At Home At School

BATTLE GROUND — Hallways lined with donated food and other items were a common sight at schools all around Battle Ground Public Schools.

Pleasant Valley middle and primary schools combined their donation drive, bringing in more than 20,000 cans and boxes of food over eight days, as well as 1,100 pairs of socks. Eight families in need received gifts for the holidays.

A decade ago, the Washington Supreme Court ruled in the landmark McCleary case that the state was failing to uphold its state constitutional duty by amply funding basic education for all students. But that case, which upended many school districts’ reliance on property taxes, stopped short of changing the funding system for building construction and improvements.

Now, the lead lawyer in the McCleary case has filed a lawsuit on behalf of a small rural district in southwestern Washington, arguing the state is also violating the constitution by failing to ensure all students learn in safe and modern school buildings.

The Evergreen Public Schools Board of Directors appointed John Boyd the new interim superintendent of schools in a special meeting Tuesday night.

He will begin his position in the beginning of 2022 pending the completion of contract negotiations.

BATTLE GROUND — Battle Ground Public Schools will make substantial upgrades to student technology and connectivity thanks to a nearly $1.4 million grant from the Federal Communication Commission’s E-Rate program.

The funding was made possible through the Emergency Connectivity Fund, a $7.17 billion investment in school and library technology approved in the American Rescue Plan Act to help schools provide devices and connectivity to students during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a news release from Battle Ground Public Schools.

A special meeting of the Clark County Board of Health on Tuesday morning was far from routine. Around 80 angry parents, area residents and even high school students called in to comment on the recommendations issued by Clark County Public Health last week that led to a pause on high school wrestling activities.

Dozens of residents who called in to Friday’s Clark County Council meeting have prompted a special meeting of the Board of Health to be held Tuesday.

Although the Dec. 17 public hearing was to be a forum for comments on a proposed fireworks ordinance, callers instead were upset by Public Health’s recommendation that public schools should suspend wrestling competition, practice and travel after more than 30 COVID-19 cases were detected among local wrestlers. The suspension is in effect until Jan. 3.

When the Washougal Learning Academy leaders decided to select a school mascot and logo last summer, they wanted the chosen symbol to represent more than the academy itself. They wanted it to be, in their words, “something special.”

They accomplished their goal by collaborating with a local Native American tribe, forming what they hope to be a long-lasting and positive relationship along the way.

The Vancouver Virtual Learning Academy is moving to a new home.

The newly named Heights Campus is set to open in January within the renovated building that housed the original George C. Marshall Elementary School at 6450 MacArthur Blvd. in Vancouver.

Nine year-old Ezra LePage-Linch furrowed his brow as he sized up potential customers walking by.

On display, ready to sell, were a number of his homemade, hand-painted dinosaur trinkets: dinosaurs ornaments, dinosaur bookends and yes — an ultra-rare, one-of-a-kind dinosaur candle.

• Fundraising in the news