February INDEPTH 2011 - Hillcrest Christian School

IN-DEPTHFEBRUARY 2011“SMARTICAL”1ST GRADE SCIENTISTSp.4iPOD touchp.2

IIHILLCREST IN-DEPTHHILLCREST CHRISTIAN SCHOOLFEBRUARY 2011ISSUE 5, VOLUME 1DIG IN-DEPTHState of the School 1PUBLISHED BYHILLCREST CHRISTIAN SCHOOLStephen Allen, Head of SchoolEDITORLuann Malcolmeditorial staffStephen Allen, Head of SchoolKathy Horan, PrincipalCathe Jackson, Preschool DirectorMAgazine staffphotographersDebra BaltauMeagan Joneson the Road to Success 2iPOD touch 2“SMARTICAL” FIRST GRADE SCIENTISTS 4science fair 2011 4Our HCS Library 5Who Does God Love Most? 6OUR Mission Statement! 6ALUMNI NEWS-JENELLE LEE 7“B”-ball Update 8PICTURED : Elementary Girls’ Basketball - Catherine Spach, Chigo Chukwu,Izzy Ochoa, Ashley Massell, Hannah Dimas, Carlie Magallanes, Kira Matsuo.layout and designKaren Kaiser, ItsUs Images LLCinquirieslmalcolm@hillcrestcs.orgcover photoPictured: First grade scientists:Jake Cummins, Tyler KimPhotographer: Misty Ochoa

FEBRUARY 2011 1State of thesince the school year began.We depend uponSchoolHillcrest families, bothSTEPHEN ALLENpast and present, to spread the good newsHEAD OF SCHOOLabout Hillcrest. Thank you for your referrals.Facilities. Each year attempts are madeConsidering the state of the school and to improve our school facility. This year, ourits future, I can’t help but first thank auditorium has new stage and house lighting,the committed parents, employees, seating, media equipment, paint, and furnishings.Thank you again to those who madevolunteers, and alumni who gave so muchto make a great foundation for this ministry this possible through donations. In addition,today. Without you, our school would not be our facility is now set up for wireless to supportmuch of what we are now doing withthe same. Thank you for the heritage and traditionsthat exist today.technology. These improvements rarely comeAcademics, Educational Quality, without considerable expense. Your tuitionand Programming. Our school continues and donated dollars are hard at work helpingto have a strong academic reputation. The to further the environment and experience ataverage standardized achievement test scores HCS.remain nearly two years ahead of the national Mission. We must all remember thataverage, and HCS graduates are accepted into HCS’s mission statement makes it clear thatsome of the best universities in the country. the school is here to support Christian families.Please keep that in mind as you are re-One of our primary efforts to expand the waythat teachers teach and the way that students cruiting others to our school.learn is in the introduction of the iPad/iTouch Finances. Like many non-profits andprogram this past year. Unfolded as simply many businesses, finances are tight. We continueto look for ways to improve the school’sa desired concept at the annual auction in2010, it is now becoming a reality in 2011. In financial picture by watching how we spendlarge part, this is due to the strong academic money as well as by increasing income throughleadership of Mrs. Horan and Mrs. Jackson, fund raising. HCS is as strong as our financialthe vision of various individuals including our support of donations and volunteerism.board leadership, and of course, those who Volunteerism. People freely giving ofdonate the funding to initiate and sustain this their time, energy, and resources has alwayseffort. Other additions to the HCS school been strong at HCS. PFA remains a strongexperience are the return of high school footballthis past fall, the addition of high school greatly improved its support over the last twosupport group, and our Athletic Boosters hasbaseball this spring, and the introduction years. Thanks to the leaders and committedof French to our academic offerings in high workers of these two groups as well as manyschool, thanks to Mrs. Blumenthal. who serve as individuals.Enrollment. Our enrollment is just Outreach. It is important that our studentslearn to experience the difference thatslightly lower than it was a year ago but hasheld relatively steady at around 360 students giving to others makes in the community aswell as in their own lives. Our small groups,chapel offerings, support for Manna, OperationChristmas Child, and Buyamba providestudents with opportunities to experiencecharitable giving, emulating the grace andgenerosity of our Lord.The Future. In the short term, we havesome busy months ahead as we face an accreditationvisit in March, wind up this schoolyear, and prepare for the next. We have significantvisions for the future. Check out themajor wish lists posted on our school websiteat http://www.hillcrestcs.org/fund-raising/wish_list/index.shtml. Consider reaching towarda new level of support to help these goalsand dreams come to fruition. We pray for heroesand champions for Christian education.Employees. In these tight economictimes, HCS has not given staff members a significantsalary increase for several years, withno increase the past two years. Appreciatingour staff as you do, you’ll be glad to know thata 3% budget increase for salaries is plannedfor 2011-2012. We are all so thankful forwhat our teachers and all employees do dailyto love and train our students.We will continue to keep vigilant tomaintain our mission without compromiseand to sustain our efforts to teach from aChristian perspective. The world is often depictedas a dark place. We shall only shinemore brightly in our community if we as individualsand as a school community striveto reflect the Savior of the world. It is onlythrough Him that real hope, promise, andchange will impact our school. Thanks for allthat you do to help make the unique experiencethat we call a Hillcrest education. It is apleasure serving you as Head of School. I praythat He will richly bless you and our partnershipin the greatest and most fulfilling task ofraising our youth to please Jesus Christ in allthings. •

