Claremore Public Schools

“Once you have experienced excellence you will never again be content with mediocrity.” Thomas S. Monson Today we will feature the Class of 2021 Valedictorian with the highest GPA. Mariah Galutza will be attending the University of Tulsa majoring in Political Science. The students who have completed the same stringent requirement of the Salutatorians but finished with the 4 highest GPAs are the Class of 2021 Valedictorians. #CPSZEBRAPRIDE

🎓 It’s May, and we know what that means… COUNTDOWN TO GRADUATION! Let’s have a little fun as we anticipate and reflect on the last 13 school years of the Class of 2021! Every morning in May, we will feature a graduation/senior photo of one of the staff who helped build a foundation for this graduating class at CPS. 🎓1 day - What do you know about this staff member?

Happy retirement to Mary March’, Speech Pathologist at Roosa Elementary. Let's give her a virtual 👏ovation for her years of service in the comments. 🍎 What school you began teaching at for CPS: I began as Speech Language Pathologist assigned to Stuart A Roosa Elementary. I was then additionally assigned to CUE, and WRJH. I also served students for several years at Claremont as well. Roosa remained my primary assignment through all the years but I enjoyed the students and staff at every school I served. 🍎 What year did you start teaching for CPS? I began in January of 2002. 🍎 How many years were you a CPS employee? So, May, 2020 marked 18.5 years as full timer and then this year as a part time SLP = 19.5 years total. I retired May, 2020 but quickly came back part time, while still retired, to provide SLP services to Roosa’s virtual students for this school year. 🍎 What you are most proud of in your time at CPS? I am very proud of helping students and teachers in so many grade levels gain an understanding of the impact that speech and language delays have on so many areas of a student’s performance in the general curriculum. I am proud that the teachers I work with see me as a collaborative partner, not just that speech lady down the hall. 🍎 What are the memories you will take with you? Zillions of hugs and smiles as students proudly declared “I did it!” and “I get it!” I will treasure watching students develop self confidence and perseverance to tackle skills they had thought were “too hard”, field trips with classes, “Rise and Shine” to start my day, and new school supplies every fall. 🍎 What does it mean to be a Zebra to you? Being a Zebra means I have high expectations for every day to be a learning day. It means being a part of something bigger than my classroom. It means being committed to my profession, my students, my families, my fellow educators, and my community. It IS ALWAYS a great day to be a Zebra! 🍎 What is one piece of advice you would give incoming teachers? Teach like everything depends on what you do because our students are our future. #CPSZEBRAPRIDE

🎓 It’s May, and we know what that means… COUNTDOWN TO GRADUATION! Let’s have a little fun as we anticipate and reflect on the last 13 school years of the Class of 2021! Every morning in May, we will feature a graduation/senior photo of one of the teachers who helped build a foundation for this graduating class at CPS. 🎓2 days - What do you know about this teacher?

Happy retirement to Cindy Nichol teacher at Catalayah. Let's give her a virtual 👏ovation for her years of service in the comments. 🍎 I began teaching for CPS in August of 1980 at Leeper Middle School. 🍎 I have been employed by CPS for my entire teaching career, 40 years. I also completed my internship at Claremont Elementary in the spring semester of 1980. 🍎 I am most proud of being a member of the group that introduced the co-teaching model for special education students in CPS. This model has provided the opportunity for many SPED students to participate in regular education classes along with their peers. 🍎 Of course, I will take with me the many wonderful memories of my students and colleagues. I will be forever grateful for the numerous regular education teachers who welcomed me, and my students, into their classrooms and gave me the opportunity to co-teach with them. It's been an amazing and very fulfilling journey! 🍎 I have been a proud Claremore Zebra for 40 years now. It's who I am and always will be! 🍎 The most important advice I would give is to form a relationship with each of your students and show them that you truly care about them. #CPSZEBRAPRIDE

“Once you have experienced excellence you will never again be content with mediocrity.” Thomas S. Monson Today we will feature the Class of 2021 Valedictorian with the 2nd highest GPA. Katy Grubbs will attend University of Tulsa and major in Business Management. The students who have completed the same stringent requirement of the Salutatorians but finished with the 4 highest GPAs are the Class of 2021 Valedictorians. #CPSZEBRAPRIDE

🎓 It’s May, and we know what that means… COUNTDOWN TO GRADUATION! Let’s have a little fun as we anticipate and reflect on the last 13 school years of the Class of 2021! Every morning in May, we will feature a graduation/senior photo of one of the teachers who helped build a foundation for this graduating class at CPS. 🎓3 days - What do you know about this teacher?

