| Subject: | Weekly Media Tips November 3, 2011 |
| Date to send: | 11/4/2011 at 6:00 AM |
November 3, 2011
For coverage information contact Tiffany Woods, Director of Public Relations for Roanoke City Public Schools, at tdwoods@rcps.info or 540.853.2905.
Lincoln Terrace Elementary Receives Local Coalition’s Award for Best Spirit during Red Ribbon Week
Lincoln Terrace Elementary
Lincoln Terrace Elementary School has been selected by the Roanoke Area Youth Substance Abuse Coalition (RAYSAC) as the Roanoke City elementary school that best illustrated the spirit of Red Ribbon Week- the nation’s oldest and largest drug prevention program. Each year, Red Ribbon Week is held during the last week of October. Students at Lincoln Terrace decorated their classroom doors with creative artwork and poetry. In addition, the school’s fifth-graders all participated in making footprints for the "It’s Up to Me to Walk Away From Drugs" bulletin board in the front office. Students also learned the importance of being drug-free, and were given the opportunity to sign a drug-free pledge and tie a red ribbon on the "It’s Up to Me to Be Drug Free" fence facing Liberty Road. RAYSAC is a coalition that works with communities to promote substance abuse prevention in the Roanoke Valley.
Crystal Spring Receives Exxon Mobil Grant for Technology Upgrades
Crystal Spring Elementary
November 4th, 10 AM
Crystal Spring Elementary School has been awarded a grant from ExxonMobil Education Alliance to enhance its technology and science programs. The alliance provides Exxon and Mobil retailers with an opportunity to invest in the future of communities through educational grants to neighborhood schools. The school hopes to use the funds on Smart board technology and projectors. In 2009, Crystal Spring was also awarded this Exxon Mobil grant and received $750.
Fishburn Park Students Promote Environmental Awareness in Community with Reusable Fashion and Yard Sale
Fishburn Park Elementary
November 4th, 6:30 PM Fashion Show, and November 5th, 7 AM-12 PM Yard Sale
Fishburn Park Elementary is holding its third-annual Environmental Reusable Fashion and Yard Sale on Saturday, November 5 from 7AM-12 PM to raise money for its Environmental Focus program. On the day before the event, students will perform and model donated outfits at the Pre-Sale on November 4 at 6:30 PM. The school will use proceeds to purchase greenhouse supplies, birds, lizards, gardens, raised beds, and other materials for their environmental focus. The funds will also be used to offer students an instructional Earth Hour. The yard sale will include great buys on clothing, accessories, shoes, toys, baby items, and small household items that have been donated by the families, community members and the faculty/staff of Fishburn Park. There will also be light breakfast foods for sale.
Fishburn Park Elementary Students Invite Community Veterans to Celebrate Holiday
Fishburn Park Elementary
November 11th , 9:00 AM
Veterans from all branches of the Armed Services will be honored at Fishburn Park Elementary School’s Veterans Day Celebration on Friday, November 11. The event will recognize family, friends, and neighbors who have served in the Armed Forces and all veterans from the community are invited to participate. The elementary students will perform at the celebration, which will be held in the gym, and light refreshments will be served at 8:30 AM for veterans in the school’s main lobby.
Patrick Henry Players to Present Michael Frayn’s Noises Off!
Patrick Henry High School
November 11-19
The Patrick Henry Theatre Department’s fall production of the bawdy comedy Noises Off! will kick off on November 11. The comic farce centers on the behind-the-scenes chaos of a theatre troupe’s play production. Frayn’s play was adapted for the screen in 1992’s Noises Off, starring Carol Burnett and Michael Caine.
Roanoke City Schools Superintendent Rita Bishop to Receive Award Presented by Taubman Museum of Art
Taubman Museum of Art
November 14th, 11:15 AM-1:30 PM
Roanoke City Schools Superintendent Rita Bishop is this year’s recipient of the Art Venturer Award and will be honored at the Taubman Museum of Art’s 2011 Women’s Luncheon on November 14. The Art Venturer Award is presented to an individual for achievement in arts education. She will be recognized alongside Pearl Fu, recipient of this year’s Ann Fralin Award for achievement and support in the arts. The reception begins at 11:15 AM, and the luncheon and program begin at noon. Former Executive Director of the Cleveland Museum of Art and Virginia Museum of Fine Art Katharine Lee Reid, will be the keynote speaker. Proceeds from the event will benefit educational initiatives at the museum.
ROTEC’s Reality Store Project Gives Students First-Hand Experience on Making Financial Decisions in Life
Roanoke Technical Education Center (ROTEC)
November 15, December 14
ROTEC will be conducting a career exploration project called The Reality Store with every eighth-grader in the division this school year. The Reality Store is a program that helps to prepare students for career development, interpersonal development, and financial literacy. Each student imagines themselves at the age of 30 and must make monthly essential purchases/payments with the goal of having some money left over. There will be nearly 40 volunteers from the Advisory Council, Foundation, and area businesses to implement the project.
Upcoming dates:
November 15 Jackson Middle School 8:00am – 3:30pm
December 14 Breckinridge Middle School/NCTLA 8:00am – 3:30pm
E-mail Kathleen Duncan at kduncan@rcps.info with any volunteers from area businesses, or call 853-2803 for questions.
Woodrow Middle School Students Research Alternative Energy Options to Address Roanoke’s Decreasing Oil Supply
Woodrow Wilson Middle School
November 21st, 8:55 AM-9:43 AM and 10:40 AM-11:30 PM
Eighth-graders at Woodrow Wilson Middle School are researching how alternative energy options could take the strain off Roanoke’s oil supply. The students will be working on the problem-based learning project for two weeks and then presenting their proposals to community members on November 21. Community panel members made up of local city leaders will judge the proposals, ask questions, and provide feedback to the students.
Monterey Elementary School to Host 9th Annual "Holidays Around the World" Celebration
Monterey Elementary School
December 8th, 8 AM-11:45AM
The 9th annual "Holidays Around the World" event at Monterey Elementary School will celebrate 15 different countries and eight languages represented at the school. The English Language Learners (ELL) students will display items such as pictures, crafts, and their country’s flag. Students and staff will wear something from a different country/culture. During the week, selected students will briefly speak on the intercom about their country, both in English and their native language.