Lapeer East's Mike Carson chosen to play in Michigan High School Coaches' All-Star game

Lapeer East High School baseball star Mike Carson was selected to play in the East-West High School Coaches All-Star game at Comerica Park on Tuesday, June 16.

Carson was the only player selected from the greater Flint area to play in the game.

The Flint Journal has a nice story and photo of Carson in Friday's coverage. The picture here is one taken during a signing ceremony last November at Lapeer East as Carson accepted a scholarship to play baseball at Oakland University next year.

Summer office hours begin Monday at Administration & Services Center

The Administration & Services Center will begin summer office hours on Monday, June 15. The building will be open from 7:30 AM - 4:00 PM.

Regular business hours of 7:30 AM - 4:30 PM will resume on Monday, August 24.

A reminder that all District elementary school buildings close to the public for summer vacation on June 23. All other school buildings, with the exception of the Administration & Services Center and the bus garage, will close to the public on June 26.

Mayfield Students produce videos on Talented and Gifted Programs, Physics Club

Mayfield Elementary School students in Mr. Robert Losinger's class have produced a number of videos of school events and projects during 2008-2009. Here are two more that were recently accepted on Schooltube.com.

Hadley students celebrate field day, last day of their building with balloon launch

The annual Hadley campus Field Day had a little extra celebration at the end marking the end of classes at the Hadley campus of Hadley-Murphy Elementary School on Wednesday, June 10.

Students played on various bounce houses, participated in relay races and other contests and enjoyed the day.

At 3:30 p.m. the students launched biodegradable balloons to mark the end of classes and the school building.

A 4:30 p.m. open house welcomed members of the community and Hadley alumni to the campus for a final tour.

To see photos of the balloon launch and Hadley Fire Department "squirt" event click here.

To see photos of the Field Day events, click here.

Mrs. Elsie Davis, bus driver from 1961-1982, meets the new generation of school buses

More than 25 years after she retired as a Lapeer Community Schools bus driver, Mrs. Elsie Davis, 91, returned to the school bus garage for the year-end transportation department pot luck luncheon and was coaxed into sitting behind the wheel of one of the District’s new extended length buses.

It was just a photo opportunity and Mrs. Davis let another District bus driver give her a quick spin in the new bus.

Mrs. Davis began driving for the District about 1961 and retired about 1982 after 21 years of negotiating the rural roads of Lapeer County. At the luncheon, Mrs. Davis showed off a 1977 newspaper article written about her and her co-workers at the bus garage.

As for what Mrs. Davis thinks about the new generation of school buses?

“There’s been a lot of changes,” Mrs. Davis said. “This was a beautiful, long one.”

Among the changes are AM/FM radios, a bus intercom, automatic transmission and no manual door handle.

Mrs. Davis’s husband died in 1999. The couple helped raise 200 foster children.

Three high school graduates honored at Lapeer Alumni Association luncheon at the Elks

The Lapeer Alumni Association met for their luncheon on Tuesday, June 9 at the Elks Lodge for some fellowship and fun.

The June luncheon is also the time that the Alumni Association hands scholarship money to three deserving graduates of Lapeer Community Schools.

Ashlee Eisinger was the recipient at Lapeer East, Marguerite Mitchell was the Lapeer West scholarship winner and Melina Nelson received the scholarship at Lapeer Community High School.

Scholarships this year were made possible through the proceeds of the sale of Hollis Hayes' book, "On the Street at Nine." Mr. Hayes donated all the proceeds from his book to the scholarship fund.

For more pictures of this and other Alumni events go to the Alumni photo album here.

Lapeer East, Lapeer West art students display outstanding work at Gallery 194

During the Lapeer Celebrates the Arts event last weekend many people had an opportunity to enjoy the art work of Lapeer's wonderful high school artists at Gallery 194 in downtown Lapeer.

The student art work, which occupies much of the Gallery, will be on display until June 30. Hours at the gallery, 194 W. Nepessing Street, are from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday.

We congratulate the students and their teachers for a job very well done.

Board of Education approves north/south boundaries for two new middle schools

The Lapeer Board of Education approved a recommendation that the boundaries for the two new middle schools, scheduled to open in the fall of 2010, be based on whether students lived north or south of Imlay City Road (M-21).

(Top drawing: Architect's rendering of Zemmer Middle School, bottom drawing, Architect's rendering of Rolland Warner Middle School.)

The decision followed a process that began in February with the establishment of a group of 32 parents, staff and a student who worked through a number of demographic issues related to assigning students to the new schools either on a north/south or an east/west basis.
In May, Superintendent Debbie Thompson concluded that less stress from transitions would occur to students based on a north/south boundary.

At the Thursday, June 4th meeting, the Board approved the recommendation. Superintendent Debbie Thompson said that Rolland-Warner Middle School would be the “south” school and Zemmer Middle School would be the “north” school when both open in 2010.

“We are thankful to the members of the committee and their work in providing us with the information we needed to make this important decision,” said Superintendent Debbie Thompson.

Lapeer West High School hosts 2009 Senior Honors Convocation on Tuesday, June 2

More than 125 graduating Lapeer West High School seniors were recognized at the Senior Honors Convocation on Tuesday, June 2nd.

In addition to honoring the graduates for achieving honors or high honors, the students were also presented with a number of scholarships and awards.

Lapeer West also honored its top ten graduates: David Jackson, Brett Cavanaugh, Scott Boller, Garrett Gauthier, Casey Spooner, Brynn Foss, Stephanie Kossak, Caitlin O’Brien, Charlotte Brown, and Daniel Barker.

Bridget Miller was honored as the Outstanding Female Athlete; Ryan Miller was honored as the Outstanding Male Athlete, and Emily Jones was honored as the Detroit Free Press Scholar Athlete Award Winner.

