linwood holton governor’s school
TRANSCRIPT
ALHGS Newsletter ~ 1 ~
As we all enjoy the beautiful spring weather and begin to anticipate the
end of another school year, I am happy to report that 2012 – 2013 has been
another very successful year for us here at HGS. It has been our privilege
to serve 276 students this year from the 16 school systems with whom we
partner. These students have collectively earned over 2,000 college credits
and successfully taken a big step toward preparing themselves for college
and their chosen careers. We here at HGS are very gratified to be able to
assist our partnering school systems and these students in accomplishing
this important first step.
We are also excited to report that we will be welcoming two new adjunct
faculty members and offering two entirely new courses in 2013 – 2014.
Mrs. Dominique Locke will be offering Creative Writing this next school
year, a course that we have wanted to offer for some time and one that
promises to be a very interesting learning opportunity for students with a
literary flair and perhaps a desire to follow this passion into one of the
many careers where writing is showcased. Students in this course will
learn to creatively express themselves in a variety of styles and to leave
with folders and perhaps published material that will greatly enhance their
professional portfolio. We expect this course to be a very popular one.
Our second new course will be Environmental Science, taught by Mrs.
Julie Reimer. Recognizing the many exciting and lucrative job
opportunities in this field caused us to search for some time for just the
right person to teach our course. We are now happy to announce that we
have found her. Mrs. Reimer has an extensive background in
environmental science and will guide our course, which will address
necessary general principles but focus on the uniqueness of our
Appalachian Environment. Mrs. Reimer’s many hours of hiking and
camping in the remote areas of our region will enable her to include these
Appalachian treasures and guarantee our class is both relevant and very
interesting. We also anticipate this course to be well received by our
students.
Both of these courses have been outlined in detail with partnering
Guidance Counselors who can assist interested students in including them
in their schedules for the coming year. Students are encouraged to sign up
soon to guarantee their spot in these exciting classes.
Danny Dixon
Linwood Holton Governor’s School
Director’s News
P.O. Box 1987
One Partnership Drive
Abingdon, VA 24212
Phone:
(276) 619-4326
Fax:
(276) 619-4328
E-mail:
www.hgs.k12.va.us Virginia’s First Virtual Governor’s School
Spring 2013 Newsletter
Contents
Director’s News 1
Dominique Traverse Locke 2
Julie Reimer 3
History Field Trip Reflections 4
Potential Exoplanet! 5
Anatomy & Physiology 7
Advanced Multimedia 8
P&S Gets Naked 9
EM&CP Update 10
Supporters across the Region 11
Our Mission 12
ALHGS Newsletter ~ 2 ~
Dominique Traverse Locke received her B.A. in English from Virginia
Intermont College where she served as editor of the college’s literary
magazine and ran Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field. She received her
M.F.A. in Creative Writing from Queens University of Charlotte. She
has been publishing work in literary magazines such as The Sow’s Ear
Poetry Review, Barely South Review, Pine Mountain Sand & Gravel,
The Howl, The Clinch Mountain Review, The Dead Mule, and other fine
publications regularly since 2006. Two of her manuscripts were finalists
in the Press 53 Open Awards, one of which won the poetry category. Her
poem, “Thumb,” was a finalist in the STILL: The Journal Literary
Contests. Additionally, her poem “By Late July” was nominated for a
Pushcart Prize. Dominique’s first collection of poems, a chapbook
entitled The Goodbye Child, was published by Aldrich Press in late
spring of 2012. Also, in 2012, her first full-length collection of poems,
No More Hard Times, was published by Alabaster Leaves Publishing.
Dominique is a member of the Appalachian Authors Guild and the
Virginia Writers Club. She currently coaches, and teaches Advanced
Placement English, British Literature, and Journalism at Twin Valley
High School.
Dominique will be teaching one of our newest courses, Creative Writing.
Sign up today!
Creative Writing I & II ENG-211 / ENG-212 (3/3)
ENG 211 - Creative Writing I
Introduces the student to the fundamentals of writing imaginatively. Students write in forms to be selected from
poetry, fiction, drama, and essays.
3 credits
ENG 212 - Creative Writing II
Introduces the student to the fundamentals of writing imaginatively. Students write in forms to be selected from
poetry, fiction, drama, and essays.
