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School News - Tip Sheet - 2/20/2008

Thornton YMCA Partners With McKinley 

2/20/2008

As part of the Partners in Education program, the Thornton YMCA is offering two weeks of free basketball, volleyball, weightlifting, swimming and everything else the Y has to McKinley Elementary students. It runs from March 10-March 22, coinciding with Spring Break. YMCA officials are also waiving the joining fee for McKinley teachers, staff, and families. The “Try the Y" period concludes with an Easter egg hunt on March 22. Don’t forget to bring your baskets!

 

Booker T. Senior Wins Accolades 

2/20/2008

Booker T. Washington High School senior Erik Collins recently won first place in the Bela Rozsa Composition Competition for high school students. Sponsored by the University of Tulsa, the contest saw Collins play a jazz piano piece entitled “Walking Playfully.” The composition was featured in a concert performed on the TU campus earlier this month.

Collins is no stranger to winning. He also aced the Mayfest Young Artists Award in 2005 and has attended choral festivals and workshops including the Quartz Mountain Summer Arts Chorus and the Royal School of Church Music. Collins is enrolled in music theory at Booker T.

 

Eisenhower Hosts ‘Pirates of the Penzance’ 

2/20/2008, 1 p.m.

Opera is coming to Eisenhower International School as the "Pirates of the Penzance” is being performed by the Tulsa Opera before the entire student body today.

The event is extremely interactive, with Eisenhower students joining the opera is a rehearsal a 1 p.m. and then hitting the stage along with the cast an hour later.

The Gilbert and Sullivan classic premiered in 1879 and today is considered one of the duo’s most popular works.

 

Heart Fundraiser at Sequoyah 

2/20/2008

Stacy Eby remembers getting the news that her two-day-old son, Grant, had a heart murmur. She remembers thinking, “No. Not my son.”

Doctors diagnosed Grant with congenital heart disease, an illness in newborns involving structural defects leading to arrhythmia and malfunction of the heart’s muscles. Grant subsequently endured months of surgeries and hospitalizations. During those difficult times an organization called Mended Little Hearts provided Grant’s family with support, so much so that Stacy is now heading up a local chapter.

The Tulsa group’s inaugural event was a recent fundraiser at Sequoyah Elementary School, where Stacy works. The group sold beaded necklaces, heart pencils and heart suckers, raising a smidge over $560. The fundraiser was important, Stacy said, because the organization relies solely on donations. As for Grant, he’s now almost a year old and healthy as can be.

“He’s doing wonderful right now,” Stacy says, “and he has no heart problems. We don’t have to go back to the cardiologist.”

More information can be found at www.mlhtulsa.org.

 

Dealership Adopts Penn Elementary 

2/21/2008, 1 p.m.

The Partners in Education program continues to reap benefits as Dodge Chrysler Jeep of Tulsa adopts William Penn Elementary.

Penn—whose motto is “achieving academic excellence through high expectations for all"—will usher in the partnership with a February 21 ceremony beginning at 1 p.m. The community is invited to attend.

Partners in Education is orchestrated by the Tulsa Metro Chamber and TPS. Since 1983 the program has brought thousands of volunteers into local schools, connecting students and educators with folks they might not otherwise have the chance to interact with.

Penn’s Victoria Ellington credits Yvonne Hovell, owner of the dealership, with helping to facilitate the agreement.

 

Restaurant, Church Adopt Remington 

2/22/2008, 8 :30 a.m.

Remington Elementary School’s Partners in Education program involves two places that provide nourishment: one for the soul and the other for the tummy.

Carbondale Assembly and Rib Crib will formally adopt the school during a ceremony on February 22. Remington’s Lela Clayton reports that Carbondale is assisting in attendance incentives and Rib Crib has designated the first and third Mondays of the month as “Remington Night.” Restaurant patrons mentioning Remington on those dates will see ten-percent of their bill go towards a fund for the school.

 

Disney and Friends 

2/22/2008, 10 a.m

The vocal music students from Nathan Hale High School will once again present “Disney and Friends” for TPS elementary students. This hour-long program is free to students and teachers. The performances are April 21st and 22nd at 10 a.m. in Hale's auditorium.

This year, “Disney and Friends” will consist of songs from Mary Poppins, Hercules, and Cinderella. This is a live stage performance complete with choreography and costumes. Make reservations by calling Patti Duncan, Hale vocal music instructor, at 925-1231 or by e-mailing your preference of dates and the number of people attending to duncapa@tulsaschools.org.

 

TPS Represents in Orff Festival 

2/23/2008, 1:00 p.m.

Students from three schools in the TPS district along with a teacher from a fourth are taking part in this year’s Green Country Oklahoma Orff Festival. Set for February 23 at the Tulsa Community College’s Performing Arts Center for Education, this year’s festival is the fourteenth annual.

An estimated 200 students from across the region are attending, with Carnegie, Grimes and Salk elementary schools representing TPS. Tavis Minner, a music teacher at Cooper Elementary, is scheduled to perform a guest solo during a performance of the widely-covered spiritual "Wade in the Water."

The theme of this year’s festival is Songs of the South. It’s sponsored by the Green Country Oklahoma Orff chapter, which is the area affiliate of the American Orff Schulwerk Association.

