Tag Archives: beacon hill elementary

Beacon Bits

Beacon Bits: Honoring, building, and shredding

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Signs in the window of Sharon's Lutong Bahay, a Filipino restaurant just south of Beacon and Stevens, say that the restaurant's Grand Opening is this Friday, June 25. Photo by Wendi.
Jerry Large of the Seattle Times (BHB news partners) featured Jeane Cook and Kim Nakamura in his column yesterday. Cook and Nakamura, who are both in their 90s, were honored by Beacon Hill International School (formerly Beacon Hill Elementary) for nearly 30 years of volunteer work at the school. Large also mentions that the BHIS Golden Acorn award for volunteers this year went to Pat Dederer, who has been helping at BHIS for 20 years. We here at the BHB would also like to express our gratitude to Cook, Nakamura, and Dederer for their service and contributions to the lives of Beacon Hill kids over the decades.

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You may have noticed some work near Jose Rizal Bridge this week. The Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) is installing curb ramps in the intersection of 12th Avenue South and South Charles Street at the north end of the bridge. Crews plan to work until Thursday, from 7 am to 2:30 pm each day. They will close the western and then the eastern sidewalk and parking strip, one at a time, to complete the work.

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Speaking of construction work, work on the Chief Sealth Trail Extension project will probably start in late August. The project will take about three months. Afterward, the trail will extend northwestward from Beacon Avenue South northwest to South Angeline/15th Avenue South.

SDOT has completed its environmental review of the project per the State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) and determined that there will be no significant adverse environmental impacts as a result of the project. To see the DNS and other environmental documents as well as a map of the project, see the project web site.

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Verity Credit Union is hosting a community shred-a-thon on Saturday from 10:00 am – 2:00 pm. At this event, community members who don’t have their own shredders can have the security of shredding their sensitive documents. There is a suggested minimum donation of $10 which will be donated directly to the Beacon Hill Food Bank. Verity is located at 1660 South Columbian Way, Building 35.

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Helping Link, or Má»™t Dấu Nối, is a non-profit group that provides tutoring, citizenship and English classes, and social services to the local Vietnamese community. They are having their annual fundraiser, the Seattle International Fashion Gala, this Saturday, June 26, at O’Asian Kitchen Restaurant. There will be an array of modern and traditional gowns premiered by fashion designers, Oscar Milano Mai and Chi Duyen, along with Asian cuisine.
Proceeds of ticket purchases will go towards the support of Helping Link’s community strengthening programs for Vietnamese refugees and immigrants. More information can be found on the website.

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The Bar del Corso pizzeria folks are holding a fundraiser on Sunday from 3:00 to 6:00 pm to help raise funds for the restaurant they plan to open on North Beacon Hill early next year. They say, “Jerry will be firing up the brick oven in our backyard garden, and making pizzas. With fava beans and garlic in season, we will be making some special pizzas with these ingredients, along with other classics.” The suggested donation is $100, but “the donation amount is suggested—pay what you can.” RSVP is required to info@bardelcorso.com (with RSVP in the subject line). They will send you a confirmation email with the details and the address of the party.

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Beacon Lutheran Church will be holding a Bible and Chinese Camp for children from ages 4 through 12 this summer, August 16-20. The program will run from 9:00 am to 3:00 pm and will provide Bible lessons, singing, crafts, and games, as well as Chinese language and culture lessons. Snacks will be provided morning and afternoon, but each child should bring a sack lunch. For more information or to register, call Father Philip Wong, 253-277-1831 (in Chinese or English), or Eunice Graham, 206-323-0226 (English only).

Beacon Bits

Beacon Bits: Bazaar, barista, and a giant teepee

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Victrola is looking for a "Barista w/BeaHill love & skills." Is that you? Photo by Wendi.
Beacon Hill International School is hosting their annual Beacon Bazaar on Saturday, June 12 from 9:00 am to 2:00 pm, on the 14th Avenue South sidewalk in front of the school. If you would like to rent a table to sell items, you can find a registration form at the above link.

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Also in Beacon Hill International School news, two members of the school’s Chess Club competed in the 2010 Washington State Elementary Chess Championships on April 24 in Tacoma. Congratulations to first-grader Jay Zinschlag and fourth-grader Paul Wickward who each won two of five games in their tournament.

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Victrola recently posted a help wanted ad for a barista, and said “interests in coffee processing, roasting and cupping and the BeaHill/SouthSeattle area are important.” Know your way around an espresso machine and Beacon Hill? See the ad for more info.

