News

Albany Online is offering a variety of courses this summer to help students recover credits or earn additional credits outside of the school year.

Enrollment is open now through June 29. Courses are $325 per .5 credit course.

For more information, call Albany Online at 541-967-4607.

See the flyer for more information.

Los estudiantes pueden inscribirse ahora para los cursos de verano a través
de Albany Online (cursos en el Internet)

Albany Online ofrece una variedad de cursos este verano, para ayudar a los estudiantes a recuperar créditos u obtener créditos adicionales fuera del año escolar.

La inscripción está abierta desde ahora hasta el 29 de junio. Los cursos cuestan $325 por curso de 5 créditos.
Para más información, llamar a Albany Online al 541-967-4607.

Ver el volante para más información.

For the second year in a row, underclassmen have spent the last week of the school year participating in a week-long mini sessions class. This year the courses offered included Intro to Backpacking, Fanfiction Literature, Mock Trial, and Lego Robotics.

Intro to Backpacking

Hiking, zip lining, survival skills, shelter building, map reading…these are just a few of the things the students have been learning in the ‘Intro to Backpacking’ PE class Mrs. Mitchell and Ms. Fitzpatrick have been teaching. The students started out the week exploring Peavy Arboretum, where they had to use their mapping skills to get to a lake in the quickest time possible.

Other places tackled were Mary’s Peak, where students competed in shelter and fire building challenges, Spencer Butte, where students engaged in plant identification, OSU High Ropes Challenge course, and McDowell Creek.

Thank you to Oregon Freeze Dried for their generous donation of Mountain House Meals so students could experience what food true backpackers eat on the trail.

Fanfiction Literature

Fanfiction, or fan-created works about existing media, provides an easy entry point for reluctant readers or writers, as they are reading or writing about something they love.

Students went to see The Avengers: Infinity War to learn about plot structure and development. Using the film Black Panther, students rewrote scenes from the perspective of other characters. Students also read a variety of selected fanfictions.

Fanfiction takes a lot of research to do well, so students also visited the Valley Library at Oregon State University to find out more about researching, reading, and writing.

While there, they had lunch at American Dream Pizza in downtown Corvallis, where pizzas were generously donated by Mark O’Brien of American Dream.

Students produced their own fanfiction as part of their final.

Mock Trial

This year, Mr. Wolfe and Mrs. Roundy, taught a Mock Trial mini-session. Students

focused on a case about a shooting, where they had to become the lawyers and witnesses, requiring that they prepare opening statements, witness testimonies, cross examinations, and closing statements.

Students finished they week by presenting their side of the case, prosecution or defense, to a real-life jury of community adults and an audience in the Linn County Courthouse.

Students got to have a break from law as they enjoyed the carousel downtown on Monday. Then the Mock Trial class toured the jail with Officer Langley. It was a very interesting tour through the different cell blocks, towers, medical offices, laundry room, kitchen, and intake.

The class also visited the Linn County Courthouse to watch a custody trial and tour the courtroom where they would be holding their Mock Trial, and were able to meet with District Attorney Jonathan Crow.

Lego Robotics

This years Robotics course took on some new adventures. The students built and programmed robots that had to navigate different obstacle courses, The students were also able to build robots of their choosing. We had three groups build gyro-bots, that are on two wheels and have to self balance, one group built a dog that could bark, sit and stand, and we had one student build a crane that could pick up and move small objects.

We also took a field trip to the OSU College of Engineering, where we received a general tour that introduced us to all the different kinds of engineering. We also stopped in the Robotics Engineering Department to watch a PhD student test his program on the two-legged robot Cassie.

On Monday, June 11th, AOS graduated a record breaking number of seniors. The previously held record for graduates was 57, which was broken with 61 graduates this year.

The graduation ceremony was held in the Russel Tripp Performing Arts Theater at Linn-Benton Community College. 54 students participated in the ceremony, which included the AOS tradition of the teachers taking time to speak about each individual graduate.

