BOISE SCHOOL DISTRICT NEWS
Friday, February 24, 2023
Kindergarten Registration/Open House
Is Your Child Ready for Kindergarten?
Reading, talking, and purposeful play with your child helps
their minds grow strong and bright! Learn ways to help your child be
READY! for Kindergarten by taking these FREE parent workshops
online! You’ll learn new skills and helpful tips to nurture your child’s
development in ways that foster essential early literacy, math and
social-emotional skills! Available for parents/caregivers of children entering Kindergarten this Fall! Register online today!
Boise School Board Corner


Board Presents Red & Golden Apple Awards
Members of the Boise School Board recognized two deserving District staff members during the regularly scheduled monthly Board meeting held on February 13, 2023. Each month the Board recognizes deserving staff members with the Red Apple Award (certified staff members) and the Golden Apple Award (classified staff members).

For February, the award recipients were Molly Jo Fuentealba, Multilingual Learners Consultant, District Services Center (Red Aple Award); and Lisa V. Martin, Administrative Assistant, Boise Schools Foundation (Golden Apple Award). Learn more by watching the following video:
Molly Jo Fuentealba receives the Red Apple Award from Boise School Board Trustee Nancy Gregory.
Lisa V. Martin receives the Golden Apple Award from Boise School Board President Dave Wagers.
Board Members Meet With Student Advisory Council
New for the 2022-2023 school year, Boise School District has established a Student Advisory Committee with the goal to increase student engagement with the Boise School Board of Trustees and District Administration. The Student Advisory Committee has met four times so far this school year and is comprised of 15 students with three student representatives each from Boise High School, Borah High School, Capital High School, Frank Church High School and Timberline High School, three Boise School Board Trustees and representatives of the District's Administration. Some of of the topics discussed so far include the District's Dress Code Public Input process; and Student Focus Group Input process, as well as a number of other topics that impact students. Below are photos from the Student Advisory Council meeting held at Boise High School on February 15, 2023.
Trustee Andy Hawes listens to members of the Boise School District's Student Advisory Committee.
The Boise School District's Student Advisory Committee is comprised of 15 students from the District's five high schools - Boise, Borah, Capital, Frank Church and Timberline.
Opening Doors: Capital High Student First Recipient of Opportunity Scholarship Fund
Capital High School senior Nimo Abdi (pictured) is the first recipIent of a new scholarship that will support underrepresented students at the College of Idaho.

The Elgin & Elaine Baylor Opportunity Fund honors one of the greatest NBA players of all time, Elgin Baylor, who started playing college basketball at the College of Idaho. The scholarship will be used to fund 44 students with financial needs from underrepresented student populations with full tuition, four-year scholarships to attend the College of Idaho.

The Elgin & Elaine Baylor Opportunity Fund has a goal of a $25 million endowment to fund the 44 scholarships in perpetuity. The fund has received support by many of the most notable corporations based in Idaho, including Micron Technology, Blue Cross of Idaho, Boise Cascade, St. Alphonsus Health System, Idaho Power, St. Luke’s Health System, the J.R. Simplot Company, Albertsons, Kount, The Dignitas Agency, Cradlepoint and Crookham Company
"...we must create an avenue for underrepresented, talented young adults to be given the opportunity to develop and be poised to contribute in our communities,"
“We know that diversity creates an incubator for incredible innovation and creativity that is a cornerstone and critical to the business community,” said Odette C. Bolano, President and CEO of St. Alphonsus Health System. “To that end, we must create an avenue for underrepresented, talented young adults to be given the opportunity to develop and be poised to contribute in our communities. We believe that The College of Idaho has a long history of building a welcoming and inclusive environment that will move us forward in retaining and recruiting talent for our great state of Idaho.”

As the first recipient of the Elgin & Elaine Baylor Opportunity Fund Nimo Abdi is excited and inspired to pursue her dreams of a better future for all. Nimo moved to the U.S. from a refugee camp in Kenya when she was four years old. This fall, she will be using her scholarship to study biomedical sciences at the College of Idaho.

Nimo is currently a student in the Boise School District's Advancement Via Individual Determination program (AVID), a college readiness program that is closing the opportunity gap in college graduation rates among diverse and underrepresented demographic groups.

