Lakewood's Cougar Connections

Our district newsletter is now "Cougar Connections"! As part of our recent Strategic Plan, we are rolling out a new look for our family and community e-newsletter.

Let us know what you think by scanning the QR code.

Congratulations to the Lakewood School Board! The Washington State School Directors Association recognized the Lakewood Board of Directors with the 2025 Board of Distinction last week. This award reflects the board’s commitment to narrowing opportunity gaps and aligning board actions with initiatives to promote student success. Back left: Leah Tocco, President, District 5; Dawn Taylor, District 4; Steven Larson, District 1; Dana Krueger, Vice President, District 3; Sandy Gotts, District 2; Amelia Escalante, student advisor; Rubi Carmona-Rodriguez, student advisor; Dr. Erin Murphy, Board Secretary.

Greetings,

I hope this message finds you well as we embark on the last week of November. Students and staff have been working hard this past month, from engagement in daily classroom-based learning to participation in extracurricular clubs and activities.

Veterans Day: Preparation for our celebration of Veterans Day and the courageous sacrifice of those who have served in our armed forces occurred this month in our schools and classrooms. I want to thank our staff and students from each of our schools for all that they have done to recognize this important holiday. From writing prompts and recitation of poetry, to musical performances and artwork, this year's celebrations were a truly impressive and beautiful display of appreciation for the service and bravery of those who have served.

Board of Distinction: This past week, I had the opportunity to attend the Washington State School Directors Association (WSSDA) conference with our school directors and our two student advisors to the board. During this conference, our School Board was recognized as a 2025 Board of Distinction. As a district, we are truly grateful for the dedication and service of these amazing volunteers. I feel so fortunate to have such strong and committed leaders serving in these important roles.

Demographic Report: I also wanted to share that during a board meeting last week, a presentation was given by Les Kendrick of Educational Data Solutions, who shared the results of a demographic review and enrollment trends for our district. The demographic report is now available on Board Docs. While there is a wealth of important information in this document, a short summary would be to share that our district is expected to experience continued growth in the coming years. This information will be helpful for our work related to staffing, budgeting, and facility needs for future years.

Culture Kickoff Award: Each of our schools works tirelessly to provide experiences and a culture of belonging in support of a successful launch to the school year. This year, three of our schools have been recognized with the Association of Washington Student Leaders (AWSL) and Association of Washington School Principals (AWSP) Culture Kickoff Award. This award is given to schools in recognition of their culture of belonging, positivity, and engagement, focus on the development of strong relationships between students, staff, and families, and the positive and inspiring tone by which they start the school year. Please join me in congratulating Lakewood Elementary, Lakewood Middle, and Lakewood High School for their recognition.

With Thanksgiving only days away, I want to close by expressing my gratitude for our students, staff, and families — it is our Lakewood community that sets our district apart and makes this such a special place to live and learn. Wishing you and your family a Thanksgiving full of joy and connection.

All my best,

Erin

Dr. Erin Murphy,

Superintendent

Lakewood High School, Lakewood Middle School and Lakewood Elementary School have been honored with the Culture Kickoff Award from the Association of Washington School Principals (AWSP) for their intentional, inclusive, and community-driven approaches to launching the school year.

The AWSL/AWSP Culture Kickoff Award underscores the vital role of school culture in driving academic and personal success. A positive culture nurtures not just academic growth but also the holistic well-being of every student and staff member.

Thank you, veterans! We are grateful to the veterans who joined our assemblies in November to share their stories of service and inspire our students to make a difference in their communities.

Will your child start kindergarten next year? Apply now for Transitional Kindergarten! This free, full-day program at Lakewood Elementary School will begin in late January. The priority deadline for applications is December 5, 2025.

The class is open to students living in the Lakewood School District attendance area and provides a strong start for our youngest learners.

