2013 Education Archive Stories

Fourth-grade students in Vicki Peterson's GAP (Gowan Achievement Program) science class watched with curiosity as she walked around the room with a worm farm for them to see up close. The thin red invertebrates crawled through the soil as she explained to students that while the worms don't have eyes, the have light-sensitive cells, aler

Nine high school seniors have been nominated by their school counselors or teachers to be recognized by the Yuma Sun Scholars program for outstanding achievements in the field of career/technical. They are among nearly 50 students chosen to be honored this year. Every area high school can nominate one student for each category: technical studies

Both speakers for the recent 2013 commencement at Arizona Western College and Northern Arizona University-Yuma share a love for higher education and the possibilities it provides. AWC commencement speaker Stephanie Rivas had her start at the local community college at the age of 5 in the original Child Development Learning Lab, as th

On Thursday evening, George and Barbara Rouff accepted an award at Arizona Western College for instilling the importance of pursuing a higher education in the lives of their 11 children. With 19 and a half years separating the youngest and oldest of the Rouff children, all followed the family tradition of first graduating from Y

Cibola High School's end-of-the-year choir concert will not only serve as a send-off for the students that will be attending a 10-day performance tour in Ohio this summer, but also for their teacher who will move shortly afterward.“With plans to move back to Ohio this summer after the performance tour, this concert will be very

After Glenn Mayle's parents were killed when he was 13 years old, his sister Pearl Garcia took him into her home even though she was raising three children at the time. “I could never repay her and her husband for all they did for me,” said Mayle, the president of Arizona Western College.Mayle said that in add

There's only so much a student can learn within the confines of a classroom when it comes to automotive engineering. In order to better equip future generations of engineers with hands-on experience, the U.S. Department of Energy and General Motors have teamed up to offer EcoCAR 2: Plugging In To The Future, a three-year competition

A project to build a moon buggy served as a final exam in each of Philip Nash's science classes at Yuma Catholic High School. Each of the teams then put their buggy to the test, which included surviving the "moonscape" and bringing back eight rock samples, all the while on the clock. The competition featured four teams.

After spending the past few months raising funds, Cary Fields' advanced language arts class still has about $3,500 to go to be able to attend an upcoming international conference.Fields and her students at Castle Dome Middle School were recently selected to be presenters at the 2013 ISTE (International Society for Technology in Educa

Every year, the model rocket team from San Luis Middle School soars higher in its bid to win a national championship.For the first time in its history a year ago, a team from the school qualified for the finals of the Team America Rocketry Challenge, where it finished in 98th place from among 100 competing teams around the country.

MOTHERS'S DAY PROGRAMWHEN: 6 p.m. todayWHERE: San Luis High School, 1250 N. 8th Ave.GOING ON: The Gadsden Elementary School District music department will have its annual Mother's Day program celebration with the performances of the district marching band, mariachi, jazz and folkloric dancers; free

More than $5,000 in prizes, Bose products and a $500 scholarship were awarded Monday at the annual Yuma County Science and Engineering Expo.After being named the Overall High School Winner for her project, “Determining the Universal Constant of Gravity,” Harvest Preparatory Academy student Pam Pircaro, 16, was also awarde

The Crane Elementary School District superintendent's revised 2013-2015 contract and alternative performance pay plan were both unanimously approved at a board meeting Tuesday. Superintendent Bob Klee explained that school boards have the ability to adopt their own performance pay plan. He noted that the plan differs from the Arizona

Students graduating from Arizona Western College and the Yuma branch campuses of Northern Arizona University and University of Arizona will receive their diplomas Friday. The 2013 commencement will begin at 8 p.m. at Veterans Memorial Stadium, 7150 E. 24th St., next to Gila Ridge High School. More than 1,900 students will be grad

School uniforms at O.C. Johnson Elementary were unanimously approved Monday by the Yuma Elementary School District governing board. Of the 422 ballots distributed in English and Spanish to kindergarten through fourth-grade students to take home to their parents or guardians, 372 were returned. Of that number, 68 percent were in favor

SAN LUIS, Ariz. — For a decade the YouthBuild Program has been giving a second chance to high school dropouts in south Yuma County.YouthBuild USA is a nonprofit organization that provides education, counseling and job skills to unemployed dropouts around the nation. This month marks 10 years Project PPEP in San Luis, Ariz., has

In addition to her regular coursework at the collegiate level, Reida Akam plans to become proficient in Chinese. A Kofa High School senior, Akam, 17, was recently awarded a full-ride scholarship of $50,000 a year to New York University’s campus in Shanghai, China. "I’m really excited and also terrified," she said. "I&

Dushon Smith was recently selected as one of 20 students from across the country to study abroad this summer as part of Council of Opportunity in Education's Keith Sherin International Global Leadership Program. The Arizona Western College student was chosen based on his participation in the Student Support Services (SSS) Keep Envisi

Two students from Yuma each recently received more than $17,000 in scholarships after placing third in the Ford/AAA Auto Skills State Finals. Kofa High School seniors Heriberto Gutierrez and Michael Butler competed against two-person teams from 10 Arizona high schools after advancing to the state competition for their qualifying scor

The superintendent's contract and performance pay plan will be on the Crane Elementary School District's agenda Tuesday.At the regularly scheduled monthly meeting, the governing board will discuss and take possible action on the superintendent's revised contract as well as an alternative performance pay plan.In other meet

A free informational session will be held in Yuma on Friday, May 17, for parents and students to find out more information about the Arizona Connections Academy. ACA is a tuition-free, fully accredited virtual public school available to K-12 students in Arizona. “This is a terrific opportunity for families to learn

The recommendation to approve a new principal for Pecan Grove Elementary School is on the Yuma Elementary School District board meeting agenda Monday.Eleven people applied for the vacant position and the screening committee — consisting of a school counselor, a teacher and a principal as well as a district associate superintend

Melissa Miranda, seventh-grade special education teacher at Somerton Middle School, is the fifth and final recipient of the Teacher Appreciation Award from the KIDS CuddleKit Closet project and the Yuma Sun. According to Jessica Casey’s nomination, “I have had the pleasure of working with Ms. Miranda as a teacher and Instruct

The Yuma Union High School District board convened Wednesday and many students and staff from the district's campuses as well as members of the community filled the seats of the Yuma City Council Chambers for the celebratory meeting. The annual meeting was televised live on the City 73 channel.“The May meeting inclu

Inside Jessie Hanna's sixth-grade math classroom at Gila Vista Junior High, students sat perked up around slim white Macbooks that are their connection to learning, 21st century-style.Gila Vista's success with online learning, and specifically the Plato courseware system, earned the Yuma junior high school an award from the curriculu