Most Important Elements in College Application

This past week, Guidance Counselor, Stephenie Hodgeman, shared an article from College Confidential about how colleges are weighing the most critical elements in college applications.  

It is interesting to read that according to the fall 2018 survey that grades in all classes, grades in college prep courses, and strength of curriculum are in the top three.  The class rank was second to last.  To read the full article, please see "Admission Officers Name the Most Important Elements in College Applications."

Matilda the Musical

The musical "Matilda" is being performed at BFA in the Performing Arts Center.

Thursday night we had a great opening with an almost full house. The performance by all was breathtaking and exciting along with both the music and the scenery.  We are so impressed with the hard work put in by all the students and staff to produce an amazing show.  We would encourage all of you to make time to see the show! Friday night, Saturday matinee, and Saturday night shows are still available. 

Coat Drive Update

We have collected 450 coats to be distributed next week to the community service organizations in Franklin County including Operation Happiness, CVOEO  and the Samaritan House.  Please consider a gently used coat, hat, mitten or snow pants donation.  The coat drive will end on Monday, November 25th.

Schedule Change: Friday, Nov 22 will be a Tuesday block schedule

Hi Students and Families:

Happy snow day number two.  The last thing we needed was to have another Tuesday lost to snow days.  This morning, the Assistant Principals, Sara Kattam, Heather Fitzgibbons and I met to talk about the best way to proceed forward.   As we were discussing solutions, we wanted to adhere to giving students and staff at least 48 hours’ notice when we are changing a day's schedule as we know it is best for all students to keep the schedule as regular as possible.

Here is our solution to make up the two missing Tuesdays:

·  This Friday, November 22, will be a Tuesday schedule 

·   Next Tuesday, November 26, will be a Tuesday schedule

If you have any further questions or concerns, please let me know.

Sincerely,

Bill Kimball

Snow Day and Student Contact Verification

Hello Parents:

Two weeks ago we started verifying our contact information for each of our students by sending home a verification form with them.  As of Thursday, we had received 165 forms back.  We recognize that this past Tuesday (snow day) we had several incorrectly placed calls due to selecting all contacts in the school cancellation message. 

If you have not returned your child's verification form, please review, correct, sign (by parent/guardian) and return to the Guidance Office as soon as possible.  If you need another copy of the form either emailed or mailed to you, please contact Kelly Hirss at khirss@maplerun.org and we will gladly get one to you right away.  Thank you for your attention to this important matter.

Fall Choral Concert

November 7th, BFA students participated in the 2019 Fall Choral Concert which featured BFA Chorus (Chorus classes I & II),  BFA Chamber Singers, and soloists.   Karah White, Bella Bonasera, and Sophie Thompson were featured soloists who performed their New England Music Festival audition pieces.  Several other students from the chorus had solos including Hassan Chambers Jr. who performed the rap section from “We Are the World -25.”    A truly wonderful night of choral music enjoyed by a well-attended audience.   Congratulations to all who were involved!

Employee Retirement Counseling Sessions

Brian Ficek, Retirement Education Counselor, was on site at BFA on Wednesday, November 13, 2019 for private one on one retirement counseling for BFA and NWTC employees. Brian will be returning for a second session on Wednesday, December 4, 2019.

Brian Ficek, CMFC®

Retirement Education Counselor| State of VT

Prudential Retirement

280 Trumbull Street, Hartford CT 06103

Cell: (802) 222-1798

brian.ficek@prudential.com

Academic PIN Awards Night

We would like to thank all the students and parents that attended our Academic PIN Awards Night this past Tuesday in which we had a great dessert provided by the Abbey.  I was excited to recognize over 140 students and their scholarships from last year.  I would like to especially recognize Leah Brannon and Ella Simmons for the performance of their original song.  It was an example of the great work our students do here at BFA.

The Bronze Pin is defined by students receiving a 4 in 70% or greater in their parent standard scores.  Below is a picture of the group.

The Silver Pin is defined by students receiving a 4 in 80% or greater in their parent standard scores.  Below is a picture of the group.

The Gold Pin is defined by students receiving a 4 in 90% or greater in their parent standard scores.  Below is a picture of the group.

I would encourage every student here at BFA to do their very best every day and be willing to take the challenge to increase the rigor in your own learning.  That challenge will pay off in your future.  Thank you all for coming out on a cold and snowy night.

Veterans Day

Maple Run Unified School District honored our Veterans on Monday. Students from around the district gathered for a parade and some words from the mayor, community veterans, and BFA's own Kiarah Anderson. It was a cold day but the band marched on performing through the frosty wind. BFA and NWTC were pleased to take part in this celebration.

GGGBFA#12: BFA's Connector Update

GGGBFA#12

Elevation Plan

Last night the Maple Run Unified School District Board approved the pre-qualification of seven contractors to bid on the connector project.  See the list of contractors below.  Currently, the schedule for the project is as follows:

• December 6, 2019 - Construction Project Documents released for bidding
• January 6, 2020 - Bids due back for project
• January 8, 2020 - MRUSD Board awards contract for work
• January 15 - 31, 2020 - Construction mobilization for the beginning of work
• Start of School 2020-21 - Connector and site work completed - Phase I of the sprinkler system of the south building completed
• Summer 2021 - Phase II  of the sprinkler system of the south building completed
• Summer 2022 -  Phase III of the sprinkler system of the south building completed  

Enclosed are two photos of the plans for our construction work, one being the site plan and the other being elevations of the connector.   There are more details we still need to finish, and as we finalize the answers, we will let you know.  Currently, we are creating drawings for the foot traffic and construction area between the buildings.  The current plan is that students and staff will use the easternmost door by the gym to enter and exit the south building and the doors near the science rooms below the principal's office to exit and enter the north building.  There will be a fence to keep people out of the construction zone. 