More cowbell! This instrument isn’t just fun to ring during Cougar Cabinet meetings; it’s a tool for encouraging respectful communication. During a lively kickoff meeting, student leaders from all five of our schools came together to share ideas, build community, and take action to improve their schools. After a fun icebreaker, students broke into building groups to brainstorm ideas they want to focus on, including:

• Support for student mental health
• Promoting inclusion with buddy benches
• Raising awareness about substance abuse prevention

Each student made a personal commitment to help create a better school environment. We’re excited to see our student leaders demonstrating that leadership starts with small actions and big heart.

Watch the Inside Cougar Cabinet podcast with high school facilitators to learn more about the first meeting.

Is your student stressed out about the college admissions process? Through the Western Guaranteed Admission Program, eligible seniors from Lakewood High School are directly admitted to Western — no application and no fee required.

Eligibility Criteria:

• 2.75 GPA or higher
• Must meet Washington State high school graduation requirements

WWU Guaranteed Admission letters will be sent to eligible high school seniors in December with instructions for next steps.

This new program is in addition to the Washington Guaranteed Admissions Program (WAGAP), which grants Lakewood students admission to six four-year public universities in the state if they meet these two criteria:

1. 3.0 GPA or higher

2. Complete or are on track to complete all the College Academic Distribution Requirements (CADRs)

Six colleges participate in WAGAP:

• Central Washington University
• Eastern Washington University
• The Evergreen State College
• University of Washington, Tacoma
• Washington State University
• Western Washington University

The latest edition of the Cougars Pause for mental health newsletter from the Lakewood Mental Health Leadership Team includes:

• Rainbow of Emotions activity for elementary students
• Cougar Family Connection Parenting Tips
• Guiding Conversations for parents of teens
• Book and app recommendations

We’re so grateful to everyone who has supported the Lakewood Community Food Drive in partnership with the Lakewood Coalition and our school PTAs!

Our high school students joined in with class competitions, bringing in food to help support families. Last week, staff and volunteers packed 110 bags of food (that's about 2,000 pounds of food!) and delivered it to convenient distribution points. The rest will be distributed soon!

• November: Native American Heritage Month
• Nov. 26: Half Day
• Nov. 27: Thanksgiving (No School)
• Nov. 28: Native American Heritage Day (No School)
• Dec. 5: Early-Release Friday
• Dec. 12: Early-Release Friday
• Dec. 19: Early-Release Friday
• Dec. 22-Jan. 2: Winter Break (No School)
• Jan. 19: Martin Luther King Jr. Day (No School)
• Jan. 26 Semester Break (No School)

View our calendars page

In high school, it’s common for students to land an after-school or seasonal job. But that first paycheck can be a surprise — and a real-life lesson about taxes.

Lakewood High School offers a Personal Finance class for juniors and seniors to help students connect the math lessons they learned in algebra and geometry to everyday life. Students learn to:

• Create a budget
• Understand taxes
• Manage a checking account
• Understand a credit score
• Model expenses and revenue for a new business

In a recent lesson, students learned how to steer clear of novice mistakes, like paying a hefty fee for small withdrawals when your account dips below the minimum threshold. Personal Finance equips students with real-world money skills for life beyond the classroom.

Many relationships have suffered over disagreements about money, so students explored the risks and rewards of borrowing, especially from family and friends. They learned that while borrowing from someone they know might seem easy, not paying the loan back can have long-lasting consequences.

This year marks the first time Lakewood Middle School is offering Consumer Math, a hands-on class modeled after the high school’s personal finance course. Students are diving in with lessons about:

• Understanding Credit & Borrowing: Students examined how interest works and even calculated how quickly payments add up on a $150 loan.
• Student-Designed Currency: They created their own classroom currency to use at the Consumer Math Store, grabbing fun items like keychains, Capri Suns, and chips.
• Becoming the Bank: Through a computer simulation, students acted as lenders—setting interest rates and loan terms to try to earn a profit.
• Friday Career Exploration: Each Friday, students explore career paths and connect financial literacy to real-world futures.

Students are learning practical, lifelong money skills in a fun and engaging way.

Sometimes it takes a little creative engineering to make everyday items more useful. Students in 7th grade Project Engineering at Lakewood Middle School tackled real-world challenges at their school and came up with innovative solutions.

