VIRTUAL SCHOOLHOUSE MISSION STATEMENT

Virtual Schoolhouse is designed to address the unique differences of students

in grades K12 who have special needs such as significant cognitive disabilities, severe emotional and/or academic challenges. Virtual Schoolhouse
provides a safe and caring environment where students are empowered to
develop the individualized life and academic skills and character necessary to
reach their full potential and rejoin their communities with success.
CONTENTS
Principals End of Year Summary, Dr. Kenneth Schmiesing............................2
Chuck Whitehill, VSH Board ............................................................................4
Mary M. Markle, Financial................................................................................5
Vivian Garfunkel, Special Education Department ............................................6
Dawn Shaffer, Teacher Licensure ...................................................................8
TITLE Programs ..............................................................................................9
Vivian Garfunkel, 21st Century ......................................................................11
Elementary Report.........................................................................................14
Middle School Report ....................................................................................19
High School Report........................................................................................23
In-Home Instruction, Malky Dym....................................................................29
School Security, Paul Burton .........................................................................32
Page 1 of 34

Ohio Revised Code (ORC) 3314.03(D)(2) specifies that the sponsor of the school must monitor and evaluate the academic and fiscal performance and the organization
and operation of the community school on at least an annual basis. In addition, under ORC 3314.03(D)(3), the sponsor must report on an annual basis the results of the
evaluation conducted under division (D)(2) of this section to the department of education and to the parents of students enrolled in the community school.

The Educational Service Center of Lake Erie West served as sponsor for Virtual Schoolhouse during the 2011-2012 school year. ESCLEW monitored the schools
academic and fiscal performance, as well as organization and operation of the school, and determined that the school was partially compliant.

20112012 End of the Year Report

Dr. Kenneth Schmiesing,
Head of School
Principal, Grades Kdg12
In response to our report card rating as a
school, one needs to look at all the information shared within that report card.
Although we have a score of academic
emergency based on the state indicators, we
are a school that serves 400 students,
including over 64% that are students with
disabilities. Our student/teacher ratio is 14:1.
This is quick evidence to illustrate our
individual attention to our student population.
A section of the District Report Card is
labeled as the Value-Added Measure. This section is much more pertinent to our
unique situation than any of the other statistics that are shared. The Value-Added
rating represents the progress our school has made with our students since the last
school year. Our students have met the Expected Growth level in 4th , 5th , 6th , 7th ,
and 8th grade Mathematics and have met the Expected Growth level in and have
scored at the Expected growth level in 4th , 5th , 6th , 7th , and 8th grade Reading. This
means that these students have achieved a year of progress in their classes.
As a parent of a special needs child, I am certainly going to look at the schools
performance in this area. If I am assured that my special needs child is going to
receive individual attention, and the school has a proven track record of showing
student growth for special needs students, what more proof is needed? Perhaps we
should take a look at the facility. We offer a state of the art special education wing.
This wing contains the facilities for three psychologists, two speech therapists, a
physical therapist, and an occupational therapist. We have many support people and
we also have the therapy rooms, which are huge, with all the apparatuses needed to
complete quality evaluations and offer the necessary therapies. We provide services
both in and out of the classroom, whichever is deemed best for the child.
Page 2 of 34

It is easy to look at the numbers given by the indicators, but be sure to do your
homework and find the deeper meaning to what is best for the education of your
child. You will like what you see. The Virtual Schoolhouse can do great things for
your child. You will be even more satisfied when your childs scores are moving in a
positive direction.
We offer a safe, caring educational alternative to our students and parents. Please visit
us to see our updated facilities. Our new parent resource room is set up through our
21st Century program to offer parents up to-date reading materials, an access to
technology, and a place to relax knowing that your child is being well cared for by
our Highly Qualified staff.
The 2011- 2012 School Year was highlighted by several events and also the addition
of key staff members who came aboard, and along with the current Virtual School
staff members gave their time and hearts to our students, our children. Our slogan this
past school year was We Love, We Share, We Care.
We were impressed by the students at the Kindergarten, 8th Grade, and Senior
Graduations. Our beautiful students were awesome at this years Senior Prom. We
had a great Science Fair, where the students displayed their projects. There were field
trips to the Science Center and the Zoo.
Thank you for choosing the Virtual Schoolhouse for your childs education. We are
proud of the accomplishments of our students and staff!

Page 3 of 34

Chuck Whitehill
President, VSH Board
On behalf of the board of directors, the teachers,
administrators and the staff, I want to thank all of the parents
and students for an amazing school year. It is with great
excitement that a new law passed which will enable Virtual
Schoolhouse to go back to its roots and offer blended
learning for the new school year. Virtual Schoolhouse was
the first charter school to offer this type of learning and we
are excited to once again offer this type of programming.

GEOGRAPHY FAIR AT VSH!

