Students in George Schoenborn’s accounting class at Saint Peter High School met with Tim Regner, Saint Peter Public Schools’ business manager, during the class on Monday, March 9. Regner talked to the students about his duties as the school district’s business manager as well as about accounting as a career, whether it be in the public or private sector.

A part of Regner’s visit with students was a tour of the Saint Peter High School building where he discussed the concept of plant assets and how the district maintains, records, depreciates, etc., those. During the tour, Regner pointed out items that were plant assets and those that were not.

The following are some of the accounting students’ comments on meeting with Regner:

* Amelia Carlson -- "Accounting class teaches us useful skills that will apply to the real world, and meeting with our school’s business manager helped us to see what we have learned brought to life in our school."

* Nolayn Vande -- "The meeting helped us apply our book learning and assignments to real world accounting and shows us the difference and similarities that allow us to jump a gap and determine how our abilities can assist in multiple fields of finance and not solely accounting. You don't even have to be an accountant to do accounting. Mr. Regner also showed us the difference between private and public business accounting and it also really proves that A=L+OE”

* Hunter Goebel -- “There were a lot of things that we learned about the real life system, and how much different the text books are compared to what businesses actually do. There were also many different things between how a private business runs things compared to a public school. The biggest thing I learned was that the schools don't pay taxes and their plant assets and depreciation isn't as a big concern to them then what they use their funds for for the students. I thought that was really interesting.”

Opportunity Day for Saint Peter High School students (grades 9-12) has been set for Tuesday, Feb. 25, with specific and unique educational opportunities being planned for each grade level.

Coordinating the Opportunity Day activities are Mandy Quist and Jana Sykora, School Counselors.

“Opportunity Day provides students with college and career readiness knowledge, skills, and experiences that enhance their academic planning while developing and practicing hands on employment skills for their future careers.” College and Career Readiness Counselor Mandy Quist shares.  Each grade level’s activities are designed in the continuum of the overall PreK-12 college and career readiness scope and sequence. The extensive preparation and coordination of this event is substainstated as students share their Opportunity Day experiences.” It is exciting to hear the students share their stories and renewed energy to pursue their academics and future careers, connect real world workforce knowledge with their classroom lessons and see the self discovery growth of their own skill levels and career interests.” 

Coordinating with local partners, St. Peter Area Chamber and businesses, Mankato Workforce Council and CareerForce Center, along with post secondary educational institutions, organizers developed the resources to ensure that  students at the high school will be able to maximize their educational and exploration opportunities to enrich the students’ career and college readiness knowledge. 

“I am grateful that our teachers, administrators and families are so engaged and supportive of career and college planning,” SPHS School Counselor Jana Sykora said. “This day is a gift for students as it allows for significant progress toward their postsecondary goals. There is a lot of planning involved in this day, and all of our teachers” 

Some of the other benefits of Opportunity Day according to Quist and Sykora include exposing ninth graders to a variety of post-secondary opportunities, optimizing the college and career readiness testing environments and building employment skills confidence. The developmental grade level activities provide post secondary options for students who might not have previously considered for themselves as they continue their career readiness planning. 

The following is an overview of what will take place for students in all four grades that will be participating in Opportunity Day:

12th Grade
Informational Interview and Observation (off-site)

• Seniors utilize homeroom time for career assessments and activities, employment speakers, identifying career interests and developing and enhancing their employment skills to assist them in scheduling and preparing for their observation day in the career field of their choice

• Seniors are expected to conduct their observation and informational interview during the school day on February 25. Seniors will not report to school February 25

11th Grade
College and Career Assessments

• 11th grade students will take a college and career readiness assessment of their choice; ACT with writing, the Accuplacer or the ASVAB.

• After their assessment, students will have a break for lunch and then rotate through presentations on scholarships,  financial planning, Career Day preparation and senior year timeline planning.

10th Grade
PreACT Testing Day

• 10th grade students will take the PreACT.

• After the PreACT, students will have a break for lunch and then report to their homeroom for the afternoon to work on their Personalized Learning Plan, prepare for the Career Expo (scheduled for March 25) and begin exploring scholarships and financial planning.

9th Grade
Opportunity Tour

• 9th grade students will begin their day in the theater with a motivational and interactive presentation intended to inspire each student toward reaching their own personal and academic growth.

• Students will depart the high school at 9:00 am and visit a four year public  and private college, learning about admissions,financial aid, programs/majors, athletics, scholarships and overall campus life. 

• Students will return to school by 2:45 pm.

Mr. Chantharak and Mrs. Leibfried are taking some of our special education students in the community to practice their life skills and social skills. This group will leave school at 8:30 a.m. and visit various places in the community such as the government offices, laundry mat, bank, doctor office, post office, and grocery store. This group will end their day at a sit down restaurant where they will use the skills they learned to order off of a menu, use appropriate social skills, and make a purchase. The students will return back to school at 2:30 p.m. where they will end their school day. 

 

Saint Peter High School will host its first-ever Course and Curriculum Night on Thursday, Feb. 13, from 3:30 to 7:30 p.m., which is being held the same evening as Parent-Teacher Conferences.

The SPHS counseling staff encourages all 8th through 11th grade families (grades 9-12 in 2020-21) to attend Course and Curriculm Night's two main events:

* Course & Curriculum Fair - Open House -- Stop by the SPHS gym to meet department staff and learn about course selection and offerings. 

* Registration Information Sessions -- Learn about the registration process for all students, the role of parents, and the timeline for submitting 2020-21 registration requests. Two sessions will be offered in the SPHS Performing Arts Center (theater) -- 4:30 p.m. and 6 p.m. 

Saint Peter High School and its Building Leadership Team (BLT) are hosting a parent information and advisory gathering on Wednesday, Feb. 5 at 5:30 p.m. at the SPHS commons area. Parents/guardians of students in grades 9 - 12 are welcome to attend.

At this first meeting, according to SPHS Principal Annette Engeldinger, the BLT would like to gather information and feedback on programming, policies, and practices, as well as share information on some of the things the team is working on this year.

We hope to see you there!

A somewhat regular occurrence during the school day at Saint Peter High School has become a popular among school staff as Liz Leibfried’s Life & Work Skills students make their way around the building in the afternoon with their Saints Brew snack and beverage cart. 

The crew began offering tasty treats and beverages to SPHS staff this past fall and they were immediately well received. What treats they offer varies from week to week, but often includes baked goods such as cookies, bars, and muffins, and, since the holiday season is over, they have include veggies and dip or fruit for those wanting to get their diet back on track. The beverages of choice usually includes water, coffee, or hot chocolate. 

“Saints Brew has been such a wonderful project-based learning experience to add to our classroom,” Leibfried said. “Our week revolves around the coffee cart. Monday we go out in the community and grocery shop for the food items. On Tuesday and Thursday we bake the food for the cart. 

“The kids have seemed to really enjoy building relationships with staff in the building.  The cart has increased their social and employment skills. Alyssa said she has learned to be more patient and Emma loves working with her friends. Sabrina and Kiersten have increased their use of their communication device in a variety of settings.”

The students don’t charge anything for their treats and beverages, but they do accept donations and use those funds to buy more snacks and beverages for the cart.