On Friday, RAS escorted a few students to the Jewel-Osco in Normal for a job fair and had the opportunity to catch up with one of our recent graduates while there! Providing vocational support for our students is an important part of our mission. It was also wonderful to see Trace doing well and hear about his future plans!
RAS would like to send a big thank you to Jason Rabbass from Lincoln Tech Skilled Trade Schools & Vocational Training Institute for visiting us this week! Jason spoke to students about postsecondary opportunities and shared information about the programs Lincoln Tech offers. It was great for students to learn about the career possibilities in the skilled trades.
Due to the predicted unsafe wind chills for tomorrow, RAS will have a remote learning day for Tuesday, January 21st. Teachers will be emailing students tomorrow morning with expectations, check-in times, and learning activities. Please email or text Kara Quick (kquick@rasblm.org/309-445-3539) if you have any questions. Stay safe and warm!
Friendly reminder: There is no school tomorrow in observance of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.
Spread some kindness in his honor.
Contract time-3:30
Q: What were FOUR RAS staff members doing at 5:15 on a Friday night?
A: Meeting with a family at their home for an orientation because that is what they needed.
Our whole child approach often means whole family. Mr. Eddins, Mrs. LaCroix, Mrs. Quick, & Mr. Rudicil were able to facilitate a different style of orientation than we typically offer, but our Digital Learning Lab (DLL) allows us to think about education in a different way. We're always here to meet the needs of our students and families!
A HUGE thank you to Erin Kennedy from OSF HealthCare for visiting our Bloomington campus on Friday and teaching an incredible lesson on CPR and life-saving techniques! 53 students had the opportunity to participate and learn these valuable skills. We appreciate your time and expertise, Erin!
Students learning how to operate an excavator in the Career and College Center this morning. Building diverse skills and possibly training the next generation of Heavy Equipment Operators!
This week RAS students have the opportunity to partner with First Christian Church to support their Helping Shelf pantry project!
The Helping Shelf supports the community by providing food and essential supplies to those in need. It’s amazing to see our students embracing the spirit of service and working hand in hand with our wonderful community partners at First Christian Church.
Due to forecasted inclement weather for Monday, January 6th, RAS-Bloomington Campus will have a remote learning day for students. You will receive communication from your student's homeroom teacher Monday morning with more information. Please email Kara Quick (kquick@rasblm.org) with any questions. Stay safe and warm!
We are thankful for local companies that offer grant funding for some of our smaller projects. We have been the recipient of multiple PNC First Grants which have provided funding for hands-on learning opportunities for our students. This year, Mrs. Quick applied for funds to add more apparel-making equipment to our sewing machines and Cricut. We are hopeful to engage our students in designing and making RAS gear, while building skills they can carry with them outside our walls. Thank you, PNC, for being a contributor to our hopes and dreams!
Fall 2024 @ RAS: According to the Numbers…
-24 OSHA Certifications earned by students
-14 Food Handler Certifications earned by students
-50+ ISU Preservice Teachers completed clinical hours at our campus (TCH & EAF)
-1 Student Teacher
-1 Full-Time Social Work Intern
-2 Part-Time Social Work Interns
-4 Vocational Field Trips (2xHCC, CornBelt, MWFB)
-12 Weeks of Boys & Girls Club Thursday activities with our Middle School students
-12 Guest Speakers (Tricoci, 2xISAC, 2xArmy National Guard, Army, Marines, MTI, OSF Community Resource Center, StaffQuick, Laborers Local 362, Project Oz)
-3 AMAZING local church partnerships (FCC, Eastview, St. Mark)
-2 REMARKABLE partnerships with local food banks to stock the RAS School Market
-300+ people served each month through the RAS School Market
-14 weeks worth of VR opportunities to work on vocational skill building (mechanic, HVAC, small engine, farm hand, etc)
-5 trips to the RAS Community Garden
-50+ future educators from Unit 5 visited our campus
-16 weeks of visits from outside counselors (Project Oz, CHS, Court Services)
-1 irreplaceable partnership with CareerLink leading to a part-time student custodian
-20 local schools served to meet the needs of their students
-11 local school districts providing transportation for their students to our campus
-24 high school graduates
-20 dedicated and caring staff (19 humans, 1 dog)
🎓⭐️🎉 🤗RAS-BLM Campus provided educational opportunities for 24 local students this semester who were able to complete their graduation requirements. These students came to us from six different high schools in our region, and because of our amazing staff and programming, we also made sure they completed post-secondary tasks to send them off into the real world with employability and life skills! Help us in congratulating them! 🤗🎉⭐️🎓
Happy Holidays!
As we 🎁 WRAP UP 🎁 first semester, the RAS Staff would like to thank the students, families, home schools, community partners, and ROE #17 for a great start to the 2024-25 school year! Our future looks bright 😎 and we cannot wait to continue to grow and serve more youth in our community in the spring semester and beyond! Happy Holidays from all the hardworking elves at RAS! 💚❤️
We ❤️ our friends at First Christian Church! Our students will stay warm thanks to your kindness and donation of cold weather items!
December Newsletter
RAS was fortunate to host Zoey G as a student teacher this semester in our high school classrooms. Zoey demonstrated all of the key characteristics that make a successful student teacher: positive relationships with students, thoughtful planning, collaboration with RAS Staff, and the ability to accept feedback and reflect. We will miss Zoey at RAS and wish her nothing but the best as she wraps up her college career and begins her professional career at Bridge Academy!
Sending well wishes to you and yours! 🦃🍗🍠🥧🍁
The RAS Career & College Center would like to give a a HUGE thank you to Corn Belt Energy for hosting our students this morning and sharing valuable insights into careers in the energy field! It was an great experience for our students to tour the facility and get a firsthand look at what it's like to work with such an impactful company. We appreciate your time and dedication to supporting the next generation of professionals!
💙💛 Thank you to the members of the Gamma Rho Chapter of Sigma Gamma Rho for donating baby items and blankets to RAS! Our students who are parents will benefit from your generous support! Special shout out to Kyai, our Social Work Intern from ISU, for facilitating this! 💛💙
