The Vision 2014-15

House Leadership Maur Hill - Mount Academy

We, the students of House Leadership, submit this vision for the
2014-15 school year. This plan encompasses everything that we would
like to get done in the upcoming year. Our goal is to Raise the Bar
and we plan to do exactly that. We cannot compromise on greatness.
Please keep in mind that this document is submitted with the utmost
respect and willingness to cooperate and collaborate with the
administration to make things happen. With that, lets get started.

The purpose of this packet is to outline all of the feedback weve heard from the students into a sort of
proposal to help make things better for the entire school. The packet is divided into sections that deal
with different key areas for next year.

Excerpt from Maur Hill-Mount Academys Website - Important to Keep in Mind


The Vision 1

Who We Are
Maur Hill-Mount Academy is a Catholic school, first and foremost. As part of the House Leadership
team, we are expected to live this out in our daily lives. Our mission is to promote the churchs missions
in every way that we can. So by achieving academically and athletically, we give glory to God. As
leaders, its our job to make sure that we act as role models for the rest of the student body.
Objectives
Unify the student body, specifically by bringing the boarders and day students closer together,
and by building lasting relationships with students
more variety of activities, more encouragement from leadership
HB/HG rotate through families bringing them together
House Captains rotate to a different family each day
maybe take turns leading a family once in a while
Communicate better with the administration, teachers, and students
more emails, text messages, push alerts - were in the know
Collaborate with as many people as possible to make sure that were constantly improving
MH-MA
get to know students skills so that we can use them well
Change hearts of the students - toward the House System, and toward the Church
hardest part - bold leadership - courage to do it when others wont at first

Main Issues / Focuses for Next Year
Establishing a clear use for both the House System and Class System
proposal: house system for unity, competition; classes for logistics, prom, etc.
Revising the House Points System to make it fair and easy to understand
Developing an App for news, announcements, lunch cards, etc.
Improving discipline in the school while at the same time making MH-MA more fun


The Vision 2

Expectations

Head Boy and Head Girl
You can expect your Head Boy and Girl for this year to be constantly working. Were not people who
go for the status quo, were going to make sure that students have a voice in their school. Were going
to rotate through the families during family time, and also schedule regular meetings with the
administration, teachers, and students. Were going to work with you to make sure that every concern is
addressed and every idea is explored. Well constantly be proposing new ideas, as well as modifying
old ones. Well come in early and stay late to make sure that every task is accomplished.

House Captains
You can expect your House Captains to be working hard for their good of their houses, and for the
school system as a whole. Theyll work to make sure that there are plenty of things to do during house
meetings. Most importantly, House Captains will help to support the Family Leaders, and will provide
assistance when necessary.

Administration/House Teachers
We expect the adult leaders to work with us throughout our next year, being willing to explore new
ways of doing things, beyond the way weve always done it. We hope that we can count on your
support when working on projects and that we will be able to work together and communicate
effectively so that were all in-the-loop.

Everyone
Were a team. It takes every single one of us to make sure that we have a great year. Were expected
to be a representative for Maur Hill-Mount Academy and the Catholic faith at all times. The expectation
and bar is set higher this year, so we need everyone to be on board and ready to go. It wont be easy,
but it will certainly be worth it when its all over. Its going to be a great year to be a Raven!


The Vision 3

Theme & Overall Goals

It seems like at MH-MA nothing is pre-planned. Its all on a whim at the last minute. Theres no
general sense of direction at the school and its apparent.

As students, we hear comments like this from students and faculty more than we should. So to help fix
this problem, we propose that the entire 2014-15 school year should start off with a theme. The
purpose of this is to provide a general direction for our events, as well as make a pop culture reference
so that it's fun and recognizable.

This theme should be very broad, and allow for us to have flexibility when planning things. It's to make
the year fun and light hearted. The theme will help to encompass our main goal. Of course, there are
several things wed like to accomplish in this coming year, and those goals for our school are centered
around the points in this packet.

Faith

As a Catholic school, faith is critical to our mission. Everything we do has to be centered around this.
Wed love to incorporate faith like we do already and in some new ways. Absolutely, our retreats are a
great time for students to have a spiritual encounter with Christ. Weve heard from students, and overall
they generally like the retreats. The primary comments we hear are: We need to have engaging
speakers and We need more variety of music.

As House Leadership, wed love to be involved in planning the retreats and helping in any way
we can to improve the faith on campus and promote more student involvement.

Our theme for the year will tie in with faith in some way, shape, or form.