Page 4 of 34

20112012 Financial Report

Mary M. Markle, VSH Treasurer
The fiscal year for Charter Schools begins on July 1 of
each year. As of July 1, 2011 Virtual Schoolhouse had a
beginning cash balance of $72,956.99. During the year
receipts totaled $4,910,294.36 and expenditures were
$4,913,632.16. The ending cash balance on June 30,
2012 was $69,619.19.
The General Fund began the year with a $22,323.59 cash balance and ended the year
with a $166,277.69 cash balance. The revenues for this fund were $3,894,072.44 and
the expenditures were $3,750,118.34. The remaining monies were from Grant funds
and the Food Service program. Grant funds are restricted in use under the terms of
each grant. The major grant programs are Title I (for disadvantaged students);
IDEA-B (for special education students); 21st Century (for expanded learning
opportunities); and School Improvement Competitive Grant.
Accounting and payroll functions, under the
supervision of a treasurer, are contracted
through Charter School Specialists. Mary
Markle has served as the treasurer since
April, 2011.

Page 5 of 34

20112012 Special Education Year-End Report

Vivian Garfunkel, SPED Coordinator
.
It is with great pride that VSH has received 100% compliance when
audited by its sponsor ESC of Lake Erie West. Items of note: include:
streamlining the psychological/special education department which
addresses student referrals and evaluations, organizing the
documentation of IAT meetings, revising the schools special education
handbook, plus continuous professional development for all staff
members and new and improved student portfolios. Virtual Schoolhouse shows great
parent involvement as evidenced in the file review. The VSH staff does a fine job of
turning in student data for student evaluations and the ETR process. Finally, it must
be noted in student special ed. files, the measurable goals and objectives are well
written.
During the 20112012 school year, the Special Education Department at VSH has
successfully accomplished ongoing goal of Bridging the Disconnect. The
department instituted several new ways of collaborating with regular ed teachers.
Each intervention specialist gave the regular ed teacher a SPED packet which
contained the following: schedule of services, IEP at a glance, case manager contact
information, CST Teacher-Input form and other pertinent information. Special ed
case managers met with individual teachers on a monthly basis to review their
students progress. The entire staff received professional development in How to
provide accommodations and modification in the classroom. Collectively, the
department continued to be more visible in the classrooms, consulting with the
teachers, and completing tasks with a team approach. This year we also partook in the
SPED ratio grant study to determine appropriate teacher student ratios in resource
room settings. The department was granted an additional year to continue to study
and implement suggestions already made. As a result of our study, we have instituted
training in co-teaching and have begun using co-teaching models. The department
hopes to expand on this, using additional models based on Marilyn Friends work in
the coming school year.
Sped staff has become adept in record keeping, using data to drive instruction, using
IEP anywhere for IEP writing. Professional development in IEP writing was ongoing
all year and all SPED staff has become adept in writing compliant IEPs.
Professional Development and coaching in alternative assessment was ongoing as
well.
Page 6 of 34

This year we had one self-contained classroom teacher in the high school, one
resource room teacher and two para-professionals. In the middle school we had one
math intervention specialist and one reading specialist. In the upper elementary we
had one resource room teacher. In the lower elementary, we had a reading specialist
and math specialist and one para professional. A grid with students determination
and service needs is on file to ensure each student is receiving services dictated by the
IEP. Students received services in reading, writing, arithmetic, support for content
area subjects, and auxiliary services in speech, OT, and PT as per IEP.
The Special Ed staff has always had an open door policy for consultations within the
department office and via email.
One of the best ways we have included SPED students was through 21st Century after
school activities. Students participated in talent show, sports, ongoing reading and
math activities, art and preparation for state tests. It was a joy to see them excel in
areas other than academics and it impacted attendance and grades positively.

LITERACY NIGHT AT VSH

Page 7 of 34

20112012 Teacher Licensure

Year-End Report
Dawn Shaffer, LPDC Coordinator
The licensure office centered around the following Licensure issues
during this school year:

Reviewing resumes and licensure for new hires to begin the 20112012 school
year.
Transcript review for hiring substitute teachers
Orchestrating correct licensure for building subs
Reviewing and updating files for home tutors
Responsible for communicating with the Home School Administration as needed
Advising and preparing applications for licensure
Updating Five-Year License holders on their renewal process
Setting up and conducting IPDP meetings
Proctoring Para-Pro testing for the acquisition of required Educational Aide
Licensure
Advising staff on all licensure concerns and procedures
Attending ODE required trainings for mentoring
General transcript reviews for Alternative Licensure
Mentoring all Alternative Licensure holders and keeping updated on their
requirements and renewal
Conducted the 20112012 Transitional Mentoring Program
Reviewing files for informing VSH staff about pending licensure expiration.
Advising the Administration of all VSH Staff Licensure expiration dates
Updating all VSH 20112012 Tool Kit, HQT forms
Filing HQT forms
Creating HQT files for Principals, EMIS and Title Offices

