Rolland-Warner students plant pinwheels for peace

Students at Rolland-Warner Middle School were part of a worldwide celebration of the International Day of Peace on Sept. 21.

Students lined the walkway near the entrance of the school with hundreds of pinwheels to mark the event.

Pinwheels for Peace is an art installation project started in 2005 by two Art teachers, Ann Ayers and Ellen McMillan, who teach at Monarch High School in Coconut Creek, Florida, as a way for their students to express their feelings about what’s going on in the world and in their lives.


The project was quickly embraced by their students and the entire school community and by millions of art teachers, teachers, parents, children and adults who desire peace in our world.

The first Pinwheels for Peace were installed on Sept. 21, 2005. Since then, it has grown from 500,000 pinwheels planted the first year, to three million pinwheels in 2009!

Travel advisory for West football fans

Traffic heading into the Friday night (Sept. 24) Lapeer West football game at Swartz Creek will be impeded by the “Bikes to Bricks” motorcycle caravan, which is scheduled to travel down Miller Road through downtown Swartz Creek beginning at 7:00 p.m. (game time).

The caravan is expected to be 3 to 5 miles long. It begins north of I-69 and will be moving at a slow pace. Fans should plan to arrive at the game early to avoid being held up by this event.

East to host College Fair

Lapeer East High School will host its annual College Fair Wednesday, October 6, from 6:30 p.m. until 8 p.m.

More than 50 representatives from colleges, universities and technical schools will be present to answer questions regarding academic programs, admissions and financial aid. High school students and parents from the area are invited to attend.

You may call the Lapeer East Counseling Office at 810-667-2421, ext 3124, for Susan Wilmers for further information.

East Homecoming tickets on sale now

Lapeer East High School will be pre-selling football tickets for the homecoming football game which is on Friday, September 24, 2010. Tickets will be sold to the community in the Lapeer East Athletic Office from 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m., starting Monday, September 20, through Friday, September 24.

East students can purchase tickets during lunches starting Monday, September 20, through Friday, September 24.

Middle School PTC meets Thursday night at 6:30

The Rolland-Warner/Zemmer PTC will meet Thursday, Sept. 16, at 6:30 p.m. in the Zemmer media center.

Video: Zemmer Middle School Ribbon Cutting

Video: Opening Day for teachers 2010

Procedure in place for receiving free athletic punch card

Consistent with MHSAA regulations, Lapeer Community Schools is expanding the opportunity to receive a free athletic punch card to all families of secondary students who receive free or reduced lunch.

Eligible families will receive a letter from the Lapeer Community Schools Operations Department informing them of their eligibility to receive one free punch card for the 2010-2011 school year.

Families who are interested in taking advantage of this opportunity will then present the letter to the secretary in the Operations Department, 250 Second St., Lapeer, who will give the family a punch card.

We are happy to be able to extend the opportunity for free attendance at Lapeer Community sporting events to the families of our community who have documented financial needs.


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East tennis coach notches 100th boys win

This is a synopsis of a story that appeared in the Sept. 10 Flint Journal

Lapeer East tennis coach Oscar Rodriguez notched his 100th win as a boys coach in a match with Lapeer West on Thursday, Sept. 9.

“It doesn’t feel any different, it’s like having another birthday," Rodriguez said. "It’s just another day.”

Rodriguez has led East's boys program to a 100-86-7 (.536) overall record since 1995.

He is the 22nd Flint-area tennis coach to reach the 100-win plateau coaching boys, the second from Lapeer.

The area record is held is by Rod McEachern, who tallied 338 dual-meet victories at Lapeer West and its precursor, Lapeer High, from 1958-89.

Rodriguez has an overall mark of 252-189-18 (.569), having led the Eagles' girls program to a 152-103-11 (.592) overall record since 1988.

The Flint native is only the eighth area coach to win 100 or more duals coaching boys and girls.

Thursday, East won three of the four singles flights — Nos. 1, 2, and 4 — and No. 4 doubles in three sets to beat the Panthers, 8-0, and improve to 2-2 overall and 1-1 in the Metro League. West fell to 0-2-1 in the Metro.

