Community Connection Jan. 28, 2005

Twenty-eight students form Scottsdale elementary and middle schools participated in the District Spelling Bee on Jan. 25.

Kirsten Adams, an eighth grader at Cocopah Middle School, spelled the winning word — mistigris, which is a variety of the game of poker in which the joker is used, and called mistigris or mistigri. Coming in second was Rachel Parker, Desert Canyon Middle School. Runner ups included Monika Vinje, Copper Ridge Elementary; Shaina Silverman, Laguna Elementary; Dan Baele, Sequoya Elementary; Hannah Stuart, Ingleside Middle; and Connor Miller, Cheyenne Traditional School.

The seven champions will represent SUSD in the Maricopa County Region II Spelling Bee at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 22, at the Boys and Girls Club of Fountain Hills, 14605 Del Cambre, Fountain Hills. The Regional II Spelling Bee is hosted by Four Peaks Elementary School in the Fountain Hills Unified School District. The Arizona State Spelling Bee is on April 2, at Channel 8 Studio ASU. The National Spelling Bee is May 29-June 3, in Washington, D.C.

Scottsdale school library catalogs are now available on the Internet. The catalogs include information about the books in our libraries, details about the Accelerated Reader program and thousands of up-to-date, curriculum relevant links to Web pages. You will find your school’s library catalog on your school’s Web site. You can also find it in the For Students section of the district Web site.

Is your child going to starting kindergarten in the fall? Please join us for the upcoming Kindergarten Round-ups at your neighborhood school where you can tour the school, meet teachers, learn about the curriculum and more.

Please note that Hohokam, Yavapai and Zuni elementary schools have not scheduled a Kindergarten Round-up. We will keep you apprised of those dates. In addition, Cheyenne Traditional School does not schedule a Kindergarten Round-up.

The International Baccalaureate (IB) program of Scottsdale Unified School District is offering interested students a chance to get a first-hand look at the I. B. program, which operates at Desert Mountain High School. Students will be given an opportunity to view all levels of I. B. classes during the school day. Students must make an appointment and will be escorted by current I. B. students and will be able to gather information directly from these students.

This opportunity will be provided in the mornings on regularly scheduled class days, 8:15 a.m. through 10:45 a.m., from now through Feb. 11. This opportunity is available to eighth grade, freshman and sophomore students – including those who live outside the Scottsdale district. The program is accepting applications for open enrollment through the school office.

Interested students or parents should contact Eileen Berens at Desert Mountain High School, 480-484-7000, ext. 6284, or e-mail eileen.berens@susd.org for an appointment and further information.

Open enrollment applications are still being accepted for the 2005-2006 school year. To apply for enrollment in any of Scottsdale’s 33 great schools, simply complete an application and submit it to the school of your choice. Applications are available in each school office or on the district Web site, www.susd.org, by clicking on the Open Enrollment button at the top of the page. If you have questions, you can contact a school directly or call 480-484-6169. School attendance areas have not changed, and parents can apply at any time for enrollment in any Scottsdale school.

Scottsdale Unified School District invites parents, teachers, administrators and community members to attend the Parent/Teacher Academy workshop entitled Let's Talk about Sex, at 6:30 p.m., on Tuesday, Feb. 1, in the auditorium at Chaparral High School, 6935 E. Gold Dust Ave., Scottsdale. Read more...

Approximately 198 children from fifth through eighth grades will perform in the District Honor Band concert at 7 p.m. on Wednesday Feb. 2, in the auditorium at Desert Mountain High School, 12575 E. Via Linda, Scottsdale.

The students will be performing original band compositions and favorites from TV shows and the Broadway stage.

For this free public event, Bill Patterson, Deer Valley Unified School District, will conduct seventh and eighth grade students; Arthur Henriquez will conduct sixth grade students; and Mark Winans, a Band teacher at Laguna and Zuni elementary schools, will conduct fifth grade students.

Approximately 125 children from four through eighth grades will perform in the Scottsdale Unified School District Festival and Honor Orchestra Concerts at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 8, in the auditorium at Desert Mountain High School, 12575 E. Via Linda, Scottsdale.

Two separate orchestras — elementary school and middle school — will perform music of the highest caliber and difficulty. Advanced fourth, fifth and sixth grade students will perform in the Festival Orchestra Concert and advanced sixth, seventh and eighth grade students will perform in the Honor Orchestra Concert. Read more...

The Special Education Department's Transition Services invites parents and students college informational meeting at 7 p.m., on Thursday, Feb. 10, in the Media Center at Saguaro High School, 6250 N. 82nd St., Scottsdale. Find out what is available for students with disabilities from the following schools: Arizona State University; Department of Vocational Rehabilitation; Gateway Community College; Mesa Community College; Northern Arizona University; Scottsdale Community College; and University of Arizona - SALT (Strategic Alternative Learning Techniques).

Scottsdale Unified School District invites parents, teachers, administrators and community members to attend the Parent/Teacher Academy workshop entitled Bullying & Harassment: Alternatives to Fight or Flight, at 6:30 p.m., on Tuesday, Feb. 15, in the auditorium at Arcadia High School, 4703 E. Indian School Road, Phoenix. Read more...

