School Notes (5/14)

National Merit Scholarship winners

Desert Vista has nine National Merit Scholarship winners: Kadra Alvaro, Megan Garland, Kunal Mangal, Zi "Annie" Pan, Nathan Partlan, Dexter Scobee, Eric Stout, Joanna Yang and Nina Martin.

St. John Bosco ‘Doodle 4 Google' state finalist

St. John Bosco second-grade student, Anna Matthew, was selected as a state finalist in Google's "Doodle 4 Google" contest. According to judges, Anna's drawing, titled "What if Kids Ruled the Earth," was selected from a pool of thousands as one that best demonstrated artistic merit and creativity and most clearly expressed the "What if...?" theme.

Google will award Anna with an art kit and a certificate of recognition. Her drawing will also be recognized on the "Doodle 4 Google" Web site, www.google.com/doodle4google, May 12 to 18.

In all, there were 60 St. John Bosco students who created drawings for the contest.

2008 Flinn Foundation Scholars

The Flinn Foundation announced the following Flinn Scholars for Tempe Union High Schools:

- Corona del Sol High School - Howard Cheng and Colin Ho

- Mountain Pointe High School - Aubri Carman

- Desert Vista High School - Kellie Mejdrich, Eric Stout and Joanna Yang

The Flinn Scholars Program offers top Arizona high school graduates full-ride financial benefits to attend one of the state's public universities. Competition for Flinn Scholarships is rigorous. Over 400 applications are received annually for the 20 scholarships. Applicants are reviewed based on "intellectual curiosity, personal characteristics, commitment and demonstrated leadership potential," and by the challenging college preparatory courses that were pursued by the high school students.

ABC News on ASU campus

ABC News announced the launch of ABC News on Campus, a partnership with five top journalism schools across the country to educate and mentor talented college students. The news division will create five on-campus multimedia bureaus that will open in September and provide an opportunity for students to report on stories in their area and produce a wide array of content for ABC News' various digital and broadcast platforms, including Good Morning America, World News with Charles Gibson, Nightline, ABC News NOW, ABCNEWS.com, mtvU, ABC News Radio and NewsOne.

Mondays for Matthews

Altadeña Middle School is holding a fundraiser for Becky Matthews, a sixth-grade math teacher at the school. The money raised will help Matthews with medical expenses as she undergoes treatment for cancer.

Every Monday until the end of the year, Altadeña will have collections along the curb by the front office. A bank account at Wells Fargo has been set up for donations.

Checks are being accepted and made out to the Becky Matthews Fund at Wells Fargo Bank and at Altadeña Middle School.

Sierra before-school Kids Club

Kids Club at Kyrene de la Sierra Elementary School will offer before school childcare, which begins at 6:30 a.m. for the 2008-09 school year.

The Kyrene Kids Club provides a safe environment with quality caregivers at a variety of East Valley locations before and after school.

Online registration is available at www.kyrene.org/childcare, or register in person at the Ben Furlong Education Center, 8700 S. Kyrene Road, in Tempe, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday. 

For more information, call (480) 783-7314.

Understanding adolescent behavior series

Keystone Montessori will host a special four-part series speaking engagement on understanding adolescent behavior May 15 presented by Krisi Ickes, M.S.W, L.C.S.W.

Ickes' presentation will provide education and information on teenagers and teen behavior covering topics ranging from risk behaviors in adolescence to understanding what teenagers are thinking.

The cost is $20. RSVP to michelle@keystonemontessori.com.

For more information, call (480) 460-7312.

‘Preparing for Desert Vista' parent meeting

Desert Vista High School will hold an informational parent meeting, "Preparing for Desert Vista High School," for parents of fifth-, sixth-, seventh- and eighth-grade students at 6:30 p.m. May 15 in the school auditorium.

Discussions will include: getting a jump-start for high school, new math and science requirements, AIMS scholarship information, how middle school courses apply towards high school graduation requirements, honors courses and a question and answer period.

Keystone Montessori open house

Keystone Montessori School, located at 1025 E. Liberty Lane, will be holding open houses for toddler and preschool-aged children. The open houses will include a tour of the school, a short video on Montessori education, discussion about Montessori philosophy and curriculum, as well as a question and answer period. The Open Houses will begin at 6:30 p.m. and are scheduled for May 15, 20 and 28. The school is currently enrolling for Summer and Fall positions.

For more information, call (480) 460-7312.

ASU, UA and NAU journalism scholarships

The Arizona Newspapers Foundation, Inc. is offering a scholarship to Arizona college students majoring in journalism. This summer, ANF will award two scholarships of $1,000 each to students attending Arizona State University, University of Arizona or Northern Arizona University full time. Students must have completed one term and have one term remaining before graduation.

