The event is just one of three United Way fundraisers that happen annually at the school every year. Local area high school students can also support the KFLA United Way at their upcoming Starlight Film Festival event, which takes place in Kingston at the Cineplex Odeon on Gardiners Road from 12:30AM-6:30 AM on Saturday, November 8 (Friday night to Saturday morning). Five PG-rated movies will be shown: Anchorman 2, Despicable Me, Pacific Rim, Pitch Perfect and X-Men: First Class. Tickets are $20 (cash only) and include free arcade games, unlimited popcorn, a drink and a free hot dog. The event is only for high school students and is a non-smoking event. Valid student ID is required. Doors open at 12:30 AM and close at 1:30AM. For more information contact the KFLA United Way at 613-542-2674 or visit www.unitedwaykfla.ca

Submitted by NAEC

The students of North Addington Education Centre will be suiting up in their Campbell’s Soup costumes on October 31 and knocking on your door! They will be asking for non-perishable food items which will be donated to the local food bank, which is experiencing a shortage of food.

About a dozen secondary students will be spreading out between Flinton, Northbrook, and Cloyne to collect non-perishable food items, instead of tricking or treating for candy.  The students are not strangers to supporting the community who supports them.

This is the fourth year for the very successful event. We’re asking community members to contribute what they can. We will be having three to four students canvassing each community between approximately 5:00 and 8:00pm. They will be wearing NAEC ID tags and a very large smile. We are going to visit as many households as possible, but if you have contributions and the food is not picked up, please call Candice Bovard throughout the week at 613-336-8991 and we will pick it up.

On behalf of students and staff, the principal, Angela Salmond, would like to thank the community for their contributions to our food drive efforts over the years: “The response we have received is overwhelming. We would not be able to organize events like this without the support of very generous families in this community. I am proud to see students take ownership of the area in which they live and recognize what really matters”.

If you see students in the community and they are ‘trick or eating’, feel free to ask them to sing or dance for your donation; they are prepared to work for your generosity!

Candidates for the mayoral race in central and north Frontenac took to the stage at the Granite Ridge Education Centre cafetorium on October 14 as part of the school's Student Vote program.

The program, which has been running at the school since 2003, is being headed up this year by Mr. McVety's grade 12 history class. Since 2003 students at the school have been involved through the program in all of the municipal, provincial and federal elections except for ones that took place during the summer months.

On Tuesday the four mayoral candidates, who included Frances Smith and incumbent Janet Gutowski from Central Frontenac, and Claudio Valentini and Ron Higgins from North Frontenac, took to the stage, each advocating why they are the best choice for mayor.

The assembly was mediated by senior students Josh Keefe and Brandy Armstrong and the candidates were timed by Caleb Poirier and Geoff Dewar. Students from grades 7 through 12 listened first to the introductions, after which a number of students posed direct questions to the candidates.

The questions from students included:

1) What issues does each candidate feel are the most important in the community?

2) How is he or she going to help youth in the community? and

3) Why they feel that they are the best choice for the job.

Later in the week students will vote for the candidates and the winners will be announced at a later date. The aim of the Student Vote program is to engage youth about politics and the issues that directly effect them. Randy McVety said that he wanted to “engage students, especially at the municipal level of government, which is the one closest to them and the one that is most likely to impact their lives.” McVety also cited “the abysmally low level of voter turn out at all government elections”. He hopes that getting youth involved will encourage them to remain engaged in the political process once they graduate from school.

McVety was grateful to the four candidates, who took the time to come out and speak to the students.

Grade 7 and 8 students at Land O' Lakes Public School had a chance to break the ice while also learning how to trust one another during their first few weeks back at school.

In a special art project, students made plaster casts of their faces, which involved putting themselves into a vulnerable position. The students chose groups and each student in the group had the others make a negative mold of their face. This meant that each participant had to lie down and breathe out of straws while their peers covered their faces with plaster bandages. Once the molds were dried each student then made a positive cast from the original negative molds. The end result is 26 white plaster faces that now hang in the school’s main pod area and will be on display until Christmas.

