With the implementation of the online program Naviance, senior Becca Falter is enthusiastic about how much easier it is to keep track of all of her college applications.  “It helped me keep track of when things were submitted.  It helped me not to forget anything,” Falter said.

Senior Shawn Pessagno echoes her sentiments.  “I like how Naviance tells you the due dates for things.  Even colleges don’t tell you that,” Pessagno said.

Despite its helpful nature, there are still imperfections with the new program.  “If a guidance counselor forgets to put something in, it would slow down the whole process,” Falter said.

The guidance counselors are the ones responsible for submit ing information into students’ Naviance accounts.  This year, after purchasing Naviance for $2,000, the guidance department jumped right into training to use Naviance beginning with the class of 2012.  In August, all four guidance counselors attended two four-hour professional training sessions to learn the ins and outs of Naviance.

“We felt very good as to what we had accomplished.  We were very impressed with the possibilities,” Guidance Counselor Carol Heflin-Shupe said.

When it came time for seniors to submit their college applications, guidance counselors found a few problems with the program. 

Naviance is tied into the Common Application, which allows students to send one application to any of the 400 schools that accept it.  Some schools, in addition to accepting the Common Application, have their own individual college application that students may choose to submit.

According to Heflin-Shupe, the guidance department was under the impression that, if a student would chose to use the school’s own application, Naviance would allow them to submit that and all of the other required letters of recommendation and transcripts electronically.  This was not the case. 

“If [a student] applies with the school’s application, you still have to print it out and mail it in. The [Naviance] trainers didn’t tell us that,” Heflin-Shupe said. 

Naviance made guidance secretary Rita Malone’s job easier.  Malone’s job is to send out students’ applications.  “The process used to be very hectic.  Now [with Naviance], I can just click on a student’s progress and submit their application.  Some schools still require you to mail it in, but all I have to do then is print it out,” Malone said.

“[Naviance] is helpful because I’m able to check if they’ve sent my college stuff without asking Mrs. Malone,” senior Olivia Dunbar said.

“With every new computer program, we have discovered a few glitches along the way, but nothing that can’t be worked out.  Overall, it has been a very positive step in the right direction for our guidance department,” Guidance Counselor Carrie Siemsen said.

Brianna Glase is a Managing Editor for The Patriot and jcpatriot.com.

Switzer will be replacing former Building Superintendent Al Avent who left the position in mid-September. The position remained vacant until Switzer’s recent hire.

According to Director of Facilities Stewart Walker, Switzer’s job entails “[the] primary oversight of the JCS physical plant and prioritizing, delegating, and completing work order.  In addition, his job will include event support and completion of preventive maintenance and selected projects.”

Switzer recently moved from his native town, Oxford, Mississippi. He has a Bachelor’s Degree in English and Philosophy from Lambuth University in Jackson, Tennessee and a Master’s Degree in Philosophy from the University of Mississippi. Most recently, Switzer taught at the University of Mississippi.

According to an email sent to the faculty and staff about Switzer’s new position, he was “well versed in general construction from a very young age.”  Walker said that in addition to teaching, Switzer worked with his family’s construction and cabinetry business.

According to the email, Switzer will be working a base schedule of Monday through Friday, from 6:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

 Emily Clarke is a Managing Editor for The Patriot and jcpatriot.com.

 Russell is considering the Internet providers Cisco, Ruckus, SonicWall, and Aerohive to supply the wireless.  He is currently getting bids and proposals from these companies to help him decide.  “We want to get the best solution for the lowest price,” Russell said.

 One of the major problems with the current wireless system is low capacity, the amount of people who can connect to the wireless at the same time, in high occupancy areas such as the library and cafeteria.  Another issue is that the demand placed on the wireless is becoming much greater than when it was installed.  “People are certainly doing far more than they were when we first started using laptops,” Russell said.

 “We definitely need to update the router system, because it isn’t as strong at certain points,” freshman Abbey Levee said.

 The plan for the new wireless system installation is to replace and reposition access points.  The changes made during installation will be minor, because the wiring system is already in place.  “Installation with no one here should take roughly three to five days with students out of school. That’s if things go smoothly,” Russell said.

 Russell plans to use the money from the Need for Speed Raffle, but will need additional funding.  “It wasn’t as much as [we] were hoping to get, but it’s a good amount and I’m grateful for it,” Russell said.

Elise Adamson is a News Editor for The Patriot and jcpatriot.com

The family of James Long, the former math teacher, lacrosse coach, and creator of the modular schedule at JC who died last year, has created a scholarship to be given to a graduating senior who has seen the largest increase in their academic QPA over four years.

