A Fond Farewell

Today marks the end of a remarkable era for our communities as we recognize Elaine Pinckney’s final day as Superintendent of the Champlain Valley School District. Over Elaine’s fifteen years of service, our school system has not only led the state in academic success but been a national leader in innovative educational approaches. She has guided our district with intelligence and heart.

Elaine has led through example, modeled how to effectively engage others in the development of systems and processes, and spearheaded a number of initiatives that have been incorporated into our district over the years. Prior to our merging into a single school district, Elaine successfully worked with CSSU’s seven different school boards with 35 different school board directors at any one time. Throughout her 47 year career in education, including serving as principal in Williston and as Vermont’s Deputy Education Secretary, she has been an inspiration and support to hundreds of professionals in the field of education, both within CVSD and beyond.

Elaine remains dedicated to students and focused on what is best for them. Her leadership, colleagueship, smile, and thoughtful nature will be sorely missed. She has new adventures planned as she steps down and we wish her the very best. Words can not adequately express our appreciation and thanks for all she did for CVSD, its students, families, and communities.



The Elaine Pinckney Legacy Fund has been set up and will be dedicated to providing financial support for school-sponsored events, on an as-needed basis, for students and families in need. Please consider a contribution. For a short time, Elaine can be reached at her email address epinckney@cvsdvt.org if you would like to reach out with personal messages.

Free Meals This Summer for Children 18 and Younger!

 

Dear CVSD Families and Community Members,

Summer is here and once again we are excited to announce that our school district will continue to provide free meals to children 18 and younger throughout the summer months. Please order meals in advance using the links provided. Use the order form for your local K-8 school. Home delivery is available.

Our program will begin on Monday 6/28/21 and provide meals in our communities on Monday, Wednesday, and Fridays either delivered to your home or at the following locations and times:

• Charlotte: Take Out from 10:30 - 11:00 at the Charlotte Library. M,W,F
• Hinesburg: Delivery ONLY. M,W,F
• Shelburne: Take Out from 10:30 - 11:00 at SCS. M,W,F
• Williston: Take Out from 10:30 - 11:00 at WCS. M,W,F

We will offer a simplified summer menu, a rotating selection of favorites that meet all federal nutritional guidelines. 

a love letter to my teachers

a love letter to my teachers

i dedicate this to the core, STEM, and wellness teachers

it is dedicated to the art, english & history teachers

to each librarian, coach & campus supervisor

each house director, guidance counselor and admin member

the drivers ed teachers, paras and technicians

to the cafeteria staff - who keep our bellies full and our bodies fueled

last and most importantly not least - the custodial staff

who help our minds reflect the space they prepare for us.

you are all educators of the next generations.

how do you begin to put into words
the love, appreciation and feeling of debt you have towards those who always show up
those who see your potential no matter how much tunnel vision has taken over

it blows my mind when the role of an educator is undersold
the role of one of the worlds most essential workers

how do you undersell one who makes students world go round
the ones who have the power to ignite the mind of the young
the ability to hold the lamp that directs their path

those who take on the role of teachers, friends, parents, therapists, even chauffeurs at times
who strive to understand life experiences they’ll never face
who claim you as yours, no matter what shows on your report card

those who remind you, before all else, you are a human.

a being deserving of light and love
a being deserving of dreams that come true
a being deserving of peace and joy.

thank you to my educators.

for your vulnerability,

your wisdom

and your compassion.

thank you for believing (in) us.

for educating us.

and being patient with us.

not a second of our hard conversations,

our banter,

or our jokes will be taken for granted.

thank you for fighting alongside us,

crying with us,

challenging us,

and loving us.

for giving us a reason to continuously show up, despite the strain of life and a pandemic

for the opportunity to better ourselves

thank you for knowing when to challenge us

and simultaneously when to let us

breathe and take a step back

i am who i am because of who you are

thank you for endlessly pouring into me

so one day i can pour into others.

i see you

i uplift you

i appreciate you

i love you

♡

bene yodishembo

CVU - Class of 2021

shared with permission

Honoring CVSD's 2021 Retirees

Sadly, it's that time of year again, where we must say goodbye to the CVSD educators who are retiring. We so appreciate the many years of dedication, care, hard work, and commitment they provided to the students of CVSD. We wish them all the very best on their next adventures. 

Each year, Superintendent Elaine Pinckney brings as many of the retirees as possible together for an afternoon tea. Stories and laughter are shared, tears are shed, and words of thanks are expressed. And, because they're educators who work with students, there's one goofy picture too! 

Climate Change: Don't Ignore the Signs

Shelburne Community School students on the Yellow Team worked with art teacher Carin Lilly to illustrate their learning in new ways. Thank you to Carin and Yellow Team teacher, Robin Halnon, for your guidance on this project and for providing the following information about it to inform all of us about this important topic. 

Climate Change: Don't Ignore the Signs is a collection of art produced by 7th and 8th grade students, that is based on research around climate change. Their work is inspired by the threat of global warming and widespread effects of climate change. They are raising their “voices” in the hopes of having an impact on awareness and to inspire personal decision making that supports efforts to reduce atmospheric greenhouse gases. Working off of a central website, students inserted their own art and then linked it to their own sites with their artist's statements and research. It is a treasure trove of art and research!

