Tag: Washington DC

Seldovia Students see DC Close Up and Personal

| May 20, 2014 | 0 Comments

by Jenny Chissus, photos in below slideshow by Jenny Chissus

Seldovia Close Up in DCSeven of our students from Susan B English had the opportunity to enjoy an amazing trip this year!  Thanks to our generous and supportive community of family and friends in Seldovia; Aidan, Calem, Devin, Marina, Olivia, Thor and Xandria were able to raise the funds necessary to make the trip from Seldovia to Washington DC possible!  Car washes, bake sales, Kindle raffle, carnival booth and gift basket raffle (with items from many individuals and businesses) as well as the very generous Booster Club support, all together raised the necessary funds to pay for a good part of the tuition for our students in the Close Up educational program in Washington DC, as well as the majority of tuition and travel expenses for the two chaperones that accompanied the students on the 11 day trip.

THANK YOU to our community for their continued support of academic and athletic activities for our students.  Living in Seldovia, it is always a very expensive venture to be able to participate in sports and academic opportunities, just because we have to get across the bay!  All year-long, we are blessed to have the financial support of so many for these activities.  To experience the additional support for this major opportunity to travel almost 4,000 miles to see the history of our country and process of our government leaders up close and personal is an invaluable experience that few enjoy, and one they will always remember and one that they will be grateful for… their lifetimes!

Close Up on The Mall

I had the opportunity to go along, with a companion fare – and was able to offer my support as an additional chaperone/photographer for the trip.  I’ve never been to Washington DC, so this was a fabulous treat for me as well, and was completely blown away being able to see the many places I’ve only heard about in school, seen in movies or on the news, or read about in books!

This was also a great opportunity for our students to meet other kids from all over the country!  Some had room mates that they totally enjoyed, who bought pizza and sodas, and there were others who didn’t make a connection with their room mates.  But this was a great chance to meet new people, adjust to living and experiencing a whole new relationship – away from Seldovia!  A great practice run for college! 🙂

Thankfully, most of the days we were in DC, it was beautiful, sunny and warm!  We walked for miles and miles and the weather cooperated (with the exception of Capitol Hill day!)    At the bottom of this article,  I have placed a slideshow of some of the best photos of the trip for your viewing pleasure!

Also – don’t forget to come up to the school on Wednesday, May 21, around 1:00pm to view the full sized slide show presentation of the trip by the Close Up students!

As the trip came to a close, I had the chance to get some insight from the students about the trip – and I’d like to share that with you!  In our home, after an event – or even at the end of the day – we often report the “high” and the “low” – to get a reading about how each person felt about their day or experience.  When working with teens it is often hard to get much out at all, and this usually gets some great responses, so, here we go!

We’ll start with the “Highs” of the trip!

Screen Shot 2014-05-19 at 10.52.09 PM“My high/favorite part of the trip was the first two days when we walked around the Mall. I also enjoyed seeing the Library of Congress, Capitol Hill and the Lincoln Memorial.” – Xandria

“The first two days with only the Seldovia kids was very productive and I really enjoyed the sights. My favorites were the Library of Congress and the Lincoln Memorial.” – Olivia

“My high point was going to Capitol Hill.  I thought it was awesome to see where everything happens, and where decisions are made.” – Aidan

“My high was seeing all the statues/memorials and museums – they were magnificent!” – Marina

Thor“What I liked most was probably the Library of Congress or the Washington monument (mainly for its immense size). Probably the high point of the trip (at least overall) was probably the day that our group got together (Wednesday) and we got to hang out together. On that Wednesday everything was less rushed, everything seemed to move nicely, not having to work with a solid schedule.” – Thor

“I liked meeting new people and my high point was seeing Arlington.  I thought DC was beautiful.” – Devin

“Seeing all the memorials because they are cool and it is crazy how they sculpted them.” – Calem

Screen Shot 2014-05-19 at 11.40.04 PM“My high was being able to go to DC, and sharing this experience with the students.  I also really enjoyed the night tour of DC on the top-level of the double-decker “Big” bus. My favorites? The buildings, the incredible architecture, Union Station and the cherry blossoms!” – Mr. C

“First and foremost my high point every time is witnessing the students awe.  My personal high points would be sitting in on a United States Supreme Court hearing after standing in the rain for 1.5 hours was impressive, George Washington’s home of Mt. Vernon and learned of his innovative methods of farming, toured the grounds at Ft. McHenry where the War of 1812 took place and where Sir Francis Scott Key was inspired to write what would become our national anthem.  What I like about Washington DC is it is a city filled with history at every street corner, every building has something to say.” – Ms. Vivian

And what were the “Lows” of the trip?