Capturing three-set victories for East were Henry Peabody (No. 1), Tony Wagner (No. 2), Aaron Marietta (No. 4) and Brandon Kelts and James Apfel (No. 4 doubles).

"I’m going to be around for a long time," Rodriguez said. "I love the opportunity and 'm having a great team. I'm glad I can say I coach at Lapeer East."

Zemmer hosts evening with Prosecutor Byron Konschuh

Zemmer Middle School will host an evening with Lapeer County Prosecutor Byron Konschuh on Monday, Sept. 13, at 7 p.m. in the school cafetorium.

Konschuh’s discussion will focus on several topics that affect adolescents, including the use of cell phones, texting and social media such as Facebook and MySpace. He also will outline the legal ramifications of bullying and hazing. He will be joined by a representative of the Child Advocacy Center.

The presentation is open to the public and parents of all middle school students. It will include a question-and-answer session.

Visitors are asked to park in the rear parking lot and enter through the events entrance at the north end of the school at 1920 W. Oregon in Lapeer.

New Enrichment Classes for Middle School Students

Lapeer Community Schools 6th, 7th and 8th graders can stay active this fall by signing up for a variety of fun fall activities offered through City of Lapeer Parks and Recreation Dept. in cooperation with Lapeer Community Schools.
Sign-up is underway now for:
Flag Football
Flag Cheerleading
Soccer
Competitive Swim
Splash Swim Club
Competitive Dance
Art @ Gallery 194
Actors’ Gym
Ecology in the Parks
Kids’ Night Out

Call 810-664-4431 for details.

Some students qualify for free athletic Punch Cards

Student athletes in the Lapeer Community Schools who participate in the Free/Reduced price lunch program are eligible to receive one free athletic ticket Punch Card per season they play.

The program is designed to make it more affordable for families with documented financial need to attend school sporting events.

The cards can be used to purchase $50 worth of admission to school sporting events.
Each card provides 50 punches, worth $1 each, when paying for admission at the gate. The Punch Cards can be used at regular school sporting events within the Lapeer Community Schools, including both high school (except hockey) and middle school athletic contests.

Additional cards also are available for purchase by students, parents or community members at the school offices at Lapeer East High School, Lapeer West High School, Rolland-Warner Middle School, Zemmer Middle School and in the Operations Dept. at the Lapeer Schools Administration and Services Center. The cards are priced at $25 and can be used to purchase $50 worth of admission to school sporting events. That’s a 50% discount.

Cheering for Jamie

Just over two weeks ago, the Lapeer East Cross Country coaches, along with several team members and parents gathered at the Lake Orion track on a hot Sunday afternoon.
They were there to do what they have been doing for the past four years – cheering on Jamie Caminiti.

Jamie was there to complete a 1.5-mile time trial, competing for a $10,000 scholarship through the Boomer Esiason Foundation. In spite of the fact that the event had to be moved at the last minute from East to Lake Orion, all of these people made the effort to be there for Jamie.

“We cannot begin to express our deepest appreciation and gratitude to everyone – coaches, team members and parents – for all of the support and encouragement that they have given to Jamie in her years at Lapeer East and for being a part of this special day for her,” noted Jamie’s parents, Joel and Sharon Caminiti.


Jamie won the scholarship by running the mile and a half in 9:32. The scholarship will go toward her studies at Cornerstone University, where she is a freshman this fall. The foundation annually awards this scholarship to two senior athletes across the nation with cystic fibrosis (one male, one female) with the best 1.5-mile time.

New school phone system

Thanks to the 2007 bond issue, the Lapeer Community Schools technology department has been busy this summer installing a new phone system.

Every building throughout the school district is involved in the upgrade, which brings a phone into every classroom. The new system was purchased with proceeds from the bond issue approved by District voters in 2007.

The new phones are connected to an internet-based network, which will allow anyone calling from within the District-wide system to contact any of our 400 classrooms and offices by dialing the 4-digit extension.

The new system also will allow teachers to check their school voice mail messages from home or any other outside location.

