Principal's Blog - Monticello High School

Independent Study Students Present Their Final Projects

2012-02-03T13:52:00.000-08:00

On January 18th teachers and parents were “blown away” by the student designed projects presented at the Independent Study Open House. Emily Davidson studied the Levels of Emergency Medicine in our community and specifically described her time with an EMT team. Pat McDonnell presented his Analysis of the Republican Candidates and described the candidates’ historic impacts on national and state budgets. Kelly Floro illustrated the complexity of Chinese Culture, History and Language with an interesting twist by translating the periodical table into Chinese. The Various Effects of Sleep and Diet on Student Athletes was presented by Keenan Sochor. Jackie Mallon showed us clothing she designed and constructed for her study in Textiles and Fashion Design. We were serenaded by Emily Freeman to demonstrate her study of Voice Development for a Variety of Venue. A Pictorial Tour of Charlottesville and images of its residents were captured with the photographic eye of Claire Wolanski.

MHS looks forward to the presentations of this semester and yearlong Independent Study Students the last week of May. Mark your calendar!

Monticello Students Perform at JMU today

2012-02-03T08:20:00.000-08:00

Our fantastic Choir Director, Ms. Janet Whitmore, traveled to James Madison University today with several students from Monticello. The VCDA's Men's Choral Invitational hosted 180 gentleman. Monticello has seven students represented in the picture below across the tenor and bass sections. This is a remarkable opportunity for our students. Ms. Whitmore stated, "this is amazing singing, and quite an impressive choral sound!"

Tickets are still available! The concert is tonight, at the Forbes Performing arts Center in Harrison burg at 8:00 PM.

Congratulations to everyone involved.

Cherise Morris gets a full- ride scholarship to Brown University

2012-01-11T07:44:00.000-08:00

We are very proud of the teachers and students at Monticello High School. We all work as a team to put teaching and learning as a top priority. We encourage our students to be problem solvers, critical thinkers, and to take responsibility for their own learning. Additionally, we encourage out students to get involved in their school and community.

As a result of our commitment to excellence, our students leave Monticello equipped with the essential skills necessary for success as they transition to work or college. Many students receive scholarships or full rides to universities around the Nation.

The Daily Progress recently did an article on one of our exceptional students, Cherise Morris. This is an inspirational story about one young lady who took learning into her own hands and did not allow any barrier to keep her from opportunity. She is commended for being a leader, and a role model for her classmates.

You can access her story at the link below:

http://www2.dailyprogress.com/news/2012/jan/02/monticello-high-senior-no-internet-or-personal-tra-ar-1582663/

Congratulations Cherise, on a job well done!

Congratulations Golf Team

2011-10-25T14:29:00.000-07:00

Please join me in Congratulating the 2011 Region II Golf Champions Monticello Mustangs!!

Congratulations Monticello Cheerleaders

2011-10-25T14:17:00.000-07:00

2011 Jefferson District Tournament Champions!!

2011-10-25T09:55:00.000-07:00

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. To support and acknowledge the warriors fighting to find a cure for this disease, we encourage our staff to wear something pink each Friday during the month of October. Our Administrative Team is joining right in!

Pre-Service Week: Monticello Teachers return for the 2011-2012 School Year

2011-08-20T16:54:00.000-07:00

It is hard to believe the summer is over! The Monticello High School Staff got off to a great start last week preparing for the return the 2011-2012 school year. We will continue to partner with our community and parents to provide the best opportunities for our students. We will equip our students with skills for college and workforce readiness, help them to embrace lifelong learning, and facilitate meaningful, rigorous instruction for all students. It is our goal to make learning "irresistible" as we move through the new school year.

Our team engaged in many activities last week. Our faculty meeting, Staff Olympiad activity, bus tour of our Southern Feeder Pattern, 2nd Annual Back-to-School kick-off in Southwood, Coaches Clinic, New Student Orientation, and our Friday Professional Development courses made for a busy week. We are very excited about greeting our students on Wednesday, August 24th.