FEBRUARY 2011 3KATHY HORANPRINCIPALFourth graders worked with digital roots (do YOU know what those are?) and “played” grammardragon to identify parts of speech, and they are the expert iTouch users who are working with the firstgraders to show them how to practice their spelling and math skills. By asking students to write aboutplaying the game and what they had learned playing it, Mrs. Hawkins was able to easily see not onlywho had “gotten” the concept, but she was also able to see if they had learned the right concept. Becausewe are a K-12 school, we have the ability to share information from kinder math to calculus. As a resultof our math day, elementary and secondary teachers are able to work as a team. Secondary teachersshared the areas where they saw students struggling, and elementary teachers clearly understood how tohelp students succeed in higher level math, a win-win result for our students.The iPad training covered productivity apps which will allow students to work collaboratively aswell as individually in their various courses of study. Teachers were shown various apps as well as givendirection on how to find apps for their individual subject areas. As each shared how they would beimplementing this new technologyinto their classes, it becameso evident that we are going tohave some interesting projectsto view at May’s Open House.Thank you for your patienceand understanding withour day of subs, and thank youto those who donated funds fortechnology and teacher training.We were excited to learnhow to make learning relevantas well as fun. •Pictured:TOP LEFT: Alexa Hume, Cate Lee,Jenna MatusTOP RIGHT: Taylor Fanto, JasonMedrano, Sheridan SchoederBOTTOM: Mrs. Thompson and Mrs.McLaury, kindergarten teachersPhotographer: Deb Baltau

4 HILLCREST IN-DEPTHLast week, my first graderswere feeling quite “smartical,”as they launched anew investigation into the studyMISTY OCHOA of movement. Their journeyFIRST GRADE TEACHER began in the HCS science lab asthey went into serious mode upondonning the official “scientist uniform,”of large goggles and lab coats. The following are some favorite“scientific” words as seen through the eyes or “microscopes” of my class:“SMARTICAL” FIRST GRADE SCIENTISTS“dissect, discombobulated, magnets, smarts, smartical, electricity, scientific,moon, and hmmmmmm.”The experiment compared three liquid substances - vegetable oil,maple syrup, and molasses. Each student came up with a hypothesisand the greatly anticipated experiment began. One-half cup of eachsubstance was poured into a glass funnel that had been inserted intoa graduated glass cylinder. Timers were then set to record how long ittook each liquid to pass through the funnel and fill the cylinder. Thestudents observed what took place and then made their conclusions.The thicker the substance, the slower it moves. The thinner the substance,the quicker it moves. They related this to everyday life inthat, “If a milkshake spills, you will have more time to clean it upthan you would if juice were spilled! So, don’t spill juice; that willstain the carpet!” They also concluded that they did not like thetaste of molasses; however, the following school day they discoveredthat it wasn’t so bad when eaten in molasses cookies!The most fabulous part of the experiment was the discussionat the end. It was exciting to hear my students talk about how Godis the ultimate creator, inventor, and scientist. He has commandedus to become scientists/students of His word. “...Study to show thyselfapproved to God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed,rightly dividing the word of truth...” 2 Timothy 2:15. •science fair 2011Imagine you’re walking downthe street one day and suddenlyyou notice your foothurts, what do you do? You lookJennifer Cecil at your foot. You try to determineSCIENCE TEACHER through observation what is causingyour pain. You find a rock inyour shoe, you remove it, and assuming you will no longer have pain,you continue walking only to find that you still have pain! So…youlook again. This time you discover a blister between your toes and decideit might be better to walk without your shoes. You take off yourshoes and continue walking, this time, pain free. You have just used thescientific method, and whether you know it or not, you use it every day.Every year the 6th, 7th, and 8th graders participate in the HCSannual science fair. This year, I wanted my students to see that the scientificmethod was useful in their everyday life. The students came upwith some great ideas for their individual projects. A few of Mrs. Bain’s6th grade projects that stood out were “Which Ziploc bag holds themost liquid?” and “Which popcorn pops the best”. In the 7th and 8thgrades, we had projects such as “How does sleep affect my ability toperform well in athletics?” “Are Mnemonics useful for memorization?”“Is harnessing geothermal energy more effective than electricity?” “DoesClearasil actually work to clear up acne?” These were great investigations,and there were many more, digging into the basic questions ofdaily life using the scientific method.Next stop: The Regional ACSI Science Fair at BIOLA University.This all-day event will take place on April 1, 2011. Six students from the7th and 8th grade received “Best in Show” and will go on to competeat the regional fair. In the 7th grade: Sarah Wilson, Danny Barkett andChloe Zgorzelski. In the 8th grade: Christian Carignan, Austin Caccavoand Minsoo Kang. I am so proud of all my students for their hardwork and creativity in this year’s science fair. Special congratulations tothose students who will go on to compete at ACSI! •