Climate Change: Don't Ignore the Signs

CVSD Educators Recognized with Awards

On June 3rd, the Vermont-NEA celebrated teachers at their yearly Accomplished Teacher Reception. Many CVSD teachers were celebrated.

• Devon Morrill, Shelburne - National Board-Certified Teacher, Science
• Debora Killkelley, Shelburne - National Board-Certified Teacher, Elementary Generalist
• Vasanti Meyette, Shelburne - National Board-Certified Teacher, Elementary Generalist
• Peter Booth, CVU - National Board-Certified Teacher, Mathematics

CVSD now has the most board-certified teachers than any other Vermont school district!


Additional Recognition and Awards: 

• Debora Killkelley was awarded the Michele Forman, National Board Certified Teacher (NBCT) Award. This award is awarded to a new NBCT each year who has demonstrated exemplary commitment to the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards and the certification process, and strong leadership in their school, district, state, and union for accomplished teaching - all leading to strong student learning.

• Heather Morley, CVU - 2021 Finalist, Presidential Award for Excellence in Math and Science Teaching
• Magali Simon-Martin, CVU - Vermont Foreign Language Association - Distinguished Teacher Awardee
• Rachel Luks Petraska, Shelburne and VLA- 2021 Vermont State School Counselor of the Year

Congratulations to these exemplary educators. We are proud of you and honored that you are a part of the CVSD family!

Recent Highlights from CVU's Visual Arts Department

Thank you to Abbie Bowker, Emily McLean, and Olaf Verdonk  for providing this update from CVU's Visual Arts Department and Design Technology. Take some time to look through the various collections of photos in the links below. We are thrilled to highlight the talented artists and their teachers! 

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Congratulations to our 2021 AP Art class. We are so proud of their perseverance and artistic accomplishments. Here is a sampling of their work from the semester: AP Art 2020-21.

Our AP Art class teamed up with our Graphic Design class to work on creating a mural for the Route 7 underpass on the Charlotte Town Link Trail. Thank you to the Charlotte Trails Committee for providing us with the opportunity to create a community-based art project and to Vermont Paint Company in Williston for providing us with supplies.

Here is a picture of the original design by Graphic Design student, Emma Allaire

and pictures of our AP Art students working on the mural this week. We plan to complete the mural next week.

MORE PHOTOS

AND

CVU Graphic Design Students have been hard at work for their last project of the year, all of which will have a ripple effect into our community. One of the biggest splashes will be for the Humane Society of Chittenden County who will have a set of great photo props for their annual fundraiser fun run! This was a collaboration between Design Technology II students Julia and Mark and their teacher Olaf Verdonk, and Graphic Design Students Hannah, Carly, Abby, and Addison and their teacher Abbie Bowker. Photos of the work in progress

AND

Speaking of Graphic Design, a shout out to Tyler Davis who used his class skills to design a special 50th Anniversary logo for the Shelburne Little League.

WOW!

CVU's Scholars Bowl Shines in National Championship Tournament

Here's a guest post from John Bennett, CVU's Scholars Bowl coach and social studies teacher. He wrote this to CVU faculty and staff to provide an update on the progress the team made in a national tournament this past weekend. Congratulations on a wonderful performance on the national level!

Read more about the team in a recent Shelburne News article.

A long, busy, and challenging CVU Scholars Bowl season culminated in an outstanding showing at the High School National Championship Tournament, played online on May 29-30. CVU's team registered a series of upsets over traditional national powers to earn a spot in the tournament playoffs. On Saturday our 5-3 opening round record put us in the top 70 teams of the field of 226 from the U.S.A and several other countries. C.V.U became the first Vermont team since 2016 to reach the playoff level of the national championship, and we are the only Vermont school to do it twice (we also reached that level in our last appearance in 2011). 

We were eliminated in the playoffs on Sunday against a strong school from California.

Prior to that, our wins included matches against teams from Grady HS (Atlanta), which had been ranked in the top 50 teams in the country, Thomas Jefferson Institute of Science and Technology (VA)- one of the top magnet schools in the country, and Plano West (Texas) which won the national championship in 2018. Our players showed great discipline and game play throughout the tournament. On the individual level, Evan McMahan ranked in the top 10% of all scorers in the Saturday matches.

This was a long, unusual, and occasionally grueling season for our team. We played in 24 events with 125 matches over the past 8 months. (A normal in person season is 8 or 9 events with 40-45 matches) We had to adapt to a completely new method of playing, one which ran counter to our usual style. Because of hybrid, COVID, and cohorts, there was no time in which our varsity team was physically present in the same room all year. We had to do everything online, sometimes at odd hours and sometimes (as was the case Saturday) to be on Zoom for as long as 9 hours in a day. In spite of all this, the team persevered to a splendid finale.

Our season proves once again that CVU's students can thrive and succeed against the best in academic competition. And remember- you are the people who taught them the social studies, science, literature and mathematical knowledge skills that allow them to be great players.

Kudos to the team and to all of CVU! We will hopefully be back with another strong team for in-person play next year.

Our team for Nationals this weekend included -
Isaac Kremenstov, Patton Wager, Ben Wilson (12th grade)
Evan McMahan (11th grade)
Ava Rohrbaugh (10th grade)

Thanks to assistant coach Kiran McCormick for his help with the team this year. and thanks to all for your continued support.