SUPERINTENDENT COMMUNIQUÉ MIDLAND PUBLIC SCHOOLS

Pictured above: Midland High students in Ms. Bank's American Literature classes enjoyed a field trip to the Detroit Institute of Art on March 15th. Students were able to connect American themes that they have discussed in American Literature to artwork that reflects these. The students had a great time and truly appreciated the opportunity to visit the Detroit Institute of Art to enjoy the wide variety of art collections exhibited there.

Midland Public Schools District Vision Statement: Lead with respect, trust and courage. Ensure an equitable, collaborative and inclusive culture. Enable all to achieve success.

April 2, 2024

Volume 11 Edition 31

MPS Multicultural Calendar - April

Dates of Interest for April:

National Arab American Heritage Month: This month celebrates the culture, contributions, and achievements of Arab Americans. For more information, visit the link here.

Autism Awareness Month: which includes World Autism Awareness Day on April 2 - this month individuals and organizations worldwide celebrate with events to raise awareness about autism. For more information, visit the link here.

  • Eid al-Fitr: April 9-11 Celebration and feast honoring the end of Ramadan. For more information, visit the link here.
  • Passover: April 22-30 Celebrates the Jewish Exodus from Egypt and the end of Jewish slavery. For more information, visit the link here.
  • Earth Day: April 22 Celebrates the protection of the planet from things like pollution and deforestation. For more information, visit the link here.
  • Gathering of the Nations: April 25-27 Native Indigenous Nations of North America hold the largest Powwow of over 500 nations. For more information, visit the link here.

Dow High DECA State Competition

On March 14 –16, 2024 the DECA State Competition was held in Detroit Michigan. 127 members of the Dow High DECA Club qualified to participate. Students competed in areas of Marketing, Entrepreneurship, Finance, Hospitality, and Management. Overall, an impressive 60 medals were earned, and 15 students qualified for the national competition to be held in Anaheim, CA, in April.

Congratulations to the following students who received medals for their test: Mirabelle Alade, Andrew Frickey, Lauren Gebo, Louis Huang, Evelyn Johnson, Temi Oshin, Anya Narayan Shree Singh, and Shubha Singh.

Congratulations to the following students who received medals for their role play: Agelina Chen, John Davis, Meagan Diehl, Lauren Gebo, Andrew Little, Aaron Li, Ayesha Middha, Faith O’Connor, Sanvi Patel, Riley Polansky, Andrea Ross, Jonathan Song, Luke Storey, Tessa Swier, Nina Swier, Marieke Theuerkauf, and Estelle Wiese.

Congratulations to the following students who were overall event finalists: Tule Achor, Mirabelle Alade, Angelina Chen, Graslyn Clement, Micah Dahn, John Davis, Ethan Duling, Lauren Gebo, Grace Goodell, Vincent Habscheid, Logan Flint, Andrew Frickey, Alexander Habscheid, Eleanor Hughes, Lauren Hueschke, Tanay Janmanchi, Jiya Janwani, Evelyn Johnson, Austin King, Aaron Li, Colin MacGregor, Sebastian Maldonado, Ayesha Middha, Leyton Minuth, Temi’Oshin, Sanvi Patel, Sean Park, Evan Pfeiffer, Riley Polansky, Evana Reineke, Andrea Ross, Josh Ross, Shree Singh, Jonathan Song, Luke Storey, Tessa Swier, Hanna Tavares, Marieke Theuerkauf, Siddharth Venkatesan, Evelyn Wang, and Estelle Wiese.

Congratulations to the following students who qualified to represent Dow High DECA and Michigan DECA at the International Competition: Andrew Frickey, Lauren Gebo, Dominic Griffin, Eleanor Hughes, Nathan John, Alex Kinney, Aaron Li, Natalie Marinek, Ayesha Middha, Riley Polansky, Andrea Ross, Johnathan Song, Luke Storey, and Estelle Wiese.

DECA is an international Business Club that prepares emerging leaders and entrepreneurs for careers in marketing, finance, hospitality, and management in high schools and colleges around the globe!

