High School November Newsletter

"Showing Gratitude is one of the simplest yet most powerful things humans can do for each other." - Randy Pausch

"There is always, always something to be thankful for." - Author Unkown

Classes will resume 12/2/24.

1. There are 26,727 secondary and high schools in the US.

2. Only four US high schools have a graduation rate of 100%.

3. G-E-T High School has a graduation rate of 98%.

As some of you may know, our district has experienced the loss of an incredible staff member who profoundly impacted countless lives. Gary Trim died unexpectedly on Tuesday.

Gary served as a bus driver in our district for many years and was a true champion and genuine supporter of the many students fortunate enough to ride his bus. His kindness, encouragement, and unwavering care left an immeasurable mark on thousands of students over the years. The loss of his spirit will be deeply felt throughout the G-E-T community.

Please keep Gary's family and all those who knew and worked with him in your thoughts and prayers during this challenging time.

If you need someone to talk to, please don’t hesitate to reach out to the Student Services office for additional support. If you feel interested in writing out a note about Gary for his family, there are sheets available in the Student Services office. Together, we will honor Gary’s memory and support one another as a community.

Middle school students wear jerseys in Gary's honor.

Below you will find the HS snow day expectations & the snow day schedule.

Nov. 13th, 9 Art & Design students took part in a Design Career Day at Ashley Furniture. Students were able to learn more about Graphic Design, Interior Design, and Product Design. Students learned how an idea becomes a reality. They learned about the creative problem solving process. They toured Ashley’s design offices, met with designers, and product managers. They toured the Ashley furniture factory and watched furniture be put together from start to finish, in less than 2 minutes.

The students at CRHS took some time to help out the Head Start Program by assembling their outdoor play equipment. The little kids were so excited to see the new toys. We also helped out the local Community Clothing Closet by creating signs for clothing racks. Finally, we took a trip to Southeast Tech College in Winona to learn about a variety of programs. One of the instructors was even brave enough to allow a future student to drive a semi-truck!

Congratulations to the student's of the month!

Ninth-grade English students read and performed scenes from the Trojan War to set the stage for reading The Odyssey, a graphic novel adaptation by Gareth Hinds.

Students in the new club HOSA Club - Future Health Professionals hosted a blood drive on Friday, November 15th. They planned the event, worked shifts helping the donors and provided snacks. In total they collected 45 units of blood that will be used to impact the lives of 115 members of our community.

The Math Department will be offering ACT test prep for students that are interested. Students can visit Mrs. Hovell or Ms. Brandau for a practice test each week leading up to the ACT in March. The practice test will include an answer key and we will make ourselves available for questions during ELT. These questions would be helpful for all students 9th-11th graders, who will be taking the Pre-ACT or ACT this spring. If you have any questions about this please contact either teacher.

This Veteran’s Day both the middle school and high school bands performed for the school’s Veteran’s Day program. Students are preparing for the winter concerts on December 9 (MS and HS choirs) and December 16 (MS and HS bands). A cappella groups are preparing for various upcoming events such as the Holiday Soirée on Main St Dec 1 at sunset, Shell Lake a cappella festival “AcaPalooza” on Dec 7, Ettrick Lion’s Club on Dec 14, and our own festival, AcaFest on January 11. So much to look forward to in music!

G-E-T High School brought the energy to the stage November 8-10 with their fall musical Footloose. Based on the 1984 movie, the production featured many of the iconic songs from the film along with some new numbers.

The show involved 40 G-E-T High School students as cast members, with an additional seven students working on the crew. From managing lights and sound to moving set pieces, students had the chance to take on leadership roles and make key production decisions. With over 20 musical numbers, students were challenged to grow in both their singing and dancing skills.

More than 1,500 people attended the three performances over the weekend, making it a memorable experience for everyone involved!

This month in P.E., students have actively engaged in units on Badminton and Recreational Games. Physical skills such as hand-eye coordination, agility, and strategic thinking have been emphasized. They also built valuable social skills like teamwork, communication, and sportsmanship. The badminton unit focused on serves, volleys, and footwork, while recreational games emphasized activities that are commonly played in settings outside of school for fun.

In Mr. Secor’s Physical Science class, students built and tested two Rocket Cars to see if they could keep their paintball passengers safe! The students really get into the whole design process and take pride in their final builds. They used slow-mo videos to watch their first vehicle and learn how they wanted to change their second design. We also used these videos to calculate the velocity and acceleration of each rocket car.

In Mrs. Gannon-Thompson’s US History class students have been learning about WWII. A student who had a Great Grandpa in WWII asked if they could bring in some of his old belongings from the war. She brought it a whole tote full of a large variety of heirlooms including letters, pieces of her Great Grandpa's Uniform and the item that got the most attention: a WWII scrapbook. Even though her Great Grandpa is not alive anymore, his legacy lives on. Mrs. G-Ts class loved the opportunity to connect what we are doing in class to a classmate and their family. Thank you to Caydie’s family for sharing their family history!

Spanish 2 students are learning to compare and contrast three different ways to say "to be." They have been working hard on writing detailed descriptions about people. In the picture, students are completing a category sort to help them organize their new vocabulary terms.

The team continues to work on teaching reading strategies, and building executive functioning skills such as organization, and soft skills, which are skills students will use in the workforce, to students.

I graduated from GET in 1980 and I now live just right up the road from the high school. I have a degree in computer programing/operations. I'm semi-retired after working at Ashley Furniture for 20 years as a customer service account manager. I'm married to the head football coach (Paul Anderson). We have 2 daughters, one who is a 5th grade teacher at Independence public school and one who is a Graphic Designer. They both graduated from GET. We also have 2 fur babies Cosmo and Molly.

I grew up in Ettrick and graduated from GET in 1985. I now live in the country outside of Ettrick. I'm married with 4 awesome grown children and 3 wonderful grandchildren that I absolutely adore!! I love dogs and cats! I have 2 golden retriever’s and 4 cats that are very spoiled! We have a camper in Birchwood at a resort, where we love to fish and ride the UTV trails during the summer. During the winter I love to travel to warmer places such as Cozumel Mexico!!

My favorite thing to do is spend time with my family and my pets!!

I grew up on a dairy farm in Galesville. My husband Noah and I have 2 boys that attend Galesville Elementary. One is in 4th grade and one is in 1st grade. We have a dog named Maggie. We love to spend our summers fishing, hiking and camping.

Hi! I'm Devin Micke and I am the head cook in the high school kitchen. This is my 10th year with the district. I also work part time at Wason's Supper Club. In my free time, I enjoy music and sporting events and spending time with my friends and family, especially my niece and 4 nephews.

Hello, my name is Melody Schorbahn. I am the District Food Service Director. This is my 10th year with G-E-T. I graduated from Independence & also received an Administrative Assistant Information Processing degree from WWTC. I live in Ettrick and have 2 children, plus my furbaby Charlotte. When I’m not busy with my kids' activities, I enjoy kayaking, painting, traveling and spending time with family and friends.

Free & Reduced meal applications can be filled out at any time during the school year. Pick up an application from any school secretary or download it from the website.

https://www.getschools.org/page/food-service

No School 12/23/24 - 1/1/25 with classes resuming 1/2/25.