Junior High

Students Lead Kindness Campaign at the Junior High

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Paige Leiderman, Abigale Renninger and Karlee Rutter show the positive messages they taped to students' lockers to surprise them the next morning. 

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Kylie Milshaw holds her bee that she designed with a positive message that reads, "Believe you can and you're halfway there."

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Nayeli Fortunato, Abigale Renninger, Jamie Hedrick and Chloe Savage hold decorated rocks they hand painted with positive messages (below)

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As she folded hundreds of pieces of tape into sticky circles to attach small cards filled with messages of kindness and positivity to lockers, Abigale Renninger said the work she and her friends were putting into the project was worth it. “It’s so important to show other people how important kindness is,” Abby said as she attached a card that said, “Be the reason that someone smiles today,” to a student’s locker to surprise them the next morning. 

Abby is one of many students at the Junior High this week who are taking part in kindness initiatives meant to help spark thought, conversation and change throughout the school as students focus on the simple act of kindness. Abby said the week’s activities were planned when she and others were being bullied and were seeking solutions to help improve relationships among students in the Junior High. When she approached Principal Alex Brown, who was working through the bullying situation with her and her family, he asked her if she wanted to lead a kindness campaign. “ I am a huge believer in student empowerment. I very easily could have put something together for everyone to do; however, that would eliminate the authenticity behind such a great message. In addition, having the students lead the organizing of the initiative teaches them that they have a voice and the power to make a difference, and not always rely on someone else to make a change,” he said. 

From that conversation, students organized activities along with administrators and teachers to celebrate kindness. Focused around the theme to “Bee Kind,” the school distributed bee-themed silicone bracelets on Monday. On Tuesday, students arrived at school surprised to find positive messages taped to their lockers thanks to the work of Abby and her friends. On Wednesday, students decorated bee-shaped cutouts with positive messages, with Kylie Milshaw’s “Believe you can and you’re halfway there,” decorated message standing out as a favorite among students and staff. On Thursday, students and staff sported “I”m so kind” t-shirts. And on Friday, students hand decorated rocks to give to staff as a gesture of kindness and appreciation. 

Although the week’s activities haven’t magically made bullying go away, Mr. Brown said that he intends to continue and build upon the initiatives that the soon-to-be-freshmen students started, along with other bullying interventions and programming that is regularly presented to students throughout the year, including assemblies and PBIS rewards. Believing that kindness begets kindness, Abby and her friends are hopeful that their message and spirit will stick with students beyond just this week. “After all, it’s really up to us,” said Paige Leiderman, also in eighth grade, who worked with Abby on the kindness campaign. “We’re the ones as students who have to make this a positive environment for everyone.” 

Teacher Appreciation Week: Tracy Powell

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If you think science can’t be fun, today, we’re excited and honored to introduce you to the Junior High’s Mrs. Tracy Powell, our fifth longest serving teacher thanks to her start in the district in 1991 first as a substitute, and then as a full-time Junior High Science teacher. As soon as you walk into her room, you’re surrounded by cabinets filled with beakers and glassware that simply makes you want to experiment and learn, as well as fun little toys and trinkets scattered around her countertops, like Newton’s Cradle or a bobble head of Bill Nye, the Science Guy. In fact, when we asked her fellow Science teachers to tell us a little bit about her, the word “fun” came up repeatedly. “Tracy Powell is such a fun teacher and teammate,” said her colleague Mrs. Brenda Kobie. “From exciting labs and experiments to silly catchphrases, she knows how to have a fun time in Science class. She loves making nerdy science jokes and greets you with a ‘Hey honey!’ any time you pop in for a chat or a question. She has been a fun department head to have and it has been fun to learn from her as I have grown into being my own version of a silly and goofy science teacher.” Mrs. Gretchen Hess also immediately mentioned her love of humor and making science fun. “Students love her corny Science jokes and sing alongs,” she said. “The highlight of the year is when she can get the principals to ride her hoverboard down the hall.” Mrs. Michelle Obst said those efforts to make science enjoyable always pay off as she sees her students succeed in class. “She loves to see the spark in their eyes when they connect science to their lives,” she said.

