School board to meet
The Kenai Peninsula Borough School District Board of Education meets at 7 p.m. in the borough building at 148 N. Binkley Street in Soldotna (unless otherwise noted). For more information, call 907-714-8888 or visit kpbsd.k12.ak.us. The agenda and packet items are posted on Wednesday afternoon prior to the date of the Board meeting. Persons with disabilities who need accommodations to participate at the School Board meetings should contact Debbie Tressler at 907-714-8836 or email dtressler@kpbsd.k12.ak.us no later than three business days before the meeting date. The board will meet:
■ Dec. 1;
■ Jan. 12;
■ Feb. 2;
■ March 2;
■ April 6;
■ May 4 (at Seward High School);
■ June 1;
■ June 2 (Board planning session).
Holidays and vacation days scheduled
Nov. 27-28 — Thanksgiving; Dec. 19 — End of second quarter, no school for students; Dec. 22-Jan. 2 — Winter vacation; Jan. 19 — Martin Luther King Jr. Day; Feb. 5-6 — Parent-teacher conferences, no school for students; March 6 — End of third quarter, no school for students; March 9-13 — Spring Break; April 3 — Good Friday; May 20 — Last day of school.
Career and tech training offered
KPBSD Career and Tech Department is offering free after school academies to train students in the welding, construction and medical field. Listed below are our upcoming academies.
Nikiski High School will be offering a welding academy beginning Jan. 6, running every Tuesday and Thursday from 2:30-4:30 p.m. Students will be learning Oxy-Acetylene Cutting, torch safety and set up, cutting torch free hand, interpret welding symbols and much more.
In January we will be offering a Personal Care Attendant (PCA) class that is limited to juniors and seniors only. This class will take place at the Workforce Development Center. Students will learn how to physically care for people. Students who are close to the age of 18 by May 2014 will receive a State Certificate after passing the exam. The class is limited to 12 students. Textbooks will be provided, however they are available to purchase for $35 if a student chooses to keep their book. There will be a mandatory meeting (dates and times to be announced). During this meeting class times will be set depending on student and instructor’s schedule.
Any high school student is able to participate in any of our academies. If a student successfully completes the 60 hour academy they will receive a half practical art credit.
To sign up students can see their counselor, call Debbie Pearson at 283-2145 or go to MailScanner has detected a possible fraud attempt from “onestop.kpbsd.k12.ak.us” claiming to be onestop.kpbsd.k12.Alaskaus/
Funding for the Alaska Construction Academies comes from a grant from the Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development and The Alaska Department of Commerce and Economic Development.
STEAM Ahead at Challenger
The Challenger Learning Center is now accepting registration for the upcoming sessions. STEAM Ahead for up to a semester of science for grades K-8th. First session begins Dec. 16 at 10 a.m. Challenger is an approved direct pay vendor for IDEA and Connections. For more information: akchallenger.org, 907-283-2000, or summer.lazenby@akchallenger.org.
Connections Home School Program
Dates to remember:
11/19 – Secondary Tutoring @ the Homer Bookstore Wednesdays 10am-Noon, 11/20 – Math Tutoring @ the Soldotna Office: Thursdays 2:30-4:00pm, 11/21 – LAST CLASS: Fly Tying Workshop @ Soldotna Office – 2:00-3:30pm, 11/24 & 11/25 – Homeschool Safe Sitter Class, 11/27 & 11/28 – Thanksgiving Holiday – Office Closed, 12/01 – My HomeR Art Submissions Due, 12/01 – Deadline for the Kenai Fine Arts Student Art Show, 12/16 – 1st Semester Grade Reports Due; Highschool Eligibility Due, 01/17 & 01/18 – Kenai NWR Wilderness First Aid Course
Safe Sitter Course:
Do your children babysit siblings or other children? Connections and Central Peninsula General Hospital are partnering together to offer the Safe Sitter class for homeschoolers. This is a two day class and will be offered November 24th & 25th from 9:00am to 3:30pm. Children need to be between the ages of 11 & 13 to attend. The cost is $50.00 and may be reimbursable by Connections. For more information go to www.safesitter.org, or www.cpgh.org click on quick links, go to community programs and click on safe sitter. Please register by Friday the 21st to attend. For more information, or help registering, please contact Marcia Knowlton 598-0950 (Instructor/Parent contact) or Sheila or Roberta 714-4775(Hospital contacts). Please register with the Hospital Cashier to reserve your child’s seat today!