Celebrating Ramadan at the Pre-Primary Center

Ms. Reinke's three-year-old classroom at Carpenter Pre-Primary Center invited parent Aisha Khan to talk about the holiday of Ramadan. Ms. Khan graciously offered to visit 7 classrooms in the building. She shared a book, a short video, and a craft with each of the classrooms. All classes also received a small gift as part of Ramadan! Thank you, Ms. Khan, for sharing diverse cultures with our youngest learners!

MSBOA State Solo and Ensemble

On March 16, Midland Public Schools was host to the MSBOA State Solo and Ensemble. Several hundred band and orchestra students from around the state came to Midland High to perform in front of adjudicators. Students who earned a first division rating at the district level could either perform a 9th grade solo or a small ensemble and be rated on a scale of 1 to 5 with 1 being the best. Every Midland Public School student who performed in one of these categories earned a first division rating! Students in grades 10-12 performing solos had to complete proficiencies, meaning they had to perform scales and sight-reading in addition to a solo. Those students were scored on a scale of 0-100. Over 50 Dow and Midland High band and orchestra students participated, and all received exemplary scores!

Dow High Ensembles

  • Mia Bayardo, Ian Koh, Kanushi Desai, and Tessa Swier – String Quartet – I
  • Megan Caldwell and Selene Moor– String Duet – I
  • Madeline Cha, Boaz Qiu, Sarah Li, and Margaret Hitt – String Quartet – I
  • Margaret Lowe, Caden Cummings, Carston Broderick, Henry LeCaptain, and Owen DeLong – Brass Quintet– I
  • Ryan Malabanan and Ricky Wang – Saxophone Duet – I
  • Tara Singh, Jessica Chai, and Ondine Matteucci – Flute Trio – I
  • Madeline Cha, Boaz Qiu, Ian Koh, Logan Yu, Lorelei Seitz, Sophie Cai, Shawn English, Noah Buist, Maria Goel Espinoza, Sarah Li, George Gu, Kanushi Desai, Cailyn Liu, Lucy Tang, Margaret Hitt, Genevieve Hong, Tessa Swier, Angelina Chen, Mia Bayardo, and Madison Stanford – String Chamber Ensemble – I

Midland High Ensembles

  • Chloe Adam, Jacob Specht, Ben Elliot, Sean Surbrook, Samuel Grachek, Josh Gumeiny, Nick Kendall, and Clarissa Reinhardt – Trombone Octet – I
  • Asher Goldberg, Miranda Noel, Carson Deisler, and Zach Burget – Trombone Quartet – I
  • Trevor Hallberg and Izaac Ringgold – Percussion Duet – I
  • Olivia Moerdyk and Cara Bucci – Oboe Duet – I
  • Clarissa Reinhardt, Zach Webb, and Ethan Gudmonson – Trumpet Trio – I
  • Isaac Reinhardt, Austin Whitmore, Megan Frame, Adrienne Mercier, Anna Gessford, Clarissa Reinhardt, Lilianna Retta, Andrew Herman, Kenley Mielke, Addison Rice, Alexander Kanar, Will Kanar, Merrick Hocking, Alyssa Rentsch– Woodwind Choir – I
  • Alyssa Rentsch and Kayleigh Doan – Flute Duet – I
  • Evan Rentsch and Danny Farison – Trumpet/Trombone Duet – I
  • Evan Rentsch and Gabe Krisch – Trumpet Duet – I
  • Addison Rice, Lyra Empie, and Abbie Steele – Clarinet Trio – I
  • Addison Rice and Anna Gessford – Clarinet Duet – I

Dow High 9th Grade Solos

  • Grace Goodell – Piano Solo – I
  • Drea Kempl – Flute Solo – I
  • Ashley Pietrzak – Horn Solo – I
  • Anna Poupard – Flute Solo – I
  • Evelyn Schramm – Piano Solo – I

Midland High 9th Grade Solos

  • Danny Farison – Trombone Solo – I
  • Logan Gessford – Trombone Solo – I
  • Eve Rankin – Cello Solo – I
  • Eve Rankin – Piano Solo – I

