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:
* Feb. 2;
* March 2;
* April 6;
* May 4 (at Seward High School);
* June 1;
* June 2 (Board planning session).
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.
Connections Home School Program
Dates to remember:
* Fridays: Soldotna Battle of the Books Grades 5th & 6th Mtg @ 11:00 a.m.
* Wednesdays (Until February 25th, 2015): Free Admission To the SeaLife Center in Seward
* 02/04 – Central Pen Senior Mtg @ Soldotna Connections 2:00pm
* 02/09-03/06 – Welding Academy @ Kenai
* 02/13 – Deadline for Science Fair Registration
* 02/18 – Salmon in the Classroom Sport Lake Ice Fishing @ 11:10-12:10
* 03/01 – Fee for Winter Ecology Program Due
* 03/19 – Winter Ecology Overnight Program
* 03/30-03/31 – Soldotna Safe Sitter Class (see below for more information)
* 05/07 Talent Show @ SoHi Auditorium @ 5:00 p.m.
Winter Ecology Overnight Program:
The Center for Alaskan Coastal Studies (CACS) and Connections Homeschool Program are teaming up again for a fun and educational overnight field trip at Ageya Wilderness Center on the bench above Homer. This trip is open to all Connections Homeschool students in grades 5-8.
This is a 1-night program with lodging in yurts at the Ageya Wilderness Center and activities and winter ecology explorations at both Ageya and nearby Wynn Nature Center. Topics include adaptations of plants and animals, animal tracking, cold weather safety & survival, shelter-building, guided snowshoe hikes, dutch oven cooking, astronomy, and night (snowshoe) hikes. Don’t miss this amazing learning opportunity.
We will meet in Homer on March 19th @ noon and will be finished March 20th @ noon. We need about a 6:1 student to adult ratio, so parents are welcome to attend. Cost for the trip is $82 per person, which can be deducted from the student allotment if the student has a class on their ILP related to this activity. Parents would need to pay out of pocket. There is also a $10/person fee for food that will be prepared and served on site – this fee needs to be paid out of pocket for all and is non-refundable. All fees will be due by March 1st.
Space is very limited – a maximum of 30 people will be able to attend! Please notify Derek Bynagle in the Homer office or Mark Wackler in the Soldotna office of your interest in this trip as soon as possible or if you have specific questions or concerns. Derek Bynagle – dbynagle@kpbsd.k12.ak.us 226-1880 Mark Wackler – mwackler@kpbsd.k12.ak.us 714-8880
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 . The show will be held on May 7th at the Soldotna High School Auditorium at 5:00 p.m. We look forward to seeing you at the 2015 Connections Talent Show!
Connections Homeschool Science Fair:
It’s time again for the Connections Homeschool Science Fair! Please fill out a registration form from your local Connections office by February 13th. Once you fill out the registration form we will send you several other documents. Projects will be displayed in the office for 1 week (February 23-27) and each student that submits a project will be awarded a small prize. If you have any additional questions please contact advisor Mark Wackler at mwackler@kpbsd.k12.ak.us or 714-8880.
Interior Distance Education of Alaska
Hooray for actually having some snow on the ground finally! Hopefully, you are able to enjoy the snow-maybe by trying some outdoor activities such as skiing, snowshoeing or sledding. We are also into our 3rd quarter of school. That means work samples and progress reports are turned in and we are heading into the 2nd semester of school. We want to encourage you to keep up the great work schooling your children. We also want to let you know of our upcoming events.
* Spelling Bee – February 5 at the Soldotna Library at 10:00 a.m. Sign up with Marian at the IDEA office. Marian.werth@ideafamilies.org or call her at 260-7555.
* Art in the Capitol – art work is due February 6. IDEA will be participating in Art in the Capitol again this year. This is an excellent opportunity to display your child’s quality artwork in the halls of the Capitol building in Juneau for our governor, legislators, Alaskans, and visitors to see and appreciate. IDEA has reserved display space during March. Student artists from K-12 grade are invited to contribute original 2-dimensional artwork on PAPER: painting, drawing, photography, mixed media, original (etching, lithos, silkscreen, woodblock) prints, or collage. Art must be on paper and un-mounted.
* Theme for 2015 is “GARDENS”
* Cabin Fever Fridays – 4 Fridays of educational games. These are from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. at Kalifonsky Christian Center. All ages are welcome and coffee will be served for adults. Please check your IDEA email to sign up for this opportunity to learn and play.
