Rudyard Area Schools

Rudyard Area Schools will be on a 2 hour delay for today, Wednesday April 3, 2024 due to slick roads in the western part of our district. Buses will pick up students 2 hours later than normal.

This week's alumni spotlight is Briana (Kangas) Otten '07! Some of my favorite members were when we went to Turner Howsen for elementary school, of course we had to cross the ravine to get to the busses. I just loved crossing that ravine and looking for the little black and yellow caterpillars in the springtime. Sometimes I would carefully cup one in my hand and sneak it on the bus so I could play with it on the ride home. My senior year, we had a very small, close-knit group of students in my AP Biology class. After the AP exam we thought it would be a really great idea to have a sleepover at the school. We set up a tent in our science room, made smore's on the Bunsen burners, watched movies, and goofed off until school was about to start the next morning. We anxiously waited for our science teacher to show up so we could surprise her. Low and behold, she took the day off! I really loved my health/quilting class. One semester focused on health. The topic was just so relevant; it was the reason I decided to become a health teacher. The other semester was quilting. Who wouldn't want to spend an hour a day sewing? It was a dream. I was a nerd, still am, so I was involved in band, chorus/chorale, drama, and quiz bowl. For a few years we even had a show choir. Talk about a good time! There is really something to be said for Rudyard Schools offering so many outlets for students who may not necessarily be into the traditional extra-curriculars. I always felt part of the community and culture of the school while still being authentic to myself, and I am so grateful for that. My advice for students is don't be afraid to change your mind and take advantage of opportunities that present themselves to you. When I was younger, I had a one track mind of what I wanted to do with my life. It absolutely changed and I felt like a bit of a failure when my original plan didn't pan out. I realized that we are all a work in progress and it's totally ok grow and shift mindsets and to try new things. After high school I attended Northern Michigan University for Hospitality Management. I wanted to be a caterer because I loved cooking so much. A year into college, I changed my major to education. I really wanted to teach students how to cook. Northern didn't have a family consumer science program, so I opted to Major in Health Education with a Minor in Geography Education. I had a lot of hospitality credits, so I finished out some courses and received an Associate's in Food Service Management with my Bachelor's in Secondary Education. I worked at the EUP ISD for a few years implementing health grants, and then got a teaching job as a Family Consumer Science teacher at Pickford. While there, I decided to join the National Guard as a Bridge Crewmember. I served six years in the guard while also teaching and earning my Master's as a Reading Specialist. An opportunity to teach Special Education for the EUP ISD Learning Center fell into my lap. Teaching Special Education never really crossed my mind, but I thought I would try it out. It was a wonderful experience teaching 16-26 year old students in a transition class. A few years into teaching at the Center, my first son was born and I had the urge to teach at Rudyard. I wanted to be part of the same school community my family would become a part of. Rudyard had and opening for a Special Education Teacher and I took it! What a journey to get back to where I started!

This week's alumni spotlight is Jason Gerou '01! My best memory from RHS was waking across the graduation stage knowing I had made it and was ready to start the next stage of my life My favorite class was Anatomy and physiology with Mrs. Ewing! My favorite activity was traveling swim meets, and being with my classmates. My advice for students would be to study hard, learn lots and enjoy the small things, before you know it your time at RHS will be a distant memory. After high school, I went to Grand Valley State University, received my BS in psychology, then to Western Michigan University for MA in Counseling Education and Counseling Psychology. I am now working as a Clinical Director and counselor for a company in Detroit.

