Seattle Public Schools

April 11, 2008

Photography © Susie Fitzhugh

District News

School Board Update: April 9 meeting highlights
       Visual and Performing Arts Program Manager Carri Campbell updated the Board on the collaboration with the Mayor’s Office of Arts and Cultural Affairs. There was a discussion about the success of the partnerships the District is undertaking to expand arts programming throughout schools, including the Rotary Music4Life program. Representatives from the Mayor’s Office of Arts and Cultural Affairs also discussed the value of arts education for all students and possible programming considerations for the upcoming Strategic Plan being developed by the District.
      Regina Glenn, of Pacific Communications who is assisting the District’s Capital Projects Office, presented an overview of the communications being conducted and planned for ongoing and future Building Excellence (BEX) projects. There was a discussion on the need for an engaged communications effort and additional ways to reach the public during the design phase of the BEX projects.
      The Board approved a motion to apply for a Full Service Community School Program Grant. This item authorizes the District to apply for a U.S. Department of Education grant for 2008 to assist Cleveland and Rainier Beach high schools in the coordination of outreach services for students and families.
      A contract for the McClure Middle School waterline replacement was approved, as were contracts for upgrades to Sacajawea and Olympic Hills Elementary Schools. The contract for the North Beach Elementary School renovations was also approved. These are all capital projects funded in the Building, Technology and Academics II (BTA II) levy approved by voters in 2004.
      Items introduced to the Board and scheduled for a vote at the April 23 meeting include the Hamilton International Middle School construction contract, the education specifications, as well as value engineering reports for the Denny Middle School/Chief Sealth High School project; for the Ingraham High School renovations; and for the Nathan Hale High School construction project.
      The next legislative meeting for the School Board is on Wednesday, April 23 at 6 p.m. Information about the meeting is available on the School Board Web site.

Public hearing scheduled on use of I-728 funds
    The Seattle School Board will hold a public hearing on the use of I-728 funds on April 14 in the Board Room of the John Stanford Center. The statewide initiative provides additional money to help students reach new state learning standards. Under I-728, school districts are authorized to use funds to reduce class size; provide extended learning opportunities; provide additional professional development for educators; provide early assistance for children who need pre-kindergarten support; and provide building improvements relating to class-size reductions. After the April 14 public hearing, the Board will meet to decide how to use the funds, then adopt a final plan as part of the District budget. For more information, contact Duggan Harman at 252-0057 or dharman@seattleschools.org.

     Public hearing on use of I-728 funds
     Monday, April 14
     5-5:15 p.m.
     John Stanford Center, Board Room
     2445 Third Ave. S.

Superintendent to give update on Strategic Plan at community breakfast
     Dr. Maria L. Goodloe-Johnson, Superintendent, will update the community on her strategic vision for Seattle Public Schools on April 14 at the Alliance for Education's 6th Annual Community Breakfast. At the breakfast, Kaaren Andrews, principal of Madrona K-8, also will be presented with the 2008 Thomas B. Foster Award for Excellence. Contact the Alliance for Education at this link for reservations.

     Alliance for Education
     6th Annual Community Breakfast
     Wednesday, May 14
     7-8:45 a.m.
     Seattle Westin Hotel
     1900 Fifth Ave.

April is Disaster Preparedness Month
     April is Washington Disaster Preparedness Month and serves as an excellent reminder for families, District staff, school administrators, and safety committees to think about disaster preparedness. District administrators are encouraged to review their schools’ Critical Incident Management plans, update Incident Command Charts and restock emergency supplies. The District's Safety and Security Department also has more information and resources on its Web site. Seattle Public Schools has several events scheduled for the rest of the month:
• Per School Board policy F.41.00, all schools will be conducting “Drop, Cover, and Hold” earthquake drills during Earthquake Awareness Week between April 21 and 25.
• The District’s Safety and Security Department will conduct an emergency communications drill on April 22.
• First Aid /CPR classes will continue to be offered monthly.
• Two emergency preparedness videos will be broadcast on SPS-TV:
     "Emergency Management: Your Child’s Safety at School"
          Sundays: 2 p.m.
          Tuesdays: 8:30 p.m.
          Thursdays: 9:30 p.m.
     "I Don’t Fit Under the Desk: Advanced Earthquake Safety"
     Emmy Award winning program produced by Nathan Hale students
          Sundays: 2:30 p.m.
          Tuesdays and Thursdays: 7:30 a.m.