Page 8 of 34

TITLE Programs
End of the Year Summary 20112012
Virtual Schoolhouse is a school-wide Title school. This is a federal program under the
auspices of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA). School-wide
programs form the centerpiece of the ESEAs vision, and are among the most
promising changes brought about by the Improving Americas Schools Act. Our
school-wide program uses Title funds to upgrade the schools entire education
program rather than targeting specific students to receive certain supplemental
educational services. In our school-wide status we consistently revise, strategize,
reform and develop our curriculum, our methods of instruction, the school climate,
parent engagement, professional development, and our overall plan to improve each
students education and work towards achieving high standards. VSH utilizes many
intervention methods to aid our educational design which positively impacts each
student, regardless of the level of intervention that is needed. We are committed to
both continuing short term and long term effective planning to carry out a very
beneficial school wide plan for our students and their families.
During the academic year of 20112012, the Title Department of VSH offered
individual and small group pull-out sessions where students were grouped by skill
ability in reading, math and written expression. We also offered Supplemental
Educational Services outside the regular scheduled school day to those students who
qualified and chose to take advantage of such an opportunity. Continuous data
collected indicated that progress was made in all areas. We will not be offering the
Supplemental Educational Services this next year, although we will be offering
services through our Title One and School Improvement Grant funds.
VSH also provided a three week summer reading program for elementary and middle
school students and a credit recovery program for students in grade 912. The
response was overwhelming. Students participated and made gains based on pre- and
post-assessment data we received. We anticipate providing a similar program this for
the summer of 2013.
In addition to curriculum-based assisted services, Virtual Schoolhouse maintained
services that address the emotional, social, and behavioral issues that students face on
a daily basis. Social workers, classroom aids, and security officers worked hard in an
effort to create a safe educational environment.

Page 9 of 34

Virtual Schoolhouse received the School Improvement Grant that will fund an
assistant principal position this year as well as the addition of two school
LSWs/guidance counselors and a family resource/truancy officer position. The money
is renewable each year for a total of four years and will help support our students in
ways we have not been able to in the past. We are excited to have added these four
key positions to assist our students and our families.
Virtual Schoolhouse also maintains a parent resource center that contains eight
computers for parents to utilize. Reading materials are also housed in this room and
other parent-friendly materials to assist parents with educating their children. The
parent resource center is an excellent first step for parents to get the needed resources
to help for their children.
In addition to new books, Virtual Schoolhouse will be implementing technology into
our programs. Two Smart Boards were purchased for teacher use in the classrooms as
well as projectors, cameras and video recorders. Staff will receive training on the new
technology and begin adding the new technology into the classroom curriculum.
As always, our professional development opportunities remained vast this year.
Teachers received opportunities to learn about variety of educational techniques that
can enhance the student learning experience. Response To Intervention, Differentiated Instruction, Formative Assessment, student portfolio creation, and classroom
management.
An additional component that was offered was Phonics for Literacy based on the
Wilson Reading Program, presented by Nicki Salfer. The Wilson Reading System
was created to provide students of all ages an organized, systematic, and sequential
phonics program that not only teaches decoding, but encoding as well. A student is
tested to discover at which level to begin Wilson instruction. After this, the student
must master each level completely before moving on. The program provides a multisensory experience for the student. A portfolio is provided and maintained to track
progress. Throughout the week teachers took part in hands-on training that included
role play and workshops as well as viewing videos and testimonials about the
program. The Wilson Reading System includes the Fundations program for K2.

Page 10 of 34

20112012 21st Century/Parent University

Year-End Report/Final Report
This year marked the end of our five year grant. It has been a
wonderful journey and offered students opportunities to improve
reading and math skills, develop the love for reading and
writing, improve student achievement on state tests, develop
social skills, participate in sports, drama, dance and music.
Through parent University students and parents were offered the opportunity to share
their educational and artistic abilities.
Highlights of year were:

Art show

Holiday fest

Black History Month activities

OAA/OGT Boot Camp

Talent show

Basketball

Weight Training

Service Learning

Ceramics
Amazin Me
Student council
Social skills/Social Thinking
Portfolio Exhibition Evening
Literacy evening for parents
Dance

and much, much more.

Throughout the year, program did not lose sight of improving academic skills in an
enjoyable format. Elementary division always s began with homework and read
aloud.
Middle school included OAA boot camp, writing and publishing into its daily lesson
plans. High school students involved in sports and cheerleading had to spend
minimum one period per week catching up on academics and maintaining a passing
grade acume.
21st Century is a wonderful after school experience and has enhanced many of our
students lives by allowing them to shine in both academic and artistic areas. We
hope to reapply for the next school year.

Page 11 of 34

20112012 21st Century Year-End Report

The 21st Century program at VSH is very, very active and
varied. The schedules show the many activities offered, but
cant begin to convey the learning and fun!

