From the President
Dear Families and Friends of SCAPA,
The ides of March, the schizophrenic weather, and I wonder, am I crazy, too? Being FOAS President is extremely rewarding, but lately a bit overwhelming with three productions quickly in a row. Dance SCAPA was awesome! Mill Girls was inspiring and impressive. And I cannot wait to relish Fiddler on the Roof and the chance to catch my breath over Spring Break.
Many thanks to the key people who have lead the way through these productions and keep providing their helping hands, time, love and skill. Your passion and caring for our SCAPA kids is fantastic! And kudos to those who responded to our call for help with the costume and accessories inventory work. Great progress was made. We still have more work to do, but we are in much finer shape than ever before. Having the costumes organized will save us money. Your President has recently mentioned an idea for a consignment and rental shop for costumes and other pageant and performance wear which FOAS could operate for fundraising and community awareness purposes while providing storage for our costume inventory. If there is a parent with consignment shop experience or a willingness to obtain it and develop a business plan for this enterprise, please call me!
I know that I have been busy, but really, no one has called me to express interest in assuming one of the many leadership roles in FOAS for 2009-2010. Even if you are afraid to take on a position, please consider agreeing to begin to shadow for a position that you could hold for the following school year. The next FOAS meeting has been moved to Monday night, March 16 in order to avoid St. Patrick’s Day. Please plan to attend!
Kathy Warnecke Ryan
March 2009
Table of Contents
- From the President
- From the Principals
- Calendar of Upcoming Events
- Announcements and Reminders
- Recent Events
- SCAPA Spotlights
- Academic News
- Arts News
- Club and Team News
- Alumni News
- The Art of Parenting
- Volunteer Opportunities
- FOAS Board Officers and Representatives
Friends of the Arts School Website
From the Principals
Bluegrass
Letter from Marilynn Cunningham
Dear SCAPA Families:
It was wonderful to have so many parents at our Valentine Luncheon to hear the Young at Hearts Band. The music filled the building and the students danced to their hearts delight.
Many of you commented on the outstanding performance of “Dance SCAPA”. Each dance moved our spirits to soar. The finale, “The Rhythm of Life”, moved the audience to a place beyond. A place that ties each and every one of us to a level of knowing we are different, but feeling united. Thanks for your leadership, Patti Bingham and Rebecca Stephenson.
Kentucky Music Educators Association featured some of our vocalists in their choir. Although I was not in attendance, I was told our students received a standingovation in honor of their performance. Thanks for your leadership, Millie Fields.
On February 14, 2009 the speech team earned another—12th in a row—regional championship. Beth Randolph, thanks for your leadership!
On February 21, 2009 the band students earned many honors. Forty-nine students earned 156 distinguished ratings and 16 earned 21 proficient ratings. In the 81 events, 71 were judged distinguished and 10 proficient. Thanks for your leadership, Robin Barker.
On that same Saturday, 18 parents were at SCAPA measuring and labeling costumes. They worked from 9:00am until 5:00pm. JoAnne Sykes served her special cuisine. All had a good time working together toward the same goal.
Tonight “Mill Girls” opens to the public. I can’t wait to watch our drama majors take the stage and make a story come alive. Thanks for your leadership, Paul Thomas.
During all of our arts performances, the middle school and intermediate academic teachers serve as the thread that runs so true. As they adapt and flex their plans to fit the students’ individual and arts needs, a theme of excellence shines over and over. They know how to motivate students to do what they need to do.
I am looking forward to this weekend as our mathletes and chess club compete in district and state tournaments. SCAPA is a wonderful place to live and learn! Join us in that wonder!
Keep the Arts in our Hearts.
Sincerely,
Marilynn Cunningham, Principal
If you need help as a parent, remember, I am an email (marilynn.cunningham@fayette.kyschools.us) or phone call (859) 381-3332 away. Don’t hesitate to contact me. If we work together, it offers a structure within which your student may accomplish great things.
Lafayette
Letter from Vicki Ritchie
Dear Friends of the Arts,
Dance SCAPA was phenomenal! Our students are so talented and exhibit such joy when they are performing. Also, many of our musicians performed very well at the KMEA conference. Mr. Marsh’s Madrigal singers performed for the faculty last week and we were blown away!
Please remember testing is right around the corner. March 10 is ACT day for juniors, with the freshmen and sophomores also taking ACT practice tests. Seniors need to have their shadowing forms turned in for that day. Senior portfolios will be due next month. Seniors should be to the point that the editing process is well under way. Spring testing for KCCT is April 20-24. Please mark your calendars!