Kenai NWR Wilderness First Aid Course:
The Kenai NWR will be hosting a Wilderness First Aid course January 17th and 18th, 2015. Cost is $175 plus $25 if you want CPR too. Call Michelle at 260-2839 to register or want more information. Deb Ajango with SafetyEd in Eagle River will be facilitating the course. Limited to 18 people and you must be 16 or older to take the course.
Connections Talent Show:
The Connections Talent Show has become an event we look forward to each school year. We enjoy seeing the work & success our students are finding outside of the academic realm, and we love giving them a chance to put those talents on display each spring. If your student has a talent they may wish to share at out talent show this year, please contact our talent show coordinator, Mark Wackler, at mwackler@kpbsd.k12.ak.us. At this time we are mostly just trying to gather interest and help students begin preparing for the show, so your response is not an obligation to have your student perform. Most of our acts are musical (i.e. singing, piano, dance, etc.) but we welcome and encourage a wide variety of different types of talents, so get creative! Please contact Mark with all your questions or to express interest. A date has not yet been set, but mid to late April is when the show is typically scheduled. We look forward to seeing you at the 2015 Connections Talent Show!
Kaleidoscope School of Arts and Science
Tuesday, November 18—9:15 a.m. Half of the 1st / 2nd grade classes are going on a Study Trip to Central Peninsula Hospital. Check with your child’s teacher to know what day your child will be going. Wednesday, November 19—9:15 a.m. Half of the 1st / 2nd grade classes are going on a Study Trip to Central Peninsula Hospital. Friday, November 20—Twin/Look Alike Day – student Council sponsored spirit day, 1:25 p.m. Mrs. Stephens class is going on a Study Trip to the Creek. 2:25 p.m. Mrs. Hurst Class is going on a Study Trip to the Creek.
4:00 p.m. Christmas Drive forms are due back to the office. Christmas Drive packets were sent home with all students on November 7th. If you need assistance this holiday season or if you would like to make a donation to the Drive, please return the forms to Mrs. Dahlman or Linda in the office.
Reminders: Please call the office by 2:30 if you need to make a change to your child’s after school plan (283-0804). If your child will be absent from school or arriving late, please call by 10:30 a.m. Otherwise, the office will call to confirm your child’s absence from school to keep attendance records accurate. The Life Skill we are focusing on this week is Flexibility: To be willing to alter plans when necessary.
Kenai Central High
Language arts classes are currently collecting food for Thanksgiving food baskets. The baskets will be donated to the food bank to give to families for a Thanksgiving dinner. Please make sure to have your contribution to class by Friday, Nov. 21.
Counselors Corner: November 18th – Work Keys for juniors who selected Work Keys as their College and Career Ready Assessment. November 20th – ASVAB in the Green Room.
The school would like to publicly thank all veterans for their role in providing the nation its freedoms.
Kenai Middle
It’s that time of year, there are a large number of illnesses in the air. Please remind your students not to share drinks and to wash their hands regularly. If you will be keeping your student home for any reason, please call the office first thing in the morning. This allows us to keep attendance on track, assure your student is excused, and if you wish, teachers can gather homework for your student which you can pick up at the office at the end of the school day.
There are currently no basketball games scheduled for the week. Boys A team will practice early this week, 2:30 -4:00 and Girls A team will practice from 4:00-5:30. Girls will have after-school tutoring until practice. Both Boys and Girls B teams will practice at the Kenai Rec Center from 2:30 -4:00. Sixth grade Wrestling begins today. Paperwork must be completed and turned in before your student can participate. Interested students should stop by the office for a packet.
The American Mathematics Competition will be held on Tuesday, November 18. Students will test here at school. Good Luck to all participating! There is a dance for 7th and 8th graders on Friday, November 21st from 6:00 – 8:00. The cost is $3.00. After-School Tutoring is in full swing and will run every Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday from 2:35- 4:00. If you student will not stay for tutoring, please be sure to let us know.