Screen Shot 2014-05-19 at 10.52.22 PM“Waking up really early in the morning because it was 4:00am Alaska time!  Also the heavy raining day.” – Calem

“Early mornings and the crowds.” – Devin

“I can’t really think of a low point, as there probably wasn’t one.” – Thor

“The planes, they were too long and tiresome to change time zones and the crowds everywhere were annoying.” – Marina

“My low point was waking up on Wednesday at 6:30am because I was so tired! I didn’t like all the crowds.” – Aidan

Olivia“My room mates were not easy to get along with.” – Olivia

“When it rained really hard on Capitol Hill day, we got super wet!” – Xandria

“My low point would have been the students didn’t get to see the rotunda of the Capitol as it was closed on our Capitol Hill Day. A disappointment as it is so amazing to witness.” – Ms. Vivian

“The low points for me were: airports, airplanes and the time change.  I also didn’t like the metro smell.  Oh, and $3.00 waters.” – Mr. C.

Thank You, Thank You, Thank You!

Marina“Thanks Ms. Vivian for all the work you put into this!” – Marina

“To Vivian, for all her effort at keeping this a tradition – a priceless opportunity for students to participate in and experience.” – Mr. C.

Ms Vivian“Many thanks to all those who supported our fundraising efforts. Appreciation and thanks to the students who had the courage and curiosity to work hard to attend Close Up. A big thank you to Paul Chissus, as our male chaperone who is always good-natured and as inquisitive as I am about the architecture in DC and to Jenny Chissus for being a great support and help as our personal photographer. A duty I didn’t have to do this time!” –  Ms. Vivian

“To Ms.Vivian and all who helped raise money, and thanks to Mr. C.”  – Xandria

“To Ms Vivian for making the trip happen.  To our community for making it possible for us to go.” – Olivia

Aidan“I would like to thank Ms. Vivian for organizing everything.  I would also like to thank the community for helping us fundraise.”  – Aidan

I’d like to thank the community for helping us fundraise, as I know the community is already heavily taxed. I’d also like to thank Ms. Vivian for all the years she has assisted in the fundraising and chaperoning trips.” – Thor

Devin“Thanks to the guides in DC because I learned a lot, and of course, the community’s financial support.” – Devin

“Thanks to everyone who helped us fundraise and bought our raffle tickets.” – Calem

Summary:

The trip was phenomenal, and even though we had 7 days in DC, there was so much more we could have seen!  The beauty of this trip for the students was the exposure to all of it!  Even though it may have seemed overwhelming – the amount of information and history being “consumed”, the massive amount of walking we were doing each day – from this point forward, when they see the rotunda of Capitol Hill in the background, or hear about what is happening on the Senate floor – they will have a whole new sense of understanding!  This experience is priceless.  The grandeur of the monuments, buildings and art collections, as well as the historic significance of the memorials, museums and layout of DC is now something they can honestly relate to.  This has been an amazing gift!  Thank you to the community/family of Seldovia who believe in and are willing to financially support an incredible educational experience for our students!

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Win A Kindle Fire HDX – Support Our Kids

| January 20, 2014 | 0 Comments

by Jenny Chissus

AmazonKindleAre you looking for that great gift for a family member, friend or loved one?  You will definitely make all kinds of points when you are the winner of this fabulous Kindle Fire HDX!!  Click here to see all the AMAZING things you can enjoy on your Kindle!

This year we have 7 students who have been working hard to earn their trip to Washington DC to participate in the Close Up program.  Aidan Philpot, Calem Collier, Devin Chissus, Marina Chissus, Olivia Turner, Thor Burt and Xandria Swick.  Vivian Rojas, along with Justin Derks will be accompanying them on this great educational trip!

CLOSE UP MISSIONtaken from the Closeup.org website

Close Up informs, inspires, and empowers young people to exercise the rights and accept the responsibilities of citizens in a democracy.

We believe that a strong democracy requires active and informed participation by all citizens; therefore we seek to reach participants of every race, creed, geographical community, socio-economic level, and academic standing. To carry out our mission, we partner with educators, schools, and youth organizations throughout the country to help young people develop the skills and attitudes to become informed and engaged citizens. Since 1971, nearly 800,000 participants have participated in Close Up programs.

RuthWinnerOfAltasThrowVivian Rojas has led this trip 4 times, and they have gone every 3 years or so.  It is great to have an experienced chaperone who knows the ins and outs of getting around Washington DC and who will ensure that our students get the most out of the week that they will be spending on the East Coast.

