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Schools

September 4, 2012

Washougal teachers ratify 3-year contract

Washougal teachers overwhelmingly approved a new three-year contract on Thursday. The new agreement came after negotiations between the Washougal Association of Educators and the School District. "I am very pleased with the negotiation process," said Dawn Tarzian, district superintendent. "It is important and we have learned a lot, and reached an agreement that the association, board and administrators can feel good about." "Washougal teachers feel that this was an equitable contract, given the current economy," said Sheila Good, WAE co-president.

September 4, 2012

School district approves budget

The Washougal School Board has approved a $28.8 million budget for the 2012-13 school year. It is a $1.5 million increase over the 2011-12 budget. Of that, approximately $800,000 is for a planned gym floor and turf field replacement at Washougal High School. "I feel very positive about this year's budget," said Dawn Tarzian, district superintendent. "It identifies key priorities and sets aside money for those things."

August 28, 2012
Teachers learn new things at an environmental teacher training at Steigerwald Lake National Wildlife Refuge in Washougal. Volunteers shared new techniques and information on how to use the local refuge to bolster educators' science curriculum. Teachers participated in watching for and counting Purple Martins, a rare bird that nests there each summer.

Teachers learn to use natural resources

Educators in the Camas-Washougal area spent a recent Tuesday morning exploring ways to teach their students by getting outside of the classroom and into nature. Jim Clapp, Steigerwald Lake National Wildlife Refuge manager, coordinated two environmental education teacher trainings held at the refuge and nearby Jemtegaard Middle School in Washougal. With the help of the Columbia Gorge Refuge Stewards, Lower Columbia Estuary Partnership, Educational Service District 112 and Friends of the Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge, teachers from Camas, Washougal and Battle Ground spent six hours learning how to teach using the outdoors. "It is geared toward elementary schools, but there are applications for any level," explained Josie Finley, one of the environmental education workers at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in the area. "We really try to address the needs of the students. "Teachers especially need to know about the area since we don't have the number of volunteers to host tours ourselves." There will be another training program held on Oct. 20. Educators can register through ESD 112. For more information, contact Clapp at 835-8767.

August 28, 2012

Clark College scores high with Google

A first-year Clark College entrepreneurship club, Winning Innovations through Student Entrepreneurship, placed in the top 15 percent globally in the Google Online Marketing Challenge. The challenge required teams of two to six students to build a campaign for a local business or non-profit organization that would drive business to their website. More than 2,000 teams entered, and W.I.S.E. earned the highest rating before making it into the semi-finals.

August 28, 2012

School notes for August 28, 2012

Local student receives scholarship from WSU Nicholas Lafrazia was awarded a $500 Charles W. Harrison Engineering Scholarship and a $2,000 Washington State University achievement award. The College of Engineering and Architecture awards the Charles W. Harrison scholarship to a student interested in engineering based on academic excellence in math and science.

August 21, 2012
The new walking path at Helen Baller Elementary School (above) will complement its goal-setting track program.

Schools are paving the way to better health

With a focus on wellness and physical activity, two local schools have installed walking paths. Helen Baller and Dorothy Fox elementary school Parent Teacher Association members spent approximately two years fund-raising for the projects. The paved walking track at Helen Baller circles the perimeter of the school and ends at the playground. It is one-quarter mile loop. The track at Dorothy Fox was converted from an existing gravel path to a paved version. It loops around the perimeter of the playground and into the existing play area.

August 21, 2012

School briefs for Aug. 21, 2012

Two locals graduate from SPU Two students from Camas recently graduated from Seattle Pacific University. Leslie Anne Simpson graduated with a master of education degree in school counseling.

August 21, 2012

School Board discusses paying off Kerr property in Washougal

The Washougal School Board is considering paying off a loan early to save money on interest payments. In 2001, the district purchased the 30-acre Kerr Property as a future school site. It is located behind its office at Evergreen Way, and was purchased for $1.85 million through a loan at what was then known as First Independent Bank. Rosann Lassman, business manager, said after doing some research, she realized the loan could be paid off with impact fees. "We have $780,000 left to pay, with $101,000 left in interest," she said. "We would save $91,000 if we paid it by Sept. 1."

August 14, 2012
Photo courtesy of Tammy Connolly Thanks to the efforts of the Cape Horn-Skye Elementary School Booster Club and contributions from the community, students at the rural Washougal school will have a covered play area starting this fall.

Washougal school gets new playground cover

Cape Horn-Skye Elementary School's Booster Club has spent two years raising money for a new playground cover, and now they've finally reached their goal. The new cover will be ready for this coming fall, by Sept. 1, according to Tammy Connolly, the Booster Club president. The club, made up of current students' parents, originally thought it would take five years to raise the money, but parents were surprised at the school's and community's support. "We were so thrilled," said Connolly. The Booster Club put on two different fundraising events: its annual Sport-A-Thon and a new endeavor -- cookie dough sales. After each event, they had raised $5,000 to $6,000 for the Washougal school's booster club.