Coronavirus

Dear HA Family:

Our school is currently monitoring closely the spread of the coronavirus and if it may, in time, affect our campus. Our main priority is to keep our students, faculty, and staff healthy and safe. We want to assure you that we will take necessary precautions so that our students are protected.

On-Campus Response

On campus, we have created a plan in response to the potential threat of this epidemic. The plan also applies to influenza, or any other pandemic virus that may cause serious widespread illnesses. It includes preventative and environmental sanitation practices on campus. Our plan includes:

·      Our maintenance staff taking care to wipe down door knobs other frequently touched surfaces on a daily basis;   

·      Starting a campaign to ensure our students wash their hands frequently and use the hand sanitizer that is placed in each classroom;

·      Encouraging students to cough or sneeze into their arm, not their hands;

·      Strongly urging all families NOT TO SEND YOUR CHILD TO SCHOOL SHOULD SIGNS OF ILLNESS APPEAR (as always, we ask that a child be fever-free for 24 hours before he or she returns to school);

·      Asking our teachers and students to wipe down desks throughout the day to ensure those surfaces are sanitary.

Travel

With the approach of spring break and families traveling domestically and internationally, we strongly encourage you to adhere to the CDC's guidelines on travel, and use U.S. State Department website to review your destination(s) before your departure, during your trip and upon your return. We understand this information changes and as such, encourage you to check this website regularly.

Additionally, we ask that any community members who find it necessary to travel to areas of CDC Level 2 or Level 3 concern inform the School of their travel so that we may provide appropriate guidance. We will be asking travelers from those countries to refrain from coming to campus for a minimum of 14 days after their return home.

I was able to speak directly to the Head of the Alabama Department of Public Health. After a detailed conversation, I have determined that Houston Academy will postpone all school-sponsored travel scheduled for Short Term.  As a result, all Short Term classes/experiences are cancelled, except for senior internships. Because it would be impossible to incorporate all of the students that were scheduled to travel, regular classes will continue next week.

Planning for Possible School Disruption

We are planning to explore the option remote learning should we find it necessary to cancel school for a prolonged period of time. We suggest you ensure that your student has access to high-speed internet should virtual learning need to occur for any period of time. If access is a problem for your family, please contact your child’s division head.

Please remember that students take their emotional cues from the adult community. We encourage you to monitor your child's engagement in the topic and help them understand what they are seeing and hearing to avoid anxiety. Being prepared is not a cause for panic or alarm. Here is a helpful article on how to talk to your child about the Coronavirus outbreak. Our Counseling staff are here to help you, as well.


If you have any questions relating to our policies and procedures, please feel free to contact your respective division head or me.

Introducing Our New Faculty, 2019

So, another school year is upon us. On #HAfirstday, I wanted to introduce everyone to our new faculty members!

 Ginger Wilder

In the World Languages Department, Sarah McLaughlin is stepping back to teaching part-time and serving as our senior sponsor. Along with Sarah, Ginger Wilder will be teaching French in the Middle and Upper Schools. Ginger has an undergraduate degree in both French and English from Delta State University and a Master’s in French Literature from the University of Memphis.

Ginger Wilder

Ginger grew up in the Mississippi Delta, but she considers Memphis, TN her home. Her husband is Paul Morelli and he is a jazz musician and professor at Wallace Community College.

Ginger loves to cook and travel. She and her husband are “collecting” all 50 states and all the National Parks. Her favorite foods to cook are nostalgic Southern casseroles and desserts.

In Mrs. Wilder’s words:

I decided to be a teacher when I turned 15 because I fell in love with French in high school. My teacher made her class fun and accessible. She made the language interesting and she introduced me to an art of living I would not have found otherwise. It is my daily goal to create that environment for my own students. I am looking forward to a great year at Houston Academy and I’m very thankful to get to join the family!

Cecilia Ciccarelli 

Mrs. Cecilia Ciccarelli is a Houston Academy Alumnae, Class of 2000. She will be the new Extended Day Aide.

She has 2 sons. Her oldest is a 10th grader at HA, Bruno Ciccarelli, and he is currently on the football team (Go #70!!). Her youngest son, Bodee Ciccarelli, is 10 years old and currently at Highlands Elementary School in the 5th grade. She hopes he will be a Raider before too long!!

Her husband of 15 years, Charles Ciccarelli is still on Active Duty in the Army as a pilot. Charles  has been deployed numerous times to serve our country. The Ciccarellis have lived in Germany (where her oldest son was born) and Virginia before moving back to her hometown of Dothan.

On a personal note, Cecilia loves to paint. She has painted multiple murals in the past 20 years, three of which were in the Lower School building. Two of them are currently still in the breezeway bathrooms. Additionally, she has been a military spouse now for 15 years and takes a great deal of pride in being a supportive "army wife"!

