Col Hinds in the painting studio at Fort Lewis College, doing what he loves most on his LINK Internship

Hayden Dubit in the KDUR studio where he's helping DJ for the Cambrian Explosion show

Greetings Ospreys,

It was awfully quiet around the Nest this week, as most of our students were engaged in learning beyond the classroom walls with seniors deep in the work of their Action Projects, juniors wrapping week two of their LINK Internships and sophomores connecting their study of energy with service to the community through Sophomore Inspire Week.

Being out in the community like this fuels Ospreys passions and helps them see the relevance of what they learn. Shea Davis' smile, harvesting kelp in Alaska for his internship, says it all, doesn't it?

Juniors return to the Nest on Monday, May 8 and we'll greet them with at Welcome Back Breakfast. Please sign up here to contribute to the potluck meal.

Huge appreciations to our community partners at Weaselskin, The Juniper School, Florida Mesa Elementary School, Solar Barn Raising, San Juan Citizens Alliance and LPEA for helping students in the class of 2025 connect their interdisciplinary Energy Project to hands-on action. This week, sophomores installed solar panels, taught elementary school lessons about various energy sources and their impact on the environment, pulled chokecherries and prepared land for a greenhouse installation, wrote letters to the editor, encouraged folks to vote and spoke out at an LPEA election kick-off event.

As Rebecca said in the debrief today, when young people speak up with passion about issues they care deeply about, it's extremely powerful. Erin shared that one of the main purposes of Sophomore Inspire Week is to underscore that we all play an important role in our community. Students were encouraged to think about what they want their impact to be, to use the power they have and to understand that they can take an idea and put it into action. Sara and Julian shared how impressed they were by the sophomores--they are curious, collaborative, professional and motivated. Way to make us proud!

We're excited to see the documentary the sophomores are creating about their work with the Energy Project and Sophomore Inspire Week. Look for its debut at All School Exhibition on May 11.

2023/24 Student Schedules

This morning, we released our 2023/24 Course Catalog, along with exciting news about a new program we will launch next year called Osprey Blocks, with a mission of further engaging our students through academically rigorous, cross-disciplinary, immersive studies that connect classroom learning to powerful, real-world experiences. Imagine an expanded, more robust Osprey Week, where we build upon the positive impact those mini-courses have historically had on our school culture and add a rigorous academic component. Or the camping trip current sophomores did last year, in conjunction with their study of Bears Ears’ rich and complex environmental and cultural history in Humanities 9. Osprey Blocks will be three weeks long and will happen twice in the 23/24 school year, once in early September and then again in February/March. Juniors will complete their LINK Internships during the spring Osprey Block. During these three-week blocks of time, we will hit pause on the regular daily schedule to allow for full immersion into one focused area of study. Osprey Blocks will be team-taught with no more than thirty students per group, and students will receive 0.5 academic credit upon successful completion, as they do for semester-long elective classes.

Students will submit course requests through Infinite Campus after they've completed All School Exhibition, during Transitional Presentations of Learning preparation, as outlined in the Course Catalog Release Letter. Stay tuned for more details in the coming weeks, including step-by-step instructions for this process.

Baja Bound Osprey Block Informational Meeting

Spanish teachers Jenny McKenzie and Kat Jackson are offering a Baja Bound Osprey Block in the fall. As this course will include international travel, students and families will need to commit earlier than with other Osprey Blocks.

Students in this Osprey Block will explore the magic of the Todos Santos area while seeking to understand the impact of tourism on culture and environment. They'll gain a deeper appreciation for the language, land and people of the Baja Peninsula while thinking critically about the ethics of tourism and how to be socially responsible visitors. To participate in the Baja Bound Osprey Block, students must have successfully completed Spanish 2 and be committed to taking Spanish 3, or have already completed Spanish 3.

To learn more about this Osprey Block, please plan to attend an online informational meeting Wednesday, May 3 at 5:30pm. Email jenny.mckenzie@animashighschool.com if you would like to attend. This course includes an 8 day international trip and the anticipated cost is $1500 per person. Scholarships are available and we will make all efforts possible to ensure that this Osprey Block is accessible to all students who demonstrate a desire to fully participate.

Next Week's Events

Our student musicians will perform at the spring iAM Music Student Showcase Sunday afternoon at the Durango Arts Center. AHS bands are scheduled to go on around 4pm. Swing by to support them!

