ICS Hosts First Fall Ball

By ICS Student Media Team Member Makenna Stoddard (10th)

This year our high school had a Fall Ball with a new theme: “Costume Hoedown”. Student Council planned an evening of hot chocolate, cider, line-dances, and a costume contest. Most attendees agree that the costume challenge really brought out the creativity of our high school students. Costumes ranged from Among Us characters to McDonald's french fries. Two students from each class were nominated for “Best Dressed”. Hope Edmunds (10th) dressed as a sasquatch and won the Best Costume award. When asked about her inspiration for the costume, she replied, “I chose this costume because it's my dad's! He always scares my siblings when he wears it. I decided it would be funny to be able to scare high schoolers as well!” Hope was right. She indeed scared all who crossed her path.

The rebranded Fall Ball was memorable and successful. Students and teachers are hopeful the event continues in the years to come.

ICS Girl Scout Receives Silver Award

Grace Heiple (8th) has been a Girl Scout for seven years. This past year she has been working diligently on receiving her Silver Award with three other girls from her troop in Atlanta, Georgia. Together the team created nine different birdhouses out of recycled materials and presented them as a bird sanctuary to one of Atlanta's local art parks. Each birdhouse portrayed a different theme, all inspired by the imagination of the team.

The sanctuary was installed three weeks ago and in early November, Grace flew to Atlanta with her family to present a plaque to the sanctuary's community and to receive her Silver Award. This massive project involved a lot of hard work, networking, creativity, teamwork, and perseverance. Congrats, Grace! Your ICS community is beyond proud of you!

High School Volleyball Wins 2021 1A State Championship

Intermountain Christian School’s High School Volleyball team victoriously brought home a 1A Championship title over the weekend. On the way to the championship, our lions beat Rich and Panguitch, which is a massive triumph for ICS Athletics. We are incredibly proud of our Lady Lions’ hard work and determination on the court, our coaches’ commitment to the team, and our community’s support along the way. To read more about the team’s journey to the title, check out Deseret News’ coverage of the championship game.

Go, Lions!

State Championship Gallery

November 2021 Employee Spotlight

Mrs. Gorka, Middle School Science Teacher

How long have you been at ICS and what do you do?
This is my first year at ICS; however I have taught for five years. I am the middle school science teacher here at ICS.

What brought you to ICS?
I was led to ICS by a friend who knew about the school's need for a middle school science teacher!

What is one thing that has happened at school recently that you'd like to share?
It's so hard to choose! However, I have really enjoyed exploring some chemistry labs and activities with the 8th grade these past couple of weeks. Watching students explore chemical reactions in the chemical reaction stations was really fun!

What is your hope for your students and/or our school this year?
My hope is that the students would see science as a way to better understand and explore God's wonderful creation and use it to grow stronger in their faith!

November 2021 Students of the Month

Congratulations to Hudson Pletcher (Kindergarten), the November ICS Lower School Student of the Month!

Hudson is an incredible student. Not only is he a fast learner of new concepts, but he also stays engaged during lessons and brings a lot of thought into each new subject. Aside from his academic abilities, his character is exceptional! He is kind, loving, and caring towards others, is a strong proponent for justice, and is respectful and gentlemanly to his teachers and classmates. Hudson is a joy to teach and exhibits a great example of Christ-like behavior for others.

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Congratulations to Jackson Smith (7th), the October ICS Upper School Student of the Month!

Jackson Smith is a seventh-grader who really loves school. As a matter of fact, he will tell you that he loves school so much that he thinks that summers are the worst. His favorite subject in school is history. Basketball is his favorite sport to play; however, he plays football and golf as well. He has a younger sibling in third grade. This is his tenth year at ICS. He demonstrates excellent leadership skills inside and outside of the classroom, and we are excited to have Jackson as our Upper School Student of the Month!

October 2021 Employee Spotlight

Mrs. Frazee, 5th Grade Teacher

How long have you been at ICS and what do you do?
This is my 7th year at ICS. Although this is not my first time teaching 5th grade, it is my first year teaching 5th grade at ICS.

What brought you to ICS?
We wanted a Christ-centered learning environment for our children when we moved to SLC.

What is one thing that has happened at school recently that you'd like to share?
It's hard to choose just one, but recently I've loved the conversations that we've had as a class during Bible. It's been encouraging to hear the students discuss the things they've been learning in their own personal devotions as they walk with Jesus. It was also encouraging to see the way the class connected and worked together on the Outdoor Lab trip!

What is your hope for your students and/or our school this year?
My deep hope for myself, my students and our school is that we would intrinsically believe and confidently live out the truth that we are indeed who God says we are as image bearers and reflectors of God. I am confident that in doing so, this will impact how we live our lives.

