Students Win Awards in District Logo Contest

Congratulations to art students Alyssa Davis and Wil Frank, who are winners of the District 87 Sesquicentennial Logo Design Contest. Wil won 2nd place and Alyssa won a 3rd place award. Wil was presented with a $35.00 award and Aylssa with a $30.oo award. They will be recognized for their design work by the Board of Education on May 10, 2006 and their designs will be framed and hung in the Board of Education Offices.

BJHS Art Instructor Dianne Cinkovich poses with Alyssa, Principal Dr. Sue Silvey, and Wil.

Thank You to All Who Assisted with 7AA State Volleyball Tournament

Hosting a state tournament is a big undertaking, and volunteers are a key component. This was our first year to host the tourney, and it was a great success. Thanks to all who worked so hard and donated their time to make this happen:

Parents/Brothers/Sisters/Friends/Grandparents:
Karla Agamy, Alina Agamy's Grandmother, Pam Beard, Janine Bee, Bev Collins, Glenn Block, Paul Brown, Debbie & Ronnie Bull, Jeff & Mary Beth Burger, Lynn Carpenter, Phil & Carol Carter, Chris & Rita Conway, Kim Duffer, Terry Duffer, Andy Duffer, Judy & Mike Ficek, Melissa Ficek, Stan & Martha Geison, Lesli Hamilton, Peggy Heinz, Ginny & Jeff Herek, Sandy Huff, Cindy & Keith Humphrey, James Huston, Jan Johnson, Scott & Veronica Kemp, Carrie and Darrin Leverson, Rebecca and Rachael MacLean, Polly and Michael Masemore, Rob, Sally, and Mary McCullers, Rena Oliver, Kim Olson, Katy and Steve Pyne, Dave and Robin Seyller, Elaine Stocks, Candie and Michael Thomas, Roxanne and Kevin Winkeler, Matt Winkeler, Tom & Roseanne Wait, Sandy Murphy, Peggy Watkins, Philip Sheets.

Players:
Alina Agamy, Maggie Bee, Shaneice Bell, Hannah Brown, Jessica Bull, Emily Burger, Lauren Burger, Emily Carpenter, Faith Carter, Christa Conway, Christie Duffer, Jen Ficek, Brie Garza, Grace Geison, Hilary Heinz, Julie Herek, Krystal houchin, Marissa Huff, Jen Humphrey, jayme Johnson, Michele Lasley, Rachael MacLean, Hannah Masemore, Kristyn McCarty, Mary McCullers, Mellanie Olson, Kelly Pyne, Kaleigh Rich, Lauren Seyller, Condia Smith, Mykael Smith, Laura Stocks, Paige Thomas, Maggie Watkins, Lauren Winkeler

A special thank you to Tammy Rittenhouse, manager of Monical’s Pizza located on S. Main. She donated pizzas for the hospitality room and provided pizzas for sale at the concession stand. Thank you also to Panera for their generous donations.
GO BJHS Volleyball!!

All Bloomington District 87 Schools Closed Tuesday, March 21

All District 87 Schools and offices will be closed on Tuesday, March 21 due to severe winter weather.

Seven BJHS Wrestlers Qualify and Two Win at State

Congratulations to our fine BJHS wrestling squad on a great season. Our team won three tournaments and placed in three more. Seven Bloomington wrestlers qualified for the state meet: Christian Cedeno, Parker Johnson, Kylor Sorensen, Jake Erdman, Armand Ontiveros, Luke McAvoy, and Dane Thornton. At the state competition last Saturday, Jake Erdman (8th grade) was crowned champion in the 95 lb. weight class, and Kylor Sorensen (7th grade) placed second in the 90 lb. class. Go Knights!

Max Nelson Wins Spelling Bee and Advances to National Contest

Congratulations to Max Nelson, BJHS 7th grade student, who won the Pantagraph Grand Final Spelling Bee Saturday! Max earlier won the McLean County spelling bee; this competition brought together 24 competitors who had previously won their school, regional and county-wide spelling bees in DeWitt, Livingston, Logan and McLean counties.
Max will now compete in the Scripps National Spelling Bee on May 31 and June 1 in Washington, D.C., and he also won a large plaque and a 15 pound dictionary. Max won in the 16th round by correctly spelling "ossuary" to win. Wikipedia defines ossuary as "a chest, building, well or site made to serve as the final resting place of human skeletal remains."

Sister Cities Program Openings for 7th/8th Graders in Japan

The Bloomington-Normal Sister Cities Committee has openings for students having completed 7th and 8th grades to apply for its Junior Ambassador Program to Asahikawa, Japan. Students stay in host family homes, visit Japanese schools, enjoy local sites and tour area industry. Students need to be prepared to handle media and represent the USA in a long established local exchange program. Classes in basic Japanese, food, culture and customs are held prior to the trip. Qualified local chaperones accompany the group throughout the trip. The cost of the trip is $1800. Travel dates are July 10-26, 2006. Interested students may pick up an application form in the office from Mrs. Mardis.

Order Your BJHS 2005/2006 Yearbook

Orders for school yearbooks will be taken April 4th through the 7th (Tuesday - Friday) during lunch periods. Yearbooks are $10, which is due when you order. If writing a check, please make it out to BJHS PTO. If you have any questions, contact Karen Arseneault at 662-9133.

BJHS Begins Hermanitas Mentoring Program

BJHS celebrated the kick-off of its new Hermanitas program with a luncheon on February 28th. This program is part of the MANA de McLean County organization. MANA stands for Mexican American National (women’s) Association, and is composed of Latinas from the community. The Hermanitas, or little sisters, program pairs an adult mentor with a jr. high student. The mentors come from all walks of life, from women working for insurance companies to college professors. The goals of the program are to promote health awareness, cultural awareness, educational achievement and personal enrichment. They also work to encourage the development of leadership qualities and to be a source for advocacy and proactive community involvement. The BJHS Hermanitas program is the first of its kind in the area. For photos of the students and their mentors, visit our Hermanitas web page.

BJHS Chess Team Finishes 2nd in State Tournament

Congratulations to the BJHS Chess Team for finishing second in the junior high section of the Illinois State Scholastic Chess Tournament held on February 25 and 26 at Chicago’s Navy Pier. Ten BJHS players participated in the event: Adem Aydoner, Aaron Barton, Jason Chien, Dylan Johnson, Max Nelson, Karthik Patil, Michael Reilly, Eric Schmidt, Nicholas Wiese, and Curtis Wiese. The BJHS Chess Team played extremely well, but fell just short of the powerful Daniel Wright Junior High School of Lincolnshire. The BJHS Chess Team has had a very successful season as the team won the junior high sections of the Tri-Valley Chess Tournament, the MLK Chess Tournament, the Parkside Chess Tournament, the Colene Hoose Chess Tournament, and the Glenn Chess Tournament. Many of the BJHS Chess players will be attending the National Junior High Tournament in Louisville in April.