When the cafeteria trash can filled up too quickly, two students designed a custom shelf for lunch trays to keep the trash can clear for other waste materials.

When a cashier’s table was too short, another student engineered a portable keyboard stand to make the workspace more comfortable.

These students are showing how innovation and empathy go hand-in-hand. We’re proud of their commitment to improving their school in small yet meaning ways!

The Applied STEM elective for eighth graders at Lakewood Middle School provides students with hands-on experience with cutting-edge tools and tech.

Every Cougar starts in sixth grade with Design Tech in the STEM Lab, learning the basics of laser cutting and 3D printing. Applied STEM takes those skills to the next level. Students design projects using CAD software, cut wooden pieces with laser cutters, and connect them to Arduinos to program movement and lights.

Recent projects? Mini traffic lights, a moving excavator, and even a miniature crane! These creative builds combine engineering, coding, and problem-solving—skills that prepare students for the future.

Two Lakewood High School students have been accepted to the 2026 Northwest Honor Band. Senior Lukas Gibb on tuba and junior Elliot Burelo on alto sax will represent Lakewood High School in January.

They will rehearse and perform alongside some of the best high school musicians in Washington state during the event at Lagerquist Concert Hall, Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma. LHS Music Director Katy Trapp said, “I’m so proud of these hard-working musicians and this accomplishment!”

Lakewood FFA had a fantastic showing at this year’s FFA Jamboree on Nov. 6 at Stanwood High School. Lakewood FFA competed against 145 students from 10 schools.

Team Awards

• 2nd Place Overall Team– Potato Evaluation
• 3rd Place Overall Team – Poultry Evaluation

Top 20 Finishes

• Rayna Peacher: 7th in Potato Evaluation, 13th in Natural Resources, 15th in Floriculture
• Cami Pospical-Bourdo: 20th in Horse Evaluation
• Leah Cannon: 16th in in Milk Quality
• Ava Williamson & Ada Baar: Tied for 15th in Potato Evaluation
• Ellie Schoenbachler: 10th in Poultry Evaluation
• Ava Williamson: 11th in Poultry Evaluation

In October, our first-year FFA members from Lakewood High School celebrated Greenhand Night at Andrew’s Hay. These students are working toward earning their Greenhand Degree at the end of the school year, the first degree awarded to high school FFA members. Mr. Andrew gave students a tour of the farm, sharing how his business got started and demonstrating the equipment used in farming operations.

To earn the FFA Greenhand, members must be enrolled in an agricultural education course, have a plan for a Supervised Agricultural Experience (SAE), and demonstrate knowledge of the organization's history, mission, creed, and emblem. The degree signifies a new member's commitment and understanding of FFA core principles. After the tour, members had some fall fun exploring the hay maze, pumpkin patch, and potato throwing. They painted their “Greenhands” to mark the occasion!

You might remember from your own math class that the angles of a triangle always equal 180 degrees. But can you prove it? Eighth and ninth graders set about proving the Triangle Sum Theorem during their geometry class at Lakewood High School recently.

The partnership between LMS and LHS allows eighth graders to challenge themselves academically while learning together with their peers. Students in the mixed middle/high school class folded patty paper and used compasses and protractors to measure angles and construct geometric shapes.

They also explored parallel lines, congruent angles, and the Alternate Interior Angle Theorem—building a strong foundation for advanced math courses in high school and beyond.

Apply online for the following open positions:

• Occupational Therapist
• Physical Therapist
• Speech Language Pathologist
• Teacher (Resource Room, Developmental Preschool, Transitional Kindergarten)
• Bus driver
• Paraeducator (Multiple positions)
• Assistant Coach (LHS: Boys Basketball, Flag Football, Soccer; LMS: Wrestling)
• Weight Room Supervisor (LHS)

Substitutes are also needed as bus drivers, custodians, food service, paraeducators and student supervision. Apply online.

Wondering if you missed something? Check out our District News page on the website.

Have school news or photos you would like to have published? Please email Kristina Bowman, kbowman@lwsd.wednet.edu, for consideration.