Dozens of students received scholarships and grants worth more than $1 million from a number of colleges and universities. Among the scholarships received were: A full ROTC Scholarship to the University of Michigan Ann Arbor, full tuition to Owen Community College, several Dean’s scholarships to Ferris State University, three full tuition pre-engineering scholarships to U-M Flint, several Trustee scholarships to Kettering University, several geographic region scholarships from Oakland University, an Aquinas Presidential Leadership Scholarship, several Award of Excellence Scholarships to Grand Valley State University, a Presidential award from Michigan Tech, a Merit Scholarship from Northern Michigan University, a Dean’s Scholarship from Saginaw Valley State University, a Freedom and Alumni Scholarship from Northwood University, Honors and Presidential Scholarship from Wabash College, a Presidential Scholarship from St. Mary’s College, a Board of Regents Scholarship from Baker College, a Scholarship from AMDA in New York, and a University of Michigan Ann Arbor Regents Award Scholarship.

Students also accepted more than $50,000 in local scholarship grants, including; $8,000, Lapeer Regional Medical Center; $4,000, Jean and Stewart Thiemkey Scholarship, ZF Lemforder Corporation; $1,000, Michigan Elks Association, Lapeer Fraternal Order of Eagles, Lapeer Education Association, Lapeer County Democratic Party/Cicchini Memorial, Lapeer County Bar Association, Lapeer Alumni Association, Clarke B. Adams Memorial Scholarship, James Niesen Memorial Scholarship, Kayla O’Mara Memorial Scholarship (two awards), Sam Walton Community Scholarship, American Legion; $700, Polish Legion of American Veterans; $500, Frances Klauser Memorial Scholarship, Carl H. Schilbe Memorial Scholarship, Jimmy Thompson Memorial Scholarship, Rod Parsch Memorial, Kimberly Montgomery Memorial Scholarship, Metamora Area Youth Development Association, Lapeer Gold and Diamond Scholarship, Lapeer Steelers Youth Football, Mark Robbins Memorial (three awards), Lapeer Odd Fellows, Lapeer Knights of Columbus (three awards), Lapeer Kiwanis, Lapeer Community Scholarship, Lapeer West Student Council Scholarships (three awards); Maine Rebekah Lodge #319 Scholarship, Irwin Schickler Elementary Scholarship (two awards), Lapeer County EMS Peplinski Memorial Scholarship, Debbie Louis Courage Award (three awards), Pamela Markgraf Memorial Scholarship, Tracey Thompson Memorial Scholarship, Carl Schilbe Memorial, Metro League Student Council, Lapeer County Republican Party Scholarship; $300, Joanne Nelson Memorial Friendship Scholarship, Technical Center’s Teachers Association Scholarship; $250, Peggy Laidler Nursing Scholarship, W. Gordon Hall Memorial; $100, John Philip Sousa Band Award; Lapeer Rotary Award (one computer).

“We are proud of the achievements of our students and thank our community for their generosity and giving to further the education of our fine students,” said Lapeer West Principal Kevin Walters.

Lapeer East High School hosts 2009 Senior Honors Convocation on Monday, June 1

Merit based college and NROTC scholarships with a potential worth of more than $1.5 million to 2009 graduates of Lapeer East High School were recognized at the 2009 Senior Honors Convocation in the Lapeer East auditorium on Monday, June 1st.

(Photo at left: L-R: Alexa Jones: Outstanding Service, Kristen Tomczyk: Patricia Coulter Outstanding Female Athlete, Bryan Bush: Outstanding Senior, Mike Carson: Doug Henley Outstanding Male Athlete, Ashley Hofert: Outstanding Leadership.)

About 130 graduating seniors from Lapeer East were honored for high academic achievement, college awarded scholarships, special awards and distinctions and local scholarship awards.

The Top Ten graduating seniors were also honored, as well as five students who received awards for Outstanding Achievement.

Top ten students were: Bryan Bush, Heather Dix, Ashley Gayheart, Amanda Harvey, Ashley Hofert, Alexa Jones, Samuel Kaczmarek, Danielle Robson, Ellen Tunison and Erin Weisler.

Bryan Bush was honored as the Outstanding Graduating Senior/Christopher Dirks Memorial Scholarship winner; Mike Carson received both the Outstanding Male Athlete and the Outstanding Citizenship/Webster Scholarship; Kristen Tomczyk was honored as the Outstanding Female Athlete/Patricia Coulter Award; and Alexa Jones received the Outstanding Service Award/Henning Scholarship; and Ashley Hofert received the Outstanding Leadership/Webster Scholarship award.

Students received and accepted scholarships to: Albion College, Baker College, Central Michigan University, Concordia University, Eastern Michigan University, Grand Valley State University, Iowa Wesleyan College, Kettering University, Lincoln College of Technology, Marygrove College, Michigan State University, Michigan Technological University, Mott Community College, Northern Michigan University, Notre Dame College, Oakland University, Olivet Nazarene University, Rochester College, Saginaw Valley State University, Saint Mary’s College, Savannah College of Art & Design, Tiffin University, University of Detroit Mercy, University of Michigan Ann Arbor, University of Michigan Flint, University of Notre Dame, Wayne State University.

One of the biggest awards of the night went to Mark Stefani, a High Honors graduate, who received a $180,000 Navy Reserve Officers Training Corps scholarship to attend Old Dominion University.