Although we wish we could have highlighted all of our teachers, we hope that you enjoyed our spotlight series of our five longest-serving teachers during this year’s Teacher Appreciation Week. Please enjoy this last one with Mrs. Powell:

Q: Why did you decide to become a teacher?
A: I became a science teacher in hopes that I could inspire students to want to know more about the way the world works. Science is full of amazing things to discover.

Q: Did you ever do anything other than teaching?
A: If so, what? I have been teaching junior high science for 27+ years. Before that, I was a substitute teacher for 5 years.

Q: If you wouldn’t have been a teacher, what other career would you have pursued?
A: I once wanted to be wedding planner. I worked in a bridal salon during and after college.

Q: Can you please tell us where you’ve taught, what you’ve taught and for how long?
A: Many years ago I was a substitute in several local districts but Exeter JHS has been my home away from home for 27 years. At one point I taught both Life Science and Physical Science but for the past 10 years I have taught only 8th grade.

Q: What do you love most about teaching?
A: I love seeing students figure out the solution to their questions. I feel like you can actually see the light bulb go off above their head.

Q: What was your favorite grade or subject when you were a student?
A: I loved science and learning about how things work or why things happen.

Q: What’s a moment you’ll never forget from teaching? 
A: I love a good pun. One day I was explaining to the class that their lab observations needed to have measurements and details. I told them to “Be specific.” The student seated in front of me, with a straight face and perfect comedic timing, said “Oh, like the ocean!” And then we all laughed at his pun. It was one of my most favorite silly moments.

Q: What’s a lesson you’ve learned from your students that you’ll never forget?
A: Eighth graders can be hilarious!

Q: What’s the best thing about teaching in Exeter?
A: Exeter is such a strong community. It fills me with pride when I think about how this community comes together when it faces challenges.

Q: Did you graduate from Exeter or have kids who went through Exeter?
A: I graduated from Exeter in 1986. My husband is also an Exeter grad (class of 1984). We were thrilled to be able to move back home to Exeter so that our two children, Taylor ’15 and Connor ’20, could also be Eagles! As an Exeter teacher, I was lucky enough to get the opportunity to read my daughter’s name (and her classmates) at her graduation and to hand my son his diploma when he graduated during Covid.

Q: What have you learned about the profession since becoming a teacher?
A: I learned that a teacher’s work is never done. There’s always something on my to do list!

Q: What teaching accomplishment fills you with pride?
A: I am proud to say that our Science Olympiad team has a long history of success. The team has consistently shown a depth of knowledge and commitment to excellence that rivals the best in the state. I learned early in my career from some of the best science educators.

Q: What’s one skill that you hope all students learn from you?
A: I hope that my students will never stop learning. There is always something we can do to improve or know more.

Students learn lessons from therapy dog

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The newest "teacher" at Exeter Township Junior High is five years old, named after a fashion designer icon, walks on four legs and needs regxular trips to the grooming salon. We're pleased to introduce you to Coco Chanel, an Italian truffle dog who, despite only being able to wag her tail and "woof," is teaching special needs students at the Junior High about how to better socialize with each other as they bond over their common love of animals. Having seen the power of therapy dogs in helping students at previous schools where he worked, Principal Alex Brown was excited to invite Coco and her handler, Mrs. Carol Goodhart, into the Junior High on a regular basis earlier this year soon after Coco received her therapy dog certification from the Alliance for Therapy Dogs. "From day one, she's been really great for our kids, but also our staff. Students and teachers see Coco in the hallways and they immediately light up."

Coco was adopted by retired educators Carol and her husband, James, soon after Coco retired from the show dog circuit. Seeing how well behaved and socialized she was from her previous experience as a show dog, Carol decided to have her officially trained as a therapy dog in the hopes that she could bring her into schools to help students with emotional or social needs. "As an elementary principal, I hired a guidance counselor who had a therapy dog and I just fell in love with the whole concept. At the time, I had all of the emotional support students in my building, so it was a godsend to our students to have his dog in our school," she said. Mr. Brown agreed. "For kids who may not necessarily be very social, we're seeing them really light up and become social when Coco enters the classroom."