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The Seattle school district has been awarded grants totaling $5.76 million over three years for three schools under the School Improvement Grant program, including Cleveland High School on Beacon Hill. The three-year grants, awarded by the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) with funding from the federal stimulus package, will support school improvement plans at Cleveland as well as at Hawthorne and West Seattle elementary schools.

The additional resources will be used to support the transformation of Cleveland High School into a Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) school.

Here is a fact sheet about Cleveland’s plan.

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Joaquin Uy writes, “A few of us were wondering what happened to the giant teepee that used to be seen driving down McClellan. I believe there were protest signs by the teepee too.” Anyone know?

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Franklin High School is taking it to the streets for the Franklin Arts Festival on Saturday, May 15 from 11:00 am to 3:00 pm in front of Franklin High School, 3013 South Mount Baker Boulevard. There will be music by the Nyamuziwa Marimba Ensemble. Franklin’s Marching Band, Lion Dancers, and other talented student groups will be there too, and there will be displays of the visual arts and crafts including ceramics, drawing, woodworking and painting. The event is free.

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The City of Seattle Office of City Auditor is conducting a review of the City’s response to graffiti, and has set up a questionnaire to help gather information from individuals, businesses, and organizations about how graffiti affects them.

The questionnaire is here. The deadline to complete it is May 10.

Beacon Bits

Beacon Bits: Dancing, gardening, and going to meetings

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Victrola Coffee received a perfect score in their recent inspection by the Health Department. This drink was photographed at Victrola by Christie Aesquivel, in the Beacon Hill Blog photo pool on Flickr.
There is a planning meeting for the Beacon Hill Food Forest at Jefferson Park, at 7:00 pm tonight at the Lawn Bowling Clubhouse (4103 Beacon Avenue South).

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The Columbian Way paving project meeting is tomorrow, April 7, at the Mercer Middle School Library (1600 South Columbian Way) from 5:30 to 7:30 pm. Here’s a flyer about the project.

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Beacon Hill International School was the subject of a feature in the Seattle Times (BHB news partners) this week, including a great video about the language immersion program at the school.

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If you like to dance and you’d also like to help raise some funds for Beacon Rocks!, swing by their website, scroll down to the bottom of the page, and sign up for their mailing list.

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Beacon Hill is quite the hot spot for gardening activity this spring. Seattle Good Food Network‘s April meeting is next Thursday, April 15, from 4:30 to 6:00 pm at the Beacon Hill Library. Learn a bit more about SGFN.

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Wondering about the cabinet and fence business on 15th Avenue South near Cleveland High School? It’s for sale on Craigslist. Currently, however, the site has an open complaint filed against it with DPD for violations of the Seattle Land Use and Zoning Code.

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Several of our local establishments have been visited by health inspectors recently. Congratulations to Golden Daisy and Victrola for achieving perfect scores of zero violations. Here are links to all the inspection reports:

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The Friends of Cheasty Greenspace at Mountain View invite you to their upcoming planning meetings, where you’re invited to share your ideas for a trail plan and entry with “safe trails, way-finding, environmental learning, gathering spaces, welcoming trail heads.” The first meeting was April 1 and hosted a discussion of current conditions, ideas, and priorities.

Upcoming meetings: 7:00 to 8:30 pm, May 13—Review ideas, priorities, and options at the home of Amit Ranade and Jennifer Faubion-Ranade, 2615 South Edmunds Street.

7:00 to 8:30 pm, June 17—Open House to present trail plan; guided walks through Cheasty Greenspace/Mountain View at the end of South Alaska Place.

If you want to know more about the Friends of Cheasty Greenspace at Mountain View and get involved, email mdejong@spu.edu or adostrovsky@gmail.com or contact Pamela Kliment of Seattle Parks and Recreation, at Pamela.Kliment@seattle.gov or 206-684-7356.

Education

Schools: Nova open house and BHIS Confucius classrooms

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Levecke Mas writes regarding the Nova High School Open House:

Join us for exhibition night! Prospective students and families are invited to visit Nova, meet students, teachers and staff and learn more about the school’s unique program.
Nova is a small public high school in the Seattle school district.
Enrollment is open to students city wide.

The Open House starts at 6:30pm Thursday (tomorrow) night at 300 20th Avenue East.

Link corrected. Whoops! Thanks, Bridget.

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Beacon Hill International School has been selected as one of 20 Chinese language program “pioneer” schools through the Hanban-Asia Society of Confucius Classrooms Network.

The school will receive $10,000 a year for technology, possible funding for a new local Chinese teacher for next year, development of a sister-school relationship with an elementary school in China, professional development for Chinese-language teachers, and instructional materials, among other resources.

