Schools

Benjamin Grignon grew up in a traditional Menominee household. He knew the native tongue, and he practiced the traditional arts.

Now, Grignon spends most of his days teaching what he knows to students at Menominee Indian High School as the traditional arts teacher. Besides teaching, Grignon also heads up the school’s gardening and language clubs, and he works with the community to run summer culture camps.

His hard work to keep the Menominee culture alive has not gone unnoticed. Grignon will be receiving a fellowship from the Herb Kohl Educational Foundation on April 28 at Denmark High School, one of 100 in the state and one of only three in CESA 8 so recognized.

Grignon started his career at MIHS 10 years ago as the school’s librarian. About five years ago, the position for the traditional arts teacher opened up, and he got the job.

At one time or another, everyone needs a helping hand.

Shawano Community Middle School has plenty to go around.

The school started the Helping Hands Club at the beginning of the school year, and already it has conducted two dozen service projects that help local organizations. Among the projects are making pet treats for Safe Haven, Shawano Area Matthew 25 and the Shawano County Humane Society; making supplies for autism awareness activities; making valentines for the veterans home in King and traveling there to play bingo with them; ringing bells in Green Bay for the Salvation Army; and helping to run the school’s Santa Shop.

Using fundraisers, community donations and Thrivent funds, Helping Hands has put over $3,000 into the community, according to Trish Berg, the club’s adviser.

Most of the students at Shawano Community High School are fortunate enough to have eyes to see, ears to hear and the gift of their own voice.

That didn’t stop some students from diving into the amazing story of Helen Keller as they bring “The Miracle Worker” to life this week.

The play follows along the lines of Keller’s autobiography, “The Story of My Life.” As an infant, she suffered an illness that left her both blind and deaf, and she became mute as a result of losing two of her senses. Keller’s parents took pity on her and never taught her discipline, resulting in her becoming a wild child by the age of 6.

The Keller family hired Annie Sullivan to be Helen’s governess and teacher but were surprised by Sullivan’s no-nonsense methods. Having once been blind herself, she saw the potential in unlocking the box that Keller had been trapped in and turning her into a functioning member of society.

A groundbreaking ceremony is set for 11 a.m. Thursday at the future site of the Pulaski Community School District’s baseball/softball complex, east of Saputo Stadium.

The first portion of Phase II includes two baseball fields and two softball fields at Pulaski High School, a press box and storage area, concession stands and bathrooms.

The second portion of Phase II will include three additional tennis courts at PHS, additional practice fields, and upgrades to the Pulaski Community Middle School soccer complex

The baseball/softball portion of Phase II is expected to cost $2.3 million, with about $1.5 million yet to be raised. The remaining Phase II work will occur after the baseball/softball portion of Phase II is completed.

Area students have a few weeks to complete their entries for the 2018 Packers Student Art Contest, the winners of which will receive a $5,000 donation for their school and have their artwork displayed on Lambeau Field’s club levels next season.

The theme of this year’s contest is “100 Seasons of Packers Football.” Students are asked to create a piece that tells the story of the NFL team’s history — such as its victories, defeats, comebacks, traditions, generations of fans, etc. Submissions of paintings, drawings, prints, digital art, mixed media or collage will be accepted through April 19. The final artwork size must be 16-by-20 inches and fit comfortably inside a standard frame.

Gresham Community School will be taking theater lovers south for its next musical, far enough south that they might feel the wind sweeping down the plain.

The school will bring the classic musical “Oklahoma!” to its stage next week with three shows from March 22-24.

The show is set in Oklahoma in 1906, when it was a territory and one year before it became a state. It is based on the play “Green Grow the Lilacs,” written by Lynn Riggs.

However, the musical itself was written by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein, their first, and debuted in 1943. It is the second consecutive year that Gresham has performed a Rodgers and Hammerstein musical after performing “The Sound of Music,” the final collaboration between the two.

“We wanted to try something set in America,” said director Heidi Cerveny. “This is right around the turn of the century.”

This year’s musical performance features 19 students from grades 6-12.

Bowler High School hosted a solo and ensemble competition Feb. 17. Bowler had 26 entries receiving a first rating, of which 15 qualified for state. Twenty entries received a second rating, and one received a third.

Class A state entries include the following:

• Percussion trio: Landan Kroening, Kade Hartleben, Noah Bestul

• Trombone duet: Nathan Montez, Jacob Bratz

• Trumpet choir: Maranda Brei, Austin Slater, Logan Thiex, Skye Breitrick, Bailey Grosskopf, Aubrey Wisnefske

• Saxophone choir: Reanne Kietlinski, Brock Strassburg, Ireland DeRoos, Brooke Thiex, Ira Rudestill, Crista Peters, Keegan Pingel

• Low brass choir: Nathan Montez, Jacob Bratz, Lane Schultz, Donnie Edwards, Dakota Pingel, Jackson Pingel, Nicholas Malueg

• Brass choir: Maranda Brei, Austin Slater, Bailey Grosskopf, Nathan Montez, Jacob Bratz, Dakota Pingel, Lane Schultz, Nicholas Malueg

The Bonduel High School show choir will be having its annual show choir revue on Friday and Saturday at 7 p.m. in Sousa Hall at the school. This year’s theme is “Geronimo!” a song made popular by the Australian indie pop band Sheppard.

The show consists of a variety of popular music from Billy Joel and Journey to songs from the hit Broadway musical Hairspray. There are several solos being sung by seniors, including an exchange student from Brazil.

There will also be a pasta dinner on Saturday, serving between 5:30-6 p.m. before the show. Cost for the dinner is $7, which includes the $1 admission cost for the show.

Fairview Elementary School third-grade teacher Megan Santi was notified Thursday in a surprise ceremony at the school library that she is the winner of this year’s outstanding early career educator award by the Wisconsin Association of Teacher Education.

She will be among other WACTE honorees at an upcoming awards tea held in Madison on April 8.

Santi, a second-year teacher and a 2016 graduate of St. Norbert College with a major in middle childhood/early adolescence education and a minor in language arts, said she was speechless and surprised when a group consisting of Pulaski Community School District superintendent Bec Kurzynske, Fairview principal Niki Napralla, Reid Riggle and Tynisha Meidl, both St. Norbert College associate professors of teacher education and co-chairs of teacher education, and Santi’s parents, entered the school library to give her the surprise news.

Seventeen area men have become ready for trucking industry employment since summer 2016, thanks to training at the College of Menominee Nation in partnership with Fox Valley Technical College and Menominee Job Center. Employment is the program’s goal, and the success rate among the corps of graduates is strong, according to Miranda Gollnow, career services specialist at the center.

Gollnow added that for one recent graduate, success has not only meant work with a premier trucking and logistics firm, but also being featured in company recruiting materials.

When Gresham resident Stefan Fuhrman completed Schneider National’s orientation training earlier this year, he ended up in the right place at the right time for an impromptu photo session. The picture of Fuhrman holding his certificate of training was snapped and shared widely by Grailing Jones, Schneider’s director of employment network development.