NOTAM 102411

AVIATION HIGH SCHOOL
24 October 2011

What’s Happening this Week:

Monday: An extraordinary day of learning!

Tuesday: Robotics Team Meeting 6:00 – 8:00 PM

Wednesday: Film Club Meeting after School in Mr. Savishinsky’s Room
See announcement for additional detail!
Senior Class Meeting During Advisory-gym
Youth Venture in room 6 3:45 – 5:15 PM

Thursday: Scarecrow/Pumpkin Contest!-during Advisory

6:00 – 8:00 p.m. Robotics Team Meeting

Friday: Marketing & Recruiting at Sylvester Middle School
(End of Qtr. 1) Picture Re-Takes in the Gym 9:15 – 10:15
Speech and Debate Practice 2:15 to 4:30 PM
Robotics Team Dinner & Dessert Auction 6:00 PM in Cafeteria


PRINCIPAL’S MESSAGE
This Friday is the official end of first quarter! Report cards will be mailed within the next week. When you receive yours, give yourself a pat on the back for results that indicate superior progress…and then revisit your learning goals to make adjustments in what you may need to do to get the outcomes you envision. And, keep working hard as the year continues to progress. First semester ends on January 19, 2012.

We are entering the marketing and recruitment season to select students for Aviation High School’s Class of 2016. I will be calling on students to assist with presentations to each of the four middle schools in Highline Schools. Our first one is scheduled for this Friday at Sylvester Middle School; next is Cascade Middle School on November 4, then Pacific Middle School on November 18. We will also present at Chinook Middle School sometime before the winter holiday break. Evening information programs for 8th graders and parents will be held on November 9, December 1 and January 12, each from 6:00-8:30 p.m. I will be asking some of you to serve on a Q&A panel at these programs, and teachers will also be asking for help with demonstrations of learning and interacting with our guests. As always, we appreciate the active involvement and ambassadorship of our students.

The following students are commended for an outstanding panel presentation on Wednesday, Oct 19 at the Digital Avionics Systems Conference (DASC) in downtown Seattle: Jake Hecla, Kris Hartelius, Andrea Wooley, Paula Cieszkiewicz, Grace Cieszkiewicz, Drew Wall and Austin Jackowski. The following is a report from Ms. Burr, who chaperoned the students to the conference: “Without exception, the students were articulate…thrilled the audience and gave them hope for the future workforce…made AHS shine as it should, and answered on-the-spot questions from the audience of engineers, such as What is engineering? (They were looking for innovative problem solvers). There was one PhD Physics in the audience who teaches for Lockheed Martin, who bantered back and forth with our students…and they held their own. When one member of the audience suggested that our students may perhaps be missing out on humanities, our students wowed them by sharing that one of their biggest surprises at AHS was finding an outstanding humanities program!” GREAT job, everyone!

At the request of Senator Maria Cantwell, I am providing testimony today to the Aviation Subcommittee of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. The topic of the hearing is “The Aviation Workforce: Industry and Labor Perspectives on Training Needs and Challenges.” I’ll be speaking about Aviation High School’s history, successes and challenges, and addressing the need for schools like ours to be replicated throughout the State and country to provide both the quality and the quantity of STEM-proficient workers needed in the aerospace industry. I will also be making a recommendation for a higher level of support from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to ensure that our educational programming is response to emerging workforce needs. Dustin Abrahamson and Karan Singh, student reports for the Phoenix Flyer are also attending the hearing, so expect to learn their perspectives in a future edition of the school newspaper. My testimony will be posted on our website within the next couple of weeks; and eventually, all of the witness (there are several) testimonials will be posted on the Senate website. If you are curious about the process for providing testimony or just want to chat about workforce needs and Aviation High School’s role in responding to the critical gaps, please know that I would welcome a conversation with you. It’s good to be curious!