Happy spring,
Sincerely,
Vicki Ritchie
(Please check the SCAPA website regularly for updates)
- Thursday, February 26-Saturday, February 28, Mill Girls, Downtown Arts Center
- Saturday, February 28, Vocal Solo and Ensemble Festival, Scott County.
- Thursday, March 5, Joint Concert with Lafayette Symphonic Band and Tates Creek Concert Band
- Thursday, March 5-Sunday, March 8, Lafayette Chorus Trip, Chicago , IL
- Friday, March 6, Snow make-up day, There will be school on this day!
- Friday, March 6-Sunday, March 8, 8th Grade Trip to Atlanta
- Tuesday, March 10, 7pm, Fayette County Elementary Choral Festival, Singletary Center
- Thursday, March 12, 6:00pm, Strings KMEA Preview Concert, MPR
- Saturday, March 14, KMEA High School Choir Contest, Scott County High School
- Monday, March 16, 9:00am, Strings KMEA Assessment, Singletary Center
- Monday, March 16, 6:00pm, FOAS Meeting, Bluegrass SCAPA Library (Note this is a change in day and time for this meeting.)
- Thursday, March 19, 1pm, KMEA Band Assessment, Singletary Center
- Friday, March 20, 9:15-11:30am, Bluegrass SCAPA dancers to see Dance Theatre of Harlem, Lexington Opera House
- Tuesday, March 24, 5th Grade String Day, UK Student Center
- Wednesday, March 25, KMEA Vocal Assessment, Singletary Center
- Wednesday, March 25, Lafayette Percussion Ensemble Concert
- Thursday, March 26-Saturday, March 28, Fiddler on the Roof, Lexington Opera House
- Friday, March 27, 10am, Bluegrass SCAPA attending Fiddler on the Roof
- Friday, March 27, 1:55-2:50pm, Middle School ABS Celebration
- Monday, March 30-Friday, April 3, Spring Break
- Monday, April 6 – Friday, April 10, Bluegrass SCAPA Book Fair, Library
- Friday, April 10, 6:30pm, Vocal Recital, MPR
- Friday, April 17, 5-8pm, Art Lease at the Gallery Hop, Downtown Arts Center Black Box Theatre
- Sunday, April 19, 1:30-4pm, Bluegrass SCAPA Speech Team Banquet, Sal’s Restaurant
- Tuesday, April 21, 6:30pm, FOAS Meeting, Bluegrass SCAPA Library
- Friday, April 24, 6:30pm, Vocal Concert, MPR
- Friday, April 24 and Saturday, April 25, High School Concert Band Festival, Scott County High School
- Tuesday, April 28-Thursday, April 30, Lafayette Band Auditions
- Thursday, April 30, 6:30pm, Elementary Band/Strings Concert, MPR
Fiddler on the Roof
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Travel to Anatevka and allow Tevye, the milkman, to give you a guided tour of the village and its residents. Watch as he struggles to balance his family and religious traditions with the growing pressure of modern influences. Faced with the strong wills of his three eldest daughters and the constant threat of the Tsar, Tevye seeks to respond to these challenges in ways that are compatible with his faith. However, he finds himself, in most cases, being led by his heart. Book by Joseph Stein |
Public Performances
- Thursday, March 26 - 7:00pm
- Friday, March 27 - 8:00pm
- Saturday, March 28 - 2:00pm and 8:00pm
Tickets for performances at the Lexington Opera House are $10/student and $12.00/adult in advance and $1.00/ticket more at the door. These can be reserved by calling 233-3535 or purchasing directly from the Lexington Center Box Office, 430 W. Vine Street.
Our Lincoln Performance
On February 2, 2009, several SCAPA students sang with the Lexington Singers Children's Chamber Choir in Washington, DC at the Kennedy Center. They performed "Our Lincoln" along with the University of Kentucky Symphony Orchestra, The Lexington Singers, The American Spiritual Ensemble, The Lexington Vintage Dance Society, and the University of Kentucky Opera Theater along with other Kentucky individuals.
Students participating were: Holly Bennett, Kurtis Brown, Sydney Cubit, Hunter England, Hannah Hetzel-Ebben, Isaac Hines-Williams, Miranda Holm-Hudson, Adrienne Omelchenko, Christina Villaflor, and Despina Wilson
The King and I
Paragon Musical Theatre's production of "The King and I"!