ELEMENTARY KDG5
DAY

TEACHER

MONDAY
THURSDAY

STAFF

ACTIVITY
READING, M ATH ENRICHMENT,
HOMEWORK HELP, COMPUTER WORK
TO ENHANCE LEARNING, PHYSICAL

TIMES

GRADES

3:005:00PM

KDG5

ACTIVITIES

MONDAY
WEDNESDAY
FRIDAYS
MONTHURS
NOVDEC
MONTHURS
M ARM AY

LEYSER

ART

3:004:00PM

KDG5

DORFMAN

SOCIAL SKILLS
MUSIC & DANCE FOR WINTER

1:303:30PM

KDG5

3:005:00PM

KDG5

3:005:00PM

KDG5

3:005:00PM

GIRLS
35

3:005:00PM

KDG5

3:005:00PM
6:008:00PM

KDG5
KDG5

STAFF
STAFF

TUES/THURS

PENNY

ALTERNATE
WEDNESDAYS

STAFF

5/3/12
5/16/12

STAFF
STAFF

PERFORMANCE

MUSIC & DANCE FOR TALENT SHOW

AMAZING ME!
SOCIAL SKILLS (4TH QUARTER)
SPECIAL ACTIVITIES (VALENTINES
DAY, BLACK HISTORY, PORTFOLIO
EXHIBITION)
PORTFOLIO EXHIBITION EVENING
TALENT SHOW

Page 12 of 34

MIDDLE SCHOOL 69
DAY

TEACHER

MONDAY

MONSKE/STAFF

TUESDAY
WEDNESDAY

MONSKE/STAFF
MONSKE/STAFF

THURSDAY

MONSKE/STAFF

MONTHURS
NOVDEC
MONTHURS
M ARM AY
TUES/THURS
5/3/12
5/16/12

STAFF
STAFF

ACTIVITY
M ATH ENRICHMENT/PUBLISHED
WRITING/SHORT ACTING
STUDENT COUNCIL
ART/CERAMICS
FILM APPRECIATION/MOVIE
PRODUCTION/ART LAB
MUSIC & DANCE FOR WINTER

TIMES

GRADES

3:005:00PM

MS

3:005:00PM
3:005:00PM

MS
MS

3:005:00PM

MS

3:005:00PM

MS

MUSIC & DANCE FOR TALENT SHOW

3:005:00PM

MS

PERFORMANCE

UMIDOT STAFF
PARTNERSHIP
STAFF
STAFF

DRUG PREVENTION/LIFE SKILLS

2:003:00PM

MS

PORTFOLIO EXHIBITION EVENING

TALENT SHOW

3:005:00PM
6:008:00PM

MS
MS

TEACHER

ACTIVITY

TIMES

GRADES

STAFF

WEIGHTLIFTING, BASKETBALL

3:005:00PM

HS

MILLSTEIN

LIFE SKILLS

7:308:30AM

HS

ARRA

DANCE

7:308:30AM

HS

SCHNALL
BUFORD
SCHUSTER

SCRAPBOOKING/WRITING
CHEERLEADING (2ND/3RD QUARTER)
PHYS ED
COSMETOLOGY FOR FLEX CREDIT
(2ND QUARTER)
MUSIC & DANCE FOR WINTER

1:303:30PM
3:005:00PM
7:308:30AM

HS
HS
HS

3:005:00PM

HS

3:005:00PM

HS

MUSIC & DANCE FOR TALENT SHOW

3:005:00PM

HS
HS

HIGH SCHOOL 912

DAY
MONDAY
THURSDAY
MONDAY
THURSDAY
MONDAY
FRIDAY
SUNDAY
TUES/THURS
TUES/THURS
MON/WED
MONTHURS
NOVDEC
MONTHURS
M ARM AY

BUGGS
STAFF
STAFF

PERFORMANCE

DRUG PREVENTION/LIFE SKILLS

2:003:00PM

5/3/12

UMIDOT STAFF
PARTNERSHIP
STAFF

PORTFOLIO EXHIBITION EVENING

3:005:00PM

5/16/12

STAFF

TALENT SHOW

6:008:00PM

TUES/THURS

HS

Page 13 of 34

JOSHUA SOWERS, KINDERGARTEN:

I cant believe it is the end of the year already! I have been proud
to have gotten to work with such a wonderful group of
kindergarteners. My students have been enthusiastic and eager
learners. I am so proud of all the progress they made learning to
read and write. We have gone from a group which didnt know the
letters in their name to sounding out and spelling CVC words. My
students have worked very hard in math also. They have learned
to count and write the numbers. They have also learned to do
problems of the day. My students have grown so much, physically, socially and
emotionally. I cant wait until next year!
LEAH GOLDIN, KINDERGARTEN:

What an exciting, productive and fun filled year kindergarten had

this year. I am very proud to say that my students have made
significant strides this year in social, emotional, social, and
academic areas. We learned to share, take care of materials, and
follow directions, which still remains a challenge for some of us. We
mastered writing our names, numbers, and letters as well as
identifying letters and sight words. We explored animals habitats
their characteristics and primary needs. We also enjoyed our fairy
tales theatrical unit, where we compared and contrasted various fairy tales and created
our own puppet show.
ST

JILL LEYSER, 1 GRADE:

The 1st grade class had a great year! It was definitely a

challenging one and I feel that the students and I grew a lot.
They learned so much and became better readers and spellers.
We did many wonderful projects. The students really
enjoyed learning about the solar system and black history
leaders. All of them perfected their math facts in addition and
subtraction.
The students worked very hard on respect. Earning it, Showing it and giving it to
others. They earned prizes for good behavior as a group and individually. I have
really liked watching them grow over this year not just academically but socially as
well. The class of 2023 was a very energetic class and I look forward to seeing what
they can do in the future!!

