FRIDAY FOLDER: A roundup of regional school news
Army officers partner with Galileo
Armed with sling-shot rockets, real-world experiences and enthusiasm, four Army space and missile officers from Peterson Air Force Base are helping students at Galileo School of Math and Science understand the practical applications of their studies.
Under a new partnership between Colorado Springs School District 11 and U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command, the Army volunteers conduct monthly full-day sessions with the school's sixth graders, said Maj. Kyle Zablocki, one of the volunteer teachers. The team focuses on hands-on lessons to supplement the school's science curriculum. During a ceremony this week to formalize the partnership, Brig. Gen. Kurt Story told the students he struggled in school because he's a "hands-on guy" and he hopes the supplemental classes his troops bring to the school will help them understand why they need to study math and science.
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State money to help Edison elementary
Eleven rural school districts, including Edison 54 JT in El Paso County, are getting money from the state to fix or build new schools under a bill that passed last year. State Treasurer Cary Kennedy said this week that it's the state's largest investment in school construction in its history.
The projects will cost a combined $98 million. The state is paying 75 percent and local communities are paying 25 percent.
The Edison district applied for $203,000 to complete projects at its new $2.6 million elementary school building. The money will be used for outside lighting, a new well and cistern, landscaping and playground equipment, and an emergency generator.
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CC awarded $300k grant
Colorado College has been awarded a three-year, $300,000 grant from the Sherman Fairchild Foundation. CC was among a handful of colleges invited to submit a proposal, and one of four in the nation to receive a grant. The funds will help equip two digital media labs and several other technological areas in the new Edith Kinney Gaylord Cornerstone Arts Center.
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UCCS event spotlights faculty, student research
Tom Pyszcsynski, distinguished professor of psychology at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs, will give the keynote address at Mountain Lion Research Day April 3. Designed to showcase the research efforts of UCCS faculty and graduate students, the event will be from 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. in the Upper Lodge on campus. Pyszcsynski will discuss his theories and research of 25 years and how they could be used to reduce support for violence in the Middle East. More than 50 faculty and graduate students will display ideas in disciplines from physics to nursing. The event is free but registration is required. Contact Bev Wasinger at bwasinge@uccs.edu or 255-3631.
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PETA likes what's on private school's menu
The Colorado Springs School is among the Top Five Most Vegetarian-Friendly Private Schools in the United States, according to peta2, a youth animal rights organization. The organization researched the menus of schools nationwide and selected five public school districts and five private schools. The Colorado Springs School's cafeteria menu offers an array of vegetarian options, including a red-pepper hummus pita, grilled tofu ciabatta and vegetable stir-fry. The other schools are Rockland Country Day School in Congers, N.Y., The Calhoun School in New York, N.Y., Sidwell Friends School in Washington, D.C. and Albuquerque Academy in Albuquerque, N.M.
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CC student gets Watson Fellowship
Colorado College senior Conor Blanchet has been awarded a Watson Fellowship for his project "Prints, Scat and Sign: The Art of Wildlife Tracking." The award provides for a year of independent study and travel overseas. Blanchet will visit four ecosystems to examine the evolution of tracking. He was one of 40 college seniors in the nation to win the award.
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