CATS Testing
SCAPA in 4th of July Parade
Believe it or not the 4th of July Parade is just around the corner. I will be glad to do just what we did last year and have SCAPA students, parents, teachers, staff, etc. meet as a group and march in the parade with our banner handing out flyers and candy. However, if there are parents who want a more significant presence, such as a float or truck, I NEED HELP! If there is anyone interested in assisting in this effort I would deeply appreciate it. Please contact me at carolyn.tieman@fayette.kyschools.us or 381-3332 ext. 1102.
ArtStamps Fundraiser
The University of Kentucky Staff Senate is proud to sponsor another ArtStamps fundraiser for DanceBlue. DanceBlue is a student-run, 24-hour no sleeping, no sitting dance marathon that benefits the Pediatric Oncology Clinic at UK by providing funding for kids with cancer and research.
ArtStamps is partnering with us by turning children’s artwork into official U.S. postage and other memorabilia for purchase. It is our honor to feature artwork from Lexington ’s own School for the Creative and Performing Arts at Bluegrass (SCAPA) this semester.
Please visit our website at http://www.uky.edu/staffsenate and under “What’s Happening” click to view and purchase the artwork so skillfully created by students, as a service project for this worthy cause. The deadline to order is March 18, as donations are still accepted after DanceBlue ends.
Help us in helping students make a difference in the lives of Kentucky ’s children; ArtStamps donates 20% of the orders to DanceBlue. We appreciate your support, and we look forward to another successful marathon next week.
Friends of the Arts School (FOAS) Meetings
Mark you calendars for the meeting dates in 2008-09:
- August 19 - Meeting Minutes
- September 16 - Meeting Minutes
- October 21 - Meeting Minutes
- November 18 - Meeting Minutes
December 16- Cancelled- January 20 - Meeting Minutes
- February 17 - Meeting Minutes New
March 17- Rescheduled March 16, 6pm in the Library- April 21
- May 19
Bluegrass SCAPA Celebrates with Young at Heart Band
On Friday, February 13 Bluegrass SCAPA was once again treated to the swinging sound of the Young at Heart Band during lunch. This is the kind of music that makes you want to get up and dance. How fortunate we are to be in a school where you can do just that! Next year we plan to invite some dance instructors from Vintage Dancers to come and give the students lessons before the band returns on February 12, 2010. Mark your calendar! This is becoming a SCAPA tradition that you won't want to miss!
Junior SCAPA Voice Major
Gabrielle Barker a junior SCAPA voice major was recognized at the FCPS board meeting for placing 2nd & winning audience favorite at the William Schmidt Youth Vocal Competition held at U.K. this past October. Gabrielle received a standing ovation from the board and audience after singing, Puccini's, "O mio babbino caro," and "Home," by Maury Yeston, two selections from the competition. Gabrielle is a student of Joanna McCarty Rogers.
This section is reserved for recognizing accomplishments by SCAPA students, parents, faculty and staff. Please send arts accomplishments to Melissa Frank (melissa@melissavoiceover.com), academic accomplishments to Beth Poulton (bpoulton@insightbb.com) and anything else to Carolyn Waterbury-Tieman (carolyn.tieman@fayette.kyschools.us). Space limitations will determine how many we can include in any given month.
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SCAPA Student Wins Flute Competition(Lexington, KY) Local SCAPA Bluegrass eighth grader Chloe McIntosh, daughter of Stuart and Tracy McIntosh, is the middle school winner of the first annual Les Smart Flute Scholarship Competition, administered by the Flute Symphony of Lexington. The winner of the high school level was Cincinnati student Casey Clyde. The competition, which attracted dozens of students from as far away as Louisiana, culminated with the top six competitors playing at Centenary United Methodist Church Saturday. Dr. Kristen Kean, flute professor at Eastern Kentucky University, judged the competition. In the middle school category Carrie Baldwin, SCAPA Bluegrass, was the second place winner. Baldwin is the daughter of Jill and Doug Baldwin of Lexington. In the high school category Sarah Smith, Paul Lawrence Dunbar, was the second place winner. Smith is the daughter of Teresa and Gerald Smith of Lexington. McIntosh and Clyde will perform as featured soloists with the Flute Symphony of Lexington on Sunday, March 22, at 7 p.m. at Centenary United Methodist Church on Tates Creek Road. The public is invited to attend this free concert.
Lexus Eco ChallengeA group of six, 8th grade SCAPA students was chosen as one of 16 national winning teams for the Air/Climate competition of the Lexus Eco Challenge. To meet the requirements of a project for science class, the team designed and implemented a school-wide campaign to encourage people to switch from using disposable water bottles to more environmentally-friendly reusable aluminum water bottles. The team then used the results from their class project to enter the Lexus Eco Challenge.
