Fourteen students and two teachers from Gifu Kita Senior High School in Japan are visiting Catlin Gabel from January 4 to 11.

Catlin Gabel and Gifu Kita have had a sister school relationship since 1992. We value our shared history of hosting students in homestays and classrooms, and introducing each other to our respective cultures. We have learned so much from each other!

For a real treat, come to the Upper School assembly on Monday, January 7, from 11:25 a.m. to 12:25 p.m. Our guests from Japan always put on an amazing performance at this highlight event.

More about Gifu Kita High School 

Gifu Kita Senior High School is located in the north end of Gifu City in Gifu Prefecture, Japan. For more than 70 years, Gifu Kita High School has prided itself on academic excellence and its ability to provide a wide range of extracurricular activities to its more than 1,000 students.

As one of the top-ranked schools in Gifu Prefecture, almost all of their students apply to go to university following graduation, with the vast majority attending private or national universities.

Gifu Kita also offers a wide range of sports and cultural clubs. A number of these clubs have participated in National and Tokai District Competitions over the last few years.

Carefully review this article, download the emergency medical and behavior agreement form posted at the bottom of the page, register online with Mt. Hood Meadows, and turn in forms and payment to Kathy Sloan, ski program coordinator.

The Catlin Gabel ski bus runs on six Saturdays: February 9, 16, 23, and March 2, 9, and 16.

The Catlin Gabel ski program is supervised by faculty members from all divisions. Mt. Hood Meadows ski and snowboard instructors teach the lessons. The program is open only to Catlin Gabel students in 5th through 12th grades. The transportation and chaperone fee for the six-week program is $150, payable by check to Catlin Gabel. Lift, lesson, and rental fees are payable to Mt. Hood Meadows through their online registration.

Transportation and supervision

Catlin Gabel buses transport participating students to and from Mt. Hood Meadows. The bus drivers are Catlin Gabel employees. Chaperones ride each bus and are available in the lodge at most but not all times.

Buses leave Catlin Gabel at 6:30 a.m. sharp. At the end of the ski day, the buses leave Mt. Hood Meadows at 3:30 p.m., returning to Catlin Gabel by 5:30 p.m.

All students must return via the Catlin Gabel bus unless parents or guardians prearrange alternative transportation. Chaperones must receive a note signed by a parent or guardian detailing the alternative transportation arrangements.

Reigistration

There are two separate components to registration: Mt. Hood Meadows registration and Catlin Gabel registration.

Mt. Hood Meadows Registration 

♦ Go to Mt. Hood Meadows' registration website

♦ Enter the GO code for Catlin Gabel in the GO code Box. Our GO Code is: 1024713 

♦ Select the package you wish to purchase.

• Grades 5-8 are “Trailblazers,” grades 9-12 are “High School.”
• Trailblazers MUST sign up for lessons. This is a Catlin Gabel requirement.
• Note: there is a new Beginner Special for first-time skiers and snowboarders that is significantly less expensive. 

♦ After registering, you will receive a confirmation email from Mt. Hood Meadows and required forms.

Catlin Gabel Registration

Four forms in hard copy and payment are due to Kathy Sloan in the Upper School by Friday, January 18

♦ Catlin Gabel medical release and behavior agreement form posted below

♦ Mt. Hood Meadows release form 

♦ Mt. Hood Meadows medical form

♦ Mt. Hood Meadows rental form (if renting equipment)

♦ Check for $150 made payable to Catlin Gabel.

New this year! Participants whose forms are complete with signatures and all information and who get all the forms and the check in to Kathy Sloan on time will be entered in a drawing to win FREE transportation and chaperoning for next season: 2014! This is a $150 value.

Financial aid is available directly through the ski bus program for students who need it and are committed to attending all six weeks. It is available for Catlin Gabel’s transportation and chaperone fee, as well as for the Mt. Hood Meadows packages. Please contact Kathy Sloan directly to inquire about financial aid.

Drop-in skier information

Transportation and supervision are available to skiers who can only attend one or two Saturdays. However, we recommend signing up for the full program if you plan to ski more than twice because the unused days on the tickets are good until the end of the ski season.

The drop-in fee is $30 payable in cash or check on the day of attendance. Drop-in skiers must purchase their own lift and/or lesson tickets. Please rent equipment in advance in the Portland area. Beginning and first-season skiers are not permitted to use the drop-in system.

The Catlin Gabel emergency medical and behavior form is required for all drop-in skiers. Extra forms are available in each of the division offices and posted at the bottom of this page. The form may be filled out ahead of time or brought with the skier on the day of attendance. We cannot accept phoned in permission.

Program guidelines – read these carefully!

Both students and parents are responsible for reading this information.

Be on time. Please arrive at 6:15 a.m. to load skis and get seated on the bus. The bus leaves campus promptly at 6:30 a.m. and returns to Catlin Gabel by 5:30 p.m. Parents/guardians, please be on time to pick up your skier(s) at the end of the day.

Lessons are required for all participants in 5th through 8th grades. They are optional for high school participants. Lessons are approximately two hours and happen on each of the first four Saturdays, but not the last two. Prior to and after lessons, participants are “free skiing.” Although program rules require skiing with a partner, participants are not supervised by chaperones while on the slopes.

Skiers are required to travel both directions on the same bus. There will be chaperones on each bus and in the lodge at most but not all times. In the morning, buses drop students at the lodge, and at the end of the ski day students walk to the buses parked in the parking lot by 3:15 p.m. Failure to return to the bus on time causes worry and delay for everyone. Late skiers could be dropped from the ski program the following week.

