Congratulations to our high school Students of the Month for September!
Our freshman Student of the Month is Ilyssa George. Ilyssa was nominated by Ms. Jocelyn Pierce.
“Last year, the 8th grade class was hesitant about running for class office for their freshman year. I convinced Illysa to give treasurer a try and she has not disappointed. She has the main lead on her float. She is recruiting kids to help, offering her house to meet and initiating meetings at school. I am very impressed with her motivation and organization,” said Pierce. “I also was missing a secretary and two reps and she found me officers for those positions. Illysa is also an amazing student in the classroom. She contributes to class, always completes her homework, is respectful to her peers and teachers and received a 100 on her Algebra regents last year. Illysa is a super star!”
Our sophomore Student of the Month is Luke Mest. Luke was nominated by Mrs. Elizabeth Winters.
“Luke pays attention in class and asks thought provoking questions that relate to the topics we are discussing. He completes work when asked, is an active learner who deeply thinks about the information presented, and is not afraid to speak up in front of the class,” said Winters. “These are great qualities in general, but I especially appreciate seeing this in science where students should not accept everything without evidence and data to support a claim or conclusion.
Our junior Students of the Month is Rachel Rickettson, who was nominated by Ms. Jocelyn Pierce.
“Rachel came in before school and hung welcome back treats on all the lockers with help from Robert Beck. But Rachel also wrote individual notes to all of the teachers and gave them dove chocolate to welcome them back. She didn't even sign it to take credit,” Pierce said. “The time and thoughtfulness she puts in goes above and beyond. On top of that, Rachel is an honors students and respected by her teachers and peers.”
Our senior Student of the Month is Catharine Struzik. Catharine was nominated by Mrs. Michelle Pitkin.
“Catharine is a laboratory assistant in my classroom and is also assisting with Regents chemistry period 1 students this year. Her work is very thorough. She enjoys science and had room in her schedule to assist again this year,” said Pitkin. “It is a pleasure to work with her. Her interactions during 1st period with students is stellar. I appreciate her time and effort to assist students in this difficult subject material. She asks students why phenomena are occurring and helps students with experiments and data collection.”
Our new middle school agriculture and STEAM teacher, Alyssa Wright, has been working with elementary school STEAM teacher Sarah Stenson to expand STEAM instruction to the middle school.
This is the first time we’ve offered STEAM instruction in our middle school and our students have been loving it!
“In class, my fifth graders have been discussing and experimenting with dairy products most of this month,” said Wright. “We’ve plastic out of milk and had a lesson called ‘Molecules on the Moo-ve’. Yesterday, we made butter from heavy whipping cream and enjoyed a dance party while we shook the jars - thanks to Ms. Woodhouse for helping with all of our super fun experiments!”
(Photos courtesy of Alyssa Wright)
Heckuva night for flickerball last night!
In the evening’s first game, our juniors beat the freshmen by a score of 17-13. Then, seniors topped sophomores 22-12 to set up a final against the juniors.
The finals were hard-fought on both sides but when the dust cleared, it was the seniors who came out on top, 25-14, to capture the 2024 Flickerball title.
Way to go, Class of 2025!
Full photo album over on our Facebook page at the link below.
Link: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?vanity=100057106403663&set=a.1041216427791894
Our Attica food service staff had an awesome time serving our students last week!
From fresh potato salad made with Merle’s Fresh Produce potatoes and parsley grown in the Middle School Garden to homemade salsa made with tomatoes grown in our very own high tunnel, the flavors have been fresh and local!
Our food service staff wrapped up last week serving homemade buffalo chicken wing pizza and a chicken and pickle skewer which will be featured on our next Build a Grilled Chicken Sandwich Day on Tuesday, Oct. 15.
We can’t wait to celebrate homecoming this week with orange cauliflower and locally-sourced lettuce on our salad bar!
We are thrilled to announce that Kris Wicks, our dedicated Food Service Manager, is an Attica All-Star!
Over the last few years, Kris has completely transformed our district’s food services. Her leadership and vision have revitalized student meals, prioritized scratch cooking, incorporated locally sourced produce and ensured better quality meals for all students.
“Kris has worked tirelessly to align with our Cafeteria Committee’s mission, collaborating closely with our Farm-to-School Coordinator, Alicia Spoth, to ensure that the Farm-to-School program continues to thrive,” said Assistant Superintendent of Business and Operations Meaghan Matuszak. “Under Kris’s guidance, members of our food service staff have been empowered through exceptional professional development opportunities, including innovative summer programs where they process and prepare locally grown food for the upcoming school year.”
These positive changes have yielded a dramatic increase in student participation in our cafeteria.