Mountain View Elementary
Congratulations to our Soaring Eagles for the month of October. They are James Ambrose, Jacob Blum, Kacey Cunningham, Dalton Dimick, Devon Duniphin, Brody Ferguson, Bianca Hansen, Kaelynn Hensley, Owen Koroll, Avia Miller, Ellsi Miller, Malerie Nunn, Jorgi Phillips, Layla Rollins, Ndea Rollins, Xara Rollins, Michael Stillings, & Savanna Wilson.
At the end of the 1st quarter 70 Mountain View students in 3rd through 5th grade are being honored for perfect attendance. Forty 3rd through 5th grade students are being recognized for outstanding attendance. A student having outstanding attendance has not missed more than 1 day of school and they had fewer than 3 late arrivals or early departures during the quarter. Thank you and congratulations to the parents of these students who have made school attendance a priority. We know that excellent school attendance comes from great parenting.
Wednesday, November 26 is an early release day for students. Students being picked up will be dismissed at 1:50 PM and all other students will be dismissed at 1:55 PM.
Nikiski North Star Elementary
Tomorrow, November 18th, is the deadline to apply for a Christmas food basket sponsored by the Nikiski Neighbors. All families living north of milepost 15.5 can apply. Applications can be found at the Nikiski Post Office, North Star United Methodist Church, NMHS and NNS. Please remember to like us on Facebook to keep up with all of the happenings at our school!
Student safety is always a top priority and with winter weather comes icy conditions. We ask for everyone’s help in driving slowly and safely in our parking lot and on the road by the school. Also, we have daily outside recess so please send your child to school with appropriate cold weather gear. KPBSD policy states that we go outside until the temperature drops to below minus ten degrees. If you have any questions or concerns, please call the school office at 776-2600.
Redoubt Elementary
November 19th – Site Council Meeting @ 3:45 in the staff lounge. November 14th – 21st – Redoubt Elementary Presents “The Great Grocery Grab” Food Drive. All donated food items will be donated to the Kenai Peninsula Food Bank. November 25th – Early Release Day for students @ 1:45.
Redoubt Elementary Presents “The Great Grocery Grab”. Non-perishable food items will be collected for the Kenai Peninsula Food Bank November 14th – 21st.
Parents are invited to come at watch this fun event. Mr. Pothast, Mr. Joachim, Borough Mayor Mike Navarre and Assistant Superintendent Sean Dusek will be racing up and down the halls pushing shopping carts as they collect food items from students.
Box Tops Winners last week were: Quinn Cox, Adam Osborn, David Doremire & Eden Atterberry. Keep those Box Tops for education coming, weekly drawings are held so don’t forget to have your child put their name on the back of each Box Top and turn them in at school.
Labels for Education – Redoubt has started collecting Campbell soup labels and other participating product labels. Some products include, Goldfish, Post, Swanson, Pop-Secret, V8 and Dannon. For the complete list of products and companies that participate in this program please visit their website at www.labelsforeducation.com
Our school will earn points that can be redeemed for items such as physical education equipment, classroom supplies and other educational merchandise for our students. Additional information regarding this program will be sent home with students. Students should put their name on the back of each label and turn them in at school for our weekly drawings to win a prize.
Conference Attendee – drawing winner of a $50.00 Fred Meyer Gift Card – Jen Gomez, E-Script signup – drawing winner of a $50.00 Safe Way Gift Card – Alan Clark, Registration Update – drawing winner of a $50.00 Fred Meyer Gift Card – Terri Saito, Student basket – Caleigh Thompson.
PTA Meeting winner of a $20.00 Fred Meyer Gift Card was PTA member Bobbie Baldwin. Congratulations!
Skyview Middle
Site Council Meeting Monday – 4:00 pm – Skyview Staff Lounge. Sports Schedule this week: Monday, November 17 – Skyview Girls B vs. Cook Inlet Academy @ CIA – 5:00 pm, Skyview Boys B vs. Cook Inlet Academy @ CIA – 6:30 pm, Tuesday, November 18 – Skyview 7th A vs. Skyview 8th A @ Skyview Middle School – 3:00 pm, Friday, November 21 – Skyview Girls 7th A vs. Homer A @ Homer – 3:30 pm, Skyview Boys 7th A vs. Homer A @ Homer – 5:00 pm, Skyview Girls B vs. Homer B @ Homer – 3:30 pm, Skyview Boys B vs. Homer B @ Homer – 5:00 pm.