Students also accepted more than $50,000 in local scholarship grants, including; $8000, Lapeer Regional Medical Center; $4,000, ZF Lemforder Corporation; $2,500, Philip Hart Memorial; $1,000, Michigan Elks Association, Lapeer Fraternal Order of Eagles, Lapeer Education Association, Lapeer County Democratic Party/Cicchini Memorial, Lapeer County Bar Association, Lapeer Alumni Association, Ed and Bonnie LaClair Scholarship, Clarke B. Adams Memorial Scholarship (four-$1,000 awards), American Legion, Sam Walton Community Scholarship; $750, Patricia Coulter Outstanding Female Athlete, Lapeer East Boosters (two awards), Douglas Henley Memorial Male Outstanding Athlete; $700, Polish Legion of American Veterans; $500, Carl Schilbe Memorial Scholarship, Rod Parsch Memorial, Outstanding Service/Henning Scholarship, Outstanding Senior/Christopher Dirks Memorial, Outstanding Leader/Webster Scholarship, Outstanding Citizen/Webster Scholarship, Maine Rebekah Lodge #319 Scholarship (four awards), Marjorie L. Corey/Hadley Chamber of Commerce Scholarship, Metamora Area Youth Development Association, Mark Robbins Memorial (three awards), Lapeer Odd Fellows, Lapeer Knights of Columbus (three awards), Lapeer Kiwanis, Lapeer Community, Lapeer Gold and Diamond Scholarship, Lapeer Steelers Youth Football, Lapeer County Republican Party, Jacob Johnson Memorial (four awards), Irwin Schickler (two awards), Metro League Student Council, Don Hotchkiss Memorial, Debbie Louis Courage Award (three awards), Clarke B. Adams Memorial; $300, Technical Center’s Teachers Association Scholarship; $250, W. Gordon Hall Memorial, Hadley-Murphy PTC, Lapeer County Family Community Education; Lapeer Rotary Award (one computer).

“We have an incredibly generous community that is committed to supporting our students,” said Lapeer East Counselor Susan Wilmers. “I urge students each year to apply early and often to take maximum benefit of so many wonderful scholarships and grants.”

Lapeer West High School student athletes commit to colleges and universities for next year

Four Lapeer West High School standout athletes inked commitments to play sports at the next level in a ceremony at the school Thursday, June 4th.

(Photo: From left to right: Danielle Schoenherr, Ryan Miller, Emily Jones and Stephanie Kossak.)

Emily Jones, captain of the West softball team, will play at Grand Valley State University next year. A 2009 All Flint Metro League selection, Emily was also an honorable mention All-State athlete in 2008. Joining Emily at the ceremony was her coach, Mr. Brad Walker and her parents, Cynthia and Dan Jones. Emily had a 3.9 grade point average.

Stephanie Kossak, accepted a scholarship to continue her volleyball career at the Illinois Institute of Technology. Stephanie was a second team All Flint Metro League selection in 2007 and 2008. Stephanie’s parents, Linda and Jerome Kossak, joined her at the ceremony. Stephanie also had a 3.9 grade point average.

Ryan Miller, who compiled 3,312 rushing yards and 36 touchdowns during his West football career, will play football for Albion College in the fall. In 2007 and 2008, Miller was an All Flint Metro League selection and an All-State honorable mention selection in 2009. His mother, Paula Miller joined him at the signing ceremony along with Varsity head football coach Mike Smith.

Danielle Schoenherr, a First Team All Flint Metro League soccer star in 2008 and 2009, will play soccer next year for Northwood University. Danielle was an All District Team member in 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009. She had a 3.16 grade point average. Parents Leanne Peterman and Rick Schoenherr joined her in the ceremony.

“These students were more than just good athletes,” said Lapeer West Dean of Students Mike Smith. “They were also good students and good school citizens.”

Lapeer East soccer coach featured in Flint Journal column about sportsmanship

The Flint Journal's Bill Khan did a nice piece on the show of sportsmanship between the Fenton and Lapeer East Girls' soccer teams recently.

Lapeer East, Lapeer West High Schools honor Top 10 graduates for 2009

The Top 10 graduates from Lapeer East and Lapeer West High Schools were honored at convocations at each school this week.

To see the information on each of these high achieving graduates go to the Photo Gallery. The Lapeer East Top 10 are here. and the Lapeer West Top 10 are here.

Lapeer West Top 10 students. Back Row (left to right), Garrett Gauthier, Brynn Foss, Brett Cavanaugh, Casey Spooner, and Caitlin O'Brien. Front Row (left to right) Charlotte Brown, Stephanie Kossak, David Jackson, Daniel Barker, and Scott Boller.

Lapeer East's Top 10 students: Front Row L-R: Heather Dix, Amanda Harvey, Ashley Gayheart, Alexa Jones.Back Row L-R: Bryan Bush, Samuel Kaczmarek, Erin Weisler, Ashley Hofert.Not pictured: Danielle Robson , Ellen Tunison.

Lapeer East High School sewing students making the grade with dresses for Africa

Busy hands in the 8th grade sewing classes of Miss Terry Brennan are working on their final exam grade by making dresses for young girls in Africa from donated pillowcases.

When complete, the sewing students will make about 40 dresses for the http://www.littledressesforafrica.org/ project.

The sewing students are working in teams to ‘fancy up’ the pillowcases with lace, ribbon and bows. Students must use many sewing skills, like elastic casings and making armholes to finish the dresses.

Once completed, the dresses will be given to The First Presbyterian Church in Lapeer and shipped to Africa.

“This is a wonderful way to test the skills of my students and perform a worthwhile public service project at the same time,” said Lapeer East Life Management teacher Miss Terry Brennan.

More photos of the sewing students working on the dresses are at the District photo gallery.

Lapeer West High School athletes to sign commitments to play at the next level

Four Lapeer West High School senior student athletes will sign commitments to play sports at the collegiate level at a signing ceremony in the West media center on Thursday, June 4th at 7 p.m.

On hand will be Ryan Miller who is committing to play football at Albion College, Danielle Schoenherr who will play soccer at Northwood University in Midland, Stephanie Kossak who will continue her volleyball career at the Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago, and Emily Jones who will play softball at Grand Valley State University in Allendale, Michigan.

Hadley-Murphy PTC hosts "Farewell Celebration" at the Hadley campus on June 10th

The Hadley-Murphy Parent Teacher Committee invites all Hadley Alumni and the Hadley community to a “Farewell Celebration” at the school from 4:30 p.m. to 6 p.m. on June 10th.

The Hadley campus of Hadley-Murphy Elementary School is closing after 50 years of service at the end of the current school year.

Festivities, which include building tours and a hot dog supper, are part of the event.

Former Lapeer West wrestling coach, John Virnich, named to Wrestling Hall of Fame

Former Lapeer West High School wrestling coach John Virnich, who led teams that won back-to-back State Division II championships in 2000 and 2001, was inducted into the Michigan Chapter of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame on May 17th at the Kellogg Center in East Lansing.

