District News

Stilwell Junior High eighth grader Gabriel Mintzer had a perfect score on the American Mathematics Competitions 8 (AMC 8) exam, the best score in the state of Iowa.

Mintzer is one of just 153 students nationwide with a perfect score on the test, putting him in the top 0.1 percent of students taking the test. Across the country, there were 2,436 schools that participate in the competition with 152,670 total students taking the test.

The AMC 8 is a 25 question, 40 minute multiple choice exam in middle school mathematics designed to promote the development and enhancement of problem solving skills. The exam provides an opportunity to apply the concepts taught at the junior high level to problems which not only range from easy to difficult but also cover a wide range of applications. Many problems are designed to challenge students and to offer problem solving experiences beyond those provided in most junior high school mathematics classes. Calculators are not allowed.

Visit http://amc.maa.org for more information.

The Staff Recognition Committee, an independent committee of community members, held its annual Staff Recognition Reception May 9, honoring this year’s district retirees as well as employees with 15, 20, 25, 30, 35 and 40 years of service to the WDMCS. A list of retirees and honorees can be found in the program.

As a thank you from the community, district staff members are treated to hors d’oeuvres and a short program before a door prize drawing. All door prizes are donated by community members and local businesses and the event is paid for through sponsor donations to the committee.

Thank you to committe co-chairs Susan Bridge and Teresa McLaughlin and committee members Tammy Cline, Amy Kuennen, Rhonda McCoy, Kelly McQueen and Karla Simon for their hard work and planning of this event.

A special thanks to Pamela Ballard and the third grade student artists at Hillside Elementary for today’s table centerpieces.

Life in the WDMCS is a weekly feature that highlights what is happening at each of our buildings. If a school is not listed, there was no submission from that building this week.

Valley High School
This is a call to all former actors, mimes, techies, choir members and musicians who would like to say goodbye to VHS Auditorium on Saturday May 18 at 5:30 p.m.  Come and share some memories and see old familiar faces.  There will also be a premiere showing of a documentary featuring the Valley High School Auditorium.  Hope to see you there!  If you have any questions, please email vandeventert@wdmcs.org.

Clive Elementary
Clive Student Council is wrapping up another successful year.  This year nearly 80 second through sixth graders met monthly to help work to improve the school.  Among the projects this group undertook were a winter clothing drive, improving lunch room behaviors, decreasing bullying, counting box tops that raise valuable money for Clive programs and being role models for the rest of the student body.  The council members were led by presidents Maura Ortner and Brantley Cox, both sixth graders.  As a reward for successful year the members will be walking to Baskin Robbins for an ice cream treat.

Crestview Elementary
The Crestview halls have been filled with music as students prepared for spring concerts and the sixth grade Honor Music Festival. This concert was held May 7 in the Valley Auditorium. Many Crestview students were involved in this concert because of their hard work and commitment to their various ensembles. Congratulations to the following students on a job well done and being chosen to be a part of the sixth grade Honor Band: Alexa Nelson, Gabe Lockin, Natalie Bullard, Barbara Nicholson, Lauren Stetson, Austin Anfinson, Alison Whitaker, Anya Finkelshteyn and Abby Ringgenberg.

Crossroads Park Elementary
The Crossroads Park Cougar Council held their annual Movie Night recently, raising more than $700. The Council is proud to donate $500 to the WDMCS Student Scholarship Fund and will use the rest for future events.  Many students stayed after school to set-up the event, worked vigorously in concessions helping the 200+ people who attended and then cleaned up to make the gym and kitchen spotless.  We are very proud of their hard work, leadership, and excellent example of good character. Student planners and workers were Cam Mears, Hanna Marcus, Greta Stewart, Samantha Morris, Emily Anders, Brett Shelton, Christina Melendez, Emma DeJong, Katie Richards, Kelly Dulaney, Ava Neppl, Lauren Schulze, Quinn Emison, Emily Strawn, Callie Kreps, Dakota Hayes-McCoy, Nate Bell, Shreya Gaddi, Derek Nguyen, Jessica Erickson, Ariel Corona, Leah Thomas and Malini De Jong.

