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Photos courtesy of Charm Harris, Pioneer Buiilders Club Advisor.

By Nancy Covert

Drawn like moths to the flame (and maybe even a few Charlie Browns in search of the Great Pumpkin), groups of costumed youngsters from Steilacoom meandered the spooky fields of the Nathaniel Orr Home in Steilacoom on the evening of Oct. 31. More than 20 carved pumpkins were crafted by talented Builders Club Members from Pioneer Middle School at Northwest Landing for the annual event and displayed at the historic property. The Pumpkin Walk is sponsored by the Steilacoom Historical Museum Association and held on the spookiest night of the year.

By Nancy Covert

Steilacoom Historical School District maintenance staff took advantage of the long, dry season this past month to complete roof repairs to the building known as "old Pioneer" school.

Originally built in 1915, the structure, originally called "Steilacoom School," received repairs that are expected to be good for five years, said Bill Fritz, Superintendent of the Steilacoom Historical School District.

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Subject to Board of Directors' approval, Steilacoom Historical School District #1 announces the recommendation for hire of John Nystrom as the new assistant principal of Pioneer Middle School located in DuPont.

"I am proud and honored to have the privilege to be the new Assistant Principal at Pioneer Middle School, home of the Pirates! It is exciting to be teaming with our Principal Andre Stout and the Steilacoom Historical School District staff to nurture the high achieving learning community at Pioneer. I look forward to collaborating with Pioneer’s staff, students, families and the DuPont/Steilacoom/Anderson Island community to make our middle school a great place to learn and teach!” says Mr. Nystrom.

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Subject to Board of Directors’ approval, Steilacoom Historical School District #1 announces the recommendation for hire of Andre Stout as the new principal of Pioneer Middle School located in DuPont.

"I am excited about joining the Pioneer Middle School staff, its students and community as the school’s new principal.  I look forward to helping a school that is doing well become one of the select, top schools in Washington state," said Mr. Stout.

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Steilacoom Historical School District is seeking public input to assist the Superintendent in developing a competency and qualification profile to be used in selecting, developing, and evaluating a new Steilacoom High School and Pioneer Middle School principals.

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Samantha Foyil (left) with Lakewood Rotarian Kim Prentice.

Samantha Foyil has been working in the Steilacoom Historical School District for five years and is a sixth grade science teacher at Pioneer Middle School. She is also the Teacher of the Month for March 2011 for the Steilacoom Historical School District from the Rotary Club of Lakewood.

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By Nancy Covert

A large flock of birds has invaded a Steilacoom school—and the size of the flock is growing by the day. There’s no cause for alarm, however, because these winged creatures—1,000 paper cranes to be precise—are for a good cause.

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By Nancy Covert

The multi-colored quilt that was hung on March 17 at Pioneer Middle School is the latest piece of student-crafted fabric art to be added to the growing collection of similar projects in Steilacoom Historical School District.

Quilts, depicting a variety of historic themes, are on display around Steilacoom, from Town Hall to the Steilacoom Historical Museum. Since 2004-05 student-made works also are on display at Cherrydale, Saltar’s Point Elementary, and now at Pioneer School.

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Stuart Bright worked as a page for Sen. Mike Carrell and others last week in Olympia.

Stuart Bright, an eighth-grader at Pioneer Middle School, participated in the Senate Page Program during the eighth week of the 2011 legislative session. He was one of 18 students who participated. He was sponsored by Sen. Mike Carrell (R-Lakewood).

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Anthony Davis worked as a page for Sen. Mike Carrell and others last week in Olympia.

Anthony Davis, an eighth grader at Pioneer Middle School, participated in the Senate Page Program during the sixth week of the 2011 legislative session, along with 17 other students. He was sponsored by Sen. Mike Carrell (R-Lakewood).

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Members of the Pioneer Middle School morning news team take a break in front of their studio’s chroma key screen prior to broadcast.

By John Cohen, M.Ed., District Communications Director, Steilacoom Historical School District #1

The morning news is not only the territory of the major Seattle television stations. Pioneer Middle School offers its own morning news at the beginning of each school day.

"Today’s show includes a story about the Builders' Club meeting and a commercial that students made for the yearbook. Today’s show is not very long,” said news anchor, Derek Allen.

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This Parlor Fan Quilt was made by Ross Palmer Beecher through a cooperative process with the Washington State Arts Commission and SHSD #1. Each block stylistically depicts a scene from DuPont/Steilacoom-area history. (Some background: SHSD has a growing tradition of having quilts made and hung in the school. Several years ago, Cherrydale kids made a quilt that's hung in the Museum (Mrs. Orr's Pear Tree!); last year Pioneer special ed kids made a huge quilt showing the school's history since 1962-present; Saltar's Point kids made a big history quilt in 2004.) Photo by Nancy Covert.

At the beginning of the year, emergency management is again on the minds of staff members at Pioneer Middle School. At a recent staff meeting, computer science teacher, John Nystrom works with staff on changes to the building’s emergency response plans to help make them more effective. "We are encouraged that Pioneer has such a great partnership with our local police and fire services here in DuPont. They are a big help in our efforts,” said Nystrom. Washington State law requires that all schools hold at least one emergency exercise each month. Exercises carried out can range from fire drills to full-scale exercises where school personnel and first responders from police and fire agencies test responses to emergency situations using realistic scenarios.