FEBRUARY 2011 5JULIE THURMANLIBRARIANOur HCS Library—Your Ticket to a Great Read!In the HCS library, learning and literature go all his heart to be Goliath’s shield bearer, but then hehand in hand. Classes from preschool through meets Rueben, an Israelite boy, who teaches him thatfourth grade visit the library weekly for story self-worth and power really come from God alone.time, interactive discussions, and activities that enhancereading experience at all grade levels. gram called “Ticket to Read”. Each week, oneThis semester, we will be starting a new pro-In preschool and kindergarten, recent story fourth grade student from each class will be awardedtime themes included farm animals, where students a “Ticket to Read” coupon based on good behaviorbuilt a felt-board farm; the Arctic, where we looked and participation during library time. This couponat a map of a very cold place far away and read both allows them to leave their class for 15 minutes to readfiction and non-fiction books about the wondrous a story to one of our kindergarten classes.animals who live there, and Valentine’s Day, where In addition to scheduled library classes, G3—we followed Clifford the Big Red Dog as he mails a our afterschool HCS book club for girls in gradesValentine and falls down the mail chute! Kindergartnersand first graders also read Clifford’s First Valen-The girls enjoyed special treats, played some inter-2-4 had its first meeting of the year on January 23rd.tine’s Day and afterward discussed the role of mailmenand other community helpers.Gables. All of the girls left with a scented eraser andactive games, and discussed the book Anne of GreenTo celebrate Martin Luther King, Jr., we read book mark, and some of them won door prizes andMartin’s BIG Words, and then second and third grade got to take home a book. It is not too late to join theclasses had a contest where they completed the sentence,“I have a dream…” Mrs. Thurman picked by Charise Harper; interested students can get theclub for next month! We will be reading Just Grace,her favorites to post on the board. Amanda Moran books at Barnes and Noble in WLV.and Olivia Lethcoe were chosen for Mrs. Hawisher’s Contact Mrs. Thurman in the libraryclass, Presley Knapp for Mrs. Gonzales’ class, and for more information.Alyssa Wheelock for Mrs. Madden’s class. Each of As you can see, our library is athese students got to pick from Mrs. Thurman’s prize happening place. Our goal is to enhanceclassroom learning, encouragebox.In fourth grade library, we are currently reading self-directed learning, and inspire aan adventure-packed novel called Galen and Goliath,about a young Philistine boy who wisheslife-long love of reading. •withPictured:TOP: Maggie Evans, Ava Lucanish,Maddie WheelockBOTTOM: Aliyah Person, Shayla Ortiz,Sierra Thurman, Faith Johnson,Sophia Buskirk, Amanda Hausman,Colleen Alballat, Isabella Mendez-LangleyPhotographer: Julie Thurman