Hillside Elementary
Hillside had 13 students chosen to participate in the sixth grade Honors Festival May 7 at Valley. The students auditioned to be a part of the select groups and participated in morning rehearsals beginning in March. The concert features sixth graders from the around the district collaborating in band, orchestra, choir and handbells.  Honor Choir students from Hillside were Lawrence Byerly, Chloe Shoepke, Kendra Thompson, Cole Strelecki, Victoria Moreno, Amariah Williams, Kadin Kees, Erika Gomez and Isabella Garza; Honor Band students were Valerie Sihavong and Isabella Garza; and Honor Orchestra students were Kendra Thompson, Chloe Schoepke, Chloe Beem, Rose Blobaum and Adler Goodhall.

Jordan Creek Elementary
Second grade students worked hard to honor their mothers for Mother’s Day.  Thank you to Dahl’s Grocery Store for providing letter writing papers and frames, as well as giving posters to each class to fill out to hang in our neighborhood grocery store.  We appreciate the donation of these supplies. Students also made special cards that included a drawing of their mothers, a poem, and a picture of each student holding a vase of colorful flowers that we called a “forever bouquet.”  Everyone is very thankful for their mother, and all she does to help make the days go well!

The 13th annual WDMCS Math Bowl was held on May 2 at Indian Hills Junior High.  Jordan Creek was represented by third graders Andy Haugen, Anika Jain, Noah Pins, Rahul Reddy, Layne Slater, Tyson Trimble, Ryan Wirtz and Elaine Wang; fourth graders Pierce Blazek, Jimmy Hall, Segal Jain, Andy Kuster, Heather Nguyen, Gabe Schebel, Aditi Tripathy and Jalyn Wu; fifth graders Veda Amalkar, Avery Merkley, Caroline Ash, David Carpenter, Animesh Joshi, Clara Mintzer, Elyse Porter and Kevin Qi; and sixth graders Jackson Froscheiser, Jessica Haugen, David Head, James Meng, Shuvethan Sivagurunathan, Evan Porter, Nicky Trane and Radha Velamuri. The district recognizes students who scored in the top 10 percent of the district in their grade level test.  James Meng and Veda Amalkar both received recognition for this honor.

Phenix Elementary
The cast of “Seussical, the Musical” from the Des Moines Playhouse visited first and second graders at Phenix Elementary. The cast shared some of their favorite lines from the play, showed the students some of the props used and even sang some songs from the show.  The visit ended with the cast giving every student their own copy of the book “Horton Hears a Who” for their keepsake.  The cast then read the book with small groups of students.  Phenix took a field trip to see the live performance on April 29.  After the performance, students wrote letters to the cast.  Each student will receive a written response from the actors.  What a great opportunity these children have had seeing literature brought to life!

Westridge Elementary
Second graders at Westridge Elementary have several things to look forward to in the month of May. They will travel to the Botanical Center where the students will explore and learn about fascinating plants. This trip will be the culminating activity for a plant unit where they have been studying and growing plants of their own.  While in Des Moines, the second graders will also tour the State Capitol. Some of the highlights will include the State Senate and House of Representatives Chambers, the Law Library, the doll case, Westward mural, mosaics, interior dome and a model of the USS Iowa. To celebrate a love for reading, the second graders will also enjoy their last Book and Bag at the park. The Book and Bag celebration is a reward for completing independent reading throughout the month. Students will have the opportunity to enjoy great literature, play games with their classmates and have a picnic in the park.

Stilwell Junior High
Congratulations to Stilwell Team I’s Pam Chander for being the eighth grade Iowa winner in the “Letters about Literature” contest.  Over 1,400 letters were entered in the junior high level and Pam took the top prize.  She received $75 and her letter was moved on to the national level.  On May 3, Pam read her award-winning letter during a recognition ceremony held at the Des Moines Public Library.  Team I also had semi-finalists in Catie Judge and Garry Reineke, and Guowei Chi was a finalist. Their teacher is Kay Woods. From Team T, Alanna Maxwell was a semi-finalist and Sam Cole was a finalist.  Their teacher is Katie Seiberling. From Team G, Maddie Perdue was a semi-finalist and her teacher is Kerry Bootsma.

