Lind-Ritzville High School went into lock down today so that emergency crews could respond to a health situation.

A student alerted school officials that they were in need of emergency care and the school immediately went in to lock down. This allowed emergency crews to easily enter the building and assist the student. 

Principal Cheryl Henjum says that they are very proud of the staff and students for their urgency and attention to detail and extends a thank you for how they all handled the situation. 

Local schools were notified today that they received Washington Achievement Awards for 2012. State Superintendent, Randy Dorn, and State Board of Education Chair, Jeff Vincent, notified them by email.

The Washington State Achievement Awards are in their fourth year and recognize schools in seven categories; Overall Excellence, Language Arts, Math, Science, Extended Graduation Rate, Closing Achievement Gaps, and High Progress. Schools are selected using the state's Achievement Index and the Elementary and Secondary Education Act Flexibility Waiver.

These are the area schools that were selected for awards, however no area schools were selected for Language Arts.

The Moses Lake School District finds itself in a precarious predicament: How do you adjust to an expanding area with insufficient school infrastructure?

This contentious context sets the stage for Thursday's community meeting, when residents and school district members will seek compromise on how to deal with the area's burgeoning crowding issue, which Superintendent Michelle Price said becomes a bigger problem every day after the bond failed in 2012.

“There is no ideal solution,” Price said. “It will impact everyone. Ideally, we'd be building.”

The group is examining several possibilities like year-round school or the re-purposing of some buildings. One of those buildings with a target on it is Columbia Basin Secondary School, which could be a dedicated middle school building under one plan.

CBSS students don't think it is fair for their program to be cut, because it will lead to higher dropout rates and that students won't receive the personalized attention they've become accustomed to.