6 HILLCREST IN-DEPTHCAROLYN KRAUSEDEAN OF STUDENTSThree Cheers for Hillcrest ChristianSchool’s Mission Statement!SPIRITUALLY “Impacting the World for the Lord Jesus Christ … “Hillcrest Christian School’s middle school tion, they provided every K-6 student with a smallerleadership team hopes to send a strong message to box to collect spare change at home to make it easierour community that compassion for others is high to bring back to his/her classroom. This unique opportunityto serve others will only last from Thurs-on our school’s priority list! At the beginning ofthe year, all HCS students, teachers and staff, and day, Feb.3 through Friday, Feb. 11 (just before Valentine’sDay).board members were given blue rubber braceletsinscribed with 1 John 4:19 to remind us that “We Through this project, the students will experiencehow they can use their compassion to helplove because He first loved us.” As we begin a newsemester and continue to work on our school-wide, change the world by collecting spare change to giveyear-long Compassion Commission, the leadership to research studies in hopes of finding a cure for cancer.There is a small incentive for everyone to collectteam is hosting a service project to raise money forThe Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s research spare change; the class that raises the most moneyprogram. Volunteering their own lunch time, the by percentage will win a free lunch donated fromteam delivered special “change boxes” for “Pennies the Olive Garden as part of their “Pasta for Pennies”for Patients” to all of the elementary classrooms and program; however, through this “School and Youthjunior and senior high school homerooms. In addi-Pennies Campaign”, the goal is to raise money forPre-K hasbeen talkingabout God’slove for each and everyperson as a partLauryn NicolEPRE_K TEACHER of our discussionabout Martin LutherKing’s birthday. During one of our circletimes, I laid out pictures of different people.There was a man in a wheelchair, the President,a homeless man, an American college student,Hannah Montana, and an African woman. Igave each child a penny and asked him/her toplace the penny on the person they thoughtGod loved the most. Most of the children puttheir pennies on the President and HannahMontana. Next I gave each child a paperclipand asked the children to put their paperclipon the person they thought God loved theleast. The majority of the children placed theirWho Does God Love Most?paperclips on the homeless man and the manin the wheelchair. We then had a discussionabout why they had chosen the people thatthey did. Why do you think God loves thePresident the most? I asked. “Because he is thePresident,” one student answered. “Why doyou think God loves Hannah Montana themost?” “Because she is pretty,” another studentreplied. Then I asked the children whythey thought God loved the homeless man theleast. They said it was because “He is dirty”and the man in the wheedlchair “because Hecan’t stand.”The children believed that God’s love isbased on who a person is, what he does, hisaccomplishments, and the way that he looks.My heart sank after hearing these answers. Irealized how often I too am guilty of thinkingthat God’s love is dependent on what I do orwho I am. So often, I become consumed bymy failures. I find myself comparing myself toothers and thinking that God must be morepleased with them because they have it moretogether than I do, but that is so far from thetruth of God’s love. God does not care if Imake millions; He does not care if I have voluminoushair, or if I live in a box. He lovesme just the same. I explained to the childrenthat God’s love doesn’t change; that He lovesthe homeless man just as much as He lovesHannah Montana, and He loves the Presidentjust as much as He loves us. God madeeach person to be exactly the way that he orshe is. His loves abounds unconditionally toeach and every one of us. There is nothing wecan do to make him love us more or less. Wethen talked about how God loves people whoare different from us whether they have moremoney than us or are begging for money fromus. We too should love them and be able to beconfident that God loves us just the same! •

FEBRUARY 2011 7blood cancer research and patient services, and to have an opportunityto make a difference in the lives of other people. Anyone who wouldlike to make a larger donation may do so by visiting www.schoolandyouth.org/los, select Donate to a School and choose Greater LA to findour school. Seventy-six cents of every dollar raised supports cancer research,education, advocacy and services for patients, and the missionof the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.ACADEMICALLY Senior Class Shines …Not only is HCS fulfilling part of its mission statement to providetraining for the “development of well-rounded students who will impactthis world for the Lord Jesus Christ through Biblical thought andaction” through service projects such as “Pennies for Patients”, we alsoprovide “high quality Christian education” as evidenced by our seniorclass already celebrating some of their acceptances into colleges anduniversities. Three of our seniors have been awarded generous scholarshipsto universities such as Cal Lutheran University, Massachusetts’sCollege of Pharmacy and Health Science, Westmont, Waynesburg,and Azusa Pacific University. Seniors Jonathan Hepp, Hanah Yoon,and Dani Ruffing have each been offered over $17, 000 annually inscholarships from these universities, and this is only the beginning ofthe “acceptance season”! Updated recognition of our award-winningsenior students is posted on the “College Knowledge” bulletin boardoutside the school office.Two of our other seniors, Mauricio Elizondo and Evan Barbour,who also give private drum and guitar lessons, are committed to attendingMoorpark College as they continue to develop their band,“Amongst the Chosen” that they began with former graduate Erik Bogeburgand current sophomore Kade Thurman. These talented musicians,who met in HCS’s worship band, now write their own musicand have already produced three singles! The “voice” of Hillcrest forour daliy announcements, Jake Walden is waiting to hear from his desireduniversities, but after earning a perfect ACT score in reading andnear perfect score in writing, he will no doubt be college bound tofulfill his dream of becoming a professor.At Hillcrest Christian School, students are learning how they canmake a difference in God’s world through acts of service as well as actsof academic excellence. •JENELLE LEEHCS CLASS OF 2006ALUMNI NEWS: Looking Back on HillcrestHello Hillcrest family! In case you don’t know other believers. This skill has become very handy asme, my name is Jenelle Lee, and I have been a part I begin my career in marketing within the entertainmentindustry. During my senior year at APU, I be-of this family since 1992. I began attending HillcrestChristian School in preschool and continued until gan a yearlong internship at ABC Studios and wasmy high school graduation in 2006. Although I am very thankful for the biblical studies that were taughtno longer attending Hillcrest, I still feel like a part of at Hillcrest, as the theology and lessons learned therethe family as I have created lifelong friendships and helped prepare me to work in a secular workplace.relationships with many of my classmates and teachers.Being a part of the Hillcrest family truly shaped Consumer Products where I am able to be a light forI recently began a full-time internship at Disneymy life into what it is today. Hillcrest gave me a once Christ to my co-workers. Hillcrest taught me whatin a life time opportunity to experience what a true it meant to have a relationship with Christ and howfamily and body of believers looks like. After Hillcrest,I continued my education at Azusa Pacific Uni-to my future without forgetting who I am, what Ito truly impact the world for Him. I look forwardversity where I studied and graduated four years later. believe in, and where it all began …HCS. My timeWhile attending APU, I studied abroad at Oxford at Hillcrest is one of the things I cherish most in myUniversity where I wrote over fifteen term papers. life, and I would not trade it for anything else. I amThe writing skills I developed at Hillcrest prepared so thankful to all of the teachers, past and present,me for that intensive writing semester.who have made Hillcrest what it is today and whatThe sense of community and relationships it will be tomorrow. •fostered at Hillcrest taught me what a Godly relationshiplooks like with all different people, not just