The West Des Moines Community Schools (WDMCS) Board of Education today announced a separation of employment agreement with district superintendent, Dr. Peter Ansingh.

“On behalf of the school board, the parents, faculty and staff, I would like to thank Dr. Ansingh for his service to the students and teachers of our district,” said Mark Lagomarcino, vice president of the WDMCS Board of Education. “He carried out his responsibilities as superintendent professionally and ethically, and we appreciate his contributions to our district.”

The board approved the separation of employment agreement with Dr. Ansingh at a special session Thursday evening. The Board of Education will immediately begin developing a transition plan, including naming an interim superintendent.

Ansingh served as superintendent for two years. Prior to West Des Moines Community Schools, he was superintendent of the West Valley School District in Yakima, Wash.

Agreement

Valley High School junior Harry Freund recorded the highest score for level four students in the state of Iowa on this year’s National Spanish Exam. On the level five test, Kendall Neuberger placed third, Kylie Boeve placed fifth, Caroline Erickson placed sixth, followed by Kimberly Sorensen and Daniel Malina in ninth and tenth, respectively.

In addition to placing well in the state rankings, students from Valley High School earned a total of three silver and one bronze medal along with five honorable mentions in the national awards. Silver medals are award to those students scoring between the 85^th-94^th percentile and bronze to those scoring between the 75^th-84^th percentile. Honorable mention is awarded to students scoring between the 50^th-74^th percentile. Silver medals went to Freund, Neuberger and Boeve with Erickson receiving the bronze.

“Attaining a medal or honorable mention for any student on the National Spanish Examinations is very prestigious,” said Kevin Cessna-Buscemi, National Director of the Exams, “because the exams are the largest of their kind in the United States with over 156,000 students participating in 2013.”

Students from Valley have a long history of high achievement on these exams and were taught by Valley Spanish teachers Sue Boyle, Krista Cooley, Tara Friedley, Suzanne Herr and Piet Van der Meer as well as Lisa Sobotka, Josiah Brandt and Betty Baum-Ferree at Valley Southwoods.

The National Spanish Examinations are administered each year for sixth graders through seniors, and are sponsored by the American Association of Teachers of Spanish and Portuguese.

More information on the National Spanish Exam can be found at www.aatsp.org or www.nationalspanishexam.org.

Life in the WDMCS is a weekly feature that highlights what is happening at each of our buildings. If a school is not listed, there was no submission from that building this week.

Valley High School
Chloe Matthews, Lydia Saggau and Melissa Shepherd have been selected to participate in the Senior All-Start Track & Field Spotlight Meet on June 7-8 in Joliet, Ill.  The meet spotlights the senior talent from Iowa, Wisconsin and Illinois as the three states compete against each other.  This marks the 15th year of this meet and the first time that Valley has had three girls selected to participate in the same year. Congratulations!

Congratulations to Yan Chan, Dani Lipman, Jimin Park and Autumn Seo, who won first prize at the Chinese Speaking Competition this Saturday at the University of Iowa.  This followed the Chinese Lion Team of Suryatej Akavaram/ Tej, Isabelle Pierotti-May, Ashley Segura, Cassandra Merrell and Ben Wade that opened the competition. The Chinese Speaking Competition is organized by Confucius Institute at University of Iowa every other year and this is the first year for high schools in Iowa to participate. The participating teams are from Central Campus, Ankeny, Bondurant, J. F. Kennedy, Marshalltown and Northview school districts.

Clive Elementary
Sharon Hart’s second-grade class has been studying the ocean.   During this unit, her students have been writing letters to Seashell Girl, a friend of Mrs. Hart’s who lives in Florida.   In their letters, the students have asked questions about the ocean and seashells.  Seashell Girl has been writing letters back to them answering their questions and teaching them more about the ocean around Florida.  She sent each student a packet of Florida seashells to keep. The class has been studying each of the seashells, using a reference book on Florida Seashells.  This has been a wonderful addition to our study of the ocean.

