The Bridge Newsletter

May 25th, 2023

Special Olympics Flag Football

Interested in playing Unified Flag Football through Special Olympics? Join our team! Up to 10 Franklin students can join our team with Breck students. Learn new skills, be a part of a team and play in two tournaments! 

Practices will be held 3:30-4:30 pm on Thursdays, August 31st through October 12th. We may also have an optional practice August 23rd, more information to come. 

The first tournament is Saturday, September 9th and the state tournament is Saturday and Sunday, October 14-15th (we will likely play only one of the days). Students must play in the first tournament to play in the state tournament. 

Please sign up by June 1st. There is a fee of $140 that is due in August. There are limited scholarship funds available. If interested, please contact [email protected] for more information. 

You also have to register with Special Olympics. The application can be found at: www.specialolympicsminnesota.org/get-involved/athletes/. Register as a Traditional Athlete (“Delegation” is Franklin Center). You need to be registered before August 15th. The sooner the better! 

Contact Amy Higgins (parent Special Olympics coordinator) if you have any questions about registering with Special Olympics at [email protected] or 650-269-7081.

Franklin Center Alumni & Community Picnic

To kick off summer, we are having a Franklin Center Alumni & Community Picnic! This event is a chance to connect with friends and enjoys some yummy subs, provided by Franklin Center! Please RSVP by June 13th.



Date: Tuesday, June 20th

Time: 5:00- 7:00 pm

Location: Franklin Center Campus (outside on lawn)

1001 Boone Ave N Golden Valley, MN 55427

Who: All former and current students, clients, participants, families, and staff

Classroom Highlight: Personal Fitness

By Mike Smith

In Personal Fitness, high school students have completed their resistance training logs project. Students created a SMART goal and workout program designed to increase their muscular strength or muscular endurance. Over the course of 2 months, students logged their weight and repetitions for each set of resistance training exercises they performed using dumbbells, kettlebells, and resistance bands.

The middle school students have also been tracking their progress toward SMART goals. They worked on improving cardiorespiratory endurance or how well the heart and lungs work to pump oxygen through blood to the muscles during physical activity. Students all set a target heart rate for each game and activity in class. Students recorded their pulse and heart rate during activities and recorded this data three days a week.

The Lower School students had their Field Day last Friday and it was a hit! The weather was perfect, and we held events outside. Students had a lot of fun at a variety of stations that included parachutes, potato sack hopping, frisbee throwing, and water bucket relays! The middle school and high school will have their Field Day this Friday.

Thank you MOAK Committee!

As we celebrate an incredibly successful Minds of all Kinds Breakfast, Franklin Center would like to thank the wonderful committee members that worked so hard on this year's program. We could not have done it without you!

2023 Minds of all Kinds Committee:

• Natalie Awalt
• Erin Barr
• Sally Beaven
• Sarah Beaven
• Nicole Beauvais
• Gioia Conway
• Grace Dunkley
• Jackie Fallenstein
• Moria Fredrickson
• Kelsey Goth (Co-Chair)

• Donna Grubka (Co-Chair)
• Kathy Hoene
• Danyel Johnson
• Julie Jorgensen
• Carly Kortuem
• Tina Lamb
• Kathy Larson
• Susan Larson
• Maureen Maher

• Beth Malloy
• Danielle Paradise
• Kisa Sims
• Aimee Thostenson
• Lisa Villalta
• Mette Wiik Kristensen
• Michelle Williams
• Aki Yoshino  

Introduction to Technical College

Capstone is excited to announce that we will be partnering with Hennepin Tech (Brooklyn Park) this July to offer a for- credit course hands- on exploring the different course offerings at Hennepin Tech. This class is open to all current Academy High School students. Transportation will be provided to and from Franklin Center and a Capstone staff member will be in the classroom as support staff.

Please contact Mike Faeth for additional details. A 6th grade math and reading level is recommended, though not required. Registration is open on your Blackbaud account. Spots are limited!

If you are registered for Camp Franklin 2023, the Camp Handbook and Start of Camp Forms will be sent out soon.

Please review the updated Camp Franklin Flyer below! The dates for Camp Franklin 2023 are:

• Session 1: 6/12- 6/30
• Session 2: 7/10- 7/28
• Session 3: 7/31- 8/4

Updated Camp Franklin Brochure

Community Outreach

Interested in activities for your child once school is over? Check out the link below for an array of resources in our community.

Wilderness Inquiry Summer Trips

Join Wilderness Inquiry for family adventures and neurodiverse affinity trips this summer! These trips connect participants to nature, strengthen social inclusion, and support the health and wellness benefits the outdoors have to offer. Learn more and register here!

Clubs

Reminder: Clubs are over for the 2022/23 school year. There are no clubs next week!

Owls' Nest 

Owls' Nest is available over the summer during the following hours: 8:00- 9:00 am and 3:00-4:30 pm. If you are interested in registering for Owl's Nest over the summer, please fill out the form below.



Kimberly Strandemo, Academy Principal

Hello, Franklin Families! 

We have made it to the end of the year! It has been an incredible school year, and I am so proud of our Franklin staff and students. While I could write at length about everything I have seen and been a part of this year, I will limit myself to three things that have made this year so special for me.

First, this new facility has been a massive benefit to everything we do at Franklin Center. Having the proper space and resources has been immensely helpful for students and staff alike. It has been very rewarding to see our community grow and adapt to our new location, and I am excited to continue that process next year! 

One of the things our new facility has made possible are the two assemblies that we have held in the past month. These assemblies have been a highlight of my year; it is so exciting to see our whole community coming together to celebrate the accomplishments of our students. Our two pep rallies honoring our unified basketball team and the recipients of the FRANKIE awards will serve as blueprints for next year's assemblies. 

Finally, this year has brought well-deserved recognition to our outstanding team. One of our teachers, Anita Haas, won both MINNDEPENDENT’s “Honor Teacher'' award as well as NASET’s Outstanding Special Education Teacher (1 of 9 in the nation). In addition to these individual accolades, I am also delighted to announce that Franklin Academy has been nominated for the 2023 Minnesota Nonprofit Mission Award for Innovation! As someone who has the opportunity to see the sterling work our staff puts in every day, it is beyond gratifying to have these efforts recognized by the larger educational and nonprofit community.

Thank you for a great year and, as always, please feel free to reach out if you have any questions or comments!

Best,

-Kim

P.S. Families of current and/or future high schoolers, be on the lookout for the 2023-24 course catalog, which will allow your child to choose their preferred classes for next school year!

Audra Williams and Kerry Brown

PTO Co-Chairs

[email protected]

[email protected]

Kim Snow

Executive Director

[email protected]

Kim Strandemo

Academy Principal

[email protected]