March 10, 2006

ECS Students Win Big at Scholastic Art Show

Elkhart Community Schools' students brought home a palette load of honors from the 2006 Regional Scholastic Art Show, including two of the five American Vision Awards for Best of Show.

Memorial senior Amanda Olbrys and Pierre Moran eighth-grader Crystal Guffey received the show's top honors. Amanda's photograph and Crystal's crayon etching relief were chosen from more than 400 pieces in the exhibit. | More

School Board's Nielsen Still an Educator

Dorisanne Nielsen spent 25 years educating students enrolled in Elkhart Community Schools. She has spent the past 14 years trying to educate the Legislature on the needs of Indiana school children. | More

ECS Event Answers Science Questions

How do cell phones work? Do people remember images better in color or black or white? What is the perfect golf swing? Do radiated seeds make grass grow faster?

Hundreds of questions like these were answered at the Elkhart Science Fair at Memorial High School Feb. 25. More than 250 kindergarten through 12th-grade public, private and home schooled students participated in the 22nd annual fair, the largest event of its kind in the state. | More

Beck Celebrates Black History

More than 260 Beck Elementary School students, parents, staff members and neighborhood residents celebrated February's Black History Month with music, dancing, dreaming, and a soul food dinner consisting of chicken, ribs, and vegetables.

The third-annual Black History Program and Dinner united Beck's diverse population, with children of all colors sharing their dreams for their future on a video taped by Five Star Destiny, which runs a weekly after-school club. To reach their goals, students committed to staying in school and away from drugs and alcohol. | More

Academy Students Mimic "The Apprentice"

Students attending Elkhart Community Schools' Math, Science, and Technology Academy are getting fired up, not fired, during this year's "Apprentice"-themed curriculum.

The students are learning how to develop, package, market and finance a new product, in this case a chip dip, and will be judged on how well their finished product is presented. Unlike the reality-television show "The Apprentice," however, each of the academy's 65 students will be winners, having gained new skills they can use in the real world. | More

Of Interest to Staff and Volunteers

For a complete listing of events, see the ECS district calendar and/or contact your neighborhood or student's school directly.

• 03/14: GQE retesting
• 03/14: School board meeting at ESC, 7 p.m.
• 03/15: CARES volunteer coffee at Monger, 9 a.m.
• 03/15: Mandatory meeting on retirement benefits for certified and administrative
              staff, Memorial High School, 4:15 p.m. or 6:15 p.m.
• 03/16: Data Teams Workshop at ESC board room, 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
• 03/23: Early release day for all schools
• 03/28: School board meeting at Elkhart Area Career Center, 7 p.m.
• 03/29: Memorial parent/teacher conferences; half day for students
• 04/20: Mark your calendars! Annual All-Staff Recognition Event at Central High School