Mary Staples has been a strong supporter of Imagine MASTer Academy, but she feels she’s in limbo now, pulled between her desire to send her kids to the school and her need to plan ahead.Fifth-grader Memphis Manco faced off against his classmate, Katie Brady at the McMillen Center for Health Education on Wednesday.
Before him, sat a table and a buzzer. The challenge: to be the first to guess what food on the table was the healthiest.
An instructor put a Snickers bar and a banana on the table, and the choice was obvious: Both Manco and Brady hit the buzzer at the same time, yelling “banana.”
The Croninger Elementary fifth-graders, having just completed the Beginning of Life session at McMillen, were in the midst of a session called Food, Fitness and Fun. For more than an hour, they talked about good and bad calories, vitamins, minerals and the importance of staying active.
The students are among the 11,000 children who come into the center each year to learn about various health issues. Holli Seabury, CEO of the center, said the Food, Fitness and Fun program was started a few years ago partly in response the country’s childhood obesity epidemic.
“Sixty percent of kids are overweight or obese,” she said. “It’s really important we reach them when they’re young and stress the importance of good nutrition and staying active.”
Memphis, 11, said playing the “guess which is the healthiest food game” was the highlight of his trip.
“It’s pretty cool here,” he said. “We actually get to move around while learning.”
Registration
•Defiance College’s forensic science, digital forensic science and criminal justice programs will conduct a three-day overnight summer camp for students in grades 8-11 on June 22-24. To register or for more information, go to www.defiance.edu/gotclue.html or contact Matt Coons at mcoons001@defiance.edu or 859-509-3651.
•IPFW is inviting local high school students to take part in the two-week program, “From Expression to Profession” from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. June 18 through 29 at IPFW. The program is open to students who will be in high school this fall; space is limited to 30 at a cost of $20 per student, with mandatory attendance. For more information, contact Christopher Riley, assistant director of multicultural services/CTE coordinator, at 481-6847 or rileyc@ipfw.edu.
•The School of Creative Arts at the University of Saint Francis will host pre-college summer academies in music technology and art July 2-20 for high school students in grades 9-12. This intense, three-week program includes supplies and lunch. Cost is $140 per student. For a registration form or further information, contact SOCA at 399-7700, ext. 8001.
•Northwest Allen County Schools will begin registration for the 2012-13 school year on Aug. 6. For more information, see www.nacs.k12.in.us/Content/Article/5097/5097.pdf
Recognitions
•Colby Mowery of New Haven High School was recognized as a 2011-12 Discus Award winner for his success in academics, other achievements and community service.
•Marc Accilien, Steven Miller and Jon-Paul Capito were finalists in Indiana Tech Community College-Northeast’s New Venture Competition.
•Jordan Berger, a junior at Culver Academies, was awarded a Martin and Julia Klaper Summer Study Grant in support of a visual arts experience this summer.
•Huntington County Community School Corp. selected Matt Groves, an eighth-grade math teacher at Crestview Middle School, as its Teacher of the Year.
•Troy Ryan, automotive technology student at Ivy Tech Community College-Northeast, received the Craftsman Tool Grant from the Collision Repair Education Foundation.
