Dedicated to the citizens of Mason County, Washington since 1886
Dedicated to the citizens of Mason County, Washington since 1886
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The Evergreen State College hopes to offer free tuition through a new program for Shelton High School graduates starting with the Class of 2025, according to a presentation Evergreen President John Carmichael and Director of Government Relations Sandy Kaiser gave Mason County commissioners Jan. 8. Carmichael said the college is seeking legislative funding. Evergreen is asking for $285,000 to fund the program’s first year and estimates the total for four years will be $3.5 million. “If we get that legislative funding we would first make tha...
Matt Welander is the new chairman of the Shelton School Board. The Shelton School Board at its Jan. 9 meeting voted 4-1 to appoint Welander, who had been serving as vice chair. Board member Becky Cronquist cast the dissenting vote without comment. Welander was elected to the school board in 2021 and represents District 3. He is a firefighter/paramedic with the West Mason Fire Department. He replaces Keri Davidson, who was elected unanimously by the board as vice chair. Davidson talked about the role of the board chair before the election of...
The Shelton School District is among about two dozen in the state receiving help from a Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation grant because a low percentage of its graduates go on to college. At the Shelton School Board meeting on Nov. 14, Superintendent Wyeth Jessee talked about the program. He said he attended a Gates Foundation gathering the previous day, and two statistics "rang out" to him: that Washington ranks 49th among the 50 states for the number of high school graduates who go on to two-...
Shelton School District seeks Instructional Materials Committee members The Shelton School District is looking for parents and guardians, staff and residents to be on its new Instructional Materials Committee. The IMC monitors the evaluation and recommendation of instructional materials for adoption by the Shelton School Board. The IMC’s role is to review the recommendations of adoption committees and educational staff and ensure that recommended materials conform to applicable state and federal laws; goals and/or learning standards of the d...
Increasing student attendance, decreasing the number of off-campus suspensions and helping ninth-graders have a successful first year of high school are among the goals this school year at Shelton High School. Principal Bruce Kipper presented the school's plan Sept. 26 at the Shelton School Board meeting. One goal is to increase student attendance by 10% from last school year. "As you know, that's a tricky subject," he said. "There's a lot of things that are out of our control ... There's...
In a “re-review” of eight books already approved by the district but flagged by some parents as offensive, the Shelton School Board on Tuesday evening voted to remove two books from the grades 7-12 reading curriculum: “Like a Love Story” and “Looking for Alaska.” During board meetings the past four months, some parents and guardians complained about eight of the 150 literature books for grades seven through 12 that were recommended by the district’s Instructional Materials Committee and then approved by the school board June 27. Other parents,...
The classic image of school bullying has Big Billy beating up Little Bobby for his lunch money has mostly been replaced by online bullying on social media, including Mason County students. The National Center for Education Studies reports that in 2019, about 22% of students ages 12 to 18 reported being bullied during the school year. That’s a 10% drop from 2009. Of the students who reported bullying in 2019, about 15% reported being the subject of rumors; 14% reported being made fun of, called names or insulted; 6% reported being excluded f...
As a projected 4,150 students returned to classrooms yesterday, the Shelton School District is focusing special attention on the new freshmen at its three high schools, Shelton, Cedar and CHOICE. The Freshman Academy is making its debut. Ninth-graders will take two trimesters of the freshmen seminar, to help them learn to navigate the transition to high school. "Ninth grade is hard," said Superintendent Wyeth Jessee. A major goal is to ensure freshmen end the school year with six or more...
North Mason School District Superintendent Dana Rosenbach recently informed her students' families, through a letter sent to welcome them back to school for the 2023-24 year, that the district sees the process of fostering certain values in its students as similar to tending a garden. Rosenbach recounted how district and building administrators devoted one of their training and leadership sessions to selecting "impact words" to describe ways of "building our garden and developing our soil."...
The Pioneer School District started the 2022-2023 school year in turmoil. In February 2022, the Pioneer School Board had placed Superintendent Jill Diehl on paid administrative leave almost two months after the Pioneer Education Association presented the board with a vote of "no confidence" against her. Former Southside Schools Superintendent Doris Bolender replaced her as acting superintendent. Jeff Davis took the helm as superintendent the first week of July 2022. The native of Newberg,...
The Southside School District started the school year Aug. 30 with a cooling system for the first time in its 120-year history. Last spring, classes were sometimes conducted outside or in the gym when the building temperatures climbed into the lower 80s, said Superintendent Paul Wieneke. The heating system was also remodeled. "My challenge was getting it done in one summer," he said. The district projects it will start the school year with 207 students in kindergarten through seventh grade....
The Mary M. Knight School District on Aug. 30 opened its doors to 170 students in kindergarten through high school. The school in Matlock has 18 teachers. The second-graders are the largest class with 21 students. Kennedy Fieldstad is the new kindergarten teacher, and Deanna Niles is the new third-grade teacher. Josie Dewey has switched from teaching kindergarten to educating fifth-graders. Josh Stoney, the assistant principal last school year, is the new principal. Tom Kerr is athletic...
