Friday, May 9:  Koelsch Elementary School 6th grade field trip to St. Alphonsus Heart Clinic, 10 a.m.  Students will tour the McCleary Center to learn about the anatomy of the heart, causes and common warning signs of heart attacks and strokes, heart healthy choices, and the roles of exercise, diet and nutrition. 

Friday, May 9:  Dodge a Bobcat Family Night Dodge Ball Tournament, South Jr. High School's annual Make-A-Wish benefit, 5:30-8 p.m.  Pasta dinner begins at 5:30 p.m. to be followed by a game of dodge ball at 6 p.m.  Tickets:  $3 in advance or $5 at the door.  Raffle tickets will also be on sale $1 each or 6 for $5. This year's recipient is 11-year-old Gabriel who is battling a congenital heart condition.  His wish is to go to Hollywood and shadow a film crew.  Proceeds from this event will help make Gabriel's wish come true.

Sunday, May 18:  North Junior High School's Catalpa Quartet will be performing their first annual benefit concert at the Esther Simplot Performing Arts Academy at 4:00 p.m.  There will be a one hour-long performance including works by: Mozart, Ariagga, Pleyel, Coldplay, The Beatles, and Elton John. The concert is FREE but donations will be accepted and greatly appreciated.   At the start of this school year, four 8th grade students at North formed the Catalpa Quartet a non-profit organization that helps Title I elementary schools in the Boise School District with instrument repair. So far, the string quartet has raised almost $1,100 toward this effort by playing at various community events. This spring, the ensemble established the Catalpa Quartet Fund at the Boise Public Schools Education Foundation.  

Wednesday, May 21 and Thursday, May 22:  Hershey's Track & Field Games, Timberline High School, 701 E. Boise Ave.  Registration begins at 4 p.m. both days.  Ages 7-10 will compete May 21 and ages 11-14 will compete May 22.  First and second place finishers qualify to participate in the South State meet in July in Rexburg.  State winners will receive an all-expenses-paid trop to compete in the North American Final on Saturday, August 2 in Hershey, PA. Participants must pre-register by Sunday, May 18 at the Boise City Recreation Office, 110 Scout Ln., Boise.  For more information see "Activities, Classes & Sports" at http://parks,cityofboise.org or call (208) 608-7650.  

How Critical Reading and Writing Skills are Helping Boise's Students Succeed: Boise School District's Strategic Plan is focused on preparing students for college, career and citizenship. Click on the image below to view a brief video report that takes you into the classroom to see for yourself how critical reading and writing skills are helping our students succeed.

Critical Reading and Writing Skills are Helping Boise's Students Succeed!

Boise District Students Take Top Honors in Earth Day Art Contest:  The winners of the 2014 Earth Day Art Contest "Sustainable Water Practices Today--Water for Tomorrow?" sponsored by the Idaho Council on Industry and the Environment were honored at an awards ceremony on April 24 at the Foothills Learning Center.  The winners and their awards are listed below:

Best of Show ($125 gift certificate to Quality Art):  Clare Nelson, Boise High

1st Place Art (($75 gift certificate to Quality Art):  Beth Warner, Boise High

2nd Place Art ($50 gift certificate to Quality Art):  Niyonkuru Melchior, Borah High

1st Place Poster ($75 gift certificate to Quality Art):  Zhi Jiu Xie, Borah High

2nd Place Poster ($50 gift certificate to Quality Art):  Seungyeon Nam, East Jr. High

Honorable Mentions ($35 gift certificate to Quality Art):  Brooke Foster, Emma Marshall, Maranda Paz, all East Jr. High; Rebecca Cromwell, Tianna Stolp, Jordin Person, all Borah High; Erik Tanner, South Jr. High; Andrew Grissom, Kyle Erne, Mercedes Huse, all Timberline High.

Capital High Student Heads to Chicago for a Chance at $50,000:  On April 25, the top 20 Elks National Foundation Most Valuable Student National Finalists, which included Capital High Senior Peter Huang, traveled to Chicago, IL for the inaugural MVS Leadership Weekend.  Peter took home a $20,000 college scholarship. He is sponsored by Boise's Elks Lodge #310. A total of 20,489 high school seniors applied for an Elks National Foundations MVS scholarship this year.  Of these, 480 runners-up received $4,000 scholarships, and the top 20 who attended the leadership weekend had the chance at a $50,000 scholarship. The 500 MVS scholars are an impressive group which boasts an average GPA of 4.262, they collectively volunteered for 285,680 hours throughout high school, and they are all leaders in their communities.

Capital High Boys Basketball State Champions:  This past winter, Capital High's Boys Varsity Basketball Team capped a perfect 26-0 season with a win over Borah High in the State Championship Game. Click here and here to learn more.  

Canwen Xu

East Students Recognized in Congressional Art Contest:  Recently, the 2014 Congressional Art Contest sponsored by Mike Simpson, announced the winners in the various divisions of the contest.  Two East Jr. High School students received awards in the photography portion.  Brooke Foster received third place and Aubrey O'Daniel received honorable mention.

Brooke Foster

Aubrey O'Daniel

Cynthia Mann Students Take State Bowl by Storm:  Two teams from Cynthia Mann Elementary School took home awards in the Future Problem Solving State Bowl Competition, Junior Division, in Twin Falls, ID on Friday, April 25. The 5th grade team (Kalena Danley, Curtis Simpson, Paisley Hansen, and Rosie Hill) earned first place in the Action Plan Presentation (skit) part of the competition (see photo).  The 6th grade team (Adam Pettyjohn, Peter Wieber, Sarah Kessler, and Calvin Probst) earned first place in the overall competition for the best booklet in Problem Solving (see photo).  The 6th grade team now qualifies and was invited to go on to the Future Problem Solving International Conference to be held in June at Iowa State University in Ames, IA. 

The Cynthia Mann 5th grade team (left to right: Rosie Hill, Paisley Hansen, Curtis Simpson and Kalena Danley) earned first place in the Action Plan Presentation (skit) part of the competition.

The Cynthia Mann 6th grade team (left to right:  Peter Wieber, Adam Pettyjohn, Calvin Probst, Sarah Kessler) earned first place in the overall competition for the best booklet in Problem Solving.

Danielle Andrus

Highlands Teacher Selected to Attend Academy:  Highlands Elementary School 5th Grade Teacher Danielle Andrus has been selected to attend the 2014 Mickelson ExxonMobil Teachers Academy to be held in July in Jersey City, NJ.  Over 1100 teachers applied for this one-week, all expenses-paid intensive professional development program for third through fifth grade teachers.  Of the 1100 applicants, 150 were selected. Danielle will join two other Boise District teachers, Monroe Elementary School's Alyssa Carter and Whitney Elementary School's Danielle Mora, who were also selected (see last week's What's Happening in Boise School District publication).  

Help Boise Public Schools Education Foundation Earn Donations by Shopping with Your Fred Meyer Rewards Card! Fred Meyer is donating $2.5 million per year to non-profits in Alaska, Idaho, Oregon and Washington - including the BPSEF.  Sign-up for the Community Rewards program by linking your Fred Meyer Rewards Card to the Boise Public Schools Education Foundation at www.fredmeyer.com/communityrewards. You can search for us by their name or by their non-profit number 88719.

Explore a Great Summer of Learning - Summer School Program Information Available Now:  The Boise School District offers a wide variety of summer school classes for students to enhance their educational experiences. Click here for further information. 

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