Patrick Bond takes Gold at National History Day Competition

2011-06-17T08:59:00.000-07:00

Patrick Bond, a rising junior at MHS, has won the 2011 National History Day Contest gold medal in the category of Senior Individual Performance for his original dramatic presentation, "One War at a Time: The Diplomacy that Saved Democracy" Patrick beat out about eighty other performances to win this award. His research took many months and included personal interviews with historians, trips to the National Archives, libraries and museums, and many script revisions. His one-hundred source bibliography can attest to the thoroughness of his investigation.

Congratulations, Patrick! You are truly a Monticello History Scholar!

Congratulations Mike Craddock

2011-06-17T08:46:00.000-07:00

Congratulations are in order for Mr. Michael Craddock! He won the Red Apple Award from the Charlottesville Innovation Council and was honored at their June 15th Gala at the Farmington Club. Mike is an innovative educator who works to ensure students are prepared for success in the classroom, outside of the classroom, and for life after high school. Some of the many factors contributing to Mike earning this prestigious award are:

After serving as the Instructional Technologist for Monticello High School for four years, he took over a Computer Science Program in 2007 with only 15 students. At the end of the 2010-2011 school year, enrollment quadrupled to 60 students.
He facilitates a hybrid classroom where students work in a self paced environment accessing a collection of tutorials online while receiving individual support for questions as they arise.
He updated the Computer Science Curriculum to move away from un-inspiring number crunching programs to multi-level video game creation and advance web application development.
He learned two programming languages, and is currently learning a third in order to bring mobile application/game development to the Computer Science course.
Video game design students share their games on a world-wide platform turning their video games into ad-revenue generating projects.
His Web development students have developed and deployed a school-wide application to allow teachers to schedule students for an intervention/enrichment period. This program is used by over 100 teachers at Monticello to schedule over 1100 students. The program has been packaged and shared across many other school divisions looking for a way to manage intervention/enrichment scheduling.
His web development students have also developed a conference registration system used by the Virginia Health Ocuupation Students of America. This program allows teachers across the state to register their students for the annual State Leadership Conference. Each year over 1000 participants are registered to participate in over 50 competitive events.

I am proud of the work of our teachers at Monticello High School. Thank you Mike for a job well done!

Please check out the links below:

http://cvillebic.org/news/press-releases/134-leading-firms-individuals-honored-by-charlottesville-business-innovation-council

http://www.newsplex.com/home/headlines/123931794.html

Hairspray at Monticello!

2011-05-20T07:15:00.000-07:00

The Drama Department is proudly presenting the musical Hairspray! Click here to check out the NBC29 News link!

Congratulations to Ms. Nothnagle and the Monticello High School Marching Band

2011-05-06T10:31:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to Ms. Nothnagle and the band for the amazing job at the Shenandoah Apple Blossom Festival! I am so proud of the group and their commitment to hard work. Please read the incredible details below.

"Wind Ensemble and Marching Band members traveled to Winchester April 29-30 for the 84th Shenandoah Apple Blossom Festival and returned home with the Sweepstakes Award and Apple Blossom Honor Band designation! In the Concert Band Competition, the Wind Ensemble took 1st Place in Class A [Grade VI music] with a Superior rating, and also received the Shenandoah Cup as the Overall Grand Champion. A few hours later in the World's Largest Firefighers' Parade, the Marching Band took 1st Place in Class C [64 & fewer playing members] and received the Fire Chief's Award as the Overall Grand Champion. The following afternoon in the Grand Feature Parade, the band again took 1st Place in Class C and received the Lion's Award as the Overall Grand Champion."

Congratulations on a Job Well Done!!