During his ten year coaching career at Lapeer West, Mr. Virnich coached ten individual state champions, 34 state place winners and 68 state qualifiers. In 2001, Lapeer West High School was ranked 20th in the U.S. and Coach Virnich was named the National Wrestling Coaches’ Association, Coach of the Year for Region 4.

Virnich’s teams also won three regional titles and nine district titles during his tenure.

He was also named Coach of the Year for the State of Michigan in 2001.

Virnich, who is retired from coaching and lives in Port Huron, began and ended his coaching career at Algonac High School, heading there in 2003 after leaving Lapeer West. Before coming to Michigan in 1991, Coach Virnich coached in Illinois and achieved success there as well.

John Virnich never had a losing season as a coach.

“I was blessed to have the opportunity to coach kids,” said Mr. Virnich. “I have good feelings about my time in Lapeer.

Mayfield Elementary 5th Grade Trebuchet Project now available on video at School Tube

Trebuchet projects (catapults) in the fifth grade classroom of Mr. Robert Losinger and the 6th grade classroom of Mr. Joshua Back culminated in a contest Thursday, May 28th, to see which catapult was more accurate. The video shot by the students is now on School Tube.

'Panther' ducks born May 20 find home in Lapeer West High School science courtyard

A Mallard duck and her nine ducklings have taken up residence in an interior courtyard at Lapeer West High School.

Lapeer West secretary Chris Sierakowski believes the ducks were hatched about May 20 and since then the mother has used a small pond in the courtyard to teach her offspring how to swim.

The home, which is right off the Lapeer West science classrooms, seems to be a relatively protected environment for the family.

The school's mascot is normally a Panther, but the ducks seem to be fitting in quite well. More pictures are available here.

Mayfield Elementary 5th and 6th graders test science theories by building catapults

A two-month science project culminated Thursday afternoon, May 28th, when the 5th grade class of Mr. Robert Losinger and the 6th grade class of Mr. Joshua Back faced off on the athletic field with Trebuchets (catapults) built by students.

Materials provided by The Home Depot made this project possible.

Students first researched and designed the catapults based on the scientific theories of force and motion and kinetic energy. Next they built small scale models and tested them. Each class decided on a final model. From that model they designed a full scale version.

At the Thursday assembly students from all the classes gathered on the athletic field to watch and see which of the two catapults would prove to be more accurate.

After three tries each, the score was tied with two hits on the target each and the contest ended in a tie. A set of photos can be found on the District's photo gallery.

Swing Out 2009! A 76-year Lapeer tradition recognizes achievement of graduates

Swing Out, the unique graduation tradition of Lapeer Community Schools, put the 76th annual event in the books on Thursday, May 28th.

Family, friends and the community clogged downtown Lapeer to recognize the achievements of hundreds of graduating seniors at Lapeer East, Lapeer West and Lapeer Community High Schools.

The rich tradition, which includes the giving of flowers, balloons and gifts to the graduating seniors is a right-of-passage in Lapeer.

To see a photo album of the event go to our District photo gallery.

In the early years of Swing Out students from the entire District marched.

That was changed a number of years ago to just the graduating seniors.

It is a must see event.

Murphy students, parents get preview of new facilities at the future Rolland Warner campus

Students in the fourth and fifth grades at the Murphy campus of Hadley-Murphy Elementary School and their parents paid a visit Wednesday, May 27, to the new facilities they will be attending at the opening of classes in the fall of 2009.

Hadley-Murphy Principal Scott Warren, Superintendent Debbie Thompson, Director of Transportation Jerry Podzikowski and Food Services Director Scott Smith were on hand to answer parents’ questions and take a tour of the new facilities.

Next year’s fifth and sixth grade students will attend classes in what will be the 6th grade wing of Rolland Warner Middle School when it opens in the fall of 2010 as a middle school.

The Lapeer Community High School students who are currently studying in the facility will move to their new campus at Cramton in the fall of 2009.

The District’s 7th grade students next year will attend classes in the soon-to-be-completed 7th and 8th grade wings of the facility.

Lapeer East's Ashley Corriveau swims with Olympic greats at Charlotte meet

Lapeer East High School senior Ashley Corriveau competed with Olympic swimmers and placed in the finals in the 100 freestyle at the Charlotte Ultra Swim Meet, the weekend of May 14-16.

The meet included some of the current stars of swimming, including Michael Phelps, Katie Hoff, Aaron Peirsol and Ryan Lochte.

Ashley finished in 58.58 in the 100 freestyle in a 50-meter pool.

Ashley, a five-time All-State girls’ swimming in Division 1, was a four-year Scholar Athlete and a two-year member of the National Junior Honor Society and a two-year member of the National Honor Society at Lapeer East.

In addition to swimming for the Lapeer High School swim team, Ashley is a member of the Lake Orion Liquid Lightning, a USA Swim team.

In December, Ashley signed a national letter of intent to swim as a scholarship athlete at Wayne State University next season. Ashley took third place in the 50-yard freestyle and a fourth place in the 100-yard freestyle at the State Swimming Finals at Eastern Michigan University in November.

“We are very proud of our daughter and she was awesome in the Charlotte meet,” said her mother, Dorothy Corriveau.

“We at Lapeer East are proud of Ashley not just for her outstanding swimming accomplishments, but for being a model student and wonderful person,” said Lapeer East Principal Kelly Paige.

More photos are available at the District photo gallery.

Channel 12 airs Zemmer visit to R. Michael Supernault Outdoor Education Center

The video link from ABC 12, WJRT-TV, is now available here.

Zemmer students enjoy fresh air, make the news

The first wave of students from Zemmer Junior High School to visit the R. Michael Supernault Outdoor Education Center this week were expected to be the subject of an ABC news segment today.

Students from Zemmer will be visiting the Skinner Lake outdoor center in separate groups all week. In the photo at right, instructor Al Hoppe is interviewed by Channel 12 reporter Randy Conat. The segment was expected to run about 5:30 p.m.

