Julie Titone

Getting out the message. Supporters of the Post Falls bond issues make a television commercial under the direction of Jim Duram of Century Communications. Photo by Craig Buck/The Spokesman-Review

It's not fair, says Linda Holehan, a mother involved in a third campaign to replace her town's overcrowded high school. It's a godsend, counters Dee Lawless, who fears people are being taxed out of their homes.

The head bean-counter for Coeur d'Alene's public schools thinks he's found a way to save money and get some badly needed building space, to boot.

Three hundred city residents will have an unusual chance to give the Coeur d'Alene School District a piece of their minds. Over the next few weeks, 30 volunteers will conduct a random survey, visiting 10 houses each.

They stopped short of jumping up and down. But at a state Board of Education hearing Tuesday, gym teachers and parents made a strong case for continuing to require physical education classes in Idaho high schools. "For the life of me, I can't understand where the pressure is coming from to take it out," said Henry Hamill, head of Lake City High School's physical education department. The single required semester of physical education in three years of high school makes a big difference, Hamill said. At its start, fewer than half the students can run a mile. By the end, 90 percent can make the finish line. Hamill's sentiments were echoed at the hearing, held to take testimony on a wide range of proposed state school rule changes. The changes - yet to be approved by the Board of Education and Legislature - are meant to cut red tape and return many decisions to local school districts. Up to 60 people at a time attended the hearing, one of a series being held throughout the state on hundreds of changes in state rules proposed by the Education Department. Many lauded increased requirements for math and science, which are a response to the needs of a technological society. But it was elimination of the physical education requirement that drew the most heated reaction Tuesday. Every year, Hamill said, there's a drop in the number of students able to pass tests of basic skills, such as flexibility and strength. Waving a blue-covered copy of a U.S. surgeon general's report, University of Idaho professor Cal Lathen recommended expanding the requiremnt to four semesters. The report, issued in July, says that more than half of adolescents aren't physically active. It recommends regular, if not daily, physical education. "The draft proposal for the state of Idaho is heading in the opposite direction," said Lathen. "that doesn't make sense." Pam Lippi, who teaches at Sandpoint's Farmin/Stidwell School, said she fears the de-emphasis on physical activity will filter down to elementary schools. She unrolled a petition with 380 signatures, asking that the board not repeal the high-school requirement. "Not one person I went to was against signing this petition. They couldn't believe the state Board of Education was thinking about doing this," Lippi said. "Children need to express themselves," she said. "They need to move and they need to be healthy." Physical education can help children stay active, said Post Falls parent Gail Worden. "We're raising the most out-of-shape generation." Lori Lochelt of the North Idaho AIDS Coalition testified that requiring health classes is a key to stopping socially transmitted diseases.

Bringing home the bacon. Game face turns to gross-out face after Hana Viek, left, puckered up and paid up by kissing a piglet named Zoro, held by Kootenai Medical Center colleague Pam Thompson. Viek's co-workers gave her and social worker Ralph Parkison the honor of kissing a pig for United Way. Photo by Jesse Tinsley/The Spokesman-Review

Too few students Teacher Becky Ware works with Calder School students in the one-room schoolhouse. Photo by Craig Buck/The Spokesman-Review

The presence of a private day care in a public school will be reviewed by the Kellogg School Board. The business, Just for Kids, opened last week along with classes at Pinehurst Elementary School. It did so without board approval, said trustee Mark Cowles of Pinehurst.

Students in Lori Koepl's first-grade class at Holy Family Catholic School study their workbooks Friday as the teacher checks their progress. The school opened its doors for the first time last week. Photo by Jesse Tinsley/The Spokesman-Review

More students and a likely drop in state funding prompted the Coeur d'Alene school board to approve a $221,076 emergency levy on Friday. So, during the coming year, property owners will pay an additional $3.98 per $50,000 in taxable property, said trustee Tim Olson.

Starting next fall, some Post Falls parents may have the option of sending their children to school on a year-round schedule. School district administrators will ask the board of trustees on Monday if they can further research the idea.

1. Michelle Faucher-Sharples makes her debut as a third- and fourth-grade teacher at Bryan Elementary. Photo by Craig Buck/The Spokesman-Review 2. Michelle Faucher-Sharples gets to know her students at Bryan Elementary. Photo by Craig Buck/The Spokesman-Review

Last April, two men in their 20s rammed an information booth with their vehicle, destroyed signs and tore up posts at Priest Lake's Luby Bay Campground. The case was unusual because of the amount of damage - about $4,000 - and the fact that the criminals were caught and paid restitution.

