EDUCATION ACHIEVEMENTS.

Byline: The Register-Guard

Thurston student earns $10,000 scholarship

Sara Varin, a 2007 Thurston High School graduate, has been named a recipient of an Oregon University System AeA Technology Scholarship. She was among nine recipients statewide to earn the competitive $10,000 award, which will support Varin's attendance this fall at Oregon State University where she plans to study chemical engineering.

The program, sponsored by Intel and other technology-focused companies, is part of a larger, sustained state effort to "grow our own" engineers and computer scientists.

Local students awarded

Oregon scholarships

Several local high school graduates are among the 20 Oregon scholarship recipients to receive $1,500 awards from SELCO Community Credit Union. The awards went to children of employees who demonstrated a combination of scholastic achievement and community involvement.

The recipients are Celia Beauchamp of South Eugene High School; Brittany Cox of Elmira High School; Jared Herr and Cassandra Sturgill of Sheldon High School; Gina Hoppe, William Prull and Andrew Sheridan of Churchill High School; Kristy Kokkeler of Willamette High School; Jennifer Lam of Springfield High School; Jennifer Newby of Siuslaw High School; Nathan Porter and Micah Randall of Pleasant Hill High School; Kyle Reese of McKenzie High School; Emily Urness of Thurston High School; and Robyn Varner of North Eugene High School.

South student places first in state for French exam

Lea Zagorin, who just finished her freshman year at South Eugene High School, was ranked first in the state in the 72nd annual national French competition, Le Grand Concours.

Le Grand Concours is a national exam sponsored by the American Association of Teachers of French. Students were evaluated for their written, oral and listening comprehension skills in French. More than 80,000 students in 50 states competed in the event.

Students at Roosevelt Middle School also fared well in the contest. Earning silver medals were eighth-grader Alex Berenstein and seventh-graders Ian Etherington, Jamie Kooiman and Madeline Moulton, and taking bronze medals were eighth-grader Madison Singell and seventh-graders Rylee Glassman, Katie Land and Claire Marshall.

Springfield students' art chosen for calendar

The following students won the Springfield Education Foundation Student Art Calendar Contest and will have their work featured in the 2007-08 district calendar: Jordan Burk, grade 10, and Amanda Vandenheuvel, grade 11, Springfield High School; McKenzie Curtis, grade 7, Walterville School; Chris Amador and Anna Shelby, grade 4, Goshen School; Ashlee Schulz, grade 6, and Rhett Ybarra, grade 7, Thurston Middle School; Kayla Carlile, grade 4, Gabino Barrerra, grade 3, and Nalin Sayvongsa, grade 5, Yolanda Elementary; Rachel Stanton, grade 8, Briggs Middle School; Heidi Minson, grade 4, and Patrick Kohl, grade 5, Mohawk Elementary; Evan Fritch and Jenna Bergstrom, grade 10, Meghan Heineman, grade 11, and Corey Irvin, grade 12, Thurston High School; Taylor Roberts, grade 8, Agnes Stewart Middle School; and Shanna Ellis, grade 8, Gateways Learning Center.

Jordan Burk's work will appear on the front cover. The calendars will be available for $10 in school offices beginning in August. The proceeds will fund classroom grants for Springfield teachers.

South student earns

scholarship to study Arabic

Kana Hammon, who just finished her junior year at South Eugene High School, has been awarded an AFS 2007 Youth Ambassadors Arabic Summer Language Institute Scholarship, a distinction shared by only 25 high school students nationally.

Nearly 200 students throughout the United States were nominated for this merit-based program, which awards full scholarships for a summer study program in Cairo, Egypt. The study program is sponsored by AFS Intercultural Programs/USA and the Educational and Cultural Exchange Bureau of the U.S. Department of State.

The scholarships were awarded on the basis of academic excellence, a series of written essays, a demonstrable interest in learning the Arabic language and making a commitment to continue Arabic classes upon returning to the United States.