Student Celebrations

West Seattle High School juniors compete at national debates in Chicago

West Seattle High School Juniors Habiba and Zahra Mohamed, sisters and members of the Seattle Urban Debate League, were the 11th place team at the Chase Urban Debate National Tournament in Chicago on April 3-6, where they competed against the top urban debaters from 21 cities. Habiba also placed 20th as a speaker. The team of argued that the U.S. federal government should use ecofeminist ethics when providing public health assistance to sub-Saharan Africa. The team pored over thousands of pages of evidence all year to make their case. Click here for more details on the debate tournament.

Right photo: Habiba and Zahra Mohamed with Stella Haioulani, Tacoma Urban Debate League Program Coordinator (middle), take a break during the Chase Urban Debate National Tournament.

Student art exhibit on display at John Stanford Center until April 30
     About 275 original works of art created by middle and high school students are on display at the lobby of the John Stanford Center until April 30. The 35th Annual Naramore Portfolio Exhibition represents 16 secondary schools showcasing various art mediums and techniques, including ceramic, pencil, oil and acrylic painting, textile, charcoal, paper maché, collage, and photography. Many of the works of art on display are for sale. The students will be recognized at an Awards Night and Reception on April 22 at 5 p.m. in the John Stanford Center lobby. The exhibit is named after Floyd Naramore, a visionary Seattle Public Schools architect who from 1919 to 1941 designed more than 22 schools, including Roosevelt, Garfield, and Cleveland high schools; John Marshall, Madison Middle School, and T.T. Minor Elementary School.

     Naramore Portfolio Exhibit
     Ongoing until April 30
     John Stanford Center, Lobby
     2445 Third Ave. S.

15 middle school students selected for Mayor's Scholars Awards
Winners to receive $500 for school or for the charity of their choice
     Fifteen outstanding middle school students from Seattle Public Schools were selected for Mayor’s Scholars Awards for service to their schools and their communities. Each of the students will receive $500 that can be used for education or donated to a charity. Criteria for selection include overcoming obstacles or meeting challenges, giving back to the community, and maintaining good academic standing. Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels will present the awards, along with a mayor’s scholar letterman’s jacket, to each of the students at a reception on May 29. Click here for the City of Seattle’s full news release. This year’s award recipients are:

Name	School	Grade	Name	School	Grade
Domonique Brown	Meany Middle	6th	Kassim Shaibi	Hamilton International	7th
Arden Carmody	Whitman Middle	8th	Matthew Sukalac	Eckstein Middle	8th
Meron Gurmu	Eckstein Middle	8th	Adriana Tabile	Madison Middle	6th
CurDesia Hudson	Hamilton International	8th	Miranda Taylor	Denny Middle	8th
Mia Kaiser-Nielsen	Pathfinder K-8	6th	Amleset Tesfamariam	Madison Middle	8th
Princess-Nyosha McWilliams	Pathfinder K-8	8th	Tiana Woods	Whitman Middle	8th
Adriana Meraz-Gonzalez	Mercer Middle	7th	Erik Wyndham	African American Academy	6th
Camaria Rodriguez	African American Academy	6th

     Presentation of Mayor’s Scholars Awards
     Thursday, May 29
     5:30 p.m.
     Seattle City Hall
     600 Fourth Ave.

