Spring Game Night 2025
Game Night was a blast! We’d like to say thank you to everyone who participated, and also thank you very much, Derek, for organizing it.
Student Fun Events
Gristle Butter #16
Click here to read Gristle Butter #16, the latest edition to come out just in time for the Star City ZineFest! Enjoy being treated to the imaginations of Daniel A, Wilson K, Avery M, & Odessa M.
Roanoke STARCADE
Students and faculty took a surprise trip to the Roanoke STARCADE! Leaving behind our usual Monday classes, this unexpected outing provided a refreshing break from everyone’s routine. The day highlighted the importance of balancing academic commitments with enjoyable experiences, and energized the bond of community among our students and teachers.
Martin Luther King Jr. Community Service Day
This year to honor Martin Luther King Jr Day our new students learned about various nonprofit organizations and volunteering opportunities in downtown Roanoke during our winter community service day. They visited RAM House, The Spot on Kirk, and the new Angels of Assisi location, where they met leaders and community organizers at each location. Our returning students spent the day volunteering at Feeding Southwest Virginia food bank in Salem.
Gristle Butter #15
Click here to read Gristle Butter #15, featuring the combined talents of Daniel A, Louis F, Wilson K, Avery M, Tsula A, Odessa M, Maddox B, Miles C, and the Poetry Class.
Improv Workshop with Jack Wright and Ben Bennett
CHS hosted an Improvisation workshop by touring musicians Jack Wright (saxophone) and Ben Bennett (percussion). Wright and Bennett play some of the most experimental, free-form music out there, pushing beyond free jazz into what Wright, in his scholarly book on the practice and history of improvisation, calls “Free Playing”, using instruments and voice against the ways we are taught to play them “correctly”.
The workshop was a lot of fun and explored new relationships with sound, play, and rhythm. Students and faculty brought instruments to experiment with, including their own voice!
Jack and Ben have had a 15-year-or-so musical friendship, which persisted through the pandemic with a lot of playing sessions, duo and trio with Zach Darrup, sometimes recorded, sometimes not. To say anything at all about the music always feels reductive, but we can say that playing music like this pretty consistently renews and adds to our enthusiasm for living.
The two met through Ben’s dad, John M. Bennett, well known in the underground poetry scene and a partner of Jack’s since the 80s. The three formed the group Rotty What, documented on two recordings, “Naming the Dust,” and “Ohio Grimes and Misted MeaSnies.”. Together with Evan Lipson, bassist, Ben and Jack played as Wrest, which toured the US six times over the past ten years and produced two CDs, “Wrest” and Ingress. and a duo Tangle on Public Eyesore Records. In 2016 Ben moved from Columbus Ohio to Philadelphia, where they collaborate regularly as a duo and trio with Zach Darrup (Never), and with various musicians who come through.
Enjoy this video of Jack and Ben playing locally at Art Rat Studios. Jonathan Falls has also performed in another ensemble on the set with Jack & Ben at Art Rat Studios.
Jack and Olchar also performed an east coast tour together in 2019 with Olchar on vocals and Jack on his sax).
Gristle Butter #14
Click here to download the Fall 2024 edition of Gristle Butter. This collection is made up of contributions from Tsula A, Avery M, Daniel A, Odessa M, and Maddox B.
Fall 2025 Community Service Day – Highland Park
In an action-packed Community Service Day, we walked to Highland Park in Old Southwest to assist Roanoke City Parks and Recreation with a variety of projects. Students, faculty, and community members spread mulch at the playground, installed an art installation, removed overgrown vegetation, and spread gravel at the dog park. Check out our work the next time you visit the park!
Richmond Zine Fest ’24
Current and recent members of Zine Club ran a CHS booth at the Richmond Zine Fest, where they traded, bought, and sold zines with hundreds of other zine-makers. Maddox and Olchar also each had their own booths at the event.
It was also a wonderful opportunity to meet up with other CHS Zine Alumni who returned for the event, some of whom have been attending this zine fest for nearly a decade! The photo shows the students who got together for dinner in a park before heading home.
Voting 101
Community members Jinny Woodall-Gainey and Sue Williams came to talk to our students about voting. They emphasized several key points:
- The Importance of Voting: They highlighted how voting is a fundamental right and a way for individuals to have a say in the democratic process. Voting empowers citizens to influence government decisions and policies that affect their lives and communities.
- The Importance of Being Prepared to Vote Responsibly: They discussed the significance of being informed about the candidates and issues on the ballot. Responsible voting involves researching and understanding the implications of each choice to make informed decisions at the polls.
- How to Register as Well as Pre-register Once You’re 16: They provided information on the process of registering to vote, including the ability for 16-year-olds to pre-register in some areas, ensuring that they are ready to vote as soon as they reach voting age.
- Provided Sample Ballots and Reviewed Them: To familiarize students with what they will encounter on election day, they shared sample ballots. This exercise helped demystify the voting process and made students more comfortable with how to fill out a ballot correctly.
- Share Websites Showing Resources on How Younger Voters Can Get Started: They introduced various online resources that cater specifically to young voters. These websites offer guidance on understanding the voting process, comprehending the issues, and finding out more about the candidates.
- And How You Can Get Involved Once You Are 18: They encouraged students to engage in civic activities beyond voting, such as volunteering for political campaigns, attending town hall meetings, or joining local advocacy groups. These activities help young adults stay informed and active in their communities.
We are thankful to Jinny and Sue for empowering our students with the knowledge and tools necessary to participate actively in their democracy.