Hello Agora!
My name is Valerie Natale, and I serve as one of the High School Assistant Directors of Special Education. This year is my 12th year serving the incredible students and families here at Agora. My previous experiences prior to Agora include teaching autism support and Learning support in a public brick and mortar school as well as a private school that supports kids with autism. The 2023-2024 school year wraps up my 21st year as an educator, and I’m so thankful for the things I’ve learned.
After graduating with my elementary education degree from Messiah College (now University), I realized I wanted to work in the special education field and earned my certification at Temple’s campus in Harrisburg. My family and I live in York County just south of Harrisburg. My husband and I have 4 children ages 14, 11, 9, and 7. We also have two dogs, a Plott Hound and a German Shepherd. My hobbies include driving children to sporting events, reading, listening to music (of course singing along rather loudly), and being creative in the kitchen! I can often be found experimenting with new sourdough recipes or creating a new flavor of kombucha in the summer. Some interesting facts about me are that when I was in high school, I sang in a band, school choir, and a small group that traveled to area churches to perform. I enjoy running every morning with my neighbor and tending to our flock of chickens.
I am so thankful for the opportunity to work at Agora, and I value what I learn from every interaction with our staff, students, and families! Please reach out to me at vnatale@agora.org if I can support you in your journey at Agora!
Valerie Natale
Assistant Director of Special Education
Welcome to March! It's a month to welcome with open arms, especially when we live in Pennsylvania with its ever-changing weather and wintry days that don't seem to want to leave. March puts being joyful on the calendar with National I Want You To Be Happy Day on March 3 and International Day of Happiness on March 20. Psychologists Liudmila Titova and Kennon Sheldon believe that happiness is an import-export business. They affirm that efforts to make others happy create a fast track to increasing our own happiness. One of the ways you can bring a little joy to someone else in your life is to celebrate Pi Day on March 14...with pie! Just about everyone will smile over a great piece of pie, and we asked our high school administrators to share their favorite pie flavors. May we all enjoy an awesome March, finding ways to bring happiness to others which will circle right back to us!
Jeff Miller - Blueberry
Eric Buffington - Chocolate pecan
Erin Hilson - Coconut custard
Heather McCormick - Apple
Holly Allen - Lemon
Valerie Natale - Peanut butter
Erinn Slacktish - Pumpkin custard
The high school PBIS All-Star program recognizes positive behavior in the classroom. High school students are encouraged to nominate classmates who demonstrate Agora's core values of learner-centeredness, wellness, responsibility, and engagement in their classes. Each month, five students' names are randomly drawn from the pool of student nominations (one from each of the five content areas), and those five students are recognized as the PBIS All-Star students for that month. The monthly PBIS All-Star students are announced in this newsletter, in The Agora Times (our high school newsletter for students), and celebrated in live class sessions.
🤩CONGRATULATIONS🤩 to the JANUARY 2024 High School PBIS All-Star students!
- Saavon J. - 9th grade - English
- Xiara B. - 10th grade- Math
- Savannah C. - 9th grade - Science
- Sophia G. - 9th grade - Social Studies
- Noah M. - 10th grade - Electives
- We are excited to announce that our PBIS All-Star STAFF recognition program has launched! The All-Star program for staff, modeled after our All-Star student program, rolled out in February, with nearly 100 staff members nominated by high school students. Students have the opportunity to nominate staff members who demonstrate and encourage Agora's core values, and five winners will be randomly selected from the nomination pool each month. All-Star staff members will receive a 16-ounce Agora All-Star Staff tumbler and will be publicly recognized in various media. Students are encouraged to nominate any teacher, counselor, family coach, administrator, or other Agora staff member who exemplifies the PBIS culture of caring and belonging!
Agora is proud to offer our high school students 30 club options where they can achieve, exercise leadership skills, find friends, broaden their interests, and more! Below is a list of our high school student clubs. With just three months of school remaining, please encourage your student to consider participating in a club or two! For a description of each club and the student sign-up link, click here:
https://www.smore.com/rqvjc-high-school-clubs
- Agora Car Club
- Agora Theatrics Club
- Anime Club
- Art Club
- Astronomy Club
- A Time For Christ Club
- Book Club
- Chess Club (combined with middle school participants)
- Coffeehouse
- Cooking Club
- Debate Club
- Equine Club
- FBLA - Future Business Leaders of America (Agora chapter)
- F.I.R.E. Club - Female Initiative, Respect, Empowerment)
- Gaming Club
- GSA - Genders & Sexualities Alliance
- Girls Who Code
- Global Awareness Club
- HOSA - Future Health Professionals Student Organization (Agora chapter)
- 4 Diamonds Mini-THON Club
- Photography Club
- Poetry Club
- PYLN - Pennsylvania Youth Leadership Network
- Pursuing Joy Club
- RAKA - Random Acts of Kindness at Agora
- Sable Alliance - fostering unity in our school community through exposure to Black culture
- Spanish Club
- The Agora Times - e-newsletter by and for Agora high school students
- Travel Club
- Writing Club
Act 158 of 2018 (Act 158), signed into law by Governor Tom Wolf on October 24, 2018, provides alternatives to Pennsylvania's statewide requirement of attaining proficiency on the three end-of-course Keystone Exams (Algebra I, Literature, and Biology) for a student to achieve statewide graduation requirements.
In order to graduate from high school, students must meet all local graduation requirements related to credits and coursework along with the state requirements outlined in Act 158. Students must score proficient or advanced and/or score within a specific target range on Keystone exams to meet either the Keystone Proficiency Pathway or the Keystone Composite Pathway. There are alternate pathways that students may be eligible to complete if their Keystone scores do not meet the testing requirements.
Administrators and school counselors are working closely with each high school student to review Keystone scores and help students determine which pathway they are eligible to complete to meet graduation requirements.
- Tuesday, March 5: Advisory day—more information will be sent by email from your advisory teacher
- Wednesday, March 6: Morning half-day for students (see schedule below); asynchronous afternoon
- Wednesday, March 20: Morning half-day for students (see schedule below); asynchronous afternoon
- Friday, March 22: End of 3rd academic quarter
- Monday, March 25 - Friday, March 29: Schools and office closed
- Monday, February 19: Presidents' Day - school and offices closed
- Wednesday, February 21: Half-day in the morning for students; asynchronous afternoon
- Monday, April 1: Asynchronous day for students
Occasionally, high school students will follow half-day schedules with abbreviated classes that are completed by noon. March 6 is the next day for students to follow the half-day academic schedule; students have classes in the morning only, and staff in-service takes place in the afternoon. The half-day academic schedule for students is detailed in the image to the right.