Clive Elementary held its Third Passport to Learning family event for 62 ESL students and family members at the Urbandale Public Library.  Families started the evening with a pizza dinner and a tour of the library.  Each student took their own passport and with their families and visited four stations: Story Time, All About the Library, Learning Activities You Can Do at Home and How to Use the Card Catalog.  At the conclusion of the evening, each family received a magnetic whiteboard, magnetic letters, dry-erase marker and two books to take home.  Families were also able to apply for a library card and check out books at that time. The Urbandale library staff, Clive ESL teachers (Sonya Coy, Kelly McCulley, Crys Messer, Leah Taylor and Ken Sims), Clive staff (Rachael Binder, Jenni Jones, Catherine Michl, Anne Olson, and Abby Boruff) and Spanish Interpreters (Rosa Pagan and Belen Warnemunde) all worked together to plan and implement this event. Clive Principal Brandon Pierce, Superintendent Peter Ansingh and Assoc. Superintendent for Curriculum Laurene Lanich also attended.  Learning and fun was had by all!

Fairmeadows Elementary
Staff and students at Fairmeadows are focusing on being people of good character.  The staff at Fairmeadows chose students they felt were showing the pillars of character in all parts of the school day.  These students showed the staff they are responsible, respectful, trustworthy, fair, caring and good citizens. Students received a special certificate, pencil and had their picture taken to be displayed in the front hall of the school. Students included in our May celebration are Frankie Hassler, Laney Schultz, Ian Kearney-Regnold, Josh Meyers, Connor Helm, Cecelia Stegh, Holly Fess, Emily Croft, Luck Pike, Ella Leistner, Juliett Kelly, Dominik Baftiq, Jordan Dewes Olivia Jacobsen, Faith Triana, Annalise Tucker, Jaselle Myers, Neil Madigan, Jaedon Hennessy, Liam Bechman, Adrien Hart, Camyrn Benz, Cohen Kooker, Ben Fess, Emerson Drake, Zachary Basart-Morse, Ally Hoffa, Brianna Carenza, Kyle Tu, Justin Zarate, Nicole Jordan, Kelsey Erickson, Kyra Brown, Alex Bacilio, Oscar Lara, Louis Lara, Sophie Weedman, Maren Stegh, Caden Moore Ella Gallagher, Kate Kelly, Laura Kipnusu, Alyana Horn, Euron Bajrami, Delaney Grant, Nick Feingold, Kate Cairney, Hailey Carenza, Logan Kha, josh Yencer, Brandon Lee, Gracie Coleman, Connor O’Ryan, Trisha Bedwell, Sarah Kanehl, Evan Armitage, Morgan Tyma, Jordan Andrus, Owen Smith and Noah Micka.

Jordan Creek Elementary
Fifth graders at Jordan Creek visited the State Capitol and Iowa Historical Building recently. They toured the Capitol, learned about its history and had a chance to see where our state government works.  At the Historical Building students had a chance to tour exhibits featuring the Civil War, Iowa’s Natural Resources and Iowa History. It was a educational-and fun-day for all!

Phenix Elementary
This year the West Des Moines Community School District will be holding its 30^th annual Math Quiz Bowl.  The competition gathers third through sixth graders from across the district and challenges them to a math test based on their grade level.  Only the top performing students from each grade are selected.  Phenix is proud to announce that Emma Fetters, Sophia Nelson and Brooklyn Johnson will be representing the school.  The students are very excited to show off what they have learned so far in third grade and to compete with children from other schools.  Each student participating will earn a ribbon and certificate of achievement.  Good luck to all participating!

