Bobcats Making Headlines

Each fall, school staff of all positions are celebrated during the National Education Association’s American Education Week. This year’s celebration runs from Nov. 15-19, 2021.

Each day of the week brings a new theme honoring the critical work done by teachers, bus drivers, paraeducators, school counselors, custodians, food service staff, administrative assistants, principals, and all other school employees. The Marshalltown School Board recognized the kickoff of AEW at this week’s board meeting, and the themes for the remainder of the week are:

• Tuesday, Nov. 16: Family Day
• Wednesday, Nov. 17: Education Support Professionals Day
• Thursday, Nov. 18: Educator for a Day
• Friday, Nov. 19: Substitute Educators Day

Please join us in celebrating all of the Marshalltown CSD’s school staff for their hard work and dedication in providing great learning environments for Bobcat students. Thank you all!

MHS students entertained audiences with several well-known musical numbers at the Marshalltown Performing Arts Center this weekend.

The Fall Musical – “All Together Now!” – featured pieces from 15 different musicals, including “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory,” “My Fair Lady,” “Rent,” “Newsies,” and “Hairspray.”

After Saturday evening’s performance, MHS student and performer Ellie Draisey was announced as the winner of this year’s Jean Seberg Drama Award. The award, named after the famous actress native to Marshalltown, included $250, a certificate, and placement of the winner’s name on a plaque in the Auditorium lobby.

Thank you Bobcat Drama students and staff for your hard work on this performance! More photos from the Fall Musical can be seen below.

By Sarah Johnston, Communications Dept. intern

Several Miller Middle School, Marshalltown High School, and Marshalltown Learning Academy students attended the annual Iowa Jobs for America’s Graduates (iJAG) Leadership Development Conference in Cedar Rapids this week.

The student leaders had the opportunity to practice their professional skills, network with peers and learn about in-demand careers. The conference featured workshops covering various leadership topics, including vision- and goal setting, giving and receiving feedback, building resilience, persuasive communication, and diversity, equity and inclusion. 

At the leadership conference, Wellmark Senior Medical Director Dr. Tim Gutshall gave a keynote message about his unconventional route to his career in healthcare and overcoming barriers.

Thank you iJAG for hosting these Bobcats and giving them the opportunity to explore career fields and ask questions about possible career opportunities in the future!

Congratulations to these MHS students for being selected to the 2021 All-State Music Festival:

• Ethen Santana (Oboe – Orchestra)
• Rebekah Stone (Bass Clarinet – Band)
• Veronica Herrera (Violin – Orchestra) 
• Aaron Seberger (Bass – Chorus)

The 2021 Festival will celebrate the 75th anniversary of this prestigious event. District Auditions for the 278-piece All-State Band, 214-piece All-State Orchestra, and 602-member All-State Chorus were held Saturday, October 23, 2021 at Le Mars, Hampton, Independence, Atlantic, Indianola, and Washington. Approximately 17% of the students who audition are selected for membership in the All-State ensembles. 

Participants will rehearse in Ames on Friday and Saturday, November 19 and 20, and the Festival Concert will be presented to the public at 7:30 P.M. in Hilton Coliseum, Iowa State University, Ames, on Saturday evening, November 20, 2021. Iowa Public Television will record the concert for rebroadcast. Please check the IPTV website (www.iptv.org) for the exact dates and times. This program is under the auspices of the Iowa High School Music Association and the Iowa Music Education.

Get ready for exciting musical performances from several well-known productions as MHS Drama students present “All Together Now!” from Nov. 12-14. 

Presale tickets are available now at https://www.showtix4u.com/event-details/57362 for $5 each (use password “cats” when purchasing presale tickets). Showings will be at 7 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 12 and Saturday, Nov. 13, as well as 2 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 14, all at the Marshalltown Performing Arts Center.

Come enjoy great performances by  Bobcat students!

By Sarah Johnston, Communications Dept. Intern

Bobcats at Miller Middle School and Lenihan Intermediate School aren being recognized for all of their hard work in and out of the classroom.

Miller Middle School posts daily on social media about their students being honored with “Kids of the Day” certificates for actively representing the CATS ideal of being Connected, Accountable, Tolerant, and Safe.

Over at Lenihan Intermediate School, students are recognized with “Student of the Week” certificates, each of which features a description about why they were nominated.

At both schools, students are being nominated by their teachers and support staff for going above and beyond while at school. These students are being recognized for leadership, accountability, hard work, and being role models in the classroom.

Recognitions of past recipients can be found on the Miller Facebook page and the Lenihan Facebook page, including pictures of students and their certificates.

Congratulations and thank you to all of these Bobcats, each of whom sets a great example in their school!

By: Sarah Johnston, Communications Dept. Intern

It’s National School Bus Safety Week, and we want to recognize the Marshalltown CSD Transportation team for all they do to keep Bobcat students safe. 

