Good News March 22, 2016

FWHS Boys Basketball Team Take AAAA State Championship, Second Year in a Row

We want to start out the evening by congratulating our State Championship AAAA Boys Basketball team from Federal Way High School! The Eagles went undefeated this year and wrapped up the season with a 66-54 win over Kentwood on March 5 at the Tacoma Dome.

This is Federal Way High’s second consecutive championship year, and Head Coach Jerome Collins’ third state championship. Assistant coaches Yattah Reed and Quinn Gillis are also to be commended. 

Not only do these young men have superb athletic skills, they are accomplished scholars as well. Every single one is enrolled in at least one advanced class, including AP and Cambridge courses. The seniors are college-bound to schools such as the University of Washington, San Diego State, and Washington State.  These student-scholar athletes are our state champs:

• D’Jimon Jones
• Elijah Nnanabu
• Ferron Flavors, who was selected the State Championship Tourney’s Most Valuable Player
• Mykael Henry
• Jalen McDaniels
• Jalen Womack
• Marcus Stephens
• Jaden McDaniels
• Etan Collins
• Palofina Jatta
• Christian Jones. An added note: Christian was also selected as the WIAA Athlete of the Week for week 26. Jones had 18 points and 12 rebounds in the Eagles’ championship game.

FWHS Teacher Andy Cameron Honored as 2015-16 State ASB Advisor of the Year

We also want to honor Federal Way High School teacher Andy Cameron tonight as the 2015–16 Washington State High School ASB Advisor of the Year. Andy has taught at the school since 1999 and, in the 2008-2009 school year, took on the role of ASB advisor.

One of Andy’s first actions was to streamline the club approval process in order to make it easier to form a club. Now, a student at Federal Way High can join the Anime Club, play trading card games, discuss a book in Book Club, learn how to sword fight, or dive into the cultures of Cambodia, the Pacific Islands, and Native Americans. Federal Way High now has more than 30 clubs that speak to all areas of interest.

Fellow teachers say Andy is a strong advocate for student voice and involvement in many staff development groups, and he realizes the importance of including and welcoming all students. It’s no coincidence that the ASB has implemented the “Eagle Mentors” program which provides guidance for every incoming ninth-grade student – requiring a crew of over 60.

Under Andy’s leadership, students organize and lead assemblies focused on preventing bullying. He guides the students through this difficult content and then empowers them to address their peers about the most sensitive and stressful topics in the lives of all teenagers.

Andy thinks in terms of social justice and teaches students how to think in such terms as well.

For all this and more, we want to say congratulations, and thank you, Andy.

Two FWPS Students Nominated for The U.S. Presidential Scholars Program.

This program recognizes and honors some of our nation's most distinguished graduating high school seniors. Each year, up to 161 students are named as Presidential Scholars, one of the nation's highest honors for high school students.

Ji Yeon Park, better known to her classmates as Lisa, is a full IB Diploma candidate at Thomas Jefferson High School, and, this year, pulled off a rare accomplishment -- scoring a perfect 2400 on the SAT.

Lisa is a well-rounded student-scholar who plays piano and volunteers actively. She has been a tutor at the King County Library’s Study Zone throughout high school. She also volunteers through the Korean American Parents Association and the Federal Way Youth Ecology Corps.

We also want to honor Todd Beamer High School senior Austin Brown, who was previously recognized as a recipient of the Washington CTE Student Success Award.  He is also a nominee for the Presidential Scholarship award.

Austin participates in classes such as AP Physics and AP Chemistry while maintaining a nearly perfect GPA. He works as an intern in the district’s IT Department, and in his spare time, he’s part of Federal Way’s Underground Engineering Club.

Austin shares that the club’s current project is to design a Sumobot in a 3-D CAD program and then print it on a 3-D printer. Then, they will program it to participate in an official Sumobot competition with no remote control permitted.

Three FWPS Students Selected for Washington Aerospace Scholars Program

The Washington Aerospace Scholars program, sponsored by the Museum of Flight, has selected three Federal Way Public Schools students as participants in Phase One of the WAS Program.

