End-of-Year updates June 1, 2010

The End-of-Year Program is in full swing. As I told the freshmen when I visited them in Newton Grove, this program is not meant to be easy--and it isn't. This experience is hard work for all involved. We purposely take students out of their comfort zones and ask them to stretch, take risks, and learn. The freshman class, for example, will live together at the farmworker ministry in Newton Grove for 10 days--cooking and eating all meals together, providing important service work to others, figuring out what to do when their is nothing to do, and sleeping in less than optimal sleeping conditions. Tonight's dinner, for example, is a Spanish-speaking-only dinner. I thanked them on Sunday for taking a chance on this wonderful experiment, for without their enthusiastic participation, it would not work. Below, you can see the freshmen surrounded by the many farmworkers that they have met.
Here are the freshmen singing during the church service. You can see Father Tony on the right.

Here is the amazing, passionate, wise and wonderful Father Tony giving a sermon on Sunday.

Sydney, Audrey, and Celeste are ready for church.

Little Phoebe is learning to walk in Newton Grove!

Jamie and Nick provided the accompaniment to the group's song during church.

Here is the French trip group enjoying their day in Etretat. Ken says that it rained and the wind howled, but they made the best of it.

I couldn't resist this shot of Julia and Alison with this very serious seagull. Our beautiful students in France!

The group in Nicaragua is working with community members to build a community garden. Some of the students are giving swimming lessons to children in Las Salinas. The Trinidad group hiked to a pristine waterfall yesterday and observed sea turtles laying eggs on the beach last night. Today, they were back at work at the orphanage and with Habitat for Humanity. The West trip put in on the Green River today and will canoe in Labyrinth and Stillwater Canyons for 4 days. Our group in the Adirondacks is scheduled to kayak from Stoney Creek Pond to Raquette River today. Tomorrow, they have an overnight hike at Giant Mountain.

We hope that our End-of-Year Program offers potentially life-changing experiences for our students. We look forward to their safe return...and many wonderful stories of their adventures.

Bryce's Green Triangle group 5.28.10

This year, Bryce is leading a local group called Green Triangle. These students are visiting green businesses in the triangle. They have created a wiki at the following address: http://www.thegreentriangle.wikispaces.com . I hope you will check it out. So far, they have attended the green home tour in Carrboro, visited the solar energy program at NC State, and an all-natural printing press in Raleigh. Check out some of the links on their wiki to learn more.

End-of-Year updates 5.27.10

Just a quick update about some of our off campus groups...You can check the Trinidad activities by going to Toni's blog at this address: http://www.cfsintrinidad.blogspot.com . She has already included some beautiful pictures and exciting news. Below, you can see members of the freshman class in Newton Grove. They took off yesterday in a caravan of 1 CFS bus, 3 12-passanger vans, and 2 parent vehicles filled with food and donations. Today, they are already hard at work at two Head Start programs and the ministry.
Here are some freshman boys playing cards in Newton Grove.

The word from France is that Rouen is "beautiful!" Our students are presently staying in homes with their French "siblings" and attending a French high school. In the Adirondacks, the CFS bus broke down and had to be towed when they were a little over an hour from their destination. Dave reports that all are well and it was a wild adventure. By now, they should be happily canoeing on Tupper Lake. I have received no word yet from our hikers in Dominguez Canyon, Colorado, which comes as no surprise. No news is good news. The word from Nicaragua is that the food is great and they are having a wonderful time. That's all for now. Tomorrow, I will write about Bryce's local Green Triangle experience.

Last week of classes, exams, and mini-sessions

Are you in the mood for looking at some pictures? If not, you have come to the wrong place! It was the last week of classes, exams and mini-sessions...and the first off-campus End-of-Year group met at the airport at 4:45 this morning. There is just so much going on. Below, you can see a happy group of travelers about to take off for Trinidad. (Yes, I am very jealous!) Gustavo, MS teacher Toni, and CFS grad Hannah are the group leaders. We also welcome 2 mentors from NCCU. This group will stay at a monestary on top of a mountain. They will begin work tomorrow in two groups: Habitat for Humanity and the Cyril Ross Orphanage. I will share news as I receive it.
We had 2 full days of mini-sessions last week, which seemed to be a big hit with students. Here, you can see Susan's theatre group performing on the patio.