Mrs. Alyssa Raab, who teaches Life Skills, said that her students look forward to Coco's weekly visit, which lasts approximately half an hour in her class and half an hour in Mrs. Robyn Shaffer's autistic support class. She said that Coco and Carol's visits have directly impacted her students by teaching them how to better emotionally regulate while also increasing their social skills. "Most of us have pets and love animals, so having Coco come in is a catalyst for us to have more conversations, and has been so great for our classroom," she said. In Mrs. Shaffer's classroom, students presented Carol and Coco with cards expressing their happiness with having them visit each week. On the outside of seventh grader Mya's card, she drew a blue face with a frown that she labeled, "Before Coco's visit." On the inside, she drew a happy and bright face with a smile that she labeled, "After Coco's visit," and then hugged Coco, who clearly relished in all of the attention and pets she was getting from students and staff.

Although Coco and Carol are only visiting two classrooms a week, Mr. Brown said that he hopes that he can expand Coco's visits to other classrooms that may benefit from her calming and happy presence in the near future. "I mean, who doesn't love seeing and petting a great puppy?"

History Teachers Have Their Own History in Exeter

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Matt & Dena Burkhart stand with their children, Cole, Ava and Logan, above Don Thomas Stadium at the Exeter Township Senior High school. 

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Matt & Dena Burkhart stand by the lockers where they initially met at the Junior High. 

In the fall of 1995 at Exeter Township Junior High, seventh graders Matthew Burkhart and Dena Caldwell met on the first day of school when their alphabetically-ordered last names caused their lockers to be placed opportunely next to each other. Over the course of the next few days, a young Matt and Dena became friends. And soon afterwards, a couple. And despite the lack of longevity in young romances, Matt and Dena defied all odds as they continued to date through junior high, and then high school. By the time they reached their senior year, they were selected to be on prom court together, and their classmates bestowed the adorable title of “cutest couple” to them in their yearbook (incidentally, it’s a title that we’re sure they’d still earn today). 

After their 2001 graduation from Exeter, Matt chose to pursue a baseball scholarship at Tusculum University in Tennessee. Dena stayed closer to home to study at Lebanon Valley College. After a year, Matt decided to move closer to home to study education and play baseball at DeSales University. As Dena was finishing up her post-baccalaureate work and student teaching, Matt proposed, presenting Dena with a ring and a desk plaque that said “Mrs. Burkhart” that still sits on the corner of her desk today. They married a year and a half later.

Today, 28 years after the day they met in the hallway of Exeter Township Junior High, it seems no accident that Matt and Dena both love to teach history. After all, they share so much of it together in the same buildings and the same classrooms where they now inspire the next generation of Eagles. The Exeter community is so much a part of their love story, too: Despite initially getting teaching jobs in other districts, both Matt and Dena jumped on teaching opportunities to return to Exeter where they once met and dated. And despite buying their “forever” home in Douglassville, Dena says that when it came time for her three kids–Ava (grade 6), Logan (grade 4) and Cole (kindergarten)–to attend school, she couldn’t envision them not attending the same schools where their young relationship first began. “Matt looked at me one night in our old house and was like, ‘We can stay in Daniel Boone, or you can put a for sale sign out.’ So we put our house on the market and sold it in six days and moved to Exeter.”

Dena continues, “There are just so many opportunities here in Exeter that we couldn’t imagine not raising our kids here. The teachers that are here–yes, we know them since we work with them–but we see that dedication and the special connections they have with students and we know they'll go that extra distance for students here. It’s the extracurricular clubs, the sports, the educational opportunities such as AP and Honors programs… What we have here and what opportunities we had ourselves as kids was a huge reason we decided we wanted to raise our family here,” she says. “We love Exeter–we really do.”

