October 26, 2011

Top Stories from LPS

Early Release Thursday, October 27 - No School Friday, October 28

Here is a friendly reminder that Liberty Public Schools will be on a 2-hour early release schedule Thursday, October 27.  There will be NO CLASSES on Friday, October 28.  These dismissals are due to elementary parent-teacher conferences and secondary professional development.

November 8 Ballot Issue FAQ's to Know

A 43-cent tax levy issue has been placed on the November 8, 2011, ballot to address the demands of current and projected growth in Liberty Public Schools.  Each week leading up to the election, QuickNews will address three Frequently Asked Questions asked by members of the community in recent weeks in an effort to inform our stakeholders.

Q. I am going to be out of town on Tuesday, November 8, but want to vote in the election.  What are my options?

A. Absentee ballot voting is currently taking place for the November 8 election. Absentee ballot information is available at the Clay County, Missouri Board of Election Commissioners website and can be accessed by clicking HERE. 

Q. When would the changes to the grade configurations take place if this plan is approved?

A. If approved, all grade level configuration changes will be implemented in August 2013.  Liberty High School and Liberty North High School would become 9-12 grade centers; grades 6-8 will attend middle level buildings (Liberty Middle School, South Valley Middle School, Liberty Junior High School, and South Valley Junior High) the first day of school in 2013.

Q. Would adding 9th grade students to our high schools cause them to be overcrowded?
A. No. If approved, both Liberty High School and Liberty North High School would have classroom space constructed that would make room for 9th grade students to attend class at these buildings.  Additionally, Liberty High School has the ability to utilize classroom space in the nearby Blue Jay Tower facility.

Other LPS News to Know

Grant Votes Needed

Liberty School District has submitted a grant to Brightpoint Literacy for a $500 Mini Grant, which if awarded, would be used to purchase materials for our middle schools.  Proposals have been opened for voting to determine the winner.  Please show your support for our District by casting your vote for Jenni Nourse of Liberty, MO, here (only one vote per email aaddress) by October 31.

Upcoming Events

"Scream in the Dark" Haunted House

Liberty Junior High Renaissance Team will host the 7th edition of the "Scream in the Dark" Haunted House this weekend at LJHS. The haunted house will be open from 7-11 p.m. Friday and Saturday nights (October 28 and 29) at Liberty Jr. High. Tickets are $5 each, or $7 at the door, and all proceeds benefit student and staff recognition programs at LJHS.  This year's route will feature new scenes and never-before-seen parts of the junior high!  A photo booth and concession stand items will also be available for purchase, which will help support the LJH French trip to Quebec.  The haunted house is best for upper elementary-aged kids to adults.  The entrance to the haunted house will be on the north side of the junior high off of College Street, but parking is available in all lots.  Will you make it through???

Safe Halloween Fun at LHS

Liberty High School will be hosting their annual Safe Halloween event tonight, Wednesday, October 26, from 6-8:30 p.m.  Safe Halloween provides students Kindergarten through 3rd grades with a safe trick-or-treating environment. Liberty High School students will be dressed in friendly costumes and will host a variety of game stations for your children to visit and earn treats.  Examples of activities include face painting, a candy walk, the fishing game, pumpkin bowling, and many others.  A donation of either 3 canned food items or $3 per person will be required for entry.  All proceeds from the evening will benefit Hillcrest Ministries.  Hope to see you there!

Questions about the evening can be directed to sponsor Melanie Prince.

Ultimate Frisbee Tournament Information

Liberty High School Future Educators Association will hold a high school Ultimate Frisbee Tournament starting at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, October 27, at the LHS football field.  Spectator cost is $2 or 3 packages of school supplies, which will be donated to LPS elementary students. There is no school for students the next day, so come out for a fun evening and a good cause!

Winter Volleyball Parent Meeting
There will be an informational parent meeting for parents with students ages 11-13 interested in playing volleyball during the winter months.  This meeting will be led by April Rolf, head coach at Liberty High School, on Saturday, October 29, from 1-2 p.m. in the Liberty Middle School commons.  If you have any questions, please contact April Rolf.

