Van Buren Local Schools

Congrats to Norah & Oliver for their Positive Behavior Referrals! #BeABlackKnight

Congrats to Peyton & Miles for their Positive Behavior Referrals! #BeABlackKnight

January STEM Club is coming up...Jan. 9-12th! #BeABlackKnight

The first episode of the Joust About Careers podcast in 2023 features a conversation with Michelle (Long) Fissell, a 2009 Van Buren High School graduate who is now a licensed professional counselor for Family Life Counseling & Psychiatric Services in central Ohio. Michelle shares what she does as a counselor, what led her to a counseling career after intending to become a math teacher, what it was like to earn a counseling degree through Grand Canyon University’s online program, and much more. Anyone interested in a career as a counselor will find information related to getting started down that path in this episode, so feel free to share it. To watch on YouTube, visit bit.ly/JoustAboutCareers. To listen on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or other podcast platforms, simply search "Joust About Careers" to find the podcast and listen to this episode and others. Have a great week!

Need a last-minute gift for that hard-to-buy-for person on your list? Get them a ticket for the sophomore class's BBQ chicken dinner on Jan. 27! Contact any VB sophomore for tickets or more information. #BeABlackKnight

For today's middle school teacher introduction, please enjoy learning about Mrs. Dishong! She teaches 6th grade Language Arts and has been teaching for 26 years with 9 of them being at Van Buren. She has three children who are Sarah, Lauren, and Grant. Grant is currently a senior at McComb High School and will be heading to The Ohio State University in the fall. Mrs. Dishong loves teaching at VBMS and cherishes her time with all her students. We are so grateful to have such an amazing and dedicated teacher at VBMS! #BeABlackKnight

Have a Merry Christmas & Happy New Year! #BeABlackKnight

The Spirit of Giving is alive and well in Van Buren! This holiday season, students and staff filled Deputy Crouch's office with donations for Toys for Tots, and VB elementary students collected donations for CHOPIN Hall and the Humane Society & SPCA of Hancock Co. #BeABlackKnight

Students showed off their Christmas Spirit in pajamas and holiday attire today. #HappyHolidays #BeABlackKnight #ChristmasSpirit

Last week, teachers and staff wore jeans to support our students in Hancock Youth Leadership. HYL helps high school students develop leadership and communication skills, and the funds raised from Jeans Week will allow VB students to continue participating in this awesome program!

Senior Summer Siefer hosted the first ever Women In Business panel at Van Buren High School. She brought in four brilliant speakers from various fields of business, they had an open discussion followed by breakout sessions. Thank you to all who participated! #BeABlackKnight

Elf on the shelf zip line challenge: 5th math VANTAGE students were asked to use their problem-solving skills to design and build a vehicle to carry our elf, STEMster down a zipline to safety. The winning time was 1.55 seconds! #BeABlackKnight

This week's episode of the Joust About Careers podcast features the 10-minute highlights of the interview with Kristina Rowles, a 2008 Van Buren High School graduate who is the Director of Home Repair for Appalachia Service Project in Tennessee. The highlights include a typical day for Kristina, how she made the career move from music therapy to her current position, how she learned many valuable skills throughout college that she still applies today, and how young adults can get involved in ASP’s internship program. If these highlights make you want to learn more about Kristina’s career journey, check out the full interview. To watch full interviews and highlights on YouTube, visit bit.ly/JoustAboutCareers. To listen to full interviews on your favorite podcast platform, simply search Joust About Careers. Have a great week!

Congrats Kinsley & Robert for their Positive Behavior Referrals! #BeABlackKnight

It has been a busy, career-focused month at VBHS. Here are some highlights: * Ken Rood, Director of Business Development & Sales for DNC Hydraulics, LLC, spoke to all of the English 10 classes about his career journey and the career opportunities DNC offers, such as administrative assistant; accountant; purchasing; sales; logistics; CAD designer; cylinder, pump, and mobile service technicians; machinist; mechanic; forklift driver; and CDL driver. * Senior Summer Siefer organized a Women in Business discussion panel for students interested in business careers. This was a huge undertaking for Summer, and her leadership in providing this opportunity for students is greatly appreciated. * Students are always encouraged to use shadow days/career visits to advance their knowledge of career opportunities, and senior Summer Siefer and junior Mussie Hanson took advantage of that opportunity this month. Summer shadowed Ohio Director of Development Lydia Mihalik in Columbus and was able to see a variety of careers in the development office. Mussie visited the NWO Piping Industry Training Center in Northwood to tour the apprenticeship facility. * Multiple students took advantage of the opportunity to take the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB) at Millstream. Those ASVAB results do not require a student to join the military; they simply help students identify what careers would be available to them in the military so they can make informed post-high school career decisions.

This past Tuesday, our middle school and high school choirs sang in the Christmas holiday with their Christmas concert. The middle school and high school band concert was going to be this Wednesday, however it has been rescheduled. #BeABlackKnight #MerryChristmas

NHS students, former VB students, and parents participated in Clothe a Child yesterday. To get the Christmas spirit started at VB, each student was paired with an elementary student and a parent to help choose desired clothing items for the student. Thank you to everyone who participated, and we hope the kids enjoy all the items they got! #BeABlackKnight

Meet our new MS/HS Attendance Secretary Mrs. Adkins! Mrs. Adkins and her husband Scott have two kids and enjoy traveling together. In her spare time, she also enjoys reading, baking and teaching Sunday school. Please welcome Mrs. Adkins to Van Buren! #BeABlackKnight

Today, grades 6-8 participated in a spelling bee. The winner was Ashleigh Doyle and the runner-up was Rachael Miller! Ashleigh will participate in the Hancock County Spelling Bee on Thursday, January 26, at the Marathon Center for the Performing Arts at 7:00 pm. Inclement weather date is Wednesday, February 1 at MCPA. Congratulations to both! #BeABlackKnight

Student Council was kind enough to host a Parents’ Night Out this past Saturday! Thank you to the students and teachers who were a part of this to create such a fun time for the kids while their parents were away. #VB1Team #BeABlackKnight