School Winners

Everett students win national art awards

Two Forest View Elementary School students received $200 national awards in the 2014-15 National PTA Reflections Arts Program, “The World Would Be a Better Place If…”

Heather Mimikos received an Award of Excellence for her story “All Our Wrongs.” (Read Heather’s story with this article at www.heraldnet.com.) Gabriel Thomas received a Special Artist Division Award of Excellence for her photograph “Circles.”

In addition to the two Forest View national winners, the following students won awards at the state level: Bettiann Peterson, Forest View Elementary, Award of Merit for dance choreography; Sarah Carpenter, Sunnycrest Elementary in Lake Stevens, Award of Excellence for a story; Claire DeFrang, Lake Stevens Middle School, Special Artist Award of Excellence for photography; Hanna Sturgis, Lake Stevens Middle, Special Artist Award of Merit for photography; Katelyn Stubrud, Lake Stevens Middle School, Special Artist Award of Excellence for visual artwork; Mayanin Bedolla, Forest View Elementary, Special Artist Award of Merit for visual artwork; Roshawana Johnson, Everett High School, Special Artist Award of Merit for visual artwork.

Jackson artists take Judges’ Choice Awards

Two Jackson High School students were among the five Judges’ Choice Award winners in the annual Superintendent’s High School Art Show in Olympia, cosponsored by the state Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction and the Washington Art Education Association.

Chan Ha Kim (for “Finding Birds”) and Kainalu Ramos (for “Free-For-All”) each received $200 and their work will be added to the state’s permanent collection. Their teacher is Rick Wigre. See an online gallery at www.k12.wa.us/Arts/ArtShow.

Local programs get boost for college-ready work

College Spark announced more than $1.1 million in Community Grants. The annual, competitive statewide program focuses on programs that work with low-income students in middle school, high school and college with the goal of increasing completion rates.

Local grant winners:

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Snohomish County, $49,556 to develop, implement and refine a curriculum designed for use by school-based volunteer mentors at North Middle School in Everett

Everett School District, $150,000 to improve access to college-level Advanced Placement classes for low-income students

Foundation’s breakfast fundraiser a success

The Lakewood Education Foundation held its first fundraiser breakfast on May 6 and raised $5,400 for scholarships for seniors and progressive scholarships for underclass students.

The nonprofit’s ultimate goal is to have a well-managed endowment. To learn more, email lakewoodedufoundation@gmail.com or visit www.lwsd.wednet.edu/Page/1789.

Everett’s Polk is Athletic Director of the Year

Everett School District Athletic Director Robert Polk in April was awarded the National Interscholastic Athletic Administrator Association’s 2015 Award of Merit. The award recognizes Polk for “meritorious dedication to middle and high school athletics.”

Polk also earned Washington Secondary School Athletic Administrators Association’s 2015 Athletic Director of the Year.

Elks award scholarships

The Everett Elks awarded scholarships to graduating high school seniors on May 14: Quinna Wester (Arlington); Lindsey Kendall (Marysville Mountain View); Lisa Fuller, Nicholas Malloy and Sierra Price (Marysville Pilchuck); Emily Ekdahl (Marysville Getchell); Alisha Bontrager (Lake Stevens); and Kallee Olsen, Miranda Uriarte, Mana Nava, Audrey Taber (Cascade); Christopher Eldred (Grace Academy); Hailey Fagerness (Snohomish); Mikayla Engstrom (Granite Falls); Alyssa LaFleur (Sky Valley Education Center); Tayler Hoftell (Darrington); Michael Bervell (Kamiak); Logan Wahl (Everett); and Joseph Schmidt (Sultan).

Discovery’s garden keeps growing, gets certified

Washington Green Schools has certified Discovery Elementary School as a Level 3 status. Students maintain a school garden and have harvested hundreds of pounds of fruits and vegetables for needy families with assistance from the Everett Garden Club and Farmer Frog.

Discovery, in Mukilteo, joins Forest View Elementary School in Everett with Level 3 status. Other certified “green schools” include North Middle and Jackson High schools in the Everett district and Madrona K-8 in Edmonds.

Meanwhile, Discovery custodian Steve Richardson along with teachers Laurie James and Fred Collins head to Washington D.C. this month to accept Discovery’s national Green Ribbon School designation. They are paying their own way.

“This is just the beginning stage for Discovery Elementary in the journey to a more eco-friendly school,” James said.

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