Rotary clubs honor top students of the month
May 3, 2012
Renton Rotary Club honors Hazen seniors
Katelynn Piazza, a senior at Hazen High School, was selected as the Renton Rotary Club’s student of the month for March.
Piazza maintains a 3.9 grade point average and has been involved in groups such as the National Honor Society, Earth Corps, Hazen band and girls swim team.
She has received the Academic Super Star Award, the Hazen Achievement Award and the Scholar Athlete Award.
Piazza has earned a varsity letter in swimming, and volunteers with the Seattle Human Society and Purrfect Pals. She plans to attend Washington State University to study animal-related sciences, such as zoology, and hopes to work as a veterinarian, in marine biology or in other wildlife study.
Dine and give at the Issaquah Schools Foundation annual fundraiser
May 3, 2012
NEW — 12:55 p.m. May 2, 2012
The Issaquah Schools Foundation is inviting the community to lunch.
The 14th annual Nourish Every Mind Benefit Luncheon begins at 11 a.m. May 10 with a program that aims to teach how community investment is elevating education for all Issaquah School District students.
Last year, the event raised a record $593,000. The foundation used that money to fund education projects in the district, including robotics clubs and the expansion of the Microsoft TEALS program to every high school. The money was also used to help purchase science curriculum materials for district classrooms.
Renton school bond pass rate increases to 60.55 percent
April 19, 2012
NEW — 4 p.m. April 19, 2012
The approval rating for a $97 million school bond in the Renton School District continued to increase today as unofficial election results continue to trickle in. The bond reached a 60. 55 pass rate with 10,246 voters in favor of the measure, with 6,676 residents voting against it.
The results will be finalized April 27.
Voters in the Renton district cast ballots for the second time this year April 17 that would finance a new middle school in Newcastle and facility improvements to Lindbergh High School’s pool, among other projects.
The bond needs a 60 percent yes vote and a minimum turnout of 10,582 people. More than 22,200 ballots were cast in the election.
The bond originally came up two points shy of the 60 percent needed to pass in the Feb. 14 special election.
Issaquah bond heavily favored, Renton bond up to 60.28 percent pass rate
April 18, 2012
UPDATED — 4:55 p.m. April 18, 2012
While a $219 million school bond on the April 17 ballot from the Issaquah School District is heavily favored by voters, a $97 million construction bond in the Renton School District is too close to call after the second day of election results.
The Issaquah bond is passing by 69 percent, and the Renton bond is just more than the supermajority needed to pass at 60.28 percent, according to King County’s special election results.
King County task force says new schools should go in urban areas
April 11, 2012
NEW — 5:30 p.m. April 11, 2012
A 30-member task force unanimously agreed to recommend that new school sitings in King County be done in urban areas and rural towns, not in areas designated as rural.
King County officials announced the decision April 11.
“These are thoughtful recommendations that will help deliver educational excellence for our children without sacrificing the environment of our rural areas,” said King County Executive Dow Constantine in a press release.
$219 million Issaquah bond could revamp Liberty, Apollo schools
April 5, 2012
For Liberty High School, passage of the April 17 Issaquah School District $219 million bond would mean completion of the reconstruction and modernization plan now under way thanks to a 2006 voter-approved bond.
At the same time, Apollo and other elementary schools in the district would receive sizable space additions, making room for 120 additional students at each building. Apollo and other schools would benefit from some much-needed maintenance, according to the principals of the schools.
Outside of schools being rebuilt or transplanted, Liberty, Apollo and Issaquah Valley Elementary are the three individual school facilities that would receive the most attention in terms of dollar value should the district win passage of its current bond proposal.
Students experience salmon’s ‘miracle of life’
April 5, 2012
By Greg Farrar Jerry Pearson and his grandson Dylan Pearson, 5, release salmon fry into Issaquah Creek March 21 under the Northwest Sammamish Road crossover.
Five-year-old Dylan Pearson took extra care as he crept his way across the rocks under the watchful eye of his PeePah to the edge of the creek to release the young salmon fry swimming at the bottom of his plastic cup.
The youngster and his grandfather joined third-graders from Apollo Elementary School on March 21 to release more than 230 small coho salmon that were raised from eggs in their classroom into Issaquah Creek behind Pickering Barn.
Participating in the life cycle of the salmon was an important lesson that Dylan’s grandfather, Issaquah native Jerry Pearson, wanted to teach his grandson. Pearson can still remember the salmon spawning in Lewis Creek near his home when he was the same age as his grandson.
Scholarship application available for RSD students
April 5, 2012
Soroptimist International of Renton is accepting applications for its Rosalie Evans Memorial Scholarship in the amount of $2,000.
Applicants must have completed their first year of college or vocational training-continued college level coursework and have permanent residency within the Renton School District.
Request an application by contacting Del Mead at Soroptimist International of Renton, P.O. Box 681, Renton, WA 98057.
Deadline for the scholarship submissions is May 15.
The scholarship will be awarded in June.
Student represents McKnight at spelling bee
April 5, 2012
After winning McKnight Middle School’s annual Scripps Spelling Bee Competition, eighth-grader Arnelie D. Cruz had the opportunity to represent the school in front of an audience of nearly 400 people at the King/Snohomish Regional Spelling Bee on March 25 at Town Hall Seattle.
More than 50 middle school students competed at the event. The winner of the statewide contest, 13-year-old Mercer Island resident Kela Harrington, will go to Washington, D.C., to compete in the nationally televised event.
McKnight’s event was spearheaded by seventh-grade language arts teacher David Black.
New scholarship is available to low-to middle-income students
April 5, 2012
The newly created Washington State Opportunity Scholarship will help low- and middle-income Washington residents earn bachelor’s degrees in science, technology, engineering, mathematics and health care.
An applicant from a family of four must have a family income of $102,200 or less to be eligible.
There are 3,000 $1,000 scholarships per academic year for high-demand fields in the state. Seniors must have a 2.75 grade point average or higher, have completed a 2012-13 FAFSA form to submit an application, and plan to attend colleges and universities in Washington for the entire 2012-13 academic year.
The maximum eligibility is five years. The application deadline is 5 p.m. April 16.
Apply at www.waopportunityscholarship.org.
