Schools

The bar has been raised.

Heck, the bar has been placed somewhere between Mars and Jupiter.

And really, Middleton’s girls swimming program wouldn't have it any other way.

But the Cardinals, who have won three consecutive Big Eight Conference championships, will have their hands full maintaining that standard of excellence this fall.

Middleton lost nearly half of its varsity lineup to graduation. But if there’s been one constant to Lauren Cabalka’s program it’s that the Cardinals reload and don’t rebuild.

“With nearly half of our varsity team being new, it will take us a while to figure out the best lineup and best combinations, but it is not something we are scared about,” said Cabalka, whose team begins its season Friday by hosting Beloit Memorial. “Our girls have stepped up, year-in and year-out, and I anticipate nothing less this season.  

Wisconsin State Senators Kathleen Vinehout (D-Alma) and Dale Schultz (R-Richland Center) are among the handful of presenters who will participate in “How Many Kids Left Behind? – An Interactive Community Conversation on the Future of Our Public Schools” at the Middleton Performing Arts Center, 2100 Bristol St., on Thursday, Sept. 5.

The forum is free and open to the public and the media. It begins at 7 p.m. and is expected to last 90 minutes.

Other confirmed participants arecUniversity of Wisconsin-Madison School of Education Dean Julie Underwood, cDepartment of Public Instruction policy adviser and federal funds trustee Jeff Pertl, Wisconsin Association of School Board government relations specialist Joe Quick

Tuesday will be the first day of school this fall.  Students in Middleton-Cross Plains will be walking and riding bicycles to school after a summer away. 

Some of them will be walking to school for the first time, or will be unfamiliar with their routes and any hazards along the way.

“If you have children returning to school, talk to them about safely walking or riding their bicycle to school and their responsibility to obey the pedestrian and bicycle traffic laws for their own safety,” said Mark Walther, Middleton Community Services director and Middleton Police Department liaison to school crossing guards.

Drivers are reminded to watch out for these young pedestrians and bicyclists, to put down their cellular phones - especially near to schools - and to watch their speed.  Remember that the speed limit is 15 MPH where signed adjacent to schools and school crossings when children are present.

Seventy-five years ago, Emily (Zarndt) Knoche (Class of ’38) walked across the stage, shook the principal’s hand, and graduated from Middleton High School with 28 of her fellow classmates. The country and Middleton had been mired in the great depression, but on that day the mood was nonetheless optimistic.

Hundreds of local students began organizing Sunday to oppose an impending schedule change at Middleton High School. They plan to take their argument all the way to the school board if they feel they have to.

The students signed on in support of a letter written by Adam Jordahl, who is wrapping up his junior year. Jordahl’s letter expresses concern the school did not make an adequate effort to inform its students of a significant change to “All School Resource” periods.

Jordahl contends the decision to split those periods roughly in half would cause an array of scheduling problems for students. He writes the change would allow less time for pupils who need to use the periods to study, make up important tests, and do other classwork.

“The current schedule system works for students,” Jordahl wrote. “It’s not fair or practical for the administration to make last-minute changes that will negatively impact our academic future.”

The Middleton High School (MHS) Bands will present their series of Spring Concerts on Wednesday, May 8 and Thursday, May 9 at 7:30 pm in the Middleton Performing Arts Center.

Wednesday’s Concert will feature performances by the Concert Band and the Wind Ensemble. The Concert Band will present Gliere’s famous Russian Sailor’s Dance and John Phillip Sousa’s King Cotton.

The Wind Ensemble on Wednesday night will contrast John Paulson’s ‘Epinicion’; a piece based on an ancient Grecian chant with Eric Whitacre’s  ‘Lux Arumque’ – a piece of redemption. Kilimanjaro will be accompanied by a slide presentation of science teacher Joe Spolar’s climb of the peak.

Middleton High School proudly presents “The Music Man” Thursday, Friday and Saturday at the Middleton Performing Arts Center, 2100 Bristol Street. All shows begin promptly at 7:30 p.m. 

Reserved seating can be purchased through www.brownpapertickets.com and is $10 for adults and $8 for seniors and students.  Tickets will be sold at the door on performance nights beginning at 6:45 p.m. For more information, please feel free to contact the ticket information line at 829-9770.

A Madison woman is in custody after allegedly making threats against West Middleton Elementary School.

Andrea Holmes, age 31, was arrested by Dane County Sheriff’s Office deputies Tuesday and is currently awaiting court appearances for disorderly conduct and a harassment restraining order.

A correspondence sent to parents and guardians by the school district said Holmes, the parent of a child at the school, made “serious threats” when she became agitated during a phone conversation with West Middleton principal Todd Macklem.

Macklem told authorities Holmes made reference to the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn. 

Dane County deputies and Middleton-Cross Plains Area School District superintendent Don Johnson met at the school to discuss the incident shortly after it occured. After deputies contacted Holmes to discuss her statements, they made a decision to arrest her.

More than 200 players participated in the SLAM DUMP 3-on-3 basketball tournament Saturday afternoon at MHS.

Senior Joshua Bunting, junior Jed Munson and sophomore Ben Hershberger organized this year's event. This was the third year SLAM DUMP was held. This year's event raised approximately $6,800 for Amor, Fe, y Ezperanza (AFE), an organization dedicated to providing children of the city dump in Tegucigalpa, Honduras with education, food and technical skills. The title means "Love, Faith and Hope" when translated into English.

"We had a lot of fund doing this,'' said Hershberger, who also returned to Honduras this past summer along with Munson to build a house for one of the families living in the dump.

The idea for a fundraiser began in the summer of 2010 when a group of middle and high school students embarked on a youth missions trip to Honduras. There, they witnessedan impoverished community inhabiting a local landfill.

Twenty MHS music students have been invited to participate in the 2013 High School State Honors Project.

Each of these students auditioned for an ensemble in the Wisconsin School Music Association (WSMA) State Honors Music Project in February. Twelve MHS band students, five MHS orchestra students and three MHS choir students were selected for one of the honors ensembles.

Students selected for the WSMA State Honors Music Project will participate in a three-and-a-half day summer camp in June and will perform in Madison during late October as part of the Wisconsin State Music Conference. The WSMA State Honors Music Project is nationally recognized as one of the finest musical opportunities for young people.