The Washington County Spelling Contest took place on May 1, 2012. The annual event is hosted by The Northwest Regional Education Service District’s Department of Instruction and School Improvement and held at the agency’s regional office in Hillsboro. There were 30 students representing schools in Washington County in three Divisions, elementary school, middle school, and high school.
Valley Catholic School was represented by fifth-grader Divya Amiratharaj in the Division I competition and seventh-grader Helen Buck in the Division ll competition. They both did a great job amid very stiff competition. Congratulations to Divya and Helen for being great representatives for our school!
Last week the Valley Catholic freshmen spent the day studying the macroinvertebrates in Johnson Creek behind our school. Macroinvertebrates are animals with no backbone that can be seen without the aid of a microscope. In addition to seeing some cool animals, there was a reason for this study. Macroinvertebrate sampling is used as a reliable tool for monitoring the health of streams and wetlands. Students, clad in boots or hip waders, used nets to sample animals from the muddy bottom as well as those clinging to the Reed Canary Grass.
The collected animals were analyzed for life history, feeding strategy and pollution tolerance. We also found quite a few adult and larval fish (vertebrates) throughout the day. The invertebrates found included worms, water beetles, water mites and snails. Also found were larvae of damselflies, dragonflies and caddisflies. Particularly of note were the caddisfly larvae, which are pollution sensitive. Although most of the animals we were found were pollution tolerant, these few sensitive individuals show us that our creek environment is not completely impacted by pollution. Other interesting finds were a few large crayfish, and egg masses from snails and salamanders.
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Submitted by VCMS Language Arts Teacher Amy Harvey
On April 30, the seventh-graders went on a tour of Old Town Portland and the Underground Tunnels. They rode buses downtown and ate lunch at the Saturday Market site, then split into groups for guided tours. They learned a lot about Chinatown and Japantown and how they came to be and how Japantown was lost to Portland during WWII. They toured much of Old Town and learned some of its history while also studying the architecture and the fountains. They learned of the flooding of Vanport, how it is no longer a city, but that it is now the Jantzen Beach area.
The students, equipped with flashlights, were guided through what used to be connecting tunnels originated for storage and flood control, but were also used for the selling of alcohol during Prohibition. The guides told stories about the less-than-glamorous days of the infamous Shanghai Tunnels. They learned about how the “Shanghai-ing” was perpetrated by one terrible man who used to sell both men and women to ships by tricking them or getting them too intoxicated to know better.
At the Oregon Music Education Association (OMEA) Festival on April 21, Valley Catholic Middle School was represented by 36 students. Of those, three received a top rating of I+, which means above superior, and another 21 received a I (superior). The remaining 12 received a rating of II (excellent). That translates to 67 percent of our students getting a rating of superior or higher.
Submitted by Valley Catholic Music School Director Sr. Juliana Monti, SSMO
Valley Catholic Music School is looking to bring some additional independent contractors aboard to teach private lessons on the string bass and saxophone. If you know any professional music teachers who would like to increase their lesson load, please have them contact Sr. Juliana Monti.
Pictured are some members of the VCS Women Build Team for May 12. Standing, left to right: Monique Ierardi, Mary Donovan and Kristen Durbin. Seated: Allison Ierardi and Lauren Bartholomew.
Submitted by Director of Campus Life Mary Donovan
Valley Catholic School is sponsoring two mother/daughter build days at Beaverton’s first-ever Women Build. The first build day, Saturday, May 12, is full. The team from Valley will include two alums, three high school girls and one middle school girl and their mothers, Mary Donovan and VCHS Religion Teacher Mrs. Durbin.
The build day on Saturday, May 19th, the weekend after Mother’s Day, still has a few openings. Moms and daughters 14 and older, please contact Mary Donovan to sign up. See additional information here.
The house they are building is located in the Huntting Park neighborhood at SW Hall and Sussex Streets. Women Build, part of Willamette West Habitat for Humanity is, according to their website, “…not about excluding men; it is about including women. Habitat for Humanity’s Women Build program enables women to discover for themselves that they can build Habitat for Humanity homes with NO construction experience necessary! Women Build brings together women from all walks of life to address the housing crisis facing millions of women and children worldwide. Women Build events have helped to construct more than 1,900 houses.”
Submitted by Communications Specialist Danielle Tomich
On Wednesday, May 2, new members were inducted into the Madonna Chapter of the National Honor Society (NHS) as well as three foreign language honor societies. In addition, seniors of each society were recognized and given a cord to wear at graduation. The current NHS officers each gave a short talk to the inductees to congratulate, advise and inspire them as they move through their high school careers. This year’s officers, all seniors, are: President Aidan McLeod; Vice President Mollie Henkelman, Secretary Erin Coffman; and Treasurer Madelyn Bernard. The high school’s NHS advisor is English Department Chair and Teacher Brenna Brown.
Congratulations to the following students who were inducted and/or honored during the evening ceremony: (please see slide show that follows)
Spanish Honor Society (Sociedad Honoraria Hispanica)
Advisor: Sra. Nenita Navarro
New Inductees:
Rebecca Baglai
Madelyn Bernard
Lorene Berthelier
Carmel Davis
Emily Gabourel
Bridgette Henningsen
Kaitlyn Lomartire
Aidan McLeod
Claire McLoughlin
Veronnica Pham
Senior Members:
Patrick Casale
Danika Douglas
Gregory Ong
French Honor Society (La Societe Honoraire de Francais)
Advisor: Mme. Susan Miller
New Inductees:
Lavanya Bakshi
Zoe LaHaie
Grace Mannen
Estefania Morales
Senior Member:
Victoria Kemper
Japanese Honor Society
Advisor: Yoko Miwa Sensei
New Inductees: Erin Cochran
Esai Morales
Sam Teague
Elizabeth Woodruff
Senior Members: Leah Klaas
Catherine Lo
Stephen Pierce, Jr.