Congratulations Katina Dudley - 2011 Golden Apple Award Winner

2011-05-06T08:13:00.000-07:00

Katina Dudley is a stellar teacher and a cornerstone at Monticello High School. She is a woman of integrity and admirable character. She inspires teachers and students to go above and beyond. This is evident in her classroom and through her leadership at Monticello. She is always willing to listen, to serve, and to provide a means for student success. She is innovative in the classroom, and facilitates a classroom culture that promotes 21st century learning skills, including problem solving skills, creativity, team work, critical thinking, and technology supported teaching and learning.

Her colleagues nominated her for the 2011 Golden Apple Awards: “Katina Dudley is a natural born teacher. As a child, she set up desks in her yard and taught her own little classroom. She came out of college without a teaching degree, but jumped in as a long term sub at Walton. She took all of her education classes while teaching at Albemarle. She is an outstanding teacher of all levels of students, from Practical/Standard Biology to Sports Medicine to Honors Biology to Anatomy and Physiology to AP Biology to the MHS Leadership class. She is a favorite among both the students and the teachers because she always takes time to listen to others and to help them under any circumstances. Katina has a family of her own, a husband who teaches at AHS, and three children. She is also very involved with the youth at her church, yet she always finds the time to organize the Homecoming Dance, Pep Rallies, Valentine's Day events and serve as the Science Department Chair. She exhibits every single one of the nomination criteria and goes well above and beyond all of them. Katina Dudley is a significant cornerstone of the Monticello High School Community. I cannot imagine anyone more worthy of the Golden Apple Award!”

Congratulations to Mrs. Katina Dudley, our 2011 Golden Apple Award Winner from Monticello High School. She is commended for a job well done.

Congratulations to Hunter Marquis

2011-04-25T12:09:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to Hunter Marquis for placing 3rd in the Charlottesville/Albemarle Annual High School Art Show at the McGuffey Arts Center.

Monticello is so proud of our student involvement! Data shows one key to high school success is being involved in a school activity. Fine Arts, Clubs, Honor Societies and Athletics are alive and well at Monticello High School!

Safe Schools/Healthy Students - Olweus Bullying Prevention Program

2011-01-27T11:53:00.000-08:00

Albemarle County Public Schools and Charlottesville City Public Schools recently partnered with Safe Schools/Healthy Students. This grant funded program has become a valuable resource to Monticello High School. June Jenkins is the Safe Schools/Healthy Students Director. Our Project Leader and Liason for MOnticello High School (MHS) is Carol Fox. I asked Carol to provide me with a summary of the most recent intiative provided through this grant, our Olweus Bullying Prevention Program. She actually led the training with our students and staff.

On Friday, January 21 and Saturday, January 22, twelve Monticello High School students, Assistant Principals Henry Atkins and Kim Crandall, Gail Epps, a Special Education teacher and Mark Perry, the Student Assistance Prevention Counselor became the first-ever Student-led Olweus Bullying Prevention Program Coordinating Committee.

The Olweus Bullying Prevention Program is the most widely recognized and researched program in the field of bullying prevention. Created by Norwegian Dan Olweus, this comprehensive bullying prevention program addresses this issue of bullying at the individual, classroom, school-wide, community and parental levels in an effort to create a systemic shift in the climate and culture in schools. For more information on the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program please check out the website www.olweus.org

These twelve students voluntarily gave up their Friday afternoon and entire Saturday, to become trained in the Olweus Model. The students, advised by the staff members, will now design the program’s implementation for Monticello High School. This implementation will include training the entire faculty and staff in bullying prevention as well as facilitate and co-facilitate class meetings in which the entire student body will learn about ways to prevent bullying and other forms of harassment. This implementation process will take place during the spring with a fall 2011 school-wide kick-off.

The Olweus Bullying Prevention Program is one of ten evidence based programs being implemented PK-12 in all Albemarle County and Charlottesville City Schools through the Safe Schools/Healthy Students Project. The student-led committee will be supported in their implementation over the next few years by their certified Olweus trainer and SS/HS Project Leader, Carol Fox. For more information on the SS/HS Project, please check out www.safeschoolscville.org

Thank you to Carol Fox, students, and members of the MHS Staff for their commitment and involvement in this program. I am confident, we will continue to provide resources to support a safe and orderly enviroment that fosters academic success for all students.

