DEI Town Hall Videos

On Monday, June 13, we hosted our fourth virtual Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Town Hall of the 2021-2022 school year. Robbie Curry joined us from Mass Insight, to provide an update on the CVSD Equity Audit. Following that, our new DEI Director, Dr. Asma Abunaib, was introduced and answered some questions about herself and some of her recent professional experiences. 

Here's a video of the whole Town Hall. 

Here's an excerpt from the full video, with the part featuring Dr. Abunaib. 

We are excited to welcome and work with Dr. Abunaib. We will host DEI Town Halls bi-monthly throughout the upcoming school year as well. We hope you'll join us!

Stay posted with the latest updates on our DEI website. 

Community For Unity at CVU

This post was provided by CVU teacher, Chris Smith. 

On June 1st, CVU held its first Community 4 Unity Day. The day was designed to bring together the entire CVU community and to create awareness and action regarding the destructive nature of all forms of violence in our community: physical, emotional and psychological. The day was developed and organized by a group of dedicated students and is a testament to their drive to create a safer and more unified community at CVU.

We started the day with an Opening Ceremony in the Theater. The Opening had many highlights, including the raising of a banner for our Unified Sports teams, music from the CVU Jazz Band and an inspiring speech from Jerry Greenfield. 

In the afternoon, there were 30 different sessions offered for students to choose from. Each student attended two sessions. The majority of these sessions were run by students, with the other sessions run by teachers or outside community members. The sessions ran the gamut from a forum featuring Congressional Candidates for Vermont's lone representative the the House of Representatives, a discussion with a student living in Ukraine, a discussion on Sustainable Fashion to a discussion about societal gender roles. 

The day ended with a Closing Ceremony that was highlighted by a presentation by Sue and Joe Hoeppner from Project Hoeppner. They brought all of the messages from the day together with a talk about hope and unity. Their talk was an inspiration to all in attendance. The day was a success and we look forward to the 2nd Community 4 Unity event next year.

Making signs for the upcoming Pride rally

Political Action 101

Congressional Candidate Forum

Meeting Needs During Post-Service

Our educators are hard at work this week! All PreK-8 educators were together in one building on Monday and Tuesday  for a variety of opportunities. The mornings were spent in PLCs, allowing grade level teams, departments, and other cohorts to have time together. for reflection, planning, and working with data. 

In the afternoons, there was a selection of workshop offerings. 

SEL and Mental Health: Annie O'Shaughnessy facilitated Resting in a Community of Care and Debby Haskins hosted Healing Your Heart. 

Technology: Options included Getting Organized (anything tech-related, especially Gmail and Google Drive!) and updating team and department websites.

Art: Mindful Mark Making and Calming Collage

Physical Movement: Rally Ball

Comments we heard afterward: 

"I need more time to get organized!""This is just what I needed." "Thank you for providing this opportunity and the time." "It was fun and relaxing!" "It was great to reconnect with district colleagues and be together again."

The work continues back in school buildings for the rest of the week.

Rising Star at CCS

Congratulations to Andrew Lounsbury, middle level science educator at Charlotte Central School! Andrew was selected to receive the Rising Star Award from the Vermont Association of Middle Level Education. (VAMLE)

According to the VAMLE website:

The Vermont Association for Middle Level Education (VAMLE) honors a Vermont middle level educator who has been passionate about teaching young adolescents and uses middle level best practices for three years or less. Three educators have been recognized by the VAMLE Board for the Rising Star Award this year based on their outstanding efforts and successes as relatively new middle level educators.

Andrew was nominated by his colleague and mentor, Allan Miller during the 2020-2021 school year.

Mr. Miller, now an educator at Williston Central School, notes in describing Andrew’s effects on students, “‘Relationships first’ - as we know middle level students are unique, and not all educators have the passion to connect with them in all their quirkiness, emotions, and energy. But it’s clear from being online or in-person with Andrew that he ‘gets’ them and that he is about connecting with them. Students show up to his office hours just to tell jokes, to share about their new dog or come to be part of the online Chess Club he started just because they enjoy being around him.”

Allan also mentioned, “When I meet with the team, I truly have to remind myself that this is really his [Andrew’s] first year as a teacher - his impact has been that significant already. He truly was the right person at the right time for the CCS Omega Team, and one we hope will be part of CCS for many years to come. Honestly some days I come away feeling like I’ve learned more from him than he from me . . . which is awesome!” It’s a valuable advantage as a team member to have a novice teacher play such a responsible role in the team’s success with students and in organizing challenging alterations in the schedule—a role that Andrew has clearly embraced.

Andrew with VAMLE's Executive Director Dave F. Brown and CCS principals Jen Roth and Stephanie Sumner

Congratulations, Andrew, and thank you for your many contributions to the students of CCS.

Courtney Krahn Named Charlotte Assistant Principal

 

We are pleased to share that Ms. Courtney Krahn has been appointed as the Charlotte Central School (CCS) Assistant Principal. She will join Principal Jennifer Roth and Special Education Director, Beth Slater, on the CCS leadership team. Courtney will assume her leadership duties on July 1, 2022.

Superintendent Rene Sanchez welcomes Ms. Krahn, “I am very excited that Charlotte’s new assistant principal will return home to Charlotte Central School. Her experience as an instructional leader in Middlebury will help not only Charlotte, but also CVSD as a whole.”

Ms. Krahn’s recent leadership roles include that of Curriculum Leader for the Addison Central School District, Director of the ACSD Proficiency Recovery School, Language and Literature Teacher at Middlebury Union Middle School, English Teacher and Literacy Coach at Leland and Gray Union Middle and High School, and additional teaching positions in Wisconsin. She is a National Board Certified Teacher and holds a Vermont principal’s license. Courtney is a member of the Snelling Center for Government’s Vermont School Leadership Program 2022 cohort.

Courtney earned a Bachelor of Arts from Dickenson College and a Master of Arts in English from the Middlebury College Bread Loaf School of English. Courtney is originally from Charlotte, Vermont, and is a proud product of CVSD schools.

CCS principal Jen Roth is excited to have the opportunity to work with Courtney, saying, “I am delighted to have Courtney joining the CCS leadership team. I first got to know Courtney during our time at Snelling’s Vermont School Leadership Project. She is a thoughtful listener with a deep understanding of how to foster curiosity and engagement in learners.”

Courtney shared her excitement about this new opportunity with us, “I could not be more thrilled to be joining Principal Roth, Charlotte's students and families, and the broader CVSD community to carry on the good work, strong traditions, and important collaboration that make CCS the special place that it is. As an alumna of both CCS and CVU, I am proud of the formative learning experiences I had in this school district, and I am humbled by the opportunity to return to where my educational journey began. I very much look forward to meeting everyone!”

We all look forward to welcoming Courtney officially as the CCS assistant principal on July 1.

Thank you to CVSD's Retirees

We honor and thank those who are retiring from CVSD this year and wish them all the very best on their next adventures. 

CVSD Update, June 2, 2022

 

Dear CVSD Families, Caregivers, and Community Members,

We are happy to share the latest CVSD Update with you. It includes: 

• A letter from Superintendent Sanchez
• Announcements about upcoming events, like the CVSD Pride Rally and DEI Town Hall
• Reminders about the end of the school year
• and more!

Thank you for taking the time to read it. It's hard to believe that we're just about at the last week of school for students!

~ Champlain Valley School District