Steilacoom Historical School District #1 announces the appointment of Laura Bang-Knudsen to the principal's position at Pioneer Middle School in DuPont. Ms. Bang-Knudsen comes to the district having worked most recently and simultaneously as a professional consultant for The College Board (the corporation that oversees SAT testing and Advanced Placement coursework), a consultant with Pearson Education (an educational measurement, software, and publishing company), and the Deputy Director for America’s Foundation for Chess (a not-for-profit organization dedicated to helping young people with an introduction to critical thinking skills through learning the game of chess).

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A group of 45 Pioneer Middle School students have created a piece of history. The students in grades 6-8 in the school's Learning Lab have spent the past two school years adding colorful pieces of fabric to a quilt/wall hanging that features the Old Pioneer School and the New Pioneer School. Begun as a project in Linda Petersen's class, students have added pieces--ranging from details such as the ferry boat to the smartboard to the fabric collage/puzzle. Mrs. Petersen plans to take the quilt home this summer to finish the fine needlework and then return it next year to be permanently displayed in the building.

A dedication on the reverse side of the fabric masterpiece reads:
"Created by the students in Mrs. petersen's Learning Lab. This quilt represents the history and heritage of Pioneer Middle School. We dedicate this to the entire Pioneer Community, staff, students and families--past, present and future."

The quilt is the newest addition to the growing collection of school quilts that includes Cherrydale's "Mrs Orr's Pear Tree quilt, to Saltar's Point's Sesquicentennial quilt depicting Steilacoom homes and famous folks.

Nine Pioneer Middle School "reporters" went looking for news on June 1. They found plenty of interesting information in Steilacoom. The student journalists, members of the student newspaper, "The Hook," toured the Nathaniel Orr property in Steilacoom where they interviewed Museum Docents about the site, and learned about the town's role in local history.

Wagon Shop guru Buzz Brake explained about the shop and its antique woodworking tools, Judy Hopkins escorted students through the 1857 home of pioneers Nathaniel and Emma Orr, while Nancy Covert shared highlights of the SHMA museum's exhibit, "Steilacoom Firsts." News about the students' findings is scheduled to be on-line shortly, according to teacher Kristina Sullivan.

Visit the school's newspaper at http://super6.us/ and open the link to "The Hook". The museum on Rainier St. is open from noon to 4 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays.

An enthusiastic audience of parents, siblings and friends enjoyed the menu offerings during the Inaugural "Kids Can Cook" event, held May 10 at Pioneer Middle School's Auditorium. The event featured ten Saltar's Point Elementary School 4th & 5th graders in the Sodexo-sponsored "Kids Can Cook" competition featuring healthy after school snacks.

Top voted snacks included Madison Lewis' "healthiest snack" Erupting Lava Apple with the eruption caused by peanut butter mixed with trail mix!; Joseph Daniel's "kid friendly preparation" of "Cocoa-nut" Bananas; Jessica Jones' "fun foods" featuring a Sailboat Snack; David Ling's "best plate presentation" of Bunny Spread Wraps; and Jiemyjoyce Reduque's "judges' award" for her Chicken Salad Wraps.

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Kathy Lech, office manager at Pioneer Middle School, will be installed as President of the National Association of Educational Office Professionals on July 9, 2010 in Kansas City, MO. Kathy has worked for the Steilacoom School District since 1982, except for a two-year period when she moved with her family to eastern Washington. While there she worked for the North Franklin School District for one year and then, after moving back to this area, worked for the Association of Washington School Principals.

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Forty-three members and guests of the Steilacoom Chamber of Commerce enjoyed a "Spring Evening at The Bair" on Thursday, April 22.  Representing the Port of Tacoma, Connie Bacon was the featured guest speaker during the dinner.  She stated that the Port is currently conducting a "nationwide search for a new CEO who is trustworthy, who will tell us the right story in business for the Port of Tacoma, who understands strategic thinking, and is a go-getter." According to Bacon, the Port of Tacoma is "beginning to see a tiny rise in activity, but anticipates steady growth over the next five years."  She added that the Port has spent $170M to clean-up Puget Sound and Commencement Bay.  There are ongoing negotiations with the Puyallup Tribe about possibly operating a terminal, as well.  Bus tours of the Port of Tacoma are available to the public and scheduled every couple of months.

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Pioneer Middle School's "Easter bunnies" who will be hopping along the bunny trail on Saturday at Cherrydale Primary School. The kids are members of the school's Builders Club and are volunteering at the annual event. Photo by Nancy Covert.

"There are a few changes to this year's camp program," explained Cathy Stewart, a member of Pioneer's Sixth Grade Team. "And we're confident it will be just as great a time as other Camps."

Students will attend Camp Colman between April 19-21 or 21-23. The camp will be held at on the Key Peninsula, near Case Inlet. Camp duration and location were revised for a number of reasons, including the increased numbers (240) of 6th graders. This year 120 students will attend the first session, along with teachers from the school’s first floor sixth grade wing. The remaining 120 students, along with second-floor 6th grade wing teachers will attend the second session.
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