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The Neenah Joint School District world languages program is the 2019 recipient of the Donna Clementi Blue Ribbon Award from the Wisconsin Association for Language Teachers.
The award is presented to one school district in Wisconsin that promotes language learning through quality programs. This is the first time Neenah has received the honor. The award was presented at the organization’s state conference Oct. 31-Nov. 2 in Appleton.
Neenah offers courses in Spanish, French and Chinese from grades 6-12. In addition to their coursework, high school students have taken immersion trips to places such as Spain, France and Quebec. Neenah also has active student clubs in all three languages offered.
“This is a much-deserved recognition for our entire world languages staff,” said Neenah superintendent Dr. Mary Pfeiffer. “Exposure to different cultures has proven very beneficial to a student’s educational experience and we are proud to be honored with one of the state’s best overall programs.”
District staff members in the world language department are Shelley Aaholm, Dianne Calcaterra, Brooke Hatten, Crystal Hietpas, Rina Hill, Erin Meilhon, Erin Nienas, Courtney Patri, Kristin Seidler, Angela VerVoort and Zoe Witzeling. Yinghan Xue and Meghan Ray were part of the department last year when the nomination was submitted.
The award is based on criteria that includes percentage of students enrolled, curriculum aligned to state and national standards, highly qualified teachers, advocacy of world languages outside of the classroom and student achievement. Other criteria considered include the percentage of students enrolled in upper-level courses, offering of less commonly taught languages, participation at multiple grade levels and substantial contact minutes per week and school year.
Garbe Receives Culinary Educator Award
Neenah High School teacher Deb Garbe has been selected as the American Culinary Federation - Fox Valley Chapter 2019 K-12 Educator of the Year.
Garbe was presented the award at the organization's "Hospitality Awards Gala" on Monday, Nov. 4 at Bridgewood Conference Center in Neenah.
Garbe, a family and consumer science teacher, has grown the culinary arts at Neenah High School to be one of the strongest in the state. Garbe is in her 20th year of teaching in Neenah and also oversees the school’s Key Club, which annually has nearly 200 members that have been active in numerous local community activities.
Last year, Neenah's culinary club was among 60 schools nationwide invited to participate in Disney's "Cook Around the World" event in Orlando.
Garbe received Wisconsin's ProStart Teacher of the Year award by the Wisconsin Restaurant Association Education Foundation in 2018.
Neenah Rocket Gear Available
Get an early start on your holiday shopping with some Neenah Rocket gear from Eagle Graphics. The online store features a wide variety of items in all sizes available for order through Nov. 21 and delivered before the holidays. A portion of all sales benefits the School District.
All 13 eligible Neenah Joint School District schools were among the 86 recipients of the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction’s 2019 Wisconsin School Health Awards.
Neenah had the second-highest number of schools to earn the award of any district. Three Neenah schools were among 23 schools statewide recognized with the gold award as Clayton Elementary, Horace Mann Middle School and Wilson Elementary earned the honor. Horace Mann won its fifth straight gold award, while Wilson earned the gold distinction for the fourth straight year. Clayton received the gold honor for the first time.
Five schools received silver awards: Alliance Charter Elementary, Roosevelt Elementary, Shattuck Middle School, Spring Road Elementary and Tullar Elementary. Earning bronze awards were: Coolidge Elementary, Hoover Elementary, Lakeview Elementary, Neenah High School and Taft Elementary. Washington School of Early Learning was the only Neenah school that did not receive an award as it was not eligible since it does not offer a physical education curriculum.
It marked the fourth straight year that Neenah has had at least 10 schools earn the award and the first time every school has been honored. Hoover has been recognized every year in the award’s seven-year history, while Spring Road has been honored the past six years and Horace Mann has won five straight years. This year marked the first time Taft has been honored.
The award signifies a commitment to providing students with the knowledge and skills to make healthy decisions that will contribute to their academic success. Parental and community involvement and staff wellness activities also contribute to the award. The goal is to motivate and empower Wisconsin schools as they create and maintain healthy school environments. The awards will be presented at the Wisconsin School Health Award Ceremony on Dec. 5 in Wisconsin Dells.
Four Students Named National Merit Semifinalists
Four Neenah High School seniors have been named semifinalists for the prestigious National Merit Scholarship Program.
Alexander Lee, Isabella Mullally, Quinn Parker and Nathanael Rohlwing were honored for their performance among than 1.5 million students nationwide who entered the 2020 competition by taking the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test.
A total of 16,000 semifinalists were named nationwide, representing less than one percent of high school seniors. The three Neenah students are each vying for one of 7,600 National Merit Scholarships, which total about $31 million. Final scholarship awards will be announced next spring.
Lee is the son of Jae Kook and Ju Youn Bae and attended Tullar Elementary School. He scored a perfect 36 on his ACT exam last year. Lee plays violin in the Touch of Class orchestra and is a member of math team, Key club and debate.
