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Community member Amy Hankins receives Golden Apple

Golden Apple recipient, Ms. Amy Hankins
Golden Apple recipient, Ms. Amy Hankins

Kenai Peninsula Borough School District
Golden Apple Award | April 4, 2016
Ms. Amy Hankins, Community Member

Ms. Amy Hankins consistently demonstrates deep support for the students of Seward schools. She has served on the Seward School Site Based Council and is currently serving as the Arts Chair on the board of the Seward Parent-Teacher-Association (PTA). In addition to serving on the PTA board, Amy generously offers her time and talents as the chair of the PTA’s Arts committee. This committee is charged with making the arts available to Seward area students. Last year, Amy spearheaded an 18 month effort to bring Jabali, an African dance troop, from Mombasa, Kenya, to Seward. She coordinated all aspects for this production, including fundraising, PR, ticket printing and sales, transportation and lodging, so that this cultural extravaganza could be enjoyed by the community of Seward and all three Seward schools, along with students from Connections Homeschool and Moose Pass School. This year she spearheaded Scrap Arts music to come to Seward in April 2016.

Amy also has a passion for technology. In 2013, Amy joined with two other staff members to lead a community-based computer programing club for youth aged nine to 18. The Seward Community Library and Museum generously hosts club meetings and activities. Amy’s work with this group eventually evolved into her work with Lego Robotics in the schools.  Amy works with two Lego Robotics groups in Seward: one meets after-school and one meets during school.

The after-school Lego Robotics team, comprised of Seward Elementary and Seward Middle School students, and a homeschool student, met last year to learn to build and program Lego vehicles to perform specific tasks. Co-coach Leigh Ray said, “Amy leads the club by exuding enthusiasm for coding and robotics, which helps the kids get unstuck when the programming gets tough! She is becoming a very accomplished robotics programmer herself!” In 2015, the team competed in the first Lego League regional competition in Anchorage. They were then invited to return and compete in the state championship. At the end of the regional competition in Anchorage, Amy received the Coach Award for her excellence in coaching.

At Seward Elementary, Amy introduced Lego Robotics during the 2013-2014 school year. She worked with approximately 55 second grade students, teaching building and programing skills. This year, she has continued the program with the same students, who are now in third grade, as well as teaching it to all of the current second graders. Students enjoy the challenge of building and coding. Second grader Van Shank says, “It was fun programing the computers. Mrs. Hankins did a really good job.” In addition, Amy began training a teacher to continue the program as the current third graders move up a grade. “We value the way Amy looks for opportunities to enhance the education of all students in Seward through her ongoing dedication to the arts and technology,” said Principal David Kingsland.

The Kenai Peninsula Borough School District Board of Education is proud to recognize Ms. Amy Hankins for her dedication to the students of the school district, past, present, and future.
Ms. Rankin was nominated by Principal David Kingland, on behalf of Seward Elementary School.
Link
Golden Apple recipients

Ms. Amy Hankins and Board Member Lynn Hohl
Ms. Amy Hankins and Board Member Lynn Hohl

Proposed PERS and TRS legislation could increase KPBSD deficit

Kenai Peninsula Borough School DistrictKPBSD logo 4c no tag SMALL
Contact: Pegge Erkeneff, 907.714.8888

News Release
SB207 and SB209 could increase KPBSD deficit

Soldotna, April 1, 2016—The Senate Finance Committee introduced four education related bills which potentially affect KPBSD revenue and expenditures. SB 207 – Teacher Retirement Employer Contributions, and SB 209 – PERS Employer Contributions, both increase the percentage school districts will contribute to the Alaska Teachers’ Retirement System (TRS), and Public Employees’ Retirement System (PERS) over the next several years.
KPBSD analyzed the potential impact of this additional revenue expenditure for our 2016-2017 budget, together with our commitment to provide stability for our students, staff, and community within the changing fiscal climate. The impact of the unanticipated expenditures to the KPBSD FY17 budget is estimated to be:

  • TRS potential additional FY17 expenditure: $3,073,390*
  • PERS potential additional FY17 expenditure: $436,584*
  • Total FY17 unanticipated revenue expenditure for KPBSD: $3,511,974*