Dow High Proficiency Solos

  • Madi Arthur – Flute Proficiency III – 97
  • Micah Atkins – Clarinet Proficiency I – 95
  • Mia Bayardo – String Bass Proficiency I – 95
  • Mia Bayardo – Violin Proficiency I – 93
  • Jessica Chai – Flute Proficiency II - 96
  • Owen DeLong – Piano Proficiency II - 93
  • Owen DeLong – Trombone Proficiency II – 95
  • Kanushi Desai – Viola Proficiency I – 92
  • Victoria Garces – Piano Proficiency II – 93
  • George Gu – Viola Proficiency III – 95
  • Margaret Hitt – Piano Proficiency III – 99
  • Genevieve Hong – Cello Proficiency II – 97
  • Zachary Keinath – Alto Saxophone Proficiency I – 76
  • Matthew Lee – Clarinet Proficiency I – 96
  • Sarah Li – Viola Proficiency III – 98
  • Ryan Malabanan – Soprano Saxophone Proficiency II – 96
  • Olivia Mayer – Bass Clarinet Proficiency III – 82
  • Sean Mead – Tuba Proficiency I – 96
  • Elyse Riter – Clarinet Proficiency I – 91
  • Tara Singh – Flute Proficiency II – 99

Midland High Proficiency Solos

  • Leighna Eastman – Flute Proficiency I – 90
  • Megan Frame – Clarinet Proficiency II – 78
  • Anna Gessford – Clarinet Proficiency II – 98
  • Asher Goldberg – Trombone Proficiency III – 94
  • Trevor Hallberg – Marimba Proficiency II – 89
  • Alexis Hussey – Cello Proficiency I – 92
  • Alexander Kanar – Horn Proficiency II – 91
  • Alexander Kanar – String Bass Proficiency III – 90
  • Olivia Moerdyk – Oboe Proficiency II – 83
  • Miranda Noel – Tuba Proficiency I – 91
  • Zach Webb – Trumpet Proficiency I – 76

In addition to the scores listed above, students who performed exceptionally well could be nominated by their judges as outstanding soloists or outstanding ensembles. These students have the opportunity to compete one more time to be named best in the state.

Outstanding Soloists and Ensembles

  • Madi Arthur (Dow) – Outstanding Flute Solo
  • Madeline Cha, Boaz Qiu, Sarah Li, and Margaret Hitt (Dow) – Outstanding String Quartet
  • Madeline Cha, Boaz Qiu, Ian Koh, Logan Yu, Lorelei Seitz, Sophie Cai, Shawn English, Noah Buist, Maria Goel Espinoza, Sarah Li, George Gu, Kanushi Desai, Cailyn Liu, Lucy Tang, Margaret Hitt, Genevieve Hong, Tessa Swier, Angelina Chen, Mia Bayardo, and Madison Stanford (Dow) – Outstanding Chamber Ensemble
  • Jessica Chai (Dow) – Outstanding Flute Solo
  • Anna Gessford (Midland) – Outstanding Clarinet Solo
  • Asher Goldberg (Midland) – Outstanding Bass Trombone Solo
  • George Gu (Dow) – Outstanding Viola Solo
  • Margaret Hitt (Dow) – Outstanding Cello Solo
  • Genevieve Hong (Dow) – Outstanding Cello Solo
  • Alexander Kanar (Midland) – Outstanding String Bass Solo
  • Sarah Li (Dow) – Named a member of the inaugural MSBOA Honors Chamber Ensemble
  • Sarah Li (Dow) – Outstanding Viola Solo
  • Ryan Malabanan and Ricky Wang (Dow) – Outstanding Saxophone Duet
  • Olivia Moerdyk and Cara Bucci (Midland) – Outstanding Oboe Duet
  • Alyssa Rentsch and Kayleigh Doan (Midland) – Outstanding Flute Duet
  • Tara Singh, Jessica Chai, and Ondine Matteucci (Dow) – Outstanding Flute Trio

2024 Best Communities for Music Education Award

We are pleased to share that Midland Public Schools has received the 2024 Best Communities for Music Education Award from the NAMM Foundation. MPS has received this designation in 2007, 2022, 2023, and 2024! Thank you to our MPS Community for your support of our music program!