The Wizard of Oz Coming to LHS

Tickets are now on sale for Liberty High School's fall musical, THE WIZARD OF OZ.  Performance dates are Friday, November 18, at 7 p.m., Saturday, November 19, at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m., and Sunday, November 20, at 2 p.m.  The production will be presented at the Liberty Performing Arts Theatre.  Ticket prices are $6 for students, children, and seniors, and general admission is $8.  Tickets are available at the attendance office at LHS - see Carol Long.  You may also request tickets at lhstheatre@liberty.k12.mo.us.

SVJH Presents Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella

"The prince is giving a ball!"  The South Valley Players are proudly presenting Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella November 3-5 at South Valley Jr. High. Tickets are $5 for students, $7 for adults and can be purchased at the door or during lunch period at SVJH.  The show will start at 7 p.m.  You can also access more information on their website by clicking HERE.

LHS Cheerleading Clinic

Attention all Kindergarten through 5th grade students!  Liberty High School cheerleaders will be offering a Winter Cheer Clinic on Tuesday, December 6.  Registration will begin at 5:30 p.m., the clinic will be from 6-7:15 p.m., with a special performance for parents at 7:15 p.m.  Cost for the clinic is $30 for pre-registration and $35 for walk-ins, which includes a performance shirt. 

Clinic participants will perform with the 3-time state champion cheerleaders at the varsity basketball game on Monday, December 12, at Liberty High School!  For more information, click HERE, or contact Brenda Moats, at 736-5460, ext 2752.

Student and Staff Recognitions

Way to Go LHS Speech and Debate Team

Congratulations to the Liberty High School speech and debate team on their success this weekend at Park Hill High School!

Haley Brown (2nd Original Oratory)

Christine Conge (3rd Lincoln Douglas Debate)

Haley Brown (3rd Lincoln Douglas Debate)

Monica Gehrig/Julie Staszko (3rd Public Forum Debate)

Monica Gehrig (3rd Foreign Extemporaneous Speaking)

Julie Staszko (3rd Original Oratory)

Caroline Abbott/Lauren Wrigley (4th Public Forum Debate)

Monica Gehrig (4th Original Oratory)

Angie Chaney (5th Original Oratory)

Angie Chaney (5th Storytelling)

Emily Saitta (6th United States Extemporaneous Speaking)

Congratulations to the novice team who placed 2nd overall at this weekend's tournament at Winnetonka High School and to the following individual award winners:

Riley Peek/Jamie Sullivan (2nd Policy Debate)

Lucas Peterson (2nd Foreign Extemporaneous Speaking)

Anna Davis (2nd United States Extemporaneous Speaking)

Olivia Bisges (2nd Original Oratory)

Zach Garrison (2nd Humorous Interpretation)

Amy O'Hare (2nd Prose Reading)

Varun Lahoti (3rd Foreign Extemporaneous Speaking)

Stefanie Flood (3rd Original Oratory)

Stefanie Flood/Lucas Peterson (4th Policy Debate)

Hadei Whittar/Marry Mwara (4th Public Forum Debate)

David Robbins (4th Foreign Extemporaneous Speaking)

Zach Kilgas (4th Original Oratory)

Riley Peek (5th Foreign Extemporaneous Speaking)

Olivia Bisges/Nyshele Posey (6th Policy Debate)

Olivia Wilson (6th Original Oratory)

Emma Gunnar/Makenna Baker (7th Policy Debate)

Stefanie Flood (7th Foreign Extemporaneous Speaking)

K.Lee Marx (7th Storytelling)

Zach Garrison (8th Prose Reading)

Scholar Bowl Finishes Strong

In their first tournament of the season, the Liberty Scholar Bowl varsity team took 3rd place in their playoff pool and 5th place overall at the University of Missouri Fall Academic Tournament on Saturday, October 22.  The team competed against 32 schools from across Missouri and Kansas to take these honors!  Team members include Brad Dice (captain), Mack Yi, Kelsey Malone, Helen Alpern, and Max Accardi.  The team is coached by Rosemary Camp, Kim Scholes, and Alison Schultz.