Cecilia Ciccarelli 

Mrs. Ciccarelli has volunteered at First Baptist Church of Dothan for the past 5-6 years, specifically with the preschool group and the 1st and 2nd grade kids during Wednesday night services. For the past 10 years, she been involved with the Boy Scouts of America. Currently, she is the Muskoke District Vice Chairman for the Alabama-Florida Council. In short, she enjoys being a helper!

Cecilia says:

I took this job because I couldn’t think of a better reason to be up at the school even more!! I LOVE HA! I spent my entire childhood here. I completed 4-year old through 12th grade all right here at Houston Academy! My mom was a teacher here for many years. I always felt at home being here! I am so excited to be able to come home!

Natalie Burleson 

Natalie Burleson is also a 1989 graduate of Houston Academy.
She has an undergraduate degree from Auburn University in Early Childhood Education, and she will be working as a Teaching Assistant in 3P.

Natalie Burleson

Natalie has four children with her husband, Heath:  Coe-23, Carter-21, Cameron-20 (an HA graduate), and Colin-16. Colin is a junior at HA.

Natalie’s’ favorite pastime is being a huge Auburn football and basketball fan.

She’s choosing to come to HA because she likes the challenging academic environment HA creates for her child and the feeling of belonging that HA creates for all our students.

Natalie says hopes to “create an environment where children want to learn and want to go to school and grow academically and socially."

Kelly Fleming 

Kelly Fleming will be our Upper School and Middle School Learning Specialist. She holds a BA in General Science from LSU and a Master’s Degree in Psychometry from UAB.

Kelly Fleming

She and her son love to be outside on the family farm. They enjoy fishing, feeding the animals, gathering eggs, and relaxing on the back porch.

She is coming to HA to “pursue helping teachers and students with areas of support, while maintaining a rigorous academic curriculum striving for college ready students.”

She originally became a teacher because she loved teaching science. Kelly’s mother inspired her to be a teacher. Her mother was a science teacher for many years and she “helped to reveal the many blessings of teaching.”

Amy Griffin

Amy Griffin will be teaching Upper and Middle School Chorus, Drama, as well as working with our musicals. She has a BS from Troy University in Vocal-Choral Music Education and Psychology.

Amy Griffin

Amy has no children, other than her beloved dog Mia.

In her spare time, Amy enjoys singing, yoga, baton twirling, and drawing.

Amy is a Dothan native, and she is looking forward to living and teaching in her hometown after teaching in Opelika for several years. Houston Academy seems to Amy like a “wonderful place to teach.”

Mrs. Griffin became a teacher because she “wanted to make a positive impact on students' lives.”

 Tracy Bergmann 

Last, but not least, Tracy Bergmann will be teaching 3P. Tracy has a Doctorate in Educational Administration from the University of Alabama, an Educational Specialist Degree in Educational Leadership from Troy University, A Master’s Degree in Elementary Education from Troy University, and a Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education from Troy University. She has over 40 years of teaching experience in early childhood education.

Tracy has 2 grown daughters, one of whom attended HA. She is married to John Bergmann, who is a helicopter pilot.

Tracy’s hobbies are traveling and reading.

She is coming to teach at HA because, as a parent, she always felt welcomed at Houston Academy.

Tracy explained:

My daughter received a quality education here and continued to be successful throughout college.  Houston Academy prepared her for college and she continues to maintain contact with many of her classmates. I wanted to be a part of a school where teachers want to teach and students are motivated to learn. I really like that many of the students start in 3P and stay together until graduation.

Ms. Bergmann became a teacher because as a young child she believed teachers were the most important people in the world. She never considered another profession and started teaching at the age of 21.


Please join me in welcoming all these talented individuals.

Go Raiders!

E-Cigarettes - "Vaping"

An “Epidemic”

The head of the Food and Drug Administration has termed it an “epidemic” (Fox, 2018). According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, 16.2% of high school seniors in the United States use e-cigarettes, and incredibly, 9.5% of 8^th graders use e-cigarettes. Moreover, the same study shows that 30.7% of teens who “vape” (as smoking e-cigarettes is commonly known) start smoking traditional cigarettes within 6 months of starting the use of e-cigarettes (National Institute on Drug Abuse, 2016).

The Health Effects

Amazingly, the majority of teens seem to believe that inhaling a foreign substance has no negative impact on their health. In fact, the same study cited above notes that 66% of teens believe that e-cigarettes are comprised of  “just flavoring,” and 13% “don’t know” what is in their vape. Another study showed that 6 in 10 students surveyed believed that vaping caused little or no harm to their health, as long as they are not using every day (Know the Risks, 2018). Of course, it IS true that  there are no long-term trials on such a relatively new product. What we do know, however, is frightening enough. Almost all e-cigarettes contain nicotine, which is one of the most highly addictive chemicals on earth. Nicotine has been shown to be particularly damaging to the teenage brain (Know the Risks, 2018). According to U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the Office of the U.S Surgeon General, and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:

Youth and young adults are also uniquely at risk for long-term, long-lasting effects of exposing their developing brains to nicotine. These risks include nicotine addiction, mood disorders, and permanent lowering of impulse control. Nicotine also changes the way synapses are formed, which can harm the parts of the brain that control attention and learning  (National Institute on Drug Abuse, 2016).

