Granby Elementary… 25 Years and Counting!

Last summer, when I found out that I would be coming to Granby, I quickly set out to learn as much about this school community as I could.  One of the first things I discovered was that this year is Granby’s 25^th year as a school.  It was very exciting to me that I would have the opportunity to be a part of a banner year in Granby’s history and knew that, as a team, we would be certain to make sure that we did not miss the opportunity to celebrate the rich past and hope for the future.

Ellen and Gene Castelli

I believe it was at the very first PTA board meeting (when I had just met some of the members for the very first time) that I tossed out the desire to celebrate Granby’s 25^th year in a special way.  Granby PTA co-president, Ellen Castelli (who has been a Granby parent for many years), was equally excited about this and committed herself to this project right off the bat.  In just a few short months, she and former Granby parent, Christy Gray, had pulled together a team of current and former parents and staff members as the planning committee for the Granby Gala, brainstormed ideas to make this event extra-special, and delegated tasks well.  Last Friday night, it all came together perfectly!  A huge group (I don’t know the final count, but I’m guessing around 200 or so) of current and former staff, students (now adults), family members, and friends gathered together at J. Liu in Worthington for a Granby “reunion” of sorts.

Fred Burton and Chris Collaros (Principally Speaking) entertained the crowd.

Ellen’s husband, Gene, was the MC for the evening and looked dashing in his tuxedo top and blue jean bottoms so that everyone would feel comfortable.  Former Granby student, Robbie Davidson, opened the event with his beautiful voice for guests as they arrived.  Fred Burton, former Granby principal, and Chris Collaros, former teacher (turned principal), brought their band, “Principally Speaking,” to entertain the crowd throughout the evening.  DVDs of special Granby events over the years played on the two large monitors all evening and a special slideshow (put together by Ellen herself) was projected on a large screen highlighting all 25 years of Granby’s staff and students.  The background music for this was none other than our own current Granby choir (directed by Leslie Ritter) including special songs written over the years by staff members.

One of the amazing pieces of artwork up for auction.

Throughout the evening, guests had an opportunity to win raffle prizes and bid on silent auction items that included a wide range of student artwork recently created with the guidance of two “rock star” parent volunteers, Tamra Haurani and Meghan Zink and our own art teacher, Andrea Jewett.  Former Granby parent, Tim Mack (who has been hiding his special talent), was the auctioneer for our live auction that included two beautiful quilts made from vintage Granby spiritwear, a getaway trip, and an evening for a group of adults to “be kids again” and play in the Granby gym.

One of the highlights of the evening was the opportunity to recognize our “Magnificent Seven.”  These are the seven current staff members that opened the building 25 years ago.  The fact that all seven of these wonderful ladies are still committed to serving the Granby community speaks volumes about how important the Granby family is to each of them.  They carry with them the rich history of Granby’s past and I thoroughly enjoy having the opportunity to learn so much from them!

Paula McPheron, Barb Minor, Mischelle Stukey, Sherry Mosier, Leslie Ritter, Andrea Jewett, Diana Stambaugh (with Ron Hopper’s Photo)

As with any special family “reunion”, the absence of family members was certainly felt.  Throughout the planning process, Granby’s first principal, Ron Hopper, was remembered many times.  His sudden death, just a few short years after opening Granby’s doors, shook the entire Granby community and the healing process still continues.  Ron was known for his ability to hire and grow excellent staff and create a sense of community where children are valued.  I was blessed to have known Ron as the principal of my own elementary school when he opened the doors to Worthington Hills (yep, I’m THAT old!).  I remember Mr. Hopper as a friendly, gentle man who was easily approachable.  I am guessing that my brother may remember him differently as he had a knack for getting himself into mischief back in the day.

