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You've got eMule!
Vol. 13 No. 11
Welcome back to The eMule! Here is the latest news from the Poplar Bluff School District.
| Foundation approves three innovative classroom grants at PBHS | |
The Poplar Bluff School Foundation has recently allocated $3,500 for technology upgrades for three High School classrooms through the nonprofit's innovative educational project program.
Foundation board member Melissa Davis made the motion which was seconded by school board liaison Dr. Mike Price and met with unanimous approval to finance rovers, hubs and graphing calculators for the Math Department; a wall-mounted television and camera setup for family and consumer sciences; and drone kits for computer science.
FACS instructor Missy Cox, who wrote the top-ranked proposal of seven total submitted, requested a smart television with a Go-Pro camera system in order to allow for an aerial view of her cooking demonstrations, enabling students to observe without crowding around.
“I expect that students will gain confidence more quickly because they are able to see the different stages that their product will go through, which will provide them insight into what their product should look like,” Cox stated. She has since reported that the equipment was received last month and is only awaiting installation.
Three mini-drone kits equipped with HD cameras were approved for the computer science essentials class launched at PBHS this school year under Project Lead The Way. Instructor Heather Pullam noted that she plans to order the equipment over the ensuing days so students can practice flying the drones using Python programming.
“The primary goal for this project is to motivate students to further their learning in computer science and use the coding and problem-solving skills that they have learned to operate a codable drone,” Pullam wrote.
The Math Department was approved for six Innovator rovers, hubs and graphing calculators through Texas Instruments, allowing students to program and operate the robots while gaining hands-on experience and seeing “the fruits of their labors in a dynamic manner,” said author Hope Conover, Math Department chair.
“The programming presents opportunities for the students to do immediate problem-solving and apply mathematical directions,” explained Conover, who first introduced the devices to her precalculus class around the new year. “The programs require a line of code for each movement which really makes the kids think about what they are wanting the robot to do.”
The Foundation board additionally voted during its November meeting to finance the organization’s annual student scholarship at $1,000 for a graduate entering the teaching profession, effectively applying all proceeds of their annual golf tournament fundraiser toward student success, upon moving half of the reported $9,385 to the building capacity fund per bylaws.
Of the grants not prioritized at this time, an alternative funding source through the federal Vocational Enhancement Grant program is going to be explored before resubmitting a request for an industrial mapping drone through PLTW at the Technical Career Center, and an effort is going to be pursued first through the University of Missouri Extension’s community garden initiative to establish raised gardens proposed at Lake Road and Mark Twain.
Above: Juniors of Hope Conover’s precalculus class (left to right) Ava Stotts, Kate Scott, Emerson Cole and Rhyan Waddell program rovers using Python with graphing calculators last month at PBHS.
| Poplar Bluff Schools hosts 10th annual PB Connect workshop | |
PB Connect celebrated its 10th anniversary as an internal workshop led by educators sharing best practices with their colleagues as part of the R-I district’s professional learning community model.
This year’s conference featured approximately 120 sessions for the 639 employees who registered to attend on Tuesday, Jan. 21, at Poplar Bluff High School. Nationally renowned speaker Dr. Tina H. Boogren topped the bill with the keynote themed “Recharge, refocus, renew: Wellness of all school staff.”
About 115 door prizes were given out, sponsored by Ozark Federal Credit Union and several community partners, along with nine $100 PB Connect Bucks prizes underwritten by Acrisure and Switzer Residential Care, plus a single $400 classroom makeover made possible by FCC Behavioral Health.
“I serve students from first through 11th grade every day and my main plan for the money is to make my classroom a more welcoming and serene space for our students to come and service their homebound hours,” reported grand prize winner Joel Pletcher of Mark Twain School. “…I have found that the more welcoming and calm my classroom is, the more comfortable my students feel, which leads to increased productivity and positive educational outcomes.”
So far Pletcher has placed on his Amazon list cloth fluorescent light covers along with LED light strips to help reduce eye strain, wobbly stools for his active young students, calming fidgets for improved focus, a magnetic timer to keep on task and other needed classroom supplies, the school-based homebound teacher detailed. Meanwhile winners of the mini-classroom makeovers included Bailey Beard, Jeremy Dawe, Terry Deshaney, April Fisher, Gladys Jones, Brittaney Miller, Kaylea Mullen, Staci Scott and William Snow.
A new theme that emerged in breakout sessions this year focused on topics related to artificial intelligence in teaching. Other popular subjects included 30-minute meals for busy teachers, understanding student loan forgiveness options, self-defense and situational awareness, creating Glowforge items, and Boogren’s follow-up about student agency and social-emotional learning, according to R-I instructional coaches Pam Davis and Gretchen Pendley, who organized the event alongside their team of building ambassadors.
