Page B6 Tuesday, May 9, 2017 Circleville Herald

Congratulations to Teays Valley High School social studies teacher Abby Young for being chosen asTeacher of the Year for the State of Ohio for 2016-2017 on behalf of the Ohio Veterans of ForeignWars (VFW).She was nominated by LeRoy Clendenen of VFW Post 9473, whom she has worked with on a number ofprojects. She will be recognized for this honor at a ceremony in Columbus on June 10.

“I am very proud of Abby. She has made a huge impact on our students and our veterans by enhancing cur-riculum that promotes learning by doing. She has definitely served as a positive link between our students andcommunity. Her work in the classroom and commitment to the VFW and the Veterans Hospital embodies whatit truly means to educate our students,” TVHS principal John Keel said. “The honor bestowed upon her alsosignifies how important it is to support and appreciate the commitment veterans have made for our country. I amgrateful to our veterans and veteran organizations who acknowledge the work Abby is doing at TVHS.”

Walnut Elementary School 5th grade teacher Ginny Gebhart Fee received a grant from Buzz Aldrin’sShareSpace Foundation in conjunction with Purdue University. She was one of just 50 recipients in the UnitedStates that received a Giant Mars Map, as well as a problem-based curriculum, children’s literature and tworover models.

To apply for the grant, Fee was required to write a 300 word essay explaining how she would incorporatethe map into existing lessons. One of the State standards for 5th grade students is space tools and technology.She said that her current resources for teaching this standard include the grassroots initiative through TheOhio State University called NFTI, which is an acronym for Non-Fiction Text in an Inquiry-based Scienceclassroom. According to Fee, The Mars Map complements the current curriculum through the 5E learningcycle: engage, explore, explain, expand and evaluate.

“Our Ohio hero, John Glenn, once said, ‘The most important thing we can do is inspire young minds and toadvance the kind of science, math and technology education that will help youngsters take us to the next phase ofspace travel.’ It is my hope that the Mars Map would be the inspiration for the students in the Teays Valley SchoolDistrict as well as the surrounding counties,” Fee said.

“I am proud of Ginny for taking the initiative to apply for this grant to provide additional resources for ourstudents. She is always striving to be the best for her students and to find ways to keep them engaged in the class-room and that is evident by the fact that she was awarded this grant,”Walnut principal Greg Kovack said.

The Teays Valley High School F.O.R. Club wrapped up its school year with a fundraiser for NationwideChildren’s Hospital. They sold “links” that they attached to create a chain, which will be displayed in the mainhallway of the school. The idea behind the chain is to demonstrate one of the main themes of the club, whichis that each act of kindness can result in a positive chain reaction. Each person who purchased a link wrote “I,(name of donor), helped create a chain reaction of kindness.”

So far, the group has sold more than 1,000 links and they are still going.According to F.O.R. Club co-advisor Sara Bennett, club members chose the hospital and specifically the

behavioral health unit because they felt passionate about this cause. In the past, they had participated inCaroling for a Cause at the hospital and decided to work to raise funds for the hospital as well. In total, theyhave raised $1,400.

“I hope that through this fundraiser, students learned that one individual small action can create a chainreaction that makes a huge difference in the lives of others, especially those in need,” Bennett said.

As a part of the fundraiser, the elementary school that sold the most links will receive a “buddy bench” forits playground. This year’s recipient is Scioto Elementary School.

“A buddy bench will be placed on the playground so that if any student, whether that’s a new kid or thosethat just don’t have anyone to play with, feel lonely, they sit down on the bench. Kids who see them sitting onthe buddy bench will go over to sit with them and make them feel welcome and invite them to play. This willcreate an atmosphere of positivity that we as F.O.R. Club members and upstanders wish to see everywhere inour community,” Bennett said.

The funds for the bench were provided by Teays Valley High School alumnus Craig Kaiser through a granthe gave through the Teays Valley Educational Foundation. The goal of the club is to ultimately provide everyelementary school with a buddy bench.

“As a club, we are working to create a safer space here, and we try to help students become leaders andrespond to certain social situations,” Carley Miller said.

“We are making students smile and giving elementary and middle schoolers ideas and tools through ourvisits,” Jake Baldwin added.