This year’s National School Bus Safety Week theme is “1 Bus + 1 Driver = a big impact on Education.” The District strongly emphasizes the importance of educating young Bobcats on various skills to use on and around one of the District’s many buses. 

The District’s diligent bus drivers transport students on dozens of big, yellow school buses to and from school, sporting events, and other extracurricular activities. No matter where they take students, transportation staff prioritize student safety.

Here are some very important safety tips from Transportation Director Rex Kozak:

• Flashing red lights mean stop for vehicles around a school bus — keep at least 25 feet away from a bus with flashing red lights to ensure students’ safety.
• Flashing yellow lights mean slow down and prepare to stop.
• Drive slower and maintain greater driving distance when a school bus is present.
• Don’t drive distracted ­ maintain focus on the road and surroundings.
• Be extra watchful for school buses between the hours of 7-8:30 a.m. and 3:30-4:30 p.m. on weekdays, when school transportation activity peaks

Other school bus safety tips cover how to react when a school bus is approaching, how to act while riding on a bus, and what to do if an emergency occurs. For more information, visit www.napt.org

Thank you to the entire MCSD Transportation Team for taking great care of Bobcat students! 

October is National Principals Month, and the Marshalltown CSD is proud to celebrate our team of exceptional principals! 

School principals play an essential role in the success of their students, both day-to-day and over the long term. These leaders show great dedication, empathy, and cooperation as they strive to provide the best learning environments for Bobcat students.

Meet each of the District’s principals below, and help us thank them for their hard work on behalf of students!

By Sarah Johnston, Communications Dept. Intern

During the month of October, 8th grade Bobcats get to spend their P.E. period at the Marshalltown YMCA-YWCA learning vital life-saving skills in the water. Over multiple sessions, students learn about water safety and what to do in an emergency. 

This week, the students were separated into groups and rotated between various stations, including a life jacket lesson, a “Submerge and Retrieve” activity, and a “Reach & Throw, Don’t Go” exercise. Later, the students advanced to activities like “Jump-Push-Turn-Grab,” “Swim-Float-Swim,” and treading water. 

During the life jackets lesson, some of the swimming techniques included safely jumping into the water, a comfortable backstroke, and how to react as soon as a person hits the water. 

“Use the back like a pillow and let your toes float up to the surface,” one Y aquatic instructor recommended during the activity.

At the “Submerge and Retrieve” station, students learned how to be comfortable underwater by blowing mouth bubbles while submerged. Once the students were comfortable underwater, the instructor handed out colorful diving rings for the students to retrieve. The activity quickly turned into a fun racing game, and it became clear that Bobcats love to swim.

During “Reach Out and Throw, Don’t Go,” students were taught what to do if they see a person drowning or struggling to swim in deep water. They learned to always tell an adult right away, and the instructor stressed the importance of not jumping into the water after another person.

Instead, the students were taught to lay flat on their bellies and reach out with whatever they had on hand. In the demonstration, they used pool noodles and the lifeguard ring. 

At the “Jump-Push-Turn-Grab” station, the students learned what to do if they were to accidentally fall into the water. They started by jumping into the water, then pushing off of the bottom of the pool, turning toward the edge, and grabbing the edge to get out.

During the “Swim-Float-Swim” and treading water lessons, students were taught what to do if they have to swim for a long period of time and how to conserve energy and strength in those scenarios.

This program was created after a tragedy in the Iowa River in 2012, when three children drowned. After the tragedy, the community came together and decided to implement a program to teach young Bobcats about water safety.

Thank you to the Marshalltown YMCA-YWCA Aquatics team for all of your hard work to educate Bobcat students about water safety!

Blaring sirens, fully-uniformed firefighters and paramedics, and a LifeFlight helicopter all featured in a mock medical incident at Leonard Cole Field Thursday morning.

The exercise offered Marshalltown High School students a great opportunity to learn about real-world work done by rescue and medical personnel. UnityPoint Health and Marshalltown Fire Department professionals guided the students through incident response, from the arrival of the first firefighter/EMS crews to loading patients for airlift.

MHS Project Lead the Way biomedical sciences teacher Erica Malloy played a key role in organizing Thursday’s event. She said students interested in the healthcare field have many great career-based learning opportunities at Marshalltown High School.

“I thought this sounded like an exciting experience, allowing them to see multiple different careers working at one time,” Malloy said.

Austin White, who recently began his career as a firefighter, said high school students can learn much from reality-based exercises.

“I think this is a huge eye-opener to reality for teenagers,” White said. “We are able to demonstrate our side of the picture.” 

Dozens of MHS students interested in becoming healthcare professionals attended the mock incident demonstration. One of those students, Brandon Pelzer, said he enjoyed seeing what firefighters and paramedics do during major medical situations.

“It was very cool to see how, if there was an emergency situation … how it would take place and what would go down,” Pelzer said.

Thank you to UnityPoint Health and Marshalltown Fire Department staff for sharing their time, knowledge, and experiences in healthcare careers with Bobcat students! Check out more photos from Thursday’s mock medical incident below.