Central Park PYP Exhibition

Central Park Elementary 5th grade students held their annual PYP Exhibition on March 19th. Students worked within the transdisciplinary theme, How the World Works, to research and take action on worldly issues in order to make an impact.

Some of the student-selected topics this year included greenhouse gases, alternative energy, food and water access, animal abuse, homelessness, and recycling just to name a few.

The PYP Exhibition is a wonderful opportunity to celebrate our 5th graders as they prepare to transition to middle school. This action-focused project puts students in the driver’s seat and gives them the agency to design their own learning experience based around their passion and inquiry.

We are so proud of our 5th graders and know they will make a positive difference in our community and our world. Kudos to our Central Park Explorers!

Flint Regional Science Fair 2024

On March 16th and 17th, Midland Public Schools was well represented and earned top awards at the annual Flint Regional Science Fair at the University of Michigan Flint campus. The mission of the program is to inspire and empower curiosity, investigation, and understanding through science and engineering. Students started project ideas in November and have been working countless hours on experimentation, prototypes, refining tests, gathering data, analyzing, and communicating the results and purpose. Jefferson Middle School and Dow High School teams presented their projects at the Science Fair.

Jefferson Middle School:

  • Emma Huang: Controlled Drug Delivery with Alginate Beads and Hydrogel Capsules 1st place Overall and $500 for Earth, Environment, and Chemistry. Specialty Awards: Ascension Genesys Hospital: For the project demonstrating Excellence in Chemistry; MI Department of Health and Human Services: For Creativity and Exploration in Science- 1st place; American Psychological Association: For outstanding research in psychological science under the category of behavioral and social sciences or any category related to psychology; David and Doris Hill Chemistry Award For the novel and creative use of chemistry to solve problems and $100.
  • Gabe Nix: Water When You Need It- Hydrogels with Conservation Farming 2nd Place Overall and $300 for Earth, Environment, and Chemistry Category. Specialty Awards: Ascension Genesys Hospital For the project demonstrating Excellence in Bio Chemistry; US AID Science Champion For the exceptional project that has the potential to make an impact on addressing international development challenges; David and Doris Hill Chemistry Award For the novel and creative use of chemistry to solve problems and $100.
  • Daniel Broderick and Elliot Leclair: Plastic Predators: A comparative analysis of bacterial degradation across different polymer types 3rd place Overall and $250 for Earth, Environment, and Chemistry Category. Specialty Awards: Ascension Genesys Hospital For the project demonstrating Excellence in Molecular Biology; Michigan Association of Hazardous Material Professionals John McDonald III Award for Excellence in Environmental Science and Environmental Discovery Junior and $100.
  • Katie Cai and Abigail Bond: Plastic Reinforced Concrete 4th place and $200 for Earth, Environment, and Chemistry Category. Specialty Awards: Association for Women Geoscientists: For demonstrating high standards of innovativeness and scientific excellence in the geosciences; 100K Ideas –best idea to turn into a business.
  • Joylin Brillhart and Bridget Reder: The Diary of a Water Bottle 2nd Place Overall and $300 for Life Sciences Category. Specialty Award: Ascension Genesys Hospital for the Project demonstrating excellence in Medicine and Health Sciences.
  • Alex Stickel and Angelina Levy: Branching Out: A Journey Towards Healthy Woodland Maintenance at School Honorable Mention. Specialty Award: Ascension Genesys Hospital: For the project demonstrating Excellence in Environmental Management.
  • Jacob Curtis and Theo Cruickshank: Autonomous Tank: Protecting Military Lives Honorable Mention.