That’s it for this week, Scholars! My best to you as you complete the first ¼ of the school year in grand style! I am honored to be your principal. ~Reba


NOTES & ANNOUNCEMENTS:

• Former Sylvester Middle School Students, please come to the main office to pick up your portfolios.
• Youth Venture will meet on Wednesdays in room 6 from now on until winter break (with the exception of Nov. 23) 3:45 – 5:15 p.m.
• Interested in film producing or making films? The film club is bringing in film producer Caroline Cumming to hold a workshop on film producing Wednesday, Oct 26 after school in Mr. Savishinsky’s room.
• On Saturday, November 12, the Royal Aeronautical Society is sponsoring the annual Joe Sutter Black Tie Dinner & Lecture at the Museum of Flight. This year’s featured speaker is Dennis O’Donoghue, Vice President of Boeing Test & Evaluation, whose speech is titled “The Quest for the First (Operational) Supersonic V/STOL Fighter: A Look Back at 60 Years of VSTOL Flight Research.” Mr. O’Donoghue is an experimental test pilot with more than 1,700 hours logged on all models of the Harrier, the world’s first operational V/STOL tactical jet aircraft. He will take an informative and entertaining look back at six decades of V/STOL flight research with videos, photos and personal stories. Aviation High School is fortunate to have a few aerospace leaders who are offering sponsorships for Aviation High School students. If you are interested in being sponsored to this prestigious event, please write a 350-500 word essay explaining why you want to attend and what you envision as the benefits of doing so. Please be specific. Essays are due to Ms. Burr in the College & Career Center by November 1, 2011.
• New Transcript Request Forms are available in the main office. Requests for transcripts must be submitted by Wednesday for pick up on Friday.

• Reminder to student drivers – do not park in No Parking Zones and please observe the 10mph speed limit and drive safely. Warnings will be issued to first time offenders. Loss of driving privileges is at the other end of the spectrum.
• Dustin Abrahamson and Royce Le are making a video scrapbook composed of montages of interviews, photos, and video documenting the school year for his senior project. It is similar to a yearbook but slightly different. Many other high schools make these video scrapbooks and find they are a good way to raise school spirit. In order to ensure this project’s existence at AHS, we encourage you to donate your photos from the Aviator’s Ball and any other event throughout the year. You can either bring hard copies into the office or you can send electronic copies to dabrahamson@yahoo.com.
• No Lunch Time Visitors, please! - Guests of students who arrive for lunch time will be asked to leave the campus. All visitors must have pre-arranged approval by school administrators to be on campus during the school day or school related activities.
• Females: You may want to apply for a 2011-12 NCWIT Award for Aspirations in Computing. Deadline is 10/31/2011. All the details and online application can be found at www.aspirationsaward.org .
o Note: NCWIT encourages all girls to apply, not just the superstars. They are looking for ASPIRATIONS in computing and IT, not just accomplishments

o This year 30 local programs are being offered around the US in addition to the National award. They expect to recognize as many as 500 students this year. National winners will receive:
-$500 cash award
-a laptop computer
-a trip to the Technology Stars of the Future showcase on March 10, 2012 in Charlotte, NC

 Local winners receive various prize packages
• Fantastic learning and community service opportunity coming up Saturday, November 12, 2011 from 8:00-4:00. You can help out at the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics Technical Symposium at the Sea-Tac International Airport Conference Center. More information is on the bulletin board inside the career center. Contact Julie Burr or Nancy Pappas in the Career Center for more info, or sign up on the bulletin board. Do it soon!
• The following colleges are visiting AHS this fall! Sign up in room 11 if you are interested in attending!
Seattle Pacific University: November 2 at 1 PM
Washington State University: November 9 at 1 PM
Air Force Academy Presentation: November 10 at 1 PM
Montana Tech of the University of Montana: November 28 at 1 PM
• Continue checking the AHS website or logging on to school computers to get updated information on events and meetings.

Quote of the Week:
“You cannot fail in any laudable object, unless you allow your mind to be improperly directed.” ~Abraham Lincoln – July10, 1848