Kelsey is modeling the new apron she made.

Jessica and Clara made these beautiful pillows in Nancy's quilting mini-session.

Zoe and her new pillow.

Here is Willy with her basket weavers.

We had 2 student-led cooking groups. Here are Miles and Lenore leading their group in making a yummy orzo salad and strawberry cake. Mariah and Ella led the morning cooking group.

Elise taught public speaking. Here is Bekkah giving her final speech about the manner in which we welcome soldiers home from war.

Sherri and I led a yoga retreat. Very fun!

Here are some of the prom pictures from my camera. I have emailed the link to Amelia's photos to parents and students.

Tyson with his trusty advisor, Willy.

Rigsbee Hall was a great location...very fun to decorate.

On Tuesday the 25th, we will officially begin our End-of-Year program. This program is designed to be a minimum of 11 days in length. We have three different types of experiences for upper class students: off-campus, local or on-campus, and internships. The freshmen all go to Newton Grove to work with migrant farmworker families. The departure dates for this year's off-campus experiences are as follows:

Trinidad..............Sunday, May 23

Adirondacks.......Monday, May 24

Nicaragua, West, and France........Tuesday, May 25

Freshmen to Newton Grove.........Wednesday, May 26

Bryce's local experience, Green Triangle, will begin on Tuesday, May 25.

SENIOR BANQUET AND SLIDE SHOW

The final day of our EOY program is Wednesday, June 9th. On Wednesday evening at 6:30, we will hold our Senior Banquet for seniors and staff members. At 8pm Wednesday night, we will present the Senior Slide Show for the public. All friends and families are welcome to attend. This is a very family-friendly event.

LAST DAYS OF SCHOOL

Thursday, June 10, is a full day of school. The Only Burger truck will be on hand during lunch for students to purchase burgers of all kinds (including veggie!). Friday, June 11, is our final half day of school. (noon dismissal) The graduation ceremony is Sunday, June 13, at 10:30am in the gym. All are welcome to attend.

Week of May 17, 2010

Annie's Site Specific Dance class went to Duke Gardens and then to the American Tobacco campus last week to perform their site specific dances. The idea for this field trip came from senior Sarah, Annie's TA.
While they were dancing in Duke Gardens, our dancers were surprised by a beautiful bride who arrived to have her pictures taken. The dancers had fun dancing around their surprise guest.

Some beautiful poses at the Gardens and then at the Tobacco campus.

Elise's HIV Ethics class presented their final projects last week. Below, you can see Aidan's smoking gun. I wish I had done a better job of capturing this amazing and thought-provoking project.

Emma and Fareeda are playing a game created by Julia. Players move through the board by answering questions about HIV and AIDS correctly.

Here is a shot of a group of HIV projects.

Parents, please watch for an email from me that will give you directions for viewing and ordering prom pictures online. I was hoping to include some prom pictures on my blog, but can't seem to get my computer and my camera to communicate.

THIS WEEK AT THE UPPER SCHOOL

Monday and Tuesday, periods 1-6 will meet (1-3 on Monday and 4-6 on Tuesday). These classes will actually be double classes, giving teachers time to give final exams if they choose. Some final exams have already taken place. Students are expected to be in class, whether or not they have an exam. During lunch on Monday, we will share more student films. During lunch on Tuesday, we will have a cookout and the band will play.

MINI-SESSIONS

On Wednesday and Thursday, students will be taking part in morning and afternoon mini-sessions. Each mini-session will last 2.5 hours (9:00-11:30 and 12:30-3:00) each day. Some of the mini-session topics include Mysteries and Scandals, Ancient Cultures and Civilizations, Poetry, Soccer, Public Speaking, Theatre, Hitchcok, Writing Workshop, Comics and Cartoons, and Cooking. Students have already signed up for mini-sessions and are expected to participate in this new endeavor.

