Lacamas Lake Cleanup

Join our community of service leaders in the annual Lacamas Lake Cleanup!

Saturday, September 18, 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Meet at the Heritage Trail boat launch parking lot on Lake Road. Click here for more information.

Newest East Side Elementary Site Grading

Our final major construction project, authorized by the 2007 bond, will be set in motion as clearing and grading work begins at the site on Monday, August 30. The yet-to-be-named elementary school is located off of Crown Road just south or Norse Road and will open in the fall of 2013.

Click here to view a map of the area.

New Elementary Websites Go Live

Over the summer the district's technology and public relations staff transitioned all the elementary websites to WordPress, which is a content management system. This transition gives the staff at each building control of the content of their websites and allows easy posting of news, events, photos, video, etc.

The home page of each site is designed as a blog, where news items are listed chronologically in a scrolling list. A new feature is a live feed of calendar events filtered for each school from DynaCal--the district's web calendar. Also new is a staff directory search tool which returns results specifically for each building.

Take a peek at our new sites!

Dorothy Fox: http://schools.camas.wednet.edu/dorothyfox/

Grass Valley: http://schools.camas.wednet.edu/grassvalley/

Helen Baller: http://schools.camas.wednet.edu/helenballer/

Lacamas Heights: http://schools.camas.wednet.edu/lacamasheights/

Prune Hill: http://schools.camas.wednet.edu/prunehill/

Why WordPress?

We chose to utilize WordPress because:

• It is open source technology, so there is no cost for the program;
• The interface is web based, which means there is no need to locally install software;
• It provides good search-engine optimization; and
• It requires very little training for staff. Creating new pages and posts is snap with a rich-text editor.

Coming Soon

We'll be working on WordPress sites for the middle schools and Hayes Freedom High School in early fall. Camas High School's web site will also be converted to a content management system (Drupal) in the coming months.

Part VII, 2010 Staff Award Winners

Join us this summer as we spotlight our 2010 Staff Award winners each week. In our seventh and final post, we honor the Grass Valley Maintenance and Custodial Crew.

The new Grass Valley Elementary School opened its doors on the first day of school this year. One would think that to maintain and clean a new school would be easy—but that assumption would not be correct. Although the building opened on time, the contractor still had “punch list” items and the commissioning of the heating and cooling system to complete.

The custodial team, consisting of Marilyn Reppe and Terrie Anicker, has provided contractors access to the building on nights and weekends in order to not impact teaching and learning—even when it has meant adjusting their shifts and working overtime. Terrie and Marilyn are committed to making our school look clean and sparkling, but they also are strong members of our school community. This is evident in their positive communication with staff members. It can be challenging to remind staff to wash their own dishes and prepare their rooms for cleaning, but they find light-hearted approaches to get the best out of everyone.

Bill Seekins has also gone beyond the call of duty by being the on-site link between the construction office, the operations department and the contractors. He has volunteered to work overtime on the weekend to troubleshoot the commissioning process for the heating and cooling system. He is dedicated to learning the new system and making sure it works correctly. Bill has also provided valuable input to the contractor and design engineer regarding the daily performance of the system, so that correct adjustments can be made. He is a quiet and “behind-the-scenes” person who always works efficiently, effectively, and is always willing to help!

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Part VI, 2010 Staff Award Winners

Join us this summer as we spotlight our 2010 Staff Award winners each week. In our sixth post, we honor Amy Wing.

The Helen Baller Bears have no time to hibernate with PE teacher Amy Wing keeping them active.

Twice each week, Amy sees all 560 Baller students for regular physical education. Each day during lunch, she serves an additional 250 kiddos in the gym for tumbling, jump rope, and juggling team practices. Then in the winter, Amy brings those teams to perform at girls and boys basketball halftime shows. When spring rolls around, Amy organizes an exhilarating, fun-filled afternoon for these teams to participate in the Junior Rose Parade in Portland—this year they won first place in the Dance/Drill Juvenile Class. And finally, she invites all the families of the tumbling, jump rope, and juggling teams to an end-of-year bash where the kids show off their expertise. Whew! Staff members at Baller think she is an amazing ball of energy and proclaim the Energizer Bunny has nothing on Amy!

Open Registration Begins August 11

Parents and guardians who wish to register their students in Camas Schools for the 2010-11 school year are invited to open registration. Beginning August 11, 2010, families may drop in for registration in the cafeteria at the Zellerbach Administration Center at 841 NE 22^nd Avenue, Camas, WA. No appointment is necessary, and hours are 7:30 a.m.- 4:00 p.m., closed from 12:00-12:30 p.m. for lunch. Open registration will be available through September 3.

Information about required immunizations, proof of residency, and registration forms will be available on site and also at the district website at www.camas.wednet.edu.

Part V, 2010 Staff Award Winners

Join us this summer as we spotlight our 2010 Staff Award winners each week. In our fifth post, we honor Hannelore Tweed.