Principal Brown Recognized as a “Daily Point of Light”

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From left: Saishree Mupparaju ‘22, Principal Brown and Karleigh Patton ‘21

On a day where we reflect upon the work of Martin Luther King, Jr. and celebrate those who work to create a more equal society, we’re so proud to announce that Exeter Township Junior High’s principal Mr. Alex Brown has been recognized nationally as a “Daily Point of Light” for his volunteerism and development of youth leadership in Berks County through his board advisory roles in VOiCEup Berks and Youth Volunteer Corps of Reading (YVCR). Through those organizations, he became involved in the founding of STAR (Stand Together Against Racism) during the summer of 2020, which started as a series of student-led Zoom meetings with concerned Berks teens [including former Exeter students, Karleigh Patton ‘21 (right) and Saishree Mupparaju ‘22 (left)]. Under the leadership of Mr. Brown and other board members, Ms. Patton, Ms. Mupparaju and other students in STAR quickly grew the organization beyond Berks and now have dozens of STAR affiliates around the United States and Canada that engage hundreds of people annually in initiatives and projects supporting racial equity.

As an educator, coach, administrator and volunteer leader, Mr. Brown has spent his entire career working with and listening to kids. Throughout that journey, he said he came to appreciate their “can-do-anything” mentality that allows them to tackle and achieve goals that adults sometimes don’t believe are possible. So when the founding student members of STAR saw an opportunity to expand their organization’s mission and messaging beyond Berks by creating a website, podcasts, social media challenges, documentaries and more, Mr. Brown knew they could be encouraged to take action and be successful with whatever they put their mind to. “Kids don’t see barriers; they don’t see obstacles. They say, ‘This is what we want to do, and that might be in our way, but we’re going to around it.’”

When you talk with Ms. Mupparaju and Ms. Patton they say that their leadership development is thanks to Mr. Brown’s belief that young people can be empowered to tackle difficult work and to dream the impossible. “He really shows us the sky’s the limit. He shows us that things we don’t think are possible are actually possible,” says Ms. Mupparaju, who is now a student at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh.

Ms. Patton, who is now a student at Kutztown University, emphatically agreed, “Voices of youth tend to get shut down much more quickly. I think there’s a stigma that the youth voice doesn’t have the power to make true change, and Alex shut that down immediately by telling us we could absolutely make this happen, we could absolutely do this, and we’re going to do it together.”

Mr. Brown’s work as a youth volunteer leader was brought to the attention of the Points of Light organization by Ms. Christi Terefenko, who serves as the Executive Director of STAR and VOiCEup. In their leadership roles, they’ve engaged 594 youth in 6,279 hours of community service in and around Berks County. The “Daily Point of Light” is a national recognition and awards those who “act on their power to do good every day, using their hearts, hands and minds to help strengthen communities and solve persistent problems,” and is awarded by the Points of Light organization, which was founded by president, George H.W. Bush, and is an international non-profit that works to solve social problems through volunteerism. 

Junior High Spelling Bee Ends With a “Poppet”

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spelling bee winners hold their certificates

The Junior High Spelling Bee ended with a “poppet” today as seventh grader Joey Peroni successfully conquered 13 rounds of spelling, winning the competition with the unusual word, which means "an endearingly sweet young girl or child" or "a small human often depicted in witchcraft or sorcery." (Although a homonym, this poppet is not the latest fidget fad that all of our elementary students love!) The competition quickly heated up in the final rounds as the five 7th and 8th graders challenged each other with their spelling prowess until Joey was left victorious.

Joey has been practicing for the competition since November with Mrs. Cheryl Larson, who advises and oversees both Reiffton's and the Junior High's Bees. When asked, he shyly admits he might have a natural knack for spelling, winning the Bee in third grade and coming in third in fourth grade at Lorane Elementary. Both of Joey's parents, Matt and Dena, agree: "He probably spells better than both of us," they said with a laugh.

Our congratulations to the other Bee participants, who include (from left to right):

  • Lena Bluestone,
  • Evey Manke
  • Joey Peroni
  • Danielle McLaughlin
  • Maya Paduret

Please help us wish the best of L-U-C-K to Joey as he goes on to compete in the 3rd Annual Diamond City Regional Spelling Bee in Wilkes-Barre in March. Our thanks, also, to all of this year's participants and our advisor, Mrs. Larson, for their time and dedication of upholding this national tradition here in Exeter!