The plan for increasing our Catholic identity at MH-MA is as simple as us just living out our faith in our
daily lives. We see the need for minor changes to how we do things, in order to implement faith more in
our school activities. One change wed like to take effect at the beginning of the school year is asking
and requiring that all teachers begin class with prayer. Again, our mission is to promote the mission of
the Church. This ties hand in hand with Live the Faith. Something simple like this, tied with good role
models from school leaders, helps to bring about a positive culture change.

The Vision 4

House Points

We believe that the House Points system is in desperate need of modification. Heres common lines of
feedback we hear from students:

House points are incredibly unfair. Some teachers give them out like candy and others dont use
them at all. Theres no consistency across the board.

Its very unclear how one house wins the competitions. We dont know where their points are
coming from or what theyre for.

Sometimes students do something really good and dont get points - and then there are times
when other students get points for doing really simple things they already should be doing, like
wearing their uniform or holding a door open.

We propose making it accomplishment based, meaning that students are rewarded for going above
and beyond, doing great things that will help prepare them for college and their adult lives. Points would
be awarded more uniformly to students and this method would eliminate bias and favoritism as much as
possible.

Accomplishment based means more than just giving points for A-range grades to students. This method
can be implemented school-wide. There are ways to take this into the classroom, on the stage, and out
on the field. This helps prepare students for college, rewarding and encouraging them to do more than
the minimum.

Currently, House Points are for affirmation. We believe this is the complete opposite approach to take.
Holding the door for someone, being courteous, or wearing your uniform is not something to reward
students for doing. We expect students to do this, and if they don't wear their uniform, for example, then
they are in violation of dress code and should be given a demerit.

Wed also propose changing the Student Raven Weekly emails to include a short summary and
breakdown of how House Points are added up.





The Vision 5

A rubric/guide would be created for the teachers at MH-MA so that they know when to and not to give
house points. This would help them to be fair and across the board. Heres how wed set it up:

+20 points to each member of the winning team for a review game
+60 points for a 90-99% on a test or project
+100 points for a 100% or above on a test or project
*teachers may also give points at their reasonable discretion if a student shows significant
improvement in an area, even if they dont get an A-range grade

Thats all the teachers would have to do. When they see a student doing something good for another,
such as helping out, we highly encourage them to tell the student that they recognize and appreciate the
gesture. We, however, do not want house points awarded for things that should be done. Common
courtesy is expected.

Wed also give points in athletics, extracurriculars, etc. These would be reported by the coaches or
administrations or whomever to one person, who adds up the House Points, and they would award the
points to that person. Heres a few examples:

+100 points for each home run a player scores
+40 points for scoring a point/goal/run
+100 for a 1st place at a track meet, +80 for 2nd, +60 for 3rd
+20 points per teammate for every team win
+200 points for scoring a 26 or above on the ACT
+500 points for a 30 or above, +1000 for a 34-35, +1500 for a 36
+2500 point to the house with the highest cumulative GPA per quarter
+250 points for receiving any athletic or academic based scholarship of any amount
+100 points for having a main role in the play / winning the Variety Show

Theres countless possibilities for this and it only promotes accomplishment. The format above is just an
example, and of course the point totals for each can be changed and we can always brainstorm more
ways to reward the students with points. Thats the difference between Maur Hill-Mount Academy and
any other public school. We are going to challenge our students to achieve, to do better than average.





The Vision 6

So, to analyze the quotes we hear often from students with our proposal.

House points are incredibly unfair. Some teachers give them out like candy and others dont use
them at all. Theres no consistency across the board.

Being accomplishment based, teachers would have to staple points onto their tests and projects
when a student scores well, so its across the board. Theres also a clause in the suggested
guide allowing teachers to give points to students who show significant improvement in an area.
All teachers have tests or projects, so they would all have the same standard.

Its very unclear how one house wins the competitions. We dont know where their points are
coming from or what theyre for.

With an email summary of the points, students would know the current points totals every week.
Theyd also have a quick breakdown of the points, telling them how many points each house
earned from accomplishments and competitions, as well as points deducted. It pushes everyone
to do better, and helps for the house leaders to identify whos struggling so that they can reach
out to them and help them improve. Wed also go over in House Meetings what the points
breakdowns are, giving them another sense of being in the know.

Sometimes students do something really good and dont get points - and then there are times
when other students get points for doing really simple things they already should be doing, like
wearing their uniform or holding a door open.

This is, for the most part, eliminated. If a students get a good grade on a test, they earn points. If
a baseball player scores a home run, points are awarded. When we have a student who wins a
large piano competition or scores a 31 on the ACT, points are awarded. The whole point is, we
wont give out points for small things that should be done. Well give out points for doing things
that are exceptional and extraordinary, that improve the actual person and make them Strive for
Excellence.



