Madrona Students and Staff see their WISH Come True
It all started in the summer of 2006 when staff at Madrona Elementary were dreaming of having a running/walking program for students. Brianna Smith of Nutrition Services heard of a grant through King County Steps for Health, and she shared that information with the Madrona group. And, as they say, the rest is history.
Walking in Steps for Health - or WISH - started that fall with 25 students in 5th and 6th grade. The next year, there were 55 students participating from 4th, 5th, and 6th grade. By this spring, the program had grown to 85 students.
Fifth-grade teacher Michelle Brees led the group - but recognized the need for a designated area with a better surface if the students were going to become serious runners - and do it safely. She brought the idea of a track to Larry Ellis, assistant director of Parks & Recreation for the City of SeaTac. Larry took the idea and ran with it. Gathering funding from Windermere Foundation, The City of SeaTac, the Rotary Club of SeaTac, and King County Councilmember Julia Patterson, the idea became a reality and was dedicated on October 9.
"The track is wonderful and has many uses," commented Brees. "Of course we use it for WISH Club plus the P.E. classes, science and math classes, and the community at large all benefit from this great addition." She went on to say, "We are very excited to have access to such a high-quality running surface and appreciate the great support we received from our community."
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| Principal Daniel Yarbrough presides over the ribbon cutting ceremony |
Ribbon cutting
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Student Leaders presented appreciation plaques to individuals who played a key role in funding the track project.
Back Row: Mayor Ralph Shape of SeaTac, Paul Cooke Rotary Club of SeaTac (District 5030), Dave Bush - Rotary Club of SeaTac / Windermere Foundation, Lawrence Ellis - Assistant Parks & Recreation Director, Gene Tonnemaker Rotary Club of SeaTac
Middle Row: Jasmine Buezo, Kevin Dang, Alex Mullin, Amira Albertson, Daniel Yarbrough, Michele Brees
Front Row: Katherine Rim, Sara Valdivia, Taylor Trousdell, Harnesh Kaur, Parmbir Singh
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WSU Regent Scholarship Awards Announced
WSU announced the winners of their Regent Scholarship Awards last week and two students from Highline Public Schools were recipients!
Kathrin Pitt, Mount Rainier High School, Silver Regents Award in the amount of $4,000. And, Perryn Jakowski, Aviation High School, Crimson Regents Award at $3,000. These award amounts are per year of a two-year scholarship. Way to go Kathrin and Perryn!
Teachers Tap Web for Classroom Amenities
 Two Highline kindergarten teachers have recently tapped the internet-savvy community to stock their classrooms with items that will enhance student learning. Teachers have traditionally reached into their own pocket to purchase some these "extras." One teacher had the idea to engage the community in this effort and created donorschoose.org. The site's slogan sums it up - "Teachers Ask, You Choose, Students Learn."
Dawn Holbrook of Southern Heights and Lindsey Durant of Gregory Heights have both "asked" and donors have given - in increments small and large - until the request is fully funded. Dawn said, "I like to teach "thematically," which means using themes that are interesting to kindergartners and incorporating that theme into their reading, writing, math, science, etc. Although teaching thematically is amazing and excites the children, it can be very time consuming and expensive to collect all of the materials."
 Lindsey's class spends time gathered in a circle on the floor. Most kindergartners relate best to visual spaces, so Lindsey has requested a rug for her classroom. The rug has the alphabet printed on it, so she can have each student take a letter and they know where their space begins and ends.
Both teachers will be featured on Q13 morning program with anchor Maria Arcega-Dunn. Maria is hoping to get the word out to the community about this great way to support teachers. The segment on Dawn's classroom will air during the morning show on October 27 and repeat that evening. Lindsey's classroom will be featured on November 24 during the same general times.
Bank of America and Washington State Mentors Collaborate to Support Big Picture
 Fourteen organizations across Washington will receive grants totaling $75,000 from the Bank of America Mentoring Initiative and Washington State Mentors (WSM).
"The grants, funded by the Bank of America Charitable Foundation and administered by WSM, are an effort to support quality mentoring organizations that are serving youth living in poverty," said Lieutenant Governor Brad Owen, who is co-chair of the Issaquah-based non-profit organization.
Highline Big Picture High School and Juvenile Rehabilitation Administration Region Four will each receive a $5,000 grant. Lt. Governor Brad Owen and Peter Joers, Bank of America's Washington State president, hosted a celebration in their honor at the Big Picture High School on October 6.