This week's alumni spotlight is Brittany (Hoolsema) Disterheft '09! I have so many good memories from high school - from pep band to cross country meets to Spirit week, it's hard to choose just one! One unique memory is from participating in the winter running group that the Jarvie's put on: my friends/siblings and I used to run all over town collecting pop cans that had been tossed out & turn them in to buy some little snack or treat at the Co-op. We sometimes ended up with several dollars worth of cans in one run! My favorite classes were Spanish & Biology because I enjoyed the subjects so much! I remember Mrs. Ewing talking about seeing her optometrist & getting to look inside his eye with one of his instruments, and that was part of what sparked my career choice! Cross Country was definitely my favorite activity; the coaches Mr. and Mrs. Jarvie encouraged such camaraderie on the team, it was fun to be a part of throughout middle & high school. My advice to students is to not be afraid of taking on a challenge. Several times during my schooling I chose to take on something that intimidated me and it ended up being so rewarding to see what I could accomplish or become more comfortable with. Right out of high school I went to Calvin College for pre-optometry with a minor in Spanish. After graduating, I was accepted into the Michigan College of Optometry and am now practicing in Indiana. My Spanish minor has opened new experiences to me in my career, as I've sometimes had Spanish-speaking patients and have been on optometry mission trips to Mexico, Peru & Honduras. It's been a blessing to communicate directly with patients rather than needing a translator. I also met my husband, Tim, on one of the mission trips and we just celebrated our daughter Audrey's first birthday!

The 2024 Career Day for Rudyard Jr/Sr High School is next week (March 14). Thank you for all of the community members that have signed up for the event, if you have any questions, you can call the high school office: 906-478-3771, or email lmorley@eupschools.org The Career Expo for presenters will take place in the high school gym, The first student group will be in at 9 am, setup time window is 7:30 to 8:50.

Special Thanks goes out to Michigan State Extension for their help and partnership with our Agriculture program to re-start the Maple Syrup project at the Rudyard School Farm. This was a large scale grant, fully funded by MSU! The goal is maple syrup education and learning platform that will be offered to students throughout the district. Cross your fingers we will be processing soon!

This weeks alumni spotlight is Samuel Otten '02 My best memories from Rudyard schools were working together with peers and teachers to put on some kind of performance, from middle school chorus concerts with Mrs Rathwell to the musicals with Mr Taylor or the basketball and cross country teams over the years. I especially remember JV basketball with Chris Reetz, Josh Oja, Jeremy Piippo, and Michael Christiansen in 1998-1999 because we went 16-4 and beat every team at least once, including a buzzer beater over St Ignace. I ended up becoming a math educator, so I have to say that I appreciated all the math I learned from Turner-Howson on up. But my favorite classes were probably science with Mr Kaminski and Mr Peterson and also English/Writing with Mr Fountain. My advice for students is to be kind to all the people around you (a smile or a kind word really can make a difference for people) and to find something interesting in all the different subject areas (it really is up to you to get interested rather than mentally checking out, and like Mr. Powers always said, "Only boring people get bored"). After I graduated from Rudyard High I continued working on the family farm every summer and I went to Grand Valley State during the academic year. I eventually went to Michigan State for grad school and since 2012 I've been a professor at the University of Missouri. I study math teaching practices and students' reasoning-and-proving, and I am currently the chair of the Department of Learning, Teaching, and Curriculum here at Mizzou. Go Tigers! I am a proud Rudyard alum from 2002, the same year as Principal Folkersma!

March 1st is the start of our Elementary Reading Month! Happy birthday Dr. Seuss - wear your red and white!

We are pleased to share that we have 15 students (7th-12th grades) with art work in this year's show at Sault Area Art Center (Alberta House) in the month of March. There is a reception Sunday March 3rd from 1pm-3pm to celebrate their accomplishments, please feel free to attend! This year's students with are in the show include: Esther Harrington 10th Watercolor and Ink Ashlynn Lawlor 8th Paper Mache/Plaster Lilian Girard 11th Clay (2) Jasmine Hickman 11th Color Pencil Amelia Goforth 9th Color Pencil Lila Tuzinowski 7th Graphite and paper mache (2) Melissa Kirschner 7th Watercolor and Ink Wesley Apotheker 12th Recycled Materials Maria Staricha 9th Recycled Materials Emily Pearsall 10th Recycled Materials Ella Moon 10th Recycled Materials Bryce Mitchell 8th Graphite Madisyn Besteman 11th Fiber/Birch / Clay (2) Grace Gregaitis 12th Clay/wire Kayla Bailey 7th Paper Mache Congratulations everyone, pictures to come soon!