“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, therefore is not an act, but a habit.” Aristotle Today we will feature the Class of 2021 Valedictorians with the 3rd highest GPA. Alyson Harvey will be attending Harvard majoring Neuroscience and/or Biochemistry. The students who have completed the same stringent requirement of the Salutatorians but finished with 4 highest GPAs are the Class of 2021 Valedictorians. #CPSZEBRAPRIDE

“For me, winning isn’t something that happens suddenly on the field when the whistle blows and the crowds roar. Winning is something that builds physically and mentally every day that you train and every night that you dream.” —Emmitt Smith Girls State Track Meet - Claremore brings home 2 - 3rd place medals! 🥉 Girls 4x400 relay, 3rd place - Paiten Reavis, Ainsley Hendrickson, Kate Bustamante, & Rachel Yewell 🥉 Long Jump, 3rd - Paiten Reavis #CPSZEBRAPRIDE

Happy retirement to Jeannie Seidel, PE teacher at Catalayah. Let's give her a virtual 👏ovation for her years of service in the comments. 🍎 What school you began teaching at for CPS. I began teaching at Central Upper Elementary (CUE). I taught 6th grade Language Arts and history for 8 years,3rd grade at Claremont for 6 years, and I am closing out my teaching career at Catalayah after 10 years of teaching Physical and Health Education classes. 🍎 What year did you start teaching for CPS? I began teaching in 1997 🍎 How many years were you a CPS employee? 24 🍎 What you are most proud of in your time at CPS? I would have to say I am most proud of the running club and Physical Education program I started at Catalayah. I was able to share my passion for running and physical activity, and it helped me make connections with so many students. I have been rewarded with the pleasure of watching many students continue their running interests. 🍎 What are the memories you will take with you? I will always remember reading King Arthur in 6th grade and doing a Medieval unit. Another highlight was studying Greek mythology which included dressing in character and presenting Greek mythological figures while enjoying Greek foods. I especially cherish the running I did with so many of our students and staff members.. Watching the students receive their medals at Rise and Shine is a high point along with running outside races with lots of kids and staff. It was so fun to see everybody finish their races and have such a sense of accomplishment. Fortunately, I have lots of pictures captured of these events. Lastly, I will always remember the friendships I made. Those friendships have provided so much support, and I have been lucky to work with many talented and caring teachers and parents, and a great principal. 🍎 What does it mean to be a Zebra to you? I am a Zebra fan. I may not have been born in Claremore, but I have lived here 31 years, and I take great pride in our schools. Being a Zebra means showing up for events and supporting each other, whether it be a PTO fundraiser or a ball game that a student asks you to come to watch. I wear my Claremore Zebra spirit with pride. 🍎 What is one piece of advice you would give incoming teachers? 2 pieces of advice: 1: Be a team player and support your teammates. 2: Recognize every student has a story to share. Learn their story, listen to them, and be sure they feel acknowledged, even when you have 400 students. #CPSZEBRAPRIDE

🎓 It’s May, and we know what that means… COUNTDOWN TO GRADUATION! Let’s have a little fun as we anticipate and reflect on the last 13 school years of the Class of 2021! Every morning in May, we will feature a graduation/senior photo of one of the teachers who helped build a foundation for this graduating class at CPS. 🎓4 days - What do you know about this teacher?

