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Peter Kociba, 15, is renovating the Environmental Study area as a living memorial to assistant principal Dave Segrist, who died last year of cancer, as part of his Eagle Scout project. The Enquirer/Rachel Richardson

To complete the requirements for Eagle Scout, the highest rank a Boy Scout can achieve, many scouts tackle projects like clearing trails at a local park, organizing a food or blood drive or assisting a nonprofit organization.

Posted in: Community, News |

Tags: Tags: boy scouts, cancer, dale moberly, dave segrist, eagle scout, environmental study area, mason, mason intermediate, peter kociba, team venture

Mason School District officials will discuss the district’s growth and future plans at a town hall meeting on Tuesday, April 9.

The event, which will be held from 6:30-8:30 p.m. at Mason Intermediate, will address new school programming and schedules.

The district’s enrollment doubled between 1999 and 2009 and has since leveled off in recent years to around 11,000 students, according to school officials.

In March, the district announced it will move from three 12-week trimesters to two 18-week semesters in the 2014-2015 school year — a move expected to save the district $1.5 million annually, according to Tracey Carson, district spokesperson.

Among the meeting’s topics of discussion will be curriculum, facilities, financing, structure and staffing.

Mason Intermediate is at 6307 Mason-Montgomery Road. For more information, call the district at 513-398-6682.

Posted in: Events, School events |

Tags: Tags: mason intermediate, mason school district, mason schools, meeting, town hall

The front cover of this box of new Girl Scouts’ Double Dutch chewy snack bars features Mason Girl Scouts Quinn Robinson, left, and Ally Astles. Both girls jump for the Comet Skippers, a Mason-based double Dutch team. The boxes of Double Dutch bars will be sold nationally by nine Girl Scout Councils. Provided photo

Cliff Radel reports:

Posted in: Community, News |

Tags: Tags: ally astles, boxes, carmen simpson, comet skippers, cookies, double dutch, girl scouts of southwestern ohio, little brownie bakers, mason, mason intermediate, quinn robinson, sarah cramer, tagalongs

Mason Intermediate fifth grader Chris Li creates a snowflake ornament. Students in Amy Sheets’ fifth grade class are creating and selling ornaments to benefit autism research and awareness. Photo provided

Fifth grade students at Mason Intermediate are getting crafty for a cause.

Students in Amy Sheet’s class created handcrafted snowflake ornaments this month as a way to raise money for Autism Speaks, a leading nonprofit autism science and advocacy organization.

Like a real snowflake, each ornament is unique, crafted with recycled puzzle pieces — the symbol for autism awareness.

Ornament cost is $5, with all proceeds benefiting Autism Speaks.  Purchase ornaments these Mason retailers:

• Kidd Coffee, 322 Reading Road
• Mims off Main, 623 Reading Road
• Main Street Sweets, 200 E. Main Street

“It’s been powerful watching the students get so involved in this project,” said Sheets. “Not only was the project itself fun, but the students have shown great passion for helping others.

Posted in: Schools |

Tags: Tags: amy sheets, autism, autism speaks, christmas tree, fundraiser, mason intermediate, ornaments, snowflake ornaments

Grace Bagadiong, 10, of Mason, suffers from an undiagnosed neuromuscular condition that’s left her on a ventilator and confined to a wheelchair. She participates on a cheerleading squad for children with special needs called the Sparklers through TNT Nitro Elite in Maineville. Photo provided

If Gracie Bagadiong was walking in the clouds after throwing out the first pitch at a recent Cincinnati Reds game, on Sunday she’ll be roping the moon.

The 10-year-old Mason girl with special needs will be treated to a surprise visit with the Indianapolis Colts cheerleaders before watching the Colts take on the Buffalo Bills that afternoon at Lucas Oil Stadium.

Stephanie Pemberton, senior director of community relations for the Colts, read about Gracie’s first pitch in a story published Sept. 22 by The Cincinnati Enquirer.

Gracie was selected for the honor by the pulmonary department at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, which hosted a special Reds night for patients and their families.

The Mason Intermediate fourth grader suffers from an undiagnosed neuromuscular condition that’s left her wheelchair-bound and on a ventilator for the past two years. She’s also deaf, has low vision and peripheral nerve damage has left her without use of her arms.

That story referenced Gracie’s dreams of seeing herself on the Jumbotron at Great American Ballpark and becoming a Colts cheerleader.

The organization reached out and offered Gracie and her family four lower-level tickets to Sunday’s game valued at $500, a parking pass, pre-game sideline seats and the rare chance to meet the Colts cheerleaders before the game.

The opportunity is an exclusive one, indeed.