Complete scholarship information, including award criteria and an application for fall 2008 awards, are posted online at www.ananews.com/scholarship.

The deadline is June 1. Winners will be chosen by a selection committee and notified by July 15.

Benefit Car Raffle

Take a chance to win a 2000 Corvette and help thousands of high school students. The Tempe Union High Schools Education Foundation is selling a limited number of tickets, only 4,000, for a chance to win a fully-loaded 2000 Corvette donated by Fast Towing and Bill Heard Chevrolet. The drawing will be held May 17. Must be present to win. Tickets are $25 or five for $100.

For more information and to purchase tickets, log on to www.tuhsdedfoundation.org or contact Sharon Doyle, president of the Tempe Union High Schools Foundation, at (480) 897-6397. 

Paloma summer kids club

Kyrene Kids Club is offering childcare this summer on weekdays between 7:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. for $95 per week at Kyrene de la Paloma, 5000 W. Whitten, in Chandler.

The Paloma summer Kids Club runs Monday through Friday, May 27 through July 25. The camp features weekly on-site special events, field trips, water jumpers and swimming. Each week has a theme.

Registration is available by the week to coordinate with summer plan and is ongoing at www.Kyrene.org/childcare or by calling the Customer Service Center at (480) 783-7314.

Tempe Union online classes

High school students interested in taking online classes may visit the Tempe Union High School District's Web site, www.tuhsd.k12.as.us, to view online classes available. The online courses are located on the curriculum section of the Web site.

Courses are developed and taught by Tempe Union teachers. For the 2008-09 school year, 27 courses are available for students to take. For registration, see a high school counselor. Fees are determined according to the student's current course schedule. If applicable, fees are $135 per semester class.

For more information, call (480) 345-3798.

New 8th-grade health curriculum on review

The Kyrene School District Governing Board has voted to put on a 60-day public review, lessons for eighth-graders that support Strands 8 and 9 of the Kyrene Expanded Health Curriculum. The program under review is "Choosing the Best Life," which is "An Abstinence Focused Curriculum."

All resources, including outlines of the lessons and videos used in instruction, are available for viewing and comment at the Kyrene District office, 8700 S. Kyrene Road, from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. through Aug. 22. Parents, teachers and community members are encouraged to view and provide feedback related to the lessons for the Health Steering Committee and governing board.

It is recommended that interested people view all of the five lessons and accompanying video clips. 

Ahwatukee Preschool registration

Ahwatukee Preschool, a ministry of Mountain View Lutheran Church, will be starting their 28th year in August. Registration for fall classes now open. Ahwatukee Preschool is a part-time preschool but increased their day to three hours. The preschool has strived to keep tuition as low as possible so that everyone can participate.

For more information, contact Diane at (480) 893-2531.

Kyrene summer program registration

To accommodate increased interest in summer offerings, the Kyrene School District is making online registration for all summer programs available.

Programs include Summer Kids Club, Summer Academy classes and Summer Theatre.

For more information on schools that offer the programs, visit www.kyrene.org/supplemental or call (480) 783-7314.

Children of Hope preschool classes

Children of Hope Childhood Development Center is now enrolling at Esperanza Lutheran Church for 2008-09 classes for 2-, 3- and 4-year-olds. Classes are available Tuesday and Thursday or Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Pre-kindergarten class is Monday through Friday.

For more information, call Trisha Wolfsen at (480) 759-1515 or stop by at 2601 E. Thunderhill Place.

New special education materials on review

Kyrene School District parents are invited to review supplemental special education oral language and early literacy materials for students with moderate to severe disabilities. The materials under review have been reviewed and recommended by the special education staff through a survey process.

The materials are available for public review through May 26, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, in the Exceptional Student Services Department at the Ben Furlong Education Center, 8700 S. Kyrene Road in Tempe.

Parents will have an opportunity for input after review of the materials. The input will be considered before a recommendation is made for adoption at the Kyrene Governing Board meeting at 7 p.m. May 27 at the Ben Furlong Education Center.

YMCA kids running club

Local marathoner David Allison directs a kids' running club through the Ahwatukee Foothills Family YMCA Mondays at 4:30 p.m. at the Pecos Parkway Park, which is diagonal from the Y.

The cost is $40 for an eight-week session. Allison is looking for a minimum of 10 second- to eighth-grade kids.

Allison coordinates drills, games and works on form, sprints and distance with the kids. It's not a running team, but a running club, good for kids who either love running or are not yet as coordinated in other sports.

Submit school notes to Corinne Frayer at cfrayer@aztrib.com.