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Innovation Insider

November 2024

Innovation InsiderNovember 2024

In This Issue

• A Note from Our Principal

• Meet Our New Assistant Principal

• Important Dates

• Coming Up

• Student of The Month

• Staff Spotlight

• Athletics and Activities

• Spotlight on School Safety

Principal's Message

To our Tiger Family-

Our students recently embarked on new projects as we launched Hex 2, including a continued study of biology, jumping into social studies at all grade levels, and exploring careers and colleges as students plan for their futures. It is inspiring to see our learners apply their knowledge in meaningful ways and I encourage families to attend our upcoming Hexibition at our fall conferences, where students will present their learning and demonstrate their hard work.

I want to remind everyone that parent-teacher conferences will take place on November 25th and 26th. This is a valuable opportunity for you to connect with teachers, discuss your student’s progress, and gain insights into how you can support their learning journey at home. Your involvement is crucial, and we value your partnership in fostering an engaging learning environment!

Thank you for your continued support and dedication. Together, we are shaping a brighter future for our students and reimagining what learning looks like in the Medford School District.

Cass Thonstad

Principal Innovation Academy

#ChooseInnovation

#InnovationToGraduation

Meet Our New Assistant Principal

We are excited to announce that we are welcoming Colin Bado as our new Assistant Principal for Innovation Academy!

Colin started his teaching career at McKinney Boyd High School in Texas as a Social Studies and AVID teacher with licensure in social studies, speech, and ESOL. After six years of teaching and coaching football and track, Colin became the Testing Coordinator and Social Studies Instructional Coach for two years, and finally, he served as Assistant Principal, all at McKinney Boyd HS.

In the fall of 2022, Colin was hired as an Assistant Principal at McLoughlin Middle School, where he has supported discipline, safety & security, athletics, and supervision over classified and licensed staff.

Prior to teaching, Colin was a collegiate football player, founder of “I Am Invictus” (a non-profit young adult suicide prevention initiative), and a sous chef in San Francisco. We know he will apply the same passion to help us cook up innovative ideas here at IA! Please help us welcome Mr. Bado to the IA team!

Important Dates

IA:

11/11 No School: Veterans Day

11/21 Last Day of Hex 2

11/22 No School: Grading Day

11/25–11/26 No School: Conference Days

11/27–11/29 No School: Thanksgiving Break


IO:

11/11 No School: Veterans Day

11/25–11/26 No School: Conference Days

11/27–11/29 No School: Thanksgiving Break

Coming Up

Hexibition 2, November 25th and 26th: Join us for our End of Hexter Exhibition and Open House! Come view the Hex 2 projects and find out what your students have been learning, during Conference hours.


November 25th and 26th Conferences:

Appointments will be scheduled during the hours of 11:00 AM - 7:00 PM on Monday the 25th, and 7:30 AM – 3:30 PM on Tuesday the 26th. You will have the chance to set an appointment time that works best for you through Tiger Time teachers.


Monday, November 25 from 11:00 am to 7:00 pm

Jostens will also be here to support seniors with all things graduation from 4-7pm


Tuesday, November 26 from 7:30 am to 3:30 pm

Student of The Month

9th Grade: Cooper Williamson

Cooper is always looking for ways to help. He is always kind and positive. Cooper works hard and does his best on everything he is asked to do.

10th Grade: Deacon Kolb

He is more engaged in class this year. He was even doing the Structured Student Talk when others in the class were not.

11th Grade: Robert Villa

Coming to school every day with a great, positive attitude and doing really well in classes!

12th Grade: Kendra Garcia

She is the definition of growth!

Staff Spotlight: Jessi Eaton

Jessi is also Educator of the Month at the Jackson County Library! Here is a clip of her interview below:

Can you tell us about your career journey to becoming a Language Arts Teacher at Innovation Academy?

I came into teaching as a second career after having kids and being a stay-at-home mom. Before kids, I was actually an architectural stone carver in Austin, Texas, trained in traditional hand carving and sometimes teaching carving. I decided to go back to school, and in doing so, I remembered how much I thrive when I’m learning and wanted to share that love of learning with others. I started teaching Fine Arts at Central Medford High School and got my endorsement to teach Language Arts. I think that all of the arts work well together, and I love to incorporate Art and ELA together to create a more hands-on experience. I’ve been at Innovation Academy since we started and also substitute taught at JDH and B2B at the juvenile detention center. I love to help kids that have never succeeded because of life circumstances, lack of self-esteem, or whatever reason is holding them back to see their potential and find a love for learning.

Athletics and Activities

Innovation Academy (IA) students have equal opportunity to participate in athletics programs offered at North Medford and South Medford High Schools. If IA students would like to participate, they must participate the school they would be zoned for.

With winter sports fast approaching, please visit the athletic websites for the high schools linked here: NORTH Athletics and SOUTH Athletics

All athletes must register through the districts InTouch system.

If you have additional questions, please reach out to the athletic assistants from North and South.

North: Halli Zoller - Halli.Zoller@medford.k12.or.us

Spotlight on School Safety

This month, we successfully completed our scheduled fire and earthquake drills. Everyone demonstrated quick and efficient responses, following safety protocols and ensuring a smooth evacuation.

Practicing these drills is crucial for keeping our school community prepared for any emergencies. Your cooperation and focus during these exercises highlight our commitment to safety.

We encourage families to discuss emergency preparedness at home as well, reinforcing the importance of knowing what to do in case of an emergency. Thank you for your continued support in keeping our school safe!

Partner with Us to Help Keep Our School Safe

If you see or hear anything about school threats, weapons, violence, bullying, drugs, self-harm, or have other school safety suspicions, report it!

CALL OR TEXT 844-4-SAFE-OR (844-472-3367)

EMAIL tip@safeoregon.com

ONLINE safeoregon.com

Tiger Time

Your student’s Tiger Time teacher is your resource! Your student can reach out and connect with their Tiger Time teacher to review thor transcript, seek technology support, answer questions or get guidance on who to ask, and so much more. If your student needs anything, remind them their Tiger Time teacher is there to support them as they continue their high school journey!

Innovation Academy
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