after spending 18 years as a Physics Teacher. He is a product of CPS High Schools and his wife is a CPS teacher at Rickover Naval Academy, where they met, and he helped start back in 2003. He has a B.S. in Physics Education, M.S. in Applied Physics and an M.Ed. in Educational Leadership. I spoke with Mr. Svelnys over email to get to know him better. Here’s what he had to say: Where are you originally from? I’m from Chicago, from the southwest side. Go Sox! Mr. Derrick Svelnys :: Assistant Principal What made you want to come to Steinmetz? Quick Facts: After my first round interview with Mr. Jaramillo and Ms. Williams, I left the interview thinking that “I can call Steinmetz home” and I Two words to describe yourself? am now fortunate enough to call Steinmetz my home. I’m also a big fan of our STEAM program. As a former physics teacher, I loved seeing Humorous and organized the sense of wonder in my students when they were building something in one of my labs and it actually worked. Our STEAM program is designed to build that sense of wonder and inspiration for all of our students. Favorite Food: I love some good BBQ. Cats or dogs? Dogs. Scooping cat litter How do you like Steinmetz so far? does not sound like fun to me. I am really enjoying Steinmetz. I am fortunate to work with a great team here and was able to acclimate to the team very quickly. When I was looking for different AP positions across the district, I wanted to find a school that was a good fit for me. Steinmetz reminds me a lot of A thin-crust or a pan pizza? Thin-crust my high school, Kennedy, a neighborhood school that was a real nice place to be at. APs and some other staff are not working remotely; we pizza. As a native Southsider, the best go to the building each day. There aren’t many of us in the building and it is very odd having the building so quiet knowing that school is pizza is from Just-a-Pizza near Archer actually happening. & Pulaski on the south side. Chicago style pizza can’t be beat. Were you an Assistant Principal somewhere else or is this your first time? This is my first year as an AP, but I’ve been doing AP-type roles at my previous schools. As our Assistant Principal, what do want to accomplish? As your AP, it is my main job to support all the teachers to best serve our students and ensure we have quality programming and supports that all of our students can access. I also want to see our STEAM program grow and succeed; we’re the only school like this on the entire northwest side of the city so we need to capitalize on that uniqueness. If you were an animal which animal would you be? A Red Panda. Whenever I go to the zoo with my daughter, we always go see the Red Pandas. They’ve got made: all they do is hang around in trees, eat, and avoid being outside in the heat. Are you a movie person? Yes. Right now we watch whatever my daughter wants to see, which is the entire “How to Train Your Dragon” series. What was your favorite thing to do as a kid? Why? I loved going camping. The smell of the fresh air and listening to mother nature is very relaxing. 2 School News Steinmetz Welcomes New Staff Members By Arlette Fulgencio STEPHANIE KILEY SANDRA JACKSON TREY MARTIN Special Education STEAM Art Teacher In your opinion, what’s the best part about What are your interests or hobbies outside of school? If you can give your students some advice, teaching? Some of my interest and hobbies, outside of school, includes what would it be? Be patient. Whether that is In my opinion, the best part about teaching is working out at the health club, playing tennis, and choreograph- in art, in school, or in life. watching students make progress throughout the ing and teaching liturgical dances. I also love to travel, do inte- school year and reaching the goals that they set rior decorating, read, spend time with family and watch movies. What made you want to pursue a career in for themselves! teaching? What were you like in high school? I always knew I wanted to be a teacher but What are you most excited about this school I was very determined to get an education when I was in high also wanted to pursue a career as a painter. I year? school. Growing up on the west side of Chicago, I did not want worked as an artist full time for a couple of This school year, I am most excited about meet- to be a product of my environment.