Stilwell Junior High
Stilwell Men’s Choir and Show Choir embarked on their annual tour of elementary schools on April 29, visitng Jordan Creek, Western Hills, Hillside and Fairmeadows.  For a breather, students ate lunch at Jordan Creek mall.  The students enjoyed singing at their alma maters and seeing their elementary teachers.  The performances also serve as a way to prepare for the upcoming concerts in May.  Men’s Choir meets one morning a week before school hours, and show choir usually practices twice weekly. All students are members of the 7-8 grade Stilwell school choirs. The tour is a yearly tradition for the school groups.

Stilwell’s Team R set out on its second annual fundraiser for the Animal Rescue League of Iowa the month of April.  Seven Tiger Times participated in their community service project to raise over 600 items for the ARL here in Des Moines. The majority of items donated came in the form of needed bath towels for the ARL.  When rescues occur, many animals are in such dire need of bathing that the ARL nearly depletes their supply.  Some students brought in as many as 20 and 30 towels each.  Others donated kitty litter, dog food, cans of cat food, paper towels as well as other needy items on the ARL donation list. It took a SUV and another van to accommodate the boxes of donations.  Five ARL workers greeted the delivery with smiles and shrieks of pure joy, joining in hauling the contributions.  Somewhere in the echoes of the rescue league we heard barks of joy and meows of thanks, we’re sure.

Every month students who demonstrate the three cornerstones of Stilwell in their behavior are nominated by staff members to be featured in the Celebrating Stilwell Students program.  Students receive a coupon for a free lunch or a la carte menu item in addition to having their photo and accomplishments posted in the display case at school. The cornerstones are do your best, do the right thing and treat others with respect.  Students now being honored are Bella Trane, Taylor Jones, Ben Peters, Tommy Anderson, Quinton Curry, Piper Wood, Beth Hammond, Brad Severino, Andrew Ramer, Kyle Kopf, Maggie Baughman, Ryan Roberts, Lanny Reed, Christian O’Connor and Mia Klarec.

Phenix Elementary wellness coordinator and second grade teacher Jessica George talks to students about healthy food choices during Tuesday Tasting.

Phenix Elementary School has been honored with a Gold Award of Distinction through the USDA’s HealthierUS School Challenge, a voluntary national certification initiative for schools participating in the National School Lunch Program. Iowa Department of Education officials will participate in a student assembly on Friday, May 3, to celebrate the national award received for efforts to support and improve the health of children and the community.

Phenix Elementary has worked to put in place healthy choices for meals, nutrition education, and physical education and activity.  Phenix students and staff participate in several wellness activities throughout the school year, including Pick-a-Better Snack nutrition education, Tuesday Tastings held once a month, the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program, and Live Healthy Iowa. The school also organizes Wellness Wednesday, a time for all students and staff to participate in physical activities together.

Friday’s event marks a school celebration with the Valley High School Cheer Squad, a special appearance from Power Panther, brain breaks, and remarks from local school officials as well as Iowa Department of Education Director Jason Glass.

In addition to the celebration, the entire student body will go for a walk as part of Iowa Sports Foundation’s Go the Distance Day and will participate in taste testing provided by Chef Burrows from Hy-Vee.

UPDATE 3/7/13 – The team claimed the top prize of $5,000 this week in the
Construction Industry Round Table (CIRT)/ACE Mentor Program National Design
Competition.  The student group traveled
to Washington, D.C., where Joseph Bahnsen of DM East High School presented their
mock design for a Modular Education Addition to a panel of judges that included
CEOs from top national design and construction firms.

———-

Valley students Jordan Hutton and Saketh Undurty have been chosen as members of the ACE Mentor Program of Central Iowa (ACE C-IA). ACE is sending a team of Des Moines-area high school students to Washington, D.C., to compete in the Construction Industry Round Table (CIRT)/ACE Mentor Program National Design Competition.  Their design submission of a Modular School Addition was recently selected as one of three finalists out of 43 entries from ACE affiliates nationwide.  The students will present the project at the CIRT Spring Conference on April 30 in Washington, D.C.   As a finalist, the Central Iowa team will have the opportunity to compete for the top prize of $5,000 before a panel of distinguished judges from the CIRT, including CEOs from top design/construction firms.