The details were determined when Sudbrink and President Richard O’Hara went to San Francisco for a recent alumni reception. They met with Long’s daughter, Mary, and his two sons, Bill and Peter.

The award, officially called the “James E. Long Award for Academic Effort,” is $1,000 to be given to the chosen student to use towards college expenses.

In regards to Long, Sudbrink said, “He was truly one of those genius kind of people. We had him here for the majority of his career, from when school started until the mid 90s. The Long family really wanted to do something to remember their dad, who was a champion of the underdog.”

The scholarship was put together April 27, finalized that Thursday, and a list of names was determined that same day. The faculty voted and chose students the following day.

“It’s a really neat thing we got to do,” Sudbrink said.

Barker suggests possibility of tornado drill

Following the evacuation drill on April 29, Principal Paul Barker is considering the possibility of holding tornado drills.

“We’ve had informal discussions about that [because] every year the tornados sneak a little closer into Maryland,” Barker said.

Although “there is no legal requirement to do it,” it is “something we might want to do once in a while, maybe once a year in the spring,” Barker said.

According to Barker, the drill would “get everyone into the hallway and [have them] sit on the floor.”

When questioned about the possibility of reviewing the “Emergency Plans” with students, Barker said, “I could tell you [students] what a code red, or code yellow, or code blue is and you would remember for five minutes.”

He added, “That’s the whole point of having that [the plans] there. I keep mine, swivel around in my chair, [and] it’s right there.  [You can] flip it up and read it.”

However, “We’re going to have some training to review with faculty.”

Kate Froehlich can be reached for comment at kfroehlich@jcpatriot.com.

Alumnus receives prestigious award

The selection committee of the Alumni Association unanimously agreed that the recipient of the 2010 Charles K. Riepe Alumni Award will be Jennifer McIntyre, class of ’87.

According to Director of Alumni Relations Sue Greig, “This award is the highest honor that can be given to alumni of The John Carroll School.”

Each year, the Charles K. Riepe Alumni Award is presented to an alum “who has demonstrated outstanding achievement and community service.. and [is] an exemplary role model consistent with the Catholic values and philosophy of The John Carroll School,” said Greig.

McIntyre stood out to the committee because of a job with the State Department working at the embassy in Pakistan that she will be taking in July.

According to Greig, McIntyre has been a nominee for some years, but because of her hectic schedule, she was not able to speak at commencement.

McIntyre will be presented with her award at graduation on June 6 and was invited to deliver a speech at commencement.

For more information on McIntyre, check out her feature story (link to story here).

Strategic plan nears release date

In preparation for the release of the strategic plan, “[Principal Paul] Barker and I have done the first draft of the action steps that go with it for implementation,” President Richard O’Hara said.

The plan is “ambitious,” O’Hara said. “While entering the action steps over the weekend, I saw a lot of good things.”

However, to make sure that the process is “realistic,” the plan will be monitored, with individual responsibilities given to members of the faculty, staff, and administration.  Two people will work on each action step to “increase the chances of people holding each other accountable,” according to O’Hara.

A system will be organized for checking in on a regular basis to track progress because the steps were created to be “as measurable as possible.”

“The stage where it is at now is that most of the content of the action steps is done. This might change slightly,” O’Hara said. “Then we have to assign who’s doing what by when.”

Later in the week, these action steps will be discussed by the strategic planning committee of the Board of Trustees.

The completion of the plan is, according to O’Hara, “what is most crucial to the school.” He added, “[The plan] addresses everything that we need to go from this part to a higher level. It’s very important that we see all aspects of strategic plan as making us better.”

Kate Froehlich can be reached for comment a kfroehlich@jcpatriot.com.

Music to take center stage at country fair

This year, the JC Country Fair will shift toward the more family-oriented Country Fair and Music Festival to be held April 30 – May 2. The new design of the fair removes the traditional carnival rides and adds more live music.

“We’re changing the whole look of the fair. While we are not bringing back the traditional rides, we are now going to have some new games [such as] laser tag, a rock climbing wall, an obstacle course, and a moon bounce for the kids.  In addition, there will be the traditional food, crafts, vendors, etc,” Director of Development Laura Lang said. Other attractions include a cross-campus hay ride and fishing at the pond.

The main focus of the fair this year will be the music. “We’re shifting gears.  We are having a Battle of the Bands on Friday night that [Religion teacher Brian] Bourne is coordinating in the hopes of attracting our students. Outside we will be using Harford County’s Showmobile for all of the bands,” Lang said.

