CVU Celebrations

Dear CVU Community: Dear CVU Community: I hate to kick off this week’s Celebrations with a complaint, but I have had enough with weather that can only be described as oppressively gray. Seriously, Vermont, this is getting ridiculous. Thankfully, we’ve got some sun in the forecast, and we have the newest edition of the RISE Catalog which should conjure happy images of May and June. Check out all of the offerings! Since we are in future mode, don’t forget about this calendar as you plan events (scroll down past the first page to see the red/white days mapped out). We held my favorite future-oriented activity last night: Eighth Grade Family/Caregiver Night. Thank you to all of the students (and faculty and staff!) who stepped up to welcome our newest community members. Nisha and Merrill, you rocked it!

Remember that February is Black History month. Please see the invitation below from RAC and our Library: Join the Racial Alliance Committee in honoring Black History Month! While we subscribe to the idea displayed all year in the CVU library that, "Every Month is Black History Month," we also want to recognize the singular focus of February. Each school day will begin with music from Black artists, taking us through the eras from jazz and blues to rock, funk, rap, and pop. We ask you to join our pledge to read, watch, and listen widely, trying to center joy and possibility. We'll also have links to resources on posters around the school, and the month will end with a special celebration of Black culture during Winter Carnival on Friday, 2/23.

2/10 - Penguin Plunge, Burlington Waterfront

2/10 - Winter Ball, Hula - 7:00-11:00

2/23 - Winter Carnival

2/26-3/1 - Winter Break, no school

Happy Friday CVU, it’s Ariel! This week, Student Council continued work on the upcoming Kindness Week, Book Swap, Cultural Awareness Week, and Blood Drive. 8th grade parent night was Thursday, in which Student Council members (and invited friends) either gave tours of CVU to groups of rising freshmen or participated as members of panels, answering questions from parents and caregivers. A few of us also gave presentations to either the whole group or just the students! We look forward to welcoming the class of 2028 to the halls of CVU. Have a great weekend, Hawks!

Join us on February 15th at 4:30-7pm for a Community Book Swap event in CVU’s Cafeteria put together by Student Council. A perfect place to find a book or multiple books to read. Those who have used books that don’t need them anymore can drop them off in the library or bring them day of. There will be music and refreshments. Families are invited! We hope to see you there!

From Rae Bronenkant: They did it! Girls won States for Indoor Track!! I am so incredibly proud of the hard work they put in, their leadership and their performance. Our first year conserved a varsity sport.

From Sam Kayhart: I accompanied 5 students (Jack Daly, Kennedy Desautels, Elle McAvey, Winston Ross and Alaina Tyler) to the Vermont Brain Bee Boot Camp at the Larner College of Medicine at UVM. These students are members of the Neuroscience Club at CVU and have been learning about the brain and neuroscience all year. VBB Boot Camp allows students to see human brains (both dissected and undissected) to learn about brain structures, functions and diseases/disorders from neuroscience graduate students. These CVU students are preparing to compete in the Vermont Brain Bee February 10.

From Susie Moakley: BTC Honor Roll - Quarter 2

High Honors:

• Sophie Avery
• Isabell Boddie
• Kailey Bruce
• Bickram Dahal
• Ayden Elkins
• Maxwell Olinsky-Paul
• Ava Roden
• Asher Simcoe
• Evan Thorburn

Honors:

• Aidan Aumand
• Justin Bokan
• Kennedy Desautels
• Jack Huikku
• Elrik Jay
• Beckham Marcus
• Trave Power-Freeman
• Hannah Shepardson
• Hagan Smith

From Katherine Riley: Congratulations to CVU's Amnesty International Club which was named as an honorable mention for Amnesty USA's Student Group of the Year Award. Amnesty USA was "...extremely impressed with...the creativity they've brought to their work". The national organization "...thoroughly enjoyed seeing all of the hard work and dedication this club has taken to their activism this year".

From GSA: We hosted an incredible Dance of Colors this past weekend and had an amazing time! The library was completely transformed and energized in the most magical way. THANK YOU to everyone who helped set up the decorations, and THANK YOU to everyone who attended!

