L-R – Ben Cullison, Carter Lyman
Manson's District Spelling Bee was held Thursday, February 21, 2019 at the Manson Elementary School.
This year 12 students from 4th through 8th grade competed for the District Spelling Bee Champion title.
The spelling bee lasted 7 rounds. The final 2 spellers were Carter Lyman and Ben Cullison, both 7th grade students.
The Manson School District Spelling Champion is 7th grader Carter Lyman with the winning word "sachet".
These finalists will advance on to the NCW Cooperative Spelling Bee in East Wenatchee on March 19, 2019.
The Manson School Board is asking our community for nominations of Manson School District Staff Members who have made a significant contribution to the lives of students and/or the greater Manson community. The Manson School Board hopes to receive nominations from parents, students, former students, and community members who have been involved in our schools.
Selection criteria is as follows: one certificated employee (grades P-12) and one support staff employee (secretaries, bus drivers, custodians, para-professionals, food services, coaches, etc.)
Nominations will be accepted until March 20, 2019 at noon. Winning nominees will be announced at the Manson School Board meeting on March 25, 2019 at 6:00 p.m.
Nominations forms are available online at the school district website www.manson.org, in both English and Spanish. If you should have any questions, please call the Manson School District office at 687-3140.
The Manson High School Vex Robotics Team attended the CWU League #3 Vex Robotics Tournament at Seattle Preparatory School on January 26-27, 2019.
The students earned 2nd place out of sixteen teams at the competition.
The team also earned the Programming Skills Champion Award for their robot’s autonomous software program. The Educator Award was awarded to their coach, Susan Sears.
The team is comprised of (L-R)- Titus Petersen, Jose Vazquez, Jonathan Sarmiento, Cole Cochran, Zoe Thomas, Cara Hutton, (not pictured) Rowan Evig, Connor and Grant Torgesen.
Manson School District is proud to announce that two elementary teachers, Cassandra Williams and Brandy Samson, have earned their National Board Certification for the 2018-19 school year in Early-Middle Childhood Literacy.
Like board-certified doctors and accountants, teachers who achieve National Board Certification have met rigorous standards through intensive study, expert evaluation, self-assessment and peer review. Manson School District now has 11 nationally board certified teachers with several more working towards completion.
Other National Board Certified teachers in are district are: Amy Anderson, Phil Fournier, Jay Fox, Anita Johanson, Steve Nygreen, Susan Sears, Katie Sperling, Heather Teague and Andrea Whitney.
Manson High School FBLA attended the North Central Region FBLA Winter Leadership Conference in Wenatchee on January 19, 2019.
Twenty-eight students placed in twenty-one events.
The following students placed at the regional conference and qualified for the Washington State FBLA Leadership Conference in April. Manson FBLA students placed 1st in five separate competitions and lead the region in number of students participating.
Individuals:
Bailey Cameron – Cyber Security 2nd place
Bryan Bernardo – Cyber Security 5th place, Networking Concepts 1st place
Bryanna Harris – Introduction to Business 3rd place
Cara Hutton – Organizational Leadership 6th place
Cole Cochran – Securities & Investments 5th place, Spreadsheet Applications 4th place
Grant Torgesen- Introduction to Parliamentary Procedure 3rd place, Introduction to Financial Math 2nd place
Jose Pascasio – Business Calculations 3rd place, Securities & Investments 2nd place
Thea Batch – Introduction to Business Communication 1st place, Introduction to Business Procedure 5th place.
Ty Charlton – Advertising 1st place, Political Science 2nd place
Yessenia Villasenor – Client Service 6th place
Groups:
Brayan Cesar, Cole Cochran, Bryce La Mar, Conner Torgesen – Parlimentary Procedure 5th place
Briar Soliday, Trenton Stotko, Victor Calderon – Business Ethics 3rd place
Bryan Bernardo, Jose Pascasio, Christian Montes – Graphic Design 2nd place
Bryce La Mar, Conner Torgesen, Grant Torgesen – Business Ethics 6th place
Christian Montes, Parker Schoenwald, Jonathan Morales – Sports & Entertainment Management 3rd place
Cole Beazley, Caden Beazley, Bailey Cameron – Sports & Entertainment Management 1st place
Devyn Smith, Mara Vargas, Nadia Verduzco – Website Design 2nd place
Megan Clausen, Mara Vargas, Devyn Smith – Business Ethics 5th place
Oliver Ellingson, Victor Calderon, and Jake Lodwig – Digital Video Production 2nd place
Parker Schoenwald, Bailey Cameron, Caden Beazley – Hospitality Management 2nd place
Ty Charlton and Cole Beazley – Hospitality Management 1st place
Ty Charlton, Tucker Flowers, Parker Schoenwald – Business Ethics 4th place
On Wednesday January 9th, Manson High School hosted their annual Knowledge Bowl (KB) Tournament. “Typically, we have the northern region teams (e.g. Liberty Bell, Chelan, Okanogan, etc.) coming down to participate in the competition, but this year we had a huge turn out from the south too,” said Manson coach Phil Fournier. With the southern tournament being cancelled last minute at Wahluke High School, there was a convergence of the southern and northern teams onto the Manson campus, a veritable North Central Washington (NCW) Knowledge Bowl Tournament. There were 11 schools and 29 teams, ranging from 4A to 2B battling it out.
