may 9, 2014 internal news
DESCRIPTION
Internal news for employees of the Laveen Elementary School DistrictTRANSCRIPT
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District Dialogue
For employees of the Laveen Elementary School District May 9, 2014
The District Dialogue is issued on the second and fourth Friday of the month.
Trailside sisters place in
chess tournament Two sisters from Trailside Point com-
peted in the recent Arizona State Scholas-
tic Chess Championship.
Kindergartner Kamila Olson took 1st
Place in the The Bug House Session.
Third grader Kitana Olson took 2nd
Place in the Blitz Tournament.
Students artwork featured in book
Five students from across the district had their artwork fea-
tured in the latest Jeremy Jackrabbit book, Jeremy Jackrabbit
Captures the Sun.
The book was authored by two Phoenix residents and stu-
dents from all over the county could submit their artwork to be
published.
Featured Laveen artists include: Celeste Lamadrid, Nathalie
Pol, Stephen Purvis, Sarah Lynd, and Marissa Torres.
The book was provided to all Maricopa County kindergarten
students.
Kamila
Kitana
Laveen School receives grant
Laveen School was awarded a grant from the I am
a Leader Foundation for the 2014-15 school year.
As a recipient, they will receive discounted fees
and free student implementation materials. This is
valued at about $10,000 dollars.
I am a Leader works to provide programs and ser-
vices that build students' character and leadership in
elementary schools around the world.
Meadows students take a trip around the world
Students at Desert Meadows grabbed their passports and attend-
ed the schools annual culture night May 8.
Students and their families celebrated diversity and learned about
other cultures by participating in games and activities from around
the world.
Over 500 people attended the event and enjoyed refreshments and
music in addition to the many displays.
Liberty Mutual Insurance and the Meadows PTSA sponsored the
event.
Desert Meadows students visit China as part of the schools annual culture night.
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PAGE 2 May 9, 2014
Lebish, Emler are Aprils Employees of the Month
Employees of the month for April are Erin Lebish, third grade teacher at Trailside Point, and
Nichole Emler, district nurse.
Lebish was nominated for inspiring both students and teachers to love learning. She always
pushes her students to the next level with various projects such as creating Charlottes Web board
games. Her students show immense pride in their work. Lebish is also highly involved in the
Trailside Point community. She has served as head coach of Girls on the Run and attends many
parent nights and other PTA sponsored events. She mentors students and helps tutor them after
school. Ms. Lebish pours enthusiasm into everything she does.
Nurse Nikki was nominated because, despite her enormous caseload, she remains calm, profes-
sional and enthusiastic. She demonstrates a high level of skill and professionalism as she oversees
vision and hearing screenings, seizure and allergy plans, and other school health issues. She works
closely with families to ensure safety procedures are in place and can find a solution to any prob-
lem. Nurse Nikki is dependable, reliable, and truly committed to the well-being and safety of stu-
dents and staff.
Cash to provide more fruits and vegetables through grant M.C. Cash School is the recipient of a $42,500 grant by the United States Department of Agricultures
(USDA) Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program.
This funding will provide fresh fruits and vegetables to Cash students through-
out next school year.
The program was established to expand the variety of fruits and vegetables
children experience; increase childrens fruit and vegetable consumption; and cre-
ate healthier eating habits.
Did you know that speech/language disorder is one
of the most common childhood disorders, affecting ap-
proximately 7% of children? This is important, as defi-
cits in the development of speech and language can
lead to academic difficulties. In fact, language deficits
in young children are considered to be one of the most
accurate predictors of long term problems with aca-
demic achievement. Children with speech language
deficits may have difficulties in any one or more of the
following:
articulation (accurate production of speech sounds,
difficulty with producing intelligible speech)
understanding spoken language (difficulty under-
standing directions, needing visual cues to under-
stand)
grammar/syntax (using appropriate parts of speech
such as verb tenses, difficulty producing organized
sentences)
semantics (vocabulary development, such as: word
meanings, analogies, synonym/antonyms, figura-
tive language)
pragmatics (social use of language, making infer-
ences, nonverbal communication, topic mainte-
nance, eye contact)
fluency (fluency deficits are what is commonly
known to be stuttering)
voice (differences in pitch, quality, or volume of
voice)
Early identification is important. If you have a child
or student whom you suspect may have a speech or
language disorder, contact your schools Speech Lan-
guage Pathologist.
Kim Horack, M.S., CCC-SLP
May is Better Speech and Hearing Month
Lebish
Emler
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Attend a benefit presentation or listen to the recorded benefit overview (the recorded webinar will be sent via email to all employees the week of April 14th) to learn what is changing and what will remain the same for your 7/1/14-6/30/15 insurance programs (dates, times, and location are listed below).
REMINDER This is your once a year opportunity to make changes to your current insurance elections, you are only allowed to make a change in the middle of the year if you have an approved qualifying event such as marriage, divorce, birth of child, spouse loses or gains coverage under another plan, etc. If you have a qualifying event you MUST notify Human Resources within 30 days of the event otherwise you are not authorized to make a change until the next open enrollment.
Your current benefit elections will automatically roll over for the 7/1/14 plan year unless you complete and submit a change form. However, if you are enrolled in any of the coverages below you will be required to submit a new enrollment form: o Flexible Spending Account (FSA) - if you wish to participate in the FSA (or continue participation) you must
submit a FSA enrollment form. You will NOT automatically be re-enrolled in the FSA. You must re-elect each year.
Enrollment/Change Forms are due by May 16th at 4pm to HR
Employee Benefit Annual Open Enrollment
LAVEEN ELEMENTARY
SCHOOL DISTRICT OFFICE
Thursday, April 24th
Tuesday, April 22nd
11:00am-11:30am
3:30pm-4:00pm