Rudyard Area Schools will be closed today, Thursday February 29, 2024 due to weather.

Rudyard Area Schools will be closed today, Wednesday February 28, 2024 due to icy conditions. If you have to travel today, please be safe.

Due to a staffing shortage, Rudyard Area Schools will be closed tomorrow, Friday February 23. Band festival will continue as planned for our middle schoolers who should report by 8:30 am. If you need a ride for band festival, please contact Mr. Clark or Mr. McKee. If you are interested in becoming a substitute teacher, please contact Mr. McKee.

Rudyard Area Schools is proud of the arts, and is honored to host the regional band festival this Thursday and Friday.

This week's alumni spotlight is Scott Ehle '98! It is hard to pick a single memory as the best! In retrospect, it was probably all the little moments with friends that I took for granted. We had a lot of fun as a class, and we were close. A big reason for this was that we dealt with loss as a class more than once. Losing Jackie in fifth grade and Becky in ninth grade was beyond difficult, but really helped the class of 1998 appreciate each other and every day as a gift. I always looked forward to Spirit week, and cheering on fellow Bulldogs in every sport. My favorite classes were Mr. Rose's English class, where he brought writing we had already decided was "boring" to life for us. With Shakespeare, he would have to explain some of the jokes (which usually makes them less funny) but Mr. Rose's sharp wit was infectious. I also enjoyed yearbook with Mrs. Talentino. Also, the teacher who had the biggest impact on me was Mr. Fountain in middle school. I appreciate his love of reading and writing, and he introduced me to many authors like Kurt Vonnegut, who I still enjoy today. Advice I would have for students is to practice kindness toward others and yourself. As a minister, I see the pressure that many students are under to achieve. It is a good thing to try your hardest, but if your hardest produces a C, be proud of that C! As Teddy Roosevelt (might have) said, "Comparison is a thief of joy." After High School I attended Northern Michigan University with the intent of becoming a teacher. But during my college years I got involved in Lutheran Campus ministry and was a counselor at Fortune Lake Lutheran Camp during the summers. All of a sudden church went from a boring activity that my parents insisted upon to something quite exciting. I changed my major to History, and after receiving my Bachelor's degree, attended Wartburg Theological Seminary in Dubuque, Iowa where I received a Master's of Divinity in 2007. My first call was at Zion Lutheran in Fairwater, WI, and have been serving Bethel Lutheran in Menominee, MI since 2012. I was a bit of a class clown, so I think some of my classmates were surprised at my career choice, but there are a lot of opportunities for laughter in ministry! I'm married to Stefanie, who I met at Fortune Lake, and we are the proud parents of Mark and Lewis.

This week's alumni spotlight is Lisa (Kangas) Lemmerman '92! What was your best memory from school? I have too many great memories to pick just one! All the goods time with friends that have become lifelong friends. What was your favorite class/activity? My favorite class was with English with Mr. Rose. He was a great teacher and always treated students with respect and kindness. What advice do you have for students? My advice to students is to live in the moment. When you wish time away, you forget to enjoy what’s happening around you. What did you do right out of high school, and what do you do now? After high school I earned my associate degree in Early Childhood Education from LSSU. I worked at a child care center before starting here at Rudyard in the GSRP (Preschool) classroom as the assistant teacher. I have since gone back to school to earn my bachelor’s degree and am now the lead teacher. It’s never too late to further your education!

