March 3rd, 2018
21st Century Classroom
St. Albans City School’s Faculty Fun Night
By Alisha Sawyer
Director of School Enrichment
Typically on the Friday before a school break the school building and parking lots clear out quickly. Staff members eagerly anticipating their well deserved break rival the energy of the students. The St. Albans City School building was busier than usual on the Friday afternoon before this year’s winter break as over 60 staff members stayed after school for Faculty Fun Night. Rusty Branon, St. Albans City School PE teacher, worked with a few other City School staff members to organize and promote the event. The plan was to offer a few activities to provide some team building and enrichment opportunities for staff members - an after school program of sorts.
Program choices included Omnikin, Knitting and Crochet, Painting, Hammered Metal Jewelry, a Makers Space activity and a Biscotti Class. City School staff members served as program instructors, volunteering their time and talent to offer up encouragement and a fun break for their peers. The staff participants gathered in the cafeteria, just as students do for their after school programs, each group had an assigned space and table card where they signed in. The St. Albans City School Wellness Coordinator, Betsy Clough, worked with the VEHI (Vermont Education Health Initiative) program to qualify the event for “PATH Points” - an incentive for members participating in the current health and wellness challenge. These events aligned with VEHI’s mission to encourage employees to live their best lives at home, at work, and within their communities.
Each group spent an hour and a half together working on their craft and perfecting their newly learned technique. The knitting and crochet group ranged from beginners who wanted to learn a new skill to folks who have been knitting for decades and needed some assistance moving on in a project. The metal jewelry class offered the unintended side benefit of some tension reduction as the participants hammered away to create beautiful, one of a kind pieces - many looked like they had been purchased in a store. The painting group did not offer the signature “libations” that usually accompany similar events, but their finished products were not lacking in any way. The group painted a winter scene of a full moon in the evening sky with the shadows of pine trees for contrast. In the Maker Space the 3D printer and laser cutter provided a new learning experience for staff as they created earings and discs. The biscotti class worked hard making homemade, delicious cookies for the entire staff group to share at the end of the event. As the cookies were carried down the hallway to the large gym the other groups started to head down for the final event, the Omnikin showdown!
Omnikin, as Rusty explained, was a game that was invented in Quebec in the late 80s and involves a large (four foot diameter) ball and three teams of four individuals. The group that learned Omnikin during their class time played a match for the group of spectators. The goal of the game is simple - to catch and control the ball before it touches the ground, the playing of the game is a little more complicated as each team works to cause the others to commit faults. The physicality of the game and good sportsmanship of the players led to a very entertaining end to the Faculty Fun Night. Overall the event was highly successful, it was an opportunity for staff to get together in a low pressure, low risk environment and connect on a different level - all the while building relationships and working on strengthening our school family.
St. Albans City School’s Faculty Fun Night
By Alisha Sawyer
Director of School Enrichment
Typically on the Friday before a school break the school building and parking lots clear out quickly. Staff members eagerly anticipating their well deserved break rival the energy of the students. The St. Albans City School building was busier than usual on the Friday afternoon before this year’s winter break as over 60 staff members stayed after school for Faculty Fun Night. Rusty Branon, St. Albans City School PE teacher, worked with a few other City School staff members to organize and promote the event. The plan was to offer a few activities to provide some team building and enrichment opportunities for staff members - an after school program of sorts.
Program choices included Omnikin, Knitting and Crochet, Painting, Hammered Metal Jewelry, a Makers Space activity and a Biscotti Class. City School staff members served as program instructors, volunteering their time and talent to offer up encouragement and a fun break for their peers. The staff participants gathered in the cafeteria, just as students do for their after school programs, each group had an assigned space and table card where they signed in. The St. Albans City School Wellness Coordinator, Betsy Clough, worked with the VEHI (Vermont Education Health Initiative) program to qualify the event for “PATH Points” - an incentive for members participating in the current health and wellness challenge. These events aligned with VEHI’s mission to encourage employees to live their best lives at home, at work, and within their communities.
Each group spent an hour and a half together working on their craft and perfecting their newly learned technique. The knitting and crochet group ranged from beginners who wanted to learn a new skill to folks who have been knitting for decades and needed some assistance moving on in a project. The metal jewelry class offered the unintended side benefit of some tension reduction as the participants hammered away to create beautiful, one of a kind pieces - many looked like they had been purchased in a store. The painting group did not offer the signature “libations” that usually accompany similar events, but their finished products were not lacking in any way. The group painted a winter scene of a full moon in the evening sky with the shadows of pine trees for contrast. In the Maker Space the 3D printer and laser cutter provided a new learning experience for staff as they created earings and discs. The biscotti class worked hard making homemade, delicious cookies for the entire staff group to share at the end of the event. As the cookies were carried down the hallway to the large gym the other groups started to head down for the final event, the Omnikin showdown!
Omnikin, as Rusty explained, was a game that was invented in Quebec in the late 80s and involves a large (four foot diameter) ball and three teams of four individuals. The group that learned Omnikin during their class time played a match for the group of spectators. The goal of the game is simple - to catch and control the ball before it touches the ground, the playing of the game is a little more complicated as each team works to cause the others to commit faults. The physicality of the game and good sportsmanship of the players led to a very entertaining end to the Faculty Fun Night. Overall the event was highly successful, it was an opportunity for staff to get together in a low pressure, low risk environment and connect on a different level - all the while building relationships and working on strengthening our school family.