Budget Update
Superintendent Welch and school district staff are in the process of analyzing the state budget and determining its impacts on next year's funding. Fortunately, the final budget did not cut public school funding as deeply as some proposals the legislature considered. Still, significant cuts will need to be made to Highline's budget.
Over 70% of Initiative 728 funding was cut in the final budget. Those dollars pay for teachers, as well as math and literacy coaches. As a result, the district has eliminated all coaching positions. A limited number of math and literacy specialists will pick up some of the work previously done by coaches but with a redesigned role - helping teachers improve their instructional tools and practice. The district also was forced to eliminate 60 teaching positions, far fewer than original projections.
Superintendent Welch is currently looking at the list of proposed budget cuts, as well as suggestions from staff and community for additional reductions. His recommendations will be presented to the school board at its May 27 meeting.
Highline Community Member Wins Regional Recognition
Samuel Paredes was honored in the Community Recognition Awards presented by the Washington Association of School Administrators this month. Samuel was named the outstanding individual from among nominees from 15 school districts in the Puget Sound Metro Region.
Samuel is a former administrator in the public education system of El Salvador. For the past two years, Samuel has served Latino families as the Family Advocate/Academic Coach at Midway Elementary School. As a result of his work with Latino third and fifth graders, students' test scores have increased, their attendance has improved, and they have had fewer disciplinary referrals. Thanks to Samuel's work with the children's families, their parents have become more involved in their children's education.
Samuel has also taken a lead role in the district's Latino Family Academy, or Academia de Padres. Families attend all-day sessions on Saturdays. Parents learn about the American education system and how to support their children in school; students over age 10 get a college-awareness curriculum; and childcare is provided for younger children. Graduates of the Academy have become active parent volunteers in their schools.
The programs led by Samuel align closely with the district's emphasis on academic success and college-readiness for all students. Samuel's expertise in education, his dedication to students and parents, and his understanding of the barriers facing Latino families has made him an invaluable resource to Highline and its families.
Pictured: Samuel Paredes with Highline's Family and Community Partnership Manager Jackie Martinez (left) and Community Engagement Specialist Fa'izah Bradford (right) who coordinate the Academia de Padres.
Highline High School Student Scores in Photography Competition
Highline High School student Julia Vigen took third place in the recent 2009 Washington State Photography competition. There were over 4,000 entries in 13 categories. Congratulations, Julia!
Lights. Camera. College. HECB Film Contest Under Way
Students and faculty involved in drama, video, or web projects - or those who simply have a knack for creating videos that grab students - may be interested in a new film contest sponsored by the Washington Higher Education Coordinating Board (HECB).
The HECB is looking for examples of videos that encourage students to think early about college and to explore financial-assistance programs the state offers. Winners will receive small prizes and official recognition, including postings on the State of Washington's official YouTube site and screenings at the Washington State School Directors' Association's annual conference in November.
Entries must be the work of one or more students enrolled in grades 7-12 of a Washington public or private school during the 2008-09 or 2009-10 school year. Entry approval by a school principal or designee is required. The deadline is October 19, 2009.
Additional rules, entry forms and other information can be found on the HECB website at www.hecb.wa.gov/go/videocontest.
HHS AVID Students to Attend Summer Business Institute
Highline High School's AVID Juniors Juan Teran (left) and Giovanni Torres (right) have been accepted to attend Seattle University's Summer Business Institute. This is an on-campus, five-day experience for college-bound juniors. The Institute includes hands-on classes that will acquaint students with college coursework in such business areas as economics, accounting, business law, ethics, finance, business administration, international business, management, and marketing. Congratulations Juan and Giovanni!
AVID - Advancement Via Individual Determination - a nationwide, college-prep program, is offered in eleven schools in Highline Public Schools
For more information, visit their website at http://www.avidonline.org
Eat Better, Feel Better
Madrona Elementary School recently celebrated National Nutrition Month with a school-wide Nutrition Poster Contest. Over 300 students in all grades participated using the 2009 national theme of "Eat Right."