Patti Schlaegel and Gerry Alexander

Ron’s sidekick and trusted secretary was Gerry Alexander who teamed with Ron to open Worthington Hills, Liberty, and Granby.  It was pure pleasure to see her in attendance on Friday night.  I waited until there was an opening to have a conversation with her and introduced myself as the current principal at Granby.  Partway into our conversation, I asked her if she remembered the Mays from Worthington Hills (figuring she probably remembered my parents as my father was the first PTA president there).  She remembered us right away and was more than happy to share some stories with me about Ron and how he told her one more time, “Gerry.  I think we need to go open this building.”  I told her they must have been really good at it since the district had them do it THREE times!  She was as sweet as I remembered her from my childhood days and it was a joy to reconnect with her and reminisce about the “good ‘ole days.”  Ron’s picture still hangs in the lobby at Granby and I often think to myself as I enter the building that I hope I’m making him proud and taking good care of the family he began at Granby 25 years ago.

Although I’ve only been at Granby for six months, this was an amazing night for me.  Watching my new school family thoroughly enjoying each other, meeting important folks that are a part of Granby’s past, and hearing so many wonderful things about this special school family was truly beautiful.  Thank you fine, fine Granby family for a fine, fine 25^th anniversary celebration!   Here’s to another 25 years of our Fine, Fine School!!

Counting My Blessings… Happy Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving week.  A time to stop and reflect on all that we have to be thankful for.  Quite honestly, some years this is easier to do than others.   For me, this year is an easy one… overflowing with blessings!

Thanksgiving is a time for family and I am lucky enough to belong to several wonderful families…  a church family, a personal family, and a school family.   In just a few hours, I’ll be with my church family enjoying their fellowship and reflecting on the blessings that we share.  There are many things for us to be collectively thankful for and we’ll be certain to wish each other a Happy Thanksgiving as we part ways for the week.

On Thursday, I’ll be with my personal family.  My husband and I both come from large families (he is one of eight and I am one of five).  Between the two Thanksgiving celebrations, we’ll probably have the opportunity to see over 50 family members. My goal is to try not to make any of them sick as I am in charge of the turkeys for both family dinners!   It will be a wonderful (although loud and crazy) family-filled day.  My family has been richly blessed this year and we will rejoice in the fact that all of the seats around the table remain filled.  My dad is recovering well from his open-heart surgery and my two oldest sons will have their fiancées with them.  Our family is about to get bigger… more blessings!

At school, it is a short week as we take a break to be with our own families.  However, tomorrow (after our staff “Beat Michigan by a Mile” bike ride/walk), the Granby staff will gather together to share a Thanksgiving dessert and enjoy each other’s company.  I am not certain they know how truly thankful I am for each of them and all they have done to make me a part of their school family, so I will attempt to tell them.  A little part of me is afraid I’ll end up a puddle on the floor, but that’s okay… they already know what a sap I am.

My appreciation for these amazing folks runs deep.  They have exhibited endless dedication, passion, care, and concern for the growth of all of our students.  Their compassion for each other and our Granby families is sincere and it is clear that there is not much we can’t do if we work together to make it happen.  They work hard, play nice, and have fun doing it!  The smiles on the faces of our Gators as they arrive each morning are a reflection of the wonderful people that are about to greet them inside.  They are a blessing to these children.

I had the opportunity to spend some time with our Granby families on Friday at the Barnes & Noble Bookfair.  They, too, are a blessing to me.  They are team players and jump at the chance to help out when there is a need.  They entrust their most precious children to us each day (approximately 430 additional blessings) and work with us to provide the best education possible.  As I watched the choir perform Friday night with proud parents, teachers, siblings, grandparents, and other extended family members crowding around trying to snap pictures, I was overcome with pride for this beautiful school family.   My heart overflows…

To my wonderful Granby family, thank you for being such an amazing, important part of my life.  You make me proud to be a Gator each and every day and I count you all among my richest blessings.  You are a fine, fine family for our Fine, Fine School and I wish you a fine, fine Thanksgiving with your families.  Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Three Heads Are Better Than One

Critical thinking.  Communication.  Collaboration.  Creativity.  These are the terms that in the education world have come to be known as the 4Cs of 21st century learning and innovation skills.  They are critical components of a framework for 21st century learning.

