I am proud to honor Kara Mueller and Alyssia Martin as Students of the Month, stated Annetter Whitaker at the April Student of the Month Celebration. They are completing significant college credits while in high school by attending a new broadcast concurrent enrollment program for high school students available at the Utah State University’s Brigham City Campus. They have both successfully combined this new program with Box Elder High School’s traditional face-to-face concurrent enrollment program. Kara and Alyssia have experienced these classes with teachers and students from several USU satellite campuses as well as high schools throughout the state. Both girls are pioneers of this new program at Box Elder High School. Kara and Alyssia are leading the way for future students to participate in USU’s broadcast concurrent enrollment program. Kara and Alyssia are independent students and learners. They have adjusted well as high school students to broadcast courses. They have been able to manage successfully the challenges of a new program, coordinate the requirements of their current college studies, and complete their high school graduation requirements. Depending on their future choice for full-time college attendance, the girls have saved a combined estimated amount of nearly $8000 in tuition expenses.
Kara is a junior at BEHS. Kara’s parents are Kurt and Megan Mueller of Perry. Kara will be completing 18 USU semester hours this year. She has completed six USU courses this year combining broadcast classes on campus at USU with face-to-face concurrent enrollment classes at BEHS. She currently has a 4.0 grade point average in these university courses. This is an extraordinary accomplishment for a high school junior to have completed this many college courses while maintaining an outstanding university grade point average.
Alyssia is a senior at BEHS. Alyssia’s father is Don Martin of Brigham City. Alyssia will be completing 34 USU semester hours (11 classes) as she graduates from BEHS this spring. Alyssia completed six face-to-face concurrent enrollment semester hours as a junior on the BEHS campus maintaining a 4.0 gpa in her college course work. As a senior, she is completing 28 USU broadcast semester hours at the USU BC campus this year.
I congratulate these young women for taking chance on a new program and managing it in such a successful manner. I applaud them for the amount of advisement and planning required to be successful in this situation. I acknowledge their parents for their role in assisting Kara and Alyssia in their success. I also offer a special thank you to Lauri Merrill of USU Brigham City. Her academic advisement, mentoring, and assistance are deeply appreciated.
Both Girls were nominated by Annette Whittaker, Counselor at Box Elder High School
JENNY PATINO is the daughter of Valerio and Yolanda Patino. Jenny was nominated for April Student of the Month by Kris Thompson in CTE. I would like to nominate Jenny Patino for student of the month. I have had Jenny in two different classes. I have been able to watch as Jenny strives to excel in her education. Understanding some of the terminology is difficult when English isn’t your primary language but Jenny has shown a desire to be successful. I appreciate the fact the she is willing to spend extra time to be prepared for upcoming assignments or exams. If she doesn’t understand something she has contacted me for additional help helping to make sure that she won’t be falling behind in the class. I have watched as Jenny has also been willing to help those around her. She has included her peers and has done her best to make sure that everyone is as successful as they can be. This is a great quality to be willing to help someone else even if you are trying just to get your own stuff done at the same time. I want Jenny to know that it has been a pleasure to have her in my class and to get to know her better. I know that if she continues to work hard and try her best that she will accomplish any goal that she puts her mind too. Thank you Jenny for being an outstanding student at Box Elder High School!
MADDISON JULIE TOONE was nominated by Kris Thompson in CTC for April Student of the Month. Maddison is the daughter of Caleb and Mandy Toone of Willard, Utah and Jacky Hariss of Salt Lake City, Utah I would like to nominate Maddison Toone as student of the month for April. I have had the pleasure of getting to know Maddi this year both as her teacher and as an FFA Advisor. Maddi has been the kind of student to help with whatever is asked of her. She has assisted me in classes with projects, tutoring and assisting other students, and doing what she needs to be successful in the classroom and lab settings. I appreciate her drive to be successful in her education. She cares about completing her work, but also helping others feel the same success when they are struggling or having difficulty with an assignment. Maddi has great leadership skills in working with those around her. When she commits to completing a task you can feel confident that it will be taken care of. Thank you Maddi! This kind of dedication makes my job as a teacher much easier to do. Maddi has good decision making skills and common sense to make sure that things are done efficiently, on time, and completely. This has benefited our FFA program this year as she serves in a leadership capacity. I know that Maddison is going to be successful no matter what she chooses to pursue and participate in for her future. Thank you Maddison for being an outstanding student at Box Elder High School!