Only a “limited number” of people are invited to pre-game sideline visits and “very few” get to meet the Colts cheerleaders one-on-one in their locker room, said Pemberton.

“When you read something like that, and you see how much Gracie has had to work through and overcome at such a young age – and then you know that you have the opportunity to be a part of that – that’s what it’s all about,” she said. “Her story is one that touched our hearts and to be able to be a part of that story, it’s awesome.”

(more…)

Posted in: Community, News |

Tags: Tags: cherie bagadiong, cincinnati reds, colts cheerleaders, disabled, first pitch, grace bagadiong, gracie bagadiong, indianapolis colts, los angeles dodgers, mason intermediate, medical mystery, nolan bagadiong, special needs

Kylee Bennett won the chance to bring Cincinnati Bengals’ AJ Green to class at Mason Intermediate. Pictured are MI Principal Greg Sears, Kylee, Green and MI Assistant Principal BJ Smallwood. Photo provided

Some kids bring artwork or vacation mementos to school for show-and-tell, but Kylee Bennett’s offering topped them all.

The Mason Intermediate fifth-grader brought Cincinnati Bengals’ AJ Green to class Thursday.

Kylee was the big winner of the Verizon Wireless “Show ‘N Tell with the NFL” sweepstakes.

Her prize? A limo ride with the wide receiver before showing him off to her classmates.

Green spoke to Kylee’s class and then again before an all-school assembly. He emphasized the importance of eating healthy, physical activity and fielded pre-submitted questions ranging from his favorite gaming system (PS3) to his local chili preference (he has yet to try either Gold Star or Skyline Chili).

One of Kylee’s classmates did some research, discovered Green to be a good juggler and brought juggling balls. Green didn’t disappoint, proving himself as capable of balancing balls in the air as he does on the gridiron.

“He was very down to earth, humble, and openly admitted to the kids that all in all he is a very shy person,” said MI Assistant Principal BJ Smallwood. “He shared with the kids that he felt being in the NFL was a stepping stone in life and that at some point he would like to use his business degree.”

Green received a standing ovation from the kids and was sent off to chants of, what else, “Who-dey!”

Posted in: Schools |

Tags: Tags: aj green, cincinnati bengals, kylee bennett, mason intermediate, show n tell with the nfl, sweepstakes, verizon wireless

Will Tardio and Opiyo Dennis of Unified for Unifat, an organization that aids a school in northern Uganda, speak to students at Mason Intermediate on Oct. 5, 2012. Photo provided

A school assignment on letter writing has helped teach life lessons to students at Mason Intermediate.

Fourth grade students in Christine Work’s class developed a pen pal project with Ugandan students through the nonprofit organization Unified for Unifat.  The student-run organization supports the Upper Nile Institute Appropriate Technology school, a primary school of 1,500 students in northern Uganda.

Representatives of the organization visited students earlier this month.  Will Tardio, a Moeller graduate and organization co-founder, and Opiyo Dennis, an organization mentor, taught Mason students games, dances and music enjoyed by children at the Ugandan school.

The project was inspired by student Kellan Ring.  Kellan’s mother, Connie Ring, co-founded Unified for Unifat seven years ago at Moeller High School, where she is a math teacher.

Students continue to learn about the culture and history of the war-torn country.  Throughout the school year, the class will be collecting supplies and helping to raise $350 to sponsor a child to attend the private school, said Work.

“With ‘Reaching Out’ being the initiative of Mason teachers and students this year, we are really excited for this opportunity to make a difference,” she said.

Posted in: Schools |

Tags: Tags: christine work, fundraising, invisible children, mason intermediate, opiyo dennis, pen pal, uganda, unified for unifat, will tardio

Mason Intermediate sixth grader Ben Roots takes a “virtual” field trip to Lascaux, France.

Michael D. Clark reports:

No one saw it coming at the time, but when then-President George W. Bush came to Butler County in 2002 to sign the historic No Child Left Behind act, he also signed the death warrant for many school field trips.

That sweeping reform act – signed under the national media spotlight at Hamilton High School – mandated standardized testing across America. But it also had the unintended consequence of killing off the traditional field trip for millions of students.

In the decade since, schools have had to spend more classroom time focusing on test-based instruction, leaving less time for field trips.

Toss in a lousy economy during the last several years and chronic budget woes, and the longtime staple of American education is increasingly thrown under the school bus.

To fill the void, more schools are weaving online “virtual field trips” into their classroom curricula. A growing number of Internet sites provide students the opportunity to take photo or video tours from their classrooms to any museum, nature or historical site that offers such online options.

• Photos: Mason Intermediate students go on “virtual field trip” to France

Some sites provide students a 360-degree visual panoramic scope with pop-ups of facts about the site, all controlled by students or teachers from their computers.

