April 2007

A strange thing happens to a teens' brain when puberty hits - good reason, judgment and risk assessment temporarily fade, increasing the likelihood of he or she abusing drugs or alcohol.

A free, five-week workshop coming to West Seattle High this month aims to help parents explore this and other factors that make up the "mysterious inner workings of teenage development."

The program is not about telling parents how to parent, said Yvonne Zick, a parent educator who works with the Seattle School District to host the workshops.

Seattle School Board members last week maintained that they would have chosen Maria Goodloe-Johnson as Seattle school's next superintendent even if Gregory Thornton hadn't withdrawn his name for the job.

The board voted unanimously last Thursday to approach Goodloe-Johnson with salary negotiations for a three-year contract. The superintendent from Charleston County School District in South Carolina accepted the offer shortly after.

Thornton, chief academic officer at the School District of Philadelphia, had dropped out of the race earlier that morning.

Starting a week form this Sunday, April 29, the Elliott Bay Water Taxi begins daily service between West Seattle and the downtown waterfront.

The 2007 season will run through Sept. 30.

Again this year, there will be a free West Seattle shuttle that connects the dock at Seacrest Marina Park to Alki, the Admiral District, and the West Seattle Junction.

The Water Taxi will be operated by Argosy Cruises on the "MV Sightseer," a 149-passenger vessel.

HJR 4204

Amending the Constitution to provide for a simple majority of voters voting to authorize a school levy.

By a vote of 33 to 16, on April 12, the Senate approved HJR 4204, which proposes to amend the State Constitution to allow a school levy to be approved by a simple majority. Currently, school levies can only be approved by a 60 percent supermajority. The resolution must pass both chambers of the Legislature by a two-thirds majority vote and be approved by a majority of the people through an election.

Sens.

The older sister minces her way over 5,000 meters of cross country terrain. The younger sister swallows meters at a time over 800 meters of track. With disparate stride and strength, each Johnson sister nevertheless lit up her respective West Seattle High School team during her team's most recent season.

Kylen Johnson, a senior, was the school's acknowledged cross country star last fall. After toiling the three previous fall sports seasons on the junior varsity soccer team, Kylen switched sports and found immediate success as a long-distance runner.

HJR 4204

Amending the Constitution to provide for a simple majority of voters voting to authorize a school levy.

By a vote of 33 to 16, on April 12, the Senate approved HJR 4204, which proposes to amend the State Constitution to allow a school levy to be approved by a simple majority. Currently, school levies can only be approved by a 60 percent supermajority. The resolution must pass both chambers of the Legislature by a two-thirds majority vote and be approved by a majority of the people through an election.

Sen.

Sitting in front of her television, Chris Arace has always been good at solving the puzzles on the "Wheel of Fortune." When she finally appeared as a contestant on March 28, she won $49,000.

"I've always been good at it. I yell at the screen. I've always been good at solving puzzles with limited letters," said Arace.

When the Wheel of Fortune mobile van came to Seattle earlier this year, Arace auditioned. "It was a cattle call.

Three remote villages in Ethiopia now have clean water to drink thanks to the efforts of Ballardites Judith Sanderman and her husband Dennis Wilkins.

The couple has collected donations to buy school supplies, as well as build wells as part of Project Ethiopia, an outreach service they started that are sponsored by the Interfaith Community Church in Ballard.

With the help of financial contributors, the couple is doing their best to meet the United Nations Millennium Development Goals of: access to education; access to safe water and sanitation; adequate housing; and incre

The upcoming Ballard Jazz Festival features an extensive lineup of performances by local, national and international artists and runs from April 25 to 28 in different venues.

The main stage concert at Mars Hill Church, 1401 N.W. Leary Way. On April 28, 7:30 p.m. features The Moutin Reunion Quartet with Francis Moutin on upright bass, Tigran Hamasyan on piano, Rick Margitza on saxophones and Louis Moutin on drums. The band is from Paris, France.

Also on the bill is The Carl Allen Trio of Brooklyn, New York.

Seattle residents Cheryl and Bill Gossman donated $1 million toward the establishment of the Gossman Center for Advanced Pediatric and Perinatal Simulation during the Swedish Medical Center's Annual Gala Dinner on March 24. It will be the Pacific Northwest's first pediatric and perinatal simulation center, designed to advance the skills of already well-trained health-care teams in critical clinical situations. The Moyer Foundation, created by former Seattle Mariners pitcher Jamie Moyer and his wife, Karen, contributed $250,000 to the center. Swedish Medical Center photo.