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LOCAL | One dead, two injured after head-on [page 5]
FRIDAY, APRIL 17, 2015
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Undefeated Bears | Tahoma fastpitch won its ninth game of the season [11]
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Teen celebrating six months of sobriety to speak at info night BY REBECCA GOURLEY Reporter
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he took her first drink at the age of 12. By her senior year in high school, the teen (whose name will not be used for privacy reasons) had tried nearly every drug out there. From the outside, she seemed like the average high school student – good grades, close friends, outgoing personality. She managed to keep her addiction mostly to herself by keep-
ing her grades up so her parents wouldn’t suspect anything was amiss. Today, April 17, marks six months of sobriety for the teen. She said she’s glad she got sober when she did. “I didn’t hit rock bottom, and I don’t think I ever want to see me hit rock bottom,” she said in an interview. She sought out help from school counselors, Monica Robbins and Shelly Veazey. Robbins, who has been a counselor for 21 years and the
Intervention-Prevention Program counselor for the Tahoma School District for six years, said in a phone interview the teen is not a typical case of drug and alcohol addiction. “She’s very high-functioning,” Robbins said. “She was able to maintain a very high GPA.” But, after two years of ongoing communication with the teen, Robbins said she was concerned enough to call the teen’s parents. Students can expect a great deal of confidentiality when they talk to school counselors, Robbins
said. But, if the student starts inflicting self harm or are being hurt by someone else, then parents or authorities are brought into the picture. With the 17-year-old senior Robbins has been working with, it was different. Robbins said it was just time. She first told the teen of her plan to tell her parents, and then made the call. “She understood,” Robbins said. Three days after Robbins called the teen’s parents, she checked in to Sundown M Ranch, a drug and alcohol rehabilitation center
Covington announces plans to raise a banner
Tahoma releases data behind closure decision
BY SARAH WEHMANN
Abracadabra!
Nora Langdon, 8, reacts to a magic trick done by Xakary The Magician at the Maple Valley Library April 10. Xakary lives in Kenmore and has been performing magic since he was in High School. REBECCA GOURLEY, The Reporter
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Russell Ridge Center is classified as an Alternative Learning Experience school and thus must meet certain standards set by the state and district, just as any school in the district. The closure analysis states the school is not preparing students to graduate and is not meeting those state and district standards. However, parents of Russell Ridge students disagree. Larry Baldwin, who has two daughters that currently attend the school, planned to speak at the Tuesday, April 14, school board meeting. The meeting took place after the press deadline. In a statement made to the Reporter April 10, Baldwin
During the 2013 legislative session, lawmakers approved legislation (ESSB 5946) intended to stimulate more accountability and transparency in ALE programs all across the state. The bill, which is now law, directs the State Auditor’s Office to conduct biennial financial audits and measures of student outcomes for ALE programs, for which the district has to pay for. The Auditor’s Office is currently working on a performance audit of ALE programs. The office will publish its first in a series of audit reports later this year. The second report is scheduled for late 2016 and the final report will come out in [ more CLOSURE page 6 ]
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After making the decision to close Russell Ridge Center and notifying parents March 13, Tahoma School District released an analysis of the school March 31, which outlines its reasons for the permanent closure.
said comparing students in Alternative Learning Experience programs like Russell Ridge to traditionally educated students is not “an apples to apples comparison.” Baldwin said, “If students truly aren’t meeting performance standards, closing this school won’t help. Helping will help.”
BY REBECCA GOURLEY Reporter
Reporter
During the March 24 Covington City Council meeting, the City Manager Regan Bolli announced the city will be putting up a new banner sign. The preferred location for the banner is near the Applebee’s on SE 272nd Street. Regan Bolli Poles for the banner will be placed on either side of the street and the banners will hang above the road “(The) hope is to have them in time for Covington Days,” he said. “But no promises yet on when they will arrive.” The ideal use will be to hang banners announcing festivals, recreation activities and other city functions, Bolli said in an email.
in Selah, Wash. After spending nearly two months at the center, she came back to Maple Valley. She said she thought about telling people she was doing college visits for two months. Instead, she decided the easiest part about coming back was admitting where she went. “It’s part of me,” she said. “It’s going to be part of me for the rest of my life. And I just need to own up to it.” She said she now wants to help people with chemical dependency [ more TEEN page 15 ]
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