“Our students are not only eating healthier but are also benefiting academically and physically from the high-quality meals Kris has championed,” said Farm-to-School Coordinator Alicia Spoth. “Her commitment to nurturing student health and success through nutritious, locally sourced meals has made a lasting impact on our district.”
Thank you, Kris, for all that you do and congratulations on being named an Attica All-Star!
REMINDER: In partnership with the Wyoming County Sheriff’s Office and Health Department, we’re hosting two upcoming child car seat safety checks in the parking lot of Attica Elementary School, 31 Prospect St., Attica.
The first is TOMORROW - Friday, Sept., 27 from 8:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. The second is Friday, Oct. 4 from 8:30 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Trained car seat techs will be on hand to ensure you’re using the safest car seat possible for your child and that it’s installed in your car properly.
Last week, we played host to Nicole Watson-Bartlett, an eating disorders educator who came in to speak with our athletes about how to spot signs of disordered eating, approach someone they feel may be struggling with such a disorder and eat intentionally to better prepare their bodies for competition.
Watson-Bartlett herself struggled with an eating disorder when she was a softball player at the University of Rochester and now shares her story and speaks with young people about how to combat such disorders.
High School Counselor Erica Frongetta was the driving force behind getting Watson-Bartlett to Attica.
“Nicole was recommended to me through a U of R eating disorder group I am a part of called ECHO. She is a survivor of the disease and currently works with college level athletes,” said Frongetta. “I have a passion for intervention and support with eating disorders and wanted desperately to provide support for our student athletes not only with disordered eating but with healthy food choices and education on food as fuel for our bodies to improve athletic performance.”
Watson-Bartlett’s presentation also touched on other things, said Athletic Director Lisa Young.
“She also touched on some mental health things as well,” said Young, who attended Watson’s presentation last week. “She went over how, as an athlete, you may feel like you always have to be bigger, stronger and faster but that, in reality, it’s OK to be OK with yourself and your performance.”
Thank you, Nicole, for coming to speak with our students on such an important topic!
Club representatives distributed information, answered questions and recruited new club members for the coming school year.
I think we’d have to agree with Mrs. Frongetta - high school is way more fun when you get involved!
Shout out to senior Carter Gorski on being named the Batavia Daily News’s High School Athlete of the Week!
Carter is the Blue Devils’ leading scorer this season with 8 goals and 4 assists. The Blue Devils are 5-3 through 8 games and are next in action tonight at Kendall.
Click on the link below to check out Carter’s Athlete of the Week video over on the Daily News’s Facebook page!
Link: https://www.facebook.com/BataviaDailyNews/videos/516896984379420
Homecoming Week is almost here!
Activities kick off this Monday, Sept. 30, with Class Distinction Day, so make sure you start thinking about your theme day outfits NOW!
We conducted bus drills this morning down on Prospect Street.
Practice makes perfect and when it comes to our students’ safety, perfection is the only thing that’ll do.
A huge thank you to our bus drivers and transportation staff for always putting our kiddos’ safety first!
Congratulations to our newest National Junior Honor Society members who were inducted into our Attica chapter Tuesday!
We inducted 11 new 7th grade members: Jennifer Baker, June Beck, Cecelia Franz, Kate George, Josephine Hann, Alexandria Landphair, Caleb MacLane, Hudson Sphar, Elliana Vincton, Dylan Williams and Eden Domes.
(Photo courtesy of Heather Smith)
Dear Parents/Guardians:
As part of the 2019-2024 School Climate grant award of $2.8 million dollars through the US Department of Education, we are required to regularly conduct a survey about school climate. The final survey will be administered to students in grades 5-12 during PE classes beginning next week. It will ask students about their perceptions on topics such as student engagement, school environment, and school safety. No questions about your child’s personal habits or behaviors will be asked, and students will not be identified in any way. Each student is assigned a randomly generated unique code and that will serve as their login ID. The answers your child provides will be used by the district to better understand the current climate in the Middle and High Schools, and decisions about the best types of programs to offer students will be made based in part on the answers collected in the survey. As mentioned, the survey is completely anonymous and completely voluntary, although the more responses we receive the more accurate our data will be and the better our program decisions will be. Your child’s answers will be combined with the answers of other students at their school, and these reports will not identify any person or their responses. If you do not want your child to participate in this survey, please send an email to commsurvey@atticacsd.org or call me at 591-0400 ext. 3001. If I receive a message by the close of school on Monday, Sept. 30 stating that you do not want your child to participate, your child will not participate in the survey and will be asked to engage in an unrelated activity during the time that students in his or her class are taking the survey. In your message, please include the following information: Your name, the name of your student(s), and their current grade level. If no message is received, we will administer the survey to your child(ren). If you have any questions about this survey please contact me at 591-0400 ext. 3001. The survey can also be seen online at https://nces.ed.gov/surveys/edscls/pdf/EDSCLS_Student_Questionnaire_English.pdf
Sincerely,
Matt Stroud
Director of Curriculum, Instruction and Technology
Attica students were among the more than 1,000 others from across the region at the Genesee County Fairgrounds in Batavia yesterday for GLOW with Your Hands, the career exploration event designed to give students in Genesee, Livingston, Orleans and Wyoming counties opportunities to learn more about career opportunities in local high-growth, high-demand industries.