There will be an opening performance by Cryin’ Out Loud, a student band featuring sophomore Emily Oursler followed by a Battle of the Bands on Friday night. Saturday from 4 p.m. until 6 p.m., walk-in bands [ are welcome and at 7 p.m., a WXCY radio supported artist, Chuck Wicks, will perform live. An admission fee of $10 is required to gain admission to the event.

The change in the atmosphere of the fair is partially due to the safety and security issues at recent fairs. “Anyone who has attended the fair in the last few years on a Friday night knows and understands the safety and security issues that we have had to deal with.  It’s just not worth it anymore to open our families and the schools up to that environment again,” Lang said.

Senior email address plans undecided

The decision about whether to discontinue the email addresses of seniors upon graduation has merited discussion, but “no big decision has been made,” according to Director of Technology Greg Russell.

Originally, “we intended that the account would be cut off when students graduated because of a Microsoft licensing agreement,” Russell said. “However, in this new day and age of connectivity, maybe students want their email addresses to in touch [with peers].”

Russell “has some feelings about keeping” the address because it “allows students to keep in contact and the school to keep in touch with alumni. The question is how much people will use it with things like Facebook to keep in contact with friends.”

Another possible solution, according to Russell, would be to allow students to keep a JC Patriot address, but “not in the same account as the rest of current students.” He added, “Maybe [for example] create an alum.jcpatiot.org, with the same password and account, but the address changes.”

If the accounts are deleted, students will be given warning and time to change the address on subscriptions made with the school email.

The earliest accounts would be deleted is in mid-August, when the school is “pretty sure of the new student population,” Russell said. “That’s when I import the new students and deleted the old students.” At the same time, current seniors’ Sharepoint access will be removed.

As for now, it is “still up in the air,” Russell said. The final decision will be made within “the next few weeks.”

Russell plans to “elicit the brain trust of some other tech savvy folks and the principal or president” to reach a final decision.

Katie Clarke  can be reached for comment at kclarke@jcpatriot.com.

Kate Froehlich can be reached for comment at kfroehlich@jcpatriot.com.

Barker’s dissertation initiated

In order to receive his doctorate in May 2011 from the University of Pennsylvania, Principal Paul Barker has begun his dissertation on how quiet students are engaged in the classroom.

Barker’s study focuses on members of the senior class, giving him a short timeframe to gather data. “The make or break part of my dissertation is going to be one-on-one interviews with seniors.”

The students chosen are those “that don’t talk a lot in class,”  Barker said. “How teachers understand if they’re into it or not, I use the word ‘engagement’ in learning. I’m really interested in their experience as learners in school.”

Teachers will be asked to score their students on how “talkative or quiet” they are. Barker said, “I’ll basically score every senior through faculty feedback.”

However, according to Barker, this aspect is “very unscientific and very informal” to determine who to talk to. The goal is to interview approximately 10 percent of the class, but it is “all purely voluntary.”

Although Barker will need approximately an hour for each student, “the result will be that I will have hours of data.” He hopes to “describe the variations in how those students understand their own quietness and how it influences their learning.”

The ultimate purpose is “what can we learn about students that don’t say a lot in the classroom, how can we understand them better, and hopefully do a better job for them as learners,” said Barker.

Barker is using a method called “phenomenology,” or describing the “phenomenon of the engagement of these students.”

The motivation for this came from Barker’s own experience as a learner; he said, “At least in classroom settings, I tend to listen first and speak last.”

At St. John’s College in Annapolis, a discussion based setting, Barker “could sit in a classroom for two hours and not saying anything. How would people know whether I just didn’t say anything because I was stupid or lazy or not prepared or angry. I never said anything, so how would you know?”

This offers the possibility for greater discoveries. Barker said, “Potentially I might learn something that really helps us to understand that one can be very engaged and quiet.”

Spring break upgrades planned

Upgrades to campus will be completed over spring break, focusing on the idea of safety, then security, then aesthetics to prioritize the tasks, according to Director of Faculties Stewart Walker.

A sink in the boy’s bathroom will be replaced because “it took some heavy vandalism,” Walker said.

Minor light bulb replacements will be done as well, especially in the auditorium.

In addition, “a fair amount of work will be done in the convent,” including repairing the railings on the stairways.”

In the basement of the convent, Walker hopes to make the storage space “more effective by putting it to use.” Right now, it functions as “Parent Association storage, dumping grounds for the archives, and [spaces] for facilities,” according to Walker. He added, “[All of the organization] won’t happen this week, but I want to clean it out, like spring cleaning.”

To prepare for spring, mowing has begun, and facilities has begun preparing the mechanical systems for the warmer weather.