We also want to take this opportunity to thank you for your great support in purchasing tickets for the last raffle for the beautiful hand-made throw by Alta Colberg!  Folks were very enthusiastic about that raffle, and we earned $574.00 towards the Close Up trip!

Thank you Alta for your generous donation!

To the right is a photo of our raffle winner, Ruth Sensenig with the prize!

KindleFireHDXProductTour

This month, who is going to win the NEW Kindle Fire HDX?

Tickets will be $5.00 a piece or 5 for $20!  This is not just an E Reader – it is a tablet  – capable of games, touch screen, camera and the big one – 24 hour video help chat line called “MayDay”!  Coolest thing ever!

Click Here or on the image above  to go directly to Amazon, and be sure to click on the arrow that states “PRODUCT TOUR” and see all the amazing things this Kindle Fire can do!  It truly is on many folks wish list!

Perfect-color HDX display, plus powerful quad-core processor for fast, fluid performance and immersive entertainment
  • Exclusive 7″ HDX display (1920×1200), high pixel density (323 PPI), and perfect color accuracy (100% sRGB) for vivid, lifelike images that go beyond standard HD
  • The fastest processor on a 7″ tablet—powerful 2.2GHz quad-core processor and 2GB of RAM for fast, fluid multi-tasking, gaming, and video
  • Introducing the “Mayday” button—revolutionary, on-device tech support, exclusive to Kindle Fire HDX tablets. Connect for free to an Amazon expert 24×7, 365 days a year
  • Stay productive on the go with ultra-fast web browsing, built-in OfficeSuite, and updated e-mail and calendar support for Gmail, Outlook, and more
  • Immersive entertainment experience—see trivia and character backgrounds with X-Ray for Movies and TV, follow along with lyrics with new X-Ray for Music, fling videos to your TV with Second Screen, and more
  • Over 100,000 apps and games available in the Amazon Appstore, including a new paid app for free every day
  •  In addition to Free Two-Day Shipping, Prime members can stream tens of thousands of Prime Instant Video titles at no additional cost, over half of which can be downloaded to the latest generation of Kindle Fire tablets.

The Drawing will take place at the Susan B English basketball games on February 22, 2014.  You do not need to be present to win.

To purchase your tickets:

  1. If you live locally, please contact any one of the students involved in Close Up – they all have tickets to sell!
  2. If you are out of town, please Contact Vivian at vrojas@kpbsd.k12.ak.us and put KINDLE in the Subject line!
  3. You can always go on up to the school and talk directly to the students or Vivian – they will get you taken care of!
  4. The Close Up students will be going around town, as they must to sell their allotment of tickets – so keep a lookout!
  5. If you are purchasing the tickets long distance:  After you have confirmed your purchase of tickets (via a method above – limited availability) please send a check made out to “Susan B English” with “Close Up Kindle” in the memo line to the school at:  Vivian Rojas, Susan B English School, PO Box 171, Seldovia, Alaska 99663.   Please indicate who you purchased the tickets from – for our records!

This small group of 7 students have held car washes, bake sales, a community dinner, pumpkin pie sale, sponsored a knit throw raffle and have received various donations equaling $2,793 thus far!   The expense for our students to be able to go on such a learning adventure is extensive!  Each student’s tuition for the Close Up program alone is $1,304, there is also airfare to Washington DC from Anchorage, 3 nights stay in Washington DC for the nights not included in the Close Up program (anyone have some great connections with a hotel?),  and then we must also cover the costs for the two chaperones to accompany them on the trip!

THANKS TO the Booster Club, who is assisting with the costs associated with getting the group out of Seldovia (most likely by boat out of Jakolof) and the trip to Anchorage.  (We aren’t sure if we are driving in private cars or renting a vehicle…still open to ideas on this!)  We are also so appreciative of the Dimond Center Hotel who will put up the entire group for the night before and after the flights, as both the departure and arrival out of Anchorage is in the very early morning!

We are so thankful to the community’s generous support thus far – we are thrilled that our students have this opportunity to participate in such a great program – as it is quite the endeavor to get them from Seldovia to Washington DC – and

We couldn’t do it without you!

Washington, D.C. Close Up 2014

| October 25, 2013 | 0 Comments

by Vivian Rojas

To the Community of Seldovia,

Ten students from Susan B. English School are eager to attend a course in governmental studies offered by the Close Up Foundation in Washington, D.C.  Close Up is built on the belief that textbooks and lectures alone are not enough to help students understand the democratic process and make it work. Students need a “close up” experience in government. Close Up’s national experiential government studies programs strengthen participants’ knowledge of how the political process works, increase their awareness of Continue Reading