Madrona is an Eat Better, Feel Better school, a program where all staff are committed to promoting nutrition education. A nutrition educator from Washington State University Extension provides leadership for school-wide activities and teaches classroom nutrition lessons that incorporate cooking.
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Carolyn Lee, Nutrition Educator
Jason Kerber, Assistant Principal
Amirah Srong, Grade 2
Carmen Salas Saldenas, Grade 1
Monirah Srong, Kindergarten
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Daniel Yarbrough, Principal
Carolyn Lee, Nutrition Educator
Britney Chavez, Grade 3
Roman Esteban, Grade 4
Phillip Aguirre, Grade 5
Hertej Sohi, Grade 6
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2009 Gold Star Award Winners
Highline Schools Foundation for Excellence is proud to announce its 2009 Gold Star award winners. Because the quality of nominees is always so high, the committee had a difficult time in making a selection. For this year they are as follows:
Outstanding Administrator - Dr. Steve Grubb
Dr. Grubb is a leader who models integrity, respect, and professionalism at all times. He has an ability to stay focused on what is most important - the big strategic picture and the end goal without losing sight of the impacts on front-line staff.
Outstanding Classified Employee - Zenaida (ZZ) Newman
ZZ Newman evaluates and enrolls students who speak other languages and is often the first contact for families arriving at schools. She is caring and reliable and puts her knowledge and her personal concern for other individuals into practice.
Outstanding Teacher - Linda Drahn
Linda Drahn is a first-grade teacher at McMicken Heights Elementary. She is a 28-year teaching veteran who is a loving, patient instructor and a mentor to new teachers, as well.
Outstanding Volunteer - Tamera Nason
Tamera Nason is in her 5th year volunteering at Aviation High School. She travels from Maple Valley to volunteer and is willing to assist with whatever is needed including flying her airplane to Moses Lake to deliver legal documents to students.
North Hill Student Selected for Leadership Conference
Annie May Thompson, a sixth-grader at North Hill Elementary School in Des Moines, will attend The Junior National Young Leader Conference in Washington D.C. The conference is designed to bring young leaders together from all over the United States to study the tradition of leadership in American history and to develop leadership skills.
A fundraising spaghetti feed for her will be held on May 21 at Our Saviour's Lutheran Church, 126 SW 168th St., at 7:00 p.m.
reprinted from the "Highline Times."
Dual Language Program Celebrates Successful First Year
Hilltop Elementary is celebrating the completion of the first year of Highline's Dual Language Immersion program. The program currently has 48 students ready to move into first grade. Twenty-four of these students are Spanish speakers and twenty-four are English speakers. This group of students has been learning to read and write in their native language since the first day of school and will continue to do so in the next few years. Halfway through second grade, students will begin learning to read and write in their non-native language so that by the end of elementary school, they will be fluent in both languages.
As part of the program, the teachers have been hosting parent meetings where all parents have actively collaborated to learn about their children and each other despite the language difference. They worked in small bilingual groups on family projects where the children or other adults were all translating for each other. Language has not been a barrier to collaborating actively and enriching the school community.
Parents are excited about the program. "What I like about the dual language program is that my child gets to learn in his native language, and he is able to distinguish between Spanish and English," says Marisol Ramirez. Another parent, Janna Smith, states, "The dual language program teaches my son cultural awareness and sensitivity with a hands-on approach."
The students are also excited about the program and are aware of some of its benefits. Amber Le-Williams, an English speaker, states, "You can talk to more people because you will know two languages." "You can help someone who doesn't speak English learn it because you can understand what they are saying in Spanish," says Ashley Zeilinski, also an English speaker. Vera Pili in talking about her son, Luka, states, "If he is learning something with Senorita Gil (the Spanish-speaking teacher), then he shares the words in Spanish. If he is learning something with Mrs. Scott (the English-speaking teacher), he shares in English." Nancy Garcia, a Spanish-speaking parent is enthusiastic about her son, Josue, learning to read and write in his native language, "…y el poder ayudarle a sus tareas. Y los mas bonito que mi hijo sabe leer y escribir en espanol," (... to be able to help him with his homework, and the most wonderful thing is that my son knows how to read and write in Spanish."
