Topics include an overview of the Highly Capable Program and changes to the lottery program for Madrona and Maplewood K-8 schools.

You can find your neighborhood school here. Registration opens Monday, Feb. 13, and packets must be returned to the school the child will attend.

The district will collect the names of those interested in full-time kindergarten between Feb. 13 and March 9, with all names to be entered into a lottery drawn on March 12. A lottery will not be needed if there are fewer students interested in full-time kindergarten on March 9 than the district is able to accommodate. Parents will be notified of the lottery results by March 16.

Questions regarding kindergarten should be directed to Shelley Roehl at 425-431-7176 or roehls@edmonds.wednet.edu.

Superintendent’s Roundtable this Wednesday Feb. 1

Students at Bailey’s Traditional Taekwon Do College perform at the Chase Lake Health Fair.

Attendees sample healthy products.

The Chase Lake Elementary PTSA reported a good turnout at its Edmonds Family Fitness and Health Fair last Thursday. According to event organizer Amalia Martino, 122 students and 103 adults attended the fair, which included information booths, demonstrations and giveaways.

“We’ve heard nothing but positive feedback from students and parents,”she said. “I think we were successful in achieving our goal: to showcase activities the entire family can do together to get healthy, and provide community resources and information for families to make wellness a priority in 2012.

January 30, 2012

Dear Edmonds-Woodway Families,

I want to ensure that you have the facts regarding a brief incident that occurred at approximately 11:40 a.m. today in the café area of the school. No injuries and no property damage were caused after items placed in two different garbage cans exploded but were contained to the garbage receptacles. Fire District 1 determined that the items were bottles which contained a common household chemical that when sealed, the pressure forced the bottles to explode. Videos of how to construct such devices are easily accessible and common on the Internet. Please talk with your student and if they have any information regarding this incident please call  Edmonds Police at 425-771-0200. The matter is under investigation.

Sincerely,
Michelle Trifunovic
Principal
Edmonds-Woodway High School

STEM, a choice four-year program in the District, is open to all incoming 9th-grade students in the Edmonds School District beginning fall of 2012.  Note that students applying from outside the MTHS service area may only enroll in the STEM Honors Diploma Program of Study.

See the STEM Magnet brochure for more information or call Principal Greg Schwab at 425-431-7777. Mountlake Terrace High School is located at 21801 44th Ave. W.

F.A.C.E. features something for all ages:
- All schools & programs
- Community groups
- Kindergarten registration packets (Children age 5 by Aug. 31, 2012 are eligible)
- Middle & high school opportunities
- Gates Grant preschool providers

You can attend special sessions that include:
The Transfer Process
Highly Capable
Graduation Requirements
Replacement Levy Information
Tips for Successful Parenting for School Success

For more information, call 425-431-7044 or visit the school districtwebsite.

“Starmites,” written by Stuart Ross and Barry Keating, tells the story of Eleanor, a rebellious and reclusive teenager who is mysteriously thrust into the world of her favorite comic book. In Innerspace, she discovers that she is the legendary Milady, a teen superhero who must team up with the Starmites to save the Universe from the forces of evil. Standing in her way is a colorful assortment of villains. With the help of hip-hop heartthrob Space Punk, Eleanor ultimately finds her strength within and defeats her foes.

Directed by Shileah Corey and choreographed by Indeah Thomaier and Gabriel Corey, ”Starmites,” involves a cast of 33 actors, ages 12-15. Performances are Feb. 3 and 4 at 7 p.m., with matinee performances Feb. 4 and 5 at 2 p.m. Tickets are $5 and can be purchased at the door. All performances are at Edmonds Heights K-12, 23200 100th Ave. W. Call 425-431-7840 for information.

Swedish/Edmonds dietician Megan Ellison listens as Graham Kerr gives cooking tips at Cedar Valley Community School Thursday night.

Story and photo by Lara Alexander

The lunchroom of Cedar Valley Community School in Lynnwood was full Thursday night with parents, children and community members ready to learn about healthy foods. Co-sponsored by Swedish/Edmonds and the Edmonds School District, Healthier Choices is a series of free family events aimed at helping families learn fun ways to make healthy food choices and prepare easy, affordable breakfasts and snacks.

Thursday night’s event featured cooking demonstrations and nutrition advice from internationally known culinary and television personality Graham Kerr and Swedish/Edmonds registered dietitian Megan Ellison. Kerr is best known as The Galloping Gourmet. He cheerfully greeted audience members before the cooking demonstration. “I was just telling my daughter that I used to watch you on TV before there was a Food Network channel!” said one mom.

Kerr lives in Island County and is committed to helping people make healthy, creative, lifestyle changes to increase consumption of fresh, local edible plants and seafood. “I was the Paula Deen of my day,” said Kerr, referring to his past as a celebrity chef who paid no mind to calories, until his wife suffered a stroke and a heart attack. Using his knowledge of tastes and aromas, Kerr says, “I realized that I could reinvent food for her so that it brings pleasure and not harm.”

“We all know childhood obesity is a concern across the U.S. and here in Snohomish County,” says Ellison. “Our goal is to show families how to sustain an easy, healthy meal plan that includes fun and tasty options that kids will want to eat.”

According to the Snohomish Health District, students who are obese or overweight report lower grades, lower expectations to go far in school, and more disabilities than students who are not obese or overweight.

The next Healthier Choices events are scheduled for:

• Thursday, Febuary 23
• Thursday, March 15
• Saturday, April 28

Times and locations for these events will be announced in the near future.

Ballots have been mailed for the Edmonds School District Replacement Technology Capital Levy. Election Day, and the last day to send back your voted ballot, is Feb. 14.

The replacement levy, which will be in effect for four years if approved, is in the same amount as the existing technology and capital levy expiring this year. The projected rate per thousand dollars of property value is 44 cents, the same rate currently being collected. The replacement levy would provide an average of $7.85 million per year over the next four years, 2013 through 2016.

The capital portion of the levy would be used for priority roofing projects. In addition, the funds would pay for changes to pedestrian and traffic patterns at some schools to improve safety as students are dropped off and picked up.

Technology funds are needed to replace student and teacher computers, projectors and document presenters as the equipment ages. This funding would also provide professional development and IT support, replace aging office staff computers and pay annual license fees for systems like Skyward and SchoolWires. Finally, the money would be used to modernize servers and upgrade wireless systems.

Asked to comment about the levy election, Superintendent Nick Brossoit first expressed great appreciation for past levy support, which has enabled the district to improve student learning using modern technology. The replacement levy, if approved, will support continuation of those efforts as well as needed school safety improvements, he said. He encouraged voters to take a careful look at the proposal.

More information about the levy can be found at the district’s website.

Florine Gingerich

My Edmonds New schools contributor Florine Gingerich has a son who attended Edmonds public schools, where she volunteered in roles ranging from pouring juice in kindergarten at Madrona K-8 to serving as president of the Edmonds-Woodway Music Boosters. With her husband, Doug Purcell, she practices law at Purcell & Adams, PLLC, a South County firm emphasizing business law, real estate and estate planning. Visit them at purcelladams.com, or contact her at fgingerich@purcelladams.com.

Students at Lynnwood-based Soundview School, including fourth-grader Bridget Smith from Edmonds, right, participated in a Claymation Film Festival at the school Wednesday night. The movies incorporated various aspects of students’ curriculum. Students created the movies entirely from scratch, from writing to building sets and characters out of clay, to operating a digital camera to adding sound.