FRIDAY STAFF WORKDAY

Friday is a staff workday to allow staff members to complete their end-of-term reports, which are due at 3:00 Friday afternoon. We will then move into our End-of-Year Program, which officially begins on Monday, although each individual trip/on-campus experience has its own itinerary. More to come about this exciting time of year...

Lots of pictures, little time

Senior surprises. Celebration of the Arts. Prom. State soccer tournament. ALL IN THE SAME WEEK!! I have pictures to share from our senior surprise and the arts celebration. My purpose for this brief blog, however, is SAFETY. We spoke with our students this morning about the importance of safety this weekend. We reminded them that, even though the prom will be off campus, all school rules will apply. No alcohol or drugs of any kind. We want them to drive carefully and take their time. No reason to hurry. Once they have arrived at the prom (9:00 or later), they must stay inside until they are ready to leave. When they leave, they will be escorted to the parking garage, if necessary. Parents dropping off and/or picking up prom kids may drive right up to 208 Rigsbee Ave. to Rigsbee Hall in downtown Durham.

Parents, at 12:00 after students have left, we (the staff) turn into pumpkins and go home. I just want to remind you that we always encourage parents to communicate with other parents if your children are headed to another party or spending the night with a friend. Prom is always an exciting event. We look forward to lively dancing, beautiful outfits and hair styles, lots of pictures, and FUN!
The culprits.

Entrance to the maze tunnel and inside the maze tunnel.

I was welcomed by these 2 people on Wednesday morning.

Dylan's area (colorful) and Elise's office (elephant).

Willy's office

Chris and Mariah

Elana and Madeline selling their wares. Music ensemble

Jessye

Danusha

I'm off to swing dance lessons...and then a soccer game!

Week of May 3, 2010

I have included photos from the US archives to get you in the mood for a few activities planned for this week. By next Sunday, I should be able to add some great shots from this year.

SOCCER TOURNAMENT

As you may know, Friday's game was cancelled following a tragic accident involving students from High Point Christian Academy. Understandably, their soccer team decided not to play their game on Saturday. Our soccer team will play in the semi-finals on Monday at 3:00 at Caldwell Academy. I hope you will join me in holding High Point Christian Academy friends and families in the light as they move through this terribly difficult time.

STAFF EVLUATIONS

Beginning Monday morning, our students will be evaluating all of their teachers anonymously online. We are using a Googledoc program that allows for personal comments as well as responses to 40 multiple choice questions. We look forward to receiving honest feedback from our students.

CELEBRATION OF THE ARTS

I do hope to see many families at our annual Celebration of the arts on Thursday from 6-8pm. We will begin with a POTLUCK dinner. Please bring a main dish or a salad to share. The US will provide drinks, paper products, and desserts. Even if you can stay for only a short time, we hope you will make the time to appreciate the arts with us AND welcome our new 4th year MS riser families.

SITE SPECIFIC DANCE HEADS OFF CAMPUS

Annie's Site Specific Dance class will head off campus on Friday morning to dance at Duke Gardens. If you have a moment on Friday morning, come over to Duke Gardens and look for our dancers. They will be moving from place to place. I believe that they will be at the gardens until around 10:00 and then they will head to Brightleaf Square for more dancing. This off-campus experience is a project of senior Sarah Merritt who has been Annie's TA.

PROM

This year's Prom will be held at Rigsbee Hall in downtown Durham (across the street from the Post Office) from 9-12. We will park in the parking garage at the end of the street. Tickets are $20/each and must be purchased before the end of school on Friday. When students arrive at the Prom, they must stay in the Hall until they are ready to leave. Once they leave, they will not be allowed back into the Hall. We will have staff members supervising outside as well as in the Hall. Safety is on all of our minds as we think about the excitement of this occasion.