H.H. Dow High School:

  • Louis Huang: Biodegradable Agricultural Mulch Films From Wastepaper Pulp and Calcium Alginate 2nd Place Overall and $400, ISEF Finalist and UM-Flint 4 Year Full-Tuition Scholarship. Specialty Awards: McLaren Health Care Best in Environmental Management; Michigan Association of Hazardous Material Professionals John McDonald III Award for Excellence in Environmental Science and Environmental Discovery Senior and $100.
  • Sahiba Kaur: SmartSwabs: A Machine Learning Model to Predict Prevalence Rates of COVID-19 Applied to Grouped Testing 5th Place Overall and $200. Specialty Award: Hurley Medical Center Excellence in Medical Studies – 1st Award – Trophy.
  • Christine Cai, Jessica Chai and Raymond Chai: Evaluation of Representation in Children’s Books Using Machine Learning 5th Place Overall and $200. Specialty Award: McLaren Health Care Best in Behavioral & Social Science.
  • Kristy Daoud and Avery Nickel: The Invisible Threat: Understanding the Dangers of Cleaning Agents 7th Place Overall and $75.

Congrulations to all who participated!

Breaking Flint Regional Science Fair News!

Congratulations to Jefferson Middle School Science Teacher Christine Brillhart for being selected as the Annual Flint Regional Science and Engineering Fair Educator of the Year for 2024! The Educator of the Year award winner is selected by a panel of Board members from educators who are nominated by peers, parents, and students. The award recognizes a science educator who displays a remarkable ability to empower and excite student interest in science. We are proud of you and all of your accomplishments, Ms. Brillhart!

Solar Eclipse - April 8th, 2024

Every so often, nature treats us to a spectacle that transcends the ordinary, captivating our imaginations and reminding us of the awe-inspiring beauty of the cosmos. The April 8, 2024, total solar eclipse is one such event. Even though most of Michigan won’t see totality, the sun will be about 95% covered in our area. Below are some tips for safe viewing of the eclipse:

DO:

  • Use eclipse glasses or solar viewers that meet the ISO 12312-2 standards, (sometimes written as ISO 12312-2:2015) but do not stare continuously at the sun. Take breaks and give your eyes a rest.
  • Use a pinhole projector. See the attached flyer below to learn how to make one.
  • Use your hands to cast shadows on the ground. Cross your hands with fingers slightly spread to create a waffle pattern. Look down and you will see the spaces between your fingers project a shadow image of the sun in a crescent shape during the partial eclipse stages.
  • Look at shadows on the ground, such as under a leafy tree, during the partial eclipse. You can see the crescent sun shadows projected by the spaces between the leaves.

DON'T:

  • Look at the sun directly.
  • View through regular sunglasses. No matter how dark they are, they will not protect your eyes.
  • Use damaged eclipse sunglasses or solar viewers. If they are torn, scratched or punctured, do not use them and throw them away. If the filters are coming out of their frames, discard them.
  • Use homemade filters.
  • View through welder's glass. The glass in most welding helmets is not strong enough.
  • View through your camera viewfinder.
  • View through a telescope without the proper solar filter.
  • View through binoculars.

For additional information on viewing the eclipse safely, see the attached flyer or visit the NASA website, linked below.

Online Enrollment

Online enrollment for the 2024-2025 school year is now available by clicking the link below.

If you do not already have a ParentVue account, you will be prompted to create one, and then you will be able to complete the 2024-2025 New Student form for grades DK-12.

If you have any questions or issues with the enrollment process, please contact the enrollment office at 989-923-5024 or enroll@midlandps.org.

March is Reading Month Fun

Plymouth Elementary celebrated March Is Reading Month by holding a spirit day with inspiration from the book "Caps for Sale" by Esphyr Slobodkina. Looking good, Pioneers!

MPS Operating Millage Renewal

The MPS Board of Education recently voted to place a millage renewal proposal on the May 7, 2024, ballot. This renewal provides a significant source of revenue to the school district’s operating budget, including salaries, utilities, and educational programming for students. You can find more detailed information by visiting our Operating Millage webpage, linked here, as well as in the Frequently Asked Questions document linked in the button below.

Community Resources

Questions or concerns? Contact us via the MPS Connect button below.