- Skyview Middle School Honor Roll Quarter 1
7th Grade 4.0 – Brooke Belluomini, Whitney Benson, Cameron Blackwell, Timothy Cashman, Autumn Chumley, Ray Chumley, Kathryn Creglow, Payton Diehl, Faith Glassmaker, Jacob McConnell, Clara Moore, Jersey Truesdell
8th Grade 4.0 – Asia Angeles Hanson, Erika Bennett, Kortney Birch, Brittani Blossom, Haley Buckbee, Rylan Burrows, Hannah Delker, Porter Evans, Ruth Frederickson, Mirricale George Mills, Travis Howell, Serena Larrow, Caleb Matson, Darby McMillan, Natalia O’Toole, Aliann Schmidt, Danica Schmidt, Kayli Smith, Benjamin Snow, Thomas Wells, Brennan Werner, Aidan Whitney
7th Grade 3.5 to 3.9 – Mackinley Baxter, Galen Brantley III, Ryann Cannava, Gracie Caston, Trystin Clucas, Aubree Cude, Isabella Dearmore, Elena Dimitrovski, Eve Downing, Kilei England, Esther Frederickson, Caius Hagelund, Zachary Hanson, Ryan Hill, Kianna Holland, Christian Jaime, Holland Jaime, Luke Johns, Trevor Jones, Bryan Kingrey, Janna Krieger, Bailey Leach, Braden Lemm, Matthew Martinelli, Tyler Morrison, MaCady Musgrave, Leif Niichel, Adriane Poulin, Kyler Pritchett, Ayla Read, James Redmon, Chance Reynolds, Levi Rosin, Elora Shockley, Victoria Silva, James Taylor, Brayden Vanmeter, Riley Vickaryous, Elijah Wackler, Bradley Walters, Tadan White, Maia Whitney, Alyssa Wilkinson
8th Grade 3.5 to 3.9 – Levi Benner, Donald Bennett, Kristina Bybee, Megan Calloway, Logan Craig, Wyatt Denna, Alyson Driskell, Amanda Eby, Megan Eskue, Titan Farrell, Mykenna foster, Victoria Giles, Laurel Glaves, Gabriel Guthrie, Cassie Haeg, Ashlee Heiman, Cody Hemphill, Kennedy Holland, Jacob Jackson, Katelynn Kimes, Jeremy Kupferschmid, Derek Lewis, Reva Lovett, Dakota Merculieff, Jordan Merrill, Michael Michael, Cloe Milbauer, Daniel Mitzel, Mariah Parnell, Athalia Quiner, Marlayna Saavedra, Samuel Skolnick, Cecilia Stewart, Jaida Sturman, Brittany Taylor, Braxton Urban, Levi Wahl, Kambree Whittom, Jeremija Williams, Selene Williams, Keeley Withrow
7th Grade 3.0 to 3.49 – Kya Ahlers, Vydell Baker, David Belger, Stevie Berninger, Lance Chilton, Catherine Conner, Wyatt Dement, Christopher Edelman, John Einerson, Ateliano Faletoi, Jack Fleming, Cristian Harrigan, John Harris, Kaliesha Hart, Sierra Hatfield, Tara Heathers, Sara Hinz, Destiny Hoffman, Sueheidi Hugarte, Cameron Johnson, Jamie Kelly, Victoria Kitson, Jacey Kosto, Ashley McDonald, Hudson Metcalf, Sarah Mickelson, Journey Miller, Simon Montague, Kylie Ness, Korrin Nyren, Brandon Partin, Iona Reutov, Morgan Reynolds, Kody Rohr, Charles Ross, Olivia Schwenk, Marceles Sepulveda, Blake Smith, Mia Stewart, Tanner Ussing, Margret VergIn, Trenton Walden, Lindsay Ward, Nelson Watt, Makala Whittom, Kaiden Wilshusen, Taylor Wilson, Amanda Wylie, Shannon Yeskie
8th Grade 3.0 to 3.49 – Haven Best, Carsen Brown, Elliana Bruce, Cora Carter, Skyler Checketts, Luis Chicas Sorto, Tanner Craig, Savanna Davis, Samantha Denbrock, Patricia Doty, Macey Dreyer, Madelaine Egdorf, Joseph Fiebelkorn, Brett Fullenwider, Alexis Giles, Cheyenne Groff, Daniel Gross, Kameron Hanson, Wyatt Harvey, Dalton Hatten, Jayden Kemp, River Kitchens, Jared Knight, Dorothy Kreider, Brandon Kroto, Justin Lavender, Mariah Mattfield, Katlian Nelson, Joseph Parker, Bryan Parmentier, Mackenzie Powell, Carson Ratky, Arin Reger, Bethani Shepard, Kyla Smith, Kristina Sopkowiak, Shelby Stoner, Brighton Turvin, Alexander VanDeGrift, Benjamin VanHoose, Ashlyn Vehmeier, Gabriel Wackler Murdock, Melinda Williams, Mikaele Wong, Colleen Yeskie
Soldotna Elementary
Each year Soldotna Elementary participates in the Elks Hoop Shoot Contest. One boy and one girl in each age category advanced to the District competition. The following SOEL winners are as follows: Brayden Taylor and Neolani Fullerton (8-9 yr. old category); Nathanael Johnson and Olivia Davis (10-11 yr. old category) and Dennis Taylor and Lila McKay (12-13 yr. old category). Congratulations to all!
