Good News January 26, 2016

Federal Way High School Speech and Debate Team Brings Home Awards

The Federal Way High School Speech and Debate team has been bringing home a lot of awards lately. Robryan Jumawan won 2nd in Dramatic Interpretation; Victoria Cacho won 1st in Oratory; and Joy Ellis was a Finalist in Congressional Debate during the Federal Way Tournament.

 At the most recent meet at the University of Puget Sound, Zackery Gostisha finished 2nd in Congress and Extemporaneous Speaking; Wendy Escobedo was 3rd in Oratory, and Joy Ellis as a Finalist Novice in Congressional Debate.

Congratulations, Federal Way High Speech and Debate team. We are proud of you!

TAF Academy Senior, Favour Orji, Awarded Horatio Alger Association State Scholarship

Favour Orji, a senior at TAF Academy, has been awarded the Horatio Alger Association State Scholarship. This scholarship is valued at $7000 and will be disbursed over her collegiate career. Favour is an extraordinary student and has interned at the the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center for the last three years. She has also led a school-wide awareness campaign on human trafficking. Principal Paul Tytler says she is an exceptional student leader. She intends to pursue a career in medicine and hopes to become a doctor and has applied to multiple universities with Harvard, John Hopkins and Princeton being her top choices.

We look forward to seeing what the future holds for you, Favour.

Decatur Student, Elizabeth Min, Wins Essay Contest for Legacy Washington in 10th Grade Category

Decatur High School student Elizabeth Min won the 10th grade category for her essay on World War II for Legacy Washington, an initiative of the Secretary of State to document Washington state history. Elizabeth will be honored at an awards ceremony at the Secretary of State’s Office on Tuesday, February 2nd

Congratulations on your achievement, Elizabeth.

Over 7,500 Students Participate in 2015 Hour of Code Week

As part of the district’s ongoing work to incorporate 21st century skills within our instruction, all grade levels participated in Hour of Code activities last December. Hour of Code is a global initiative meant to encourage people of all ages to learn the foundations of computer science through practical coding tutorials. We are pleased to report that 7,516 students participated in the week-long event. Activities included building and programming lego robots, developing games, and coding Sphero robots to move about and change color.

We want to celebrate our teachers who embedded Hour of Code week tutorials in their regular lessons, ensuring our students are keeping pace with current technological competencies.

A special thanks to CTE Director Royce Badley and the Teaching for Learning Department for their efforts and outreach to encourage participation. 

Consulate General of the Republic of Korea in Seattle Supports Saghalie's Korean Language Program

Saghalie Middle School has offered an innovative Korean language program since 2014.  This program provides an opportunity for students to access a unique program incorporating blended learning and foreign language; in this instance, Korean. “The future is bilingual,” says Saghalie Principal Marin Miller.

A gift of $8,000 was awarded to Saghalie to support the program. Saghalie is now planning to offer one section of Korean Language to 30 students in spring 2016.

On behalf of Consulate General of the Republic of Korea in Seattle, we would like to share our appreciation of support to Consul Park for their partnership with Saghalie Middle School and Federal Way Public Schools.

Special Thanks to Kiwanis Club of Federal Way for their Continued Partnership

We would like to take a moment to recognize and thank the Kiwanis Club of Federal Way for their continued partnership over the years. Kiwanis Club has run the concessions stand at Memorial Field since 1971, donating 50% of their proceeds to the district, which goes to support the Activities Fund. The rest of the proceeds are used by the Kiwanis Club to support other programs headed by the organization such as scholarships for seniors, dictionaries for all third graders in the district, and Terrific Kids which honors students that are progressing well in school. Kiwanis is a global organization of volunteers dedicated to changing the world one child and one community at a time. We would like to welcome Kiwanis Club of Federal Way President Dennis Hulse to accept this certificate in recognition of your support. We appreciate your steadfast service within our community and all you do to support our student-scholars.