But while educators appreciate the low cost and convenient option, they say it pales in comparison to the real thing.

(more…)

Posted in: Schools |

Tags: Tags: education, field trips, george w. busg, mason, mason intermediate, no child left behind, pto, schools, tim sullivan, virtual field trips

Gracie Bagadiong has three dreams in life: To train dolphins, become an Indianapolis Colts cheerleader and see herself on the Jumbotron at Great American Ball Park.

On Sunday, one of those dreams will come true.

The 10-year-old Mason girl with special needs will throw out the ceremonial first pitch before the Cincinnati Reds take on the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Gracie, a fourth-grade student at Mason Intermediate, was selected for the honor by the pulmonary department at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, which is hosting a special Reds night for patients and their families. Big brother Jacob will assist her on the field.

“She feels like she’s a superstar,” said Cherie Bagadiong, Gracie’s mother.

Gracie suffers from an undiagnosed neuromuscular condition that’s left her wheelchair-bound and on a ventilator for the past two years. She’s also deaf, has low vision and peripheral nerve damage has left her without use of her arms.

It’s a medical mystery that’s baffled doctors since her symptoms began at age 3, her mother says.

Gracie was born healthy and reached normal developmental milestones through her first years, learning her first words and taking her first steps. When she developed an odd gait, her parents – Cherie, a stay-at-home mom, and Nolan, a systems engineer at a financial company – thought she’d outgrow it.

It wasn’t until Gracie’s language skills plateaued that the Bagadiongs grew concerned.

The diagnosis was surprising: Sometime between ages 2 and 3, Gracie had become severely and profoundly deaf. What’s more, X-rays showed scoliosis, an abnormal curvature of the spine.

Gracie Bagadiong of Mason at a Cincinnati Reds game in 2011. Rosie red is her favorite mascot. Photo provided

The findings launched a slew of visits to specialists, none of whom could offer any answers. Gracie was fitted with a cochlear implant and enrolled in a school for deaf children.

But the troubles didn’t end there. At age 5, Gracie developed a lazy eye and vision issues. Doctors diagnosed her with optic nerve atrophy, a condition that causes the optic nerve to deteriorate. Then, over a period of two weeks, she lost all control of her arms.
Experts at Cleveland Clinic examined Gracie and ran tests but her condition remained a mystery.

After a series of steroid treatments, Gracie regained some use of her arms and began to walk with the assistance of a walker. But about two years ago, she began losing strength in her core. Within months, she was unable to walk or even sit up without assistance.

Soon after, Gracie began to breathe funny. Then she stopped breathing.

Cherie recalls driving 90 mph on Interstate 71 to Cincinnati Children’s, where a team of doctors and nurses revived a blue Gracie.

After a 57-day hospitalization and consult at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore yielded no answers, doctors placed Gracie, 8 at the time, on a ventilator and feeding tube and outfitted her with a power wheelchair. The Bagadiongs had to adjust to sharing their home with round-the-clock nursing care.

“It flipped us upside-down,” Cherie said. “It’s constant planning who’s doing what with Gracie at what time.’’

Gracie’s limitations don’t stop her from leading an active and fulfilled life, her parents say. She joined a cheerleading squad for children with special needs and paints pictures for her friends using a mouthstick and touch screen computer. She likes to watch sports games with her dad and is always up for shopping with mom.

“She doesn’t think of herself as disabled. She never gets frustrated with herself about what she can’t do. She’s more focused on what she can do,” said Cherie.

The past year has yielded some hope. Doctors have begun weaning Gracie from the ventilator and she’s gained weight – she’s up from 42 to 52 pounds – and strength.

“Medically, it’s terribly difficult. When she improves, we get excited,” said Cherie. “You think how her life would be different if she could do gymnastics or run, but she’s so cute and funny I wouldn’t want her to be different. She’s the way she is because her whole life added up and she’s Grace.”

Posted in: Community, News |

Tags: Tags: cherie bagadiong, cincinnati reds, disabled, first pitch, grace bagadiong, gracie bagadiong, los angeles dodgers, mason intermediate, medical mystery, nolan bagadiong, special needs

Volunteers are needed to mentor grade and middle school students in the Mason school district.

Now in its fifteenth year, the Mason mentoring program pairs adult volunteers (ages 21 and up) with students in fourth through eighth grades for one hour each week during the school day.

“There are a lot of kids out there who need a little extra encouragement,” said Sue Shackleford, program director.  “Mentors are just a little more support in these students’ lives.”

For more information or to volunteer, call Shackleford at 513-777-7207.

Posted in: Schools |

Tags: Tags: mason intermediate, mason mentoring program, mason middle school, mason schools, mentors, volunteers