From the Partnership for 21st Century Skills

As educators, we are working hard to embed opportunities for our students to develop these skills to prepare them to become productive adults in a rapidly changing world.  Now, more than ever, these skills are required for many occupations and proficiency in these skills will likely lead to successful careers for our students.  At Granby, the Gator staff models these skills daily as they work together in teams and pursue creative solutions to challenges.  Wellness Man videos (a blog for a later date) are a perfect example of putting these 21st century skills in action and creating a product.  For a poster about the 4Cs, click here.

Slate Hill & Granby Collaboration

Recently, I had the opportunity to develop these same skills as I collaborated with several groups of folks.  Granby’s RTI Team (Response to Intervention Team that supports teachers in providing intervention for students who need additional support) met to discuss the RTI process and revise some procedures and documents that will assist in making the process more efficient and helpful to teachers.  Our building’s new school psychologist, Molly Yeager, brings wonderful knowledge and experience to the job and, along with the rest of the team, revised a document that is sure to be quite helpful as we move forward.  Molly is also the school psychologist for Slate Hill Elementary and when she shared with principal, Ken Pease, that we were going to meet to finalize the document and discuss the procedural changes, he gave me a call and asked if he could join us.  Absolutely!  Our meeting was wonderfully productive as we discussed, shared, problem-solved, and collaborated on a document that could be customized for our individual schools and would also provide Molly with some continuity in the two buildings she serves.  This seemingly small thing will help both of our school’s teams be more efficient and provide our teachers with a document that will help guide the process and, more importantly, help students grow.

As we continue to re-evaluate and reflect on the instruction that we provide our young Gators, we maintain a focus on embedding a balance of skills that will serve our students well into the future.  Among these are the 4Cs.  21st Century Learning…  a fine, fine opportunity in A Fine, Fine School!

Just for fun!

P.S. Thank you, Ken, for challenging my thinking.  I appreciate the collaborative dialog we have and your willingness to respectfully disagree at times.  It helps me to learn and grow!! (And no, we did not position you under the canister light on purpose to make your head shine.)  🙂

It Takes a… TON of Work! Edugator spotlight: Sherry Mosier

During our opening staff meeting, one of our “icebreaker” interview questions was, “What is one thing you learned over the summer?”  As I was interviewed, I thought of about a gazillion things that I had learned, but most of them fell into one category.  It takes a TON of work to open a building for a new school year!  For me, I’m sure some of that was because it was a new skill set… to be expected.

However, for our school secretary, Sherry Mosier, this is nothing new.  Sherry helped open Granby 25 years ago as an instructional assistant and moved into the secretary position several years later.  She has been “opening” the building ever since and has it down to a science.  Her organizational skills are quite remarkable and she runs a tight ship.  For a new principal, this is a very good thing.  During Sherry’s tenure, she has “trained” multiple new principals, so she has that down to a science as well.  It is not rare for me to ask her about something and get a response similar to, “That’s already done.”  It’s almost like magic (to the untrained eye), but I see how this is all getting done.  SHE is doing it!

Since she returned to school in late July, Sherry has worked non-stop to make sure everything was “just right” for opening day.  Her commitment to getting everything ready in time has been amazing!  She has been arriving early, staying late, and working through lunch (and sometimes dinner) to ensure that every administrator, teacher, parent, and student had everything they needed to start the school year successfully.  Some of the tasks that need to be done are fairly routine for her now…  copying, posting class lists, changing name plates for new staff, processing building permits, etc.  However, as an added bonus this year, she had the opportunity to learn a new skill set with the transition to Infinite Campus, Worthington’s new student management system.  With this new system came many hours of training, one-on-one tutoring, collaboration with other school secretaries, and lots of hard work.  It is and continues to be a learning curve for Sherry, but she’s managing it all like a champ!  I love how she’ll get excited and sometimes cheer when she’s figured out how to do something new and is successful.  We celebrate together!

As I left the building Friday night, Sherry was still hard at work and promised she wouldn’t stay too late.  She just had a “couple more things to do” before leaving.  I received an email from her around 10:00 p.m. with our updated student enrollment figures.  I’d like to think that she was at home in her jammies and slippers when that email was sent, but I know better…  She is unbelievable!  Thank you, Sherry Mosier, for all you do for Granby!  It takes a TON of work to open such A Fine, Fine School!