Happy retirement to Karen Willcoxson, Art teacher at WRJH. Let's give her a virtual 👏ovation for her years of service in the comments. 🍎 I started and continued teaching at the Jr. High on 8/10/2011 🍎 I have been here10 years. 🍎 I am most proud of making connections/relationships with students, especially when they needed encouragement. 🍎 The memories I will take with me are the students’ “aha” moments and the humorous situations. 🍎 What it means to be a Zebra to me means working with a community of hard-working people in Claremore. 🍎 Advice to new teachers: Get plenty of sleep, eat well, and bring a good sense of humor. #CPSZEBRAPRIDE

Please join us for a blood drive at Claremore High School, hosted by StuCo, on Thursday, May 20, 2021, from 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Visit RedCrossBlood.org to schedule an appointment. #CPSZEBRAPRIDE

“Excellence is never an accident; it is the result of high intention, sincere effort, intelligent direction, skillful execution and the vision to see obstacles as opportunities.” Anonymous The students who have completed the same stringent requirement of the Salutatorians but finished with 4 highest GPAs will be the Class of 2021 Valedictorians. Today we will feature the 2 students who tied for the 4th spot giving us 5 Valedictorian for the Class of 2021. Congratulations to Tasfia Hasin & Carolina "Carly" Stokes. #CPSZEBRAPRIDE

Excellence is a way of life. You develop excellence of character by constantly engaging in it; whatever aspect of life it may be, you must always hold yourself to a high standard. Congratulations to these CHS Salutatorians who will graduate with distinction in academics because they have achieved the highest level of education CPS offers. 🎓 Successfully completed graduation requirements with all course work at or above grade level. 🎓 Attained a 4.0 weighted GOS or better by 3rd block of senior year. 🎓 Completed 8 credits of Honors, Pre-AP, or AP from 4 curriculum areas: Language Arts, Mathematics, Social Studies, Science, World Language, &/or Fine Arts. 🎓 Completed 4 of those credits in AP classes from 3 different curriculum areas. 🎓 Received no final grade below a 'B' (exception of 'C' in AP courses which are equivalent to a 'B'). 🎓 Achieved an ACT score of 26 or greater or meet all 4 benchmarks set by ACT for senior year (National Test Only), or SAT score of 1240 or greater. #CPSZEBRAPRIDE #ExcellenceForAllExcellenceFromAll

🎓 It’s May, and we know what that means… COUNTDOWN TO GRADUATION! Let’s have a little fun as we anticipate and reflect on the last 13 school years of the Class of 2021! Every morning in May, we will feature a graduation/senior photo of one of the teachers who helped build a foundation for this graduating class at CPS. 🎓5 days - What do you know about this teacher?

🎓 It’s May, and we know what that means… COUNTDOWN TO GRADUATION! Let’s have a little fun as we anticipate and reflect on the last 13 school years of the Class of 2021! Every morning in May, we will feature a graduation/senior photo of one of the teachers who helped build a foundation for this graduating class at CPS. 🎓6 days - What do you know about this teacher?

The second Friday in May is #schoolprday, also called National School Communicators Day. A day where schools recognize the work behind the scenes of those who tell our school's story, share celebrations, and keep us informed. Yesterday we celebrated the team behind the communications curtin. Our Communications Specialists or as some often refer to them, "the Facebook lady" or "the website lady" or because they play many roles at their site it could be the "front desk lady", the "library lady", the "camera lady"... you get the picture (see what I did there?). As a team, we want to thank all of our Claremore Public School staff, students, and community, for sharing their #CPSZEBRAPRIDE through excellent pictures, updates, and content. For without you, there wouldn't be a story to tell. Jamie Brace - District / CHS Vanessa Mudd - Roosa Ashley Troyer - Claremont Rachel Salcido - Catalayah Sayre Whitaker - Westside (not pictured) Melissa Jauquet - WRJH (not pictured) Thank you ladies for everything you do to connect, communicate, celebrate, and create a partnership with our CPS families and the community.

🎓 It’s May, and we know what that means… COUNTDOWN TO GRADUATION! Let’s have a little fun as we anticipate and reflect on the last 13 school years of the Class of 2021! Every morning in May, we will feature a graduation/senior photo of one of the teachers who helped build a foundation for this graduating class at CPS. 🎓7 days - What do you know about this teacher?

5th grade utilized their laptops 💻 to review Language Arts skills. They played an online review game where they could take gold 💰 from each other…. if they got the answers correct! Every question answered correctly they got GOLD COINS; however the coins could be taken by another classmate! Watch out! The scores were tallied on the Smart Board. At the end of the game they were awarded with 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place! #CPSZEBRAPRIDE