Author Archives: Steller Chair

Band – Year in Review

–A message from Mr. Toba–

Another school year came to end. Despite some obstacles, especially for the Aurora Music Festival trip, we were very productive.  Our achievements are astonishing:
 
ASD Middle School Solo/Ensemble Festival 
Solos
Jensen Booher, 7th, baritone – superior
Liam Kraft, 8th, trumpet – superior
Noah Lapierre, 7th, alto sax – superior
Zoe McDonagh, 7th, horn – superior
Towa Yazaki, 7th, trombone – superior
Ensemble
Jensen Booher, baritone; Charleia Buckly, 7th, oboe; Nathan Daniels, 8th, percussion; Alexe Gillespie, 7th, alto sax; Liam Kraft, trumpet; Aiden Lalki, 7th, clarinet; Noah Lapierre, alto sax; Zoe McDonagh, horn; Elijah McDonald, 7th, trumpet; Towa Yazaki, trombone – superior
****Special thanks to a Steller graduate, Griffin Lindsay, for training and preparing for our 7th and 8th grade band students.
​****All of our entries received superior!
 
ASAA Online Solo Adjudications 
Paige Antrobus, 12th, trumpet – excellent
Charlie Banning, 9th, trumpet – superior
Ishmael Belay, 8th, alto sax – superior
Amelia Brooks, 11th, tuba – superior
Shepherd Brown, 10th, tenor sax – excellent
Riley Cottrell, 9th, clarinet – excellent
Zane Hopewell, 11th, baritone – superior
Riley Strodtbeck, 11th, clarinet – excellent 
 
Aurora Music Festival
Band Competition  
3rd place 
Solo
Marley McDonagah, 10th, flute – superior
Honor Band
Jamey Algiene, 10th, alto sax – 3rd chair
Paige Antrobus, 12th, trumpet
Charlie Banning, 9th, trumpet – 3rd chair
Ishmael Belay, 9th, alto sax 
Duncan Brabec, 10th, baritone sax – alternate
Amelia Brooks, 11th, tuba – 2nd chair
Shepherd Brown, 10th, tenor sax – 2nd chair
Zane Hopewell, 11th, baritone – 1st chair
Liam Kraft, 8th, trumpet
Jojo Leonard, 9th, horn – 1st chair
Marley McDonagh, 10th, flute – 1st chair
Rem Porter, 10th, percussion – 3rd chair
Milo Scott, 12th, trombone – 1st chair
Riley Strodtbeck, 11th, clarinet – alternate
 
ASAA State Solo
Amelia Brooks, tuba
Zane Hopewell, baritone
Marley McDonagh, flute
 
Graduating Seniors
Paige Antrobus, trumpet
Kaila Gibson, flute
Milo Scott, trombone
 
“Considering the size of band, we accomplished a lot,” said, Mr. Toba, band director.  “I am especially proud of the students who went above and beyond the calls. Our 7th and 8th did exceptionally well for the Middle School Solo/Ensemble.”  “Aurora Music Festival was fun and we did very well, too.”  Band wishes the best of luck for graduating seniors, Paige Antrobus, Kaila Gibson, and Milo Scott.  Mr. Toba expects even bigger things will happen next year.

SPG meeting Tuesday, September 13

 

Join us for the first Steller Parent Group meeting of the year, and find out what’s happening at school, share your ideas, and get to know fellow parents & guardians and staff. 

We meet the second Tuesday of the month (in person and via Zoom for now), and you can find the agenda by the Sunday before the meeting . This month we will be talking more about  fundraising and how students and adults can get involved in the school.

The Three Pillars of the school are by default all members of SPG – Students, Staff, Parents & Guardians, and active participation in the running of the school is at the heart of the Steller Philosophy. 

Thank you to all the students and adults that have already signed up to volunteer for specific positions, or to be general helpers.  Many hands make light work, and helps develop a sense of community.  We will have an updated list of ways to get involved soon. For more information about how you can get involved see here .

 

Welcome Message from Steller Parent Group

August 25, 2022

Dear Steller Families,

Steller Parent Group wants to extend a warm welcome to all new and returning Steller families. 