3 credits
ALHGS Newsletter ~ 3 ~
Julie Reimer grew up outside Charlottesville, Virginia, and received
her B.S. degree from Virginia Tech with a major in Biology and a
minor in Chemistry. She worked as a chemical analyst at an
environmental testing laboratory for two years before returning to
school to gain teacher licensure. She taught Environmental Science and
Chemistry at Chilhowie High School for 9 years, where she also
enjoyed coaching the Envirothon team. In 2012, she left CHS to
complete her M.S. degree in Crop and Soil Environmental Sciences at
Virginia Tech. Mrs. Reimer has always enjoyed spending time
outdoors hiking, camping, backpacking, canoeing, and horseback
riding. Currently living on a farm in Marion with her husband and their
pets and livestock, she enjoys learning about and practicing sustainable
agriculture. She is looking forward to sharing her love of nature and
her knowledge of environmental science with her students at the
Governor's School.
Julie will be teaching one of our newest courses, Environmental
Science and Related Problems. Sign up today!
Environmental Science and Related Problems I & II ENV-100 / ENV-220 (3/3)
This course will place emphasis on the unique Appalachian environment and its challenges.
ENV 100 – Basic Environmental Science
Presents and discusses basic scientific, health-related, ethical, economic, social and political aspects of
environmental activities, policies/decisions. Emphasizes the multidisciplinary nature of environmental problems
and their potential solutions.
3 credits
ENV 220 - Environmental Problems
Studies the relationship of man to his environment; ecological principles, population dynamics, topics of current
importance including air, water, and noise pollution; poisoning and toxicity, radiation, conservation and
management of natural resources.
3 credits
ALHGS Newsletter ~ 4 ~
The A. Linwood Holton Governor’s School 2012-2013 History Field Trip was April 12-13, 2013. Thirty-two students
from five counties in the ALHGS service area participated in the trip. The historic museums and sites visited were the
Frontier Culture Museum at Staunton, VA, the Wolf Creek Indian Village at Bastian, VA and the Beckley Exhibition
Mine at Beckley, WV.
The Frontier Culture Museum is a perennial favorite of ALHGS students. This outdoor
museum consists of restored buildings, transplanted from Germany, Ireland and England to
illustrate the various European cultures carried into the Valley of Virginia by settlers in the
colonial era. A reconstructed African village documents the contributions of slaves to the
colonial world as well. There are also restored cabins and houses from across the Valley of
Virginia, circa 1750 to 1850, to show how the various Old World cultural traditions
influenced the New World. The observations of Ashleigh Keen, a student from Twin Valley
High School, Buchanan County, best summarized the impact of this outdoor museum. The
Frontier Culture Museum’s exhibits “showed how each culture had a different way of doing
things when they came to America and they showed how the cultures adopted each other’s
ways of life,” she wrote of the trip. “They made sure that each person understood how hard
it was for each of the cultures that moved here to survive in this new and very strange land,
but they also showed how they adopted new ways to help them survive in this new country.”
Wolf Creek, a reconstructed Pre-Columbian village, was also a success with
the students, showing them the vast history of our region. While this site was
visited early in the day with a chill closer to winter than spring in the air, Wolf
Creek engendered a greater understanding of the aboriginal peoples who lived
here in the 15th
century.
The Beckley Exhibition Mine was a working mine in the early-twentieth
century. It is now open for tours, with coal-miners as guides. In addition to
the mine, various buildings from coal camps in southern West Virginia have
been relocated to the mine site and
restored to their appropriate
chronological period. Of all the sites
visited on this trip, the Mine provoked
the greatest amount of discussion among the participating students. George
Saado, a student from Clintwood High School, Dickenson County, offered one of the best comments on the Beckley
Mine. “The Beckley Exhibition Coal Mine in West Virginia provided for a great
adventure. I have always been curious as to what really goes on inside the mines,
and this site quenched my curiosity. The fact that Dickenson County thrives off the
coal industry provided an excuse for me to indulge in what the Beckley Mine had to
offer. We have a prime example of what was once a coal camp community and
Trammel, and it was intriguing to see the contents of these establishments.”
Plans are underway for the 2013-2014 History Field Trip.
There are plans to incorporate the National D-Day Memorial
and Thomas Jefferson’s Poplar Forest into the trip. “We are
blessed with so many excellent historic sites and museums in
the region, that it is always a challenge to create a field trip
itinerary,” observed Mark Hagy, ALHGS History Instructor.
“It is my goal to return to both the Frontier Culture Museum
and to the Beckley Mine with future students. Hopefully, we
can include all of these excellent sites.”
by Course Instructor, Mark Rogers Hagy
“…this site quenched my curiosity.”