8 HILLCREST IN-DEPTHThe Saints came marching into this basketballseason with a full line-up of studentathletes ready to play for His glory! Theupper elementary girls, led by Coach Julie Dimas,stand with a 2-2 record with 7 games yet to play.Their line-up includes 6th graders Carlie Magallanesand Chigo Chukwu, and 5th graders CatherineSpach, Kira Matsuo, Hannah Dimas, Izzy Ochoa,and Ashley Massell.Upper elementary boys are blazing a trail witha 4-1 record in the middle of the season. CoachDrogosch leads the way for the talented youngmen including Zac Hawkins, Nicholas Kovan,Chris Alballat, Oscar Medrano, Evan Lasher, GrantDrogosch, Ryan Hagge, and Sean Turner.Middle school boys showed up in force, creatingthe opportunity for two middle school teams.The competition is fierce with the 7th grade boysteam led by Coach Bruce Matsuo. This talentedteam goes up against 8th grade teams with nofear and plays hard until the end. Student athletesWeston Quiroz, Kobe Matsuo, Christian Bradley,Jackson Lane, Michael Abraham, Jack Hill, and DavidCisi are checking in with a midseason record of2-2 and never a dull moment!Our future varsity Saints led by the outstandingexample of Coach Brock MacPherson are atthe half way point with a 2-3 record. Losing severalplayers early in the season gives these student athletesplenty of play time and experience that theywill need for their high school careers. Our futurevarsity Saints are Sammy Rettinger, Dante Shane,Lucas Vieira, Cullen Madden, Chase Thurman, andMinsoo Kang.Lady Saints have battled their way with an impressive6-3 record nearing the end of the regularseason. Coach Burke has taken charge of this youngteam with great results. Topping the roster are juniorclass leaders Meagan Jones, Madelyn Harris,and Bailey Pickard. Hardworking sophomore BrieHawkins does double duty playing basketball andperforming on the cheer squad. Rounding out thisdazzling team is the spirited freshmen Alison Burke,Alexa Hermasillo, and Allison Kramer.Boys varsity basketball will finish their seasonthis week with a bright outlook for next year. Also ayoung team, they are led by Coach Tim Dominguezwith a 7-6 record. Leading the team are returningjuniors Don Chen, Gio Hernandez, and Logan Baltau.Stepping up for the sophomore class is AustinOchoa, and our young talent from the freshmenclass includes Teddy Rettinger, Blake Dundas, andJohn Groh. With a short bench, freshmen were givenreal varsity game experience which will help boostthe team for the 2012 season. The real success inall these teams is the opportunity provided theseyoung Christian athletes to use their God givengifts, while juggling practice and school workwithout compromising either. The goal is not justto win, but to do all things for His glory! •PICTUREDBailey Pickard, Alexa Hermosillo, Meagan Jones, Madelyn Harris,Brie Hawkins, Allison KramerPhotographer: Bonnie JonesCOACH “D”ATHLETIC DIRECTOR