All skiers are expected to honor the rules and regulations governing the use of lifts, slopes, and lodges as posted by Mt. Hood Meadows. Failure to comply will result in dismissal from the program. All skiers are expected to honor Catlin drug and alcohol policy. Failure to comply will result in dismissal from the program and disciplinary action taken at school.

We strongly encourage all skiers and snowboarders to wear helmets although this is not mandatory. Helmets come with the Trailblazer rental package.

Loading and unloading equipment and cleaning the bus at the end of the day is everyone’s responsibility. No one should leave the campus until the buses are empty and cleaned.

Concern for others is an essential part of the ski program while on our way to and from Mt Hood Meadows and while at the ski area. We have been justifiably proud of the Catlin Gabel students in the past and have had numerous great seasons. We hope you can be a part of the best season yet!

We ask all students and parents to join in our commitment for the safest and most enjoyable ski program possible.

Ski program leaders: Kathy Sloan, Len Carr, Chris Bell, Peggy McDonnell, Bob Sauer, Larry Hurst, Paul Monheimer, Aline Garcia-Rubio, and Spencer White

Ski program medical and behavior agreement forms

From the Autumn 2012 Caller

NEWS FROM HONEY HOLLOW

The M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust granted Catlin Gabel $200,000 for the Campaign for Arts and Minds. The funds will support instructional technology in the Creative Arts Center, including innovations such as energy-saving LED stage lighting. . . . The school completed a comprehensive self-study in preparation for an October visit from a volunteer team from the Pacific Northwest Association of Independent Schools. Visiting team members, including school heads from Lakeside and University Prep in Seattle, Duke School in Durham, North Carolina, and Marin Country Day in Corte Madera, California, will write a report with recommendations for improvement that Catlin Gabel must implement for continued accreditation. . . . The Middle School organic garden is now known as the Tucker Garden, in honor of wood shop teacher Tom Tucker ’66. Tom contributed much to the garden’s utility and beauty, including sheds, gazebos, and artworks. . . . After the April announcement that Catlin Gabel was named a U.S. Department of Education Green Ribbon School, the Oregon Department of Education announced the school’s 2nd place award for Oregon Sustainable Schools, as well as the Pillar Award  for minimizing environmental impact.. . . US science teacher Veronica Ledoux spent three weeks with Teachers Across Borders South Africa, helping math and science teachers from rural schools update their skills. The project director praised her for her personableness, professionalism, and passion for her work. . . .  MS Chinese teacher Li-Ling Cheng participated in a summer residential workshop for master teachers in Worcester, Massachusetts, sponsored by the Chinese Language Teachers Association.

CATLIN GABEL IN THE NEWS

Catlin Gabel’s FIRST Robotics Team 1540, The Flaming Chickens, demonstrated their robot on KGW-TV’s early morning newscast in September to promote the OMSI Mini Maker Faire in September. They also showed off the program at a summer technology camp hosted by IBM Beaverton. . . .  Associate IT director Daisy Steele spoke on a KATU-TV newscast about internet safety for children.  .  . The school’s Creative Arts Center, now under construction between the Dant House and  Middle School, was featured in articles in the Oregonian and the Daily Journal of Commerce. . . . Julien Leitner ’15 was featured in the Oregonian for sitting in at Portland’s Pickathon with Abigail Washburn and  her band. Julien’s Archimedes Alliance raises funds for charities and nonprofits, asking $2 from each person, from as many people as he can reach.

OUR NOTEWORTHY STUDENTS

SPORTS AND ATHLETICS

Doug Heymann ’18 represented Oregon at the Western zone age-group swimming championships in Grand Junction, Colorado. . . . USA Synchronized Swimming named Elli Wiita ’15 to the 13–15 national team and duet team for 2012. She competed this summer in the Pan American Age Group Championships in Colombia, where she placed 1st in the figure competition and won gold medals in duet and team competitions. During the summer, she trained with Team USA at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs and in New Canaan, Connecticut.    

From the Autumn 2012 Caller

Bob Sauer, US science

Bachelor's in physics, Whitman College. At CGS since 2001.

I didn’t set out to be a teacher. I couldn’t see my shy and retiring self standing up in front of a room full of students, and the thought of speaking for a full class period filled me with anxiety and dread. But after starting out in an engineering job in San Diego, my interest waned, and I missed the opportunity to work with young people, which I had done for years as swimming instructor, lifeguard, and summer camp counselor. I went back to school to get my teaching certificate and moved back to the Northwest, which I had quite missed while living in Southern California. I started teaching at Portland’s Cleveland High School and eventually became the diving coach for the entire Portland league. After yearlong teaching exchanges to Cyprus and to Poland and 17 years at Cleveland, I moved to Catlin Gabel.

At Catlin Gabel I love the enthusiasm and interest of the students. I am continually amazed and impressed at their commitment and abilities—they’re studying at levels far above where I was working in high school, and pick up even the complex ideas and applications of calculus in advanced physics quickly. That inspires me to carry on even with four different classes to prepare each semester, and to stay actively involved in the myriad other fascinating things that occur at Catlin Gabel—international trips (to Turkey and Peru), the ski bus to Mt Hood, class trips, far-flung Winterim adventures, and as many outdoor program trips as I can talk my way on to. Those initial concerns that kept me from teaching from the outset? I am energized being in front of a classroom of involved students, liberally dispensing puns and other physics humor along with the scientific concepts to a receptive (albeit groaning) audience. And class periods are not long enough!