HAILEY BODILY was nominated for April Student of the Month for April by Stacy Church for General Education. Hailey is the daughter of F. Leon and Peggy Bodily I would like to nominate Hailey Bodily as student of the month for April. Hailey is a prime example of a Student of the Month Candidate. Hailey knows her strengths and weaknesses and uses them to the best of her ability to empower her to reach the goals that she has set for herself. She is very hard working, her assignment completion is on the spot by being on time and finished, willing to ask for help when needed and cares for those around her. Hailey is very goal and success driven. Hailey will achieve all her goals due to her sheer determination to learn whatever she can. Hailey is an example to those around her as well and is very deserving of the honor of being the April Student of the Month Thank you, Hailey for being an outstanding student at Box Elder High School!
Jaden was nominated by Chase Goddard in Science for April Student of the Month. Jaden’s parents are Camron and Tiffany Steveson and Heather and Michael Pratt. Jaden Stevenson an amazing senior. Jaden has been picked as Student of the Month by the Science Department. Jaden has shown a great aptitude towards the sciences. He is maintains amazingly high grades even in difficult classes. He is described by his teachers as helpful, bight, inquisitive and great to have in class. Jaden has expressed interest in becoming an engineer to help companies design and build future technology.
EMILY HARAMES was nominted for April Student of the Month by Victoria Dance in Counseling. Emily is the daughter of Jayson and Kim Harames.
Emily has been fabulous to work with in Hope Squad. She had a contagious energy about her from day one at the retreat. She has carried that enthusiasm with her in planning for and carrying out events. She was a key player in making Hope Week a success. She took charge of getting the design for and ordering our tattoos. She was a leader over our service project for Hope Week and made sure the event was well planned out and every detail was taken care of. Because of her efforts, the service day ran smoothly and was hit. She does well to make sure to include others and gets others excited to get involved.
Outside of Hope Squad, Emily is a successful student and driven to succeed. I love her motivation in pushing herself academically and her ability to see a broader picture by planning for her future now. She has challenged herself with the classes she has taken and plans to take. She is also realistic to make sure what she commits to is not only doable, but she can give it her best.
I have enjoyed working with Emily in many different ways this year and am excited for her future. She is an amazing person and will be excellent at whatever she puts her mind to.
ASHLEY JENSEN was nominated by Marisa Olsen for the General Education Student of the Month Ashley is the daughter of Lori Wilkerson and Jeff Jensen.
Ashley is a great peer tutor who is full of excitement and an attitude to help wherever needed. She consistently helps those around her when she sees a need. No matter what I ask her to do, she is willing to work and she does a great job each time. Ashley always treats my students with the utmost respect and includes them just like she does her regular peers. She takes time to get to know each of the kids and has a friendship with each of them. Ashley is so fun to be around and is always positive. My students love her, and they all know her. Ashley is a fantastic student who works hard and enjoys what she does.
FAITHLYNN LINKE is the daughter of Nadine Clawson and Troy Linke. Faithlynn was nominated for the Language Arts Student of the Month by Joy Jones, her English teacher.
I am proud to announce to present Faithlynn Linke as Language Arts Student of the Month for April 2016.
I have had the opportunity to get to know Faithlynn this year and I have watched her grow into a very diligent student. I met Faithlynn last trimester about half way through the trimester, but unfortunately I did not get to see her too often. I did notice that her work was very well done. However, this trimester Faithlynn has demonstrated a determined work ethic and always does her best work on all assignments. She has shown a determination to use her best critical thinking skills and to use those skills to do her best thinking and writing. She has shown diligence in turning in her assignments by the due date and by attending class daily. This has only made her a better student and has made her work and writing even better.
Not only has she been determined to further her own abilities, but I have noticed her taking a lead in group work in order to help her classmates do better work as well. This is an important aspect in a Language Arts classroom. She has helped our class get better through her willingness to share and contribute in class.
I am glad that I have had the opportunity to work with Faithlynn this year and to watch her growth as a student at Box Elder High School. Congratulations, Faithlynn. Keep up the excellent work
Charidy Stanford is the daughter of Jon Stanford and Janna Simcox. Charidy in the Math –April Student of the Month; nominated by Kelli Marianno
In five short weeks, Charidy has proven to be a student who works hard to reach her potential. She receives the highest test scores in her class because of her continual effort to understand and complete her assignments. Charidy is an outstanding math student because she perseveres through long, sometimes tedious math problems. Even when others around her complain and quit, Charidy does not give up. Charidy deserves to be recognized not only for her impressive academic performance, but also for her desire to excel in other areas of life. She is kind and compassionate toward others. During class, she quietly helps the students around her understand their homework. When she understands a concept she is willing to share her knowledge to help others succeed. This quality makes her a great student to teach and a great person to be around.
JULIANA BISCHOFF is the daughter of Christina and Roger Apodaca and Mark Bishoff. Juliana was nominated by Jerry Hodgkinson for PE/HEALTH Coach Hodgkinson states: My student of the month is Juliana Bischoff. Juliana is in my 5th hour Sports Psychology class. She is always prompt and engaged. Juliana has a positive attitude and positive way about her that seems to effect those around her. She truly has a caring and service way about her. It is a pleasure to have a student such as Juliana in class. It's been awesome having her in my class.
