Linworth Alternative Program (Worthington, Ohio)

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Linworth Alternative Program is located in Worthington, Ohio and is part of the Worthington City School District.

1 History
2 Walkabout
3 Town Meeting
4 Philosophy
5 NOSB
6 External links

[edit] History

The Linworth Alternative Program opened in the Fall of 1973 as another high school option for students who also attended Worthington High School. Later, when the school district created two new schools and closed the original, Linworth became an option for those who went to the new schools; Thomas Worthington or Worthington Kilbourne High School. The goal of the program is to fully engage students in their educations. This is accomplished by creating situations in which students have to make choices, take on more responsibility, and to actively apply what they have learned through Experiential education

[edit] Walkabout

The Walkabout program is designed for seniors who have met graduation requirements prior to the second semester of their senior year. It is provided to help students explore their possible career paths and to help students become more independent. Students plan two 9 week, off campus activities which the they will attend full time. Students may choose anything in a related field of their desire with staff approval. Students are required to keep journals throughout their experience. The purpose of journaling is to have students reflect and think about their experiences away from school and in some cases away from home.

[edit] Town Meeting

Town meeting has been a part of the program since its beginning. Students and teachers have an opportunity to bring up issues that concern the school, main campus or city events that they would like to make known, or Town Meeting provides students an opportunity to get more involved in their school government and decision making. Town Meeting largely replaces Student Council at traditional high schools. Every person—regardless of status as a student, teacher, or administrator—gets one vote on all meeting initiatives.

[edit] Philosophy

Linworth relies on a framework of personal & social responsibility, trust and respect. Students make their own class schedules which are set in longer, college-like, periods. There are no study halls-there is simply free time which students have the option of using in any way they choose. There is no desigated lunch hour at Linworth, as each student has one hour of "sign-out" time each day which can be used in segments or all at once. Additionally, there are no combination locks on the lockers, and students rarely, if ever, choose to secure their belongings. In true egalitarian fashion, teachers are called by their first names. Many school services, such as the computer network and the vending machines, are operated and sustained by the students themselves.

[edit] NOSB

Currently, Linworth AP is attempting to recreate their NOSB teams for competition again. Coached by former student and team member Mike Barga and teacher-led by Ron, the team will be hopefully competing in Ann Arbor, Michigan this year, and maybe even moving onto Seward, Alaska. For more information on this current years team, click HERE

In February, 2005, the Linworth National Ocean Sciences Bowl (NOSB) team once again earned 1st place at the Great Lakes Bowl, the regional competition held each year at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. As a result, they received a free trip to Biloxi, MS, to compete in the nationals, paid for by CORE (the Consortium of Oceanographic Research and Exploration) and NOAA (National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration). They also won a cash award from the regional event, which they used to pay for their expenses to spend an extra day at the nationals. The team members included: Mike Barga, Ande Bell, Lindy Long, Captain Mike Petrick, and Alex Whitney.

While there, the students and coaches were treated to a variety of field trips, such as: Stennis Space Center, the Aquarium of the Americas in New Orleans, sea kayaking in the Gulf, or a day-trip on one of the Biloxi Schooners (a replica of the early fishing boats in the area). All the teams spent the evening before the competition enjoying a walk and cookout on Ship Island, part of the Gulf Islands National Seashore. By the end of the 2nd day of competition, Linworth's team was tied for 9th place, from a field of 26 teams. When you consider that each of those teams was the winner of a regional (from a field of 12 to 16 teams) the Linworth team did very well indeed!

Over the years, Carol Landis has coached 6 teams of AP students for the NOSB competition. In reverse order, they were:

2004: This was the year that the Linworth team finally ousted Port Hope, MI, team to earn the 1st place award! Team members were: Michael Barfuss, Lindy Long, Michael Petrick, Captain Jon Pratt, and Alex Whitney. We traveled to Charleston, SC, for the national competition in April and enjoyed a 'berth and breakfast" experience in the harbor the night before the competition along with a selection of field trips organized by the national coordinators.

2003: Linworth earned 2nd place (after a double-tie breaker) in a real heart-breaker session. Our team consisted of: Michael Barfuss, Brian Carnahan, Ariel Cohen, Michael Petrick, and Captain Jon Pratt.

2002: The Linworth team took 2nd place--out of 11 teams. This year's team was comprised of: Michael Barfuss, Brian Carnahan, Captain Jon Pratt, Ryo Sato, and Ariel Cohen.

2001: After having missed the competition the year before, Linworth's team won 3rd place--out of 12 teams. The team included: Michael Barfuss, Brian Carnahan, Captain Ryan Greene, Jon Pratt, and Ryo Sato.

1999: Having no experience with the rules and no way to practice, the Linworth team was proud to earn 6th place out of 15 teams. It took them one round to see how the game was played, but we were disadvantaged by that first loss. Team members included: Lindsay Bleimes, Liz Baker, Diana Lafyatis, Claire Moore, & Emily Puckett.