Category Archives: General Announcements

#StellerGives: Seeds of Change

 

Seeds of Change volunteers on the far left and right, with Steller students Ezra, Eli and Logan.

This summer Alaska Seeds of Change  and Steller partnered to reclaim the Steller Peace Garden.

Alaska Seeds of Change works with young people ages 16-24 to help them develop the vocational and personal skills needed to become successful adults. Most staff initially start at Seeds as apprentices, by volunteering for school credit or through an apprenticeship program with one of our partner agencies.

The first step was building lasagna beds on top of the old weed filled beds, and from there we planted the garden and maintained it all summer. 

In addition we were able to plant about 10 apple trees that were donated from a community member (he’s also interested in adding lots more trees if the Steller community is interested). 

We harvested lots of good veggies over the summer that were taken home by Steller students and staff/apprentices at Seeds of Change.  We even had a neighborhood veggie “pirate” that would harvest things periodically.  They seemed to know what they were doing and we figured that they needed the food so we decided it was a way to feed our local community. 

One of the highlights for me was being able to support the youth in making the garden their own and helping them take on projects.

We didn’t realize that we would be running the garden in a pandemic but it turned out to be a great way for Steller students to connect in person while following CDC guidelines to minimize the spread of Covid.  Many students said that this was one of the few ways that they were able to get out of the house and see people.   

Last year we were able to acquire funding through a grant from the Whole Kids Foundation.  We are yet to determine our funding for next year’s program.  If anybody has any ideas we have estimated that about $2,000 would cover the basics of running the garden next year.     

Kelly Ballantyne

Seeds of Change 

Thank you to Seeds of Change for the important role you play supporting the youth of our community, and to all the volunteers from Steller that helped out through the summer.  

If you would like to learn more about Seeds of Change, find out how to volunteer, or donate to support their work visit their website here.

To learn more about #StellerGives and how you can share how you give back to the community please see here. 

 

#StellerGives: Alana P.

This photo is from me volunteering at the mobile food bank on Saturday 11/21/20 in Fairview.

Hi, I’m seventeen year old Alana Rose P. I am a junior at Steller Secondary this year. For the past four years I have volunteered through the Foodbank of Alaska to help run the monthly mobile food banks in Fairview here in Anchorage. I have also volunteered at the Thanksgiving Blessing, GRIT ( Girls. Ridding. Into Tomorrow) Anchorage. This is two days out of the week for eight weeks in the spring. Most recently I have volunteered with Anchorage Teen Council, which is a group dedicated to providing an educational sex ed experiance for ASD students. We meet once a week plus extra days for teaching.

I also volunteer through Steller as well, helping with the Steller Auction, Steller NHS President, TPC member, Op Group Sergeant at Arms and Yearbook director for the Steller yearbook. I have also helped run almost every dance at Steller since my 7th grade year. 

I find it very fulfilliing to give back to the people that gave the most to me. All these programs and resources have helped me or given me people to help support me through my home, academic, and social life. I wanna help build that same community for others since I know it was the fundamental building blocks of who I am today, I feel I do that through volunteering  I know I’m making a difference in my community. 

Alana

Steller Junior

We are so proud of all the work you do to make your community a better place! Well done Alana. 

To learn more about #StellerGives, and submit your own stories about yourself, or someone you know who should be recognized, visit here. 

#StellerGives: National Honors Society

 

Steller’s chapter of the National Honor Society (NHS) is a service oriented organization.  Membership is by invitation and is open to academically inclined students who are interested in giving back to their community.  Brian Gehring serves as the NHS advisor.

This year, NHS students have focused on helping prevent food insecurity.  They have spent time volunteering with the Mobile Food Bank and the Thanksgiving Blessing event.  This valuable work has involved packing food items in boxes and lending their strong backs to the work of moving the boxes along the supply chain to those in need.

NHS students have also been able to establish and support a Steller Homework Club.  The Homework Club initiative has been valuable for students needing support with academic tutoring and to those seeking help to improve their study skills and study habits. 

National Honor Society is open to all Sophomores that have earned a GPA of 3.0 or higher.  Invitations are sent to qualifying students after the completion of their first semester.  Members in good standing must attend regularly scheduled meetings and complete a minimum of 20 hours of community service.