BBBS Students participate in Stone Robinson's "Kid's Night Out."

2010-12-08T10:37:00.000-08:00

On Friday December 3rd, 20 members of Big Brother Big Sister Program (BBBS) at MHS participated in Stone Robinson’s "Kid’s Night Out event." The event ran from 6:00 to 9:00. Stone Robinson students were admitted if they bought a bag of non-perishable food items to donate to the Toy lift recipients. Some of the Big Siblings organized the food while others danced in the gym, watched movies, played board games or made arts & crafts. All students, big and small, had a blast, and best of all the donated food items helped needy families during this holiday season.

As principal at Monticello High School, I continue to be amazed, and most proud of our students. The BBBS group always reaches out to our community and supports programs and initiatives in our feeder schools. "Kudos" to our students and BBBS sponsors for their continued effort and commitment to excellence.

BBBS attend "Mix It Up Day" at Cale Elementary School

2010-11-23T07:56:00.000-08:00

On November 9th, sixty-six Monticello High School (MHS) Big Brother/Big Sister (BBBS) members participated in the Mix-It-Up day events with 4th and 5th grade students at Cale Elementary School. Mix-it-up day is a national event held annually in elementary schools. The MHS BBBS group has participated in this event with Cale Elementary School for the past 3 years. The Cale students are split up into groups of about 4 to 6 students they do not usually sit with at lunch. They are then partnered with 2 or 3 Big Siblings that have lunch with them. After they eat lunch they get an opportunity to go outside for recess and games. Everyone had a great time playing soccer, kickball, basketball, climbing on the play structure or just chasing each other around the playground. The Monticello BBBS students look forward to seeing their Cale friends again next year! Our sponsors, Joe Weaver, Paul Jones, and Danielle Carre do an excellent job sponsoring our BBBS program. These students are a staple in our community and participate in many community service activities throughout the year.

2010 Annual Powder Puff is a Success!

2010-11-11T19:40:00.000-08:00

The Annual Powder Puff Games are a tradition at Monticello High School. Our girls compete in flag football competition at the stadium. This is an exciting event that is well attended by our community each year. Our Leadership Class sponsors the activity, with the assistance of our phenomenal Leadership Teachers, Ms. Katina Dudley and Mrs. Leta Johnson.

This year, boys from our school, and several varsity football players, coached the teams. Our own Coach Bicknell, Coach Redd, and Assistant Principal, Mr. Ben Williams served as officials and spoke highly of all the girls at the end of the night. The girls demonstrated positive attitudes and great team effort. We had a perfect evening for football! The weather was beautiful and about 400 community members came out to support the cause. All proceeds from this event go to a local charity. This year, the event raised over $1200.00 for Children Youth and Family Services.

Results:

Game 1: Seniors win over our Freshman

Game 2: Sophomores win over our Juniors

Game 3: Sophomores win over our Seniors in overtime

We are proud of everyone who participated in this event! Please enjoy the photos, courtesy of Rob Garland.

MHS Takes First Place at the VHSL AA Jefferson District Theater Festival

2010-11-03T14:31:00.000-07:00

Monticello High School recently took home a first place win at the annual VHSL AA Jefferson District One-Act Theater Festival. The winning play was "Tardy," a farce written by sophomore Max Hoffman and Junior Maddy Cohen, two of the Monticello Playwrights. The play deals with the draconian punishments meted out for tardineess at the fictional Millard Fillmore High School. Additionally, seniors Paul Krs and Sophia Heinecke took home the two "best acting" awards in the competition!

I continue to be amazed at the talent of our students and staff at Monticello High School. The next performance will take place during the All County Drama Festival at Monticello on November 18th. Best of luck to our team as they advance to the regional competition at Warren County High School on Novemeber 20th.

