School Notes: March 22

Milwaukee Montessori School to hold 50th anniversary gala

Milwaukee Montessori School will hold its 50th anniversary celebration at 6 p.m. March 26 at the Hyatt Regency Milwaukee, 333 W. Kilbourn Ave., Milwaukee.

The event will feature hors d'oeuvres, a dinner and silent and live auctions. Tickets are $75 per person.

Alumni with photos or stories to share from the last 50 years are asked to contact Director of Development Stephanie Ziemke at (414) 259-0370. For information, visit milwaukee-montessori.org/marchgala.htm.

West student named recipient of Kohl Foundation scholarship

Wauwatosa West High School senior Herschel Kissinger has been named a 2011 Herb Kohl Educational Foundation Excellence Scholarship recipient.

Excellence Scholarships in the amount of $1,000 are awarded each year to 100 graduating high school students. Scholarship recipients are chosen for their demonstrated academic potential, outstanding leadership, citizenship, community service, integrity and other special talents.

The Kohl Foundation Scholarship and Fellowship program was established by U.S. Sen. Herb Kohl in 1990. To date, the foundation has awarded $7.4 million to Wisconsin educators, students and schools.

School district earns place on AP Achievement List

The Wauwatosa School District has been honored by the College Board on its Advanced Placement Achievement List for opening AP classroom doors to a significantly broader pool of students while maintaining or improving the percentage of students earning scores of 3 or higher.

From 2008 to 2010, the Wauwatosa School District increased the number of students participating in AP courses from 295 to 330 while improving the percentage of students earning exam scores of 3 or higher - the score typically needed to earn college credit - from 75 percent to 79 percent. The figures do not include participation and performance in AP Spanish language exams.

Earlier this year, the Wauwatosa School Board approved adding AP statistics and restructuring the district's AP calculus course for the 2011- 12 school year.

The AP Achievement List is made up of all school districts that are simultaneously expanding opportunity and improving performance. The list includes 388 school districts representing 43 states.

Planetarium presentation focuses on using star maps

"Finding Your Own Way Around the Sky: Using Star Maps" is the title of a free, one-hour planetarium presentation at 7 p.m. April 5 and April 6 at the Gary E. Sampson Planetarium at Wauwatosa West High School, 11400 W. Center St.

The presentation will teach participants how to use a star map under the dome so they can explore on their own.

Reservations are required and can be made by calling (414) 773-3390. There is no admission charge, but donations will assist in supporting public programming.

The Gary E. Sampson Planetarium is located at the southwest end of the school; the entrance is at the south end of the parking lot. This program will be limited to 25 guests per show and is appropriate for upper elementary through adult learners.

For information, visit wauwatosaschools.org and go to Resources, Planetarium.

Tosa East Players presents 'Phantom' this spring

The Tosa East Players will perform "The Phantom of the Opera" as their spring musical.

Performances will be at 7:30 p.m. April 8, 9, 15 and 16, and 2 p.m. April 10 and 17 in the Dale K. Hidde Theatre at East High School, 7500 Milwaukee Ave.

"The Phantom of the Opera" tells the story of a masked figure who lurks beneath the catacombs of the Paris Opera House, exercising a reign of terror over all who inhabit it. He falls madly in love with an innocent young soprano, Christine, and devotes himself to creating a new star by nurturing her extraordinary talents and by employing all of the devious methods at his command.

Reserved-seating tickets cost $20 for adults and $10 for students.

Tickets for the Tosa East Players' production of Phantom of the Opera are now available at seatyourself.biz (search "Phantom") or by calling (414) 773-2110.

Tosa students qualify for state Future Problem Solving bowl

Eight students from the Wauwatosa School District have qualified to take part in the Wisconsin Future Problem Solving State Bowl in Green Lake from April 14 to 16.

More than 300 fourth- through 12th-graders from around the state will participate in the Global Issues Problem Solving competition at the State Bowl.

Wauwatosa students taking part in the event are Ian Schmitt-Ernst, Matt Doberstein, Jamey Squier, Brodie Spolar and Jacob Cincotta from Lincoln Elementary and Janet Fee, Dane Sell and Abby Gifford from Longfellow Middle School. Their coach is Renae MacCudden, fifth-grade teacher at Lincoln Elementary.

Working in teams of four or as individuals, students will analyze the challenges and develop solution ideas for a situation set in a fictional future and related to the global topic of water quality.

For information, visit wisfps.org.

Grammy winner, jazz group to perform at East on April 20

Grammy Award-winning jazz trumpeter Brian Lynch will perform with the Northern Illinois Jazz Ensemble at the 11th Annual Great Night of Jazz concert at the Dale K. Hidde Theater at East High School, 7500 Milwaukee Ave., at 7 p.m. April 20.

The Tosa East Jazz Ensemble I will open the concert.

In addition to the performances, the new U.S. Postal Service jazz stamp will be dedicated during ceremonies on stage.

Tickets are $15 for seats on the main floor and $10 for the balcony. Tickets are $8 for students and senior citizens. To order, send a check or money order to Wauwatosa East High School, c/o Bev McWilliams, 7500 Milwaukee Ave., Wauwatosa WI 53213. Tickets will be available at the door.

Proceeds from the concert will benefit Wauwatosa East High School bands.

Learning Never Ends comes to Tosa West

The Wauwatosa School District Recreation Department will present Learning Never Ends: An Evening for Adults, featuring a variety of workshops on topics such as traveling without leaving home, Medicare 101, Milwaukee ghost stories and perennial gardening.

Learning Never Ends is from 6:45 to 9:30 p.m. April 28 at Wauwatosa West High School, 11400 W. Center St. The registration fee of $10 per person includes a choice of two classes.

Detailed information about the classes and registration forms are available at tosarec.com and are included in the Recreation Department's summer activity guide, which will be mailed to all Wauwatosa residents in March.

Registration forms with credit card information or a check may be mailed or delivered to the Recreation Department at Wauwatosa West High School, 11400 W. Center St., Wauwatosa, WI 53226, or faxed to (414) 773-2920.

For information, call the Recreation Department at (414) 773-2900 or send an e-mail to tosarec@wauwatosa.k12.wi.us.

East students to participate in 2011 LaunchPad competition

Two student bands featuring Wauwatosa East High School musicians have been accepted to take part in the 2011 LaunchPad competition.

The band Beach Justice, which features bassist James Kroner and lead trumpeter Chris DuCanto, and the band Spare Change, which features guitarist Casey Stokes, will take part in the competition sponsored by the Wisconsin School Music Association.

Both bands will take part in the LaunchPad regional competition May 13 at Wauwatosa East High School. Bands in the regional competition will have 15 minutes to perform the same three songs submitted with their LaunchPad application. The top three finalists from four regional competitions will compete at the state competition in Madison in June for the Les Paul LaunchPad Award. Along with that comes a professional recording session, the opportunity to perform at Summerfest and a Yamaha prize package for their school.

The LaunchPad competition is now in its seventh year. LaunchPad is a statewide, alternative music competition for Wisconsin high school students who are in bands formed outside traditional music classroom ensembles.