Ballard High Orchestra wins first place in San Francisco festival
Jazz Band wins third place at regional competition
     The Ballard High School Symphony Orchestra, under the direction of Michael James, won first place in their division at the 2008 Heritage Music Festival on March 29 in San Francisco. The orchestra also won a "Gold" rating which means that their scores averaged 90 or higher out of 100 and makes them eligible to participate in the Heritage "Festivals of Gold" to be held in New York, Chicago, or San Francisco this month. The Ballard Jazz Band, also under the direction of James, won third place on March 15 at the 2008 Jazz Northwest Festival in Spokane. Music performed included "Wind Machine" by Sammy Nestico, "Here's That Rainy Day" by Johnny Burke, and an acclaimed performance of "Harlem Nocturne" by Earle Hagen, with alto saxophone soloist Elliot Ransom.

Four students named semifinalists in Letters About Literature contest
     Four Seattle Public Schools students were named semifinalists in the Washington state Letters About Literature contest during a ceremony held April 4 in Olympia. Letters About Literature is a national reading and writing promotion program that encourages young readers to write letters to their favorite authors. At the national level, students compete to win a $500 gift card and $10,000 for their community or school library. Secretary of State Sam Reed and Washington state Librarian Jan Walsh presented awards to the winners, honorable mentions, and semifinalists. The four Seattle Public Schools students named semifinalists are:
• Monica Harris – fifth-grade, Pathfinder K-8
• Kyra Yanny – fifth-grade, Sacajawea Elementary School
• Leslie Tran – eighth-grade, Denny Middle School
• Melissa Carter – seventh-grade, Washington Middle School
     This is the third year Washington State Library has sponsored the competition as part of Washington Reads. See the Washington State Library Web site for more information at http://www.secstate.wa.gov/library/lal/2007_2008_lal.aspx

Staff Celebrations

Academy coordinator receives Excellence in Education Award
     Alpha Delta Kappa, an international organization of women educators, selected Joanne Patrick, Academy Coordinator with the District's Career and Technical Education department, as the state’s outstanding woman educator for 2008. Patrick, a member of the organization’s Seattle chapter, Washington Beta, will be recognized with the Excellence in Education Award at the Washington S/P/N (States/Provinces/Nations) Convention this spring. She will compete for the regional award at the Northwest Regional Conference this summer.

Students in the classroom of Eckstein Middle School science teacher Jessica Levine read labels on various household and food items as part of their science curriculum.

Eckstein science teacher, Gatewood Elementary and PTA recognized as
'Earth Heroes at Schools' for work to help protect the environment

     Eckstein Middle School science teacher Jessica Levine; and Gatewood Elementary School and PTA; have been selected as the 2008 Earth Heroes at School. King County Executive Ron Sims will honor Levine and Gatewood Elementary at an April 24 awards ceremony. The Earth Heroes at School Program celebrates King County students, teachers, staff, and volunteers who implement projects at their school or beyond to protect our environment.
     Levine will be recognized for her exceptional work in incorporating environmental sustainability in the sixth-grade science curriculum at Eckstein. To read part of the application which describes Levine's work at Eckstein, click here.
     Gatewood Elementary and PTA will be honored for their efforts in removing invasive blackberry around the school using environmentally friendly methods, including the services of 60 weed-eating goats. For more information on this project, click here.

One of 60 goats, right photo, helped clear overgrown ivy and blackberry bushes at Gatewood Elementary School on October 18-21, 2007, as part of the school's renovation project. Volunteers from Gatewood Elementary, Gatewood PTA and Seattle Public Schools Grounds continued the project using no pesticides, environmentally friendly trees, recycled burlap and mulch.

Lafayette Elementary teacher named Teacher of the Week
    Catherine Bloom, a fifth-grade Lafayette Elementary School teacher, was named Teacher of the Week in a contest conducted by STAR 101.5 Radio. Bloom was nominated by her student, Isabella Noren, who wrote a short essay that described what made her teacher deserving of the award. The class also received a surprise visit by STAR 101.5 afternoon show hosts Curt Kruse and Corine McKenzie on March 28. Winnings included $100 and a 1-in-12 chance to win a new Mazda 3i Sport. Catherine was also recognized on KOMO television and STAR 101.5 radio.