Their teacher, Mr. Hull, said that the project, which is part of the casting curriculum for the students, is also a great trust exercise. “It's a great opportunity for the students to learn about the positive and negative elements of casting, the chemical reactions that take place, concepts of volume, as well as learning to trust the partners in their group.”

In addition to the mold making, students were asked to write biographies of themselves, which hang under their nameless faces. For many, the project was their first encounter with mold making, and it was also enjoyable for them because they had a chance to bond with their fellow students.

Hull said it was the first time he did this particular mold making project with students and he felt it was a huge success. “I am always amazed at how well the students respond to these hands-on cooperative, creative projects. Not only did they do all of the work themselves but they also did a great job.” Hull said the project works particularly well with older students who have the maturity to deal with being able to stay still for an extended length of time while breathing through straws.

Grade 8 student Leah-Anne said she “enjoyed the project and though having the plaster bandages on your face at first was a bit weird and at first scary, it was fun and interesting.” Grade 7 student Mariah said she also enjoyed the project and said it was her first time making a plaster face mask.

The project is attracting the attention of other students in the school, who often try to guess which face belongs to whom.

At a special school-wide assembly on September 25 at Granite Ridge Education Centre in Sharbot Lake, students learned about the Canadian hero Terry Fox and his epic run across the country to raise funds for cancer research. Students watched a film about Fox, who was diagnosed with bone cancer in March 1977. He underwent surgery that left him with a prosthetic leg. On April 12, 1980 in St. John's, Newfoundland and after months of training, Fox set out on his Marathon of Hope to raise money for cancer research. He ran for 143 days though six Canadian provinces, averaging 42 kilometres a day for a total of 5373 kilometres, before finding out upon reaching Thunder Bay that the cancer had spread to his lungs. Terry then returned to British Colombia for treatment and sadly passed away on June 28, 1981 at the age of 22. His goal of every Canadian donating one loonie to the cause was not in vain and his Marathon of Hope inspired and rallied the nation to initiate and take part in annual runs and other events, which, as of May 2014, have raised over $650M for cancer research through the Terry Fox Foundation. Terry was the youngest recipient to receive the Companion of the Order of Canada and today, almost 35 years after his marathon began, he continues to inspire people from all over the world.

GREC students Sam Kempe, Josh Keith, Bailey Merrigan, Tyee Davis, Emily Baillargeon, Leah Neumann, and Wyatt McVeigh spoke at the assembly, which was organized by educational assistant Cathy Reynolds, and each student read an excerpt from the journal Terry kept during his marathon. Prior to the event each student was asked to donate a loonie or toonie to the Terry Fox Foundation and after the coins were counted the school had raised close to $400. Following the assembly the students and staff ran or walked the outdoor track at the school and on the following Monday Ms. Schall's grade eight class was awarded a prize for raising the most money for the event.

On Sept. 27, family, friends and supporters of the Tristin Osborne Memorial Scholarship Fund and the Limestone Learning Foundation (LLF) celebrated at a special Tennessee-style gala fundraiser at Carol Bisaillon's and Daryl Martin's Dreamcatcher Farms near Sunbury. Long-time Tennessee natives Greg and Valerie Heinike, owners of the Bell Buckle Café in Tennessee, traveled to Sunbury with some of their staff to prepare a Tennessee-style evening of dining for the event, which was attended by over 200 guests, many sporting cowboy boots and hats.

Kingston radio hosts Rick Choma and Lisa Ray were the emcees and musical entertainment was provided by numerous talented guests, including Grammy nominee Valerie Smith, the Abrams Brothers and Rudy and Saddle Up.

Tristin Osborne was a former KCVI graduate who despite a learning disability went on to pursue a post-secondary degree in teaching at Aurora College in Yellowknife. Tragically she passed away in her sleep in 2004, just two months before graduating. Following Tristin’s death her mother Judy and father John created a memorial fund to honour her and help students with learning disabilities. Through the fund, a scholarship award is presented annually to a graduating student from the Limestone District School Board who is interested in furthering their education and overcoming the challenges posed by a learning disability.