Additionally, there are any number of other pernicious compounds in e-cigarette mixtures. One study carried out by the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health looked at 51 different liquid flavors commonly sold in the United States and in 47 of them, they found three different chemicals (diacetyl, acetoin and 2,3-pentanedione) that are linked to serious respiratory disease (Allen et al., 2015). Besides nicotine and the chemicals mentioned above, “vape juice” has been shown to contain heavy metals (i.e., nickel, tin, and lead), organic compounds (such as benzene, which is found in car exhaust), and other ultra-fine particles that lodge in the users’ lungs.

Marketing and Sales

The e-cigarette industry denies that they are marketing their products to children and teens, yet colorful packaging and flavors such as “Bubble Pop,” “Strawberry Cotton Candy,” “Sour Gummy Worms,” and “Peanut Butter Cup” have an undeniable appeal to youth who might otherwise never consider using a tobacco product.

"Juul Device" 

Frighteningly, one of the most popular e-cigarette delivery systems is “Juul.” A single Juul cartridge contains as much nicotine as an entire pack of cigarettes. The Juul apparatus, itself, is small, and to the casual observer, looks like a USB thumb drive. In fact, Juul is charged through a computer’s USB port. The Juul liquid can be odorless, and its use is often  unnoticed by others.

I went online and found that I could acquire a Juul “starter kit” for $49.99, plus free shipping. My kit would include a Juul device, a USB charging dock, and four cartridges which come in “Virginia Tobacco, Mint, Crème, and Mango” flavors. All I needed was a credit card and to “verify” that I was 21. The official Juul website also has a handy-dandy map app where I can find the Juul retailer that is closest to my home. I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but “Vape Shops” have become ubiquitous here in Dothan.

 What H.A. is Doing

We are having a speaker, Dr. Michael Ramsey, come and hold a parent night on the issue. Our counselors and advisors are discussing vaping with our students. We already have surveillance cameras throughout the school, but we are currently investigating installing censors in our rest rooms. Recently, we limited student access to the parking lot during the day. Furthmore, you should know that we reserve to right to search our students, their cars, or their lockers if we have reasonable suspicion that he or she has e-cigarettes or other tobacco products in his or her possession. We trust you will understand that our sole goal is to keep your children safe. At the very least, we must ensure that we do not have drugs, alcohol, or tobacco on this campus.

What You Can Do As A Parent

Talk to your children about the dangers of vaping, but also, don’t be naïve. Realize that even the best kids succumb to peer pressure, and the adolescent brain is WIRED to take risks and act impulsively. If you believe your child would never lie to you, you are living in a fantasy world. I often joke that I know my own children are lying to me “because their lips are moving”! I think I have good kids, but I’ve been working with teens for thirty years, and I know with certainty that my children will lie to me – especially when the stakes are high.

In any case, if the research is correct (and I believe it is), and if the rumors are true, we already have a number of students in our community using e-cigarettes, and some are probably addicted. We can work to make this campus safe, but that doesn’t mean that our kids won’t vape once they leave this campus.

Search your children’s belongings, and help them understand, as children in our charge, there IS NO SUCH THING as a right to privacy. When my own offspring are gone and paying their own bills, they can have their privacy. For now, I will search their cell phones, their car, and their bedroom. If they don’t like me searching their phones and cars, I will take their phone and car away. If they don’t want me to search their bedrooms, I’ll take the hinges off their door. I will do this because I love them and I want them safe, and because I understand that good kids make bad decisions.  I am not their friend, and I sure as heck don’t want them to think I am cool.

In Conclusion…

One of the beautiful things about living in Dothan and being at Houston Academy is that we are an incredibly close-knit community. Let’s talk about this epidemic, and let’s not get offended if someone tells us of rumors that our child might be vaping, drinking, or doing drugs. We are a family, and we can work together as a family to keep our children safe.

Works Cited

Fox, M. (2018, September 12). NBC News. Retrieved from NBC News.com: https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/e-cigarette-use-epidemic-fda-chief-says-n908781

Joseph G. Allen , Skye S. Flanigan , Mallory LeBlanc , Jose Vallarino , Piers MacNaughton , James H. Stewart , and David C. Christiani . (2015, December 12). Flavoring Chemicals in E-Cigarettes: Diacetyl, 2,3-Pentanedione, and Acetoin in a Sample of 51 Products, Including Fruit-, Candy-, and Cocktail-Flavored E-Cigarettes. Environmental Health Perspectives, 124, 733-739.

Know the Risks, E-cigarettes & Young People. (2018). Retrieved October 2018, from U.S. Department of Health and Human Services: https://e-cigarettes.surgeongeneral.gov/

National Institute on Drug Abuse. (2016, February). Retrieved from https://www.drugabuse.gov/related-topics-/trends-statistics/infographics/teens-e-cigarettes