As teachers in the program both Yazmin Gil and Kristina Scott are very excited and honored to be the first Dual Language teachers in Highline Public Schools. Kristina Scott, English dual language teacher, observes "To see how native language literacy instruction with high expectations provides an equitable learning experience for all students is amazing. In 13 years of teaching kindergarten, this is the first time I have seen all ELL students at the same high literacy level in both reading and writing as English speakers. There is no literacy gap between any of the dual language students."
"Since the beginning of the school year, English-speaking students wanted to know what I was saying," comments Yazmin Gil, Spanish dual language teacher. "It was not long before they knew what was going on in the classroom as the Spanish and English speakers helped each other understand by translating words and phrases. I am constantly amazed on how quickly they are learning Spanish in my classroom. All of the students are now teaching their siblings and parents Spanish and English. I wish I had had an opportunity like this growing up. "
May is Arts Education Month
Superintendent John Welch presented a proclamation for Arts Education Month to Sandra Locklear, who accepted the proclamation on behalf of Highline music staff.
Big Picture Senior Selected for New College
Big Picture senior Gary Tesfaye was selected as one of eight students to be in the pioneering class of a new college opening this fall in Rhode Island. The college, started by Big Picture co-founder Dennis Littky, is called College Unbound and is based on similar tenets as the Big Picture High Schools. Gary (on the right), pictured here with Big Picture sophomore Matt Marble.
Read more about the college in this article from the Providence Journal.
http://www.bigpicture.org/2009/04/college-unbound-to-open-in-providence-this-fall/
Global Connections Adds Sustainable Water Source
Visitors to the Global Connections campus will notice a new addition...a rain barrel installed next to one of two gardens just planted with Sustainable Seattle Grant money.
Advisor Alana Vinther commented, "This will introduce the concept of a rain barrel to all the students, staff, and community members who see it, and water the new garden."
The rain barrel installation is the handiwork of volunteer Desmond Machuca. Thank you, Desmond!
Project PROMise
Sixty girls from Highline Public Schools will be going to prom in lovely dresses - many with accessories - thanks to a new program sponsored by Highline Schools Foundation called Project PROMise. The Foundation solicited donations of evening dresses and accessories and was overwhelmed with the response. Girls were invited to "shop" and many left with all they needed for a prom they might not otherwise have been able to attend.
Foundation volunteer Lisa Tuman commented, "The girls were so appreciative! The community was so supportive that we have nearly 200 dresses in storage waiting for next year's shop day."
SeaTac College & Summer Opportunities Fair
Over 145 students and families from the Tyee service area attended the first annual SeaTac College Summer Activities Fair coordinated in partnership by Community Schools Collaboration, Chinook Middle School, and the Tyee Educational Complex College Career Center. In previous years, the event was open only to Chinook students and families, but this year, through a collaborated effort, it was opened to the entire Tyee service area. Parents and students from elementary school through high school attended. Translation services were provided for both Spanish-speaking and Somali-speaking families, along with babysitting for all through student volunteers.
Over 25 college and non-profit vendors filled the Chinook gymnasium with higher education information and summer opportunities. A workshop on college and financial aid gave attendees a more focused look at what the future could hold. Each person that came into the gym that night left with a clear sense that activities for summer abound and higher education opportunities are possible for all.
Submitted by Karly Feria
Upcoming School Board Meetings and Work Study Sessions
The next meeting of the Highline Public Schools Board of Directors will be:
Wednesday, May 27, 2009, at 6:00 p.m.
Southern Heights Elementary School
11249 - 14th Avenue South
Seattle, WA 98168
There will be two work/study sessions on May 27, following the Board meeting; Highly Capable Program Evaluation and 2009-10 Resource Allocation.