Page 14 of 34

Page 15 of 34

ND

KRISTINA GLUSAUSKAS, 2 GRADE:

First, I wanted to thank all students, families, and elementary

teacher, for such a great and productive school year. I was so
fortunate to have such a wonderful group of children this past
year. They all have touched my life and this school year in
very positive and rewarding ways. Students were coming in
each day with smiling faces and excitement for learning. I
truly appreciate working with such enthusiastic children,
supportive families, and dedicated teachers.
We have covered a lot of material and participated in many fun and exciting projects.
We have started to develop skills needed for the third grade. We made many new
friends along the way too.
In math we have studied graphs, tables, and completed many interesting surveys. The
students have learned to read and make their own graphs.
In language we have learned how to write paragraphs and learning parts of speech.
Second graders grew so much in their reading skills with the use of our daily
Fundations reading program. We have used Fundations every day to reinforce
fluency and comprehension skills. Fundations provided a systematic and explicit
approach to reading and spelling with phonics. We have combined these phonics
instructions with the reading of good literature, which was important for students
development.
Again, thank you for a wonderful year.
ND

RD

MICHELLE CAIN, 2 /3 GRADE:

This year in our second/third grade split class we learned and grew a lot. We really
enjoyed our school year. We learned how to do two-digit addition and subtraction.
The students really got a kick out of the idea of borrowing a ten from Mr. Ten. We
also worked on fact families, learned how multiplication and addition are related. Our
class really enjoyed learning place value while using (eating) licorice (tens) and
marshmallows (ones). Then we moved into fractions using cupcakes. We had a blast
learning and eating! In Language Arts we covered different types of writing. We
wrote personal narratives and letters to our families. We learned about story elements
as well as the different genres of passages. I have really enjoyed my year with this
group of students. I wish nothing but continued success and growth for them in their
years to come.

Page 16 of 34

RD

ELIZABETH HICKS, 3 GRADE:

In Language Arts the students continued to develop

strategies to effectively use language. Through the
presentation of reports and journal writing, they learned to
write and speak for a specific purpose. Students learned to
become strategic readers by identifying the elements of a
story. Vocabulary development continued to include the
refinement of phonetic and decoding skills. Word analysis
strategies include: homonyms, antonyms, synonyms,
analogies, multiple meaning and compound words. Students
expanded their vocabulary by learning strategies for
identifying unfamiliar words. Reading comprehension skills taught included:
understanding fiction and nonfiction reading selections, identifying main ideas,
sequencing events, recalling details, making predictions, drawing inferences, and
understanding cause-and-effect relationships. In Mathematics the students focused on
fact families in addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. They continued
developing strategies for multi-digit addition and subtraction problems. Learning
multiplication facts through the 10s was a goal for this year. Since the third-grade
curriculum focused on the physical, earth, and life sciences, we wanted to further
enhance the students' understanding of the interdependency of the animal world.
Students had the opportunity to visit the zoo and create their own unique zoo animal
as an art project. Students also studied the four layers of the earth and had an
opportunity to create their own version of the earths layers using graham crackers,
raisins, honey, and jelly. We all enjoyed this activity! While learning the social
studies curriculum in third grade reviews the concept of community. A unit on
Cleveland gave the students knowledge about the city in the areas of geography,
government, history, and business. Students participate in activities that taught them
skills in geography, problem
solving, and study skills and
how to run for the government. Aerin Cook and Eyanah
Eatmon both ran for Governor
of the state and Janae Thomas
ran for Mayor of the City of
Cleveland! Great times for all.

Page 17 of 34

TH

KIRSTEN CALLAHAN, 4 GRADE:

th

The 4 grade experienced a big change this year with our

move to the second floor! We also grew as the year went
on from 14 to19 students! Along with learning the basics,
some highlights were the winter program, our
Underground Railroad projects, and writing Ohio reports.
In reading we explored many genres, and had a lot of fun
learning several styles of poetry! We studied weather,
matter, the human body and plants. We participated in
centers on a regular basis in math! Finally we grew
socially and emotionally as we worked on maintaining
friendships and accepting others. Mr. Piccus and Ms. Acree also spent a lot of time
helping students one-on-one and working with small groups! It has been a productive
year!
TH

TH

MEG OEDER, 5 & 6 GRADES:

This year the 5th grade went GREEN!

