Subscribe to Knight Errant Watch our YouTube Channel Follow us on Twitter Follow us on Facebook

American Studies class formed to combine American history and literature

February 3, 2012

Nicole Sarquis, Staff Writer

History teachers tend to ramble off unrelatable facts about flappers, bootlegging, and the ease of life in the “Roaring 20s” during a typical U.S. History class, leaving their students with no real understanding of the subject. At the same time, English teachers’ enthusiasm over F. Scott Fitzgerald’s “The Great Gatsby” can only be understood if students reading the literary classic have a solid knowledge base of the time period the novel is set in. In an attempts to bridge the gap between literature and history studies, two teachers––Ms. Megan Kern and Ms. Anne Marie Dominguez––have paired up to teach their newly developed class, American Studies, to juniors, combining the... Continue Reading

Lumpkin’s layup helps boys’ basketball avoid upset

February 3, 2012

Matt Muenzberg, Sports Editor

“Don’t miss.” That was the thought that ran through the head of senior forward Sanjay Lumpkin when he got the ball under the basket unguarded with three seconds left in the game. Lumpkin made the layup, giving the top ranked boys’ basketball team a 67-65 win over number two Spring Lake Park. “We were just trying to get a screen and roll on the top. The ball went into the corner and I just cut back door and no one was guarding me,” said Lumpkin. The Red Knights struggled to contain Spring Lake Park’s Sean Scott, who had a career night with 36 points, 13 rebounds, and six blocks in a packed, pro-Panther gymnasium. Head coach Mr. John Moore admitted that guarding Scott isn’t an exact... Continue Reading

Rising actors partake in Les Miserables performance

Junior Shannon Galvin rehearses for the upcoming Les Miserables performance wither her fellow cast members. (Giulia Imholte)

Rising actors partake in Les Miserables performance

January 27, 2012

Emily Kline, Staff Writer

Blue Water Theatre Company, one of the Twin Cities’ top performing arts groups for youth, is taking on “Les Misérables,” one of musical theatre’s most famous works, for their winter production. Juniors Rachel Hogen and Shannon Galvin, along with sophomore Rachel Wallace, joined the cast in late November and are currently in rehearsals for the... Continue Reading

SOPA bill is ineffective, inefficient, and infringing

February 1, 2012

Nick Hillson, Staff Writer

The Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) is a bill running through Congress in an attempt to curb the illegal uploading and downloading of copyrighted information and programs. Unfortunately, due to extremely vague wording and unclear definitions, the censorship proposed could extend to websites such as Facebook, various e-mails, and any other free forum. Not only is SOPA ineffective for all but the technologically impaired, but it violates our rights and benefits only a small handful of elites. SOPA works by requiring websites and Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to search through sent information and to censor any infringing material. Not only does this ignore the privacy guaranteed in the Constitution... Continue Reading

Mock Trial season testifies the team’s talent

The Mock Trial team had a succesful season at several competitions due to immense practice and help from professional lawyers. (Photo courtesy of Jim Vogl)

Mock Trial season testifies the team’s talent

February 3, 2012

Mallory Hoch, Staff Writer

Beginning in October, the Mock Trial team has practiced every night from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. in room 121 in preparation for upcoming competitions. Coming to a close on January 31st, the season ended on a strong note, making it to subsections before loosing their last competition. The season commenced with general practices to help initiate new members.... Continue Reading