From John Bennett: CVU's Scholars Bowl teams took a big step toward winning Varsity and JV State Championships on Saturday, January 27, with another impressive performance. In the first round of the State league playoffs, held at Montpelier High School, CVU's varsity teams both went 4-0 to earn top position for the final round in April. The varsity team won all four matches to bring its record to 36-0 on the season. This has set a new team record for consecutive wins, the prior record was 33 in the 2010-11 season. The JV team battled through three very close matches to also finish first in its bracket. What this means, is that in the final round of playoffs, both our varsity and JV teams will hold the top seed, and would need to be defeated twice in the otherwise single elimination tournament.

Playing for CVU Saturday included the following team members: Elias Leventhal, Frank Fidler, Xander Olszewski, Colin Ravlin (12th grade), Jacob Graham, Leo Elder, Wylie Ricklefs, Nolan Sandage (11th grade), Leah Rauch (10th grade), and Willcox Elliott (9th grade).

Thanks again for your support!

Pictured left to right Elias Leventhal, Leah Rauch, Frank Fidler, Xander Olszewski, Leo Elder, Wylie Ricklefs, Colin Ravlin, Jacob Graham. Missing from photo are Nolan Sandage and Willcox Elliott.

From Emily McLean: CVU Photo Club had our third photography contest of the school year. The themes were "Blue" and "Food". Congratulations to our winners and thank you to all of the participants. Here are the winning entries.

Our next themes are "Portraits," "Textures," and "Winter". Entries are due by February 21, 2024.

Stacy Wulff and Lizzy Fox Lausier's classes created their own declarations of independence from CVU modeling the original document.

From Katie Mack: Chittenden Humanities would like to thank the following Harkness coaches for modeling an amazing discussion on William Blake’s Poem, The Tyger, for ninth grade students. Your conversation was thought provoking and inspiring for future Harkness participants!

Thanks to: Karmen Wilbur, Eva Fewell, Will Wallace, Grace Kahm, Magnus Nilsson, Jasmine Dye, Molly Silvia, Emma Jean Armstrong, Lauren Morris, Georgia Knight, Rachel Bialowoz

From Leanne Morton: Students in Latin Two this week campaigned for the election of aedile in their Roman Politics unit. The students grouped into authentic guilds (collegia), wrote speeches, learned about election graffiti, painted their slogans and even participated in some campaign bribery with delicious treats. Pictured are the two successful candidates for aedile from each class and one of the bribes from the bakers' guild! Congratulations to the victores! Now on to your public service for Pompeii!

From Jess LaPlante: Snelling students are learning hands only CPR and basic first aid in two week rotations during Core Time.

From Cameron Brownell: On Friday, January 26, several CVU students attended the District Chorus Festival at South Burlington High School. They joined forces with the top singers from local schools and performed a beautiful concert featuring "Lacrimosa" from Mozart's Requiem, a setting of the Scottish tune "Loch Lomond", a setting of "Didn't My Lord Deliver Daniel", and a new work called "A Patch of Light."

CVU Students: Jennifer Mumley, Lynne Lynne, Rose Lord, Abigail Usher, Olivia Searson, Luisa Schlenker, Sarah Stein, Thomas Mathon, Vivian Volzer, Derek Allen, Izzy Urch, Calvin Karlhuber, Hannah Stein, Nate McNabb and Xander Olszewski.

Also - Congratulations to our CVU students who were accepted into the Vermont All State Music Festival ensembles! These students will be attending the festival in May at Spaulding High School, joining forces with other top student musicians in the state. This is a major accomplishment for our musicians, so be sure to congratulate them on this achievement!

All State Chorus - Calvin Karlhuber, Rose Lord, Nate McNabb, Hannah Stein, Abigail Usher

All State A Cappella - Xander Olszewski

All State Band - Anna Dauerman, Drew Farmer, Riley Farmer, Fisher Irwin, Gwen Irwin, Carl Lesure, Veronica Miskavage, Izzy Schwendler

All State Orchestra - Maya Girard, Joshua Lu, Yvonne Miceler, Theo Rosenau, Ariel Toohey

All State Jazz Ensemble - Rhett Gardner

Thank you to the many, many people who made 8th Grade Family Night a success. A special shout out to Anthony Spagnolo who coordinated the entire event!

Scheduling is a very busy time for our School Counselors and the Direction Center Team. Don't hesitate to bring them some chocolate when you go in for your meeting, students!

