Tuesday, May 26, 2009

Senior update

May 25, 2009

Dear Senior Parents,

As we prepare to celebrate the culmination of your student’s high school experience, there are a few dates and happenings you might want to keep in mind.

A few students still have outstanding requirements to meet in order to successfully complete their Senior Projects. Please be sure your student is done or knows what he/she must do in order to complete the project. Successfully completed projects, approved by the student’s PRC, are required to graduate.

Please make sure Ken has a copy of your student’s senior project. We are building our senior library for future generations of Trillium students and look forward to including the amazing work of the class of 2009. Not all projects will fit in our library, of course, but we request a finished copy of the written piece at the very least.

Senior Dinner is Friday, June 5th at 6:30 at Trillium. During this annual event, Trillium alumni attend to serve the class of 2009, reminisce about times past, and share insight into times to come.

Commencement will take place at the Moriarty Arts and Humanities Building at Portland Community College Cascade campus (see map on back). The ceremony begins at 2:00. Seniors need to be at Moriarty twice that day: we will have a 9:00 a.m. rehearsal of the ceremony, then seniors need to be back at the theater by 1:30. Commencement will last three hours.

All seniors are preparing their speeches for Commencement. Each senior will select a staff person to speak about him or her at graduation, after which the student will speak about the significance of his/her school experience.

All seniors have picked up their graduation announcements, which cost one dollar each. Seniors who still need to pay for their announcements should bring a check or cash to Ramona at the front desk. She will then issue a receipt which the student should bring to me.

Caps and gowns are on their way. The rental company with whom we are doing business assures me they will be here in time for graduation. In fact, I have asked the company representative to assure me over and over and over again. The gowns and caps are forest green and the tassels are gold. We are pleased to support this company which uses high quality materials, and produces their goods in the United States. Students may keep the tassels. Rental for cap and gown is $40. Check or cash should be given to Ramona. Any student for whom the cost of cap and gown is an obstacle should speak to Ken privately. Scholarships are available. Students must return the cap and gown to the front desk by June 12th.

Seniors have begun bringing photographs and images from their past with which I will make a video slideshow for graduation. Please encourage your student to bring baby pictures, photos from their youth, or any Trillium scenes that are significant to them. I can accept printed as well as digital images and will have them available to return to students after graduation.

Seniors’ last official day of school is Friday, June 5th, but all are welcome and encouraged to attend for the last week of school and engage in Intensives offerings.

It has been my great privilege to work with your student this year. Thank you for the opportunity.

Warm regards,

Ken

Saturday, May 23, 2009

Advisng Update

Hello Families,

Welcome to end of year activities. As we draw to a close, there are several events about which it may be helpful to have reminders. This is also an opportunity to extend sincere thanks and gratitude to Polly for her dedication, enthusiasm, and support working with our advising group this year. I will be back at Trillium full time in the fall as I will have completed my PSU coursework this spring. Polly will continue to be a major part of the Trillium community as the Service Coordinator and working in the mornings as Trillium's Kindergarten teacher. Thank you, Polly, for sharing your amazing talent of making even the most mundane tasks feel like adventures.

I was truly impressed by the sincerity, honesty, and boldness of the high school community during last week's high school meeting in the multi-purpose room. We all sat in a giant circle and respectfully allowed each and every member to share their ideas on the health and integrity of this great Trillium experiment we are all a part of. I was proud to be a member of a community that so clearly values making our educational lives feel meaningful. I look forward to many more such conversations.

All School Service Day is this Thursday, May 28th. Students from all grade levels will be involved in serving the community in different locations throughout Portland during the morning. Service Day begins at regular school time, 8:30. We then go out into the community and come back to Trillium to all have lunch together. Afternoon classes will run on their regular schedule.

Students will have the final meeting of their Friday classes this coming Friday May 29th.

June 1st - 4th are the last regular meetings of Upper School morning classes.

Field Day is Friday, June 5th. Students K-12 will participate in games and events in the park.

Senior Commencement is Saturday, June 6th at 2:00 at the Moriarty Arts and Humanities Building at Portland Community College Cascade Campus.

All School Intensives, where students get to choose from a rich variety of engaging activities, arts, and investigations will take place during the mornings of Monday, June 8th - Thursday, June 11th. Afternoon classes will run on schedule Monday through Wednesday.

High School student exhibitions will take place on Friday, June 12th, the last day of school. All high school students will present highlights of their semester's work to their peers. We will share our work, do some closing activities, and say our good-byes.

As always, please let me know if you have any questions or comments.

Peace.