The Vision 7

House Competitions / Roost Nights

We receive a lot of feedback on our competitions and Roost Nights. There are several ways we could
propose improving this system. Here is a few of the most notable things we could do.

Create a list of Family Time Activity Ideas for family leaders to use when they need a quick
activity to do with their family
Work on having different activities at each Pep Rally and House Competition - this could also
be formatted as a list of ideas we add to throughout the year and years to come

Students have also mentioned that they like Roost Nights, but there are some changes they have
suggested, such as:

create more hype about the roost nights, with posters and talk amongst the students
consider having the roost nights on different days, to work with the school and sports schedules
have roost nights that are competitions, but also have a bunch that are more for just hanging out
with each other as opposed to competing

Scattered Suggestions from Students/Teachers

Improve Our Lunch initiative - have a feedback section in the app to rate lunches
Paperless voting through MH-MA application
Movie Nights (either as Roost Nights or not) in the auditorium
Update the InterWRITE software for the old boards
Upgrade the Wifi Speed in June when 100 mb/s becomes available
Hold a Sadie Hawkins Dance in the spring (girls ask guys)
No-Shave November fundraiser
New house t-shirts

These are ideas from a variety of sources and would need further exploration before decisions could be
made. The point here is: weve got plenty of ideas. Now lets work together.

The Vision 8

Class System vs. House System

Maur Hill-Mount Academy has the unique aspect of the house system, allowing students to get to know
each other better through family time and house competitions. Students like these activities, however we
get a lot of feedback about the structure - so heres our proposal.

The House System would be used for the unity and competition piece of MH-MA. We implement this
into all of our school activities and events when possible. The Class System would be used for logistics,
such as class placements, lockers, parking, and lunch order. Weve surveyed of the student body,
and 95% supported having this distinction between the House and Class Systems, and every class, even
Freshman, had a majority supporting lunch by seniority.

Wed like to create a packet for the very beginning of next year, given to the students on registration
day, describing all about MH-MA and the year to come. It would introduce the theme, house system,
house leadership, and the class system. The purpose of this packet would be a welcome! to the
school material, and also help to familiarize students with how things will be done.

Jeans Days

At the beginning of next year, say early September, wed love to have each house come together and
propose their ideas for which charity theyre going to support next year. Some may choose the same
program, while others might choose a new one. Either way is good.

Before this happens, wed like to have two or three jeans days at the very start of the school year
where the proceeds simply go into a fund for House Leadership. This would be used for any
unexpected or necessary expenses that pop up throughout the year, such as pep rallies, cookouts, etc.

As for the rest of jeans days, we support the current policy. $1 in advance, $2 day of - MH-MA
shirt/sweatshirt and jeans.


The Vision 9

MHMA App / Website Revisions

The MH-MA app will provide an easier way for students and parents to stay in the loop about
MH-MA. Well seamlessly be able push notifications to users, allow them to view the announcements,
calendar, and even scan their lunch card. This is a step forward for our school.

Our website is in need of maintenance. Old pictures, links everywhere, and an outdated admissions
video (with the old principal) greet prospective and current members of the MH-MA community. We
believe these fixes are simple in the short term. Update the website images, and let the photography
class continually update as they please to show activity. Make other tweaks throughout to improve
navigation. In the long run, we see a website overhaul as necessary, however we dont see that as
realistic during the 2014-15 school year.
House Leadership Room

The House Leadership Room is an idea were all for. Having a space for us to hold meetings and
keep track of tasks is exactly what we need. Were in favor of starting this project immediately, and
were willing to do the work to make it happen, as we are with all of these projects. Wed like to have
three different sections, with our tasks at hand, our tasks to tackle, and a list of the things weve
accomplished over the year. Wed also love to have a list of family time activity ideas in this room for
our family leaders to use as a resource.
Timeline

Projects that need to be done immediately (before the new school year begins):
- House Points
- House Leadership Room
- theme
- Schedule the whole year out

Projects wed like to start as soon as possible or are already in progress:
- MH-MA app
- website revisions

Projects that will start and go throughout the next year:
- faith improvement
- house competitions / roost night
The Vision 10

We, the members of House Leadership, agree with the goals submitted in this proposal and
present it to you now for consideration.





Stephen Akers Olivia Mangue
Head Boy Head Girl





Addie DuLac Michael Rziha
St. Sebastian St. George





Jake Schmidt Tobin Kocour
Mother Teresa St. Gabriel
The Vision 11