SportDateOpponentResultW/L
Boys BasketballFri, Feb 03 Spring Lake Park67-65 Read StoryW
Girls BasketballTue, Jan 31 Minneapolis Southwest70-38W
Girls HockeySat, Jan 28 Hill-Murray1-3 Read StoryL
Boys BasketballSat, Jan 28 North Branch82-21 Read StoryW
Girls BasketballSat, Jan 28 North Branch66-40 Read StoryW
Dance TeamSat, Jan 28 Catholic JamboreeJ: 2nd/K: 3rd
Girls HockeyFri, Jan 27 St. Francis/North Branch10-0 Read StoryW
Boys HockeyFri, Jan 27 Moorhead2-6 Read StoryL
WrestlingFri, Jan 27 Robbinsdale Cooper47-27W
WrestlingFri, Jan 27 Mahtomedi33-34L
Boys HockeyThu, Jan 26 Irondale6-1 Read StoryW
Girls BasketballThu, Jan 26 Chisago Lakes58 -45 Read StoryW
Click on any sport above to see a full schedule for that sport.
SportDateTimeOpponentLocation
Girls HockeySat, Feb 04 3:00Totino-GraceParade Ice Gardens
Boys HockeySat, Feb 04 7:30Spring Lake ParkBlaine
WrestlingSat, Feb 04 9:00TBAPine Island
Girls BasketballMon, Feb 06 6:00DeLaSalleDeLaSalle
Boys HockeyWed, Feb 08 7:30Shattuck-St. Mary'sShattuck-St. Mary's
Girls BasketballFri, Feb 10 7:15St. Louis ParkSt. Louis Park
WrestlingFri, Feb 10 6:00Chisago LakesHome
Boys HockeySat, Feb 11 2:30Totino-GraceSt. Louis Park
Dance TeamSat, Feb 11 1:00SectionsAustin
Boys HockeyTue, Feb 14 7:00Chisago LakesChisago Lakes
Girls BasketballTue, Feb 14 7:15Columbia HeightsHome
Girls BasketballThu, Feb 16 7:15WaconiaHome
Click on any sport above to see a full schedule for that sport.

AdvancED evaluates BSM’s performance

Board members from AdvancED came to BSM to check that the school is meeting the seven standards which measure how well a school can achieve quality student performance.

Sara Schlueter
March 10, 2009
Filed under News

On February 18, students may have noticed Principal Sue Skinner walking around the school halls with board members following behind her. These board members from AdvancED had to observe various classes and listen to student panels as part of the process to keep BSM’s accredidation.

With 23,000 schools to keep accredited, the national and international corporation AdvancED that came to BSM needed to seek evidence that the school is maintaining a quality education program. For a school to receive accreditation, it must meet high academic standards, engage in continuous improvement, and
demonstrate quality assurance through external review.

AdvancED also needs to verify that the school meets seven standards that they set forth which help to measure how well a school can achieve quality student performance. Each standard has guidelines on what must be achieved and these standards range from teaching and learning to the school’s resources and support systems.

BSM has continued to receive accreditation and demonstrates the use of excellence every five years when the board comes. While the school has never had a problem with accreditation, it still takes some preparations to get the school ready. “Before the accreditation board comes, we have various faculty and staff meetings to look for evidence that we are meeting these standards. We also prepare a report and send it to the accrediting agency,” said Principal Sue Skinner.

What the board does when they come to the school is tour the school and listen to panels of students, parents, board members, and support staff. “They want to get a feel for the school culture and to see if we are meeting their standards,” said Dr. Skinner.

Lindsey Clark, one of the board members who came to evaluate the school, found the panels of the students very informative. “We listened to students from every grade. It was a great experience, both for their suggestions and praise [of the school]. They were really able to back up everything they said with examples,” said Lindsey Clark.

In addition to sitting in on classes, walking through the halls of BSM, and talking to people, the board looks at everything that has anything to do with the school. “We show them binders of master schedules,
finances, Knightly news letters, coach’s handbooks, and anything else they need to look at,” said Dr. Skinner.

BSM had a positive impression on the board members that came, and they enjoyed their experiences. “I really like that no matter who you asked about the vision [of the school], there was the general idea of focusing on mind, body, and spirit. In addition, the school shows a lot of pride,” said Julie one of the board members.

The school will get a report about the accreditation in a few weeks, and it will include what the school needs to improve on. “There is no doubt that we will receive accreditation, and we will continue to make the school a better place,” said Dr. Skinner.

Comments

The Knight Errant intends for this area to be used to foster healthy, thought-provoking discussion. Comments are expected to adhere to our standards and to be respectful and constructive. As such, we do not permit the use of profanity, foul language, personal attacks, or the use of language that might be interpreted as libelous. Comments are reviewed and must be approved by a moderator to ensure that they meet these standards. The Knight Errant does not allow anonymous comments, and the Knight Errant requires a valid email address. The email address will not be displayed but will be used to confirm your comments.

Leave a Reply