Poplar Bluff, Missouri - Students of the Poplar Bluff Middle School STEM class have been designing new products out of broken toys in an activity instructors are calling Santa’s Workshop.

 

The three-week project combines engineering and teamwork, and has a business marketing component, according to faculty. The concept was inspired by a scene in the computer-animated film, “Toy Story.”

 

“You know the part with Sid’s toys where you have the mutant toy builder?” asked Kimberly Davis, who teaches STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) with Cody Young. “We were brainstorming activities back in August, and I was just waiting until Christmas. I always loved that movie.”

 

Last week students, grades five and six, were given the opportunity to select 2-4 used toys and then visit the supply station to assemble their creation with tools provided. The miscellaneous toys mostly came from parent donations.

 

This week the classes will create a commercial to sell their invention to a target audience at a chosen price range, and fourth graders will rank the best concepts. Winners will receive actual discount prizes from Disney World in Orlando, where Davis’ mother Dena Burk happens to be employed.

 

Pictured: Isaiah Park (left) and Dyllon Lux turn a doll into an action figure/stuffed animal.

 

Photo and article submitted by Tim Krakowiak, Communications/Marketing Director, Poplar Bluff R-I School District

The recently opened Mule Shack is serving multiple functions at Poplar Bluff Junior High—in addition to serving customers—including teaching students business math, organization and social interaction.

“Every piece of the store is a teachable moment,” said Courtney Rutledge, the instructor over the life skills class, which runs the operation under teacher supervision.

After several months of planning, a ribbon cutting for the new store was held on Oct. 13. The Mule Shack sells snacks, school spirit items and other supplies during lunch every Friday next to the cafeteria. Proceeds go toward enhancing the life skills classroom, which is currently in the market for a stove to show students some basics on how to cook.

Over the summer, the district renovated the classroom, installing plumbing, sinks, countertops and cabinets so students—grades 7-8—can obtain practical knowledge that will help them manage the demands of everyday life beyond the school day. Students cleaned and painted the room, previously used as a storage space for gym equipment, and back in the day a place where students could get malts, according to Principal Candace Warren.

Before and after lunch, students gather at the service window to make their purchases. Seventh grader Nickolas Gallamore says he is saving up to one day buy a foam finger designed for sporting events. He had been anticipating opening day for quite some time.

“Finally, here’s the day,” Nickolas recalled thinking. He gave his early review of the store. “They have all the stuff people like… music, plus the name is catchy,” he exclaimed. “It’s sure to have success.”

The name of the store was chosen by incoming Junior High students at the end of last school year. The Parent Teacher Organization helped supply the initial inventory, along with donations from businesses. The plan is for the shop to eventually become self-sustaining once it achieves profitability.

Asked what his favorite part of working at the Mule Shack is, cashier Labron Thomas of the seventh grade replied: “What I like about the store is getting to know people, and [seeing] how they’re doing.”

Pictured: Life skills students man the Mule Shack under the direction of faculty during lunchtime.

Article and photo submitted by Tim Krakowiak, Communications/Marketing Director, Poplar Bluff R-I School District

Over a dozen students graduated and two scholarships were awarded during the Gateway 2 Jobs commencement on Wednesday, Oct. 25, at Poplar Bluff High School.

Founded by the Poplar Bluff Chamber of Commerce, the program gives students at the Graduation Center an opportunity to learn insider tips from local industry professionals about gaining employment. Business leaders visited the class throughout the month to share about topics such as resume writing and job interviewing.  

“We are blessed in this community to have folks who could be sitting in the office making more money but take the time out of their day because they care about these kids getting a job in the workforce,” said Steve Halter, chamber president.

The program began seven years ago as the brainchild of Halter and businesswoman Sharon Kissinger of Kissinger & Kirkman Investment Centre, who felt there was a need for a work-readiness program, and have a soft spot for students working on credit recovery due to various life circumstances.

In addition to participating in a series of lectures in order to earn certificates of completion, students had to complete volunteer work in the community, maintain a GPA above passing and have no discipline referrals.

“Finish what you start, take some risks, have a plan but be willing to adjust, dream big and put steps in place to achieve those goals,” advised regional director Jomo Castro of AT&T Missouri, which was one of several business sponsors. The contacts that students made throughout the course of the program will continue to be resources for them in the community, Castro noted.

Kissinger, along with the Three Rivers Endowment Trust, awarded students Michaela Swift and Jerry Faughn with $500 scholarships respiectively to the community college based on essays submitted. Mayor Ed DeGaris was present for the ceremony to personally congratulate the graduates.

Pictured are students display their certificates with program supporters. Graduates were (in alphabetical order) Richard Anderson, Brian Battles, Kyle Blanchard, Jordan Brown, Dakota Carlton, Jerry Faughn, Krista Johnson, Corey Lashley, Laquarious Marshall, Floyd Ray, Michael Simpson and Deamario Thomas. Not present was Michaela Swift.