In addition to four science stations, students will be working on English Language Arts, math, art and physical education classes at the 80-acre, District-owned center.

To see photos from today's visiting go to the District photo gallery here.

Lapeer East athletes commit to compete at the collegiate level in 2009-2010

Lapeer East High School varsity football quarterback Ryan Springsteen, and varsity wrestler Phil Joseph signed commitments to compete at the collegiate level at a signing ceremony in the Lapeer East media center today, May 26th.

Flanked by family, coaches and teammates the posed for media photos.

Ryan Springsteen will play for Iowa Wesleyan College in Mt. Pleasant, Iowa next year. Phil Joseph, who won a State Championship this year in the 171-pound division will wrestle for Eastern Michigan University team.

Both athletes were first team All Flint Metro League selections in their primary sport. Photos of the ceremony are available here.

Sports physicals for high school athletes offered on August 5th at therapy center

Required sports physicals for student participants from Lapeer East High School, Lapeer West High School and Zemmer Junior High School for the 2009-2010 school year are being offered at the Lapeer Regional Physical Therapy Center at 1057 Suncrest Drive on Wednesday, August 5th at 5:30 p.m.

This is a new location from previous years.

The cost is $20.

In the event parents or guardians want to have the physicals done by another doctor they should be aware of the following requirements:

Sports physicals for the 2009-2010 school year must be dated on or after April 15, 2009 and must be recorded on the Lapeer Regional Physical Form.

No other physical form will be accepted, including the Michigan High School Athletic Association form. Parents not attending the August 5 session can pick up the forms at the office at Lapeer East and Lapeer West High Schools.

A parent or guardian must sign the physical form.

ABC 12 video on Spirit Cup now available

The video of the coverage of the award ceremony for the Spirit Cup is now up on the website of WJRT-TV, Channel 12.

Lapeer East High School students honored for Spirit Cup food donation efforts

It was an exciting morning as Lapeer East High School was honored with the top 5 schools in the ABC 12 School Spirit Cup Challenge.

Lapeer East, which led the competition for several weeks after collecting 17,000 pounds of food for the Food Bank of Eastern Michigan ended up in fourth place.

It was Lapeer East that set the bar very high for the later schools.

Students from East were interviewed and will likely be shown on the news this afternoon. So far there is no link on the Channel 12’s website, but we’ll keep watching and put it up here when it does. It is now available here.

Mayfield Elementary School host 11th annual Grandparents' Day on Friday

It was bonding time for Mayfield Elementary students and their grandparents on Friday, May 22nd at the school.

Teachers had special class presentations and the school hosted a special picnic lunch for the grandparents and students.

This was the 11th annual Grandparents' Day at Mayfield and about 400 grandparents or special family members were on hand to enjoy the programs.

To get a peek at some of the activities go to the District's photo gallery here.

It was Carnival Night at Schickler Elementary School Thursday

It was cotton candy, popcorn, laser maze and much, much more at the Schickler Elementary School's Carnival Night on Thursday, May 21st.

Students visited dozens of attractions inside and outside the school and a good time was had by all as anyone can see from these photos.

Turtles, chincillas, birds, frogs and snakes. Oh My! at Lynch Elementary School

Science Alive! brought its collection of interesting animals to visit the students at Lynch Elementary School on Thursday, May 21.

Photos were taken in Mrs. Talia Leonard's class.

Students had an opportunity learn about reptiles, amphibians, birds and mammals during the classroom presentations.

Also, the students had a chance to gently handle or pet the animals, if they wanted. The critters return to Lynch on Friday.

Staff urged to show school spirit and raise money for the LCS Scholarship Fund May 29

On May 29, the LCS Scholarship Fund needs your support.

Each year, the LCS Scholarship Fund provides scholarships for students at Lapeer East, Lapeer West, and Lapeer Community High School. These scholarships are funded by donations each year. This year, Friday, May 29, was selected as LCS Scholarship fundraising day for 2009.

Staff members throughout the district are asked to donate a $5 toll for wearing either school spirit colors or jeans to work on Friday, May 29 in support of the LCS Scholarship Fund. Large envelopes will be available in each main office area for donations.

Please help us continue to support our LCS graduates on an annual basis!

Thanks for your help in this. Please contact Kevin Walters at Lapeer West, (810) 67-2423, if there are any questions.

Ground breaking at Zemmer marks exciting new beginning to the future of LCS

A cloudless sky and warm temperatures matched the wonderful occasion of the ground breaking at the site of the future Zemmer Middle School on Wednesday, May 20th.

A large group of parents, students, staff and community leaders were on hand to mark the official beginning of construction work to transform Zemmer Junior High School into a state-of-the-art Middle School. More photos are here.

Students Billy Irvine and Blake Clements, of Seaton; Martin Flores and Brooke Soroka, of Murphy; and MacKenzie Putnam and Brianna King, of Turrill Elementary, led the Pledge of Allegiance.

Superintendent Debbie Thompson welcomed everyone to the event and introduced the Zemmer Band under the direction of Joann Royce which played "This Is My Country."

Board of Education President William Laidlaw thanked the community for the passage of the 2007 and welcomed a bright future for the Lapeer Community Schools with the eventual completion of two new middle schools in the fall of 2010.

The Board of Education members, William Laidlaw, Peggy Bush, John Nugent, Denise Becker, Michael Keller, Michael Nolan and Gary Oyster then official broke ground for the new school.

Following the Board were student participants from several elementary schools that will eventually feed into the new school. Participating were: Logan Morys and Anthony Tholl, of Schickler Elementary; McKenna Carr and Ryan Klingler, of Maple Grove Elementary; Olivia Petrie and Jessica Creason, of Mayfield Elementary; Allison Ciak and Matthew Gizinski, of Lynch Elementary; Billy Irvine and Blake Clements, of Seaton Elementary; Martin Flores and Brooke Soroka, of Murphy Elementary; and MacKenzie Putnam and Brianna King, of Turrill Elementary.