1. Only the door remains standing on an outhouse at a Spokane construction site. Photo by Steve Thompson/The Spokesman-Review 2. Above, broken pieces are all that's left of the sign that once helped hikers find their way on Canfield Mountain. Photo by Idaho State Parks and Recreation 3. Below is the sign before it was destroyed by vandals. Photo by Idaho State Parks and Recreation.

An unusual construction project under way here will relieve a bottleneck in Idaho's north-south highway. The Goff Bridge - commonly known as the Time Zone Bridge - will be replaced with a wider, higher and safer span across the Salmon River on U.S. Highway 95. The target date for completion is December 1998. But there's another red-letter month on the construction schedule: April 1997.

1. Oasis. Viola "Hooty" McReynolds (right), owner of Hoot's Cafe, a popular stopping place on U.S. 95 near White Bird, Idaho, with waitress Marge Matiska. Says McReynolds about the road: "It's the only road we have, so what can you say?" Photos by Craig Buck 2. A truck climbs U.S. 95 near Grangeville, Idaho. 3. Swathers work a field near De Smet, Idaho, the heart of lentil country. About 80 percent of the nation's exports come from this region, according to the Pea and Lentil Commission. 4. Cowboy. Bernard "Penny" Payne, 85, a trader who peddles his wares along U.S. 95 from Worley, Idaho, to Arizona: "She's a bad one to drive on. There's places you could break an axle." 5. Pirate. Richard Dillon, school superintendent for the Payette Pirates, with his dog Bo and a school statue: "It's busy. It's our lifeline, but we can hardly get across it to come to work." 6. Bikers. Delbert and Carolyn Petty of Weiser, Idaho, outside their RV home. Petty trucked mobile homes on the highway before retiring: "The worst road there is. It's curvy and rough." 7. Worms. Lorrie Rowe, a worker at a worm farm in Payette, Idaho, on U.S. 95: "I've flown and rode everywhere and it's all that you need. There is some of the best fishin' on 95." 8. Becoming one with the roadway on U.S. 95. 9. The Camas Prairie Scarecrow was born two years ago when a Washington Water Power lineman left his hat on a pole. Locals adorn it with seasonal objects. 10. An early morning view of White Bird, Idaho, and a historic battle site where Nez Perce warriors defeated the U.S. Calvary. 11. Danger. Steve Hackler, a volunteer for the Salmon River Rural Fire Department, sees a lot of accidents on U.S. 95: "It's lethal. Pretty soon there's gonna be more crosses than mile markers." 12. The sun rises over Owyhee country at the southern end of U.S. 95 in Idaho, a rugged, sparsely populated desert where a 65-mile-an-hour speed limit doesn't seem too fast.

Paved with good intentions. Idaho's old North and South Highway runs more than 500 miles from Jordan Valley, above, to the Canadian border. Photo by Craig Buck/The Spokesman-Review

Samson is missing. And he's more than just a runaway pooch to Yvette and Mike Rullman - he's a counselor, of sorts. When their baby died on the day he was born last January, the yellow Labrador seemed to know something was wrong, Yvette Rullman said Tuesday.

Kayakers participate in the "Goat and Boat" outing Sunday at Farragut State Park. Photo by Julie Titone/The Spokesman-Review

Starting this summer, people who want to teach in Idaho must be fingerprinted. The idea is to keep criminals out of the classroom. Everyone who applies for a teaching certificate will get the background check, said Kirby Nelson, an assistant attorney general.

It's tough for teachers when one of their own is accused of sexually abusing a student. They're outraged if the allegation is true - and outraged if it's not. They're confused and uncomfortable until guilt or innocence is proved, which may never happen. In Coeur d'Alene, their attention is focused on Paul Mather. The 49-year-old teacher and coach faces charges of child sexual abuse after being accused of fondling 13- and 14-year-old girls.

With a helping hand from his dad, Ryan Seacrist swirls color onto a gourd during Saturday's Art on the Green festival on the North Idaho College campus. The festival continues today. Photo by Craig Buck/The Spokesman-Review

1. Ensemble beats all. A drumming ensemble practices a drums-only piece for their upcoming concert in City Park. Photo by Jesse Tinsley/The Spokesman-Review 2. Drum teacher Rob McKendrick of Portland demonstrates the proper beat. Photo by Jesse Tinsley/The Spokesman-Review

More than 500 Idaho residents who purchased service contracts from Smith's Home Furnishings will be guaranteed those benefits, Idaho Attorney General Alan Lance announced Friday. Smith's went out of business in August 1995. It had stores throughout the Northwest, including Spokane and Boise. The store aggressively marketed its warranty service contracts good for up to five years on furniture, electronics and appliances, Lance said. Customers were promised that, if they did not use their service contracts, they would get in-store credit toward the purchase of other goods.