Linus Pauling Make Your Mark Video 2013

Make Your Mark Launch

October 28, 2013

Dear LPMS Community,                                                                                          

Today we launch our Make Your Mark (MYM) direct donation campaign for the 2013-14 school year at Linus Pauling Middle School.  This direct donation campaign provides additional resources and unique experiences to enhance learning at our school.  MYM is our primary annual fundraising campaign and our goal this year is to raise $15,000.  We have moved away from product-based fundraising and sincerely appreciate those who Made Their Mark this past year.  We hope we can count on you to join us again!  Click here to watch a short video about the positive impact of MYM and new ideas for this year!     

How can you support the Linus Pauling Make Your Mark campaign? 

1.     Make a tax deductible gift!  Every gift large or small makes a difference for our students at Linus Pauling.  You can give online at cpsfoundation.org (designate to: LPMS Make Your Mark).  You will be able to designate specifically to MYM prior to submitting your donation.  Another way to give is by writing a check to: Corvallis Public Schools Foundation (LPMS Make Your Mark and student’s name on the memo line for prize drawings).  Send checks to:

Linus Pauling Middle School

Attn: Make Your Mark

1111 NW Cleveland Avenue

Corvallis, OR 97330

2.     Encourage your student to get involved and bring in a cash or check donation.  Your student will receive a raffle ticket for every $5 that is donated.  We have fun prizes for individuals and Pride classes such as Principal for the day (you even get to pick your own VP), signed OSU gear, Yogurt Extreme escape with a friend, and much more!  We will be collecting donations at Pride period on Fridays during November and December.  The emphasis is on making a difference, participation, and having fun!

3.     Help spread the word!  Below is a link to our campaign video showing how the donations have and will positively impact our school.  Please consider sending this letter to family, friends, neighbors, business owners or anyone else who may want to help through email, Facebook, Twitter, or other creative ways. We are also graciously accepting “in kind” donations from businesses and individuals for participation raffle drawings.  Also attached is the MYM brochure that you are invited to share.  Thank you for spreading the news of Make Your Mark! 

MYM video link: http://youtu.be/9x22Js_PosY

We will keep you updated on the progress toward our goal! If you have any questions or would like to be involved with our Make Your Mark direct donation drive, please contact committee member Russa Kittridge at russa.kittredge@gmail.com.

With Sincere Thanks,

LPMS Make Your Mark Campaign Committee

Update from Mr. Beasley

Dear LPMS Community,

I hope you are having a great Friday.  The purpose of this communication is to update you on several items including safety, an upcoming school-wide trip to OSU, and our iPad program called 1:World.  Before addressing those topics, I want to share that recently LPMS had our first school-wide assembly of the year.  I truly enjoyed the opportunity to be together as a school community.  Our staff and student participation was awesome! 

Safety

Today during our PRIDE period, we practiced a lock down drill.  Along with our monthly fire drills, we conduct two earthquake drills each year (fall and spring), and at least one lock down drill.  It is incredibly troubling that the unthinkable happened again this week in Nevada.  While a lock down is an important safety tool that we practice, it is also important that we give your child information if they are in a situation with imminent danger such as an active shooter at a mall, community building, a house of worship, or in a school.  We use information from the Department of Homeland Security and address it in as developmentally appropriate manner as possible.           

School-Wide Trip to OSU

Thanks to our Make Your Mark direct donation drive, we are again planning a community building trip to OSU.  LPMS students and staff through a partnership with Oregon State University, will be traveling to OSU on Nov. 15 to attend an OSU Women's basketball game vs. Sacramento State.  There is no admission fee to the game.  This is a great opportunity for LP students to visit a university campus.  OSU also integrates an academic component. Permission forms will be coming home with students the week of November 4th. Watch for more information to follow!

We will be looking for 15 (five from each grade level) parent volunteers to help at the event at OSU on Nov. 15 from 10:45 a.m. - 1:15 p.m.  Volunteers will be given free entrance to the game.  We use a great online tool called VolunteerSpot to sign up volunteers.  You don't need an account to use this tool.  If you would like to help, click here, enter your name, email and pick which grade you would like to support. All volunteers working with/around students must also have a school verified Criminal History Background Check (CHBC).  If you haven't yet completed a 509j CHBC within the last two school years, then there is still time to complete this process. To start, go to LPMS Volunteers and complete the online Criminal Background Check form.  The form takes about two weeks to process. Feel free to sign up to volunteer through VolunteerSpot and we will verify that your CHBC has cleared just before the event.  http://www.volunteerspot.com/login/entry/574196494068