* Homer Day – February 13 – Math games with Adele and Suzanne. Please join us while we learn and have fun! Yes!! Math CAN be Fun!! More details coming soon! Remember to check your IDEA email.
* February 18 – Ice fishing at Sports Lake. IDEA’s time slot is 12:15-1:15. Come join us while we join Alaska Department of Fish and Game by spending some time ice fishing for Chinook salmon and rainbow trout. All equipment is provided, however, any student over 16 will need a fishing permit. Come learn proper ice fishing technique!
* PAC meeting – February 20 at 12:45 at the IDEA office. Come join us at the IDEA office to help plan out activities! We are meeting a little earlier that day due to our Cabin Fever Event! Bring a snack and your ideas!
* February 27 – Our last Cabin Fever Day will include a salmon dissection!
* Race to the Summit with IXL Math – You can still sign up to help us reach the summit. Did you check out the IXL store at the IDEA office? There are lots of prizes to choose from. Ask your contact teacher about signing up.
* Congratulations to Dominic Alioto from Kenai who won the middle school district Battle of the Books! He will travel to Anchorage with two fellow IDEA students, one from Mountain Village and another from Fairbanks for the state battle! Their battle is on February 23rd!!
* We also had our Geo Bee! One of our very geographically aware student, Stephan Pearson, will be traveling to Anchorage to compete in the state Geo Bee! Congratulations Stephan!
If you have gone onto the Family Site and gone to Region K, you might have noticed a new blog page. This new page is titled “Region K Community”.
This is for events that are happening in our community that aren’t sponsored by IDEA. You will also notice this is in our listserv emails.
The new subject line will be Region K Community. Another change coming up in March,we will be moving to a weekly newsletter. On Mondays we will be sending out an update with IDEA sponsored events. On Thursdays we will be sending out events that will be our community events. The events will be continue to be posted as soon as possible on our blog.
Kenai Middle
Thank you to all the Volunteers who helped make the recent Activity night and Dance a huge success. It was a great evening!
Congratulations to Sorin Sorensn, our KMS Spelling Bee Champion! Gary Dent is the runner-up. The Spelling Bee lasted 9 rounds and the championship word was “seethe”. Congratulations to Jacob Anderson, the Geography Bee Champion! Everett Strong is the 1st Runner-Up and Jessy Jeffries is the 2nd Runner-Up! Fantastic job by all of you!
Congratulations to our Character Counts winner: Skyler Dipola and McKinzie Ticknor! There will be no school on Thursday and Friday, February 5th and 6th. Parent/Teacher conferences will be held on Thursday February 5th from noon to 4pm and 5 to 7pm. Conferences are “arena style” meaning you do not need a scheduled time to conference with teachers. You are welcome to attend anytime during the scheduled hours.
If you are unable to attend during the open conference times. Please call the school and we will help you schedule a time that is convenient for you.
It is important to note that parents are welcome to schedule a meeting with their child’s teachers at any time during the school year. Parents do not have to wait for conference days to touch base with our staff. Just phone the office or speak with your child’s teachers for these accommodations. Office phone number is 283-1700.
There will be a band concert featuring KMS’s beginning band, on Tuesday February 3rd in the Library at 7 p.m.
There is also Volleyball @ Skyview on February 3rd beginning at 3:00 p.m.
Wednesday, February 4th is and early release day. School will end at 12:57 p.m. Buses will adjust to accommodate our schedule for that day.
The State Math Counts Competition is Saturday, February 7th.
Mountain View Elementary
The Library will be holding a book fair February 2 – February 6 during school hours and parent-teacher conferences. If you would like to volunteer to help with the book fair please call the office at 283-8600.
Wednesday, February 4 is an early release day for students. Students will be dismissed at 1:55 PM.
Parent/Teacher conferences will be held on Thursday & Friday, February 5 & 6. There will be no school for students.
Congratulations to our “Soaring Eagles” for the month of January. They are: Robert Hayes, Timothy Whisnant, James Sparks, Emaline Cruickshank, Matthew Arousa, Lydia Williams-Vasilie, Allie Hutchins, Taylor Crista, Eli Morris, Chloe Moffett, Kelsie Easling, Patrick Kramer, Karina Brence, Dennis Landt, Troy Dixon, Angelina Bond, Kyla Freeman, Macy Stanley, & Derrick Henry.