If you have any questions, please contact Bill Kimball.

Contractors:

Conner  Construction

PC Construction

Kenneth R. Adams

Neagley & Chase Construction

Wright and Morrisey General Contractors

DEW Construction

Peak CM Construction

Site Plan

GGGBFA#11 Financial Literacy

GGGBFA#11

Ninety students from the Business Department’s Career Exploration, Accounting, and Personal Finance classes collaborated with the BPW (Business & Professional Women’s Organization) and forty-five community members to learn about Financial Literacy.

Students participated in mock interviews, learned the costs of housing, transportation, groceries, insurance, etc. and what life will be like as they start to make decisions on how to manage their finances in the future.

GGGBFA#10 Latest Student News

See the latest edition of the BFA's Studnet newspaper The BFA Mercury,    The links below are to stories published this fall.

Matilda: The Musical Miracle Comes to BFA  by Kai Hemingway

Blazin' Bleachers by Kaia McKenzie

Halloween Creeps into BFA by Xain DeMont

The Secret Harm of Dab Pens by Dylan Lamson

What we know about BFA's Water by Owen Biniecki

GGGBFA#9: Special Olympics

On Friday's in-service day, 13 students attended the Special Olympics of Vermont annual conference. With other students, they brainstormed on how to become a unified school, community, world. 

Special Olympics of Vermont handed out many awards. 

BFA’s Ian Carpenter was named Athlete of the year! We are very proud of him! 

GGGBFA#8: Music and Dancing

Master dancers and drummers Ishmael Bangoura, Moustapha Bangoura, and Ousmane Camara visited Alexis Kamitses dance and science classrooms on Thursday to share in the music and dance from Guinea West Africa. Ms. Kamitses' science classes have been studying the effects of exercise on the human body and dance classes have been studying forms that influenced American dance. Other students dropped in during the day and even the French III class got to come by and practice their French. Everyone had a great day!

The Fall Concert featured all students in Band 1, 2, &3, Jazz Band And String Orchestra. The concert was a culmination of the hard work kids were doing in their music classes this Fall. The band's next task is to get ready for the upcoming Veteran's day parade and then the quick turnaround time for the Holiday Concert on December 15th. 

GGGBFA#7- Admin Message

GGGBFA#7

Teacher Conferences and Tea with Administrators
By: Bill Kimball

We want to thank all the students and families who joined us on Wednesday and Friday for Parent Conferences. Sara Kattam and I enjoyed discussing with students and parents: issues, supports needed, and possible solutions to help BFA improve our already great school. There were many good ideas that we will combine with the data we received from the senior parents. Within the next month, we will be hosting another parent forum for all parents and forming the parent advisory group. Please stay tuned as we will be providing more details in the next week on both topics.

If you did not get a chance to meet with one or more of your student's teachers, please remember that you are free to reach out to them via phone or e-mail. The staff’s contact information is available on the school’s website, along with the Maple Run Application that you can download from either the iTunes or Android store. Also, you may call the school at 802-527-6555 and use the phone directory to find a staff member.

Student Contact Verification Forms

This coming Monday, all students will receive a paper form for families to verify their contact information.  Please fill out the form and return them to the guidance office by Friday, November 8th, so we can ensure your information is correct and our rapid communication systems are correctly programmed as we enter the winter season.

Our hope is by next year, we will have this form online as another option for parents to submit their information electronically.


Senior Transcripts

We believe that all seniors with November 1st deadlines have had their transcripts submitted to colleges and provided to families. We would like to thank the seniors and their families for their feedback and patience as our collaboration has produced the best possible product for our students. 

If you believe something is missing for your student, please reach out to the guidance office and/or Bill Kimball so we can provide it as quickly as possible. 

GGGBFA#6 A Blustery Day- Nov 1 In-service

GGGBFA#6

November 1st was a blustery day, but staff weathered the storm to get to BFA. Some staff-members reported driving through high waters, and colleagues providing "lifeboats" to get them to work despite washed out driveways and culverts. 

The morning brought staff together to define the current PLP process and look at data collected from the previous in-service prompting discussion. Mr. Kimball and Ms. Kattam fielded questions and cast some vision for the following activity. Staff met together again in Proficiency-Based Learning Circles to read excerpts from books and publications about proficiency grading systems and then link them to the discussion of the four major PBL questions populated from the previous surveys. 

After PBL circles, staff participated in a much needed hour of wellness activities organized by Edee McArtor and Jennifer Konrad, the VEHI wellness coordinators. Staff engaged in some friendly competition in ping-pong, corn hole, basketball, and mindfulness in Yoga. It was the perfect segway into an afternoon of Parent-Teacher conferences. 

The Guidance Department was working hard all day, writing senior letters of recommendation and uploading finalized transcripts for college applications. All in all a very productive day.

GGGBFA#5 The Scarlet Letter

GGGBFA#5

This past Thursday, October 31st, Mrs. Hebert's, Mrs. Martin's, and Mr. Kivlehan's 11th-grade classes had the opportunity to view the Classic Repertory Company's production of The Scarlet Letter. Students have recently read and studied this classic text. Viewing this production brought the book to "life" for students and help them understand the story better. Following the performance, the Classic Repertory Company held a discussion about the story and how their production connects to our students' lives. The students asked questions about the feminist values in Hawthorne's story, his upbringing of being the only male in his family, and the connection between freedom for teenagers today and sixteenth-century America, among other topics.