The memorial gala is the second time the Osbornes have teamed up with the LLF to put on the fundraiser. For several years the Osbornes held the annual TOMM Fest, a music-festival styled fundraiser in Tristin's honour, which has been replaced by the combined LLF fundraiser at Dreamcatcher Farms.

In remembering her daughter, Judy Osborne said she was “a very bright, darling little girl who strived to overcome her disabilities so that she could ‘come to better understand students who are learning-disabled and help them to reach their goals.’” Judy said she was “a peace lover who could never do enough for others” and said she worked extra shifts while studying in Yellowknife to support others in need in that community.

Tristin received her teaching degree from the college posthumously and today her legacy continues to support learning-disabled students pursuing post secondary studies.

(Attention readers. After the following article was published on Thursday and posted online , the date of the public meeting was changed . The meeting about changes in staffing at Clarendon Central Public School will now take place on Monday Night, September 15^th, at 7:00 pm at Clarendon Central. The meeting date change was done at the behest of the Limestone District School Board in order to have representatives in attendance. This version of the article includes the altereed information)

Parents of children attending Clarendon Central School in Plevna have called a meeting on Monday Night (Septemebr 15) at the school to talk about staffing changes.

The meeting, which is set for 7 pm, is a reaction to finding out that as of next Monday the teaching complement at the school will be reduced by one.

There are four teachers at the school currently. Three of them teach multi-grade classes, and the fourth is what is called a head teacher. The school has a part-time principal, Emily Yanch, who is also the principal of the larger Land O' Lakes Public School in Mountain Grove, which commands much of her attention. She is on site in Plevna one half day each week.

According to a parent who contacted the News, a rumour that the change was coming circulated among the community, and was confirmed by Ms. Yanch.

We were unable to contact Principal Yanch at Land O' Lakes school on Tuesday, and the supervising principal for Clarendon Central, Barbara Fraser-Stiff, was not available at the Limestone Board office.

However written notification of the changes was sent home to parents on Tuesday.

Currently, there are three classes in the school: a Junior Kindergarten to grade 2 class, a grade 3 to grade 5 class and a grade 6 to grade 8 class. As of next Monday, the school will be split into two classes, a Junior Kindergarten to grade 3 class, and a grade 4 to grade 8 class. The position of head teacher will remain, and that person is responsible for discipline, acts as a resource teacher for children in need of one-to-one instruction from time to time, and covers for the other teachers during their planning time.

Further complicating the new scenario is the fact that the JK-3 teacher in the school is only a 3/4 time position, and the head teacher will have to cover that class each afternoon.

There are currently two educational assistants (EA) at Clarendon Central, one full-time and one half-time position, and as of next week the half-time EA will become full time, to help cover the extra work-load. However, according to parents and staff, there are some significant special needs in the school.

In the letter to parents the board said that the changes have come about because of an enrolment decrease at Clarendon Central, and the letter also pointed out that these kinds of changes happen in schools throughout the board each September.

The concern expressed by parents who contacted the News is that cutting one teacher from such a small complement of teachers represents a decrease of almost 27% in the teaching complement, which is a greater impact than would be felt in a school with a complement of 20 teachers. There, losing one teacher would only represent a 5% decrease in teachers.

Clarendon Central is a designated rural remote school, which means the Limestone Board receives extra funding beyond the normal per student funding formula to cover for some of the extra costs associated with providing programming in a rural-remote environment. It is the most remote school in the Limestone Board.

During the planning process that led to the construction of Granite Ridge Education Centre, an initial proposal to close Clarendon Central was quickly rebuffed, both by the community members on the planning committee and by the parents and community members in the Plevna area, who packed the school when a public meeting was held to talk about proposals for the new school.

The public is invited to attend the meeting at Clarendon CEntral on Monday Night.. Board and school administrative officials will be in attendance.

On June 26 the 59 students of the first graduating class of Granite Ridge Education Centre sat gowned and capped and looking ahead to their futures at the new school's first official commencement ceremony. The celebrations in the school's spacious new gym/cafeteria were well attended, with hundreds of friends and families taking pictures of their loved ones, many of whom will either be heading to post-secondary institutions, returning to the school to complete a final fifth year, or looking to enter the work force. The ceremony was emceed by Elizabeth Steele-Drew and included addresses by Principal Heather Highet, Vice-principal James McDonald, and Brenda Hunter of the Limestone District School Board, with musical interludes performed by the GREC school band.