Walker hopes to have volunteers work on the flower beds over break to improve the aesthetic view of campus. There is also the possibility of adding new signage, including “No Smoking” after “a bunch of people” over the past several weeks have left cigarette butts on the grounds.

Overall, spring break will be used “to catch up on the little stuff,” Walker said.

Kate Froehlich can be reached for comment at kfroehlich@jcpatriot.com

Single sex schools’ tradition affects JC

According to Principal Paul Barker, for 43 of the 46 years, JC has had more girls than boys in enrolled.

According to figures from the Archdiocese of Baltimore, 318 students within a six to 10 mile radius of campus will choose to attend single sex men’s schools instead of JC, most notably Calvert Hall College. Principal Paul Barker cites this as a key obstacle the school must overcome to gain success in enrollment.

The reason for such disparity, according to Barker, is the “tradition” behind the single sex men’s schools.

“Our families that don’t have their roots in Harford County moved from the city [Baltimore]. Their fathers and grandfathers went to Calvert Hall when it was on Calvert Street and they bleed cardinal red. The data we get from the Archdiocese suggests we’ll take on the Notre Dame Prep situation, but Calvert Hall in particular is a great challenge to us,” Barker said.

He added, “I get it. I’m the product of single-sex schooling. The atmosphere is different. [The question is] how do we make the case for a co-ed product?”

Even with the tradition held in certain single sex schools, Barker doesn’t see the logic of the choice to attend them. “If it takes 50 minutes on a good day to go there and you live two miles away from John Carroll, it doesn’t make much sense to me.”

Facilities additions show progress

Director of Facilities Stewart Walker has begun to planning to both enhance the visual appeal of campus and respond to needs that develop in the community.

As a result of a private donation, the JC sign on Route 22 will be upgraded by pressure washing the brick, installing a clear type of Plexiglas, getting new letters for the board, fixing the landscaping around its base, and putting the school logo on the top of the sign.

In addition, the school purchased dry erase boards with the school logo on them, first used for the College Fair on March 24.

For the benefit of the 46 year old internal infrastructure, a new primary air compressor was delivered because the old required single and small replacement parts.

Finally, to help teachers in the future, Walker wants to get a list of what they need or desire for their classrooms.

Accreditation process changes to benefit community

Following changes in the evaluation process of the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools, JC will need to choose which organization to accredit the school in 2013.

Although only one organization does the evaluation for accreditation, JC is accredited by both Middle States and the Association of Maryland Independent Schools, both of whom accept the other’s evaluations.

To determine accreditation, a team of evaluators comes on campus and follows protocols established by the organization after the school completes a self-study of perceived goals and weaknesses.

However, Middle States, which is historically the group that evaluates JC, is “keeping up with the educational times” by becoming “more strategic and future oriented” in its focus, according to Barker.

They now require information like that of the strategic plan for accreditation, or, as Barker said, “We need to have goals and timelines that are measurable. It is very business-like.”

In addition, Middle States is “shortening the length between the visits.” JC was previously on a 10 year protocol, with Middle States making a check-up visit at the midpoint of the span.

Because of such changes, the school will need to choose if they want to be evaluated by Middle States or AIMS in 2013, when the school is next up for accreditation.

A major difference between the two is that “Middle States has a lot of different ways schools can choose how they’d like to be accessed, [whereas] AIMS has one program,” Barker said

Before the change, JC chose to follow the continuous school improvement protocol.

Also, AIMS maintains a “traditional” evaluation technique.“They still use the snapshot of the school technique. They don’t access where you’ll be in five years, but look at where you are today,” said Barker.

Middle States “still looks at standards, but the goals you have for your school need to be measurable.

To show the measurement of progress, Barker cites the team working to implement the advisory system in place of homerooms next year as an example of applying the concept.

“Using the goals we have for advisory, we’re asking the faculty, after this training, how ready would you rate yourself in terms of this goal. We’re already moving the needle and [the staff] is more comfortable. We established a baseline before doing any training, and each time we’ve measured, the level [of comfort] has gone up,” said Barker.

Accreditation is “sort of seal of approval,” Barker said. “It says to those who pay attention to such things that this is a school recognized by a credible entity as being sound. You’ve got the right to say you’ve been accredited. [We put it at the] bottom of our stationary.”

Kate Froehlich can be reached for comment at kfroehlich@jcpatriot.com

JC has created an official YouTube channel in an attempt to better market the school using new technology.

Director of Communications Sue Cathell created the channel because “I know that the future of websites and marketing is YouTube and Facebook and the social networking sites.”

JC’s new website, launched last month, has the ability to embed videos directly onto the site, as well as integrating social networking sites like Twitter and Facebook, according to Cathell.