“With this scholarship, I will be eager to apply the knowledge I attain in college in pursuit of bettering tomorrow – not only for my home community, but also for the world,” Nimo said.
Capital High School Senior Nimo Abdi with Elaine Baylor, wife of the late Elgin Baylor, Doug Brigham, Co-President, College of Idaho (far left) and Jim Everett, Co-President, College of Idaho (far right).
Hawthorne Student Receives National Recognition
Hawthorne Elementary School 6th Grade Student Brielle Taniguchi was nominated for NASA's Perseverance Award for her hard work in school and participating in after school STEM programs. Recently, Brielle learned that she is one of 11 students from across the country to be selected to receive this prestigious national award. As a result, Brielle's class got to participate in a ZOOM call with NASA engineers and learn about the Perseverance Rover. Brielle was excited to learn that the engineers use C++, which is the same programming language she is using in Dr. Kellie Taylor's after school robotics program!
Hawthorne Elementary School 6th Grade Student Brielle Taniguchi with her 6th grade teacher, Misha Smith.
North Team Takes Top Honors
North Junior High has a Quiz Bowl team (pictured), coached by Emma Shannon, that qualified in November of 2022 for the NAQT (National Academic Quiz Tournaments) National Championship Tournament. That was North’s first tournament of the year and they qualified by placing 4th out of 16 teams. In January, North Jr. High competed against five high school teams from the Idaho Falls area at Thunder Ridge High School and won the Idaho Falls Winter Regional High School History Bowl. There, they qualified for the National High School History Bowl sponsored by International Academic Competitions. 

Recently, one of North's players competed in the National History Challenge put on by the National Academic Championship. Charles Beall, the organizer of the tournament, wrote to Coach Shannon and said they were going to put this on their website:

National History Challenge
Idaho Wins Middle School Division, New Records Set
 
Here are the records set by Boise's North Jr. High School:
  • First Idaho team to win any Questions Unlimited tournament in 41 years.
  • First “one-man” team to make the playoffs … in any Questions Unlimited tournament in 41 years.
  • First team ever to break 300 points in the Middle School Division of National History Challenge – Boise's North Jr. High School did it in all five of their games.
  • That “one man” is North Jr. High 8th grade student Grady Noble. "As far as individual performances are concerned … we’ve just never seen anything like it."
Student Dress Code Policy Public Meetings
Boise School District is holding public meetings to collect stakeholder input from parents, students, and District community members about proposed changes to the District’s current student dress code policy. Two meetings were held on February 15 and 16 (see photos below). Two more public meetings will be will be held on February, 28 (Borah High Cafeteria) and March 2 (Timberline High Cafeteria). The meetings run from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. The public meetings will provide the public an opportunity to review the District’s current Dress Code Policy and compare it to the changes being proposed and then complete a form to collect public input. Below are photos from the first two public meetings.
Parents and students attend the first Dress Code Policy Public Meeting held at North Junior High School on February 15, 2023.
Parents and students attend the second Dress Code Policy Public Meeting held at Shadow Hills Elementary School on February 16, 2023. 
Dual Language Immersion Open House & Information Night
On Tuesday, February 28, 2023, Boise School District's Dual Language Immersion Program will host an Information Meeting & Open House from 4:00 to 5:00 p.m. The event will take place at Whitney Elementary School, 1609 S. Owyhee St., and Whittier Elementary School, 301 N. 29th St.

Boise School District offers K-12 Spanish-English dual language programs. Whittier and Whitney Elementary is your child’s starting off point for biliteracy. Programs continue at North and South Junior Highs, as well as at all high schools.
Love to Learn? Community ED Has A Class For You!
This Winter, select from more than two hundred personal enrichment Community Education classes! From Active Aging, Arts, Culinary Arts, Music, Leisure, to Dance, Fitness, Photography, Health & Wellness, Computers & Technology, Culture & History, Garden & The Great Outdoors, and much more! Review our Winter 2022 Community Education catalog.

Register for Community Education classes online at www.boiselearns.org  
Friendly Reminder Re: Dog Waste
english_bulldog_puppies.jpg
Boise schools are wonderful focal points in our community, surrounded by many open spaces for kids to play and families to socialize. 

Unfortunately, we are seeing a growing problem with individuals not cleaning up after their pets while on school grounds.  

Not cleaning up after a pet on public school grounds violates Idaho Code 18-7031, prohibiting littering on public and private property. 

We love dogs and are happy to allow citizens to use our school grounds when available. The problem is that too many people are ignoring posted signs and warnings by not cleaning up after their pet. 

The result is a student accidentally steps, sits, or rolls in "it", which then interrupts instruction, requires significant time and effort to clean-up and is embarrassing for students, not to mention poses health risks to children & staff.

Please clean-up after your pet while visiting school grounds. Place your pet’s waste in a bag (pet disposal bag dispensers can be found on a number of school grounds) and dispose of the waste properly in the trash.  