ALHGS Newsletter ~ 5 ~
By course instructor, Dr. Steve Rapp
In the fall of 2012 students in Dr. Rapp’s astronomy class became planet hunters, looking for alien worlds outside our
own solar system. They collected about 70 sets of data with each set having about 50 images and they came up with
results for each data set. Shown in table 1 are typical results per observation.
Name Area Mean Total Brightness Min Max
TRES3 8:27 60 85 5142 46 571
Compare 1 8:27 60 84 5056 46 434
Compare 2 8:27 60 89 5355 46 645
Background 1 8:27 60 47 2857 45 51
Background 2 8:27 60 48 2889 46 52
Table 1
Students used a telescope in the Arizona desert that they controlled remotely using their computers. The telescope is
provided by NASA and the Harvard Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics. They
took images of stars thought to be orbited by planets, sort of an “alien” solar system
that may be similar to our solar system. A photo of the Micro-Observatory
telescope is shown in figure 1.
The students eventually zeroed in on a star system called “TRES3.” The system is
estimated to be about 1300 light years away from us and is found in the
constellation Hercules. The transit detection method is one of the most important
ways to find planets in other star systems — and it’s the one students used.
However, it only works when the orbit of the alien planet happens to be aligned just
right, with respect to our line of sight. They did some computer modeling on transit
light curves by plotting time on the x-axis and brightness of the star on the y-axis as
shown in figure 2. The dip in the graph is an indicator that an alien planet has
passed in front of the star.
Figure 1
Figure 2
ALHGS Newsletter ~ 6 ~
All data was posted online at http://www.cfa.harvard.edu/smgphp/otherworlds/index.php. Figure 3 below shows the
student data for the TRES3 star system. Each dot represents an observation.
Figure 3
A characteristic V shape (orange line) turns up in the data when a best fit line is superimposed on the graphed data.
Frank Steinwitz of the Harvard Smithsonian Institute said, “Dr. Rapp, I think your students are on to something here. I
think they may have zeroed in on an alien world. I will have to check it out more thoroughly.”
Students used a telescope in the
Arizona desert that they controlled
remotely using their computers.
ALHGS Newsletter ~ 7 ~
Mrs. Smith and Scottie Hurley
WOW! We thought winter would never be over and all of a sudden it is the end of 2nd
semester and I am losing some
wonderful seniors to colleges all over the nation. This truly has been an amazing year with exceptional students whose
futures are all planned. Now, all they have to do is get there. I am proud to be sending some of my best ever on to some
very fine institutions of higher learning.
Anatomy and Physiology students have mastered several hundred Greek and Latin terms. They have turned their
kitchens at home into experimental laboratories. They now know they are digesting popcorn even before they buy it at
the movie theater. They realize that studying this course a little each day is better than cramming the night before a test.
Most importantly most feel they are equipped to assist a medical professional if the need should ever arise.
All Anatomy classes have had very educational fieldtrip experiences this year. In the fall 2 classes went to Eastern
Virginia Medical School in Norfolk, Virginia. As always we were allowed to examine almost every area of the program
there. Students now have at least 15 cadavers they became acquainted with, they have had experience doing physical
examinations on medically prepared actors, and their knowledge of pathology and forensics has spiked much curiosity in
those two fields. We did take a trip to the Atlantic Ocean and Tidewater Community College invited us to their
planetarium. We watched a show that explained the first forms of life. The students asked many questions mostly about
how the planetarium works.
Two other classes visited and toured the Virginia College of Osteopathic
Medicine in Blacksburg, Virginia in March. The students and I were thrilled
when Scottie Hurley, a former student of mine from Hurley High School, talked
to us about his experiences in his first year of medical school. He informed the
students how he knew he wanted to be a physician, his thought processes in
knowing he was prepared to go to medical school, and he explained the very
demanding schedule of a first year medical student. He did assure us that he
made time for himself too. He told the students that they could do it too and
after Mrs. Smith’s Bio-141/142 class, they wouldn’t have a problem. All
students were interested to learn that the study of osteopathic medicine actually
began in Lee County, Virginia.
Anatomy students participated in a shadowing period of time with a medical
professional. Many were able to observe surgeries. Gall bladder, tonsillectomy, broken
bones set, and even live births were witnessed by some. Others were in awe of experiencing patient/doctor
communications and actually seeing how a medical practice operates.
Many students participated in a volunteering capacity in a
medical setting. They spent time helping in nursing homes,
rescue and fire squads, blood banks, hospitals, home health
settings, doctor’s offices, and health screenings. The feedback
from these projects has been amazing and the professionals in
our communities were very generous in allowing students to
ask questions and be involved.