They are:

• Justin Kwon of Federal Way High School
• Sam Bird of Todd Beamer High School
• Connor Bronson-Doherty of Decatur High School

Justin, Sam and Connor applied to the program last fall and are currently among the 173 students participating in an online, distance-learning curriculum. Designed by NASA and the University of Washington, the curriculum focuses on the past, present, and future of human space travel.

They may also participate in a summer session, in which four student teams cooperate to plan a human mission to Mars with support from professional engineers/scientists, university students, and certificated educators. Participants also receive briefings from aerospace professionals, tour local engineering facilities, and compete in hands-on engineering challenges. The board congratulates these student-scholars, who have committed to leading the way to Mars.

Board Honors Federal Way’s 2016 Athletic Hall of Fame Inductees

The eighth annual Athletic Hall of Fame class was inducted at Todd Beamer High School on March 7, in a program filled with reminiscing, fun and a few tears.

The Class of 2016 inductees have been with the district for over 30 years each and affected the lives of thousands of Federal Way students. The common thread among these honorees is a devotion to our student-scholars and leadership in the district’s activity programs.

The 2016 Hall of Fame inductees are:

• Pat Adkins – Pat has been with the district for 36 years. She has taught and coached at both Sacajawea and Illahee, and currently teaches physical education at Federal Way High School.
• Jerome Collins – Jerome has taught History, PE, and Traffic Safety in Federal Way schools for 35 years. In 32 years as the Federal Way High School boys basketball head coach, Jerome has led his teams to three state championships.
• Mike Minahan – Mike is in his 32nd year of teaching science and math in Federal Way schools and has coached for nearly as long. He has coached five different sports and taken athletes to the state level in four of them.
• Jerry Peterson – Jerry started teaching in Federal Way schools in 1981, and has coached at Lakota, Saghalie, and Todd Beamer. He was Beamer’s first baseball coach and athletic director. He is currently the district’s Athletic Director. 
• Frank Wood – Frank has taught PE at Illahee Middle School for 30 years, and coached football, wrestling, and track. He was also Federal Way High’s head wrestling coach for the past two years.

Also honored during the Hall of Fame ceremony were the recipients of three special awards:

• Ken Olsson, longtime Federal Way Public Schools teacher, administrator and coach, who received the Bud Hatley Administrator Award honoring school and district athletic leadership. 
• Tiffany Rutter, who received the Professional Achievement Award recognizing a district graduate who teaches and coaches. She is currently a PE teacher and track coach at Todd Beamer High School. 
• Sylvia Naibert and Ralf Westenhofer who both received the Merlin Epp Service Award for behind-the-scenes athletic program support.

We appreciate the steadfast service these remarkable people have given with our district throughout the years. You all have made a difference in the lives of our student-scholars.

TBHS Senior Selected for $46,000 Art Institute Scholarship

Todd Beamer High School Senior Selena Krivoruchko was recently selected to receive a $46,000 scholarship to attend The Art Institute of Seattle this coming fall. 

Selena has had a lifelong interest in art. At Sequoyah Middle School, Selena volunteered her talents for projects such as creating the covers for the middle school band concert programs and developing a t-shirt design that was so good it was also used for the yearbook cover, and is still used for Sequoyah t-shirts today.

In her 9th grade year at Todd Beamer, she found she had an affinity for photography, as well as design. She has her eyes set on a career as a graphic designer and it looks like she’s well on her way.

Congratulations, Selena!

Board Thanks Patrick Bronson-Doherty and Quiagen for Major Donation

Finally tonight, students in each of Federal Way Public Schools’ comprehensive high schools have the opportunity to work with state-of-the-art DNA technology, thanks to a donation from Decatur parent Patrick Bronson-Doherty and his employer, Qiagen Sample & Assay Technologies. Former Federal Way Public Schools board member Amye Bronson-Doherty is here tonight to accept on Patrick’s behalf.

This equipment, valued at $750,000, brings modern, real-life molecular biology technology into our classrooms and gives our students the opportunity to experience science as it is being done in labs today. 

Thanks to Patrick’s work, Federal Way students will have access to technology that most students don't encounter until graduate school. This donation represents a huge boost to our district's high school science program, and we are extremely grateful to Qiagen and Patrick for their time, energy, and generosity.