Article and photo submitted by Tim Krakowiak, Communications/Marketing Director, Poplar Bluff R-I School District

Poplar Bluff High School senior Logan Dunlap won the Southeast District speaking portion of the 2017 Missouri Sheep Producers State FFA contest earlier this month at Osage Beach, later placing fourth at state.

 

The contest is designed to develop individual public speaking skills and to promote interest in and awareness of the many different aspects of the sheep industry, according to a press release issued by the organization. Logan’s speech topic was sheep production in Missouri.

 

Logan is a senior FFA officer at PBHS with plans of running for state office, according to his sponsor Kathryn Clark, agriculture teacher. Last spring, he earned a group one rating at the state competition for extemporaneous speaking.

Pictured: Logan Dunlap (far left), along with the other district-wide winners, were presented awards and $50 checks on Sunday, Dec. 3, at the Tan-Tar-A Resort.

Photo and article submitted by Tim Krakowiak, Communications/Marketing Director, Poplar Bluff R-I School District

Poplar Bluff Superintendent Scott Dill could be spotted in plain clothes with a school-issued backpack off Barron Road at a quarter to 7 a.m. on a brisk autumn Thursday, waiting for the bus to pick him up… to go to Senior High.

He contemplated what may pose the biggest challenge for him at this stage in life, such as skipping that second cup of coffee in order to limit his fluid intake.

Despite the careful consideration, he failed to bring something to write in and had to visit the Giving Closet for a notebook first thing, according to assistant librarian Cindy Webb.

Dill was provided a full class schedule because he committed to spending an entire day as a PBHS student.

“As a superintendent, I’m afforded the opportunity to make decisions every day that impact the lives of kids, and my focus—in concert with the administration and board—is, and has to be, what’s best for students,” said Dill in an interview the day before his experiment. “My goal is to become better attuned to the needs of our kids and have a deeper appreciation for what their lives within our school system entail.

What he learned quickly was students were rather interested in what he was up to and why. Zac Batton, who was alerted in advance by Dill’s teenage daughter, said he thought the bus ride in particular was “pretty cool.” Zac, a senior, was rumored that Dill had Spanish II with him, considering he heard the superintendent took German in high school.

Attending concert choir class together, sophomore Caitlin Dollins was curious to see if Dill really could sight read the music. And while the superintendent was fully prepared to eat alone, Caitlin ended up welcoming him to her table.

“A couple friends of mine had the idea to invite him to sit with us at lunch if he had D lunch, so I made sure to ask him before anyone else could get the chance to ask,” Caitlin explained. “I really wanted to get his opinion of what was going on in the school system, but I didn’t want to make him feel uncomfortable or different, as that wouldn’t really be in the spirit of the project. So we just talked about classes and which teachers he liked.”

One assignment that Dill found invigorating, he noted, was when he had to write an essay in Mike Sowatzke’s American history class about whether he believed industrialist Andrew Carnegie was a hero or a villain. Dill felt the correct answer was probably a combination, but he was challenged to pick a side to compose a more cohesive analysis.

Having served in a leadership capacity for so long, Dill realized he had grown accustomed to helping solve real world problems and had forgotten what it is like to engage in an intellectual exercise for the sole sake of learning, he mentioned.

Sowatzke was excited for the opportunity to leave an impression on his boss, he said, and then he remembered it was his department’s week to participate in PB Writes in preparation for EOC and ACT testing. Rather than delivering an engaging lesson, the instructor ended up spending the majority of time bouncing from desk to desk answering students’ questions, but that is part of the profession, too.

“It’s good for people to see all the stuff we have to do in a given day to keep everyone on task,” Sowatzke commented, and reflected on what has changed since his secondary education a decade ago. “Instead of a teacher’s role just being teacher—you get your grade and that’s it—we are actively watching out to make sure kids aren’t failing.”

In a follow-up interview, Dill stated this experience would live with him forever, which was especially important to him considering he graduated from high school in the western part of the state – roughly a quarter of a century ago. While today’s technology integration equips faculty with more tools at their disposal, he observed, quality instruction is still quality instruction.

“We really have good teachers doing good work,” Dill pointed out. “Some people that I had previously considered reserved or quiet came alive in front of a classroom, and I got to see them at their brilliant best, helping kids.”

After several 47-minute periods with six minutes in between, and only a 25-minute lunch break, Dill said he felt like he had run a marathon, constantly shifting subjects as well as dispositions. While he gathered his belongings to go home, some students were gearing up for basketball practice, and various other extracurricular activities on campus.

“Whoever said, ‘Youth is wasted on the young,’ hasn’t put in their academic day in a while,” Dill joked. “And we ask our students to do this day in and day out, rain or shine – for 13 school years.

“It could truly enhance a person’s ability to effectively facilitate the education and protection of our kids if we were to walk a mile in their shoes, which I have done today,” said Dill, reaffirming his earlier sentiment, perhaps with a touch more conviction this time around.

Pictured:  Superintendent Scott Dill (maroon hoodie) practices songs for the Community Thanksgiving Dinner with concert choir students in music teacher Joshua Allen’s class.

Photo and article submitted by Tim Krakowiak, Communications/Marketing Director, Poplar Bluff R-I School District