Did you know that CVU has a Winter Ball Ticket Assistance Committee? Well we do! And this committee can access limited funding to assist with the cost of Winter Ball. If you are interested in learning more, please contact anyone on the committee: Katy Farnham kfarnham@cvsdvt.org, Josh Edelbaum jedelbaum@cvsdvt.org, Matt Meunier mmeunier@cvsdvt.org, Laurie Berryman Lberryman@cvsdvt.org, & Ry Hoffman rhoffman@cvsdvt.org. We want every student who wants to attend to be able to attend Saturday February 10th!

Get informed About The Proposed 2024-2025 Budget!

It's almost Town Meeting Day and we hope that voters will get informed. See a summary of the proposed budget and bond, view a video excerpt from the recent Board meeting where the proposed budget was discussed, explore our Annual Report, and learn more. Consider attending an upcoming presentation about the proposed budget. It's all found on the Budget page of the district's website. https://www.cvsdvt.org/budget

Registration is open for College & Career Pathways 2024!

Event Schedule:

Questions? Email collegepathways@vsac.org or call us at 1-877-961-4369.

Info regarding family visit days/info sessions at CTE and BTC

Greetings ParentIN family,

We are well into 2024. And we see you, and all you’re doing to ensure your young person’s wellbeing. We see the focus you bring to caregiving every day while juggling work and all the goodies in between. Reminding you that ParentIN is your constant sidekick throughout these years. Providing you with support groups, resources, and a listening ear when you need a break.

And guess what? We've got some amazing programming this month!

In collaboration with the Chittenden Unit for Special Investigations, Detective Krystal Wrinn will facilitate a FREE and engaging virtual workshop on digital safety for youth and your whole family. Here’s what to expect:

• Reinforce online safety: Learn practical tips to empower yourself and your child about cyberbullying, inappropriate content, and online predators.

• Build a positive online culture: Foster respect and kindness in your family's digital interactions.

• Create a safer online world: Make the internet a more positive space for everyone.

EVENT Details: February 15th @7:00p

Register HERE to be sent a meeting invitation and link.

Your participation is highly valued, and we look forward to working together to promote digitally safe school community. Thanks!

Amy Sayre

Student Assistance Program (SAP) Counselor

CCS and HCS Community Schools

CVSD ParentIN Coordinator

Connecting Youth Mentoring Advocacy

Connecting Youth’s Mentor Coordinators Alison Duback and Kate Rooney recently returned from attending the National Mentoring Summit - a gathering of the nation's brightest minds in mentoring. Annually hosted in Washington, DC by MENTOR, the Summit is packed with learning opportunities, peer-collaboration, and inspiration, all focused on one shared goal: expanding and sustaining the youth mentoring movement.

Additionally, Alison Duback participated in the Summit’s Capitol HIll Day where advocates spent the day meeting with legislators and their staff about the critical value of surrounding young people with supportive relationships. “We met with legislative assistants from [Senator} Welch & [Representative] Balint's offices to talk about mentoring. Our last meeting of the day was with Bernie who actually attended the meeting. He asked us about our programs and then asked if we need more mentors. We all said "Yes!", so he is having his communications person put an article in The Bernie Buzz about mentoring.”

We’ll keep our eyes peeled for Bernie’s mentor endorsement. What an impact!

To learn more about Connecting Youth’s Mentor Program, check out our website here

Celebrate Your Student's Achievements with a Senior Yearbook Recognition Ad –

Scholarships Available!

Hello Parents and Caregivers of the Class of 2024!

We hope this message finds you well. As the school year progresses, we're excited to offer you the opportunity to celebrate your student's achievements and memorable moments with a personalized senior recognition ad in this year's yearbook.

To make this opportunity accessible to all our families, we are pleased to announce that scholarships are available for those facing financial constraints. We believe that every student's accomplishments deserve to be celebrated, and we want to ensure that cost is not a barrier for any family.

Here are the details:

Senior Recognition Ad Specifications:

• Choose from various ad sizes to fit your message and budget. Log on to Jostens.com and choose Champlain Valley Union HS, then search for RECOGNITION ADS to see sample layouts.
• Include personal messages, photos, and memories to make the ad uniquely yours.
• NOTE: The ad must be submitted and paid to be included in the book. If you are requesting a scholarship, please read below.

Scholarship Information:

• Scholarships are available for families facing financial needs.
• Please contact Carol Fox at cvuyearbook@cvsdvt.org. to discuss scholarship options and eligibility.

Submission Deadline: February 23, 2024