Most of the bugs have been worked out of the system in preparation for the start of school on Sept. 7. Normally the volume of calls increases with the start of school, so parents may occasionally have difficulty getting through. We ask for your patience.

The conversion to the new voice over internet protocol (VOIP) system provides greater access by staffers to phone communications and also will save the district thousands of dollars each year on its phone bills, explains Lapeer Community Schools Technology Director Nick Ward.

The upgrades to the phone system required a change in phone numbers for some locations in the Lapeer Community Schools. You can find an updated list of building phone numbers by visiting the District website at www.lapeerschools.org. Click on the Contact Us icon at the upper right.

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Many school starting times change

The school bell will be ringing one hour earlier for students in five of the District’s elementary schools this fall.
The “country” elementary schools (Lynch, Maple Grove, Mayfield, Murphy and Seaton) will now follow the same schedule as the “city” elementaries (Schickler and Turrill) to optimize the busing schedule across the district. All elementary school students, grades K-5, will start the day beginning at 8:07 a.m. and end at 3 p.m.
Middle school students in grades 6-8 at both Rolland-Warner and Zemmer will attend classes from 9:07 a.m. to 3:45 p.m.
The starting times at the District’s three high schools (Lapeer East, Lapeer West and Lapeer Community) remain the same. East and West students attend classes from 7:25 a.m. to 2:07 p.m. Community High School students go from 7:30 a.m. to 1:55 p.m.

Zemmer to be open for student tours

Zemmer Middle School will be open for tours Aug. 26 and 30, and Sept. 1 and 2.
Parents and students will be able to tour the building on August 26 and August 30 after students pick up their schedules at Rolland-Warner.
Students also will be able to tour on September 1st from 4- 7 PM and also again on September 2 from 8 – 3.
State building officials have given the OK for the student visits prior to the opening of school on September 7.

Car Wash for middle schoolers

Rolland-Warner/Zemmer Middle School PTC group will be hosting a car wash fundraiser on Friday, August 27, 2010 from 11:00 am-3:00 pm at The Farmhouse Restaurant on M-24 in Lapeer. In addition to the car wash, The Farmhouse will be donating a portion of their proceeds inside the restaurant during those hours back to the middle school PTC group. Car washes are by donation.

Discounts for athletic tickets

Students and parents can cheer their favorite teams to victory and save money as well by purchasing a Lapeer Community Schools athletic Punch Card.

The cards are priced at $25 and can be used to purchase $50 worth of admission to school sporting events. That’s a 50% discount.

Each card provides 50 punches, worth $1 each, when paying for admission at the gate. The punch cards can be used on any school sporting event within the Lapeer Community Schools, including all high school and middle school athletic contests.

Cards are available for purchase at the school offices at Lapeer East High School, Lapeer West High School, Rolland-Warner Middle School, Zemmer Middle School and in the Operations Dept. at the Lapeer Schools Administration and Services Center.

Zemmer orientation moves to Rolland-Warner

Because of construction complications, plans to open the new Zemmer Middle School to student tours on Aug. 26 and Aug. 30 have been cancelled.

The building will not be open to students until the first day of school on Sept. 7.

Zemmer students will be able to pick up their class schedules and orientation packets from noon to 7 p.m. on Aug. 26 (last names from A-L) and Aug. 30 (M-Z) in the gymnasium at Rolland-Warner Middle School, 333 DeMille Boulevard, Lapeer. (Rolland-Warner students also will be able to pick up their schedules and orientation packets on the same days in the cafeteria.)

Only certified school district staff will be allowed into Zemmer prior to a state fire and building inspection, scheduled to take place on Sept. 2. No students, parents or other members of the public can enter the building until the inspections take place.

Both the state fire marshall and the state building inspector will not be able to visit Zemmer until Sept. 2 because of scheduling conflicts.

“We want to assure parents and all of our students that we will provide plenty of support for students to find their classrooms and navigate our new building on the first day of school," said Zemmer Middle School Principal Matt Olson.


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Elementary school buildings open Aug. 23

Because of ongoing construction in the District, all Lapeer Community Schools elementary buildings will not be open until Monday, August 23.
Thank you for your patience.