Sophomores at all five of Scottsdale Unified School District (SUSD) high schools will have the opportunity to take the Preliminary SAT Scoring Service (PSSS) at no cost to parents.The test, which is voluntary, will be administered at Arcadia, Chaparral, Coronado, Desert Mountain, and Saguaro high schools on Wednesday, Feb. 16, during the school day. Read more...

Join the Scottsdale Charros at the fourth annual 1st Pitch Event at 6:30 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 26, at Rawhide Western Town, 23023 N. Scottsdale Road, Scottsdale. Ticket are $125 per person and includes food and beverages. The event benefits the Horsense Equine Youth Program and the Charros' Intramural Sports Program for Scottsdale Unified School District's middle schools. There will be live music by Mogollon, dancing and mechanical bull rides. For more information, please call 480-990-2977 or visit www.the1stpitch.com or www.springtraining.com to buy tickets online.

Scottsdale Unified School District's English Immersions Studies Program presents the fifth annual Festival of Cultures from 6-8 p.m., on April 12, in the auditorium of Coronado High School, 2501 N. 74th Place, Scottsdale. This multicultural celebration will feature dancers, music, student art and writing exhibits and SUSD “Torneo de Ortografia” (Spanish Spelling Bee). The event is free to the public. If you have questions, please call Lisa Zirbel at 480-484-5054 or Gloria Díaz 480-484-5064.

Tom Vining, a Science and Physics teacher at Desert Mountain High School, worked on the Development team for the new PRISMS PLUS Physics Laboratory Program recently published by Center Point Learning. Tom wrote many of the labs and student worksheets, as well as the teachers instructions. He also field-tested all of the materials for several years to insure their usefulness. PRISMS is an acronym for Physics Resources and Instructional Strategies for Motivating Students and is a laboratory based science curriculum that uses learning cycles to assure student understanding and learning.

Congratulations to Chaparral High School Baseball Coach Jerry Dawson for being named the National High School Coach of the Year by the National Baseball Association. Coach Dawson has been Chaparral’s only baseball coach since the school opened in 1972.

Congratulations to Chaparral High School Coach Robyn Carlson and the girls Soccer Team for winning the Region Championship.

Madeline LaRue and Patrick Saucey, seniors at Desert Mountain High School students, have been selected to be candidates for United States Presidential Scholars by the US Department of Education. This selection was based on exceptional scholarship, artistic success and leadership.

Katie Heuermann, a freshman at Desert Mountain High School, has published a book titled Shadows of Seven. She wrote the book when she 12-13 years old, edited the book at the age of 14 and now has it published. Katie will have a book signing at 2 p.m., on Saturday, Feb. 12, at Barnes & Nobel at Shea Blvd. and the 101. For more information please contact her mother, Tracy Heuermann, at 480-451-9237.

Violinist Grace Ma, a sixth grade student at Cheyenne Traditional School, competed in the Phoenix Symphony Guild's concerto competition. She received an honorable mention for her performance of the Accolay Violin Concerto.

Kelsey Mangles, an eighth grade student at Mountainside Middle School, won a poetry contest in which her work was selected to be published in a new children's book. She will be accepting her award as part of a ceremony in Orlando, Fla.

Chaparral High School Varsity Cheer won second place at the UCA Cactus Cup last weekend. The JV team won third place.

Haley Hart, a senior at Desert Mountain High School, was selected as one of two Player of the Year for the Desert Valley Region in girls Soccer.

Hannah McDonald, eighth grade student at Mountainside Middle School, has been chosen to attend the New York City Ballet's 2005 summer program. She has received a full scholarship for her participation worth $10,000.

Chaparral High School Varsity Pom will be traveling to Orlando, Fla. Feb. 3-7 to compete in the UDA National Dance Competition. They have been working hard to prepare for this very challenging competition, where they will be competing against the top teams across the nation.

Timmy McKenney, a junior at Desert Mountain High School, was named the 5-A All Tribune "Player of the Year." In the golf world this is the top honor. He also won the 5-A State Championship tournament this year.

A three week Sign Language Class is in progress in Mrs. Whitehurst's HULA classes at Mountainside Middle School. This challenging skill is used in correlation with the Grammar, Usage and Mechanics area of the Language curriculum. The students learn the alphabet, along with many vocabulary words, that are used in teaching the state of being verbs and studying for the vocabulary (Spelling) assignments.

Kelsey Tomlinson, a junior at Chaparral High School, will be among the students selected to attend the National Young Leaders Conference Feb. 15–20 in Washington, D.C. Kelsey is a member of Student Government and is junior captain of the varsity pom line.

Ekom Udofia, a senior at Chaparral High School, has been named to Parade magazine’s 42nd annual All-America High School Football Team. Ekom was one of 18 linemen named to the 58-player team. It marks the third straight year a player from Arizona has been on the team. As for what college Udofia plans to attend, he said he will make that announcement on ESPN Feb. 2, the day before national signing day.

To submit an idea for coverage in Community Connection, please send an e-mail to Tom Herrmann.