Here Comes June

While the weather doesn’t necessarily make it feel like the end of the school year, we are quickly heading towards putting another school year in the books. With that, we are looking forward to celebrating with our 8^th graders as they move onto the High School and welcoming our incoming 5^th graders as they begin their journey through Middle School. Before we make it official there is still a lot of work to do and a laundry list of events taking place throughout June.

The ‘end-of-the-year’ festivities officially started last night as our building got together to celebrate the retirement of four of our WGMS staff members, Sandy Caldwell, Jennifer Dee, Laurie Gallager and Beth Stewart. Collectively they have 106 years in education helping to shape and guide our students through one of the most challenging times in their lives, middle school. That’s a lot of expertise! I can’t possibly capture how much they have meant to our building, our school community and our students in a blog. In fact, our retirees will never truly know themselves just how much influence they have had on the hearts and minds of the thousands of students and colleagues that they have worked with over the years. I do know this; all of us who have worked with them and all of the students that they have connected with are better off because they were in our lives. We will miss them and we wish them all of the happiness in the world in their retirement.

Many of our 8^th graders still have some heavy lifting to do as they prepare for the Science 8 Written Assessment on Monday, June 5^th, Foreign Language Speaking Exam on Tuesday, June 6^th through Thursday, June 8^th, the Algebra I Regents Exam on Tuesday, June 13^th, the Foreign Language Proficiency Exam on Monday, June 19^th and a handful of other end-of-the-course assessments. Our students are well prepared and they will do a terrific job on the end of the year assessments.

Here are some other highlights of events coming up at WGMS:

Friday, June 2^nd - 6^th Grade Greek Olympics

Wednesday, June 7^th - Battle of the Books Final, 6:00-8:00 PM

Thursday, June 8^th - 7^th & 8^th Grade Fine Arts Field Trip to SeaBreeze

Tuesday, June 13^th - 6^th Grade Band, Orchestra & Chorus Concert, 7:00 PM

Wednesday, June 14^th - 7^th & 8^th Grade Band, Orchestra & Chorus Concert, 7:00 PM

Wednesday, June 21^st and Thursday, June 22^nd - ½ Day with students

Thursday, June 22^nd - 8th Grade Celebration, 6:00-8:00 PM 

As we head into the Memorial Day Weekend we shared part of the Memorial Day Presidential Proclamation with our students to start our day today to remind them what the holiday is all about:

“Memorial Day is our Nation’s solemn reminder that freedom is never free. It is a moment of collective reflection on the noble sacrifices of those who gave the last measure of devotion in service of our ideals and in the defense of our nation. On this ceremonious day, we remember the fallen, we pray for a lasting peace among nations, and we honor these guardians of our inalienable rights.”

So on Monday as we take part in the Memorial Day parade, eat hot dogs, or take part in a Kan-Jam tournament with family and friends, we should all pause to remember those brave individuals who made the ultimate sacrifice for our enduring freedom.  

Have a wonderful weekend!

Steve Dunham

sdunham@westgenesee.org

Twitter: @Sdunhamwgms

Raising Awareness

One of the things that I have learned as a parent of a middle school student and as someone who has worked with middle school students for nearly 20 years is that as much as I think I am “in the know”, I am not. Regardless of how hard we, as parents, try to stay connected and stay informed, we are often a step behind our kids. We don’t necessarily listen to all of the music that they listen to, we are not part of their social media circles and we are not part of the many conversations that they have with their peers throughout a given day. Given that, any time we can share information and raise awareness about things we are seeing we will.

Recently there has been a resurgence with middle school and high school students in the area making and consuming a drink called “lean”. It is also commonly referred to as “sizzurp”, “purple drank”, “dirty sprite” or “syrup”. While the drink has been around for nearly a decade, it has gained increased popularity recently as it has been glamorized in some songs, videos and social media postings. I knew very little about this last week, but I have learned a great deal as use of “lean” by some of our students has started to show up on my radar.

“Lean” is a combination of prescription strength or over-the-counter cough medicine, citrus-flavored soda (typically Sprite) and a piece of hard, fruit-flavored candy like a Jolly-Rancher. The drink is extremely alarming for several reasons: #1 The sweetness of the drink masks the dangerous drugs in it and can lead one to consume more because of the taste and as a result, individuals can quickly lose track of how much they have actually consumed. #2 “Lean” is made out of very easy to obtain ingredients, making it easy to access for adolescents. #3 An uninformed adult or parent might not necessarily keep track of or monitor the cough syrup in their home. So much attention has been given to the abuse and misuse of prescription medication, cough syrup has not been in that conversation. It needs to be, as does all medication.

