Biology teacher Seth Coleman has received a $500 National Society of High School Scholars grant to IB Educators.  The funds will purchase a third binocular microscope for the Upper School Bio Lab.  Seth's goal is to acquire 16 binocular scopes - four for each lab bench.  Congratulations!

The 5th graders researched immigrants and had their own Ellis Island experience on Friday, Feb. 15.  Their parents played the role of immigration officials, and while most became US citizens, several were deported back to their old countries.  Afterwards they enjoyed a lunch of ethnic foods.  See a Photo Gallery of their Ellis Island experience.

Senior Katie Dallas was distilling essential oils in the Chemistry Lab recently for her IB Extended Essay research project.  See a Photo Gallery of her set up and chemistry teacher Pete O'Brien checking out the fragrances.

Russell Werkman will be leading a trip to visit a variety of colleges and universities in the Boston area during Spring Break.  Sign ups for interested students are due Friday, Feb. 15 to Russell.  Contact Russell or look for an email from him for more details.

View three videos of songs performed at the SGS Chinese New Year celebration to welcome the Year of the Pig on Tuesday, Feb. 5.  The 7th-8th-9th graders in Chinese class sing "Happy New Year."  The SGS Band performs "Chengdu" with vocals by Caroline He and Kaitlyn Vera and violin solo by Alex Anderson.  And Caroline He (accompanied by David Demand) sings "Big Fish", a romantic song from a recent Chinese movie.  

Saint George's faculty have nominated six seniors for Spokane Scholar awards.  Congratulations to Claire Bennett (World Languages), Bella Cooley (Art), Grace Generous (English), Ethan Hunter (Science), Joy Wang (Mathematics), and Kyrie Woodard (History).  They will be honored, and may win scholarships, at the Spokane Scholars Banquet on April 15.

Three policy debate teams from Saint George's competed in the Open division at the Tom Foley Invitational at University HS this weekend.  It was the last regular season GSL tournament and one of Spokane’s biggest, attracting teams from all over the West.  SGS teams of Alli Dixon and Olivia Senske, Cassie Benson and Maddy Roberts, and Chaitanya Nalluri and David Thew competed, with Alli placing 2nd in speaker points and Maddy 8th.  In Lincoln-Douglas debate, John Michael Field competed in the Open division and Erika Piotrowski in JV.  Erika advanced to the semifinals, bringing home a medal for finishing among her division’s top four.  Good work, Dragons!

The International Baccalaureate Diploma Program, offered for Saint George's 11th and 12th graders, is recognized worldwide as perhaps the finest college prep curriculum.  Here are several resources to learn more about the IB's advantages:

> Newsweek Article on IB Education
> Video on Education for a Better World
> IB Benefits for Schools, Teachers, Students, etc.  
> News About the IB
 

Lower School parent-teacher conferences will be this Thursday and Friday, Jan. 31 and Feb. 1.  There are no classes for students in grades K-5.  Complimentary After-School Care is available during your conference time.
For full-day ($40) or half-day ($20) childcare, please email Melanie Gee in the office or call her at 464-8743. 

The 6th grade visited the nearby Little Spokane Fish Hatchery on Jan. 25 to learn about the life cycle of trout and feed the larger fish in their outdoor pens.  See a Photo Gallery of their annual visit.