Mullally is the daughter of Kevin and Cristina Mullally and attended Coolidge Elementary School. She participates in wind symphony and powerlifting and is the manager for the girls swimming and diving team.
Parker is the son of Darin Heyerdahl and Dianne Parker and attended Lakeview Elementary. He scored a perfect 36 on his ACT exam last year. Parker participates in football, powerlifting, tennis, math team and student council.
Rohlwing is the son of Darren and Kathy Rohlwing. He is new to Neenah this school year after recently transferring from Auburn High School in Rockford, Ill.
The National Merit Scholar Corporation is a not-for-profit organization that operates without government assistance. It was established in 1955 specifically to conduct the annual National Merit Scholarship Program. Scholarships are underwritten by the corporation with its own funds and by approximately 400 business organizations and higher education institutions that share its goals of honoring the nation’s scholastic champions and encouraging the pursuit of academic excellence.
Seven Students in WSMA Honors Project
Seven Neenah High School students participated in the Wisconsin School Music Association High School State Honors Project in Madison this week.
Concerts were held October 24-25 at the Overture Center and Monona Terrace in Madison. This year's event was the 51st annual celebration and featured over 400 students from across Wsconsin. Students auditioned for the experience last February and performed in summer rehearsals during a four-day summer camp at UW-Green Bay. The students also had the opportunity to work with conductors from across the country.
Neenah students participating in the orchestra were violinists Lauren Harvath, Jasmin Bryan-Moreira and Alicia Zhang, along with violas Madeline Baldwin and Braiden Blank and trumpet player James Flanigan. Mae TeTai performed in the band on the clarinet. Zhang was selected as the violin concertmaster.
The concert will be shown on Wisconsin Public Television on Monday, December 30 at 8 p.m.
Ellington Named Girls Track and Field Coach
A longtime assistant coach at Neenah High School, Kelly Ellington will take over the school’s girls track and field program as its next head coach.
Ellington has been assisting the cross country and track and field programs at Neenah since 2009. She also coached at Fond du Lac High School from 1999-2008, serving as head boys cross country coach and an assistant track and field coach throughout her tenure. She was the head girls cross country coach at Fond du Lac from 2005-08.
Ellington works full-time as the program coordinator for Girls on the Run Northeast Wisconsin, which is a 10-week program for girls in grades 3-8 to help them realize their potential and confidence in preparing physically and emotionally to complete a celebratory 5K event. In her role, Ellington trains coaches, markets the program and coordinates all of the sites.
“Kelly has a deep passion for running and helping girls achieve their goals and potential,” said Neenah Activities Director Mike Elkin. “We’ve been fortunate to have her on our staff for the past decade and look forward to her leading our track and field program.”
Ellington lettered in track and field and cross country for two seasons at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh and was a member of two indoor NCAA Division III championship teams and one outdoor national championship squad. She earned her undergraduate and graduate degrees from UW-Oshkosh and is certified in teaching special education. Ellington remains an active runner, primarily competing in trail runs around the state. Her father was also a high school track and field coach for 40 years.
Ellington is a yoga instructor throughout the Fox Cities and has been an active parent in the Neenah Joint School District, serving as the education coordinator at Alliance Charter Elementary School for two years.
Watch for Our Community Survey
Residents living within the Neenah Joint School District boundary will be asked for their input regarding the future of the District’s facilities and a potential referendum in a three-question community survey.
The survey is being conducted by School Perceptions, LLC and will be mailed to all District households the week of October 21. The survey may be filled out and returned by mail or completed online through a link provided on the survey. Households may have one member fill out the paper copy and another use the online link. Additional codes or paper copies may be obtained by calling the District office at 751-6800. The survey deadline is November 17.
Residents will be asked whether they favor the District pursuing another referendum in 2020 after narrowly rejecting last year’s $129.5 million question. They will be asked for feedback regarding two potential long-term master pathways that were favored in community engagement sessions attended by nearly 300 residents over the summer. The pathways will be implemented in phases and the survey asks which pathway residents prefer. It also inquires whether residents are supportive of spending $125 million on the first phase with an estimated average annual tax increase of $121 per $100,000 of property value over 20 years. Last year’s estimated increase was $167 per $100,000 of property value.
“Many voters saw last year how much we rely on the survey data when making decisions in regards to a referendum,” said superintendent Dr. Mary Pfeiffer. “This year’s survey is very concise. We believe it will be simpler for people to take while giving us the data necessary to make a decision. It really is critical we hear from as many people as possible about their preferences in order to determine next steps.”
The first phase of one pathway would build an intermediate school for grades 5-6, build a middle school for grades 7-8 and renovate the high school. The other pathway would build a new high school and renovate the existing high school to host grades 5-8. Both plans would restructure Horace Mann into an elementary school.
Survey results will be compiled and presented at a special Board of Education meeting on November 26 at 6 p.m. at the Administration Building.
