Glendale Union High School District

FBLA students earn high scores

    The Washington High School Chapter of Future Business Leaders of America had a strong showing at the Regional Competition at Peoria High School in January. Eight FBLA members placed in the top three of their events.

    Placing first in Accounting II was Mario Ortiz, with Elizabeth Garcia placing third. Other winners were Camille Thomas, Bridget Jimenez, Walter Arias, Jobanne Medina, Jesus Laguna, and Angel Fuentes.

 

Madison Elementary School District
Spelling Bee winners applauded
    Cory Miller and Laura Alonso took top honors in the Madison School District’s spelling bee Jan. 26.
    Miller, a sixth grader from Madison Tradition Academy, took first place with Alonso, an eighth grader from Madison No. 1, taking runner-up. Channel 12 reporter Joe Dana and Madison Governing Board Member Warren Whitney were this year’s guest pronouncers. Miller and Alonso will compete in the county’s spelling bee.

Pennies for peace adding up at Rose Lane
    Students at Madison Rose Lane are collecting coins to bring peace to countries such as Pakistan and Afghanistan. Fourth-grade teacher Lisa Dominski started the Pennies for Peace campaign at Rose Lane to encourage students to learn the value of philanthropy while helping to promote education in these countries.
    In Pakistan, just one penny can provide a pencil and empower a child to read, write and learn. Dominski’s students created coin bins for every class and have set a goal of collecting $1,000.
    The Pennies for Peace program has been incorporated into the students’ math lessons by counting coins and understanding monetary values. Students also are learning about the cultures and geography of these Middle Eastern countries.
 
Osborn Elementary School District
Outdoor learning lab at Solano
    The “Big Green Solano Machine” is a school project to create sustainable gardens, lesson plans, an outdoor learning lab and eventual farmers’ market for the Solano Elementary School community.
    Thanks to a collaboration with FedEx, Martori Farms, YMCA, Eagle Produce, Sprinkler World, John Deere, Vynnie McDaniels (Vynnie The Gardner from Channel 3), teachers, students, parents and community volunteers, much of the garden’s area north of Missouri Avenue already has been transformed. A major goal of the project is to become a demonstration garden-learning center for the Osborn schools and neighboring community.
    Each phase of the project provides lessons and exposure for students, especially in the areas of mathematics, earth science, biology, health, nutrition, recycling, permaculture and sustainability. Additionally, learning responsibility, accountability, cooperation, stewardship of the land, and community building are benefits of the project.
    For more information, visit www.OsbornSchools.org.


District Spelling Bee winners named
    Longview fifth-grader Arashdeep Kaur won first place in the Osborn School District Spelling Bee. Arashdeep is multi-lingual, speaking Punjabi and Hindi in addition to English.
    The runner-up was Clarendon sixth grader Jousy Ramirez Ramirez speaks both Spanish and English.
    All students did very well, and the contest lasted for dozens of rounds.
OMS girls get
pampered
    A group of 10 students in the “Pink Ladies” after school club at Osborn Middle School have been meeting since October. The class focuses on proper hygiene, nail care, hair care, and positive self-esteem.
    As a learning experience, the girls were taken to Metro Tech High School by teachers Loril Gibson and Griselda Felix to experience the “Princess for a Day” package. The girls were able to talk and work with cosmetology students, learning about the industry while receiving a pedicure and manicure.

Students help Haiti with fundraising efforts
    Jennifer Spector and Hilda Palache’s fifth-grade Dual Language classes at Clarendon are collecting funds for the people of Haiti. The students came together and decided to join the many others who are attempting to help out. They have raised nearly $200, and are also sponsoring a dollar dress day at school to raise even more money. Students have chosen to send the funds to the Red Cross’ Haiti Relief and Development Fund.
    Encanto students have chosen to support Global Family Philanthropy, Inc., an organization supporting the relocation of many orphaned children to Pwoje Espwa, an orphanage in Les Cayes whose population swelled from 700 to more than 1,250 within a week of the earthquake. Their fundraiser has brought in more than $1,200 to date.
    In December, Longview third grade students decorated 248 gift bags that were delivered to Haiti over the winter break. The project was spearheaded by Monica Gery, mother of Margarita Gery, a student in Ann Aken’s third grade classroom. Monica and her daughter took the bags filled with gifts received from donations to 170 sick children at the Nos Petit Frères et Soeurs (NPFS) St. Damien Pediatric Hospital in Port-au-Prince, Haiti and another 80 gift bags went to the hospital’s outreach program for disabled children, returning just weeks before the earthquake. Fortunately, the hospital only suffered minor damage during the earthquake.
    Longview students have begun a “Coins for Haiti” fundraiser also to benefit St. Damien Pediatric Hospital.