In the fall of 2012, ACE C-IA established a select team of veteran students who were seeking a deeper, more-focused exploration of architecture, construction, and engineering to form the Competition Team.  National Competition team members include:

• Jordan Hutton, WDM Valley HS
• Saketh Undurty, WDM Valley HS
• Nicole Bramow, Ankeny HS
• Sirina Reed, Ankeny HS
• Joseph Bahnsen, DM East HS
• Ross Nickey, DM Lincoln HS
• Eric Cole, Southeast Polk HS
• Katie Smithart, Southeast Polk HS

In addition, professional mentors from local businesses have contributed over 250 hours of volunteer time to help guide the competition team through the design process.  These mentors include:

• Josh Ridgely, SVPA Architects
• Mike Dean, INVISION Architecture/Planning
• Stacie Ellickson-Hastie, Confluence
• Jonathan Vaage, Charles Saul Engineering
• Brant Bristow, Tometich Engineering

About ACE:  The ACE Mentor Program of Central Iowa is an affiliate of the ACE Mentor Program of America.  Since 2006, over 375 Des Moines-area high school students have been introduced to the integrated construction industry.  Further, through the generous donations by local architecture, construction, and engineering firms, The ACE Mentor Program of Central Iowa has awarded 40 students a total of $79,000 in scholarships to further their ACE-related education.  In addition, the ACE Mentor Program of Central Iowa was recognized as an exemplary STEM Program by Governor Branstad’s STEM Advisory Council in 2012.

The ACE Mentor Program of America, established in 1995 in New York, currently has a presence in over 200 cities across the US, including affiliates in Des Moines and in Mason City, IA.  This year alone over 8,000 students and almost 5,000 mentors are participating in the program; 70% are minorities and 40% are young women.  The ACE Mentor program of America received a 2010 Presidental Award from President Obama for Excellence in Science Math and Engineering Mentoring.  For more information on the ACE Mentor Program of America visit http://www.acementor.org.

Beta won the Inspire Award to bring home the FTC FIRST Robotics World Championship after competing against 128 teams representing 16 countries.

West Des Moines Community Schools’ FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC) robotics team, Beta, won the Inspire Award to bring home the FTC FIRST Robotics World Championship after competing against 128 teams representing 16 countries last weekend in St. Louis. They will be recognized at a press conference with Lieutenant Governor Kim Reynolds Monday, May 6 at 9 a.m. at the state capitol.

“FIRST Tech Challenge is a life-changing program that goes way beyond just building robots,” said the team’s coach, Emmaly Burklund. “FTC encompasses what our workforce needs including teamwork, critical thinking skills, problem-solving, public speaking, entrepreneurship and direct application of knowledge.”

Beta is among more than 2,500 FTC teams from across the globe, of which just 5 percent advance to compete at the championships. Of that 5 percent, Beta was the overall world champion. The team also beat out 135 Iowa teams to win the Inspire Award at the state competition to automatically advance to the world championships.

Teams are judged on criteria including robot build and design, the engineering notebook, teamwork and community outreach. Beta team members are Jordan Burklund, Daniel Miller, Annie Howard, Chase Schweitzer, Sidd Somayajula, Saketh Undurty and Tanvi Yenna. Dale Herzerg, a technology education teacher at Stilwell Junior High, also coached the team.

“It’s awesome to receive an achievement that not only reflects our performance at the event but our dedication and diligence throughout the entire season,” said team member Chase Schweitzer.

The team was also nominated for the Connect Award, which is judged on connections with local community and the engineering community, and the Think Award, which is given to the team that best reflects the journey the team took as they experienced the engineering design process during the build season through documentation in their engineering notebook. Only the top six in each category are nominated for these awards, and by being nominated in two or more of six award categories, the team was eligible for the Inspire Award and title of FTC FIRST World Champion.

“I am so honored to coach such an amazing team of people that are changing STEM education in our state and around the globe,” added Coach Burklund. “These young leaders are changing the world!”