PB Connect was founded in 2015 as a means of sharing technology tips for the district’s first buildings that went 1:1 under the digital transformation laptop initiative, then expanded to incorporate the Middle School the following year, before going district-wide with more generalized topics. While the workshop was canceled due to snow last school year, 2023 marked the first time the professional development was expanded to include classified staff, leading to increased participation.
Above: Joel Pletcher, school-based homebound teacher of Mark Twain School, is the grand prize winner during PB Connect on Tuesday, Jan. 21.
Below: Outgoing Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum Patty Robertson is recognized for her support of PB Connect over the past decade, helping the internal workshop grow from Tech Camp to what it has become today.
| NORDYNE donates 30 pieces of equipment to TCC program | |
NORDYNE has quadrupled its support of the Poplar Bluff Technical Career Center’s HVAC-R program since last school year.
Company officials recently donated a total of 30 new pieces of equipment for students to practice servicing including two mini-split condensers, six furnaces and 22 packed units with capacities ranging from three to five tons, reported Dan Parker, instructor over the heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration class.
“They’ll have units they can use for the next decade, since these obviously never go bad,” Parker said. “There’s so much more we can do now like taking the top off so we can see everything work in the refrigeration cycle, or testing subcooling and superheat airflow calculations.”
Parker explained that, before forging a partnership with industry leaders, he would have to demonstrate himself while the students looked on and “now everyone has something to work on.” During the 2023/24 school year, the company also donated seven packaged heating and cooling systems to the TCC.
The units were out of operation and otherwise going to be scrapped for various reasons, according to company officials, including becoming outdated or otherwise obsolete due to efficiency advancements or changing energy standards.
“They’re the future of the industry and overall it’s just good for the community,” said George Scherr, distribution manager. “My son just got out of electrician school, and I know how important it is to have the right tools to be trained on. The kids are gonna be out there working on the stuff in the field, and maybe they’ll buy our brand too.”
The Nortek distribution plant was acquired by Rheem in the last quarter of 2024. Now known as NORDYNE, a Rheem company, the manufacturer operates out of the 716,000-square-foot facility on 16 acres in Black River Industrial Park.
Above: TCC instructor Dan Parker (far right) poses with his HVAC-R morning students in front of heating and cooling systems recently donated by NORDYNE, a Rheem company.
Below: Plant workers Aaron Randall (left) and Michelle Bratton (right), who each have students at PBHS, assist Dan Parker in loading equipment over Christmas break. Not pictured is TCC building trades instructor Jody Cochran, who helped haul the sizable donation.
| Bonus: Informational meetings begin in civic circuit | |
The Poplar Bluff Lions Club invited R-I Superintendent Dr. Aaron Cornman and his team during the civic organization’s weekly meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 28, to provide information about the district’s upcoming no-tax ballot measure. Plans are in place to continue discussions at the Rotary and Kiwanis clubs over the next couple of weeks.
Above: Poplar Bluff Superintendent Dr. Aaron Cornman fields a question from lion John Cornelius of FCC Behavioral Health (reading from phone) upon opening up the discussion for a Q&A at Colton’s Annex.
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Winter Concert
O’Neal Elementary will host its annual Winter Concert—directed by Daniel Cox—at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 6, in the E.T. Peters Gym at the Poplar Bluff Middle School: 1300 Victory Lane.
Health Career Fair
PBHS will host its annual Health Care Career Fair from 8:40-10:40 a.m. Friday. Feb. 7, in the gymnasium for students interested in exploring the medical career field.
Chili Supper
Eugene Field Elementary will host its annual Chili Supper/Silent Auction fundraiser from 5-7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 27, at 711 Nickey St.
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On Thursday, Jan. 23, KFVS12 reported about our PBHS students participating in Patrick Mahomes’ Read for 15 challenge.
On Friday, Jan. 24, MSBA picked up the “Mahomies” news segment.
KWOC additionally reported about our class participating in the Kansas City quarterback’s reading challenge.
On Tuesday, Jan. 28, the DAR reported about Zoë Freeman of PBHS becoming the first-ever four-time SEMO Conference girls wrestling champion!
On Friday, Jan. 31, the DAR reported about Jeanette Miller’s class receiving correspondence from the 15 and the Mahomies Foundation.
On Saturday, Feb. 1, the DAR recognized our December Athletes of the Month.
On Monday, Feb. 3, the DAR reported about Buddy, Bobby and Ben Godwin being inducted into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame for their storied golf careers that began at PBHS.
KWOC promoted our elementary winter concerts.
On Tuesday, Feb. 4, KWOC also reported about the Godwin family continuing Poplar Bluff’s state HOF streak.
The DAR published a photo gallery from Mr. Snowman.
The February edition of Poplar Bluff Living featured our November Athletes of the Month; as well as our All-District Band students.
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