In this issue:
-Noble People in the press
-Rauner Teachers Earn National Board Certification
-Noble Network's 3rd annual Cross Country Invitational
-Gary Comer College Prep’s inaugural Town Hall event
-Rowe-Clark students perform at dinner honoring John Rowe
-UIC College Prep hosts campus’s Grand Opening
-Fitness lessons at Golder College Prep

Noble People in the Press:
-Rauner College Prep Social Studies teacher Ryan Maxwell recently defied gravity, as he was one of several Chicago area teachers to take part in a unique physics experiment.  Read about his experience here!

-Read about the amazing partnerships happening- and one teacher's unique experience- at UIC College Prep here.

-Learn more about one Noble campus that will opens in 2009 here.

Two Rauner College Prep Teachers Earn National Board Certification
Ellen Sale and Matt Kelley, teachers at Rauner College Prep, have both recently earned their National Board Certification (NBC).   Teachers with NBC are highly accomplished educators who meet high and rigorous standards. Mr. Kelley and Ms. Sale's newest credentials indicate they have met these standards through intensive study, expert evaluation, peer review and self-assessment.  When asked how having two National Board Certified teachers will affect his campus, Rauner Founding Principal Eric Thomas says, "We believe that we have the very best teachers in the country here at Rauner College Prep and in the Noble Network.  Matt and Ellen's recent accomplishment is validation of that belief." 

Ellen Sale teaches 10th grade World History teacher and the 10th grade Team Leader at Rauner.  Her teaching methods are unique in that she places a huge emphasis on mastering reading standards in a class devoted to learning history, ensuring that her students can later handle the rigors of college.  Her classroom also focuses on scholarly discourse, encouraging students to develop college-level discussion and thinking skills.  To achieve this, her students participate in Socratic seminars.  These lessons prove engaging and at times quite humorous- during the first seminar students donned white sheets, folded in the shape of togas, as Socrates' students once did.  Ms. Sale graduated from Grinnell College and went on to do Teach For America, during which she taught middle school in the Mississippi Delta region.  

Matt Kelley is the 9th grade Multi-Cultural World Literature teacher at Rauner, and also serves as the 9th grade Team Leader. Mr. Kelley is one of Rauner's founding teachers.  He keeps students engaged and focused by introducing a wide variety of novels to them.  Currently, his students are reading The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini.  From the novel's context they are learning about tribal relations in Afhanistan and within the Taliban.  Mr. Kelley graduated from Brown Univeristy and is currently pursuing a Master's degree in Educational Leadership through Columbia University's summer program.  Before teaching at Rauner, he also taught in the Mississippi Delta region through Teach For America.  Mr. Kelley's long-term goals include pursuing a school leadership position.

Noble prides itself on hiring qualified and passionate educators to guide our students' learning.  Both instructors are exemplary in engaging students and tracking student acheivement through standards-based instruction.  Noble is proud to have Ms. Sale and Mr. Kelley among its teachers.

3rd Annual Noble Network Cross Country Invitational a Success
Noble Street Charter School hosted its third annual Noble Network Cross Country Invitational on October 14th.  This event has been organized by Noble Street College Prep boys’ cross country coach David Biele for the past three years.  Although the number of competitors increases every year with the addition of new campuses, the Noble Street College Prep boys’ team remains unbeaten, this year touting a remarkable score of 25.  Pritzker College Prep came in second with a score of 92.  The Rauner girls’ team claimed victory, barely edging out Noble Street College Prep with a score of 49 to Noble’s 52.  Both boys and girls raced 2 miles. 

Noble Street College Prep senior Leo Armenta maintained his winning title for the second year in a row with a time of 11:14.  The girls’ title was won by Rauner College Prep sophomore, Jessica Salgado.  The two winners definitely earned their titles, as over 100 students competed overall.  Medals were awarded to the top 20 finishers in each race, and the winning teams overall received trophies. Noble Street College Prep cheerleaders provided inspiration at the finish line as they cheered on the runners.  The meet remains a successful event because of the hard work of staff members like David Biele, Jason Krumweide and Jen Johnston.  Each campus’s coach provides special support for the meet and throughout the season, including two Noble alumni who volunteered their time to coach the teams at Pritzker College Prep and Rowe-Clark Math & Science Academy this year. 

