Monday Update: Coweeman's Cromwell tapped as Butler Acres principal

Photo courtesy

Cindy Cromwell

Monday, June 25, 2007 6:51 AM PDT

By Staff

Coweeman Middle School's assistant principal, Cindy Cromwell, will become the principal at Butler Acres Elementary School on July 1, Kelso School District officials announced this month.

Cromwell will replace Mark Connolly, who is filling the district's elementary education director position made available through a shifting of job titles and requirements prompted by Assistant Superintendent Patty Page's resignation.

District officials said they changed some top administrative positions to keep up with demands of recent laws, such as the federal No Child Left Behind act and the state's requirement of students to pass the Washington Assessment of Student Learning test. Officials do not expect the changes to increase costs.

Instead of having an assistant superintendent or a director of curriculum --- a post being vacated this year by Jan Baxter --- one district official will inherit human resources, and there will be two curriculum positions: one for elementary and one for secondary education.

Page is leaving at the end of June for a superintendent job at the Coupeville School District on Whidbey Island, and Baxter is retiring after a 26-year career in education.

Cromwell's new job pays a salary ranging from $74,518 to $83,544, depending on experience.

She has a bachelor's degree in vocational family and consumer science from Central Washington University and a master's in education from Heritage University in Toppenish, Wash. She has been Coweeman's assistant principal since 2000, and prior to that, she worked at an elementary and alternative high school in Toppenish.

"I can't wait to jump in," Cromwell said last week. "My goal is just to keep the level of excellence Mr. Connolly has established with his staff."

-- Stephanie Mathieu ,The Daily News

Long Beach resort under construction

Construction has started on a new four-story resort in Long Beach.

Wyndham Vacation Ownership --- the parent company to TrendWest --- is building a 98-unit resort near the beach on Sid Snyder Drive. The resort, announced late last year, has yet to be named.

Wyndham is building the resort because company officials think it will be popular year-round, said Lisa Burby, senior director of communications for Wyndham Vacation Ownership.

"The resort is directly on the beach and we feel it will give a great opportunity for owners to have a great vacation," Burby said.

The resort at Long Beach is projected to open in fall 2008. The resort will feature time-share units with rooms ranging from studios to three bedrooms, Burby said. "There will also be a few presidential or penthouse-style suites," she added.

Responding to customer surveys and company research, Wyndham found that their local clients wanted shorter stays and to take more frequent trips.

"This will allow owners to stay closer to home," she said. Wyndham also has resorts in Ocean Shores, Wash., and Seaside, Ore.

-- Evan Caldwell, The Daily News

Marine Corps League thanks Coweeman students

Leadership students of Coweeman Middle School were honored last week for their support of Give 2 The Troops.

Members of the Marine Corps League, Mount St. Helens Detachment, presented a certificate of appreciation to students after hearing that the school gathered more than 5,000 items in May to ship to troops overseas.

Kelso superintendent Glenys Hill accepted the certificate, but gave all credit to the students.

"We are enormously proud of them," she said.

In addition, the students presented a check for $781 to Pete Cassell, director of the Washington branch of Give 2 the Troops.

Leadership teacher Marla Green said the students organized a penny drive after realizing each box they had packed to send would cost $70 to $100 to ship to servicemen and women in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The penny drive heated up when the students were told they could "sabotage" other classes' money jars by replacing pennies with dollar bills.

Cassell said the last time he checked, the students had raised about $150, so he was "blown away" to receive a check for $781.

"The efforts of the students at Coweeman Middle School has overwhelmed me," Cassell said.

Cassell also read letters of appreciation during the assembly from troops who received packages from the students. The writers of the letters were especially pleased with the notes and photos the students enclosed.

-- Janine Manny, The Daily News