Please enjoy these photos courtesy of "Rob Garland."

Fine & Performing Arts Excel at MHS

2010-10-21T19:49:00.000-07:00

The arts provide a passionate means of expression in every culture. Art crosses cultures and speaks every language; teaches us so much about every historical period as reflected in literature; and often results in greater academic achievement and higher test scores for students. Most importantly, the arts provide a venue for everyone to excel, and they support individual differences. Dee Dickenson highlights this in her study "Learning Through the Arts." Dickenson states, "The arts not only contribute richly to the development of human intelligence, but they offer the means to reach the great diversity of human beings in every school today. It would be easier to achieve significant educational achievement if everyone learned in the same way, but not everyone does. In all schools today, there is a growth in diversity of students with different cultural, social, and economic backgrounds that result in very different ways of thinking, learning, and behaving. The arts offer varieties of learning opportunities that are appropriate for all kinds of learners."

Our Fine Arts Department is growing at MHS! I have the privilege of working with this department throughout the school year. Our teachers are collaborating with other schools to present our first festival highlighting the arts in the "Southern Feeder Pattern." We are thrilled to have many talented students in our programs. The MHS Band, Chorus, and Drama students represent our school in our community as they touch our hearts through performance. The student photography displayed throughout the walls of our building is amazing and reflects a most professional quality. Students work on various forms of art in our classrooms from pottery and crafts to painting. Our fabulous choir started the 2010 school year with triple the enrollment from last year. The Marching Mustangs have already hosted a festival, participated in parades, and performed in many football games and competitions. Our Drama Department is participating in the VHSL One-Act Play competition on Saturday, October 30th at Monticello, and they are gearing up for the Musical "Hairspray" in the spring. Many teachers are planning elaborate field trips to provide students opportunities to experience culture and arts throughout our world. I am proud of our students and teachers. The teachers are: Jen Lewis, Fine Arts Chair (Art), Rob Garland (photography), Helen Lockwood (Art), Madeline Michael (Drama), Susan Nothnagle (Band), & Janet Whitmore (Chorus). I encourage everyone in our school community to keep supporting Arts in our schools!

Lifelong Learner Standards

2010-09-27T09:13:00.000-07:00

We embrace learning and instruction at Monticello High School (MHS). Our teachers and staff implement the Framework for Quality Learning at MHS, and work daily to incorporate strategies to promote essential skills and academic success for every student. Additionally, we work to ensure that every student has access to rigorous and challenging instruction that will promote academic achievement and success in life post high-school.

One critical element in our Framework for Quality Learning is our Lifelong Learner Standards. These skills are utilized on a daily basis in our adult lives at work, with our friends, in our relationships, and with our families. Meaningful instruction embeds these standards and provides opportunities for our students to apply them in their daily lives.

The video link below highlights the 12 Lifelong Learner Standards and demonstrates examples of how we currently utilize these skills in our adult lives.

MHS Faculty & Staff Lifelong Learner Standards 2010

Back to School Night

2010-09-14T19:50:00.000-07:00

Back to School Night is Thursday, September 16th at 6:30 PM. All parents and families should report to the MHS auditorium for a short information session, and our annual "State of the School" address. Parents will have the opportunity to rotate through student schedules following the session. Teachers will be available to outline course expectations, share contact information, and share the timeline for coursework. If you would like to discuss individual student achievement, please contact teachers by email or phone, or sign up for a parent conference. Our first conference night is Wednesday, October 6th from 4:30 - 7:30.

Our Faculty and Staff is here to collaborate with parents and our school community to provide learning in a safe an orderly environment with access to rigorous and challenging curriculum for all students. We are committed to providing the BEST educational experience for your child. Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote, "We are all inventors, each sailing out on a voyage of discovery, guided each by a private chart, of which there is no duplicate. The world is all gates, all opportunities." I am thankful for the job our teachers do each day, guiding our students and showing them a world of gates and opportunities. Additionally, I am grateful for our supportive parents and school community. I am certain we will continue to collaborate throughout the year to foster success for every student. "Be 212!"