The team has been innovators throughout the competition season with their tele-connection project, where they were able to ship a robot across the globe and compete with it remotely. During a competition in the Australian Championships, Beta became the first team ever to score competition points remotely.

A sport for the mind, FTC is designed for high school students who want to compete head to head using a sports model. Teams of up to 10 students are responsible for designing, building and programming their robots to compete on a 12’x12’ field in an Alliance format against other teams. Robots are built using a TETRIX® platform that is reusable from year-to-year using a variety of languages. Teams, including coaches, mentors and volunteers, are required to develop strategy and build robots based on sound engineering principles. Awards are given for the competition as well as community outreach, design, and other real-world accomplishments. Students get to:

• Learn from professional engineers
• Build and compete with a robot of their own design
• Learn and use sophisticated software and hardware
• Compete and cooperate in alliances and tournaments
• Earn a place in the World Championship
• Qualify for over $16 million in college scholarships

More information on the FIRST Tech Challenge and the FIRST programs can be found at www.usfirst.org.

Life in the WDMCS is a weekly feature that highlights what is happening at each of our buildings. If a school is not listed, there was no submission from that building this week.

Stilwell Junior High
The eighth grade T team at Stilwell Junior High spent their homeroom working out to an exercise program called Boot Camp Calorie Burn on Fit and Fabulous TV, which is available for download on iTunes. Students agree that if they got into the moves, they worked up a sweat. “It was a great way to start the morning and I hope we do it again soon,” said one student participant. The team will get moving again next Friday morning with an all-school walk.

Students in seventh grade ELP at Stilwell Junior High took a trip to Colby Park on Earth Day. They spent an hour and a half exploring the Walnut Creek, making observations about the creek’s ecosystem and how the creek is used for recreation. This trip is part of a flood unit that was designed in conjunction with the Iowa: Living With Floods initiative. Students will be learning about what it means to live with flooding, they will be interviewing several member of the community about the 1993/2008 floods and making terrariums based on what they observed at the creek.

Valley High School
Valley senior Michelle Rose was selected from a nation-wide pool as one of five United Bowling Congress Youth members to receive the Earl Anthony Memorial Scholarship. The scholarship is in recognition of her community involvement and academic achievement. The scholarships are presented in honor of the late Earl Anthony, the legendary bowling professional who was dedicated to helping youth bowlers. The USBC Youth committee selects the scholarship winners and each will be awarded a $5,000 scholarship. An honors program student and National Merit Semifinalist, Rose
is an accomplished cellist in the school’s orchestra, an ambassador for the school and a member of the bowling team. She has volunteered with Meals from the Heartland, packing meals for countries in need, and worked at the Red Rock Wildlife Education Center. She also has served as a camp counselor at the Living History Farms Day Camp and at her church.

Valley senior Abigail Pepin is among 22 students across the country to earn an internship with the World Food Prize Borlaug-Ruan International Internships. She will travel to México this summer to work at the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) in El Batán. The interns are involved in global projects dedicated to reducing poverty and hunger such as: fisheries and aquaculture studies; biotechnology; micro-credit and the women’s self-help concept; the influence of education on household food security; and the calculation of Vitamin C concentration in numerous potato varieties.

Clive Elementary
Author/illustrator Tracy Lovett and the band BETWIXT visited Clive Elementary April 18 to share songs, art, literature, writing and music. Lovett shared with the students her experiences as a writer, artist and professional photographer. She showed them how she uses both traditional and digital art techniques to bring her tales to life. They got to see and hear some of Lovett’s books read by the author herself. Students also participated in a musical experience with the children’s folk rock band, BETWIXT. Students will be singing their favorite BETWIXT tunes for many weeks to come!

Crestview Elementary
Third graders from Crestview Elementary School had the opportunity this past month to participate in the Read to Me Program. Each classroom visited a different nursing home in the community, and students read their favorite picture books to their senior friends there. Some students also sang a song from their recent music concert, as well as performed a reader’s theater. Students loved learning from their senior friend about what school was like when they were kids, and students and seniors alike enjoyed this great outreach opportunity.