Phoenix Union High School District
Speech and Debate continues to shine
    When it comes to Speech and Debate, Central High has a lot to talk about. Annually the Bobcats are among the state’s elite teams.
    As a sophomore, Jasmine Richardson was the first Central student to earn a top 10 finish in the National Forensic Tournament, outlasting 350 other students to reach the semifinals of the Poetry event. Now a senior, she has won several tournament titles this year, and is always among the top finishers in her events. Richardson was awarded the degree of Outstanding Distinction by the National Forensic League for her performances over the course of her career.
    Autumn Shone is another top competitor, with Original Oratory as her best event. The junior has two second-place finishes in large tournaments this year, and has four top-four finishes this year in the event.
    Nicole Mayberry emerged last spring as a tournament champion in the Rotary 100 Club Tournament as a freshman. She won a championship at the Forensic League of Arizona Winter tournament in Duo Interpretation. A versatile speaker, she has top finishes in the Student Congress, Dramatic Interpretation and Humorous Interpretation.
    William Brotherton has dominated events this year. He has won three tournament titles in Student Congress. Brotherton has been awarded the Degree of Premier Distinction by the National Forensics League—the highest honor the NFL can bestow on a student. The senior is eighth place all time for Central High School debaters.
    Last month, these four traveled to the Harvard Invitational, the most prestigious high school speech and debate event in the nation.
    One of the people responsible for Central’s success is coach Kevin Berlat, who also teaches English. This year, Berlat received a Diamond Coach Award from the National Forensic League, which honors excellence in coaching over a career. He has been coaching for 13 years, actually helping out at Central, while still in college. Only a fraction of coaches ever reach this level of excellence. At Central, both Kevin Berlat, and Coach Brian Gruman have reached this plateau.

Five Merit Finalists posted for North
    North High students Edith Adams, Luis Grajeda, Samuel Greess, Jesse Mapel and Garrett McCann have become National Merit Scholarship finalists. The five qualified as semifinalists last semester by being among the highest-scoring entrants in Arizona in the 2008 Preliminary Scholastic Aptitude Test (PSAT).  All five students are in North’s International Baccalaureate Program.
    National Merit Finalists are highly coveted as prospective students to every college and university in the country, and the designation often leads to academic scholarships. The National Merit Scholarship Corporation offers 2,500 scholarships, corporate scholarships number 1,000 and colleges and universities honor National Merit Scholars with 4,700 scholarships. These five finalists give North 88 National Merit Scholarship Finalists since 1990.

Spartans head for State Championship
    Camelback High’s Academic Decathlon team is headed for the State Championship competition for the second consecutive year as the Spartans finished seventh at the Region II Academic Decathlon, held last month.
    Leading the way for Camelback were Senior Miandra Ellis, who won a silver medal in Super Quiz; Senior Ronald Gonzalez, who earned a bronze medal in essay; and Sophomore Jaclyn Irons, who earned a silver medal in mathematics.
    The team placed third in the Super Quiz Relay. Camelback will be one of 40 schools competing in the State meet March 12-13 at Sandra Day O’Connor High School.

Hodges nominated for ‘Player of the Year’
    Johnny Hodges has been nominated as an Old Spice Red Zone Player of the Year, recognizing high school football players who go above and beyond the call of duty. The program honors athletes who embody leadership, performance and desire, and serve as examples to their teammates on and off the field.
    Hodges is among a group of players who are eligible to be selected as a national Red Zone Player of the Year and be honored in a full-page feature in a national print publication.
Decathlon team earns
‘Most Improved’ honor
    North just missed qualifying for the Academic Decathlon State Championship, but the Mustangs’ ninth-place finish in the 23-team Region II Decathlon earned them the Most Improved Team trophy.
    Zachary Norris took three medals: a silver in Economics, a silver in Speech and a bronze in Chemistry. Brenda Calderon was a silver medalist in Speech.

Washington Elementary School District
Students celebrate the magic of Oz
On Feb. 12, approximately 1,100 students at Washington Elementary had the opportunity to participate in a cross-curricular extravaganza centered around “The Wizard of Oz.”
    Reading, writing, music, PE, art and technology were incorporated as students sang, danced, created costumes and sets, researched hot air balloon technology and wrote essays. Even the principal, David McNeil, and Student Services specialist, Lori Pizzo, were part of the fun as they portrayed the Wizard and the Wicked Witch of the West during student performances.

Private and Charter Schools
Squaw Peak Academy hosts information session
    On April 8 at 6:30 p.m., Squaw Peak Traditional Academy will hold an information session about its new Foreign Language Immersion Program.
In the program, English-speaking children will spend half the day learning the curriculum in English, and the other half of the day learning in Spanish. The program starts in the 2010-2011 academic year for kindergarten and first grade, and an additional grade will be added every subsequent year.
    Squaw Peak Traditional Academy is a public K-8 school located at 4601 N. 34th St. To learn more, go to www.squawpeakimmersion.com, or call 602-381-6160.

Valley Lutheran takes state title
    The girls volleyball team at Valley Lutheran in the fall captured the Class 1-A State Volleyball Championship, beating out 2008 champs, Veritas Preparatory Academy, 5 games to 3.
    Veritas has not dropped a single game in the tournament until coming up against Valley Lutheran, who went into the contest undefeated as well with a record of 21-0.
    In related news, the Valley Lutheran boys basketball team was the Arizona Interscholastic Association 1A State Runner-Up, falling to Gilbert Christian Academy in the championship game, 34 to 51.
    Valley Lutheran High School is located at 5199 N. 7th Ave. For more information, call 602-230-1600 or visit www.vlhs.org.