Also announced were Commended Students in both the National Merit and National Achievement scholarship competitions. Shaker's National Merit Commended Students are Hartley Brody, Natalia Cabrera, Joshua Davidson, Alexandra Dimeff, Eden Engel-Rebitzer, Katherine Foster, Ethan Gates, Claire Hall, Sam Miller, Kirsten Nedrud, Robert Owen, Kate Ryan, Allison Scharfstein, Peter Schiraldi, Kathryn Spielman, Robert Sweeney, Viveca Tress, Greg Van Lunteren, and Sam Weir.

National Achievement Commended Students are Brianna Blackwood-Mallory, Jennifer Chisholm, and Wesley Lowery.

They join 17 National Merit Semifinalists and two National Achievement Semifinalists from Shaker for a total of 39 students (about 11% of the senior class) earning one or more of these national honors this year.

In the News: Mercer kindergartner Caleigh Leiken is featured in a cover story on food allergies in the November 5 issue of Newsweek. Caleigh was interviewed and photographed at the designated nut-free table in the Mercer lunchroom to illustrate the challenges severe food allergies pose for families and schools. Caleigh is the daughter of Shaker grads Jonathan Leiken and Erika Friedman and granddaughter of former Board of Education President Earl Leiken and his wife, Ellen. Read the article online.

Several college-bound Shaker seniors were interviewed for an upcoming WKYC- TV series on stress among teens. The week-long series begins at 6:00 p.m. tonight, Monday, November 5.

Faculty Corner: High School Spanish teacher Norma Guice is the co-author of the new Teacher's Guide to the Advanced Placement Spanish Literature course published by The College Board.

Also new in print is Across Cultures: A Guide to Multicultural Literature for Children, co-edited by Rebecca Thomas, library media specialist at Lomond and Onaway. The book was published by Libraries Unlimited.

The Shaker Heights High School Theatre Arts Department proudly presents The Importance of Being Earnest, "a trivial play for serious people" by Oscar Wilde, December 5-8. This year's performance will take place at the Cleveland Play House, while the historic Large Auditorium at Shaker Heights High School undergoes a major restoration project. More information...

The District's food and nutrition services division continues to make progress in its efforts to make mealtimes healthier and more pleasant. In recent months, the division has:

• established a breakfast program in every school
• increased healthy options in vending machines to 100%
• decreased the use of trans-fats, with the goal of eliminating them by 2008
• added two cashiers at the High School and a third serving line at Woodbury to speed up lines
• replaced a fryer at the High School with an oven
• introduced "grab-and-go" healthy lunches

Ten Shaker graduates who have excelled in the fields of journalism, medicine, business, law, and entertainment were inducted last month into the Shaker Heights Alumni Association Hall of Fame. More information ....

The footbridge over Doan Brook on the Woodbury property has been replaced. The old bridge was removed two years ago, with the District's cooperation, to allow for the restoration of the brook, which included recontouring the stream and planting its banks to stabilize it. The new bridge was paid for by a grant from the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency.

The Shaker Schools Foundation presents Dr. Ellen Rome in a new Shaker Lecture Series that showcases the intellectual and academic diversity of Shaker's schools and community. Dr. Rome will focus on medical complications of childhood obesity and successful approaches to its prevention and management.

• Thursday, November 15, 2007 - 7 p.m.
• Small Auditorium at Shaker Heights High
• Free and open to the public
• Seating is limited

Antibiotic-resistant skin infections that were once common to health-care institutions are now emerging as common causes of skin infections in schools around the country. There have been several reported clusters of skin and soft tissue infections associated with methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) among participants in close-contact sports, such as wrestling and football, in colleges and high schools across the country. Although there have been no reported cases in Shaker Heights, students, staff members and parents should be vigilant. Here's what you need to know.

The November 7 PTO forum has been canceled due to an illness in the family of the featured speaker, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Susan Tave Zelman.

Stay informed about school events with our online calendar.

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