As I look back on A. Linwood Holton Governor School’s 14th
year I see how our “Virtual Classroom” is making an impact on
Southwest Virginia as well as our country. We are preparing
future medical professionals and scientists and it is so
rewarding for me to see how successful they are. I am already
looking forward to the bright students of the 2013-2014 school
year. ~ Karen Webb Smith
Chilhowie High students expertly prepared for their trip.
ALHGS Newsletter ~ 8 ~
This Spring in
Advanced Multimedia Applications (AMA)
This Spring AMA has offered many
opportunities to our students to use their acquired
media creation skills. The idea of the course is that
our AMA students gain experience in using all of
the elements of multimedia from text to video to
animation. The point of multimedia is
communication and problem solving. The
"problems" vary. For example, if we want to
inform an audience about a specific situation, then
the "problem" might how do we convey this
message in the most effective way? The answer--
use multimedia.
The first
step: create a
storyboard.
This is
considered
the
planning
stage. Planning is essential for success in whatever
we are trying to accomplish, so having to create a
storyboard helps cement the concept of failing to
plan = planning to fail.
The next step our students learn is to create and
collect the assets (the
images, videos, music,
animations) they will
want to use in their
multimedia presentation.
What is exciting is
that our AMA students
now have the skills to
create their own assets.
They can create and edit their own images, videos,
animations and audio. This image on the left, of
the USA, is a creation of Deeanna Luchini from
John Battle HS. It is the US filled with cell
phones that she
created to inform
viewers of the
problem with cell
phones filling up the
landfills.
This infographic to
the right was created by
Tiffany Bright of Rye Cove
HS to inform viewers of
sexual assault statistics in
America.
Using Audacity
AMA students are
able to import,
record and edit their
own audio files to add to the presentation.
Completed asset
folders are then
skillfully pulled
together into a single
multimedia
presentation that
hopefully solves the
problem of how to communicate the message in
the best possible way.
To be able to create is very freeing for our
students because they no longer need to rely on the
creativity of others to convey their messages with
strength and clarity. Our students
will never outgrow the need to be
creative problem solvers. I have
enjoyed so much working with this
group of talented teachers and
talented students. I hope all have a safe and happy
summer.
ALHGS Newsletter ~ 9 ~
Yes, that’s right. The Governor’s School’s Probability & Statistics class curriculum has received a make-over with one
of the first steps being to get naked, Naked Statistics that is, the besting selling book by Charles Wheelan. This popular
book, to be used in the course beginning fall 2013, helps explain the why in an easy to read conversational style. With
probability and statistics used in everything from DNA testing, recommending items to web customers on sites such as
Amazon’s, to helping to finding a cure for cancer, when learning the easy mechanics of application, students often lose
sight of “why” it is important. This book will be used beginning this fall of 2013 to not only help fill this void but also to
show the many uses and abuses of statistics.
Want more exciting changes? Video presentations by leading experts in the
field will also be available to students to aid in their understanding. While it
can be interesting to read how, for example, a political poll or drug
affectivity study should be conducted, it is a better experience to hear from a
practicing expert in the field how it really is done.
That’s not all that is new. Beginning in the fall term, students will also have
access to a Q&A web site where they can ask and get answers to class
related questions 24/7. This site not only allows students to get answers
between class sessions,
with this software
product also being
used by many major
universities, students
get the answers they
want when they need
them and learn the
tools they will be
required to use in their college careers.
Want more resources for student success? The class now
incorporates an on-line lab component as well as an on-line
“textbook”, featuring video examples and skill enhancing
exercises.
Beyond all the new books, new videos, new instruction methods, and new on-line resources is probably the best new
course feature for Probability & Statistics students: The Governor’s School’s Center for Computation and Applied
Mathematics, which has been in development for several years. The Center is a tool for students through which they can
archive their work for the region and, more importantly, work with area companies to gain real work experience and be
part of the exciting field of statistics. Beginning this fall, exceptionally well qualified students will be given the
opportunity to perform analysis for a local consulting firm in the area of material fatigue. According to the course
instructor, Dr. Norton, “This is a great opportunity for students to take what they learn and apply it to real world data
sets, to learn about the difficulties outside of the textbook world, and experience the time and money constraints they
will encounter throughout their professional careers. There
will also be the potential for students to participate in
technical conference presentations and have their work
published in pier reviewed journals. The experience they
gain will carry over to whatever field they pursue in their
academic career giving them a significant advantage among
their peers.”