Clean and Green, Urban Planning

Project update for BHIS playground

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Schematic drawing

Beacon Hill playground renovation schematic drawing. Click for full-size. View the original PDF from the Parks department.

Coming out of a community meeting last month, the Parks Department has made some changes to the Beacon Hill Playground renovation project at Beacon Hill Elementary, funded through the Parks and Green Spaces Levy which is providing $180,000 for planning, design, and construction. The project is expected to be completed by August.

Some changes of note from David Gackenbach:

Park Planners responded to input from meeting attendees and reconsidered the ramp placement, are removing some fencing and installing more planting, and are adding two pedestrian lights not in the original plan.

The meeting minutes including community requests, comments, and priorities expressed are after the break. The minutes are available in their original PDF form on the project web site.

Continue reading Project update for BHIS playground →

Beacon Bits

Beacon Bits: a strange hum, community gardening, and charity poker

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Photo by Dapper Lad Cycles in the Beacon Hill Blog photo pool on Flickr.
Neighbor Laura from the Beacon Hill Bungalow blog has been appointed to the City of Seattle citizen advisory board on Garbage, Yardwaste & Recycling. She says, “if you’re a resident of Seattle and have thoughts about our solid waste service, leave me a comment. Part of my role is to reach out to folks in my community, specifically those folks in SE Seattle.”

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Beacon Hill Elementary School once again had no violations when visited by Health Department inspectors. Congratulations!

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Kevin on the mailing list wants to know about a hum:

“Has anyone else noticed a humming noise that occurs at night? It doesn’t
occur all the time, but when it does it sounds like a large vacuum or leaf
blower. If I stick my head out the window it’s impossible to pinpoint — it
sounds like it’s coming from all directions. I live near McClellan and
23rd.”

Kevin says that there was an article last year in the West Seattle Blog about a hum, but it doesn’t look like they found an answer there. Have you heard the hum on Beacon Hill?

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Glenn Herlihy writes with news of the first Jefferson Park Community Garden meeting, on Tuesday February 2 (Groundhog Day), from 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm at the Lawn Bowling Club House, 4103 Beacon Ave South.

Herlihy says,

“A Community Garden in Jefferson Park would be a meeting place where people can grow nutritious food to reduce their food budget or share what they grow. It would provide a place for the unemployed or underemployed, to grow food and help provide for their family. A community garden would stimulate social interaction between neighbors and provide opportunities for intergenerational and cross cultural connections. It would increase security by having more activity in the area.”

The proposed site for the garden is on the western slope of Jefferson Park, south of South Columbian Way, east of 15th Avenue South. All who are interested in community gardens are invited to the meeting.

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El Centro De La Raza is holding a poker tournament and fundraiser on Saturday, February 20. The tournament is a Texas Hold ’em tournament with professional dealers, and the first prize is a $1,000 prepaid entry in the World Poker Tournament, (or an optional Visa Gift Card). There will be prizes for the top five finalists as well. The cost is $35 in advance, or $45 at the door. See http://www.elcentrofundraiser.com/ for more information and registration. 

Beacon Bits

Beacon Bits: Boxing Day edition

New play equipment going in at Jefferson Park looks like a sculpture. Photo by Joel Lee in the Beacon Hill Blog photo pool on Flickr.
ROCKiT space’s “open mic” Saturdays start tonight from 7 to 9pm. Free, donations welcome, snacks and drinks by donation. BYO beer/wine if desired.

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Beacon Hill and Kimball Elementary schools both had recent health inspections. (Kimball had some problems addressed before inspectors left.)

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United Way of King County is looking for volunteers to read books to kids, one-on-one, for just an hour a week. Increasing a child’s listening vocabulary can set them up for academic success. Readings would take place at United Way’s Beacon Hill location: The Refugee Women’s Alliance, 6230 Beacon Avenue South.

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A decision of “Determination of Non-Significance with conditions” has been made by the city’s Department of Planning and Development (DPD) on a land use application to install 1,500 square feet of landscaping and vegetation restoration in an environmentally critical area at 2110 Beacon Avenue South.

Beacon Bits

Beacon Bits: Musical standouts, students saving, and a trip to Leavenworth

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The Beaconettes performing at the Lander Festival Street ribbon-cutting celebration on Saturday. Photo by Jason.
The Beaconettes performing at the Lander Festival Street ribbon-cutting celebration on Saturday. Photo by Jason.
The Beaconettes singing group had a busy week. Before performing at the opening of the Lander Festival Street on Saturday, they won two awards at the Figgy Pudding caroling competition on Friday night: “Most Creative,” and “Peoples’ Choice.” Beaconette Betty Jean Williamson reports “We also had the pleasure of singing our ‘Good Mayor Nickels’ for the Mayor himself—our parody chronicling his rise and fall, all to the tune of ‘Good King Wenceslas.’ Greg Nickels was a great sport and seemed to enjoy it all.”
 
