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Schools

June 15, 2010
Longtime administrators Tanis Knight and Ina Evers-Martin celebrate at a Hawaiian themed party held in their honor. The two have worked for the Camas School District for a combined total of 52 years.

The start of a new chapter

Tanis Knight and Ina Evers-Martin have a combined total of 52 years with the Camas School District. They both came to work for CSD in 1984; Knight as the principal at Helen Baller Elementary and Evers-Martin as the district's business manager. Knight, 57, is now the assistant superintendent, heading up curriculum and instruction. Evers-Martin, 62, remains as the business manager. At the end of June, each will end their long careers in CSD and begin a new chapter in their lives. The Post-Record recently sat down with Evers-Martin and Knight, who are friends as well as co-workers, and listened to their thoughts on working in Camas, life after retirement and stand-out moments in their careers. The answers below have been edited for clarity and length.

June 12, 2010

Young artists win big at state competition

The artwork of two local students was among just a handful of winners picked from more than 200 entries that came from school districts around the state as part of The Superintendent's High School Art Show competition. There were 11 state winners, including CHS seniors Whitney Austin who took home the Washington Art Education Association Tribute Award for her untitled photograph and Kristi Valentine, whose work "Journal of a Most Peculiar Voyage," was a Jury Choice winner. For being among the state winners, Austin's and Valentine's pieces will be purchased and added to a 36-year collection, which hangs in the Washington State Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction building in Olympia.

June 12, 2010
Once youngsters reeled in their catch, Moose Lodge volunteers helped snatch the fish from the water, remove the hook, then clean it.

Reeling in some fishing derby fun

The smiles were absolutely contagious during the annual Camas Moose Lodge fishing derby Friday morning. Boys and girls tossed their lines in the calm waters of Lacamas Lake to try their hands at catching at lease one fish. With 4,000 of the little wiggly swimmers sloshing around beneath the surface of a small netted-off area next to the Lodge's docks, it didn't take long for the youngsters to begin reeling rainbow and brown trout -- one after another. That's when the smiles, laughter and excitement really started. This outing was a special, eagerly anticipated occasion for the nearly 30 students who are all part of the Life Skills programs at Liberty Middle School and Camas High School, and Liberty's TLC program. The curriculum is designed for students with a variety of disabilities, from autism and Down syndrome to more mild health impairments. "They talk about going fishing all year," said Misty Youngblood, a Life Skills teacher at Liberty. "It's good for the socialization. They have fun, it's a challenge, and it's a culmination of the whole year -- the skills that we practice."

June 11, 2010
Hathaway students Shae Alder, left, and Mackenzie Desmet empty classroom recycling bins last week as part of the school's Green Team efforts.

Hathaway is first school in Washougal to earn state certification

When teachers and students at Hathaway Elementary talk about "being green," it isn't just idle chatter. The school's Green Team is saving both natural resources and money by focusing on energy conservation, as a part of the Washington Green Schools program.