Fayette County District Science FairOn Saturday, February 7th, 13 SCAPA students had projects entered in the Fayette County district science fair. The following students earned awards: 4th Grade
7th Grade
Each of these students is scheduled to participate in the Central Kentucky Regional Science and Engineering Fair held at UK on Saturday, March 7. I am so proud of each one, and am looking forward to continued success for our students as they compete against the best 4th grade projects from 32 other counties in Central Kentucky. Their projects are awesome! |
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Submit information to Beth Poulton (bpoulton@insightbb.com)
Middle School Science
Ms. Randolph’s Classroom
Check out our classroom website that lists the weekly spelling words. This might come in handy if the book or pretest is accidentally left at home the night before the test.
Submit information to Melissa Frank (melissa@melissavoiceover.com)
Bluegrass
Art - No submission this month
Band
Creative Writing - No submission this monthh
Drama - No submission this month
Dance - No submission this month
Strings
In February, Nancy Campbell and the Strings Majors hosted two video conference events with SCAPA Middle School Orchestra, Lafayette Symphony Orchestra and FCPS Technology. Tammy Franks is posting an article on Stu's News about the collaboration. The students had a positive experience working with Grigory Kalinovsky, world class violinist and master teacher at the Manhattan School of Music. We performed selections from our upcoming assessment and performance on March 12 and received valuable feedback. We look forward to similar events in the future. How fortunate we are to have such innovative teachers at SCAPA who are always looking for ways to enhance the learning experience of our students!
Our KMEA Preview recital and Café Quintet project will be held on Thursday, March 12 at 6:00 in the Multipurpose Room. We will perform our ensembles for strings and pianos, our music for assessment “Rhosymedre” by Ralph Vaughan-Williams and “Danza” by Vaclav Nelhybel. In addition we will perform Richard Meyer’s “Fantasia on a Theme from Thailand.” We have an afterschool rehearsal schedule for Monday, March 2 from 4:00 to 5:00.
Our KMEA assessment event is on Monday, March 16 at the Singletary Center for the Arts. Our performance will take place at 9:20 a.m. in the Concert Hall.
Fifth grade orchestra students and Elementary Strings majors will be attending String Day at the University of Kentucky Student Center on Tuesday, March 24.
The Elementary Strings & Band Concert is scheduled for Thursday, April 30 in the SCAPA Multipurpose Room.
Vocal - No submission this month
Visual Arts
Mary Ellen Fortney, creator of M.Ellen designs, visited the SCAPA Bluegrass 8th grade class on Friday, February 20th. She inspired many of our classmates by telling us about how she planned her own greeting card company. She was a former SCAPA student, majoring in Dance and minoring in Art. Now, she works at Wall Street Greetings (a company that specializes in cards based on stocks and bonds) and her own company, M.Ellen Designs.
~By Joseph Wrightson and Miranda Holm-Hudson
Video Production - No submission this month
Lafayette
Drama - No submission this month
Strings - No submission this month
Band
Vocal - No submission this month
Submit information to Beth Poulton (bpoulton@insightbb.com)
Bluegrass
- No submission this month
Lafayette
- No submission this month
Submit information to Carolyn Waterbury-Tieman (carolyn.tieman@fayette.kyschools.us)
Inspiration For All Of Us
There are times when the important things you want to say have already been said better by someone else. That is the case for my column this month.
A week or so ago I received an email from Nancy Campbell that had been forwarded by her student teacher, John Bush. The message encouraged me to read, in its entirety, an address delivered to the freshman class of The Boston Conservatory by Karl Paulnack. (Mr. Paulnack is a pianist and currently the Director of Music Division at Boston Conservatory.) I was moved to tears by his words – his story. It was one of the most touching, insightful pieces I have read.
Mr. Paulnack’s message is a message to parents of artists – to us. While he primarily refers to music, as that is his art form, it is clear that he is speaking of the arts in general. Art is essential. Participation in creating art and experiencing art created by others has the power to change us.
Please take the time to read the following in its entirety. You owe it to yourself and your artists. Enjoy!
- Karl Paulnack address to freshman class The Boston Conservatory
Prior to her role as SCAPA Arts Facilitator, Carolyn Waterbury-Tieman was a Parent/Family Life Educator and licensed Marriage and Family Therapist. She was the author of The Parents’ Toolbox for The Lexington Family Magazine as well as Pastoral Parenting for the Church of the Resurrection newsletter.
Please be aware that a records check is required in order to participate in volunteer activities in the Fayette County School system.