1:World Update

We are continuing to prepare for our iPad program at Linus Pauling Middle School.  The next student iPad bootcamp is scheduled to be Oct. 28 at LPMS.  The Linus Pauling student iPad checkout (i.e. roll-out)  is on schedule for Nov. 4^th (grade 8), Nov. 5^th (grade 7), and Nov. 7^th (grade 6).  Testing of the global proxy has been completed by Apple, Technology and other designated District office staff.  Currently, the global proxy will apply the same basic CIPA-compliant to the iPads when they connect to the Internet outside the District’s network.  Technology is working with LBL ESD on adding more filter rules in time for the rollouts in early November.  The middle school iPads are being re-configured into Supervise mode which will prevent the global proxy from being deleted by students.  Technology Specialist Darren Bland has been working with our staff on training with device management and instructional enhancement.  Answers to the FAQ from our recent iPad night have been posted on the district website.  Here is the link to the district page:  http://www.csd509j.net/en-us/districtinformation/keyinitiatives/1world/faq.aspx

We’ll see you at conferences next week! 

Sincerely, Eric

Oct./Nov. Newsletter Article

Dear Pauling Pride Community,

I wholeheartedly believe the old saying, “it takes a village to raise a child.” Each phase of child development has its unique traits which make the whole process simultaneously challenging and rewarding. The middle school years (early adolescence) can be a time when children prefer or demand the “villagers” be less direct in their “raising.”  I can respect this desire, but in order for the Linus Pauling village to move forward, our active partnership is key.  A big LP thank you to the many wonderful volunteers who supported our annual serve day, schedule-pick up, first days of school, Outdoor Experience, cross country meets, putting on iPad screen protectors, and so much more.  We are thankful for our village!  

The preparation for the iPad roll-out has made for a busy fall!  We are hosting a parent information night, conducting professional development with staff, teaching iPad “Boot Camp,” and preparing for the operational roll-out.  We learned many things last year when we piloted the iPads with mobile carts in science, math, and special education.  Increasing the scale to 1:1 will allow us to utilize the technology in each classroom, efficiency with workflow, greater organization, and to close the digital gap. 

Starting in 2012, we moved away from our annual product-based magazine sale to a direct donation fundraiser called Make Your Mark.  In our first year we raised nearly $8,000 and last year we exceeded our goal with over $15,000 in donations!!!  Along with innovative projects and tools, we have rich traditions such as the 8^th grade Mock Congress learning simulation, Pride Early Art Class, and Track and Field Scholarships which are made possible as a result of our generous community.  With the focus on multiple initiatives including iPads, we will officially launch our Make Your Mark fundraising campaign later in October and we plan to have fun prizes for participation through our Pride classes. 

Thank you for taking the time to read the newsletter and staying informed of the happenings at LPMS.  We had an amazing turn-out for our Principal Coffee Chat in August.  This year we added a blog.  The link is on our website www.lpms.us.  Our PTO will continue to partner with us to email out a weekly parent newsletter called the WAAG (Week at a Glance).  Thank you for your continued support of the Pride learning community!

Go PRIDE & Go Beavs!

Sincerely,

Eric Beasley

Principal

2013 Parent Curriculum Night

Dear Families,

Thank you to those that attended our curriculum night!  If you were not able to attend, below is a link to the opening slideshow.  Also, you can learn about curriculum under the "academics" tab of our WWW.LPMS.US website.


2013 Parent Curriculum Night Slideshow


We also had a video to feature staff talking about iPads in anticipation of our parent iPad night that will be October 8th at 6:30 at LPMS.  I'll try and add the video to this blog soon.

Here is a link to a district FAQ created by the district. 

1:World iPad FAQ


Sincerely,

Eric Beasley

Legacy Reflection from Summer

I love baseball. I grew up in the baseball town of The Dalles on the Columbia

Gorge and enjoyed playing it as boy through college at George Fox University.

After my pitching days concluded (I couldn't go pro with a fastball in the low 80s),

my journey continued as high school coach in Sherwood, Oregon.  In mourning my beloved days in the dugout, I readily confess that I drag my children to OSU and Knights games when time allows. To increase the chances that the love of baseball will transfer, I strategically plan for games that include fireworks or a give-a-away. :-)

This summer, I led my family on a pilgrimage to Safeco Field to watch my team

the Seattle Mariners. The game included a coveted bobble head doll, but more

important to me was the pre-game ceremony to formally induct the great Ken

Griffey Jr. into the mariner Hall of Fame (Cooperstown won't be long after).  I loved watching Griffey play as a young man.  Along with Jr.'s family, on hand were Mariner greats including Alvin Davis, Randy Johnson, Jay Buhner, Edgar Martinez, and Dan Wilson.