After moving to our new classroom in January, we were
fortunate to be given a cart of Netbooks, and a Smartboard. We
spent a lot of timing learning about how to use a computer,
other than to just play games. We watched news clips about
things going on in the world; we used our Netbooks to do
research; and we created PowerPoint presentations about a
state. We also created 3D maps for the geography fair, and
made our portfolios on line so we could share with our parents.
It has been a very exciting year. We are really looking forward to a FULL year of
technology use and learning.

Page 18 of 34

Middle School
End of the Year Report
20112012 School Year
MICHELLE MONSKE, SOCIAL STUDIES

Why did we study so much social studies in

the 20112012 school year? We did it
because social studies develops the key
values and attitudes, knowledge and understanding, and skills and processes necessary
for students to become active and responsible citizens, engaged in the democratic process and aware of their capacity to effect
change in their communities, society and world. Social studies provides learning
opportunities for students to understand their rights and responsibilities in order to
make informed decisions and participate fully in society, and understand historic and
contemporary issues, including controversial issues, from multiple perspectives (e.g.,
our Geography Fair).

Page 19 of 34

AARON HUMPHRIES, MATH

We had a good year in middle school mathematics grades

7-9. We were able to cover many topics in Mathematics.
This was done through content instruction and hands on
labs for students. A portion of the concepts covered were
Order of Operations, Integers, Prime and Composite
Numbers, Rational Numbers, Percents Decimals, Ratio,
Geometrical concepts of measurement, Multiple Step
Equations and inequalities, graphing Y-Equals Equations,
Slope Intercept, Data Analysis and Probability and other
topics. The 7th and 8th grade students completed a
thorough OAA camp which included short answer and extended response questions
in differing mathematics topics, learning new methods for answering word problems,
and reviewing of important concepts of mathematics using math centered games. The
OAA camp continued from January through the duration of months leading up to
April date (OAA Month!!!) The students did a commendable job in taking on the task
of completing the OAA camp. As well, the 9th graders spent time on OGT preparation
in mathematics which was beneficial for them as they venture closer to taking the
OGT. All math classes, grades 79 were involved in class projects throughout the
year where mathematics concepts were used in life applicable situations. A few of
these involved budgeting activities for planning Thanksgiving dinner, Holiday
shopping for given a particular number of family members with a specific budget,
statistics given a population etc. One of the 9th grade projects worked on this year was
the completing of a thorough cross curricular content instruction in the classroom on
velocity, motion and the study of roller coasters in Mathematics, Science, and
English. This activity culminated with the students attending an educational field trip
to Cedar Point Amusement Park in Sandusky, OH. Nineteen students went on the
field trip, along with Mr. Humphries, Ms. Bear, Mrs. Richter, and Mr. Anderson. It
was an altogether superb
event! This year has been an
exciting year with great
accomplishments and I look
forward to more in the
future.

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PATRICK WEAVER, LANGUAGE ARTS

The 20112012 school year was another fastpaced and thrilling adventure. Students worked
exceptionally hard at mastering a variety of
poetry: Haiku, Sonnet, Tonka, Limerick,
Diamante, Concrete Poetry, and Cinquain
just to name a few. It was a great pleasure to
see all the up-and-coming poets we have in our
student body. With each week, their
confidence in their writing abilities seemed to
soar. Some even commented on how they
never imagined they could author such creative works. Whether writing business
letters or writing persuasive arguments, each learner delivered in impressive fashion.
In addition to their written wonders, students read a plethora of memorable literature.
These pieces ranged from wonderful plays such as A Raisin in the Sun, Twelve Angry
Men, and a Jury of Her Peers to classic authors such as Edgar Allan Poe, Maya
Angelou, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and Jack London. Their willingness to embrace
and learn from a myriad of different cultures and societies was very pivotal in their
continued academic growth throughout the year. Each week called for a new
challenge, and each week the students responded well to the call. For all your hard
work and effort, I say thank you, and always strive for your best!
SUSAN BEAR, SCIENCE:

After joining the Virtual Schoolhouse staff in January, my task at hand was to
familiarize my students with my expectations and determine their prior knowledge.
Since that time 7th grade covered Animal and Plant Classifications, Biomes and
Ecosystems, Weather and Environmental Science. 8th grade covered Plate Tectonics,
Space, Heredity and Environmental Science. 9th grade covered Force and Motion,
Simple Machines, Matter, Molecular Structure and Compounds, and Environmental
Science. In addition, all students participated in our Science Fair displaying Inquiry
Based projects. The students also enjoyed presentations by Jason Nicholas, Channel 5
Weather Anchor, and a naturalist from the Cuyahoga Valley Soil and Water
Conservation District. Our favorite day was Experiment Thursdayonce a week
all classes spent class time conducting student driven experiments and learned how to
incorporate graphs, tables and charts to visually display their results. Finally, all
classes enjoyed the use of the Eyeclopsemy microscope that connects to a
televisionto investigate plant and animal specimens collected outside.