The Steller Parent Group is an integral part of the Steller Community.  We meet on the second Tuesday of every month from 6:00pm to 7:30pm in person and on Zoom.  Every member of the Steller Community – Staff, Students and Parents/Guardians are automatically part of SPG and welcome to attend, ask questions and share their ideas.  We would love to see you at our first meeting on Tuesday, September 13 at 6:00pm. We hope to have both an in person option and Zoom.

Steller Parent Group is one of the three Pillars of our school: Staff – Students –  Parents/Guardians. The purpose of the SPG is to enrich the lives of Steller students through the financial support and leadership of active parents and guardians. We strive to promote parent and guardian involvement in school activities. Traditionally we host events during the school year, raise funds to support school initiatives through the Steller Auction, and coordinate volunteers. 

All of this takes the hard work and dedication of our community members and we want to invite you to get involved by taking on a formal position in the board, or simply actively attending our meetings. We are currently recruiting for a variety of positions. 

Participating in the SPG has many benefits, including the opportunity to make connections with other parents and staff, and the opportunity to effectively make positive change. We all want the very best education and experiences for our children, and when we work together we can make it happen. 

If you are interested in learning more about SPG positions please let us know, and as always, we welcome your thoughts and ideas about how Steller Parent Group can serve you. 

Warm regards,

Kirsten Tschofen

Communication, Steller Parent Group

chairstellerparentgroup@gmail.com 

Save the Date:

  • Meet the Teachers/All Community Meeting – Thursday, September 8, 6:00 to 7:30
  • First SPG meeting – Tuesday, September 13, 6:00 to 7:30

Volunteers needed for Open House March 1st 6:00 to 7:30 pm

On Tuesday, March 1st Steller is hosting an in person Open House. Prospective students and their families are invited to drop by the school, and will be able to visit classrooms and teachers in small groups on a first come first serve basis.

We would like a few parent volunteers to greet our guests outside, and serve hot chocolate, answer questions, and help manage the groups.

If you can help any time from 6:00 to 7:30 please sign up on the doodle poll below:

https://doodle.com/poll/6xea64aiin6h37bq?utm_source=poll…

Kirsten Tschofen

Steller Parent Group Meeting Tuesday, February 8

The Steller Community consists of three pillars: Students, Staff and Parents/Guardians.  Steller Parent Group is an important way for parents and guardians to learn about what is happening at school, have a voice in future decisions, and help create a culture that reflects the communities values. 

All students, staff, and parents/guardians are automatically members, and anyone who attends a meeting has the right to vote on issues. If you have ideas for how we can continue to grow our community, we would love to hear from you.   

Our next meeting is this Tuesday, February 8, from 6:00 to 7:00pm, on Zoom. 

In addition to the usual updates we will also continue our discussion about our Budget, including for Intensives, and other needs at the school. 

  • You can find the Draft Meeting Minutes from the January meeting, and the agenda for February Here.

As always, if you have any questions or comments please don’t hesitate to reach out.

Kirsten

Join Zoom Meeting

https://asdk12.zoom.us/j/95891436576?pwd=ekcwTUxweGRub0YzSDZuaGdLZ3RhQT09 

Meeting ID: 958 9143 6576

Passcode: 975378

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Meeting ID: 958 9143 6576

Find your local number: https://asdk12.zoom.us/u/abaFYwOeSd

Steller Student Recruitment for 2022-2023

Steller Secondary is having a virtual Open House on Wednesday, Feb. 16th and Thursday, Feb. 17th! 

This is a great opportunity to meet and talk with our principal and the teachers of Steller, learn about the Steller Philosophy, and experience our community. Join us via Zoom from 6:00 – 7:30PM!

 Zoom Link: https://asdk12.zoom.us/j/91834683634?pwd=YXdaalNTdkRFc3R1L2pSSSsrUXpwdz09

Meeting ID: 918 3468 3634
Passcode: 571588
 
 
 
Steller Secondary will also be attending the Alternative School Fair at the ASD Education Center! 
 