Yuritzi Rivas-Romero was the class speaker, who shared her experience of turning her life around when she came to AOS and the incredible love and support she received here. She challenged her classmates to keep growing and improving as they leave high school and go on to the next phase of their journey.

As always, the AOS graduation ceremony was personal, emotional, and very special.

We wish all of the best to the Class of 2018.

Congratulations, graduates!

Class of 2018

Mary Elizabeth Bursey

Kesha Raelynn Collett

Gerardo Cortez Ortiz

Josh Countryman

Anabel Cortez-Alvarado

Hailey Michelle Cotton

Madeline Elizabeth Lynn Crocker

Alyssa Theone Cumpiano

Trevor Davisson

Talton Wayne Dunshee

Laurel Tre Elliott

Izze Sabian Rain Eppard

Timothy Gage Flaugher

Karla Elizabeth Franco Mireles

Justus Dean Gile

Cameron James Helms

Adriana Hernandez Morales

Shyanne Jordan Hoggins

Gilbert Tyler Howell

Isac Aaron Huesca

Anessa Marie Johnson

Jacob Kurt LaFond

Noah Honor Lancaster

Leslie Lazcano Uriostegui

Ryan Michael Long

Maria Guadalupe Lopez Cordoba

Briar Curtis Lynch

Eric Martinez Contreras

Jaden Rayne Mathis

Elver Antonio May Uc

Kobe Wayne McLaren

Jose Eduardo Mendoza Ramirez

Andrew Thomas Middleton

Ashtin Zakkery Gage Miller

Tanner Brian Mills

Evelyn Mireles Robles

Israel Moreno

Emily Ray Nelson

Tyler Lee Nofziger

Jennifer Joceline Orozco Sanabria

Adela Anais Ortiz Vaca

Juan Guadalupe Ortiz Cortez

Brittany Marie Ritter

Yuritzi Aretzy Rivas Romero

Abigail Trinity Ross

Estefany Abigail Sanchez

Xavier Lee Schmidtke

Krysten Schmult

Deanna Marie Smith

Austin Cordell Stewart

Kevin Shane Stevens Jackson

Matthew Strom

Sebastian Xavier Taylor

Bryanna Raye Tetu

Destiny Marie Thompson

Makenzie Ann Vineyard

Breanna Jane Volkers

Lance Aaron Wallace

Bobby Jean Weatherford

Jared Albon Wolfe

GED Completers

Steven Birtwell

Ashley Cabrera

Megan Carter

Gage Conklin

Heather Gallentine

Marifer Garcia Medina

Sophia Gonzalez-Bolen

Shyann Harris

Izaak Herbst

Krystal Hiner

Nolan Langley

Chloe LeFever

Gaby Lopez

Rosa Mendoza

Tanner Mills

Lavon Monroe

Cash Moore

Alex Munoz

Ireland Nelson Hill

Lidia Novak

Ashleigh Quinlan

Ashton Richmond

Isaac Rimer

Whitney Rodgers

Cecilio Romero

Corbin Ruby

William Santa Maria

Keegen Schmult

Amber Scott

Guillermo Scott

Luis Sequiera

Logan Sherwood

Damien Sorric

Eduardo Tenorio

Lance Wallace

Dominic Walters

Andrew Warren

Kylre Willie

Eric Witney

The annual retiree celebration at the district office recognized the contributions of 33 GAPS teachers, classified staff and administrators who are leaving the District after serving Greater Albany students for a combined total of 478 years.

Family members and friends joined retirees at the reception. Human Resources Director Randy Lary introduced the following retirees:

Paula Guerrero, Kindergarten Teacher, South Shore: 3 years

Galen Sinkey, Bus Driver, Transportation: 5 years

Michelle Coon, Bus Attendant, Transportation, 9 years

Kathryn Grant, Grade 4 Teacher, Central: 11 years

Virginia Hammond, Special Education Assistant, Clover Ridge: 11 years

Chava Neuhaus, Industrial Arts Teacher, South Albany: 11 years

Isela Avery, Bilingual Assistant, Lafayette: 12 years

Robbe Hood, Trip Bus Driver, Transportation: 12 years

Sharon McKinney, Grade 1 Teacher, Liberty: 12 years

Rebecca Robinson, Social Studies Teacher, Calapooia: 12 years

Leonardo Gonzalez, Custodian, Periwinkle: 13 years

Joanne Miller, Food Service Assistant, Oak: 13 years

Carlene Vey, Secretary I, Special Programs: 13 years

Karen Perry, Grade 1 Teacher, Liberty: 14 years

Margaret Coburn, Science Teacher, Memorial, 15 years

James Haggart, Executive Assistant, District Office: 15 years

Vicky Hughes, Special Education Assistant, Waverly: 17 years

Julie Buchert, Music Teacher, Memorial: 19 years

Peter Claycomb, Behavior Intervention Teacher, Calapooia, 19 years

Cynthia Miller, Grade 3 Teacher, Lafayette: 19 years

Pamela Dodson, Clerical Specialist II, South Albany: 20 years

Janece Vanderburg, Grade 1 Teacher, South Shore: 22 years

MaryLou Boydston, Special Education Assistant, Albany Options: 23 years

Roberta Ingram, Special Education Assistant, Waverly: 23 years

Terri Bridenbeck, Registrar, West Albany: 24 years

Marlene Susnik, Grade 3 Teacher, Liberty: 26 years

Tim Mills, P.E. Teacher, North Albany Middle: 27 years

Jill Clark, Library Assistant, Waverly: 30 years

Cindy Mills, Clerical Special II, Memorial: 30 years

Chris VanCauteren, Social Studies Teacher, South Albany: 31 years

Brent Belveal, Principal, South Albany: 34 years

Jana Swearingen, Social Studies Teacher, Memorial: 36 years

Connie Whipple-Mills, Social Studies Teacher, Memorial: 36 years

On Wednesday, May 30th, Albany Options School held its second annual AOS Day of Service event. The whole high school was divided into four groups that volunteered out in the community to give back and show our appreciation to the community that is always so supportive of our school.

The students volunteered at the Youth Special Olympics, South Shore Elementary School, Safe Haven Humane Society, and Ankeny National Wildlife Refuge.

Since 2012 students from AOS have volunteered at the Youth Special Olympics, which are held on the South Albany High School track. AOS students help set up the events, run the events, help the youth participants, keep score, and clean up the event.

Student, Bre Volkers (17), has volunteered at the Youth Special Olympics two years in a row. When asked why she wanted to participate for a second year in a row she responded, “volunteering in the event last year was one of the highlights of the year for me. It was so much fun to be part of something like that and to be able to make the day so special for the kids.

For the second year, a group of students went to South Shore Elementary School, where they partnered with second graders to complete tasks around the school including weeding, cleaning, and organizing. The high school students were able to enjoy lunch with the second grade students before the end of the day.

AOS has an on-going relationship with South Shore, which has included creating a school garden, performing service projects every year, and providing plant starts for their garden.

The third group went to Ankeny National Wildlife Refuge, where students spent their time doing trail maintenance, which included trimming back overgrowth, blackberries, and bushes, cleaning trail signs, and picking up trash and litter.

At Safe Haven Humane Society, students volunteered by helping clean and weed the facilities, and spend time socializing with the animals. This was the second year in a row where students volunteered at Safe Haven as part of the  AOS Day of Service.

Principal John Hunter shared that this day is significant because “part of learning to become a good citizen is giving back to the community.” Counselor Anna Harryman added that “our community is always so generous and supportive of our little school. It is important that we show our gratitude and return the support and kindness.” Hunter concluded  that “this is a special day where we come together as a school and give back. It is meaningful, it is fun, and it is always a positive experience for everyone involved. We are already looking forward to our AOS Day of Service next year.”

You can see more photos from the event on our Instagram page @AlbanyOptionsSchool or on our facebook page at www.facebook.com/albanyoptions.

Check out: #AlbanyOptionsSchool #AOScares #AOSdayofservice #AOSrocks #AOSknights