April 10, 2015

A Few Words From Mr. Tenopir

I am a great believer in luck. The harder I work, the more of it I seem to have.

- Coleman Cox

On a social media site recently, I saw a picture of an anonymous teacher’s open letter to her students. The essence of the letter was this: “For those of you who didn’t earn the semester grade you wanted, please remember the way you feel right now. In order to avoid feeling like this at the end of 2nd semester, follow through on your obligations in this class and you will be fine. Study. Complete your homework. Ask questions. And study some more. Why would I allow you to boost your grade through non-essential extra credit assignments if you haven’t completed the required work and put forth the expected effort?”

While I cannot endorse the tone used by this teacher, she has a good point. After all, grades are not about the accumulation of points. They are about learning! Here at Fremd, we are trying to emphasize that grades are a reflection of what students know and are able to do. The best way to demonstrate this knowledge or skill is to provide consistent evidence over time. That is, show the teacher--and show yourself--what you can do every single day.

There are six weeks of learning left in this semester before Final Exam Week. Six weeks to think about the size of the gap between your student’s current grade and desired grade. Six weeks to think about how he/she intends to close that gap. And six weeks to work hard and capitalize on the right kind of luck, that which is achieved through hard work.

Highlights and Successes

• Congratulations to Coach Kevin Palmer and the Fremd Scholastic Bowl Team on placing 3rd at the IHSA State Final Tournament.
• Congratulations to Coach Judy Klingner and Coach Marilyn Berdick and the Fremd Group Interpretation Team on winning the IHSA State Championship.
• Congratulations to Coach Martin Zacharia and the following IHSA State Debate medalists: Madisen Hursey, Finalist, Congressional Debate; Zachary Jordan & Ishan Taparia, Semifinalists, Public Forum Debate; Rebecca Beale & Eric Simon, Quarterfinalists, Public Forum Debate; and Matthew Carlins & John Komoll, Octafinalists, Public Forum Debate.
• Congratulations to the All-State Debate Team: Rebecca Beale, Madisen Hursey, John Komoll, and Eric Simon.
• Congratulations to Coach Tim Hamman and the Fremd Boys Gymnastics Team on winning 2nd place at the Rolling Meadows Invite.  Award winners include:  Champions: Eric Barnd 1st Place on Vault; Daniel Classon 1st place on Pommel Horse; and Ryan Roth 2nd Place on High Bar.
• Congratulations to senior Haley Gorecki on being named Chicago Tribune Illinois Miss Basketball.
• Congratulations to sophomore, Naman Agarwal, for earning national recognition in The Scholastic Art and Writing Awards of 2015. Naman won a gold medal for his personal essay, “Pulp Nonfiction”. This year, 300,000 works of art and writing were submitted. Only the top 1% were recognized at the national level. Naman has been invited to attend a ceremony at Carnegie Hall on Thursday, June 11.
• Congratulations to this week’s Viking Pride winners:  Marissa Barhorst, Kate Bodensteiner, Sammy Brazier, Zachary Bryniarski, Ashley DeRoche, Emily Hopkins, Grace Humphris, Kayleigh Jetel, Cassidy Lemme, Victoria Metzger, John Parzynski, Yazmin Rustomji, Kyle Saxon, Hannah Schiraldi, Vincent Sorrentino, and Kevin Stevens.

Upcoming Home Activities and Varsity Events

April 10	Boys Baseball @ Glenbrook - 4:30 p.m. Girls Softball vs. Stevenson - 4:30 p.m. Boys Gymnastics vs. Conant - 6:00 p.m.
April 11	Boys Tennis @ Hersey Invite - 8:00 a.m. Boys Volleyball @ Rolling Meadows - 8:30 a.m. Girls Badminton @ Wheaton Warrenville S. Invite - 9:00 a.m. Girls Water Polo @ Niles W. - 10:00 a.m. Girls Softball vs. St. Charles E. - 11:00 a.m. Boys Water Polo @ Naperville N. - 11:00 a.m. Boys LaCrosse vs. Grayslake N. - 12:00 p.m. Girls Track & Field @ Buffalo Grove Invite - 12;00 p.m.
April 13	Boys Baseball @ HEHS - 4:30 p.m. Girls Softball vs. Wheeling - 4:30 p.m. Boys LaCrosse @ Stevenson - 6:15 p.m. Girls Soccer vs. Elk Grove - 6:30 p.m. Girls LaCrosse @ Barrington - 7:00 p.m. Girls Water Polo vs. HEHS @ SHS - 7:30 p.m. Boys Water Polo vs. HEHS @ PHS - 7:45 p.m.
April 14	Boys Tennis vs. Hersey - 4:30 p.m. Girls Badminton vs. PHS - 4:45 p.m. Girls Track & Field vs. CHS/RMHS - 4:45 p.m. Boys Track & Field vs. CHS/RMHS @ Rolling Meadows Girls LaCrosse @ Highland Park - 4:45 p.m. Boys Volleyball @ PHS - 6:00 p.m. Boys LaCrosse @ Lyons - 7:00 p.m.
April 15	Boys Baseball vs. HEHS - 4:30 p.m. Girls Softball vs. Elk Grove - 4:45 p.m. Boys Water Polo @ Barrington - 5:30 p.m. Girls Soccer vs. RMHS - 6;30 p.m. Girls Water Polo @ Barrington - 7:30 p.m.
April 16	Boys Track & Field vs. Fremd Throws Invite- 4:30 p.m. Boys Tennis vs. RMHS - 4:30 p.m. Girls Badminton @ CHS - 4:30 p.m. Girls Softball @ Lake Park - 4:30 p.m. Boys Volleyball vs. CHS - 6:00 p.m. Boys LaCrosse @ PHS - 6:30 p.m. Girls LaCrosse vs. PHS - 7:00 p.m.
April 17	Boys Baseball vs. RMHS - 4:30 p.m. Girls Softball @ Hersey - 4:30 p.m. Girls Soccer @ PHS - 6:00 p.m. Boys Gymnastics vs. Ed Raymond Invite @ CHS - 6:00 p.m.

For a more complete list, please visit our Athletics Page.

Ask the Principal

Are you curious about something at Fremd but have never asked? Email me at ktenopir@d211.org. If your question is pertinent to a wider audience, I will include it in the next blog post.