If you are a Steller student or parent, we would love for you to join us at the fair to represent our wonderful community! Send an email to Antionette (street_antionette@asdk12.org) with the subject line “Interested in Volunteering” or call 907-742-4950. 
 
Alternative School Fair
Saturday, Feb. 19th 12:00 – 4:00PM
5530 E Northern Lights Blvd, Anchorage, AK 99504 
 
 
 
And to top it all off, Steller will host an in-person Open House on March 1st!
 
More details to come for this event, but we are excited to open our doors to current and potential students and their parents! 
 

New Chair for Steller Parent Group needed for March 15, 2022

I will be stepping down as Chair of Steller Parent Group effective March 15, 2022.  In order to ensure SPG is able to fulfill our commitments and continue to effectively support the Steller Community we need someone to step in as soon as possible! 

As of yet, we haven’t had anyone indicate interest in the position, so I thought I’d share the description of the position from the by-laws: 

An election of Parent Group Officers and Representatives will take place at the September

meeting. Any vacancies that develop will be filled by an interim election conducted at a Parent

Group meeting. No member may hold more than one office.

Chair- the Chair/Vice-Chair is a two (2)-year term

  • Prepares agenda and conducts the monthly Parent Group meeting.
  • Conducts or delegates follow-up of meeting business as needed.
  • Acts as liaison between Parent Group, Staff, and Operational Group, or is responsible for arranging an alternate to attend those meetings as needed.
  • Makes reports to Operational Group and Staff, as well as the Steller Community Body meetings as needed.
  • Ensures that parents become acquainted with the volunteer opportunities at school pre-registration.
  • Assists in recruiting and training of Advisory Group Parent Liaisons.
  • Coordinates with treasurer to ensure at least three officers, two of whom must be the chair and the treasurer, shall be approved to sign checks and have their signatures on file at the  bank. The authorized check signers must not be related by blood or marriage or reside in the same household.
  • Appoints a Budget Committee that includes the chair and treasurer upon election of officers.
  • Ensures a financial review (audit) occurs at the end of the fiscal year, or whenever there is a transition between treasurers. The purpose of the review is to certify the accuracy of the books and records of the Treasurer  by examining the financial transactions of the SPG and the procedures used to conduct those transactions.  Financial Review Committee must be made up of three (3) or a qualified accountant and can include anyone within the unit that is NOT a signatory on the account or related to one.
  • Establishes ad-hoc committees (including the Financial Committee) as needed.

Ideally this work should be shared between a chair and a vice chair – so if we could find TWO people willing to step up that would be even better. 

If we do not identify a new chair before the March 15th meeting SPG and all it’s financial functions will be temporarily suspended until we have a full board of chair, treasurer and secretary. 

As always, I am happy to speak with anyone interested, or feel free to reach out to Dee Dee (secretary) or Claudia (treasurer) for more information about what is involved. 

Warm regards,

Kirsten Tschofen

 

Lottery Application for New Students 7-12 for 2022-2023 School Year Opens February 1

We need your help spreading the word to your friends and family about Steller.

Here are some important dates: 

  1. The Lottery Application Opens this week on Tuesday, February 1. 
  2. Steller Open House (via Zoom) is Wedensday, February 16 or Thursday, February 17th 6:00 to 7:30pm.  

Join Zoom Meeting
https://asdk12.zoom.us/j/92353715611?pwd=Z25GeW9MWWNPS3pUMmdzQ1JqWFR2QT09&from=addon

Meeting ID: 923 5371 5611
Passcode: 812072 

3, Lottery Application closes on Thursday, March 17, and runs on Friday, March 18th. 

4. Families will be notified on Friday, March 25th and have 48 hours to accept to decline (more details on the exact policies for this on the District website). 

You can help by:

Following our Facebook page and sharing the posts on your own Facebook Page. 

Sharing our poster and flyers electronically or printed wherever in your community you think people might be interested (you can pick up printed posters and flyers in the office starting late next week). 

Joining the Open House – it is wonderful to have a strong turnout of students, staff and families to help answer questions for new families, and show how strong our community is. Mark your calendars! 

2022 Welcome to Steller Flyer for Printing (1)