The public is encouraged to attend these meetings.
ACT Summer Workshops for Educators
In a time of growing demands on teachers, ACT is pleased to offer two workshops led by educator Bill Morrison that help teachers tap into the power of theatre to reach and teach the youth of today. Click here for flyer.
Bragging Rights
Every spring, we like to take the time to acknowledge educational accomplishments of staff members and their families. We will include the Bragging Rights column in the June 16 eHighlights. If you have educational information to share, please email the following information to Judy Balko (balkojl@hsd401.org).
For staff member recognition, please include employee name, worksite, school, and degree.
For a family member's recognition, please include employee name, worksite, family member name, school, and degree.
Last day to submit Bragging Rights is Wednesday, June 10.
Burien Clean Sweep
Highline High School's Environmental Club helped with the Burien Clean Sweep this year.
Homeschool Center Student Wins State Competition
Highline Homeschool Center's Geography Bee winner Benjamin Salman has won the state competition and will be going on to Washington D.C. to represent our state in the National competition, hosted by Alex Trebek. Congratulations, Benjamin!
See full story from the News Tribune below:
Mapping his way to success
Benjamin Salman knew the answer as soon as he heard the question.
Novosibirsk.
Knowing the name of the largest city in Siberia made the 14-year-old homeschool student from Seattle the 2009 state Geographic Bee champion. He bested 102 other geography whizzes in grades four through eight at the competition Friday at Stadium High School in Tacoma.
"I look at maps all the time," Salman said, explaining his knowledge of geography.
One map he remembered looking at was of Siberia.
"I saw this big city in the middle of the expanse of Siberia," he said. He looked up the city and knew he'd never forget it.
Geography, however, isn't his main interest. He spends most of his time playing the piano and composing music.
"I came not really expecting to win," he said. "I hoped I would."
"I knew he was capable of it," his mother, Sarah McCord, said proudly.
Family genes might have helped. Benjamin's mother is a former rocket scientist and an adjunct professor of mathematics at Seattle Pacific University. His father, Frank Salman, is a concert pianist.
The win means an all-expenses-paid trip to the National Geographic Society headquarters in Washington, D.C., to compete in the 22nd annual National Geographic Bee. The national champion will win $25,000 and a trip to the Galapagos Islands.
Five Washington state champions have become national champions, the largest number from any state, said Evy McNeal, who's coordinated the state's Geographic Bee since 1992. McNeal, of Raft Island, credited the state's "good school system" for the state's success at the national level.
Large photographs of the national champions were displayed in the theater lobby. They included 16-year-old Caitlan Snaring, who was one of the judges for the finalists' competition.
Now a 10th-grader an Interlake High School in Seattle, Caitlan won in 2007, becoming only the second girl to be national champion. She also was the 2006 state champion.
Caitlan credited her national victory to having a plan of study. She created notebooks on continents, countries and cities, and made maps detailing rivers and locations of cities. The notebooks became her life. She studied them up to seven hours a day.
McNeal began Friday's competition by introducing the 10 finalists as the "brightest of the bright."
They paraded into the theater to the applause of family, friends, teachers and fellow competitors. They wore nervous looks and brown National Geographic Society T-shirts.
One by one they left after missing two questions.
Aidan Mathis, 14, from Anacortes Middle School in Anacortes, Skagit County, stayed with Benjamin until Siberia. Aidan came in second. He'd made it to the state competition four times. His previous highest finish was fourth.
His disappointment, he said, is that he can't compete again.
Kyler Q. La Viollette, 12, a home-school student from Mount Vernon, Skagit County, took third place. He said he'll be back.
For his win, Benjamin picked up a certificate, $100 and a world atlas.
He also got a helium-filled balloon of the Earth.
"I'm taking home the world," he said.
Mike Archbold: 253-597-8692
State Solo and Ensemble Results
Students from Global Connections High School and Mount Rainier High School excelled in recent state competition.
