Shadle senior takes first place in state floriculture meet
Christina Choi, a senior at Shadle Park High School, won first place in the statewide FFA floriculture competition Nov. 19 in Ferndale, Wash. She was one of 75 competitors.
The Shadle team – Choi, Bryan Reamer, Dana Weaver, Hannah Hurst and Volodmyre Soldetenko – took third place overall.
Thirteen teams from across the state competed at the event. The Shadle team was the only entrant from Spokane Public Schools.
“I knew there would be intense competition from the other schools, but I was confident that the hours they spent studying and preparing for the event would be rewarded,” said teacher Marti Daniels, Shadle’s FFA adviser.
“It’s really great to see our students excel over competitors from larger programs.”
The team was awarded first place in team activity, third place in general knowledge and sweepstakes honors; fourth place in plant identification and fifth place in problem solving.
Daniels said competitions like this allow the students to adapt what they learn in the classroom to a real-world workplace environment. The program also gives them increased confidence and will help them excel in all areas of academics.
Food drive competition
For the third year in a row, students at Brentwood Elementary in the Mead School District are challenging students at Mullan Road Elementary on the South Side to see who can collect the most pounds of food, based on the average per student.
The food drives run Monday through Dec. 13 and will benefit the Second Harvest Food Bank.
Cash or checks made out to Second Harvest Food Bank will also be accepted, with each dollar equaling 1 pound of food.
Each school has previously won one competition, so this is the year of the tie-breaker.
Libby Center open house
Libby’s Tessera and Odyssey students will display their work from 4 to 7 today at the Libby Center, 2900 E. First Ave.
Tessera students’ work includes projects from their current study of the Middle Ages.
Also on display will be independent creations and work by Odyssey students, skill-building class projects from the special education vocational programs and independent programming activities used by the Designed Instruction students.
An Odyssey students’ musical performance will take place at 5:30 in the gym, and there will be a holiday bake sale, sponsored by Odyssey Parent Teacher Group. Wood shop creations will also be available for purchase.
St. George’s takes math title
Two teams of St. George’s School math students defended their Math Is Cool state championships by winning repeat titles at the statewide competition in Moses Lake on Nov. 19.
The four-person teams representing the eighth-grade and the combined ninth- and 10th-grade team each had the highest point totals among Division II small schools at the state championships.
The combined 11th- and 12th-grade team finished fourth in state in its division, and the school’s seventh-grade team placed sixth overall.
The school’s high school students also excelled in the Division II individual competition.
Nate Wynn won the individual title among all ninth- and 10th-graders in the state, with Johnny Cambareri placing fourth, Michael Cambareri placing fifth, and Britton Stamper finishing seventh overall.
Among 11th-12th-grade competitors, Daniel Copeland placed second, Sam Wagstaff was eighth and Elisabeth DeLeeuw finished ninth in the individual competition. Hal Halvorson also competed on the 11th-12th-grade team.
Several St. George’s students also won Division II individual titles or scored high in the competition.
Jordan Newton placed fifth among all seventh-grade competitors. Other members of the seventh-grade team include Helen Belay, Thomas Willson and Ryan Jacobsen.
Matthew Alexianu placed second, and Austin Henderson was sixth among all eighth-graders at state. Other members of the winning eighth-grade team include Richard Caulkins and Jordan Dickson.