Ken

Faith and Conflict Update

Hello Faith and Conflict Students,

A schedule change and a reminder: First, your first draft of your second paper is due on Wednesday. You should be working with the idea you submitted to me on Thursday unless I have suggested otherwise. You will have time in class on Tuesday and Wednesday to work on your papers.

We will NOT be having our video conference with the Gaza students on Tuesday. It has rescheduled to Wednesday morning.

Below is the list of questions we generated as a class to ask the Gaza students during the video conference. I have forwarded the list to them so they can choose which questions to ask. I would like to use them all, but we would run out of time.

Peace.
Ken

Proposed Trillium Questions for Gaza Students
May 22, 2009

Pleasantries
1. How was your day? What is a typical day like for you?
2. What does it look like where you live? Could you describe your home, your neighborhood? What is the weather like in Gaza?
3. How many people are in your family? How is your family?
4. What is your favorite food dish? What kind of music do you like?
5. What do you do in your free time? What games or sports do you like to play? What is a favorite book that you have read? What is your favorite movie? What did you like about it?
6. What is the most important thing to you right now? What goals do you have for your life?
7. Have your religious beliefs ever conflicted with your personal beliefs?
8. Have you ever wished to move and live somewhere else?
9. What has been one of the best days of your life?

Life amidst Conflict
10. How does the conflict with Israel affect you personally? What is it like living amidst violence? Are you ever afraid of where you live?
11. To what extent does the conflict with Israel define who you are as a person?
12. How do you feel about the war with Israel? How do you feel about Israelis? Do you separate the two?
13. What do you think might be the future of the walls around Gaza and West Bank?
14. What do you think about the election of Netanyahu as Prime Minister of Israel?
15. Do you think Palestinians will ever return to their rightful homes?
16. What do you think of the United States government and its people? What is it like to speak with Americans knowing our government supports the Israeli government?
17. What are your thoughts, feelings, or opinions on Hamas?

Understanding Conflict
18. What books or films do you feel could help an outsider better understand Palestinians and the conflict with Israel?
19. How do you resolve conflicts in your daily life, like an argument or misunderstanding with friends or family?
20. Do you think a solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict will be found? Where might it come from? What positive step might be taken to help stop the conflict?

Looking Forward
21. How might Palestinians one day be able to heal the divide with Israelis? Will it ever be possible for you to forgive the state of Israel for what it has done? Will you be able to forgive the citizens of Israel? Have you ever, or might you one day, be willing to have conversations like the one we are having right now with Israeli youth?

Monday, May 11, 2009

High School Campout

May 7, 2009


Dear Parents and Guardians,


The annual Spring High School campout is coming up next week. We will be leaving for Milo Mciver Wednesday morning and returning Friday afternoon. Students should arrive at school by 8:30 as usual. We expect to leave around 9, and will return Friday around 1. We still need parent drivers and chaperones for the trip, as well as people to help with cleaning and organizing when we get back. Please contact your student’s advisor if you think you might be able to help.


This time we're taking Trimet: we're going to travel in two groups of 30 with each group having 2 chaperones with one extra chaperone in case we need to divide into one smaller group. We will meet the number 33 bus at the Rose Quarter at 10 am then transfer from the 33 to the 31 which will take us into Estacada. From Estacada we will have about a 2 mile hike into Milo Mciver along the river. If there is any change to the transportation plan we will be forwarding that information on to you all as soon as possible. We are also asking that students pack as light as possible for simpler transportation purposes.


The cost of the trip is covered entirely by the student activity fee.


A list of suggested supplies for your student is below.:


*

Tent w/ground cloth and rain fly
*

Sleeping bag or blanket/sheet bedroll
*

Sleeping pad
*

Flashlight/headlamp
*

Toiletries
*

Towel
*

Swimsuit
*

Change of clothes
*

Sleepwear
*

An extra pair of sneakers
*

Warm clothing for potentially cool nights
*

Light clothing for potentially warm days
*

Sunscreen
*

A rain jacket or poncho


It is pretty amusing living in the Pacific Northwest and trying to project the weather, but a few showers are predicted for our first 2 days with the temperature projected around the 60's.


All students on the trip are expected to share in cooking and cleaning duties. Drugs and alcohol are, of course, strictly prohibited on the trip. Game systems and loud music are requested to stay at home, while we encourage students to bring cards, board games, and musical instruments.


We look forward to another great high school campout. Please let your student’s advisor know if you have any questions.


Regards,


The Student Camping Committee, James and,

Will, Elizabeth, Jess, and Ken

High School Advisors