                           *collective bargaining is currently taking place, and could cause this to increase.
Over 80 percent of the 2016-2017 budget is related to staff (salary and benefits). A $3.5 million reduction translates into the potential loss of approximately 40 teaching positions.
SB 207 does include language stating, “It is the intent of the legislature to appropriate additional money to school districts annually to mitigate the annual increases to employer costs for the first five complete fiscal years under this Act.” SB 209 does not include this language.
A third new bill, SB 210 – Community Revenue Sharing and Property Tax Exemptions, will potentially affect borough and municipality funding, and thus has the potential consequence of reducing the ability of the borough to fund the school district with a maximum allowable contribution.
The Senate budget does propose to keep the $50 BSA increase for FY17, which for KPBSD, based on projected enrollment, equates to $886,375.
“I’m very concerned that the legislature is proposing this further expenditure, particularly this late in our process of budgeting and staffing for next year,” said Superintendent Sean Dusek. “While KPBSD appreciates the inclusion of the $50 BSA in the proposed Senate budget, which the district does receive as revenue, the additional percentage of PERS and TERS increases our expenditures by far more than the $50 BSA revenue. KPBSD is committed to deliver a quality education to our students, and provide stability for our staff and communities.”
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KPBSD suspends Alaska Measures of Progress (AMP) testing

The Kenai Peninsula Borough School District has suspended the AMP assessment in our schools until we receive further information from the Alaska Department of Education and Early Development (EED). The decision was made in the afternoon, on March 31, 2016. This EED press release provides further information, and KPBSD will communicate with our staff, students, and parents when additional information and a final decision is made.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 31, 2016
Student Testing Suspended
Assessment suspension March 2016
JUNEAU – The Alaska Department of Education & Early Development has suspended computer-based testing of students in the Alaska Measures of Progress and other assessments because of continuing online connection problems between test-takers and the assessment system.
On Tuesday, at 10:30 a.m. Alaska time, construction workers at the University of Kansas severed a fiber optic cable, shutting down Internet service at the university, including online student testing hosted by the Achievement & Assessment Institute at the university.
The Achievement & Assessment Institute informed the department that school districts could resume testing today. After the system then crashed several times this morning, the department notified districts to suspend testing.
“The disruption to the learning environment of our students is unacceptable,” said Interim Commissioner Susan McCauley. “We will not resume the assessments unless the vendor can guarantee that the testing system is fully functional.”
Tuesday was the first day in which students in grades 3 to 10 were to take computer-based assessments in English language arts and mathematics, and science assessments in grades 4, 8 and 10.
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PRESS RELEASE
Commissioner’s Office
Dr. Susan McCauley
Interim Commissioner
P.O. Box 110500
Juneau, AK 99811-0500
education.alaska.gov
Contact:
Eric Fry
Information Officer
(907) 465-2851
Cell: (907) 321-5564
eric.fry@alaska.gov

KPBSD participating in training exercise in Soldotna Alaska

KPB_AKS16-InformationRELEASE03292016_MAP

Repost from http://kpboem.blogspot.com/
March 29, 2016

Multiple Agencies to Conduct Training Exercises in Soldotna Alaska

This week emergency response exercises will be conducted in Soldotna, AK on Thursday March 31st and Friday April 01st. These exercises are part of the statewide Alaska Shield 2016 exercise. On these days, you may see uniformed first responders or Alaska Army National Guard, staged vehicles and equipment as well as directional signs in the Soldotna area.
On Thursday March 31st the Borough, School District, Soldotna Police, Alaska State Troopers, Alaska Army National Guard, Central Emergency Services and Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) members will exercise three areas of preparedness: (1) assessing Borough departments’ Continuity of Operations Plans (COOP); (2) evaluating cyber security reporting protocols; and (3) training employees in an active shooter program. These are preparedness exercises intended to evaluate multi-agency interaction and capabilities.
All of the exercises will be held in Soldotna, Alaska at the Office of Emergency Management or at the Borough/School District Administrative Building. You may see uniformed first responders or Alaska Army National Guard at both locations. There will be staged vehicles and equipment. Be on the lookout for directional signs on the streets adjacent to the exercise areas.
CERT members and Guardsmen are instructed to keep people from entering these locations during the exercises. During the active shooter exercise, two staging areas will be provided for the public or media observations on March 31st at 5:00PM (see map below).  Please do not interfere with the exercises.
For more information contact Brenda Ahlberg, Public Information Officer at 907-714-2153 or 907-231-6505 for the latest information.