If you think you might enjoy joining our organization, we would appreciate your support and contributions.    

Submitted by the National Honours Society

Thank you to all the students that participate in the NHS.  We are proud of the work you do to make Steller, and Anchorage a better place to live!   

Want to join the #StellerGives campaign?

Let’s celebrate the contributions we all make – big and small – and accept the challenge to show our generosity in a variety of ways during the #StellerGives campaign from November 11 to December 1!

Send your #StellerGives photos to opgsml@gmail.com with your first and last name, grade, and a short description of what you are doing or the charity/cause you support to be posted on Flash, the Steller Instagram account, and this year’s yearbook. 

Then follow @steller_s_official to see how others in our community are contributing! 

Steller Parent Group

 

Register for Classes December 9

November 19, 2020

Good Morning Steller Families and Staff,

Second semester (third quarter) registration will be Wednesday, December 9, 2020.  Students will meet with their advisor on Zoom.  Please check with your Advisor for the Zoom link.

Registration Times:

8:00 – 9:00 = 12th grade

9:00 – 10:00 = 11th grade

10:00 – 11:00 = 10th grade

11:00 -12:00 = 9th grade

1:00 – 2:00 = 8th grade

2:00 – 3:00 = 7th grade

The class descriptions and schedule are posted on the Steller website, (see links below) to find a possible schedule. You will use this data to create your schedule with your advisor.  If you started a semester-long class in the first quarter, you must choose it again in the third quarter. For example, Algebra is usually a year-long class so this year you will take it first and third quarter. 

Course Schedule: https://www.asdk12.org/domain/4864 (Links to an external site.)

Course Description: https://www.asdk12.org/domain/4771 (Links to an external site.)

Please contact the front office staff or your advisor with any questions.

Have a Great Day!

Steller Office

Invitation to Join Student Nutrition Committee

Steller Parent Group would like to invite parents, staff and students to join the Student Nutrition Committee.  The purpose of this group is to ensure that all Steller students have access to healthy and balanced meals – especially during this pandemic. 

Starting in October 19, all ASD students enrolled in the National School Lunch Program are eligible to pick up free breakfast and lunch through a special emergency program funded by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). 

Steller Secondary does not have a school lunch program and is not registered as part of the NSLP and so our students are not eligible for this program. 

We would like our Steller students to be eligible to participate in this program.  Our committee plans to explore ways to address this issue.

If you are interested in helping please join us for a planning meeting on Monday, November 23, 2020 at 12:00 to 1:00pm.  Email Kirsten at chairstellerparentgroup@gmail.com for the Zoom link.

Sincerely, Kirsten Tschofen Chair SPG

Holly Rinehart, Chair Student Nutrition Committee

Halloween Costume Contest Winners

Thank you to all who participated in the Halloween Costume contest! 

Congratulations to  our winners:

First Place: Kai R. (12) as the Invisible Man

Second Place: Eli P. (12) as the Lord of the Spiders

Third place: Naomi H. (7) as Tooth Fairy

We are still looking for Halloween costume photos for yearbook! Submit with your first and last name, grade, and costume title to opgsml@gmail.com to be included in the Yearbook! 

Eli Pelletier

Social Media Liaison

Individual Yearbook Photos Due December 20

Hey Steller! 

Sadly, there will be no school-run picture day before we need student portraits for the yearbook, so we are requesting students take their own from the safety of their homes. The picture above has guidelines to help you get the best picture – remember portraits need to be in portrait mode (vertical)! 

If families have photos of their middle school Steller students practicing safe social distancing with masks on, please send them in to yearbook for the Steller introduction page!

If you or your Steller student is participating in a out of school activity, such as a sport or outdoor recreating, please submit a photo of them doing that activity as well. 

All photo submissions need to be sent to opgsml@gmail.com and include your first and last name, grade, and advisory. Please put “Portrait” “Mask” or “Activity” in your subject line. These photos will only be used for the Yearbook and must be received by December 20 to be included. 

Thanks for reading,

Alana P. Yearbook director. 

See here for a flyer from Fitzgerald Photography.