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ELECTION 2013 | Municipal League of King County releases candidate ratings [2]
VOL. 15, NO. 27
Mirror
F E D E R A L WAY
division of Sound Publishing
OPINION | Roegner: Closer look at city council races [4] Mr. Federal Way’s Q&A on hot weather, traffic, cigarettes [5] CRIME BLOTTER | Man sleeps in grocery store parking lot because of ghosts [3] EDUCATION | State budget’s education funding still leaves some unhappy [7]
SPORTS | Federal Way National FRIDAY, JULY 5, 2013 | 50¢ softballers win District 10 title [13]
Wild Waves takes heat for crowds and traffic
District disagrees with policy center’s gradings By GREG ALLMAIN gallmain@fedwaymirror.com
The Achievement Index, the data compiled by the state Board of Education and assigned a letter grade by the Washington Policy Center, showed that most Federal Way schools fell somewhere in the C or D range, with a few graded in the A range and two schools ranked in the F range. Federal Way Public Schools (FWPS) director of assessment Dave Davis made a brief presentation to the school board on June 25, responding to what he said was a mostly negative report by the Washington Policy Center and the state Board of Education. Davis added that the Achievement Index takes “complex data” and puts it into a “simple letter grade” because that’s an easily translatable idea for many people. The Achievement Index takes four indicators and consolidates them into one metric, Davis said. This includes data from Measurements of [ more SCHOOLS, page 8 ] NEWSPAPER RACKS: To see a list of rack locations for the print edition of The Mirror, visit federalwaymirror.com/about_us.
CALENDAR OF EVENTS | Get your tickets for the annual Kiwanis Salmon Bake [12]
By ANDY HOBBS editor@fedwaymirror.com
Federal Way Little League action
Federal Way National Little Leaguer Adam Taylor takes a swing during the 10- and 11-year-old team’s run to the District 10 championship. National beat Steel Lake Little League in the district championship game on Sunday and will now advance to the 10/11 Washington State Little League Tournament, which starts July 20 in Gig Harbor. Taylor finished the championship game with six RBIs during a 14-4 win over Steel Lake. David Bedell finished with three RBIs. Cole Bakker and Abi Gonzales both had two RBIs in the win. Steel Lake beat Federal Way in the first championship game Saturday at the Federal Way National Complex, 9-8, to force the second title game. Check out scores and updates starting on page 13 in today’s sports section. courtesy photo
Crowds descended upon Wild Waves Theme Park last weekend for cheap tickets and relief from the scorching summer heat. Residents who live near the park, in addition to several people who tried to cool off at the park’s water rides and wave pool, were left feeling hotheaded. The theme park, which is located off Enchanted Parkway South, was offering $14.99 tickets through June 30. As temperatures hovered in the high 80s and low 90s, hundreds of people took advantage of the Wild Waves ticket deal. The Department of Transportation even issued a traffic alert Sunday for backups in both directions at Interstate 5 and Highway 18. The park’s management anticipated the onslaught and received traffic assistance from Federal Way police. Wild Waves employees parked their cars at nearby Todd Beamer High [ more WILD WAVES, page 9 ]
Suburban poverty vs. the language barrier The city estimates that 9 percent of households speak no English By ANDY HOBBS editor@fedwaymirror.com
Tatyana Koshevaya spoke no English when she moved to the United States. Nearly 22 years later, Koshevaya believes that immigrants who want to get ahead and rise above poverty - and find employment - must learn
the American culture and language. she felt as though she could finally “If you don’t speak English,” she communicate. However, her thick said, “who’s going to hire you?” Russian accent stood in the way of Koshevaya was a refugee from a so-called “mainstream” office job Russia who arrived in the U.S. — so she worked harder. with aspirations of starting a “When I started to learn cleaning business. A fellow more English and went to SPECIAL Russian-American taught college, I started getting her English, including other jobs,” said Koshevaya, how to read the labels of co-owner of Little Russia cleaning supplies. From there, Bistro in Federal Way, regardKoshevaya honed her Enging the opportunities that came lish and attended school. As her with better communication. “It’s a English improved, so did her job legitimate barrier for immigrants.” prospects. A stint as an interpreter Suburban poverty has increased helped boost her confidence, and dramatically in South King County
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over the past decade as residents search for more cheaper rent outside of Seattle. The communication barrier is another reason why immigrants and refugees struggle. Aside from economics, immigrants move to South King County to live among others who share their language and culture. Koshevaya is also a social worker who specializes in job and housing placement for Eastern European immigrants. Not all immigrants share a desire for upward social mobility. Government assistance [ more POVERTY, page 19 ]