"As one of the largest corporate contributors in the United States, Bank of America is excited to direct funding to help mentor children across Washington State," said Peter Joers. "Strengthening the minds and spirit of our youth is truly one of the most important investments we can make now for the future of our communities. We are proud to partner with Washington State Mentors for the third year to help make this happen."
Jim Marsh, president and chief operating officer of WSM added, "As the leading advocate for mentoring in the state, we are very proud of the work these grant winners are doing with Washington State's youth and of the community spirit Bank of America has shown by this commitment."
Washington State Mentors is an umbrella organization for the state's mentoring community, providing assistance with training, recruitment, resource development, data collection, public awareness, and public policy. WSM is supported by Costco Wholesale, the state Department of Social and Health Services, and several other like-minded individuals and organizations.
Grant Recipients Include:
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Island County
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Northwest Washington
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Thurston County
Highline Big Picture High School
Boys & Girls Clubs of the Lewis-Clark Valley
Catholic Family Service
Juvenile Rehabilitation Administration - Region 1
Juvenile Rehabilitation Administration - Region 2
Juvenile Rehabilitation Administration - Region 4
Olympic Educational Service District 114 - Kitsap Alternative Transition School
Left Foot Organics
Pierce County Alliance
Yakima Family YMCA - ASPIRE
Youthnet
For more information, go to www.wamentors.org or contact Janae Frisch at (206) 450-4434 or jfrisch@wamentors.org.
HS3 Hosts Blood Drive
Students at HS3 - Health Science and Human Services High School - recently hosted the American Red Cross and Puget Sound Blood Center for a blood drive on the Evergreen campus. Students Tim Calamiong and Tony Vo were credited with outstanding project management and organizational skills resulting in 37 donors - 19 of which were first-time donors - participating in the drive.
Donor Recruitment Representative Nikanne J. Nietzsche said, "Thanks to the guidance of Stephen Miguelez and the student leaders, we will be able to help many patients in Western Washington."
Aviation Students Attract Attention at Aerospace Summit
 Swarming like bees, representatives from the University of Washington, The Boeing Company, and vendors for Boeing were all buzzing about Aviation High School's focus when students from Aviation spoke at the Second Annual Governor's Aerospace Summit.
Aerospace Future Alliances of Washington works with a range of industry leaders to create strategy surrounding aviation growth in Washington. The summit on October 7 was occasion to unveil strategic plans and celebrate the initiatives, such as Aviation High School, that have already taken off.
Governor Christine Gregoire gave a 45-minute address with the rest of the program led by Mark Reis of the Port of Seattle. Reis introduced students who shared their experiences at Aviation High School and goals for the future. It was following their remarks that potential mentors surrounded the students, recognizing them as potential leaders and the embodiment of beneficiaries for the summit objectives.
Aviation Principal Reba Gilman commented, "The Governors Aerospace Summit is an extraordinary event that allows our youth to learn from the experts in aviation and aerospace. An added bonus of participating in this year's Summit was that our students had the opportunity to voice their opinions and share ideas in the break-out sessions. They loved being treated like adults and sharing in such important conversations. It is so rewarding to have the leadership of our state believe so strongly in our youth and recognize that they are the aerospace leaders of the future."
Pictured in photo (l-r): Mark Reis with students Navid Shafa, Jenny Gao, Melissa Lewis, Rashil Kohli, Betsy Smith, Chris Gentile, and Peter Keckemet
McTeacher Night for Midway Elementary
On Tuesday, December 2, you'll find Midway Elementary staff hard at work - not at their school - but, at McDonald's at 22644 Pacific Highway South in Des Moines.
Billed as McTeacher Night, McDonalds has created a way for educators around the country to fundraise for their schools. Teachers staff the local McDonalds from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. and get 20% of that evening's sales for their non-profit organization.
Stop by and support Midway!
Memorial Field Employee Goes Above and Beyond
The letter might be hard to read but the message is clear...custodian Michael Carver went above and beyond to help this neighbor in need. And, it was most appreciated! Way to go, Michael!
Click to see the letter...>
Aviation High Students to Apply for Patent - Receive iGrant
Aviation High School students have developed two inventions and are applying for a patent for one of them.
Students developed one invention while designing and building hovercraft in science class. Students decided a practical use for hovercraft might be to use them to move heavy store shelves, allowing staff to clean under them and re-arrange displays. The concept of the hovercraft was joined with shelving to produce "hovershelving." Students researched the idea and found that there was nothing like it in existence. They have applied for a patent through the United States Patent Office.
"How many high school students can add 'patent pending' to their college applications?" asked Aviation High School teacher Larry Welch.