Tuesday morning, join AHS co-founder Jesse Hutt for a special AHS History Hike, sponsored by TWIGS. Jesse will share stories from the early days, including how the school came to be in 2009 and changes she's seen over the years. Alumni and their families are strongly encouraged to attend to reconnect and share their stories as well. Meet at the AHS main entrance at 9am. We will hike the rim trail and return to campus, where we'll gather for coffee and a nosh, with an option for a school tour.

Wednesday evening at 5:30, seniors and their families are invited to join Erin Cummins-Roper for a Transition to College Workshop which will include helpful guidance around reading and understanding tuition bills, managing loans, packing for college, adjusting to life away from home, finding academic success strategies and accessing college support services. Food provided!

Thursday evening at 6, stop by the last TWIGS Happy Hour of the year at 11th Street Station to connect with other Animas families and celebrate the year!

TWIGS' Plans for Teacher Appreciation Week

Teacher Appreciation Week is May 8-12. Please be sure to view the Teacher Appreciation Week Sign Up and help out where you can to show the amazing teachers and staff at Animas how much their hard work means to us all.

Senior Project Spotlight

Through his Senior Project, Cyrus Holt decided to research the ways in which hip-hop lyrics reflect a modern take on the ideas of civil rights leaders Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcom X. For his Action Project, he will host an Open Mic Poetry event to benefit The Hive. The event will include a silent auction.

"As a senior at AHS, we have the opportunity to do something impactful for our community, for me, I am doing so by bringing people together with the use of the spoken word and art."

Sign up to perform or mark your calendar to join Cyrus as he shows his support for an excellent community resource and puts his learning into action.

Staffing Updates

Humanities teacher Tory Dille's time at Animas has been short, but impactful--not just for her students, but for her as well. She'll be moving on at the end of the year.

"My time at Animas has been by far the most rewarding and exciting year in my teaching career thus far. I have been so fortunate to have been able to work with the engaged, thoughtful, and ambitious class of 2024 and I have worked alongside some of the most hardworking, inspiring, and supportive colleagues around. I am so grateful for all that we have accomplished together and for all of the laughs we've had along the way. 

I will be leaving Animas at the end of this school year to pursue a legal education at the University of Montana with an emphasis on environmental policy and natural resources conflict resolution. Those of you who know me well know or have taken a class from me know that I have an interest in the intersections between public policy and environmental justice. I hope that after law school I will be able to leverage my JD to help create positive change for ecological and human communities across the West. 

When I told the juniors before LINK that I would be leaving at the end of this year I was met with authentic support, thoughtful questions about why law school is my next step, and some really good high fives - you all are truly gems...I'll see you at graduation next year.

This summer I'll be sticking around Durango and working as a grant writer for the Earth Law Center before relocating to Missoula at the end of August. The strong community I've made here at AHS will no doubt pull me back to Durango in a couple of years. Thank you all for your support and inspiration!  If you'd like to stay in touch, please feel free to reach out to my school email in the coming weeks and I'll send you my personal email."

We've been so impressed by Tory's commitment to justice, connections with students and positive can-do attitude, and while we'll miss having her at the Nest, we are glad to know that she'll be taking her many gifts out into the world to continue to work in service of the greater good. Please be sure to send her off with lots of Osprey love.

Enjoy the weekend and thanks for all you do to help the Ospreys soar!

Upcoming Events

LINK Internships (11th grade): Mon. 4/17 through Fri. 5/5

iAM Music Student Showcase: Sun. 4/30, 2-7pm at Durango Arts Center

TWIGS HIke with AHS Co-Founder Jesse Hutt: Tues. 5/2, 9am

Transition to College Workshop (12th grade): Wed. 5/3, 5:30pm

TWIGS Happy Hour: Thurs. 5/4, 6pm at 11th St. Station

Osprey Theatre Company: This is Me! A Cabaret: Mon. 5/8, 6pm

Spring Junior Postsecondary Night (11th grade): Tues. 5/9, 5:30pm

All School Exhibition: Thurs. 5/11, 4-7pm

Junior Bears Ears Camping Trip: Mon. 5/15 through Wed. 5/17 (full details here)

Senior Project TED Talks: Fri. 5/12 through Thurs. 5/18

Final NEST Meeting (special schedule): Thurs. 5/18

Senior Supper: Thurs. 5/18, 5:30pm

Advisory Olympics: Fri. 5/19

Graduation: Fri. 5/19, 4pm

TPOL Prep (special schedule): Mon. 5/22 and Tues. 5/23

Transitional Presentations of Learning: Wed. 5/24 through Tues. 5/31

Last Day of School: Tues. 5/31

Alumni Reunion: Sat. 6/10 Save the Date!