08
vernonia’s
voice
december
schools
2008
VHS Fall Sports Recap
Restarting The VSHAC
By George Spaulding
The primary function of a school is to provide students with the learning experi-
ences necessary for maximum intellectual development. The success of this process
is limited by the child’s emotional, social, and physical health. For this reason, the
purpose of a comprehensive school health education program is twofold: first, to con-
sider the total human being in the educational process, and second, to motivate stu-
dents to help themselves and others to live healthy, productive lives. To help achieve
this goal, we created the VSHAC (Vernonia School Health Advisory Committee), an
advisory group made up of parents, community members, students, and school staff
working together to improve the health of all students and families through coordi-
nated school health programs.
As you may know, our district received a grant from the Oregon Department of
Public Health last year to initiate the development of the VSHAC and examine the
school health index, conduct a needs assessment, evaluate data, and draft plans to
improve health and wellness. This committee is intended to provide advice and will
not become part of the administrative structure of the schools, nor do they have any
legal responsibilities within the school system.
Research shows that healthy children do better in school- from attendance and
behavior to academics and overall performance. The Vernonia School Health Ad-
visory Committee (VSHAC) will work with the district to help school communi-
ties support good health and academic achievement. I think that is why you are
reading this today. You believe in this. We need your expertise and consultation to
prioritize, guide, and develop interventions to provide students with the knowledge
and skills that enable them to adopt and maintain healthy attitudes and behaviors
throughout their lives. The health of our children doesn’t depend on major medi-
cal breakthroughs, but on everyday practice of good health habits. School Health
Advisory Committees (SHACs) provide an efficient, effective structure for creating
and implementing age-appropriate, sequential health education programs, and early
intervention and prevention strategies that can easily be supported by local families
and community stakeholders.
In our first year as a committee we did the following: Pedometer Project, healthy
prizes for participation, staff massages, air scrubber (for Washington Grade School),
PE equipment, promotion of healthy snacks in class parties, healthy breakfast for staff
every Friday, walking club after school, rhythm/dance class after school, purchased
heart monitors for high school/junior high PE class, and made water available in
modular classrooms.
We did a great job last year, and I look forward to another full and productive
year. We are here to decide what our goals and objectives are. Where do we want to
go? What do we want to do or change? If you would like to be a part of this, please
contact Mr. Spaulding at Washington Grade School at 503-429-79411. The VSHAC’s
next meeting is Thursday, December 11th 2008 in the Washington Grade School li-
brary from 4-5:30pm. We meet once a month. I look forward to seeing and working
with our community. Take care and thank you for the support and time. Remember
“Healthy Kids Learn Better, Healthy Teachers Teach Better, One Step At A Time.”
Mr. Spaulding is the Washington Grade School K-5 Physical Education teacher.
The Vernonia High School fall sports teams for 2008 had a variety of successes. Some of them
included the re-emergence of the cheerleading squad coached by Cassandra Ashby, the second
year in a row for the football team to qualify for the state playoffs, a top finish in the district cross-
country meet that qualified that runner to the state meet, and a new coach to lead the volleyball
team this year.
To start off, the cheerleading squad had been practicing all summer and during the fall to develop
some exciting routines. They wowed the crowd with their performances. On many occasions,
they tossed their teammates high in the air and caught them as part of their routines. The team
went to almost every football game and were very supportive of the Loggers. For their first year,
the girls did an excellent job and, next year, may enter some cheer competitions.
The cross-country team, under the direction of Mr. Brookins, competed well but did not have as
many members as it has had in the past. The team had some outstanding individuals, including
all-league stand-out, Timothy Pillow. Timothy is a foreign exchange student and has not only
excelled on the cross-country team, but has also been an excellent scholar. Timothy qualified for
the state meet this year, and led the Loggers all season with his outstanding effort on the course.
The Lady Loggers volleyball team struggled in the win-loss column this year, but played some
very exciting volleyball. They were in every match and competed very hard. The girls gave it
everything they had and just came up short in a few games. The Lady Loggers were led by new
head coach Brooke Van Meter, who was assisted by Teresa Williams. Under the new coaches’
tutelage, two girls made the all-league team-- Se-
nior leader Trisha Levensellar was an honorable
mention athlete and Sophomore Kaitlyn Carr, an
outstanding defensive player and athlete at the net,
was also named an honorable mention player.
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In football, six athletes made all-league first team.
The Loggers finished second in the league and
competed in the state play-offs for the second year
in a row. The strong finish was a result of the hard
work these young men put out in their quest for
athletic excellence. On the line, Taylor Smith and
Levi Timmerman received first-team honors. Alex
Lende was a first-team defensive back, while Se-
niors Byron Schorzman and Blake Moeller were
first-team quarterback and first-team receiver, re-
spectively. Rounding out the Logger selections
at all-league was outstanding Junior running-back
Trevor Gwin. The Loggers were second in the
conference despite their 3 and 7 record and, in
their state play-off game with Willamina, came up
just short of victory. The team had twelve seniors
this year, and they will be hard to replace.
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