More than 65 business and career exhibitors in agriculture, manufacturing and other skilled trades attended this year’s event to present to students.
This annual event is a great opportunity for our students to learn directly from professionals in a variety of industries and get a feel for what career they may wish to pursue after high school.
Attica’s own Evan Welker, a senior who’s enrolled in the diesel mechanics program at Genesee Valley BOCES in Batavia, was a guest star on the most recent episode of SIT and Sip, the GV BOCES School Improvement Team’s official podcast!
In this episode, host Nick D’Amuro, BOCES’s coordinator of instructional services, sits down with students from various districts around the region to hear their thoughts on going back to school. The students discuss their goals for the year, what makes their schools and programs unique, and some of their personal interests. They provide valuable insights into the student experience, reminding educators of the importance of listening to student voices in shaping educational practices.
Evan’s interview begins around the 34:45-minute mark in the podcast, which can be accessed at the link below.
Link: https://www.podbean.com/media/share/pb-9zbxv-16d8b9e?utm_campaign=admin_episode&utm_medium=dlink&utm_source=episode_share
Many thanks to all the college and university representatives who attended this morning’s Rochester Area College Fair in our auxiliary gymnasium:
• Rochester Institute of Technology
• SUNY Geneseo
• Alfred University
• St. John Fisher University
• SUNY Brockport
• Finger Lakes Community College
• Houghton University
• Keuka College
• Monroe Community College
• Genesee Community College
• Nazareth University
• Alfred State College
• University of Rochester
• Roberts Wesleyan College
We hosted representatives from 14(!) different institutes of higher education this morning - lots of good exchanging of information with our high school students!
Amanda Brown and Shawn Drysdale shared some of the cool things our food service staff is doing with families at our Middle School Open House last night.
Brown and Drysdale shared a recipe for one-pan roasted potatoes and apples - yum!
In addition to the recipe, families were sent home with the produce - apples, potatoes and onions - needed for the recipe grown by our friends at Merle’s Produce right here in Attica!
We’ve been enjoying supporting our local farmers this school year and are REALLY looking forward to open house down at the Elementary School next week where we’ll be sending families home with a recipe for pumpkin pie and a pie pumpkin - likewise grown by Merle’s Produce.
We hope to see you down on Prospect Street next Friday, Sept. 27 from 5:30 to 7 p.m. at our Elementary School Open House!
Over the past couple of weeks, a few students in Mr. Matt Struzik’s 6th period study hall have taken to playing around on some of the guitars Struzik keeps in his classroom.
This informal group of music enthusiasts, who have dubbed themselves The Fretboard Society, decided to take their music public earlier this week during a brief busking session in a high school hallway.
We weren’t around to hear for ourselves but the trio did end up making about $4 so whatever they were playing, it must have sounded good!
(Photos courtesy of Matt Struzik)
This morning our district’s TIES Coordinator, Jennifer Rautenstrauch, spoke with eighth graders about what her program does and how they can get involved.
The TIES program, short for Together Including Every Student, promotes the participation of students and young adults who have developmental disabilities in inclusive, organized extracurricular and community activities with the support of trained student volunteers.
Peer Volunteers are Attica students in grades 8-12 while participants are Attica students ages 8-22.
Rautenstrauch went over how the program works, training requirements and some of the different activities peer mentors can do with participants with our eighth graders, who she encouraged to consider signing up as a peer volunteer.
If you have or know of any students who would like to volunteer, you can contact Rautenstrauch via email at jrautenstrauch@atticacsd.org or phone at (585) 604-8467.
For more information about our TIES program, visit our website at the link below.
Link: https://www.atticacsd.org/o/acsd/page/ties-program
Couldn’t miss the first Build-A-Waffle Day of the school year, now could we?!
Waffle Day has always been popular with our students and today was no different!
Students’ favorite topping was a close call, but we’d have to give it to the whipped cream - only by about 10,000% percent, though.