This dangerous drink can contain a potentially fatal combination of codeine, a powerful opioid drug, and promethazine, an antihistamine that causes sedative effects and can impair motor functioning. In large doses, there can be extremely harmful side effects including dizziness and blurred vision, as well as a slowing of the central nervous and respiratory systems, impact heart rate and cause seizures. Combined with other medication that students may be taking, the consumption of “lean” could be, and has been in some cases, fatal.

Even though we may be out of the loop with some things, we need to continue to talk with our kids, listen to them and be present in the moment with them each and every day. Having on-going conversations about drug and alcohol use, decision making, and how to handle peer pressure is critical. We also need to be vigilant about storing and keeping track of all prescription and over-the-counter medication in our homes. All of our kids are susceptible to making bad decisions or being influenced in negative ways by their peers. It can happen to any of them.

As always, if you have any questions or if I can be of any help please do not hesitate to email or call.

Steve Dunham

sdunham@westgenesee.org

Twitter: @Sdunhamwgms 

Being Built For Others

One of the most important concepts we can teach our children and students is being built for others. Being built for others is about having concern for the welfare of others, for caring about them, loving them and giving of yourself in an effort to help and benefit other people – whether you know them or not. Of all the many concepts and skills we teach our children today, being built for others should be above all else. It can be as simple as shoveling someone’s driveway or as significant as stepping up and getting involved in a transcendent cause, a cause larger than yourself. Whatever it is you can do, it’s about giving your time, your effort, and your attention to something bigger than yourself that benefits others.

This past Friday we had the opportunity for our entire school community to get involved in a transcendent cause. We were able to host our fourth consecutive St. Baldrick’s event at West Genesee Middle School. Our St. Baldrick's event took off in 2014 as a result of some students looking for a way to support and stand with fellow students and members of our community who have been impacted by childhood cancer. The students that I spoke to were well informed, passionate and determined to make a difference. They were clearly built for others as this was not about them, but about how they could support and help others. Needless to say they were incredibly inspiring. What I learned from them then is that in the United States, more children die of childhood cancer than any other disease. And yet, all types of childhood cancer receive only 4% of the U.S. federal funding for cancer research. The conversation that took place in 2014 quickly evolved into an opportunity of impact – to create an event. Through our efforts as a school community we have been raising awareness, raising some money and having a lot of fun all in an effort to help fight childhood cancer. We are making a difference in the lives of children across the country.

Sophie's Giving Tree

This year was extra special for us as we honor Sophie Kawejsza who should be with us as an 8^th grade student this year at WGMS, but we lost her to cancer when she was 8 years old. You can learn more about Sophie’s story and the amazing efforts of her parents to provide support for children and their families during medical crisis in Central New York by checking out their webpage: http://sophiesgivingtree.org/  Sophie continues to inspire all of us today.

This year is also special because our friend, colleague and school nurse Chris Savage stepped up to ‘brave the shave’ in honor and memory of her son Patrick who was lost to cancer at age 6 thirty years ago. Chris is a hero among us bringing hope to other families who are battling cancer and an optimistic attitude that others will one day not have to experience losing a child to cancer.

WGMS students stepping up for others

For our St. Baldrick’s event this year we had 21 individuals step up to ‘brave the shave’ as part of #TeamWildcat, including 8 WGMS students. We also had former West Genesee graduates from Saving Face Barber Shop volunteer their time to be a part of our St. Baldrick’s event. All in all, a lot of people giving of themselves for a transcendent cause.

When we talk to students about being ‘built for others’ this event is exactly the type of thing we are talking about; to take part in something bigger than yourself and to work for a transcendent cause. It is energizing, inspiring, moving and incredibly powerful. The entire WGMS community has been a part of this whether you shaved your head, made a donation, promoted the event, forwarded our link or supported and cheered on colleagues, students and friends who braved the shave. I can’t thank everyone enough for their involvement, encouragement, generosity and support. We have passed the $15,000 raised mark this year! Unbelievable! We are making a difference.

The world would be a much better place if everyone stepped up for transcendent causes, thought about others first and lived their lives to be truly built for others.

Continued Success,

Steve Dunham

sdunham@westgenesee.org

Twitter: @Sdunhamwgms