Beginning this fall, exceptionally well
qualified students will be given the
opportunity to perform analysis for a
local consulting firm in the area of
material fatigue.
Anatomy & Physiology Students:
With probability and statistics used in
everything from DNA testing, to helping
find a cure for cancer, this course would be
most beneficial to your career.
ALHGS Newsletter ~ 10 ~
Almost all pundits forecast that probability and statistics will be one of the top 10 job fields over the coming decade,
with needs - and high salaries - in almost all fields: medical arts, marketing, at policy institutes, environmental impact
modeling, meteorology, choir director ….just to name a few. Statistics will have a determining influence in sports, not
just player statistics but the way the games are played, with the major play changes over the coming decade in football
based on work by statisticians and their safety and risk assessments.
So if you plan to one day be in the job market, or just want to be able to “get along” in everyday life, then Probability &
Statistics is a must have course for you. Probability & Statistics is offered for both block schedule and academic year
schedule students. Have questions or want more information? Please contact the instructor (Dr. Bruce Norton:
[email protected]) or Governor’s School Abingdon Office. We will be happy to assist you in the start of your
journey in this exciting topic. See you this fall of 2013!
As another year draws to an end, students are completing their projects, from a re-envision of the classic arcade game
to an adventure game in the tradition of the classic computer game . Check out the course web site
over the summer as students’ work is showcased. Want to be able to create your computer video game? Engineering
Methods and Computer Programming is offered for both block and academic year schedule students.
Almost all pundits forecast that probability and
statistics will be one of the top 10 job fields
over the coming decade, with needs—and high
salaries—in almost all fields: medical arts,
marketing, at policy institutes, environmental
impact modeling, meteorology, choir director
….just to name a few.
ALHGS Newsletter ~ 11 ~
Mr. Willie Sullivan.......................... Buchanan County
Ms. Beth Rhinehart ......................... Bristol City
Mr. Steve Childers .......................... Norton City
Mr. John Skeen ............................... Dickenson County
Mr. Kyle Chadwell .......................... Lee County
Ms. Linda Cross .............................. Russell County
Mr. Jeff Kegley ............................... Scott County
Ms. Susan Sneed ............................. Smyth County
Mr. David Woodard ........................ Tazewell County
Ms. Elizabeth Lowe ........................ Washington County
Ms. Betty Cornett ............................ Wise County
Ms. Haydee Robinson ..................... Superintendent’s Representative
Dr. Michael Robinson ..................... Superintendent’s Consortium of Region VII
Ms. Rita Street................................. Administrator, Russell County
Ms. Ruby Rogers............................. Administrator, Scott County
Mr. Gary “Bo” Catron ..................... Administrator, Washington County
Ms. Pat Farmer ................................ Guidance Counselor, Washington County
Ms. Debra Gilly............................... Governor’s School Facilitator, Wise County
To Our Supporters,
We truly thank you!
Advisory Committee Members
Governing Board Members
Participating
Schools
Participating
Colleges MOUNTAIN EMPIRE COMMUNITY COLLEGE
SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA COMMUNITY COLLEGE
VIRGINIA HIGHLANDS COMMUNITY COLLEGE
WYTHEVILLE COMMUNITY COLLEGE
Abingdon High
Bland High Carroll County High
Castlewood High Central High
Chilhowie High Clintwood High
Council High Eastside High
Fort Chiswell High Galax City High Gate City High
George Wythe High
Graham High Grayson County High
Grundy High Haysi High
Holston High Honaker High Hurley High
J.I. Burton High John Battle High
Lebanon High Lee High
Marion Senior High
Northwood High Patrick Henry High
Richlands High Rocky Gap High
Rural Retreat High Rye Cove High Tazewell High
Thomas Walker High Twin Springs High Twin Valley High
Union High Virginia High
ALHGS Newsletter ~ 12 ~
Is to provide challenging learning opportunities for the gifted &
talented students of far Southwest Virginia that are not available to
them in their regular school program.
We will accomplish this by strengthening their abilities and
nurturing their social and emotional well-being—through
mentoring, rigorous academic courses, service to the community,
and leadership training within an entrepreneurial culture that
encourages creativity, initiative, and problem solving.
W
e will accomplish this by strengthening their abilities and nurturing their social and emotional well being - through mentoring, rigorous academic courses, service to the community, and leadership training within an entrepreneurial culture that encourages creativity, initiative, and problem solving.
Find us on to discover more about upcoming events!
Or, simply use it as another avenue to just “keep in touch.”
We’re there and waiting…and remember…
we are already one of your biggest fans!
Check us out!