The Kyrene School District Governing Board approved the 2008-09 budget on July 8. In addition to the previously allocated increase of 15.5 percent for medical benefits, employer paid life insurance and administrative fees for eligible employees, the Governing Board also authorized salary increases for all employees. The percentage increases are based on average salaries of each employee group. Earlier in the spring, the Kyrene Governing Board also approved the following benefit schedule for 2008-09: _ State Retirement Plan°XDecreased the district contribution to 9.45 percent toward the Arizona State Retirement System for all eligible employees _ Medical Plan°XIncreased Medical Plan allowance for fulltime employees to $4,320; also removed existing medical plans, replaced with two new PPO plan options _ Childcare Program°XContinued to offer the sick child care program. Kyrene will pay for days that Kyrene employees take their sick child to the program. It is estimated that this is a $35 per day benefit. _ Continued to provide free childcare for school age children of employees who attend Kyrene schools, and a 20 percent discount for employees who enroll their young children in infant, toddler, 3 and 4 year old programs, Montessori education and Preschool. The Kyrene Elementary School District is an excelling district serving more than 18,000 students in kindergarten through eighth grades at 25 schools. To learn more about the Kyrene School District, visit www.kyrene.org or call 480-783-4000.
Nonprofit organization Treasure 4 Teachers, Inc. advocates assisting teachers with innovative and unique items at a fraction of the cost they normally would spend to provide students with needed classroom materials.
After five years of preparation, T4T launched a Reusable Resource Center for educators at 2127 S. Priest Drive, #406, to facilitate the needs of teachers who spend up to one-third of their salaries to purchase items needed for classrooms. T4T helps by rescuing items that would otherwise be discarded in valley landfills by local companies and manufacturers. T4T has diverted more than 80,000 cubic feet of discarded materials from the landfills into the hands of teachers and children.
While many of us may suffer occasional pain after a weekend in the garden or several games of tennis, millions of Americans suffer from serious chronic pain. Some of the most common types of chronic pain are arthritis, lower back, bone or joint pain, muscle pain and fibromyalgia. Suffering from chronic pain diminishes a person°¶s ability to concentrate, do their job, perform daily living activities, and sleep. Beyond that, the constant feeling of pain can lead to depression.
The American Heart Association (AHA) course, offered by the Kiwanis Recreation Center, uses OSHA recommendations to teach lay rescuers to recognize and treat adult emergencies in the critical first minutes until emergency services arrive.
Students in this class, offered 8:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 23, learn proper techniques for emergency response and basic first aid. Topics include procedures for medical emergencies and traumatic injuries.
The instructors from Lee’s Martial Arts Academy in Tempe decided they wanted to make a real difference in the lives of overweight children—so they designed the Kid Fit Challenge.
The academy invited children from the community who were overweight by at least 10 pounds to participate in a fitness program for free. The first children to participate back in April were selected based on a one-page essay explaining why they wanted to become a Fit Kid. All instructors volunteered their time to train the 10 children who were selected; training included aerobics and martial arts training, as well as a nutrition class, every week for six weeks. At the end of the six weeks the child who improved the most won a gift certificate from the studio valued at $600 to continue her martial arts training and nutritional education.
A new Fit Kid Challenge is set to begin on Sept. 2 at the academy, located at 715 W. Baseline Road, #1. Applications are now available; for more information, call 480-831-2124.
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