Crestview second graders have had a busy April. They visited the Iowa Historical Museum for the Extraordinary Ordinary workshop and had a guest speaker who shared about Japanese origami come to school. Students will wrap up the month performing a music program for parents, as well as eating a Japanese lunch, complete with chopsticks and kimonos that students decorated!

Crossroads Park Elementary
The halls at Crossroads Park Elementary have been filled with music as students prepare for upcoming spring concerts, including the sixth grade Honor Music Concert May 7 at 7 p.m. at the Valley Auditorium. Many Crossroads students will be involved in this concert due to their hard work and commitment to their various ensembles. Congratulations to the following students on a job well done and being chosen to be a part of these honor ensembles: Honor Band – Greta Stewart, Maddie Pautvein, Olivia Allard, Julia Tighe, John Lim, Tyler Utter, Carrie Abeling, Evan Paine, Grace Johnson, Kate Anderson and Sam Onsrud; Honor Choir – Alysa Batterson, Liz Dunagan, Maddie Eakins, Riley Heil, Meredith Johnson, Hanna Marcus, Camryn Mears, Samantha Morris, Maddie Pautvein, Hannah Ross, Brie Salloum, Greta Stewart, Morgan Theisen, Julia Tighe and Ronin Welch; Honor Hand Bells – Sam Onsrud, Emily Anders and Evan Paine; Honor Orchestra – Maddie Pautvein, Julie Tighe, Lucas Bryant, Deaven Nguyen, Carrie Abeling, Riley Heil.

Jordan Creek Elementary
The Jordan Creek Circle of Friends program will be wrapping up the year with a school “lock in” in May. The kids will be engaged in fun activities, food, and a dance party! This year there will be several sixth graders moving on to junior high, but the group looks forward to adding new circles next year and continuing the program for a fifth year.

Jordan Creek first graders did some Earth Day activities at school to learn about how important each person’s role is to help keep our Earth live a long and healthy life. Teachers read an article about the possibility of our children reaching 150 healthy years. Keeping a healthy planet for them is a job for everyone. As many of the students know “Every day is Earth Day!” Students and teachers also welcomed a Polk County Conservationist Hooked on Bugs. This was in preparation for their science unit, Insects and Spiders. They will be learning how to tell if a critter is an insect or a spider or something else. Entering the world of entomology will be fun and interesting. In math, teachers are introducing adding two-digit numbers, fractions and equivalent fractions, graphing including finding the range and median or middle value and making symmetrical shapes. Students will also learn that most of the insects they study are symmetrical! Fun connection to science!

Phenix Elementary
Phenix Elementary second and third grade classes participated in VIP day April 18, inviting someone they consider to be a very important person to spend the afternoon at school. The second grade class presented their ocean animal reports with art work, while the third grade class shared their Australian animal reports and played a math card game. Thank you to all the VIPs for making it a special day!

Western Hills Elementary
The House of My Dreams has been a popular topic lately all across America. In fourth grade at Western Hills, the students are describing and designing their dream homes – in Spanish! The students can tell you the specifics from the exterior color, shape and size, right down to the specifics of the interior decorating. Using traditional Hispanic designs and vibrant colors, these houses are sure to be all the rage in the future.

Westridge Elementary
You can teach an old dog new tricks – or at least that is what four Westridge students believe. Fifth grade ELP students Chloe Edwards, Lauren Gilbert, Allie Melhorn and Meredith Neal, under the direction of ELP teacher Nancy Foley, wrote and illustrated a book about idioms for the Scholastic Kids are Authors contest. Students saw a poster advertising the contest at the Westridge Book Fair in November and decided to enter the contest. They spent weeks analyzing children’s books and discovering what made a good picture book. Next, students brainstormed ideas and researched idioms. With the help of art teacher Deb Leventhal, students learned about water color and other techniques for their illustrations. Finally, the girls wrote and illustrated their story. The book is 28 pages and contains hours and hours of work! The winning book will be published and sold at book fairs across the country. Scholastic will announce the winners by May 31. The girls recently shared their book with the public at Learnapalooza.