Like many people, Lance Gibbon did some reassessing during the pandemic, and realized he wanted a school administration job where he knew the names of all the students, which he might achieve as superintendent of the Hood Canal School District. About 325 students were expected to show up for the first day of school yesterday. "For me, it was an opportunity to get back to what was important, which is working more closely with students," said Gibbon, whose jobs have included elementary school...
Grapeview School District Superintendent Gerry Grubbs noted the changes students and families can expect as they start the new school year, beginning with a new administrative team, which he said is "working toward unity in leadership and vision." Cynthia Breeze is the district's director of student services and athletics, while Hannah Nelsen is its new principal. Grubbs touted their efforts to bring back the "robust volunteer program" the district had prior to COVID. Grubbs promised students...
Two local school teachers defended books that some parents want banned in the Shelton School District. During board meetings this summer, some parents and guardians complained about 10 of the 150 literature books for grades seven through 12 that were recommended by the district’s Instructional Materials Committee and then approved by the school board June 27. At the board’s Aug. 22 regular meeting, three people pointed out the educational and social value of the books in question, while three said they were opposed to the curriculum. Jes...
The Shelton School Board on Tuesday evening passed a $78.3 million budget for the 2023-24 school year. Instruction is the largest expense in the budget at 57.50%, followed by instructional support at 13.46%, central administration at 6.50%, maintenance and operations at 6.07%, the principal's offices at 5.64%, pupil transportation at 4.52%, food services at 2.80%, utilities and insurance at 2.25%, other services at 1.15% and public activities at 0.11%. That translates to $45,058,755 for instruct...
Learn video game creation at Olympic College Shelton Olympic College Shelton is offering two Continuing Education classes on computer skills. A crash course in video game development is from 4 to 6 p.m. July 11 and 13. The course gives students an introduction to Unity3d, a powerful and popular video game creation engine. No programming experience is needed. Intro to data science is from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. July 22. Learn the basics in the fields of data science, data analytics and data engineering to better understand how machine learning is...
A draft of the Shelton School District's 2023-2024 budget projects almost $79 million in revenue and almost $78.2 million in expenditures. Brenda Trogstad, the district's assistant superintendent of finance and operations, gave an overview Tuesday evening to the Shelton School Board. Of the $78,142,795 in proposed general fund expenditures, certified salaries are 45.33%, followed by 23.12% for employee benefits, 20.06% for classified salaries, 5.91% for purchased services, 5.19% for supplies and...
Shelton High grad is teacher of the year Holly Johnson, a 1998 graduate of Shelton High School, was named by Capital Region Educational Service District 113 as the 2024 Regional Teacher of the Year. Johnson is a special education teacher in the Tenino School District. She is now a finalist for the Washington State Teacher of the Year. The state's Office of Public Instruction will announce that winner in the fall. In a news release, EDS 113 wrote "As an educator of children with disabilities, Joh...
Scholarships for women returning to college Shelton's Chapter B of the Philanthropic Education Organization (PEO) is offering three $1,000 scholarships to women who have returned to college to continue or finish their education. The Mary M. Knight Achievement Award honors the Mason County pioneer educator who was a member of Chapter B. The award has supported women's education in Mason County since 1936. To qualify, a student must have graduated from high school or earned a GED; be a Mason...
Money for women returning to college Shelton’s Chapter B of the Philanthropic Education Organization is offering three $1,000 scholarships to women who have returned to college to continue or finish their education. The Mary M. Knight Achievement Award honors the Mason County pioneer educator who was a member of Chapter B. The award has supported women’s education in Mason County since 1936. To qualify, a student must have graduated from high school or earned a GED; be a Mason County resident; plan to obtain a degree or certification; and be...
Harstine theater group offers scholarship The Harstine island Theatre Club is offering a $500 scholarship. Applications and guidelines are available at CHOICE, Cedar, Shelton, Mary M. Knight and North Mason high schools, and at Olympic College Shelton. Aug. 1 is the deadline to apply, and the winner will be announced by Aug. 15. Completed applications can be mailed to Scholarship Committee, Chair Dee Ann Meacham, 12 East Wilson Road, Shelton 98584 or emailed to [email protected]. Shelton High concerts perform May 31 Shelton High School stages...
Deadline Monday for Harstine scholarships The Harstine Island Women’s Club and the Judy and Charles Chase Scholarship Fund Management Committee are offering scholarships to full-time residents of Harstine Island who are entering or continuing their post high school education. Applicants must have obtained a diploma with an accredited high school program or earned a GED. Applications will be accepted through Monday. Winners will be announced by May 31. Applications and scholarship details are available at Shelton, CHOICE, Cedar and North M...
Deadline Friday for Pioneer scholarships The Pioneer Kiwanis Club will award $10,000 in scholarships to students who live in the Pioneer School District or attended Pioneer schools. Eligible are students who are graduating this year from high school or completed a GED and have been accepted to college or trade school. Friday is the deadline to apply, and application forms are available at the counseling offices at Shelton, CHOICE, North Mason and Cedar high schools. Information: Lee Strohm at 206-755-4652 or Pamela Harrell at 360-490-0954....