Numerous awards and bursaries were handed out to the graduating students. Long-time music teacher Claudio Valentini, who retires this year, received the Earl Memorial Trophy in recognition of his outstanding achievement and contributions to the school over his career there.

One emotional highlight of the evening was the address by GREC's first official valedictorian for 2013/2014, grade 12 student Hillary Howes, who was chosen by her peers as the student who “best represents the graduating class.” Hillary, who has been accepted into Fleming College's paramedics program in Peterborough, was introduced by Ms. Steele-Drew as a student who is “determined and reaches her goals”, and “an incredible athlete and team player, an enthusiastic leader and a confident lady with an extremely bright future ahead of her.” Hillary received a standing ovation and in her speech she started by congratulating her fellow graduates. She then recalled many of her favorite memories from her four years as a student at the school, the many teachers who guided her over the years, and this year’s grad trip to New York City. She ended her speech stating “I know that all of you in 20 years will look back at your years in high school and remember what we experienced here and how that helped to shape us.” Following the ceremony the grads posed for a picture and then joined friends and family for a festive reception.

On the previous evening, June 25, the grade eight graduates from the school held their own special graduation ceremony, when each student crossed the stage to receive recognition from their teacher Miss Julia Schall. Numerous students received special awards for their accomplishments. Grade eight student Sam Kempe was chosen as the grade eight valedictorian, and following her address, the students, their friends and families also enjoyed a special celebratory reception at the school.

Congratulations to all of this year’s graduating students at GREC.

Two local students who participated in the Kingston Regional Heritage Fair will join 68 other students from across Ontario at the Provincial Heritage Fair in Toronto this Saturday.

Loughborough’s Cameron Anderson, along with classmates Adam Hull and Brett Wilcock, have completed a project called “The Effects of Colonization on the First Nations”. The project is about what the Europeans did when they first started colonizing North America and how it affected First Nations. It states the major and overall influence of the Europeans and how this impacts the way Canada is today.  

Isaac Banks, a grade 7 student at Glenburnie Public School, called his project “The Battle of the Hochwald Gap” It explores Canada's involvement during the Battle of the Hochwald Gap in WWII.

Aimed at students aged nine to 15, the heritage fairs are designed to inspire young people to explore personal and collective Canadian experiences in any number of media – displays, painting, sculpture, prose, music or computer-based projects. The delegates at the provincial fair represent the more than 20,000 Ontario students who participated in the 2014 Fairs program.

Frontenac County was well represented at a Student Achievers awards ceremony at the Limestone District School Board offices last week.

Emily Delyea and Skyler Howes of Granite Ridge (Sharbot Lake) and Stephanie Jones from Sydenham High School were among 12 students in the board to receive citations at the event.

Emily Delyea has run the deck with every mark on her transcript at Level 4 and most of her grades in the high 90s. She is a member of four varsity teams, is also involved in student council, coaching and other activities, and is a Relay for Life volunteer. She will be studying Human Kinetics at the University of Ottawa in September.

Skyler Howes excels in Math and Sciences, and he won the Governor General's Academic Medal as well in recognition of his overall average. He is also a leader on five varsity teams and a KASSAA all-star to boot. He has coached in the Northern Basketball League for elementary students. In addition to his activities at the school, he has completed 383 volunteer hours in the community with the local fire department, rec committee and his church. He will be studying Engineering at Queen's in the fall.

Stephanie Jones is a dedicated, hard-working, high-achieving student. Stephanie has a developmental disability; she has had to overcome a number of learning challenges and has been an inspiration to her teachers. She spends a lot of time in class working with other students while maintaining a high grade average. She is highly involved in the photography program at SHS. During the recent Multicultural Fair, Stephanie’s portfolio was chosen by her peers as the best overall collection of photos and journal entries, and for outstanding artistic creativity. She has spent over 200 hours on community volunteer work, and will be attending St. Lawrence College in September, as one of only 15 students accepted into the Community Integration Through Co-operative Education program.