Hjortedal retires from school board

The West Valley School Board said goodbye to a longtime friend Wednesday evening.

Debbie Hjortedal, a member of the board for 10 years, has retired from her seat. Members of the board and the staff of the school district thanked her for her years of service.

“You’ve proved to be a lot of fun and inspiration. A mentor and role model at times,” said Bob Wentworth, another board member.

Board member Bob Dompier said that he appreciated that Hjortedal always made her decisions based on what was best for the students.

“People always felt like Debbie was their friend first and their board member second,” said Gene Sementi, assistant superintendent. “She never looked away when something was hard to look at. I admire that.”

Hjortedal said she plans to still be involved with the district, even though she is stepping down from her seat on the board. She thanked the board and the staff and said she is proud of the district.

“It’s just amazing here,” she said. “Everyone here thinks about the kids first.”

The board celebrated her service with cake and gave Hjortedal a lifetime pass to all of West Valley’s sporting events.

They also decided that Sam Andrews, who graduated from West Valley High School in 2007, will fill her seat. He will be sworn in at the next West Valley school board meeting on March 10.

Kindergarten registration

Parents of incoming kindergarten students in the Central Valley School District can register their children starting Thursday at 8 a.m. for the 2010-’11 school year.

Parents can choose morning classes, afternoon classes or all-day, tuition-based kindergarten, although each school has its own option.

The district also will accept registration for new first grade students on Thursday.

Students starting kindergarten must be 5 years old on or before Aug. 31. New first-grade students must be 6 on or before Aug. 31.

Parents will need to bring up-to-date immunization records, original, state-certified birth certificates and proof of residency using a current utility bill.

The Washington State Department of Health also requires proof of immunity to chickenpox. Proof of immunity can be two doses of varicella vaccine, a blood test confirming immunity or a doctor/healthcare provider’s verification the student has had the disease. Parent reporting of the disease is no longer accepted.

Students can’t be enrolled until their vaccinations are complete.

Families in the Greenacres and Liberty Lake elementary enrollment areas with children entering kindergarten should register at the Central Valley Kindergarten Center, 1512 N. Barker Road.

For more information, call the Central Valley School District at (509) 228-5425 or visit www.cvsd.org.

Key clubs seek donations for Valley food bank

The key clubs of Central Valley, East Valley and University high schools have banded together for a fundraiser to benefit the Spokane Valley Food Bank.

Filling Empty Bowls will be held March 9 from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at CenterPlace, 2426 N. Discovery Place.

The event will include a dinner of soup, salad, bread and dessert. There will be live musical entertainment from Spokane Valley high schools and everyone can take home a student-made ceramic bowl.

The cost to attend is a suggested donation of $10. The three key clubs are sponsored by the Spokane Valley Kiwanis.

Tickets are available in the business offices of Spokane Valley Partners, 10814 E. Broadway Ave., Central Valley High School, 821 S. Sullivan Road, East Valley High School, 15711 E. Wellesley Ave., or University High School, 12420 E. 32nd Ave.

Capital facilities community forum

Central Valley School District will offer another community forum to discuss long-term capital facilities plans.

The meeting will be March 11 from 7 to 8 p.m. at Evergreen Middle School, 14221 E. 16th Ave.

This is the second of three community forums the district is presenting to receive input from the community. Members of the district’s Capital Facilities Planning Committee will facilitate the event.

“Community involvement in the capital facilities planning process is vitally important,” said Superintendent Ben Small.

The goal of the committee is to develop a six-year Capital Facilities Plan and a 25-year long-range plan based on the district’s needs.

For more information, visit www.cvsd.org or call the district office at (509) 228-5400.