Jacob Owens was nominated for the April Student of the Month in Social Sciences by his teacher Marko Demonja. Jake is the son of Brian and Jenni Owens. He wasn't even in the classroom the first time I really got to know Jake. I had his brother, Ben, in my world civilizations class. It was the beginning of the trimester. I was trying to squeeze some participation from a room full of sophomores. It was first hour. Their brains were not in participation mode - not even in inappropriate participation mode. Of course they had little motivation to participate because we were learning about dead people. People so dead that their skeletons had turned to dust. They had as much interest as Huck Finn when he discovered that “…Moses had been dead a considerable long time; so then I didn’t care no more about him; because I don’t take no stock in dead people." I asked if anyone had ever heard of the Epic of Gilgamesh. Ben sheepishly raised hand. It's bad manners to appear too smart in a sea of ignorance. He accurately told the bulk of the story- the oldest story known to humanity. He included the most salient philosophical principles and rattled off the names of the main characters like Enkidu. I was astonished. The air had been let out of my balloon. Some teacher beat me to the punch and taught these kids this awesome story already. I asked if anyone else knew the story. Deer–in-the-headlights. A few students barely shook their heads no. Some wondered who I was and where they were. Some checked their pulse and were happy to discover they had one. “Good,” I thought, “no one has stolen my thunder. I can plow this ground new except for this one kid, this Ben Whatever, who knew enough he should probably just teach the class.” I would continue to rake in the big bucks, of course, while he did the work. Curious, I asked him how he knew so much about The Epic if it hadn't been taught in previous grades. He said, “Uh...my brother and I got interested in it this past summer. We found it on the internet, read it and liked it.” What the heck? What kind of a brother was this? A brother who searches out and shares humanity's oldest story with his younger brother and they both obviously like it? What is the world coming to? What will future generations bring? They will bring greatness, of course. The world would be an awesome place if all teenagers were like this. (Especially compared to my intellectual exploits at that age.) I felt like maybe I had just emerged, grunting, from a cave into the presence of loftier beings. “I gotta meet this brother!” I thought. I didn't know had already met Jake. He came to my room with other young men and asked me if I would consider being the advisor of the Cinema Club. Not the Movie Club. The CINEMA Club. We would watch sophisticated, erudite, complex films and discuss them. These weren't movies these were FILMS - cinematic, artistic masterpieces. You know, the kind of films Michelangelo and da Vinci would watch. (And don’t mean those stupid turtles.) I said yes and buckled up for a great ride. Second tri rolled around and I was blessed to have Jake twice a day, once for US government and once for USU History 1700. He proved to be a wonderful student who understood the core of principles, who shunned the shallow aspects of learning. My wife spoke with him for five minutes the night of the caucuses and as we walked away said to me, “That is a very intelligent young man. Who is he?” I told her and she said, “So that’s Jake Owen. I understand now.” She’d heard of him somewhere. Where? I don’t know. Oh yeah, she lives with me. There’s a possible connection. Jake excels in learning, in the acquisition of knowledge – for its own sake. He’s not as motivated as some students by grades. I know that because I never got to give him the grade I wanted to give him, an A+. I. I know that because I never got to give him the grade I wanted to give him, an A+. I couldn’t for two reasons. First, there is no option for an A+ in the system. (Stupid system) The other reason is because he didn’t earn the “points” required. Points? Echhh… Numbers? Echhh… Who needs ‘em? I just wanna learn! So when I wanted to give Jake an A I had to give him a B+ because the points, the numbers, the system required it. (Stupid system) He deserves an A+ in the things that matter most: being a good person, learning so one can become better, sharing what you have learned with others so they can become better with you. So that’s what the next generation would bring if there were more Jakes
Katherine Ann Johnson – April Student of the Month for Vocal Music nominated by Choir teacher Claudia Bigler. Katherine is the daughter of Richard L. Johnson and Carrie Ann Johnson
Katherine has been an exemplary member of Arioso, Concert Choir, and the 2015-16 Madrigals. Kat has studied voice privately for 3 years, and has participated in Region and State Solo and Ensemble Festivals throughout her high school years. She has demonstrated dedication, discipline, and grace under pressure during busy performance seasons. She serves as a “cheerleader” for her friends when they do well, and more so when they struggle. She performs with extraordinary expressiveness, and was recently recognized by a guest conductor for her ability to connect with audiences—which is difficult to do as a choir member. I am so grateful for her reliability, and for the fact that she can be counted on to show up and do her best. During her senior year, she has exhibited outstanding leadership in two classes, and is one of the students who makes you love being a teacher.