The Beaconettes will perform next at the 11th District Democrats Holiday Dinner and award event tomorrow, December 8 at Carpenter’s Hall, 231 Burnett Avenue North in Renton. Here’s the Facebook page for the event, and the Beaconettes’ own Facebook page.

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Beacon Hill’s own Helladope were just featured in the latest issue of The Stranger. Charles Mudede writes that the album Return to Planet Rock is “…yet another contender for the best local hiphop recording of the year.”

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Shelly Bates writes about a new student savings program:

“Our local bank, Washington Federal Savings, has started a new ‘Save at School’ program.

“The student opens the account with a minimum $5 deposit and the bank will add another $5 to each student that enrolls.  This is a great opportunity to replace the WaMu School Savings program which Chase discontinued.  What’s even better is it works with an adult volunteer who collects the deposits for children each week at school and then makes the trip to the bank.  Withdrawals do have to be made in person, no ATM access, but you do earn interest and there are no fees or minimum balance required.

“If you’re interested in getting it set up at your own school, contact Laitim Wong, Branch Manager, Beacon Hill Branch (206)324-1884.”

Thanks, Shelly!

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Rita Harris has chartered a bus to go to the Christmas Lighting Festival in Leavenworth on Saturday, December 12. There are still seats available for this all day trip that will depart early Saturday morning from the parking lot in front of Jefferson Park Recreation Center. Seats are $35 per adult, and there are children’s rates as well. For more info, see this Craigslist page.

Lost and Found

Pets: lost, found, and in school

Sophie is still missing. From Craigslist:

500.00 reward for finding our lost cat
Sophie is a 7 year old spayed gray and white fluffy cat with greenish-yellow eyes. She was last seen around 7pm on September 25th, 2009 and was wearing a bright pink collar with silver sparkles on it and a small pink bell attached. She enjoys hiding out in garages and would likely be a little skittish unless hungry. We miss her terribly and need to have her back home with us — she’s a true member of our family. If you have any sort of information please, please contact us as soon as possible — no questions asked, we just desperately want her back home. Life just isn’t the same without our girl. (206) 723-1608. Thank you so much.

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Contact Ely if you know where this dog belongs.
Contact Ely if you know where this dog belongs.

This red-coated dog was found around 7:30pm Tuesday evening running around the intersection near the fire station at Beacon and Spokane. Please call Ely at 206-478-8930 if you can help find his owner.

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First graders at Beacon Hill Elementary got a visit from some adorable pit bulls.

Education, Opinion

Opinion: School assignment plan lost in translation

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by Flo Beaumon

BHIS students welcomed the community in many languages at last years Opening Ceremony. Photo by Bridget Christian.
BHIS students welcomed the community in many languages at last year's Opening Ceremony. Photo by Bridget Christian.
My son is a first grader at Beacon Hill International School.  It’s a dream come true for us, and we felt very lucky that though it was not our reference area school (we live 1.8 miles north of the school), after a month on the waiting list he got in.  We were doubly happy that our son’s little brother will be able to join his big brother at BHIS in a few years.

Or so we thought.  

Though I had heard rumblings about a change in the school assignment system, I had no information about it until I saw a posting on Madrona Moms last spring.  The new Student Assignment Plan, evidently years in development, quietly eliminated the sibling priority for enrollment.  The plan to make the schools neighborhood schools would break up thousands of SPS families into two different elementary schools, or would force families to pull their older child out of his or her school to be able to attend the neighborhood school with the incoming kindergartener.

We have been trying to get the word out at our school.  It’s greatly complicated by the diversity of languages at students’ homes.  Only about half of the students’ families speak English at home.   My husband got letters to the school board translated into Mandarin and Spanish, and families from those cultures signed them.  Our school’s principal pointed out that over the years many Beacon Hill Elementary School families from outside the reference area chose the school because of its strong support for English language learners.  

In June, the School Board voted to approve the new Student Assignment Plan.  But, due entirely to the growing outcry by parents, they addressed the question of grandfathering in younger siblings of currently enrolled students by promising to consider a transition plan this fall, after the new boundaries are released and voted on. 
Continue reading Opinion: School assignment plan lost in translation →