The 2016 Book Battle

Many educators think of February as Love of Reading Month, so it is especially fitting that Battle of the Books takes place during that month. Sixty-five KPBSD teams participated in this year’s district competition. All did an awesome job. Most of the battles took place using audio conference technology with the final round teams competing using video conference. All agreed it was an added bonus to “see” the other teams.
Congratulations to the following teams that made it to the final round of competition!

Cooper Landing School
Cooper Landing School

Battle of the Books is a statewide reading and comprehension program sponsored by the Alaska Association of School Librarians. The goals of the program are to encourage and recognize students who enjoy reading, broaden reading interests, increase reading comprehension, and promote academic excellence. All this is accomplished through a game-show style competition known simply as “BOB”.
Lists of books are chosen and questions are written for all the grade levels. Students read the books (fifteen titles for Grades 3-6 and twelve titles for Grades 7-12), quiz each other, learn title and author information, and compete in teams of no more than three students attempting to score as many points as possible answering questions related to the books. Battle questions all begin with the words, “In which book”. Students are allowed thirty seconds to confer with team members and come up with an answer which is always the title and author of a book on the list.
Our district-winning teams moved on to the Alaska state competitions held the end of February. Our teams represented our district well placing as follows.

  • High School – Soldotna High School tied for 5th place (24 teams)
  • Middle School – Nikiski Middle-High School, 7th place (29 teams)
  • Grades 5/6 – K-Beach Elementary, 11th place (35 teams)
  • Grades 3/4 – Cooper Landing School, 3rd place (34 teams)

Book lists for next year’s battles were chosen by members of the Alaska Association of School Librarians at their state conference on March 12, 2016. The list is posted at the State Battle of the Book’s website.
View photos of all the teams on the KPBSD Facebook page, 2016 Battle of the Books photo album
Story contributed by Karla Barkman, District Battle of the Books Coordinator
 

Kaleidoscope School of Arts & Science
Kaleidoscope School of Arts & Science

West Homer Elementary
West Homer Elementary

news release: Pre-K classes for four year old kiddos

Kenai Peninsula Borough School District KPBSD logo 4c no tag SMALL
Contact: Pegge Erkeneff, 907.714.8888
News Release

Pre-Kindergarten class information for August 2016

Soldotna, March 23, 2016—Children who will be four years old by September 1, 2016, have an opportunity to attend pre-kindergarten classes at their local area school in the fall. To qualify for the classes, parents and guardians must contact their local area school to schedule a Pre-K assessment, and complete an application prior to the school screening appointment date.
“The Title I funded Pre-K programs available at specific sites in the KPBSD provide an excellent opportunity for children who turn four by September 1, 2016, to get a jumpstart on success in school,” said Christine Ermold, director of elementary education. “KPBSD’s Pre-K teachers are all certified and have specialized training in early childhood education. As a result, the programs they offer are engaging and developmentally appropriate, with an emphasis on preparing children to be successful when they enter kindergarten. Pre-K the KPBSD way focuses on experiences that facilitate each child’s growth in the targeted areas of social and emotional development; approaches to learning; communication, language, and literacy; cognitive development, and; physical well-being.”

Parent or guardian action steps

  1. Contact local attendance area school for times and testing locations. (See alphabetical list of schools offering Pre-K sessions*)
  2. Complete a Pre-K Application—the school office in your attendance area will provide applications
  3. Return the application to your neighborhood school office during school hours
  4. Schedule your child’s assessment prior to the date for your neighborhood school. (Dates listed below)
  5. Children must be age 4 by September 1, 2016
  6. Title I KPBSD programs web link: Title 1 programs at KPBSD

