U-Hi choral groups plan concerts
Two choral concerts this month will feature University High School’s diverse singing groups.
The U-Hi Choral Music Department – with seven different choral groups – begins a fall concert series with “Life’s Loveliness” on Tuesday, and concludes with “All Flesh is Grass” on Nov. 20. Both performances, free and open to the public, will begin at 7 p.m. in the school theater, 12420 E. 32nd Ave.
The performance “Life’s Loveliness” will showcase the Man Choir, Chanteuse, Anonymous 8 and the Titan Jazz Choir ensembles. The Man Choir features male students singing classic and contemporary tunes. Chanteuse is a treble choir comprising up to 75 soprano and alto singers. Ten advanced female singers make up Anonymous 8, whose fall repertoire consists of the “Music of Asia.” Established in 2006, the Titan Jazz Choir consists of male and female vocalists and backup musicians.
For “All Flesh is Grass,” the concert will feature performance of the Lirico Chamber Singers, University Choir and Concert Choir. The 20-member Lirico Chamber Singers is University High School’s elite vocal ensemble. The group has won numerous ensemble and solo awards, including “superior” markings for five consecutive years at the Eastern Washington Music Educators Association festival. More than 80 students in grades 10 through 12 make up the eight-section Concert Choir. Students in the University Choir are in grades nine through 12.
Choir teacher Russell Seaton directs the performers at the concerts. For more information about the Choral Concert Series, call 228-5240.
Auction to benefit student groups at EVHS
A huge assortment of travel, sports and gift packages will be up for grabs next week in an East Valley High School benefit auction open to the public.
EVHS parent supporters want to help 19 student groups stay viable in the face of recent and potentially ongoing school district budget constraints.
School booster club members have stepped up to offer more than 200 items at the auction scheduled at 6:30 p.m. Friday, in the school lunch room. Tickets are $5 at the door. The school is at the north end of Sullivan Road at Wellesley Avenue.
Cheer, orchestra, band, choir, sports programs and Washington Drug Free Youth are just a few of the groups that will benefit from proceeds.
Booster club member Tim Ragan said parents are concerned this year that smaller high school groups might face cuts if the East Valley district continues to have a budget shortfall, as it did this past spring. Each group can have a booster club representative who is involved in the auction.
“All of the money raised by the individual clubs is controlled by the clubs and they use the funds for entry fees into competitions, travel expenses, summer camps, etc,” Ragan said. “These monies are completely separate from the school budget. For most of the clubs, this is the largest fundraiser of the year.”
About 30 to 40 items will be up for live auction and the remaining available in a silent auction. Reinland Auctioneers is donating its services for the live auction.
Some of items in the auctions include Gonzaga University basketball tickets, Shock football tickets, football autographed by Super Bowl MVP Mark Rypien, Spokane Indians baseball package, gift baskets, dance lessons, diamond jewelry, hotel and dinner packages, a Husqvarna/Honda lawn mower, fitness club memberships, Coeur d’Alene resort golf package, golf lessons, a Priest Lake condo get-away package, a home central-vacuum system, Spokane Chiefs ticket package, Mariners ticket package and fly fishing lessons.
The auction organizers can accept cash, checks and credit cards.
Pie and beverages will be supplied by Albertsons, McDonald’s, and URM Cash and Carry. Dorian Studios donated the printed tickets and Merchant E-Solutions will help speed along the check-out process, Ragan said.
Businesses recognized for contributions
The Central Valley School District board of directors recently recognized 12 businesses that serve as work-based learning sites for about 20 special education students. The students are accompanied by school district job coaches and learn job-readiness by working unpaid hours in the stores and facilities.
The businesses become an extension of the classroom for the students, who are identified as requiring extra support or instruction to become employed. Students learn to follow a routine, take direction, ask questions and work safely in a public setting.
Most of the students are in Barker High School’s School to Life program, for special education students ages 18 to 21 who require additional skill development to transition from high school to the adult world. A few Central Valley High School and University High School students also participate.
Morgan Jones, the district’s high school/transition specialist, called the program a win-win situation for the businesses and the students. Although the businesses are not expected to offer jobs to the program’s graduates, some permanent placements have resulted.
The Spokane Valley businesses recognized include: Ace Hardware, Albertsons, Fred Meyer, Hastings, MacOdyssey, Michael’s, ShopKo, Spokane Valley Partners, Sunshine Gardens, Valley Bowl, Yoke’s Foods and the CVSD Reinforcing Early Educational Achievement for Children Program.