Super Hero Day is coming up on Friday, November 21st. Wear your favorite Super Hero tee shirt / outfit.
Gymnastics Extravaganza: Thursday, November 20th at 4:00 p.m. in the gym – Please come see our gymnasts perform routines they’ve been working on all month. All are welcome!
Please mark your calendars: FUN FEST is scheduled for Friday, November 21st from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. This is a very enjoyable time for the kids, so please remember the date!
Early Release day is Wednesday, November 26th, just the day before Thanksgiving. Students will be dismissed 90 minutes early. There will be no afternoon class for Mrs. Cannava’s pre-school. Congratulations to Ian Beauparlant, the winner of last week’s box top drawing! Our box top drawing is on Friday each week.
Parents: The PBIS team needs a parent communicator to join the PBIS Think Tank Team. This volunteer’s duties would include representing parents at team meetings two Mondays per month from 3:45 to 4:45 p.m., and to inform our parent community of PBIS planning, activities, events, etc. If interested, please contact Elizabeth Kvamme at eedwards@kpbsd.k12.ak.us or 260-5100.
Please remember all the cold-weather gear for those precious kiddos!
The Fire Prevention Program is scheduled for Tuesday, November 25th with Chief Perkins. The presentation is an amazing puppet show for Pre-K through 3rd grade. The older students will have short movie and receive lots of life-saving information. Please talk to your children about all they have learned. Decide on a safe meeting place outside the home and practice escape procedures. That practice may save a life!
In January SOEL will begin our Reading Counts Contest once again. Please encourage your kids to read at home, every night. They take their quizzes at school. When they pass, they receive points. The students who receives the most points each week, per classroom, will be acknowledged over the intercom every Monday. Also, prizes are awarded often. The grand prize information will follow shortly.
Soldotna High
Eleven students attended the Moose Youth Awareness Leadership Conference Friday to Sunday in Anchorage. This program pairs up high school teen role models with elementary aged students. The teens will be giving presentations to various elementary classes from subjects ranging from being a “bucket-filler”, the importance of kindness towards one another, stranger danger, health and nutrition.
Attendees will include: Cartwright, Savannah, Dusek, Ali, Finau, Keola, Helminski, Jenna, Kincaid, Chloe, Kincaid, Claire, Olson, Taylor, Prather, David, Russo, John, Steadman, Mykala, Wells, Halen.
November 17th-21st is College Application Week (CAW) at Soldotna High School. During this week, students will have the chance to work with their College and Career Guide to start and submit their college and career school applications. There are often benefits to applying early, such as scholarship opportunities or application fee waivers, so seniors are encouraged to get started on their applications now! For more information about the event, please contact Emily Knight, SoHi’s College and Career Guide, at 907-260-7083 or emily.knight@alaska.gov.