Thank you for your efforts to keep our school grounds clean for all to enjoy!
Spring 2023 Graduation Information
Boise School District is pleased to announce the following spring 2023 graduation dates.

Spring 2023 Graduation Dates
ExtraMile Arena, 7:00 p.m.
(unless otherwise noted)

  • Thursday, May 18, 2023 - STEP Program (10 a.m.; South Junior High School Auditorium)
  • Monday, May 22, 2023 - Boise Online School (3:00 p.m.; Morrison Center)
  • Monday, May 22, 2023 - Frank Church High School (7:00 p.m.; Morrison Center)
  • Tuesday, May 23, 2023 – Borah High School
  • Wednesday, May 24, 2023 – Capital High School
  • Thursday, May 25, 2023 – Timberline High School
  • Friday, May 26, 2023 – Boise High School
Show Your Pride With Boise Schools Gear!
Boise School District is proud to announce the launch of our new online store where all District staff, students and families can purchase items with the District's new logo. Below are just a few of the items available for purchase. Visit Boise School District's Online Store to find more BSD swag and show your Boise Schools Pride!
We Are Dedicated To Creating Tomorrow's Leaders
Gifts. Passions. Dreams. Possibilities.
WE SEE IT, TOO.
Boise School District's Everything's Possible movement shares the dreams, aspirations and experiences of our students and teachers. As a parent, you see your child’s potential. And we see it, too. Everything’s possible.

"My favorite part of school is writing. I'm actually doing an informational piece–which is my favorite type of writing–on the Great Barrier Reef right now and I really the research process -- it's really fun." - Kamari, a 5th grader at Adams Elementary
"I love the Montessori program. There is a mix of fourth, fifth and sixth graders, so if you need help with some harder problem you can help each other. We learn as a whole group which is really nice because I love having a bunch of kids not the same age as me in my class." - Ava, a 6th grader at Liberty Elementary
"One of my favorite things about working at Frank Church is to see a kid come in, and normally they might have struggled in the traditional setting. And then they start to figure it out with our support and they get to walk across that stage as a whole new person, as a young adult, ready to get out there. " - Ms. Pacold, a teacher at Frank Church High School
Early Childhood Special Education - FREE Developmental Screener Available
Boise School District's Early Childhood Special Education (ECSE) program provides services to children 3-5 years old, who qualify for special education services. The program goals, curriculum and materials are developmentally appropriate and geared to the differing ability levels of each child. Children attending the ECSE classroom are provided a high quality program, and a safe and nurturing environment. This program promotes and integrates the cognitive, communication, physical, social, emotional, and self-help areas of development through classroom activities.

Boise School District offers a Free Developmental Screener for children ages 3-5 years old with developmental concerns.
Learn About Special Education
On March 8, 2022 the Boise School District will offer a course to parents/guardians to provide information about the District's Special Education Program. Parent/guardian learning targets include:

  • Describe what Special Education is and how a student qualifies for Special Education Services.
  • Articulate what the parent's/guardian's role is as a member of the Individualized Education Program (IEP) team.
  • Locate resources and support available if there are questions to Special Education.

Complete the registration form to attend the March 8th course. Contact Sara Nord, Strategic Partnerships Coordinator, at 208-559-3107, for questions.
Interested in Athletics?
Boise School District has always been highly regarded for academic achievements. At the same time, we have always been considered a leader throughout Idaho and the Pacific Northwest in the area of athletics. Many of our programs have become models for other districts. Below are the try-out dates and first days of practice for the 2022-2023 athletics program. Please contact your school for more information.
Affordable Connectivity Program
The Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) provides eligible households with a discount on broadband service and connected devices. Learn more about the Affordable Connectivity Program.
Student Device Monitoring 

A reminder to parents that Boise School District provides parents/guardians with the ability to monitor your student’s activity on their District-assigned digital device via the GoGuardian Parent App: 
Keep In Contact
Parents - Sign-Up for Emergency Text Messaging: The Boise School District offers emergency text messaging for parents/guardians. Learn more and sign-up.

Non-Parents - Mobile App Available: Boise School District has a mobile app to improve communication to you. The app offers emergency alerts and is available in the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.
Dates of Interest
Notice: If you are a Boise School District staff member, you are provided a District email address. This email address is provided to you in part for the distribution of District communications; as such, you are required to check your email and remain active on District mailing lists. If you are an employee of the Boise School District, please do not unsubscribe from this mailing list. If you are a parent or guardian of a student in the Boise School District, this newsletter is intended to inform you about happenings in the Boise School District. As such, we ask that you please do not unsubscribe from these emails.