 *KPBSD Title I elementary schools and screening dates

Students qualify for Title I services based on academic need

  • Chapman Elementary, 235-8671, May 3, 2016
  • Mountain View Elementary, 283-8600, April 21, 2016
  • Nikiski North Star Elementary, 776-2600, April 13, 2016
  • Ninilchik School, 567-3301, May 5, 2016
  • Paul Banks Elementary, 226-1801, April 14, 2016
  • Redoubt Elementary, 260-4300, April 28, 2016
  • Seward Elementary, 224-3356,  April 26, 2016
  • Soldotna Elementary, 260-5100, April 27, 2016
  • Sterling Elementary, 262-4944, April 19, 2016
  • Tustumena Elementary, 260-1345, April 12, 2016
  • Voznesenka School,  235-8549 April 11, 2016

PreK
 
Title I programs are required to utilize effective, research based instruction, and must also provide evidence that students receiving Title I support are showing academic growth.
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Meet LOR, the Love Of Reading Dragon

McNeil Canyon Elementary celebrated Love of Reading month in February. Instead of celebrating once on Dr. Seuss’s birthday, students and staff celebrated the entire month. Instead of counting total minutes read, students spent their time sharing, talking, and writing about books they enjoy. Each week McNeil had a school-wide activity which involved cross grade activities centered on the school’s love of reading. Activities included a favorite book share where Kindergarten through third graders buddied up and read a favorite story, while fourth through sixth graders met in small groups and shared an excerpt from their favorite book, a memorable-book share where older students paired with younger students and shared a book that had special meaning for them; and a Readers Theater performance where every student read and performed a play in front of others.
McNeil LOR dragon and Kindergarteners
Students also had an opportunity to document the books they read in February by filling out dragon scales that hung in the hallway on Lor, the giant quilted Love of Reading Dragon. After students read a book at home or at school, they wrote down the title, author and genre in a booklet and then filled out the scale at school. By the end of February, Lor was covered with brightly colored scales representing a book that was read and color-coded by its genre. Having a love of reading is something that will sustain these students for a lifetime. Watching younger students admire and enjoy their older buddies and seeing the wonder in their eyes as they imagined themselves as such fluent readers was something that the staff and students of McNeil Canyon will not soon forget.
Story contributed by McNeil Canyon staff

Hope School: Home to Owls, Bugs, and Superheroes

What does Hope have to do with owls, bugs, and superheroes? Well, these topics meant money in the bank for some students at Hope School.

“Bug” - Liam Bureau First place photo, Ididacontest
“Bug” – Liam Bureau
First place photo, Ididacontest

 
This year, students in Hope tried their hand at a new venture by competing in the state Ididacontest sponsored by the Alaska Society for Technology in Education, an organization that promotes and supports the use of technology in education throughout Alaska.  The Ididacontest is broken into many different categories, including photos, tunes, documentaries, movies, podcasts, aps, and ebooks. Each category has sub categories and involves grades K-12 and adults. All works must be original works by students and copyright free.
Hope students hopped onboard back in October and began planning their strategies for making entries to this competition. Some tried their hand at writing books, others scoured hundreds of photographs for just the right choice, while others began devising a way to work with film. In the end, Hope students submitted over a dozen entries to the Ididacontest in several different categories.
Following their hard work, Hope brought home three prizes, raking in $200 in cash donated by Ididacontest sponsors. Ryker Skaaren and Wesli Dykstra won first place for their documentary, “Your First Step to Learning About Alaska’s Owls”, Liam Bureau took home first place for his photo, “Bug”, and Murphy Dykstra and Ryker Skaaren landed third place for their ebook, “Murphy and Ryder’s Book of Poems”. So, yes, right now, bugs, owls, and superheroes are quite popular in the Hope area.
If you would like to view these winning entries and others from around the state, visit www.ididacontest.org.
Story contributed by Terri Carter
Hope ASTEWinners
 

PE: a vision impaired bowman learns skills

Unassumingly, everyday, KPBSD staff goes the extra mile for their students, and often we never hear about it. This #GoldenMoment took place before school started, one winter day in Soldotna, Alaska.
Before school hours, Malikhi Hansen, a Soldotna High School vision impaired student, made a visit to Redoubt Elementary, a neighboring school.
With Granger Nyboer, KPBSD vision specialist, Joe Shirley, his special education aide, and under the direction of Donny Joachim, physical education teacher and archery specialist,  Malikhi received memorable lessons.
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