Ken Griffey Jr. was a tremendous baseball player. He excelled in every aspect of

the game with his beautiful swing, gold glove plays in center field, and big smile

that helped him earn the nickname "the kid." Ken exuded love for the game of

baseball and serves as a reminder to all that we need to enjoy the journey.

During the presentation ceremony, the story of Jr.'s baseball prowess was certainly glorified, yet even more impressive was hearing about the lives that Griffey touched

through his involvement in "Make a Wish" foundation. His teammates highlighted

his loyalty and friendship in the locker room and impressive respect for the

history of the game. It was shared how Griffey was a tremendous family man. A

video was beamed in of his son who was preparing for a football season at the University of Arizona that caused Jr. to tear up. A representative from baseball

spoke of Griffey's advocacy for societal progress in areas of equity. Ken was the

catalyst behind baseball's annual day where all player's where Jackie Robinson's

number 42 which is the only number that is completely retired in all of Major

League Baseball.

Driving home, I was reflecting on Griffey's legacy. Taking care of family, excelling in your profession, giving back to the community… these are key elements of a tremendous legacy, but Griffey also reminds us to also put the hat on backwards and remember "the kid" inside of us all.  Thanks, Ken!

-Eric Beasley

iPad initiative in Corvallis KEZI Article

CORVALLIS, Ore. — It is a big year for three schools in the Corvallis School District, where every single student will have access to his or her own iPad.

It’s out with the old technology, and in with the new as the Corvallis School District makes plans to move forward with technology. Linus Pauling Middle School, Cheldelin Middle, and Mountain View Elementary are all going 1:1 this year. One-to-one, meaning one Apple iPad for every student.

“We’re really excited,” said Superintendent Erin Prince. “We have a new initiative called One to World.”

One to World: connecting every child, every day, to the future.

Dr. Erin Prince says it’s about opening the classroom doors to the world through the Internet and the immediate resources that iPads provide.

“This is not about the gadget,” Prince said. “It’s about changing the teaching and learning for our teachers and students. And about closing the opportunity gap.”

Prince says 275  kids in the district are homeless and do not have the same access to technology as other students.

“The iPads create an opportunity to close the gap between the haves and the have-nots,” Prince said.

The district says the benefits of the iPads outweigh the cost – a sum of $1 million per year to maintain. But Prince says the district has been able to shift funds in order to purchase the tablets.

“The funds are not coming away from the teachers, but they’re funds we would normally use for other materials,” Prince said.

She says with iPads, the district will save a huge sum on items such as computers, laptops, textbooks, and paper materials.

So why iPads? Why not a different type of tablet?

“We like the iPads because of the immediate connectivity,” Prince said. “But there’s the ability with iTunes University and iBooks to create curriculum. We’ll have access to free resources that have been built by professors across the country, teachers, and students.”

The district says it spent a great deal of time looking at different tablets and laptops, but decided the iPad was the best route. Prince says the district has set up a management system on the devices, so teachers can lock students into a particular app during class. The district is also able to block students from downloading particular apps on their iPads.

Administrators say despite the new wave of technology, the school libraries aren’t going anywhere. Some textbooks might disappear in order for teachers to use more current tools online, but novels and other book resources will still be available in the schools.

“I know there might be some fear that kids sitting under a tree reading a book – that those days are over,” said Assistant Superintendent Kevin Bogartin. “I don’t think those days are over, but I think maybe the days of the huge psychology textbook that you might lug around – those might be over.”

Prince says the middle schoolers will be able to take their iPads home with them to use after school. Though only three schools have full implementation of iPads, she says there are other departments within the district that have the tablets already. She says this is just the first phase of the iPad rollout, and students at all other schools can expect to see the tablets soon.

“We hope to scale this project to include the whole district by next year,” Prince said.

Because this is the first huge iPad distribution within the district, Prince says there will be challenges. Not all teachers know how to use the iPads yet, but the district is hosting workshops next week to get everyone on board.

“If we wait for the adults to be ready with our technology, it will never happen. And we don’t have time to wait.”