Soldotna High School’s National Honor Society inducted the following students: Danielle McCormick, Coltin Yancey, Hailey Ames, Taryn McCubbins, Dustin Buerkel, Charalambos Asimakopoulos, Kyle North, Alexandra Ashe, Nathaniel Yannikos, Taylor Gilmore, Sloan Stenga, Dylan Kuntz, Rebekah Keener, Jayden Zimmer, Jackson Blackwell, Evelyn Burnett, Afton Carlson, Addison Downing, Brian Dusek, Megan Herrick, Sabrina Hilbrink, Chloe Kincaid, Kianna Steadman, Logan Schoessler, Hannah Selden, Carajean Gibbons, Arianna Hiler, Jayce Kemp, Caitlin Sturman, Tehya Nichols, Catherine Craig, Ashlyn Johnson and Brenna Belluomini The induction ceremony took place in the SOHI Auditorium on Tuesday November 4th.
Seniors: Please order your caps and gowns. You can go to Jostens.com or call Leona at 907-283-9280. Jostens will also be here on November 11.
The Soldotna High Art Club will be exhibiting art work at the Kenai Fine Arts Center (Gallery Too) in Old Town Kenai throughout the month of November. Please contact the KFAC for hours of operation.
Soldotna High School is collecting gently used formal dresses, shoes, and accessories for 2015 Cinderella’s Closet. This is a program which helps all area high school ladies with prom attire for free. Please email mbos@kpbsd.k12.ak.us for more info. All donations can be dropped off to the front office 8am-2pm.
Senior pics are due December 1. Digital formatting preferred. Billfold Size. 300 dpi. (*.jpg ) File Format. Email to : lthomas@kpbsd.k12.ak.us We are collecting pictures to get a jump start for graduation. For the senior video, we are looking for school activities (sports, academics, etc.). We also need baby pictures/senior pictures for the slide show. The best format is to scan them and send to dgordon@kpbsd.k12.ak.us
The Media Center is open until 5pm Monday-Friday. There are buses at 4:15 for those students working in the Media Center. If your student were to stay after school and would need a bus home at 4:15 please contact Tamra Wear at 260.7036 or twear@kpbsd.k12.ak.us to give her the bus drop off location for your student.
ATOSS tutoring will start in the Library on August 25th and run until May 4th from 2:30-3:30pm
Pool Schedule: a.m. lap swim 5:30-7:30am Mon – Friday, p.m. lap swim 6-7 Mon, Wed and Fri, p.m. Open swim 7-8:45 Mon, Wed and Friday.
Soldotna Prep
Please check school blog daily to stay informed; http://soldotnaprep.blogs.kpbsd.k12.ak.us/wpmu/
Monday and Wed- After-School Tutoring Rm 15 from 2:25-3:25 with Mrs. Swaby (Specializes in Math). Tues. and Thurs- After-School Tutoring Rm 10 from 2:25-3:25 with Mr. Chervenak (Specializes in Language Arts). Monday- Robotics 5:30-7:00 Rm 4. Tuesday – Robotics 2:30-4:00 Rm 4. Thursday- Robotics 2:30-4:00 AND 5:30-7:00 Rm 4. Native Youth Leadership Club in Rm. 10 – 2:15-3:00 the 1st and 3rd Wednesday of every month. Poetry Out Loud meetings in Rm. 10 – 2:15-3:00 the 2nd and 4th Wednesday of every month.
Tustumena News
NOVEMBER: 11/18 PTO Meeting, 4pm, 11/21 Turkey Bingo, 11/24 Site Council Meeting, 4pm, 11/26 Early Release, 2:05.
Wings Christian Academy
Last week at Wings, the Wings Eagles won the match against the WHCS Archers 3-2! Way to go, Eagles! Also, the winners of the Students of the Month decided to go to Arby’s for their celebratory lunch on November 10th with Pastor Ray Boutwell. Yum! In other news, the “Cleanest Desk of the Week” award went to Sara Brubaker and Zane James. Congratulations! This is Sara’s second week in a row getting this award.
A few other dates to remember are coming up at Wings. On Wednesday, November 19th, the students will be participating in the Quiz’em Competition. They will need to remember all they’ve learned throughout the last month as well as information regarding the Mission Conference.
On Friday, November 21st, the volleyball team will be travelling up to Anchorage for their final tournament. Results will be posted the following week. Merit Store will be taking place on Monday, November 24th so keep saving those merits! Possibly the biggest date to remember is Tuesday, November 25th as Wings will be having Picture Day! Come dressed to impress and be ready to smile! Reminders will also go out in the Communication Envelope today for those activities.