Around the Schools

Eight teams to compete for top spot in April 22 'Global Reading Challenge'
     Eight teams of fourth- and fifth- graders from Seattle Public Schools will compete for the top spot at the 2008 Global Reading Challenge on April 22. The winning team from the Seattle competition will go on to face the top teams from Kalamazoo, Michigan; Frasier Valley, British Columbia; and Coquitlam, British Columbia. That event will be held May 9 at a Video Conference Finals in the John Stanford Center.
The eight top teams are:
• "The Winners" from Bailey Gatzert Elementary School;
• "Concord Cougars" from Concord Elementary School;
• "The Penguin People" from Green Lake Elementary School;
• "Half ‘n Half Hansons" from John Hay Elementary School;
• "The Page Masters" from Kimball Elementary School;
• "Flaming Reading Raiders" from Highland Park Elementary School;
• "Super Sonic Global Readers" from Stevens Elementary School; and
• "The Fast and Furious Readers" from Van Asselt Elementary School.
     More than 2,000 fourth- and fifth- graders from 40 Seattle Public Schools studied 10 books to prepare for the Global Reading Challenge and answered questions about characters, plots and settings. The annual contest, now in its 13th year, is sponsored by The Seattle Public Library and Kalamazoo Public Library in cooperation with their local public school systems. For more information, contact Andra Addison, Seattle Public Library Communications Director, at (206) 386-4103 or andra.addison@spl.org

     2008 Global Reading Challenge
     City of Seattle Finals
     Tuesday, April 22
     7 p.m.
     Seattle Public Library
     Central Library, Microsoft Auditorium, Level 1.
     1000 Fourth Ave.
     Parking in Central Library garage available at $5 special event rate

     2008 Global Reading Challenge
     Video Conference Finals
     Friday, May 9
     10 a.m.
     John Stanford Center for Educational Excellence
     2445 Third Ave. S.

Seattle Schools All-City Marching Band looking for new members
The Seattle Schools All-City Marching Band is looking for new members for its band and color guard. A staple of Seattle's summer celebrations, the All-City Band performs between 16 and 20 parades and community events in a six-week summer period. The band travels annually to Penticton British Columbia for the Penticton Peach Festival, and this summer a portion of the group will be traveling to Honolulu to participate in Independence Week Activities in Hawaii. There are no auditions for band membership and it is open to students in Grades 8-12, with two years experience on an instrument. The group is also looking for nonmusicians to participate in the color guard, which leads the way in front of the band spinning flags and dancing. For more information, contact Marcus Pimpleton, Director, Seattle Schools All-City Marching Band, at 252-8993 or mjpimpleton@seattleschools.org.

Ingraham High School students, left photo, read the graphic novel "Persepolis" in book groups and later created their own autobiographical novels, right photo.

Ingraham ninth-graders create graphic novels, learn about Middle East
Ninth-graders at Ingraham High School read the graphic novel " Persepolis" by Marjane Satrapi in book groups this year and later wrote and created autobiographical graphic novels, based on their own cultural experiences. "Persepolis" is Satrapi’s critically acclaim memoir of her experiences growing up in Iran during the Islamic Revolution. One Book grant provided art supplies and books for the students. The Broadview Seattle Public Library Branch also sponsored a speaker, Greg Mortenson, co-author of Three Cups of Tea, and offered a graphic novel workshop during this project to support the students. Both of the books are set in the Middle East, which integrates with ninth-grade world history classes.

Award-winning author Sherman Alexie visits Ingraham High School
through Seattle Arts & Lectures’ Writers in the Schools Program

Sherman Alexie, whose most recent book "The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian" won the 2007 National Book Award in Young People’s Literature, visited Ingraham High School on March 27, courtesy of Seattle Arts & Lectures’ Writers in the Schools (WITS) program. Alexie read from his new book, speaking about his life as a writer, and answered questions from the students. WITS donated 60 copies of the book to Ingraham as part of its annual book donation program. Much of Alexie's writing draws on his experiences as a modern Native American. Alexie's best known works include "The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven," "Smoke Signals," and "Indian Killer."