Nikiski Middle-High
Monday, February 2
* JV Girls Basketball @ SoHi – 3:00 p.m.
* JV Boys Basketball @ SoHi – 4:30 p.m.
Tuesday, February 3
* JV Boys Basketball @ Nikiski vs. George Morgan – 5:00 p.m.
Wednesday, February 4 – early release
Thursday, February 5 – Parent/Teacher Conferences – no school for students
* 8:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m.
* 12:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
* 5:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.
Friday, February 6 – Teacher Inservice – no school for student
* JV Girls Basketball @ Nikiski vs. Cordova – 3:00 p.m.
* JV Boys Basketball @ Nikiski vs. Cordova – 4:30 p.m.
* Varsity Girls Basketball @ Nikiski vs. Cordova – 6:00 p.m.
* Varsity Boys Basketball @ Nikiski vs. Cordova – 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, February 7
* High School Cross Country Skiing Boroughs @ Nikiski
* JV Girls Basketball @ Nikiski vs. Cordova – 10:00 a.m.
* JV Boys Basketball @ Nikiski vs. Cordova – 11:30 a.m.
* Varsity Girls Basketball @ Nikiski vs. Cordova – 1:00 p.m.
* Varsity Boys Basketball @ Nikiski vs. Cordova – 2:30 p.m.
Monday, February 9
* Grade Check!
* JV Girls Basketball @ Nikiski vs. SoHi – 3:00 p.m.
* JV Boys Basketball @ Nikiski vs. SoHi – 4:30 p.m.
Nikiski North Star Elementary
Congratulations to Diane Nasibog for placing first in our school geography bee! Second place went to Connor Evoy and third place to Jessica Perry. Also ,congratulations to the following students who represented their classes: Neo Patiag, Lilly Anderson, Carter Tennison, David Hadella, James Lathem, and Caleb Griffith. Diane will take a qualifying exam and see if she qualifies for the state geography bee to be held in Anchorage in April.
Today is the start of the Scholastic Book Fair being held in the school library. The fair will be open during the school day and also during parent/teacher conferences on Thursday and Friday. If you have a question, please call the school library at 776-2630. NNS will release students at 2:00 pm. A reminder that there is no school for students on Thursday and Friday this week because of parent/teacher conferences.
February is Love of Reading month at NNS. Along with the book fair, there are several activities planned including our annual ‘One School, One Book’ event. If you are unfamiliar with this program, you will be able to learn more about it from your child’s teacher during conferences.
Ninilchik School
Ninilchik Invitational Basketball Tournament
February 4,5,6,7: Featuring Teams From
Unalaska, King Cove, SoHi JV, Kalskag, Tok, Sandpoint and Ninilchik. Games begin Wednesday, February 4 at 2 p.m.
Redoubt Elementary
* February 3, 2015 – Bingo for Books – 6:30-8:00 p.m.
* February 4, 2015 – Early Release Day for students – 1:45 pm.
* February 5 & 6 2015 – Parent-Teacher Conferences
* February 5 & 6 2015 – No School for Students
* February 28, 2015 – Winter Carnival Noon – 4:00 p.m.
Bingo for Books – Tuesday, February 3rd, 6:30-8:00 p.m. Celebrate “Love of Reading Month”, free snacks, free books & free fun for the whole family. All students must be accompanied by an adult. Redoubt Elementary gym.
Geography Bee – Congratulations
Parker Kincaid – 1st Place Winner
Madelyn Barkman – 2nd Place
Congratulations to all participating students: Emma Craig, Chaz Bird, Johann Carranza, Taylor Lee, Erika Arthur, Ricardo Rincon, Jaron Kenner and Kati Koch.
Yearbooks are on Sale – $15.00 pre-order yours now, make checks payable to Redoubt Elementary. Yearbooks will arrive in May. Order forms have been sent home with students.
Box Tops Winners last week were: Lilly Bahl, Loretta Maal and Connor Gossman. 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.