LNHS Speech and Debate Team Places 1st

Congratulations to the Liberty North Speech and Debate team for placing 1st out of 23 schools at the Winnetonka novice tournament.  This is the 2nd week in a row that the novice team has placed 1st  in sweepstakes.  The following individuals placed in their event.

1st Radio Speaking- Josi Plyman

2nd Public Forum Debate- Quinn Mars/Kelsey Taylor

2nd US Extemp- Mackenzie Barnes

2nd Foreign Extemp- Brigitte Tripp

4th Lincoln Douglas Debate- Mackenzie Barnes

5th US Extemp-  Quinn Mars

5th Prose- Marissa Cooper

1st  Novice Foreign Extemp- Kendall Stockard

1st  Novice US Extemp- Regan Hill

1st Novice Public Forum Debate- Rachel Kirch/Macey Shannon

2nd Novice Public forum Debate- Robert Trout/Taylor McCloskey

2nd Novice Dramatic interp- Mikayla Wistrom

3rd Novice Prose- Mikayla Wistrom

3rd Novice Prose- Hannah Whittaker

4th Novice Lincoln Douglas Debate- Tyler Richards

4th Novice US Extemp- Douglas Martin

5th Novice Lincoln Douglas Debate- Alberta Engelman

5th Novice Policy Debate- Douglas Martin/Paige Heldenbrand

6th Novice Foreign Extemp- Robert Trout

6th Novice US Extemp- Matt Hudson

6th Novice Public Forum Debate- Dylan McCloskey/Hannah Larkin

7th Novice Original Oratory- Macey Shannon

7th Novice Dramatic Interp- Hannah Whittaker

7th Novice Student Congress- Charlie Roberts

8th Novice Foreign Extemp-  Wes Speer

8th Novice Original Oratory- Taylor McCloskey

8th Novice Dramatic Interp- Alberta Engelman

District/Community Events

Liberty Square Spooktacular
Join merchants on Historic Downtown Liberty Square for the annual Liberty Square Spooktacular Monday, October 31, from 5-7 p.m.  Treats will be given out by local merchants, and there will be a pumpkin-decorating contest, as well as a prize for the best-costumed dog.  Festivities are free, but non-perishable food items will be accepted and donated to the local food pantry.  Click HERE for more details!

Community Christmas Tree Coloring Contest

It's time for the annual Liberty Community Christmas Tree Coloring Contest where Liberty students are invited to put their artistic skills to work!  Print the entry form for more information.

QuickNews Bulletin Board

In an effort to make our Liberty Public Schools e-newsletter, QuickNews, a concise publication in which subscribers can read in a timely fashion, district/community announcements will be advertised in the main QuickNews section for a maximum of two weeks.  After this period of time, announcements will then be transferred to our new QuickNews Bulletin Board, which is located on the LPS website provided at the link below. In addition, there are other announcements that have, in the past, not met criteria to place in this publication.  The addition of the QN Bulletin Board will allow them to now be publicized.

This bulletin board will continuously be updated throughout the week, and announcements will remain until they expire by date.

http://www.liberty.k12.mo.us/news/quicknews/quicknews-bulletin-board

LPS Mission

Through our collective best, we do whatever it takes to inspire and equip every learner to find their voice and realize their unlimited potential.

LPS Vision

As stewards of discovery, we will embrace innovation to instill a passion for life-long learning that will best serve our nation and the world in the 21st century.

LPS Core Values

· Learning is our priority

· Respect is our norm

· Excellence is our expectation

· Collaboration is our culture

· Integrity is our foundation

What's Included in this Issue

Other LPS News to Know

QuickNews Bulletin Board

Dates to Remember

Thursday, October 27

Staff Professional Development

(Early Release)

Friday, October 28

Elementary Parent-Teacher Conferences (No Classes)

Tuesday, November 8

Election Day

Wed., Nov. 23 - Fri. Nov. 25

Thanksgiving Holiday