Through the use of such technological tools, Cathell hopes to “showcase the school. People are very visual now and that’s what they are looking for.”

However, she hopes to “populate” the channel with videos before promoting it.

“This is very much in line with aspects of the strategic plan. The plan calls for exploring new ways to get the message out there,” President Richard O’Hara said.

Cathell added, “Having a John Carroll site where we can publicize student videos is yet another example that we are achieving our mission – our kids are creative [and] we give them the opportunity and they run with it.”

Currently, the channel, created on March 4, has two videos: an overview of the master facilities plan and a general promotion called “Our Promise 2009.”

In addition to the YouTube channel, Cathell has other goals for JC’s new site: “I just want to keep increasing the video component of it and begin the integration with Twitter and increase the number of photos through Flickr.”

JC named best private school in county

“Harford Magazine” has named JC the best private school in the county, with St. Margaret’s School and the Harford Day School as runner ups.

“It’s so unscientific [but] it’s nice. I agree with the judgment that says so,” Principal Paul Barker said.

According the editor of “Harford Magazine” Jennifer Dansicker, the magazine has a distribution of 28,000. Ballots were included in the previous issue, with 300 returned, approximately “a point one percent response, which is a pretty good response,” Dansicker said.

Strategic plan nears release date

The “safest bet” for the release of printed material containing information about the strategic plan is April 1, according to O’Hara. The material is currently undergoing additional editing before sending it to the printer, which will take about a week.

“I am very, very high on the strategic plan. It was a lot of work, but now the tough work begins of committing to implementing it,” O’Hara said.

He added, “The first step is that Mr. Barker and I spending a good bit of time taking the strategic plan and its goals, like who is in charge of each aspect, the timeline, costs, and how we will meet those costs.”

To help with the “measuring and reporting of progress,” the school will “purchase some special software that will allow us to take the plan from the goals and recommendations and put it into an organized format,” O’Hara said.

Kate Froehlich can be reached for comment at kfroehlich@jcpatriot.com.

School increases number of summer programs

In addition to the summer programs offered on campus in theatre and sports during the summer, a set of art and science classes will also be held from June 14 to August 13.

The change was made because “We’re always trying to grow the programs and our hope is that we can continue to attract more families to our campus during the summer, which will have an impact on future enrollment,” said Summer Programs Coordinator and Outreach Director Tony Martin.

According to Martin, “We’ve added a full gamete of art programs, courtesy of Mr. Baron’s inspiration. They are drawing, painting, photography, arts and crafts, ceramics, along with some writing and science courses.”

The programs will offer a “financial benefit to the school,” said Barker. “In economic times when tuition is such a challenge, any ways we can find to bring in a little more revenue so we can try to keep tuition as low as possible is a good thing.”

However, the benefits may take “three to four years for a particular program to take a hold in the community,” said Martin. “I know Mr. Baron is excited and motivated to push a number of these programs, as am I, so we’re hopeful.”

Barker added that the camps “expose the school to potential future students. “If kids come and have a great experience at basketball or ceramics camp, they may be more favorably disposed to coming here as students.”

Alumnus supports Holocaust program

The seniors are able to keep alive the memory of the Holocaust through the annual support of Andrew Klein, class of ’71, who funds the senior class trip to the Holocaust Museum and Arlington National Cemetery in Washington D.C.

Klein, the first Jewish student to attend JC, “had a really good experience at John Carroll,” fueling his desire to donate back.

The experience “has really affected many of the seniors,” said Klein. “I get the most beautiful letters of appreciation from the senior class.”

According to Klein, the program has important messages to present to students: “This teaches real lessons on how the survivors live their life today and how we should treat people that live a little differently than we do.”

The entire curriculum in regards to the Holocaust is different than those offered in other schools. Klein said, “The program is very unique because not only do they bring speakers in and read ‘Night [a novel by Holocaust survivor Ellie Wiesel],’ but [the program] includes real study. It’s really profound for a Catholic school to begin that dialogue.”

Klein acknowledges the work of the school as crucial to the success of the program and said, “As much as I reached out to them to do this, John Carroll reached out to the Jewish community and the survivors to grasp a better understanding of what occurred.”

Klein and the Klein Foundation have been crucial in continuing to provide opportunities for students to learn about the Holocaust. “We fund a program within Harford County so each public high school can have a Holocaust program with a stipend each year to use.”

However, the program at JC is “a model for other schools to set up to,” said Klein.

He added, “In my wildest dreams, I never could have imagined how successful it would become. It’s an incredible, remarkable opportunity.”

Kate Froehlich can be reached for comment at kfroehlich@jcpatriot.com.