Conferences
* Thursday, February 5th – 9:00am –12pm, 1:00pm-4:00pm & 5:00pm-7:00pm
* Friday, February 6th – 9:00am – 1200pm
Redoubt’s Third Annual “Winter Carnival”. Mark your calendar for Saturday, February 28, noon to 4:00 p.m. This event is open to the community. Come join us for an afternoon of fun. There will be door prizes, raffles, games, and a silent auction. Don’t miss the opportunity to dunk Mr. Pothast in the dunk tank. If you would like to volunteer to help at the carnival please call the school office. Maybe you own a business and wish to make a donation of goods or services for the auction, if so, please contact the school office.
Themed basket items are being collected from each classroom for the silent auction, please contact your child’s teacher for the theme of their classroom basket. A complete list will be printed in the school’s weekly newsletter. Watch the weekly school newsletter for additional raffles and information about the carnival.
Help Wanted: Raffle tickets are currently on sale for $20.00 each. First place – iPad 64GB, Second Place – 2 RT tickets to Anchorage on Grant Aviation & Third Place Toshiba Tablet 8GB. Drawing to be held at the Winter Carnival on February 28. Only 450 tickets will be sold. Stop by the school office to purchase your tickets.
Soldotna Elementary
Last week, the third graders had three special guests. On Monday, Roger and Marlene Pearson came to talk to the entire third grade about Alaska geography and maps. Mr. Pearson is a former UAF professor. His area of expertise is geography and Alaskan studies. On Thursday, Mr. Dale Lawyer and his Search and Rescue dog, Ares, came to Mrs. Straw’s class to teach us about winter safety and survival in the woods.
Mr. Lawyer works for CES. The kids had a great time learning what to do if they get lost, but their favorite part was getting to meet and visit with Ares. Mr. Lawyer and Ares will be visiting Ms. Buben’s third grade in February.
Friday, Ms. Suzanne Legner, a former SoEl teacher, came to talk to the entire third grade about her experiences walking with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. She spoke about the history of civil rights and about peaceful problem solving. She kept the students captivated with stories from her youth.
Second grade teachers, Sherri Baktuit and Holly Davis, just had a Junior Achievement volunteer, Mr. Michael Bloesser, from Walmart, teach economics lessons in their classrooms.
During these lessons, students learned about assembly line vs. individual production, government jobs, taxes, making decisions that impact the community, community careers, and how money moves throughout a community. The second grade classes want to thank Mr. Bloesser for providing his time and knowledge to us.
The Positive Behavior Intervention Support (PBIS) Team needs a Parent Communicator to join PBIS Think Tank Team! This volunteer’s duties would include representing parents at team meetings 2 Mondays per month at 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 ekvamme@kpbsd.k12.ak.us or 260-5100. We look forward to adding a parent volunteer to our team.
Art updates:
Mr. McKay’s 5th and 6th graders are working on slab-built clay projects. The pieces are dry now and still need to be bisque fired, glazed, and high fired. More information to follow. I’ll let you know how fabulously they turn out.
Mrs. Cannava’s preschoolers have honored the late artist, Andy Warhol, with their Teddy Bear prints. You can see these outside the preschooler’s room, and you can also see the teddy bears they used for the project. Alas, the bears will never be quite the same, but the resulting art work is remarkable! As with Mr. Warhol’s work, Mrs. Cannava isolated the images, then repeated them many times in one piece of art. Continuing down the intermediate hallway, you will see self-portraits which are most interesting and a variety of “I Have a Dream” papers with lovely artwork which commemorate the work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
As you check out the primary hallway, you will see their “Let it snow” display with lots of snow people, and they are so cute! It must have worked some magic as we finally have fluffy driveways and yards again. You won’t want to miss the “We Love You to Pieces” display for Valentine’s Day. The hearts are lovely and made with puzzle pieces. So Sweet!
Battle of the Books is a reading program that gives the same list of books to every school in the district.
Kids read the books, get together and play reading games, watch videos about the authors and books, and are then chosen for a district-wide competition. Every school is guaranteed 3 battles with different schools around the district. Our 3rd and 4th graders will battle on Feb. 3rd, and our 5th and 6th graders will battle on Feb. 10th. We wish you all the best with your battles, you brilliant scholars!