Studying house systems led to another invention. While looking at electrical, heating, and plumbing systems, students learned that the average person uses about 50 gallons of water today--about 200 gallons for a family of four. With the goal of conserving water, students designed a model home that separates graywater (non-sewage wastewater) from total wastewater. The graywater can be stored and used to irrigate lawns and gardens. Many states allow graywater use, but Washington does not, citing environmental and health issues.
On Monday, October 20, students presented their model home idea to State Representative Dave Upthegrove. Students hope to convince Representative Upthegrove, chairman of the ecology committee, to promote legislation to allow graywater use in Washington.
And in other news from AHS...
The Robotics team at Aviation High School has received a FIRST@Boeing grant. This grant of $6,000 covers registration for the 2009 FIRST Robotics Competition and the kit of parts required to enter. The team also received a $3,000 IGrant from OSPI.
There are 11 Boeing employees and retirees involved in mentoring the AHS Robotics team as they begin gearing up for this year's competition. The build season for the FIRST competition is January 3 - February 17 with competition beginning shortly thereafter.
On October 18 AHS hosted a special Robotics FIRST Rookie workshop for all of the new FIRST robotics teams from across the state. There were approximately 250 students and mentors in attendance, and AHS staff and students presented seminars about different topics. They also gave tours of the AHS workshop to demonstrate their processes.
There were a number of robots on display from other teams too, so the new teams could get ideas.
Instructor and Coach Robert Steele commented, "It was very successful, and we had many great comments regarding the workshop and how it helped teams prepare for the season to come."
FIRST is an acronym For Inspiration and Recogntion of Science and Technology and has been a supporter of the Robotics program at Aviation High School. For more information visit: www.firstwa.org.
Early Literacy Parties Offer Parents Essential Skills
The Fiestas de Alfabetizacion Temprana en Espanol (Early Literacy Parties in Spanish) are a series of weekly workshops that bring Spanish-speaking families together in a social neighborhood setting to learn and practice essential early literacy skills. Parents are their children's first and best teachers, and all Spanish-speaking families with children from birth through age 5 are invited to attend the parties in their communities. This project is generously sponsored by the KCLS Foundation http://www.kcls.org/foundation/newsletter.cfm.
The Parties are weekly and run through December 2 in eight different locations throughout the county. Registration is not required, and space is limited to room capacity.
There will be refreshments and free children's books in Spanish for each family every week! Children are welcome to join the parents though childcare is not available.
Following are locations/dates in the Highline service area:
Burien Library
14700 6th. Avenue SW, Burien 98166
Lunes/Monday 6:30-8 PM
10/20, 10/27, 11/3, 11/10, 11/17,11/24
Woodmont Library
26809 Pacific Highway South, Des Moines 98198
Martes/Tuesday 10-11:30 AM
10/21, 10/28, 11/4, 11/18, 11/25,12/2
Foster Library
4060 South 144th. Street, Tukwila 98168
Mircoles/Wednesday 7-8:30 PM
10/22, 10/29, 11/5, 11/12, 11/19,11/26
Click for the flyer...>
For more information, contact:
Karina Kawaguchi
Project Coordinator
Early Literacy Parties in Spanish
King County Library System
960 Newport Way NW - Issaquah, WA 98006
425.369.3443 phone
National School Bus Safety Week Celebrated
"Stop on Red, Kids Ahead"
More than 400,000 Washington state students use school buses every day, and they're transported by about 10,600 bus drivers. The dedication of those drivers to ensure that all students arrive at school and home safely has led to National School Bus Safety Week, which is celebrated October 20-24.
"School buses are by far the safest way for students to get to and from school. The riskiest time is while students are getting on and off the school bus," said Allan Jones, director of pupil transportation at the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction.
"Especially in these times of high fuel costs, parents are looking for a safe and cost-effective way of getting their children to school," Jones said. "Parents need to ensure that students understand the importance of obeying the rules for getting on and off buses. And motorists need to obey the warning lights and stop for school buses. School Bus Safety Week is an opportunity for everyone to work together as a community to ensure the safety of our children."
Protecting Our Children, Our Environment, and Our Future:
Go Green, Ride Yellow
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One of the highlights of the evening was the middle school college rally featuring the U.W. Husky Pep Band. With over 300 middle school students and their parents engaged in the music and a UW / WSU balloon popping contest, the excitement level was palpable! "The motivational speakers, Cascade Assistant Principal Jacob Ellis and the staff from Know How to Go were incredible," observed Alternative Education Principal Michael Sita.