With the strong reputation of the intellectual acumen and friendly competitiveness of the NCW region and teams, the battles were intense and well fought. Liberty Bell, a perennial favorite at State, took 1st place honors while Moses Lake, another juggernaut in State competition, took 2nd place. Manson took 13th place overall in this highly competitive field. Manson High School captain Ty Charlton enjoyed the competition and organization of the event. “It was bigger than previous years. It ran smoothly and everyone had a good time.” In between rounds, the various teams congregated to the student hub to check their results and fill up on some snacks and small conversation while a nice warm fire crackled in the background.
The Manson High School Knowledge Bowl team would like to thank the school district and community for the great success of this tournament: the use of teachers’ classrooms, the technological assistance and equipment, the dedication of our incredible readers and timers, and the gracious donations from Manson Red Apple and Manson Growers. Coach Fournier added, “It was wonderful having Knowledge Bowl coaches from the various schools share with me about how great the tournament was and also about the amazing commitment of all community and staff members involved in this huge endeavor. It was a blast.”
The Manson School District applied for and received an urgent repair grant from the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction in the amount of $110,097 to construct a wheel chair ramp at the elementary school. Eric Sivertson, Operations Manager submitted our application in the fall and was notified in early December that we were selected as one of the award recipients.
Construction on the ramp will begin in July of 2019 and should be completed by August of 2019. The ramp improves Manson Elementary ADA access allowing for both an interior (elevator) and exterior route to all portions of the building and grounds.
Manson School District
Replacement Educational Programs and Operation Levy
Placed on February 12, 2019 Ballot
The Manson School Board has passed a resolution placing a levy proposition on the February 12th 2019 Chelan County special election ballot. If approved, the levy would replace an expiring Maintenance and Operations (M & O) Levy passed by voters in February 2017.
The proposed levy is for 2 years 2020 & 2021 (Manson has historically run 2-year levies).
The current voter approved amount scheduled to be collected this year (2019) is $1,367,278. The tax rate is $1.50 per $1,000 of assessed value.
The proposed amounts are: 2020 $1,449,314 ($1.50 per $1,000) 2021 $1,536,273 ($1.50 per $1,000)
Manson’s EP & O levy funding is approximately 13% of the district’s total funding and either fully or partially supports:
Maintenance of school facilities, including custodial staff, equipment, supplies and utilities
Instructional programs/staff/technology:
College courses in the high school
Preschool for all 4 year olds
Support of the arts (music, drama, art)
Special Education (in addition to state/federal funding)
Vocational classes (shop, ag classes, business, technology, drones)
Technology support
Replacement of computers/devices
Beyond the School Day Programs
After school enrichment and academic intervention classes
Middle/High school athletics (coaches, referees, travel, uniforms, equipment)
Clubs (pep band, FBLA, FFA, Knowledge Bowl, robotics).
Food service program (fresh fruit/vegetable snacks)
Professional development/staff training
An informational meeting for the public will be held at Manson High School on February 4th at 6:30PM and additional informational meetings can be scheduled (687-3140). Information is also available on the district website at www.manson.org including an individual tax calculator where taxpayers can determine their estimated local school tax using their property assessed value amounts.
Manson School District
Replacement Capital Projects Levy
Placed on February 12, 2019 Ballot
The Manson School Board has passed a resolution placing a six-year capital projects levy on the February 12, 2019 ballot. This proposition would replace an expiring capital levy passed by voters in 2013 set to expire on December 31, 2019.
What would this capital projects levy do?
A committee of Manson community and staff members prioritized the following needs:
Safety Improvements
Redesigning and strengthening entrances to both schools
Replacing doors, adding security cameras
Replace aging fire suppression panels in each building
Replace alarm/security panels
Early Childhood Center
Create a facility designed specifically for 3 & 4 year old children
Free-up classroom space in the elementary
Addresses need for small group spaces
Redesign Elementary Parking/Traffic Area
Expand parking for parents/visitors and staff
Improve parent drop-off/pick-up location
Relocate bus drop-off/pick-up location
Replace Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) systems
Majority of systems were installed in 1997-98 remodel – twenty-year life span is ending
Remodel MS/HS student bathrooms
Remodel MS/HS gymnasiums
Replace aging wooden bleachers in MS(old) gym
Replace fixtures in both buildings
Plumbing, lighting and kitchen appliances
Track resurfacing
Proactively set aside funds to resurface when it becomes necessary
Continue to invest in student technology/equipment
How much will this cost?
Fixed amount of dollars collected each year (this amount doesn’t fluctuate with assessed value changes)
$499,000 each year 2020-2025 (Previous capital levy amount was $595,000 each year (2014-2019)
Rates per $1000 of assessed property value
2017 $0.72
2018 $0.65
2019 (current) $0.61
2020 (proposed) $0.49
Upper L-R: Raven Pope, Cody Fitzpatrick, Cole Cochran, Emily Valencia
Bottom L-r: Henry Armstrong, Blake Cochran, Teresa Venegas
The Manson FFA Apple Judging team consisting of Cody Fitzpatrick, Henry Armstrong, Blake Cochran Marcos Diaz, and Nadia Tejada, traveled to Kennewick, Washington to participate in the state FFA Apple Judging CDE.
It was an early morning start leaving the high school at 5am for the 3 ½ hour drive. There were 127 competitors with Blake Cochran placing 28th individual.
The team placed 11th overall out of 28 teams missing the top ten by a mere 1.5 points.
The contest consisted of 25 questions out of the private applicator pesticide manual, judging two sets of trays (one red delicious and one granny Smith), figuring maturity date from full bloom, showing the proper way to pressure test, grading 25 golden delicious and 25 red delicious apples, identifying 25 varieties of apples and pears, identifying 25 insects and 50 blemishes on the apples.
The team was excited about placing and look forward to next year