Soldotna High
Wednesday, Feb. 4 (Early Release Day)
7:40 a.m. – 8:20 a.m. 1st Period 40 Minutes
*** Extra time: Announcements
8:25 a.m. – 9:05 a.m. 2nd Period 40 Minutes
*** No Advisory – 3rd Period
9:10 a.m. – 9:50 a.m. 4th Period 40 Minutes
10:00 a.m. – 10:40 a.m. 5th Period 40 Minutes
10:45 a.m. – 11:25 a.m. 6th Period 40 Minutes
11:25 a.m. – 11:55 p.m. Lunch 35 Minutes
12:00 p.m. – 12:40 p.m. 7th Period 40 Minutes
12:50 p.m. Bus Pickup
Parent Teacher Conference on Thursday, Feb. 5th from 12:00 pm to 3:00 pm and again from 4:00 pm to 7:00 pm.
Soldotna Prep
Early Release Day February 4, 2015
No School / Parent Teacher Conferences Thursday, February 5, 2015 from 12☺0 – 3:00 and 4:00 – 7:00 in the big gym
No School Friday, February 6, 2015 In-service Day
Visit Soldotna Prep blog for current information: http://soldotnaprep.blogs.kpbsd.k12.ak.us/wpmu/
Skyview Middle
Sports Schedule:
* Tuesday, February 3 – Volleyball – Kenai vs. Skyview 7th @ Skyview Middle – 3:00 p.m.
* Tuesday, February 3 – Volleyball – Kenai B vs. Skyview B @ Skyview Middle – 4:30 p.m.
* Tuesday, February 3 – Volleyball – Skyview 8th vs. Seward @ Seward – 3:00 p.m
* Wrestling – No meet scheduled – Pictures will be Tuesday February 3 in the commons @ 2:30 p.m.
* Nordic Skiing – No meet scheduled
Events this week:
* Wednesday, February 4 – Early Release Day – Skyview Middle School students will end the school day at 12:55 pm.
* Thursday, February 5 – Parent Teacher Conferences! One day only. Arena style. Parents and students are welcome to attend during the following times: Morning Session 7:30 to 11:00 am / Afternoon Session 12 noon to 4:00 pm / Evening Session 5:00 to 7:00 p.m
* Thursday, February 5 – No School for Students
* Friday, February 6 – No School for Students
Outstanding student Fees can be viewed online. Please check PowerSchool > Student Fees for current information. Please contact Mrs. Kircher at 260-2500 with any questions or concerns.
NAEP will be administered to select eighth-graders on February 10. To learn more about the program, visit http://1.usa.gov/Ugb2Ct.
The Kenai Peninsula Borough School District is holding a Public Pool Use and Budget Meeting on Wednesday, February 18, 2015 beginning at 5:00 p.m. in the Soldotna High School library. Everyone interested is encouraged to attend. If there are questions, please contact Lassie Nelson at District Office at 714-8838.
Tustumena Elementary
Month of FEBRUARY
* February 3 3rd & 4th Grade Battle of Books
* February 4 Early Release, 2:05 p.m.
* February 5th & 6th Parent Teacher Conferences
* February 9-13 Love of Reading Week
* February 10 5th & 6th Grade Battle of Books
* February 12 Tustumena School Forensics n February 13 Mighty Meatballs Fundraiser Dinner for 6th Grade
* February 17 PTO Meeting, 4 p.m. n February 23 Site Council Meeting n February 24 Skyview Middle School Counselor’s Visit 6th Grade
* February 28 District Wide Forensics at Tustumena School 10 a.m.
Wings Christian Academy
This last week at Wings, the students were able to go to the Seward Sea Life Center. Everyone enjoyed getting a day off school and seeing more of Alaska’s wildlife. On January 27, they also celebrated the 100th day of school. Mrs. Deloma Howell made a sheet cake with 100 jelly beans on top! The students were very grateful and ate the entire cake.
This week at Wings, Tyler Ophus and Ethan Berga won the “Cleanest Desk of the Week” award. Great job! Students will also be competing in the Quiz’em competition on Wednesday. For the month of December, Andrew Grant, Ethan Berga, and Abel Newbern won. Who will win this time?
In the next few weeks, an Honor Roll trip is planned on February 12 for those who made an 88% or higher grade average in the last quarter. They will be going bowling and eating ice cream sundaes after lunch.
Congratulations! The LLC students will be going ice skating for PE, beginning on March 5. Also, the deadline to turn in Box Tops will be announced in a few weeks. The students can win prizes, including non-uniform days that can be redeemed for regular school days throughout the year. Keep collecting!