It was "Jazz for Lunch" at Lapeer East High School today

Students had a little jazz jammin' with their peanut butter and jelly sandwiches today at Lapeer East High School.

"Jazz Fest" was put on during four lunches for the enjoyment of the East student body by students of Mrs. Lyniece Fenner.

This group of "zero hour" students committed to an extra hour of school in order to make the jazz band a reality.

To see additional pictures of the "groovy" lunch performance, go to the District photo gallery.

Wendy Byard writes a new inspirational book for teachers, book signing Saturday, May 30

Wendy Byard, a Lapeer resident, Mott College English professor, and former North Branch High School teacher has a new book available.

It's an inspirational book for teachers titled Teach and Reach for Classroom Miracles! Lessons on Teaching With Love. The book was edited and reviewed by Dr. Shirley Harris of the Lapeer County Intermediate School District. Her review appears in the book.

Wendy will be signing her books at the Book Shelf in Lapeer on Saturday, May 30 from 1-4 p.m. For more information visit wendybyard.com.

There are links on her website to articles written about her and her book.

Seaton hosts Art Show and Ice Cream Social event to highlight accomplishments

Hundreds of students and their families and friends enjoyed a wonderful night of art and ice cream at the Art Show and Ice Cream Social event on Thursday, May 14th.

The entire school was turned into an art gallery that included a student dressed and portraying famous artist Vincent van Gogh. There were tours of an art garden and a gymnasium gallery.

In this photo first-grader Donavan Mingee shows off his special artwork on display in the Seaton gymnasium.

To see more pictures of the event go to the District photo gallery.

Zemmer Junior High students to study in the great outdoors next week at Skinner Lake

Natural classroom lighting will take on a whole new meaning for Zemmer Junior High School students who will gather at the R. Michael Supernault Outdoor Education Center at Skinner Lake for a full day of classes in a variety of subjects all next week, beginning Tuesday.

Students will work on math, English, art and even fishing skills – part of the physical education program – during their school day at the center.

The center is an 80-acre District owned property in a beautiful, rural setting in Oregon Township. It is primarily used for science field trips for students from Lapeer and other area districts.

There will be eight stations that students will rotate through during the school day. Four of the stations will involve science subjects including, water quality testing, macro invertebrate collection, classification and observation in a lab setting.

For English, students will write about their surroundings, using their senses.

Math will involve using trigonometry functions to measure the height of a tree.

An outdoor art class will have the students drawing what they see around them.

Fishing rods, received through an outdoor health and physical education grant, will be used as part of the outdoor education and physical education class for that day.

Lapeer East art student draws winning poster in Easter Michigan Fair contest

Lapeer East junior Dawn Wesley won the Eastern Michigan Fair Poster contest and a $200 first prize. Her design will be used to advertise the fair this summer, and she will be on hand during part of the fair autographing posters for fair goers.

Wesley’s poster, which depicts a Ferris wheel, a teddy bear, cotton candy and popcorn was chosen from entries from throughout the county.

Eastern Michigan Fair manager Ian Kempf holds the winning poster.

Lapeer bus drivers finished third in the Region 10 Bus Road-e-o on Saturday

A total of 24 drivers, 8 from Lapeer Community Schools, participated in the Region 10 Bus Road-e-o on Saturday, May 16th at Lapeer West High School.

Of the eight Lapeer competitors, four were driving for the first time in the event.

Lapeer’s top three drivers from last year’s competition did not compete and for the first time in five years, Lapeer did not win the team trophy. Winner of this year’s event were the drivers from the Genesee County Intermediate School District.

The Lapeer transportation team placed third, just 34 points behind drivers from North Branch, who took second. Four Lapeer drivers placed in the top 10.

“We want to thank all of the people in our department and district wide responsible for making the event a success,” said Jerry Podzikowski, Director of Transportation. “We especially want to thank Kevin Walters, Tim Zeeman and their staff for the great hospitality at West. Thanks also to Craig Irish for his help in getting us setup in the morning and cleaning up after we were finished. A special thanks to Vance Holmes who served us well by providing grills and cooking fine ‘tube’ steaks and Superintendent Debbie Thompson for supporting our event.”

“We appreciate all the community businesses and district vendors that contributed gifts and equipment to make the event a success,” Podzikowski said. “Each person who participated and all of the people who helped by judging and assisting us in some way were sent home with a gift that was contributed to us.”

The Lapeer County Road Commission helped by providing road signs for the course.

The Lapeer District will pass the event to another school in Region 10 next year, but the equipment acquired during the past two years will be used by the Transportation Department in future driver training.

While the event is fun and competitive there is a serious point to Road-e-o and that is supporting bus driver training and proficiency.

Lapeer East students visit grave of Lt. Cmdr. Victor A. Prather II, space hero

The Arlington National Cemetery grave of local space hero, Navy Lt. Commander Victor A. Prather II, a 1943 Lapeer High School graduate and a member of the original class inducted into the Lapeer High School Distinguished Alumni Hall of Fame, received a visit from Lapeer East High School eighth graders during their recent Washington, D.C. trip.

Lt. Commander Prather drowned in the Gulf of Mexico after an extreme high altitude balloon flight to test new astronaut suits for the space program.

A number of East students researched Prather's record-breaking high altitude flight and subsequent tragic end as part of their preparation for the annual trip to Washington, D.C.

The work they did was featured on a WJRT-TV, Channel 12 broadcast.

Several photos of their visit can be found on the District's photo gallery.

New 2009 Lapeer Junior Golf League seeks players

A summer youth golf program – The 2009 Lapeer Junior Golf League - is in the process of forming and invites young people between the ages of 10 and 17 who live or go to school in Lapeer County to sign up for the program.

It is a fun and inexpensive way for young people to play and improve their golf game.

Depending on the number of entries, the LJGL will be divided into four divisions. Participants will be eligible to play four qualifying rounds of golf all leading up to a season ending tournament. The only cost for the program, including the golf, is a $50 entry fee.