Soloists from Soundview league who placed:
Carrie Floodeen - 1st place tuba solo - Global Connections
Matt Perry - 1st place french horn solo - Mount Rainier
Sean Ching - 3rd place snare solo - Global Connections
Ensembles
Sweet and Low - 2nd place small brass ensemble - Global Connections
Congratulations to the students and their leaders!
HS3 Students Selected for Bioquest Academy
Four juniors from the Health Sciences and Human Services High School have been selected into the Seattle Biomedical Research Institute (SBRI) Summer Bioquest Academy. Neelofer Valhora, Yara Gayton, Christina Cash, and Sina Sagio were selected from over 200 applicants competing for 48 spots.
At BioQuest Academy, practicing scientists teach students lab skills, share their passion for overcoming global infectious diseases and help advance students toward college and post-secondary opportunities.
The BioQuest Academy was designed to provide young adults who demonstrate interest and aptitude in science with access to authentic biomedical research, thereby promoting confidence and skills early in their scientific career pathways.
According to SBRI, "The scientific leaders of today must be replaced by talented, committed successors who will carry on the research to combat the deadly infectious diseases on which SBRI has focused for over 32 years."
Sustainability Projects at Global Connections
Global Connections students joined forces with Guy Manza of the facilities department to plan, shop for, and plant two gardens on their campus. Funding came from grants awarded to students from the Sustainable Seattle Organization. The Day of Darkness team used some of their grant money to purchase solar lights and added those to the garden areas.
The gardens will be supplied with water from another project - a rain barrel collection unit. Teacher Alana Vinther observes, "This will not only introduce the concept of a rain barrel to all the students, staff, and community who see it, and water the new garden - we also speculate it is going to minimize a drain issue we have had in that area that prevents grass from growing there."
Legislative Youth Advisory Council Accepting Applications
The Legislative Youth Advisory Council (LYAC) is now accepting applications through Friday, June 12, 2009. The Legislative Youth Advisory Council (LYAC) was created to help legislators address the needs of Washington State youth. The council meets up to six times per year in locations around Washington, and every year they hold an Action Day in Olympia in to meet with legislators and testify on legislation. This council provides an exciting opportunity for youth to become involved in the democratic process!
Council members must be between the ages of 14-18 at the time of appointment. The application deadline is June 12, 2009. If you know of any youth that may be interested in the Legislative Youth Advisory Council, please let them know about this opportunity.
For further information on the council, visit the council's website at http://lyac.leg.wa.gov or view a 15-minute video of the council through TVW's Engaged: Students Becoming Citizens series, which aired on TVW in October 2008.
E-mail lyac@leg.wa.gov with any questions, or contact Kelly Martin, LYAC Program Supervisor at Kelly.Martin@k12.wa.us or by phone at (360)725-4461. Click to get the application (as a Word document) and other information about the council.
Southwest King County Chamber's Student of the Month
Meet Sara Flores, a senior at Global Connections High School.
Sara has readied herself for a career in business by taking Introduction to Marketing, Retail Management, and Advanced Marketing. She has been Student of the Month twice at her school, Employee of the Month for the school's student-run espresso stand, placed first at the DECA state competition (and qualified for international competition), and is an active participant at the Bible Institute.
Sara has taken on a variety of leadership roles: youth group treasurer, espresso stand manager, National Honor Society secretary, DECA chapter officer, and was one of the founders of the Latino/a club. Her other involvements include the Coalition of Essential Schools Forums, Global Sustainability Project, and Activism Project on Child Abuse Awareness.
This talented young woman has been offered admission to the University Of Washington, Western Washington University, and Washington State University, and was a recipient of a multicultural scholarship from Western Washington University.
Sara's goals for the future, in her own words:
"After I graduate high school I want to attend the University of Washington and become a professional in the medical field or business. I want to work in a job where I can give back to my community and help Latino students be motivated to go to college."
Congratulations, Sara!
PS: When you buy a raffle ticket for the Chamber's SUCCESS Foundation, you are helping outstanding students like Sara achieve their dreams through higher education (see below).