October 2021 Students of the Month

Congratulations to Shyloh Parrish (5th), the October ICS Lower School Student of the Month!

Shyloh is always joyful and full of enthusiasm. She's always looking for ways to help her teacher and her classmates. She has a good attitude no matter what is happening around her. She's not afraid of making mistakes and trying again. It is evident that she loves Jesus, her family, and her classmates. It is such a joy to have Shyloh back at ICS!

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Congratulations to Kyler Begg (11th), the October ICS Upper School Student of the Month!

In addition to cleaning up the lunchroom recently by himself, he was a huge help to Mr. Hulin and Mr. Behmer by setting up concessions for a volleyball game. He completed this task after working hard at baseball practice. His humble willingness to serve has been noticed by our faculty and staff! His example teaches others to serve simply to serve, not to be seen.

August 2021 Student of the Month

Congratulations to Remy Shootman, the August ICS Student of the Month!

Remy worked several weeks at Camp ICS this summer on staff, mainly with the Pre-K through 1st grade campers. Her work ethic, initiative, and skill in working with the kids was excellent! She showed strong leadership skills and reflected a passionate heart for the campers. Thanks for all of your hard work this summer, Remy!

September 2021 Students of the Month

Lower School

Congratulations to Audrey McGough, the September ICS Lower School Student of the Month!

Audrey always enters her classroom with a smile and cheerful attitude each morning. She is responsible, quick to follow the routines and do all that she needs to do. Audrey is diligent and does her very best work all while being polite and respectful to both adults and her classmates. She is a kind and compassionate friend that demonstrates excellent behavior inside and outside the classroom! She is a wonderful role model to her classmates!

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Upper School

Congratulations to Vivy Peek, the September ICS Upper School Student of the Month!

Vivy is in the 7th grade and new to ICS this year. She is full of enthusiasm and joy. Vivy is kind and respectful, and she gives her best in class. She is also on the MS volleyball team! Thanks for being a wonderful student, Vivy!

Meet Mr. Boyce!

What's your new ICS title and position? High School History Teacher

Where are you from? If you're not originally from UT, how did you end up here? Spartanburg, South Carolina. I came to Utah to help with church planting in downtown Salt Lake City.

Where do you go to Church? Gospel Grace Church at Liberty Park

Tell us about your family! I have two parents and two siblings (I'm the youngest of 3). All of them still live in the Carolinas. I have two nephews and one niece! My parents worked extra jobs to get all of us through our local Christian school.

What is something most people don't know about you? OR What are you most passionate about? Aside from Clemson football, I'm pretty passionate about subject verb agreements, theological frameworks, delicious beverages, Cafe Rio, and finding good deals on stuff.

What are you looking forward to most in your new role at ICS? I’m looking forward to doing a deeper dive into teaching history than I've been able to during my first six years of teaching.

What else would you like the ICS community to know about you? I love Salt Lake City. I also love having meaningful, constructive conversations with people whose viewpoints differ from mine!

Meet Mrs. Saullo!

What's your new ICS title and position? Part-time Pre-K Teacher

Where are you from? If you're not originally from UT, how did you end up here? For the last 20 years my husband has been in the navy. As a result, I have followed him around the country, moving 13 times! I would still consider TN home though, even though I haven't lived there in over 20 years. It is where I went to middle school, high school and college. It's also where my family still lives!

Where do you go to Church? We only moved to UT two months ago, but we have attended Salt Lake Evangelical Free Church several times and so far it feels like where we are meant to be.

Tell us about your family! My husband is in a residency program at the University of Utah for occupational medicine. He is one of the most hard working and dedicated men I've ever known. We have three loving and adventurous boys. Our oldest, Nate, is almost 10. He is a voracious reader and has an overall love of learning. Our middle son, Dean, is seven. He is an excellent playmate with his older brother as well as his younger brother. I love watching him transition from one to the other! He excels in building, design, and overall creativity. Our youngest, Gabe, is five. Gabe loves nothing more than spending time with his brothers. Concrete facts are his strength! His knowledge of our world, especially geography, is mind blowing!

What is something most people don't know about you? OR What are you most passionate about? I love to design cut flowers. It is a skill I picked up almost 15 years ago and something that brings me such joy.

What are you looking forward to most in your new role at ICS? I look forward to the chance to get back into the classroom after taking some time off to be home with my boys. The opportunity to work where they will be attending school is an experience I have always dreamed of. Teaching at such a Christ-centered school is such a blessing to me. I'm excited to instill in my class God's love for them!

What else would you like the ICS community to know about you? This opportunity to teach again at ICS was 100% God's will for my life! I've never had so many doors fly wide open for any other experience, job, or decision that I've been faced with. God is good!

Welcome to ICS, Mrs. Saullo! We are excited for you to be a part of the lion community!