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“I am prou of Ginny for taking th in tiativ to applapplappl for this grangrangr to provide additiona resourcesurcesurstudentntnt She is alwawawa striving to be th best fo he studentntnt an to find wawawa to keekeekee the in throom an that is evid by th fact that sh wa awardeardear this grangrangr t, Walnut pr pal Greg Ko sa

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Robin HalleySuperintendent

We began this year with the theme of “Making a Difference” and this theme has certainly beenevident this year. A few weeks ago I asked our staff members to submit some real life examples of“Making a Difference.” They included descriptions of…

• An elementary principal that has been an advocate for a child from the beginning, not giving upon him, even when he has been difficult. He has shown patience, compassion and grace.

• A teacher that greeted students on their way to class and noticed one student who was strugglingwith some home issues and seemed out of sorts. This teacher gave up her planning time to pull thestudent from her first period class and sit down and have breakfast with her. These 10minutes turnedthis student’s day around and showed her that our schools are a place she can trust, thrive and shine!

• Two of our students who gave a speech at Rotary and instead of talking about themselves andtheir own accomplishments, they focused on the importance of community service and how TV hasmade an impact on them and made them realize the importance of helping others.

• A teacher who invites the Brooks Yates students over for most of the lab activities so they can seesome cool science experiments. While she has a lab full of her own students that she manages to keepunder control, she also has 3-7 Brooks Yates students and their helpers in the lab so they get to expe-rience those things too!

These are just a few examples of how all of the Teays Valley staff members are taking the opportu-nity tomake a positive impact on others.We offer some great things to our students.We have a strongacademic programand awide variety of extra-curricular activities, but the BEST thingwehave to offeris a caring and nurturing learning environment. As this year begins to come to a close, I would like tothank the entire Viking community for their continued support.

I would also like to extendmy congratulations to the seniors who will be taking part in their com-mencement ceremony onMay 28. I am proud of the work you have done and I’m excited to see whatthe future holds for each of you. To the staff and students, have an enjoyable and relaxing summer. Ilook forward to starting another school year in August!

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TVHS teacher Abby Young named Teacher of the Year by Ohio VFW

F.O.R. Club raises money for Nationwide Children’s Hospital

Day At Cooks CreekIn Partnership with

BufaloWildWings Circleville

on May, 15, 2017 10% of proceeds will go to

TeaysValley Local Schools

Smithberger and Robinson are pictured with some of theircreations.

Teays Valley West Middle school eighthgrade student Alexis Brown was recentlyrecognized by the Ohio Lottery as anAcademic All Star for the Columbus area.

Brown is described by her teachers as aconscientious student who is a leader eachand every day in the classroom.

“She strives to excel in each of her classesby asking questions and submitting qualitywork that always exceeds expectations. She isa role model whose positive attitude makesher stand out among her peers,” West 8thgrade teacher Chris Williard said.

“I am excited to wrap up the school yearwith another student being recognized by theOhio Lottery. Alexis has been a great exampleof the type of students that we are proud tosay make up Teays Valley West and I knowshe will continue to do great things as shemoves on to the high school next year,” Westprincipal Mike Kauffeld said.

Walnut Elementary School 4th grade studentsKylee Robinson and Jasmyne Smithberger aregiving back to their school by selling homemadewallets and donating the proceeds back toWalnut.Robinson said she learned how to make the wal-lets at church and Smithberger saw the idea onPinterest and began experimenting with it. Theysimply need Duct tape and paper to create thewallets.

So far they have raised nearly $100 and theystill have orders to fill.

“We decided to start making the walletsbecause we love Walnut. We wanted to be able tohelp buy class supplies for us to use,” they said.

If someone is interested in purchasing one, theycan contact Walnut. A plain one is $1.50, onewith your initials on it is $2.50 or you can designyour own for $3.50.

“We have tried to instill in our students theimportance of community service, so it is wonder-ful to see two students take it upon themselves tocome up with an idea to give back to our school.We always talk about the idea that we are a teamhere at Walnut, and they are definitely living outthat theme. I am proud of both of them,” Walnutprincipal Greg Kovack said.

TVWest Middle School Student honored by the Ohio Lottery

Walnut Elementary Students give back to the School

Gebhart Fee receives Buzz Aldrin’s ShareSpace Foundation Grant