Camas High School teacher Hannelore Tweed has left her mark on her students. In fact, two of her students initiated the nomination for this staff award. They write:

Upon entering Mrs. Tweed’s classroom, you will recognize her energy to teach and learn day in and day out. Her class is very comforting in that she has invaluable experience in the education system. She definitely knows what she is doing! Mrs. Tweed is approachable and makes it very easy to come after school and learn any concept that you may be struggling with—she is always there to help you and wants the best for you in her class.

Mrs. Tweed has the purest soul and heart I know. She shares this gift with all her students. She develops a special connection with each of her students, and that is why I will always remember her. Mrs. Tweed will forever hold a special place in my heart.

Free and Reduced Meal Information

Families who meet eligibility requirements can now complete the 2010-11 Free and Reduced Meal Application. Click here for the application.

Part IV, 2010 Staff Award Winners

Join us this summer as we spotlight our 2010 Staff Award winners each week. In our fourth post, we honor Brandy Reed.

Brandy Reed is the in-school suspension supervisor at Liberty Middle School and is an integral part of the Liberty team. While her responsibilities are specifially to supervise students who have been removed from class or assigned to lunch/after-school detention, she does far more. Her work ethic is exemplary; she arrives before her shift begins and works hard. What makes Brandy stand out however, are the things she does that are not part of her job description. She can be counted on to converse with the students positively and offers encouragement to them as she passes them in the hall.

Brandy brings a “can do” attitude to all that she does and has communicated to others the understanding that the success of the students is paramount. She works well with others. She works to ensure the students will have a positive learning experience even when not in their classroom, and she listens to the students so they feel supported—therefore strengthening their ability to learn.

Last Blast Fun Run

Join the CHS 2010 Cross Country Team for its first annual Fun Run on Saturday, September 4. It will be held at the Camas Meadows Golf Course, and preregistration is $25; registration is $35 the day of the event and includes a t-shirt. Participants may choose a half-mile marathon, a 6.5 mile run/walk, or a tot walk for our future Papermaker athletes.

Registration is available online at the Camas Educational Foundation website. For all event details, view the Last Blast Fun Run flyer.

Part III, 2010 Staff Award Winners

Join us this summer as we spotlight our 2010 Staff Award winners each week. In our third post, we honor Traci Kosaki.

At Skyridge Middle School, Traci Kosaki supports her students, colleagues and parents in numerous ways. Her primary assignment is to assist learning disabled, autistic, and behaviorally challenged students within the regular classroom setting. Traci not only helps students stay organized and on task, but also helps emotionally stressed students take time to become calm and successfully reenter the class lesson.

Traci has also been instrumental in many large projects each year including the Holiday Research Project, the Gingerbread House Geometry unit, the social studies Classroom-Based Assessment and the District Writing Assessment to name a few. Throughout these projects, Traci ensures students are utilizing all resources effectively and have access to technology devices referenced in their IEP’s. This year, she also created and laminated writing folders to help students organize their drafting and editing work through the writing process. The special education students used the folders all year and are now scoring 1-2 points higher on the district writing rubric.

Traci maintains a positive, friendly demeanor with everyone she encounters at Skyridge Middle School. She is warm, cheerful, and a joy to be around.

Kindergarten Academic Screening

The district is conducting a quick, 30-minute pre-assessment of early literacy and numeracy skills for all incoming Camas kindergarten students. Results will ensure students receive appropriate level of math and reading instruction on the very first day of school.

Screening assessments occur August 17 - 19, 2010, from 9 AM – 3 PM at Helen Baller Elementary. To schedule an appointment, contact Shanna Anderson or Gail Soohoo by e-mail or call 360-335-3000 (select option #5).

Doc Harris Stadium Construction

The replacement stadium designed by DOWA Architects and constructed by TEAM Construction is about 70% complete and is scheduled to be open for the first home football game of the fall season. The new stadium will seat 3,000 fans on the home side, with covered visitor bleachers for another 1,000 guests. A statue of the late Doc Harris will greet fans as they return to the new stadium.

CSD Summer Schedule

All schools offices are closed for the summer, but will re-open on August 23. Summer hours will be 8 AM-3 PM daily. Please note that all school building offices will be closed from 11:30 AM to 1:30 PM for a district-wide, all staff meeting on September 2.

Back-to-school events occur during the last week of August, and the first day of school is September 7. Click here to view summer office hours and back to school information for all buildings in the district.

Part II, 2010 Staff Award Winners

Join us this summer as we spotlight our 2010 Staff Award winners each week. In our second post, we honor Maria Klein.

Maria Klein has worked in several capacities throughout the district for many years. Currently she divides her time between the ASB office and the Career and Technical Education office at CHS lending her support and expertise. Maria is always professional, friendly, and positive to students, staff, parents and the community in general. She is highly organized, always dependable, and is willing to do whatever is asked with a smile.

Maria also possesses excellent communication skills—every person who comes in contact with her feels understood and valued. Any task that she is assigned is completed in an exceptional manner. Maria is truly an incredible asset to Camas High School.