The BEST Faculty and Staff ever!!!!
MHS 2010:)
Photo courtesy of Rob Garland

First Week of the 2010-2011 School Year

2010-08-28T18:32:00.000-07:00

Gloria Rockhold at MHS on 1st Day

Office Staff and Administration Team sport new staff shirts!

2010 Cheerleaders

It has been an amazing first week at Monticello High School. It is always a joy to hear the voices of students filling the hallways. We are halfway through our grade level assemblies, and our students are now aware of our our theme for this school year. We will all work to "Be 212" and go the extra degree or put forth our best effort in everything we do at Monticello. We have set an expectation of excellence for academics, athletics, activities, and community events. Our teachers have gone the extra mile to modify pacing guides and create innovative lessons that will help students engage in rigrous instruction from day one....which is imperative on our new 8-Period Hybrid schedule. Our fall athletic teams are hard at work and I look forward to supporting our teams throughout the season.

First Day Highlights

2010-08-25T18:29:00.000-07:00

Chemistry in Action!

Mr. Brown from CTE discusses Home Design

This is why we love education!

Ms. Epps is excited to greet her students!

Dr. Haas is ready for his 9th Grade English Class!

Mrs. Bailey utilizing her new technology.

Mrs. Bailey with her Future Teachers!

The heartbeat of our school... the ladies in our main office!

It is a joy to see our students return! The energy in the building is remarkable. Many members of the MHS staff worked incredibly hard to ensure a smooth opening as we implement a new 8-Period Hybrid Schedule and a new Student Information System. I am looking foward to a remarkable year. Enjoy the pictures to highlight our day. BE 212!!!!

Faculty and Staff Prepare for New Year!

2010-08-22T18:41:00.000-07:00

It was a pleasure to see our team collaborating this week as we prepare to welcome our students on Wednesday. We rolled out the red carpet for our teachers, celebrated our accomplishments from 2009 - 1010, and prepared for the new school year. The teachers embraced our 2010- 2011 Theme ......"Raising the Bar....Setting High Expectations for students, teachers, staff, and administrators." Everyone is committed to "Be 212!" We will all go the extra degree and put in the extra effort to enhance teaching and learning, relationships, and community at Monticello High School.

Teachers attended professional development on Friday led by their colleagues. Many technology sessions facilitated teacher growth in 21st century skills. We are also holding our first Annual Staff Olympiad! Faculty and Staff will be competing all year long on four teams, Red, Blue, Green, & Purple. This Olympiad will allow our staff to bond and participate in team building activites, as well as engage a healthy competition. Teams earn points for a variety of events from instructional activities to attendance at school events or athletic games. Our first competition was a staff bonding activity and scavenger hunt. Stay tuned to keep up with who is winning!

We look forward to greeting our students on Wednesday. We are committed to making decisions that positively impact students. Our staff is ready to embrace our new year! "Go Mustangs!"

Mr. Craddock teaches SmartBoard Strategies

FQL Activity

Mr. Williams & Mrs. Crandall facilitate staff PD.

Staff Posing on the Red Carpet

FQL Lesson

Mrs. Brubaker leads session on Differentiation

Mr. Dove demonstrates building a teacher webpage

Southwood Community Back-to-School Kick-Off

2010-08-20T19:23:00.001-07:00

We celebrated the kick off of our 2010-2011 school year in the Southwood Community with schools in our Southern Feeder Pattern. Monticello High School, Burley Middle School, and Cale Elementary School families met with staff members to share dinner and communicate information about the new school year. Gloria Rockhold organized the event with the families, and Mr. Barnes, the Athletic Director at MHS, got the food donated from our local Wallmart Distribution Center and lined up the chefs. This dynamic evening, filled with food, music, and fun, allowed school staff to make connections with families and promote Orientation as well as the first day of school!