 

Bust That Test Rally 

2/28/2008, 1 p.m.

The McLain High School for Science and Technology’s drum line is coming to William Penn Elementary School next week, snared for the purpose of drumming up a bit of enthusiasm for upcoming tests.

The theme is “Bust That Test,” and this isn’t the fist time McLain musicians have helped their younger counterparts. A similar rally last year yielded such positive results educators decided to give it another go. This the fourth year for the testing rally.

Penn library specialist Victoria Ellington said her charges “have been working hard preparing for the test.” She also says that Penn’s teacher have a “little surprise” in store for the drum line, but she coyly isn’t telling what it is.

 

Longtime TPS Employee Retires 

2/29/2008, 3 p.m.

An integral part of Bryant Elementary —and TPS as a whole —is leaving. After 34 years in the district and 19 at Bryant, Beverly Moore is retiring.

“I have so many passions that I want to explore while I’m still young enough,” says the 1969 Booker T. Washington graduate and grandmother of eight.

Moore worked as a counselor at Bryant and while she won’t be there anymore, the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree: she now wants to work with area churches to help at-risk youth. As for her lengthy tenure at TPS, Moore wouldn’t change a thing.

“”I’ve really enjoyed the position I’ve been in,” she says. “I think I was able to work with the community and help things move forward.”

Her co-workers obviously appreciate her service. They’re inviting TPS employees to attend a reception on Moore’s behalf at Bryant on February 9 at 3 p.m.

 

Memorial Golf Fundraiser 

3/8/2008, 11:30

A fundraiser for Memorial High School’s golf program is set for Saturday, March 8.

The price tag for the four-person scramble runs $160 a team and $40 a head. Sponsoring a hole is $100. Sponsoring a hole and a team runs you $250.

Officials say proceeds from the event will help defray the cost of equipment, camps and travel for the school’s boys and girls gold teams. The scramble is at the White Hawk Golf Course in Bixby.

 

Hale Hosts Impulse Control Seminar 

3/13/2008, 7 p.m.

Poor impulse control has been associated with everything from social problems to school failure, from addiction to crime. An upcoming seminar at Hale High School examines the problem.

“STOP and THINK: Teaching Children Impulse Control,” is for parents, teachers, school counselors, social workers and mental health professionals who are interested in learning more about gender and developmental aspects of impulse control along the most recent research on effective interventions. A description of some specific cognitive-behavioral techniques will be presented. Games, role-plays, videos and worksheets will be presented. Hand-outs will also be available. The seminar is Thursday, March 13, at 7 p.m. The featured speaker is Tonia Caselman, PhD, an assistant professor at the University of Oklahoma’s School of Social Work.

The cost is $20 per person, $10 for students. Contact Rachel Long at sswaok@yahoo.com for more information. The seminar is sponsored by the School Social Work Association of Oklahoma.

 

Kids, Kows, and More  

3/13/2008, 9:15 a.m.

TPS third and fourth graders are invited to participate in a program that gives a hands on agricultural experience.

“Kids, Kows and More” is sponsored by the Tulsa County OSU Extension Service, Southwest Dairy Association and the Texas Extension Service. An expo on March 13 in Tulsa provides up-close and personal experiences for students, parents and teachers from the area.

The exhibits and demonstrations include dairy, cotton, beef, swine, wheat, sheep and wool. Students attending the expo are encouraged to write an essay called, “What I learned about agriculture on my field trip to Kids, Kows, and More.” Essays are evaluated on agriculture knowledge, originality, creativity and mechanics —including grammar, organization, and punctuation. The winning student will receive a $100 savings bond and the class will receive an ice cream party. For more information, contact the Tulsa County OSU Extension Center at 746-3709.

 

Art Ambassadors on the Move 

4/9/2008

Beth Howard, art teacher at Mark Twain Elementary and mentor of the Art Ambassadors, continues to blaze a trail of creativity. Her workshop proposal has been picked for next year’s 19th Annual National Service-Learning Conference, Youth for a Change.

The conference is billed as the largest gathering of youths and practitioners involved in the service-learning movement. The 2007 conference drew attendees from across the United States and 19 other countries. The event provides access to new ideas and networking opportunities, with more than 200 workshops and countless opportunities for informal meetings.

The conference runs from April 9-12 in Minneapolis. Archbishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa and urban educator Pedro Noguera are delivering the keynote addresses.

Howard is used to awards. In 2006 she was named the Oklahoma Elementary Art Teacher of the Year. She mentors the Art Ambassadors, an organization of students attempting to bridge the gap between school and community with art that beautifies and teaches us all to give back.

 

Booker T Students Make Team Oklahoma 

6/6/2008

Dylan Hames and Onkur Sen have their summer plans already set.

At least for a couple of days in June that is.

The two Booker T. Washington students have earned positions on the six-member academic quiz team that will represent the state of Oklahoma at the Panasonic Academic Challenge to be held at Disney World in Orlando, Florida.

Hames is a senior and Sen is a sophomore. Their trip to the Sunshine State comes after the duo took part in a three- hour competition against students from Oklahoma in the areas of mathematics, science, social studies, and humanities to earn the right to be a part of Team Oklahoma this year. The Panasonic Academic Challenge runs from June 6 through June 11.

 

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