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High School End of Year Report

20112012 School Year
ANNA CAUSHAJ, M ATHEMATICS:

I am proud to say that my class has yearly

significant changes in their OGT scores and my
students enjoyed learning math this year. I was
able to make math a fun enjoyable experience
for everyone who walked in my room. Being a
member of the RTT team, has helped me find
more ways in achieving better results. I cannot
say enough how proud I am of our students and
what a great organization we really are. I
believe that if we all work together we can
achieve anything as if we have mastered the
portfolios and alternative assessments. All the wonderful changes such as
announcements has motivated students to be on time everyday and I cant thank our
security enough and Dr. Schmiesing for making our days go so much smoother. We
are all working together; believing in ourselves and believing in our students have
only brought the best out of our children and enjoyment out of us. Using step by step
instruction has helped my students understand that math is fun and not as hard as
people make it out to be.
STEPHANIE GAJDZIK, SOCIAL STUDIES:

The Social Studies Curriculum at Virtual

Schoolhouse is still computer based and the students
work on A+ on-line program. Classes include World
History, United States Government, American
History, World Geography and Economics. Students
are also practicing formative assessment assignments, which are based on the State of Ohio
Standards, to get improved summative assessment
results. The students practice answering extended
response questions based on OGT practice tests.
We also had a wonderful school-wide Geography Fair, with many beautiful projects
about other countries and their cultures!

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MIHAELA ILIE, SCIENCE:

Over all we had a wonderful school year in Earth Space Science,

Biology, and Chemistry class. Our students learned, our staff
collaborated with each other and parents, and our administration
guided us.
High School students accomplished many important lessons through
A+, books, hands-on activities, and community outreach projects. Our
main focus has been to incorporate more hands on activities in our
class, and to improve our OGT test scores. We accomplished these
goals by working on mini lab activities each week and by working on
OGT practice questions each day. Students collaborated with each other, staff and
community, through their community projects monthly.
Students assignments included lessons that deal with the following areas ;Earth and
Space Sciences, Life Sciences, Physical Sciences, Science and Technology, Scientific
Inquiry, and Scientific Ways of Knowing.
Our main community outreach projects included Recycling, Energy, Cell Cake, Atom
Cake, Lithosphere Puzzles, Botanical Garden Applications, Portfolio Creation,
Science Fair, and Research Projects.
Students had fun and learned all the required material thought. The Year End
Portfolio Exhibit showed the students accomplishments, which allowed them to
reflect back on their work and acknowledged their growth. Parents were happy to see
their childrens achievements and visited our school events.
Thank you, staff, for always being helpful. Thank you, VSH Administration, for
providing us with resources and support.

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DENISE ARRA, HEALTH/PHYS ED:

According to the American Alliance for Health,

Physical Education, Recreation and Dance
(AAHPERD), students at the secondary level
should have at least 225 minutes per week. My
curriculum also includes: (A) instruction in a
variety developmentally appropriate motor skills
that challenge the students to develop physically,
cognitively, socially, and emotionally: (B)
Fitness activities that educate and help students
understand and improve or maintain optimal
fitness levels; (C) instruction in concepts that lead to a better understanding of motor
skills and fitness development; (D) opportunities to engage in experiences that
enhance cooperation and develop multicultural awareness; and (E) experiences that
foster the desire for life long participation in physical activities.
Secondary schools curriculum included a wide
variety of team and individual sports, utilizing
motor skills introduced and refined from
elementary. This activity based approach is most
common at a secondary level. My curriculum
uses activity units in sport, fitness and dance
while meeting the Ohio state standards of
Physical Education. My students will stay
healthy and physical throughout their lifetime.

JIM GROBLE, COMPUTER LAB:

The 201112 school year saw the start up of an

ongoing after school credit recovery program.
Courses were custom designed to best suit the
students strengths. Multiple avenues were
available for course completion. Students
taking advantage of the program were able to
catch up and often get ahead of their age peers.
The classroom routine revolved around
customizing the A+ tutorial program for each
student.
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M ARY JO HOGAN, LA SPECIAL EDUCATION, HIGH SCHOOL

The High Language Arts class completed an eight-week unit on the memoir Elie
Wiesels memoir Night, which describes the horrifying experience of Elie and his
family during the Holocaust. Students participated in a Literature Circle to discuss
and understand the memoir. Upon completion of the unit, the class collaborated with
Mr. Kolman, Social Studies teacher, to learn more about the Holocaust and World
War II. As a culminating activity, students created posters and an interactive display
for the Integrated Geography Fair. They connected what they learned about Elies
experience, and how it fit into the larger picture of the events of World War II and
Nazi Germany.
The 9th and 10th grade classes completed units on Figurative Language and Poetry.
Projects included 3-D representations of similes and metaphors; Poetic Devices
Collages, and original poetry. Both classes also read short stories and novels. They
completed Reading Logs to practice reading comprehension strategies of summarizing and making inferences and predictions.
DOV DYM, PERSONAL FINANCE:

This year at the Virtual Schoolhouse was a very productive year. I am a big believer
in making education real and usable; mathematics in particular should meet this
requirement. To this end, my students worked on Career Essentials and Personal
Finance. These two classes help prepare a young person for the real world. Students
learned to manage their finances and prepare for their future. Many students also
prepared to enter the workforce by creating accurate and working resumes and plan
for job interviews. I look forward to the successes of our students!
BRENDAN KOLMAN, OGT PREP:

It has been a wonderful first year with Virtual Schoolhouse. I am a high school social
studies teacher and also an afterschool OGT tutor. We made great progress with our
students in preparing them for the OGTs and working with students to prepare them
for their first year in college. I am proud to say that four the students I worked with
graduated this year and have been accepted and enrolled in college. I look forward to
expanding the tutoring sessions for next year and helping to prepare a new class of
seniors for their college experience.

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In-Home Instruction End of Year Report

20112012 School Year
Malky Dym, Director of Tutoring Services
The 20112012 school year was a productive and successful year
for the In-Home Instruction Department. The In Home Instruction
department continued to provide top notch special education
services to children who qualified to receive their education in their
home with a certified teacher. Our staff worked diligently to ensure
that academic requirements were being met and that the students
were making progress. As done in the past, we continued to gather data and work
samples to create portfolios of each students work. We also work to accommodate
each students individual learning needs and styles.
The In-Home Instruction Department services approximately one-third of the students
enrolled in Virtual Schoolhouse. All students who are serviced by our department are
considered special education students. This placement has been determined by the
IEP team to be the least restrictive environment for greatest academic progress. The
students work on the A+ curriculum, which can be modified according to level and
ability. Teachers work closely with their students to ensure academic and behavioral
progress is being made, which can eventually lead to the students reintegration back
into the traditional education setting. Some of our students, however, will receive
instruction in their homes until graduation. This year again, we are proud to say, both
the Valedictorian and Salutatorian for the Virtual Schoolhouse were students
receiving their instruction in their homes.
Additionally, this year, the department made every effort to include and encourage
students with a home placement to be involved in regular school activities. We made
a lot of progress in this area. Students participated in Century 21 activities, all senior
activities, the talent show, the science and geography fairs, parent committee and
parent field trip, family news letters, and three students even received free glasses
when the students were taken to Lens Crafters.
Rabbi Rennert continued to be an effective Special Education Coordinator for the
department. Rabbi Rennert ensured that all testing was administered and that data was
collected on each students progress and skill level. He worked on meeting the special
education requirements of each student and monitoring OGT and OAA preparations.
Additionally, Rabbi Rennert worked with Lori Raskin, who joined our department
this year, on completing all the special education paperwork. Lori, like Rabbi Rennert
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is a licensed intervention specialist with much classroom experience and special

education knowledge.
Florenca Xhoka has held our department together, as usual. As our efficient administrative assistant, her responsibilities included keeping records/files, constantly being
in contact with parents and teachers to ensure
services were being administered, and assisting
with payroll, among other obligations. She is
amazing!
Thank you to both staff and students for another
successful year!

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20112012 Year-End Report

Department of Security and Safety
Paul Burton, Security Director
This year was another year of growth for us in
the security department. We instituted the
new policy that students are not allowed to
bring in the following:

Under 6.1.1 Weapons

No student is allowed to bring in the following items that can be converted into a
weapon:

Glass bottles/containers of any kind( If for drinking , contents must be consumed

before entering building and glass bottles will be confiscated and disposed of by
security. If perfumes or other contents in glass bottles/containers will be
confiscated by security and though not required, may at their discretion return to
student at the end of the school day.

Aerosol spray bottles of any kind are not allowed into the building and will be
confiscated by security and though not required, may at their discretion return to
student at the end of the school day.

Metal and/or plastic hair combs or picks with a sharp edge of any kind are not
allowed into the building and will be confiscated by security and though not
required, may at their discretion return to student at the end of the school day.

This will help to increase safety by preventing students from having items that can be
converted into a weapon. Also, we have increased patrols in the halls to prevent
students from loitering in unauthorized areas.
We work closely with administration (as a team) and document any students that are
out of compliance with school safety and security polices. Next year we are planning
on instituting a clear book bag policy for all students. This will make screening
students more efficient and timely as well as discourage any students from attempting
to carry around any contraband in their book bag.

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Externally, we have built a strong relationship with Commander Drummond (Fifth

District Cleveland Police Commander) to help efficient response time. We have also,
instituted a Nuisance Policy that details the necessary steps we take (internally) to
prevent excessive calls and allows us to prioritize when calls need to be made versus
those situations that we can handle internally. We will add an additional security
officer next school year, if possible.
Finally, during training this spring I attended training on Crisis Communication
(Managing the Media) and Social Media During Crisis. The two courses taught me
how to write a Crisis Communication Plan for the school and how to use social media
to communicate during a crisis. We are always continuing to take steps to make
Virtual Schoolhouse the safest school in our area.

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