The qualifying rounds will be played on Friday mornings, June 19, 26, July 10 and 17, with the tournament to be played on Friday, July 31. In the event of rain, the tournament will be held on Friday, August 7.

Tee times will be from 6:45 a.m. to 7:45 a.m. New participants and at least one parent or guardian should attend one of two preliminary rules meetings at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, June 2, or Tuesday June 9 at Lake Nepessing Golfland, 1125 Lake Nepessing Road.

Registration forms may be picked up at Lake Nepessing Golfland, 1125 Lake Nepessing Road or the Lapeer Country Club, 3786 Hunt Road, both in Elba Township. For more information call Mr. Steve Stearns at (810) 667-2418, ext. 3114.

Lapeer East art students score well in 2009 Michigan Junior Duck Stamp Art Contest

Lapeer East senior Travis Cushaway took third place in the 2009 Michigan Junior Duck Stamp Art Contest for the senior high age group with this artwork.

A copy of the entry is currently on display at Gallery 194 in downtown Lapeer.

East senior Camerin Levi, East junior Devin Verhulst and East junior Dawn Wesley received honorable mention in the same age group for the Statewide contest.

Lapeer West student Charles Verbeke wins OU Music, Theatre and Dance scholarship

Lapeer West High School senior Charles “CJ” Verbeke danced his way to a large scholarship to the Oakland University Dance Program following a recent audition at the school.

The scholarship is one of the largest, talent-based scholarships from the Oakland University Department of Music, Theatre and Dance.

Charles, who has been dancing since he was 3 years old, has been part of the opening acts for the Jonas Brothers, Radio Disney Dance Team, The Raven and a number of other celebrities as part of his repertory dance group from Deborah’s Stage Door Center for the Performing Arts in Rochester Hills.

Since 2004, Charles’ dance team at Deborah’s Stage Door has won consecutive national championships at an annual “Showstopper” competition at Myrtle Beach.

On Wednesday, May 13th, Charles was performing at another audition for the “Wannabes,” a television series to be shot in Michigan.

Charles is proficient in a number of dance disciplines, tap, ballet, modern, jazz, hip-hop and contemporary.

“Looking into the future I want to be a professional dancer,” Charles said.

When he’s not working on his dancing, Charles likes to run, bike and play basketball and “hang out” with his friends.

Charles lives with his mother and father, Pam and Charles Verbeke, in Elba Township.

“He’s just inspiring to watch and his stage presence has wowed a lot of judges,” said his mother, Pam Verbeke. “He has always loved dancing.”

Eddie West concert on May 29th to benefit Mayfield kindergartner Sydney Gavan

An Eddie West benefit concert, the first in more than a year, will help raise money for bone marrow drives in honor of Sydney Gavan, a Mayfield Elementary School kindergartner who was recently diagnosed with leukemia. Sydney is currently awaiting a bone marrow transplant, but to date there is currently no match.

The concert will be at 7:30 p.m., Friday, May 29th, at the Lapeer Country Club, 3786 Hunt Road, in Elba Township. Admission is $10 and will include the concert, a chance at some door prizes and a 50/50 raffle. All money earned will go to the SPG Fund (Sydney Page Gavan) for the National Bone Marrow Registry.

Eddie West is a group of musicians composed of current and former staff and students of Lapeer West High School, friends, and family members. The band performs songs from Motown, classic rock, to current hits.

Tickets are available at the Lapeer West High School office, the Mayfield office or from Eddie West band members. Checks should be made out to “Be the Match.” For further information call Kari Briggs at (810) 577-6778 or Paul Fernandez at (810) 441-6533.

Lapeer West's Troy Hillman wins Congressional Art Award

Lapeer West High School senior Troy Hillman said he “was more than excited to find out” he won first place in the U.S. Congressional Art Show.

“Troy’s piece will be matted, framed and be on display in the Cannon Tunnel at the U.S. Capitol for the next year,” said Nancy Barry, Hillman’s teacher. “When next year’s eight graders travel to Washington, D.C. they will be able to see his artwork on display there.”

“I made the piece using charcoal pencils,” Troy said. “I love the contrast you can create with the pencils while also having subtle grays to smooth out the piece. The medium can also be quite messy, but it’s exciting to take your time and be careful with the drawing.”

U.S. Representative Candace Miller is flying Troy to the Capitol for the awards ceremony.

Troy plans to attend the Art Institute of Chicago, School of the Arts, next fall.

“I’m not exactly sure of what I want to pursue there, but as long as I’m creating artwork, I’ll be happy,” Troy said. “It makes me feel good as an artist to have people enjoy my artwork as well as being recognized for it.”

Lapeer East, Lapeer West industrial arts students take home many MITES awards

Lapeer East and Lapeer West High School industrial arts students brought home a number of honors from the Michigan Industrial & Technology Education Society (MITES) convention and student competition last week at the Kellogg Arena in Battle Creek.

Lapeer East students won 16 first place awards and Lapeer West students won 14 first place awards in the Region 10 industrial arts contest. East students won nine second place awards and West students won seven in the regional contest.

In statewide judging, Lapeer East won two first place awards and West won one first place. East students’ projects won second place awards in two categories and two West projects won second place awards. East students had one third place and West two third place projects in statewide judging.

A total of 35 East students and 30 West students won regional and/or state awards in the competition.

Students with first place awards in regional competition were: Lapeer East, Jordan Morris, Andrew Rydell, Nicole Medellin, Amber Mauk, Joel Meyers, Josh Poole, Jake Crateur, Rodney Fulcher, Ryan Dixon, Chris Iloncai, Kyle Woolner, David Barrett, Alec Mihm, Will Smith (2), Tyler Lemieux, Scott Henry, Daniel Pierce and Chris Gonzalez; Lapeer West, Adrianna Allen, Tom Blanton (2), Kyle Stoutenburg, Zach Brown, Kyle Dickson, Joey Gingiloski (2), Dennis Makowski, Jamie Discher, Alex Kooistra, Kaitlyn Becker, Clinton Cranick and Jacob Stone.
Second place winners were: Lapeer East, Korey LaCroix, Daniel Pierce (2), Will Smith, Zachary Sehn, Mat Gonzalez, Kyle Stickney and Lexie Crisp; Lapeer West, Kris Bauroth, Zach Brown, Jamie Discher, Garrett Kitts, Adam Pfeiffer, Dan Raymond and Sarah Clinton.
Third place regional winners were: Lapeer East, Joe Gibbons, Michael Fales, Corey Smith, Josh Strong and Jordan Fejedelem; Lapeer West, Kris Bauroth, Jon Boal, Joey Gingiloski, Jon Morelli and Adrianna Allen.

