Focus on TUSD - November 2006

EEF Grant Application due Jan. 1
The deadline to submit applications for the Educational Enrichment Foundation Mini Grants is Jan. 1, by 4 p.m. TUSD educators are invited to apply. For more information, including the guidelines and application, see the EEF Mini-Grant web page.

Wright Elementary Chamber Music Tickets
It was like music to their ears when John B. Wright Elementary School officials heard they would receive free chamber music tickets for some of their students. The scholarships provided by Chamber Music PLUS paid for a specified number of students and adults to attend these four performances: Mozart earlier in November, Beethoven on Dec. 4, Sissy Duckling on Jan. 22 and The Story of Babar on Feb. 19. The musical series incorporates literature into the programs.

Wright Elementary is a Title I school with approximately 90 percent of its students qualifying for free and reduced government subsidized lunches.

GATE Night is Game Night
It wasn't just a game for them. Tucson High Magnet School students analyzed their favorite games at the Gifted and Talented Education Game Night Nov. 6 in preparation for making their own games in January.

David Niecikowski, a features correspondent for Games Quarterly Magazine, who attended the first-time event, said that people who play non-electronic games with families and friends experience positive and social benefits.

Kids Center, a local store selling children’s games, books and toys, also participated, along with Michele’s Quality Time Resources, which specializes in purchase orders and fund-raising events with non-electronic games.

The GATE Department will test students in the first through 10th grades in January for eligibility. About 4,200 students are now enrolled.