This weeks alumni spotlight is Travis Johnson '08! What was your best memory from school? I had a ton of great memories from school, playing t ball during cross country meets, being a part of the plays and musicals, all the various dances, pretending to be President Bush while giving a state of the union address for government, the list could go on and on. What was your favorite class/activity? I was involved in so much I don’t know if I can pick a favorite activity, but my favorite classes were drama, art, and any government class with Mr. DeYoung. What advice do you have for students? You don’t need to know what you are doing or where you want to go. Go into every situation with an open mind and make the best of it because you never know when opportunities will knock. During your journey make sure you are learning from everyone and everything, improve from your failures, analyze your successes, don’t let set backs define you or crush you. Even if what you are doing isn’t apart of your ultimate goal do it to the best of your ability because you never know what will be valuable to you in the future or what experiences will help you along the way. I had teacher in high school that use to say “if you get cast as the 7th spear carrier, you be the best darn 7th spear carrier that anyone has ever seen.” And that has been surprising helpful to me throughout my career. What did you do right out of high school, and what do you do now? I graduated from Northern Michigan University with a Degree in criminal justice with a focus in psychology. I got a temporary backroom job at Walmart after I graduated while I tried to find something in my field. But along the way Walmart kept promoting me and giving me more money and I decided see where the company could take me. I am currently a Traveling Remodel Manager and working on remodeling the store in Petoskey.

Yesterday our CTE Education students were able to meet with Alan Mather who is the President of the The Golden Apple Foundation for Excellence in Teaching; to talk about the GA Scholars Program. The Golden Apple Scholars Program is launching in Michigan in January 2024. This is an undergraduate teacher preparation program that recruits and supports students who commit to earning an education degree and teaching license from a Michigan EPP and teaching for five years in a school-of-need. Scholars receive: financial assistance undergraduate academic & social emotional supports extensive classroom teaching experience instruction from award-winning educators and expert partners job placement assistance upon graduation mentoring in the first years of teaching Seniors who are interested in becoming teachers are encouraged to apply to be a scholar with the program! Thank you to Mr. Mather for coming from New Mexico to share with our students!

Rudyard Jr/Sr High School is proud to announce that Cameron Peterson is the class of 2024 Valedictorian and Aiden Bickel is the class of 2024 Salutatorian! Both students have over a 4.0 GPA, excelled in both high school and dual enrollment college classes over their time at Rudyard. Each of them are also are EUP Principal Award Recipients. Cameron and Aiden are often know by the community for excelling in athletics, but their academic success is a testament of what it means to be a student-athlete. Congratulations to both of you!

This weeks alumni spotlight is Jesse Carter-Powell '18! It's hard to choose just one memory. From being late to Spanish every morning because ol' Johnny Folkersma and I needed our coffee from the library, the countless pranks on Mr. Dugan or the never-ending track and cross country memories. If I had to pick one, it would have to be making the paper in the SAC conference track meet in the Sault after chasing down another team that had a 50-75m lead and winning the race. My favorite class: obvious answer would have to be P.E. but they all had their own place in my favorites list. Definitely NOT for the classwork, but for the fun environment the teachers allowed us to make most days fun in their own ways and allowed me to be a constant class clown. The advice I can give for students now and anyone who will come through in the future is, it's never that deep. By that I mean you can't take what people think of you too personally and deeply, and don't ever let anyone tell you that you aren't enough/not doing enough. Only YOU know what giving your 100% is and never forget to have fun with whatever your doing at the same time. I enlisted into the U.S. Marine Corps straight out of high school. (I mean that literally. I arrived at bootcamp the day before I was supposed to walk at graduation). I signed a contract to be a part of a job called "Combat Camera," (now called Communication Strategies and Operations) and I love it. During my 5 and a half years in the Corps so far I have done primarily Graphic Design and Photography (you can find my images by searching my name on DVIDShub.net). After two years in North Carolina, and deploying to Norway for about 6 months during that time, and spending two years working with the Recruiting Station in Michigan. I am currently stationed at Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego, California (had to get back away from the cold).

The 7th grade also had an end of quarter celebration today! The students were treated to hot coco, s'mores, and a bonfire! The weather was good enough for some fun in the snow too! Thank you to Mrs Hammer, Mrs Pearsall, Mrs DeWitt, Mrs, Morley, Mr VanSloten and Mr Garries for helping make it a success!