Gary Comer College Prep First Ever Town Hall
Gary Comer College Prep hosted its first ever Town Hall on Friday, November 14.  Town Halls are held at all Noble campuses on select Fridays to give students and teachers a chance to showcase what they’ve been working on in and out of the classroom.  The gatherings are always open to the school and community members.  Gary Comer College Prep’s first Town Hall was extra-special because Mr. Guy Comer spoke to the students and dozens of Comer family members, friends and community members attended. 

After a lively roll call given by founding Principal James Troupis, during which each student advisory performed their own creative cheer, students at Comer were eager to show off their hard work.  Participants in Free Spirit Media, an after school club in which students create media publications from start to finish, showed taped public service announcements.  The football and volleyball team captains shared the highs and lows of participating on Comer’s first ever sports teams.  Two freshmen students looked into the future and playfully addressed the student body from the perspective of a Gary Comer College Prep graduate and college graduate, giving advice for the students’ future and sharing fond memories of the times they had as Comer Catamounts.  Comer students who are members of the South Shore Drill Team, a group formed many years ago by the late Gary Comer in order to keep students off the streets after school, gave a flawless performance that included dance and amazing juggling.  Students listened to thoughtful and inspiring speeches given by Guy Comer and Superintendent Michael Milkie. The energetic cheerleaders were integral to the event’s success, as they opened and closed the show.  Community supporters, parents and staff all enjoyed watching the students in action, and many took tours of classrooms before the Town Hall.

Rowe-Clark Students Perform at Dinner Honoring Campus's Namesake
Members of Rowe-Clark’s Masai Ensemble, the campus’s percussion group, performed on October 30 at a dinner honoring campus supporter and namesake, John Rowe. The Junior ROTC program also performed the presentation of colors, and a video featuring several Rowe-Clark students speaking about the impact Mr. Rowe has at Rowe-Clark was played. Rowe was receiving the Daniel A. Burnham award which annually honors a Chicago business leader who embodies Burnham’s philosophy of “make no little plans.” The event is hosted by the Chicago Chamber of Commerce, and attendance neared 600.  Rowe-Clark students were both excited and nervous to appear on such a grand stage!  They, along with Principal Joe Tenbusch and Assistant Principal Marlon Tobin, were honored to be a part of the presentation and attend this special dinner. 

UIC College Prep Hosts Grand Opening
UIC College Prep students and staff hosted their formal opening to the community on October 30 as they impressed the crowd with performances, speeches and a grand single-file entrance.  Community members and supporters who attended the opening were able to see how hard the students have been working at UIC College Prep, the LSV campus of Noble Street Charter School.  Founding Music Teacher, Kate Ulett, led the choir and African drum ensemble as they performed for the audience at the opening and closing of the event.  Many audience members were astounded at how musically inclined the students were, as the campus had at that time only been in session for about ten weeks.  For many of the students, music class at UIC College Prep has been their only exposure to organized music instruction.  The Junior ROTC students performed the presentation of the colors and led the National Anthem. 

Guests, students and staff were treated to inspirational speeches given by speakers representing LSV Asset Management, UIC and Abbott, all of whom are key supporters to the campus.  Mr. Josef Lakonishok, founder and CEO of LSV, spoke about his own childhood and education in Israel and the success that he and many others at LSV have found because of their dedication to their own educations.  Interim Chancellor Eric Gislason spoke about UIC’s dedication to the students at UIC College Prep, and the excitement felt already around campus about welcoming graduates as UIC students in the fall of 2012.  Ms. Clara Villamil, an Abbott research chemist, spoke about the importance of science and education in her own life.  Founding Principal Oliver Sicat welcomed the audience and spoke of the hope for great success from UIC College Prep students.

Golder College Prep Students Learning Lifelong Fitness
Golder College Prep Health and Physical Education Instructor, Alli Lowenstein, likes to keep her lesson plans filled with information and energy.  Ms. Lowenstein instructs her students on ways to develop and maintain healthy lifestyles.  She recently received a grant to fund the purchase of a classroom set of pedometers.  First students will learn how to properly use a pedometer.  They will then be given time to walk and jog outside with a pedometer recording their readings.  Parents and siblings will be encouraged to use the pedometers as well through a family/student homework assignment that involves sharing the resource with them. 

Students at Golder learn real-life health lessons including studying nutrition labels from products at their local grocery store and exercising during the school day. Recently students were transported back in time as they participated in a roller skating unit.  In Golder’s multi-purpose room students skated to music and learned about how their different muscle groups work during the exercise.   Today, December 4, Golder will host its first ever community health fair.  Representatives from many community organizations will fill the multi-purpose room and participate by dispersing information to those in attendance.   Free health screenings and raffle prizes will also be offered.