Northgate Elementary students plant trees in honor of Arbor Day
Northgate Elementary School fifth-graders spruced up their neighborhood by planting street trees along the new school sidewalks on April 9. Twelve trees were donated by the City of Seattle in honor of Arbor Day. Seattle City Council President Richard Conlin, Washington state Forester Vicki Christiansen, and several Northgate fifth-grade students spoke to those attending the event about the importance of trees in our environment. City Arborist Noland Rundquist, Seattle School District Grounds Foreman Roland Killian, as well as City and School District staff, assisted teams of students in planting the trees.

Around the Community

Success for All Students: Exploring Career and Technical Opportunities

The Alliance for Education, Seattle Public Schools, Seattle Community College District, and 150 guests came together on March 27 for the career and technical education summit: "Success for All Students: Exploring Career and Technical Educational Opportunities." The summit was held at South Seattle Community College. At the summit, leaders in education, business, and labor discussed ways to help our youth transition to adulthood with a full range of positive career choices post-high school. The event featured nationally recognized expert J.D. Hoye, president of the National Academy Foundation, who explored how career academies synthesize the best of rigorous academic studies with authentic career preparation.

A highlight of the summit was a panel of Seattle Public Schools graduates who benefited from career and technical education. Panelists from left are: Harry Wallace, Dan Magden (Nathan Hale), Brian Dobson (Ingraham), Allen Austin (Rainier Beach), Taurence Salter (Rainier Beach), Runequea Ashley (West Seattle), and in front, Shep Siegel, Seattle Public Schools Manager of Career and Technical Education Programs.

Upcoming Events

Plaque to be dedicated at former site of Administrative and Service Center
     The public is invited to the dedication on April 17 of a historical marker at the former site of the Seattle Schools Administrative and Service Center on Fourth Avenue North. Merrill Gardens at Queen Anne, a retirement and assisted living housing community, allowed the Trustees of the Seattle Schools History Fund to place the marker on an exterior wall of the building. Light refreshments will be served after a brief ceremony. The Mercer Grammar School occupied the property from 1890 to 1940 and the Central Office between 1949 and 2002. Please RSVP at: archives@seattleschools.org.

     Plaque dedication at former
     Seattle Schools Administrative and Service Center
     Thursday, April 17
     3:30 p.m.
     Merrill Gardens at Queen Anne
     800 Fourth Ave. N.

First annual Elementary Choral Festival scheduled for May 15
     Elementary school students from around the School District will participate in the first annual Seattle Public Schools Elementary Choral Festival on May 15. This festival will feature choirs or choir students from the third- through fifth-grades. The purpose is to provide students with an opportunity to sing in a mass choir and showcase elementary choir programs in Seattle Public Schools. Judith Herrington, Founder and Artistic Director of the Tacoma Youth Chorus, will be the clinician. The Tacoma Youth Chorus is a select auditioned choir serving more than 200 children in the south Puget Sound area. For more information, contact Carri Campbell, Visual and Performing Arts Manager, at 252-0188 or cjcampbell@seattleschools.org.

     Elementary Choral Festival
     May 15
     1:30 p.m. - rehearsal
     6 p.m. - program begins
     Mercer Middle School
     1600 S. Columbian Way

School and District Events Calendar
     If you would like to know about current special school events, fund-raisers or other District events, go online to the District Events Calendar where you can see what's going on monthly at Seattle Public Schools or search for specific events by date, school and type.

We Need Your Ideas
     The Public Affairs Office is always looking for stories on interesting classroom projects, inspirational people, or events in our schools to share with the greater Seattle community. We often highlight stories submitted by school staff for potential media coverage as well as District and community publications. For examples of stories we have published in the past, please visit this link. We would like to hear from you. If you have a unique story to share, please send your ideas directly to goodnews@seattleschools.org. The deadline for submissions is April 21 for the April 24 issue of School Beat.

In the News
     For a sampling of this week's local newspaper stories on Seattle Public Schools, please click here.

SCHOOL BEAT is an electronic newsletter covering District and school-based news and is published twice a month for the staff and community of Seattle Public Schools. Non-District employees can unsubscribe to this e-newsletter by clicking here and typing in "unsubscribe" in the subject heading.