Shawna Vrvilo
National Honor Society
Advisor: Mrs. Brenna Brown
New Inductees: Ryan Afranji
Lavanya Bakshi
Jessica Bedewi
Matthew Bemis
Mikaela Bernards
Torben Billow
Carter Buuck
Caroline Casale
Hyun Jun (Kevin) Cho
Megan Co
Emily Comstock
Allyza Concepcion
Joshua Curfman
Lillian D’Amico
Kimberly Duyck
Ashley Ferris
Addie Flemmer
Caroline Francis
Madeline Henningsen
Sean Hilken
Kelli Hoang
Katharine Jesse
Clara Kiss
Fanyi KongBenjamin Krueger
Lindsie LaBonte
Philip Lam
Annabelle Larson
Michael Leslie
Yuemeng (Lethe) Li
Rachel Liening
ZheYi (Joy) Lin
John Magenheimer
Grace Mannen
Morgan McDougal
Ashley Christine Melancon
Esai Morales
Grace Nepokroeff
Patricia Nguyen
Yurong (Becky) Peng
Collin Pierce
Cooper Roach
Taylor Roth
Lauren Shoemaker
Samuel Teague
Erin Weinbender
Christopher Wright
Jingyu (Angel) Zhang
Honorary Inductee: Yasuha Yamasaki
Senior Members: Anthony Alfieri
Rebecca Baglai
Madelyn Bernard
Patrick Casale
Erin Coffman
Shawna Cook
Alyssa Dale
Breanne Davis
Carmel Davis
Danika Douglas
Audrey Gard
Mollie Henkelman
Daniel Hernandez
Arthur Kim
Leah Klaas
Katherine Kraemer
Jihoon Lee
Aidan McLeod
Gregory Ong
Veronnica Pham
Connor Picken
Stephen Pierce, Jr.
Michael Prier
Elizabeth Shew
Lavanya Sridharan
Ben Stager
Madeleine Tomich
Alexander Vennes
As May begins, the pace on our campus picks up a notch as we make the final push toward June and the completion of another school year. Throughout the month, our students will take part in many exciting activities including tonight’s Music Jamboree. Oftentimes it is the academic or athletic programs on our campus that garner the most attention. However, our music program on campus continues to be a shining star for our school community.
This past Tuesday, our Music School was honored by the City of Beaverton for the contributions in the area of teaching music. Sisters Denise, Juliana and John Therese received the Performing Arts Educator of the Year award on behalf of Valley Catholic Music School from the Beaverton Arts Commission at this month’s City Council meeting. The award is very well-deserved and is especially gratifying this year with the announced retirement of Sr. Juliana who has played such a critical role in the development of our programs on campus for the past 40 years. I look forward to seeing many of our students perform at tonight’s Music Jamboree and hope to see many of you on campus to honor Sr. Juliana on May 20.
I also want to give a plug for a couple of other events coming up this month. On Saturday, May 19, we will hold our 2nd annual International Festival. This event debuted last May to rave reviews and many of our VC families came out to experience food, culture, and customs from all across the globe. It was a great day filled with fantastic performances, delicious food, and plenty of information for Valiants of all ages. I highly encourage our families to come to campus and enjoy this great community event.
Last week I mentioned our pilot program for an online bookstore at the Middle School and a list of FAQs that would be forthcoming. I’m still working on those questions and answers and will have that information out shortly. Thanks for your patience.
I want to ask our community to keep a couple of families in their prayers. We received news this week that Henry Joyaux has been diagnosed with ALS, or Lou Gehrig’s disease. Henry is the husband of Pat Joyaux, who serves as the secretary/registrar at the high school. We also received news that Kermit Stine passed away. Kermit taught in our Elementary School during the 1990s and has remained a true friend to the campus since that time. On behalf of the Joyaux and Stine family, please keep both these strong supporters of Valley Catholic in your thoughts and prayers.
The Sisters of St. Mary of Oregon were presented with a 2012 Outstanding Achievement in the Arts Award by the Beaverton Arts Commission (BAC) during the City Council Meeting on Tuesday, May 1. The award was accepted by Sisters M. John Therese Miller, Juliana Monti and Denise Klaas.
Nominated by their peers and selected by the Board of Directors for the BAC, the individuals and businesses represented were honored for their important contributions to the arts locally and regionally.
The specific award given to the music school is called “Performing Arts Educator of the Year.” The following information was provided by the City of Beaverton:
The Sisters of St. Mary, who operate the Valley Catholic Music School, offer quality music lessons to aspiring musicians of all ages and abilities, six days a week. They currently serve 225 children and adults throughout the region with their staff of 14 talented music instructors. The Sisters of St. Mary recently expanded their number of music school studios to accommodate the opening of the K-8 grade school on campus.
Two senior students, Elizabeth Shew and Katherine Kraemer, also received arts awards at this ceremony. You can read about it here.
Please enjoy the photos taken by Sr. Charlene Herinckx, SSMO at the awards assembly:
Submitted by VCMS Vice Principal and Science Teacher June Poling
The top science fair projects representing 10 area Catholic schools came together to compete for trophies and scholarships at Valley Catholic Middle School’s 10th Anniversary Science Fair this past Friday, April 27th. Students tried to solve real world problems such as designs for energy efficient homes and designs for seawalls to protect against tsunamis. Some projects tested the effects of music on spiders and which acne medication most effectively stops the proliferation of E-coli.
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