Statewide winners were: East, Will Smith (first - Pictorial Illustration- exploded assembly drawing) and Jordan Morris (first-architectural drawing – working drawing single family residential); West, Tom Blanton (first – fish sculpture); East, Will Smith (second - Pictorial Illustration- exploded assembly drawing) and Amber Mauk, Josh Poole and Joel Meyers (second – architectural presentation drawing – group); West, Kaitlyn Becker (third – Intarsia cat) and Jon Morelli (third – minibike).

In addition to architectural drawings, the variety of projects submitted by the students was impressive and included a model train, guitar racks, gun racks, bowls, three-dimensional drawings, wood furniture and wood and metal projects.

Pictured here is Kaitlyn Becker, a freshman, who made this Intarsia cat. Intarsia involves the cutting and shaping of a variety of woods into a solid wood sculpture. For more photos from the show go to our photo gallery.

School bus driving championship for Region 10 this Saturday at Lapeer West High School

For the second consecutive year, the Lapeer Community Schools will host the Michigan Association of Pupil Transportation (MAPT) Region 10, School Bus Driving Championship on Saturday, May 16th, from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Lapeer West High School.

School bus drivers from Genesee, Lapeer, St. Clair, Huron and Sanilac counties are being invited to the event.

The event involves tight maneuvering and difficult backing on an obstacle course, safety checks and a written test.

Photo is from last year's competition.

Lapeer East, Lapeer West bands get high marks at Band, Jazz Festivals

Lapeer East and Lapeer West Jazz Bands participated in the recent District III Jazz Festival at Montrose High School, both schools bringing home first division ratings, the highest possible marks.

It was the first time that Lapeer Jazz Bands have participated in a judged event.

“Worth noting is that one of our major soloists, to be featured on an entire chart, was out sick,” said West Band Director Daniel Hundt. “Aidan Smith stepped up and became the unsung hero of the performance, filling in for the ill soloist at the last minute.”

The Lapeer East and Lapeer West Concert and Symphony Bands also performed at recent State Festivals.

Lapeer East’s Concert Band received a mixture of first and second division ratings and the East Symphony Band received straight first division ratings, the highest possible, at the May 2nd event at Warren Woods High School.

“One judge gave the Symphony Band ‘A+’s on his sheet,” said East Band Director Lyniece Fenner.

Lapeer West’s Concert and Symphony bands took first division ratings at their State Festival performance May 1st at Holly High School.

“One judge wrote, ‘even though I’ve been doing this since 9 a.m. your performance inspired me, I think that speaks,’” Hundt said.

New construction pictures from Rolland Warner Middle School

New photos were taken of the ongoing construction work at Rolland Warner Middle School today, Monday, May 11, 2009.

Photos are on the District's photo gallery.

Bone Marrow drive for Mayfield Elementary School student set for Saturday

A bone marrow drive will be held from 8 a.m. to noon, Saturday, May 16th at Mayfield Elementary School, 302 Plum Creek Road in Mayfield Township to help find a donor for kindergarten student Sydney Page Gavan.

The school held a successful fundraiser for Sydney Friday night and invites anyone between the ages of 18 and 60 to come Saturday to see if they are a bone marrow donor match for Sydney.

Participants will be asked to fill out a brief health questionnaire, submit to a painless mouth swab and be in general good health. A $25 tax deductible fee is requested to pay for the processing, but financial aid is available to potential donors who need help paying the fee.

For further information call (810) 441-6088. Mayfield Elementary School is about ½-mile west of M-24 on Plum Creek Road.

Zemmer Junior High student, Braydin Walters, chosen for U.S./Canadian hockey team

Braydin Walters, a Zemmer Junior High School student, was recently selected to play on the Border City Bandits, a blended U.S. and Canadian hockey team. The team consists of players from Ontario and Michigan and will compete in elite AAA tournaments over the next three years during the spring and summer.

Scouts from the team identified Braydin and scouted him for a year before contacting his parents, Kevin and Candi Walters. Kevin Walters is principal at Lapeer West High School.

Braydin was recently named Most Valuable Player of the 2009 Bantam Spring Showcase Tournament in Port Huron.

Last season, Braydin scored 50 goals and had 28 assists (78 points) in 41 games.

“Braydin has been very blessed to be offered these opportunities at such a young age,” said Kevin Walters. “Candi and I are truly proud of him.”

Lapeer High School Class of 1949 invites classmate to a reunion on September 26

Where did 60 years go?

Come and find out at the Lapeer High School Class of 1949 60th reunion at Lenny Millers, 5800 Dryden Road in Dryden, on Saturday, September 26, 2009. Social hour begins at 3 p.m. and dinner at 5 p.m.

Cost of the evening is $25 per person and reservation must be made by September 1st.

Two members of the Class of 1949, Marie Cassidy Nolan and Edward Oyster, are parents of two current Lapeer Board of Education members, Mike Nolan and Gary Oyster.

For questions or reservations, please call Marie Nolan at (248) 628-2960.

Lapeer East Bus 4 students visit Pentagon Memorial

Lapeer East Bus 4 student visit the Pentagon Memorial this afternoon, Monday, May 11, 2009.

Lapeer West students and staff raise $478 for Cystic Fibrosis research on Friday

The Lapeer West High School National Honor Society's Cystic Fibrosis walk on Friday afternoon was great success!

More than 70 students and employees participated in the walk. The walkers raised $478.28.

"Thanks to all who participated," said West's Chris Sierakowski.