Pick up plants you’d like to see growing in your yards at the Canyons Technical Education Center, 825 E. 9085 South, Sandy. A sale on plants and flowers is now underway. Geraniums, petunias, tomatoes and snapdragons are among the plants for sale from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Monday-Friday. Questions?  Please call 801-826-6600. 

Thanks to all who attended the Real Salt Lake game on May 4, 2013 to honor the Canyons School District Teachers of the Year. The 2013 Canyons Idol winner, Lexi Walker, wowed the crowed with her amazing performance of the National Anthem. During halftime, the Teachers of the Year had the priviledge of taking the field to be recognized by the fans. We appreciate all that our teachers in CSD do for our students and the community.

Real Salt Lake posted the above video of Lexi singing on their Facebook page, join the conversation.

Rio Tinto Stadium soon will resonate with the big notes of a tiny fifth-grader.  Lexi Walker, a student at Peruvian Park Elementary School, is the winner of the fifth-annual Canyons Idol vocal contest. As such, she will sing the National Anthem at the Real Salt Lake game on Saturday, May 4, 2013 at 7 p.m.

The Canyons Idol first runner-up is Christen Chen, a senior at Hillcrest High School.  Second runner-up is Jamie Jackson, a first-grader at East Sandy Elementary.

Students from kindergarten through 12th grade were invited to audition in the 2013 Canyons Idol contest, in which the winner is invited to sing the National Anthem at the home of the 2009 MLS Cup Champions. In all, 32 students and student groups auditioned on April 19. There, contestants sang the National Anthem a cappella before a panel of judges from the Canyons School District Offices.

Walker's National Anthem performance will kick off Canyons Night at Real Salt Lake, in which all 45 Canyons Teachers of the Year will be honored at halftime. Discount tickets are available to the Canyons community.

The Canyons Idol contest premiered in 2009 as part of activities to usher in Utah's first new school district in a century.  The 2009 Canyons Idol, McKail Seely, won the contest as a Butler Middle School ninth-grader. She's now a performing artist who has performed at venues including The House of Blues in Hollywood.


&feature=youtu.be

The Canyons Board of Education announced Tuesday, April 23, 2013 that Dr. Ginger Rhode will serve as Interim Superintendent while a search is conducted to replace Superintendent David S. Doty, who resigned last week to become the leader of a Utah-based education-reform firm. His last day in Canyons will be June 30, 2013.

The vote to appoint Dr. Rhode as Interim Superintendent was unanimous.

Dr. Rhode, who has served as Canyons' Deputy Superintendent for Student Achievement and the Chief Academic Officer since November 2008, will take helm of the District on July 1, 2013. Dr. Rhode has played a major role in the launch of the District and the creation and implementation of the District's academic plan.

The Board of Education is actively moving forward on plans to search for the new superintendent. The Board will discuss the search process in the coming weeks.

The search will be national in scope.

"The Board wants to be thoughtful and thorough in its approach to finding a new superintendent," Board President Sherril H. Taylor said. "We have full confidence in Dr. Rhode to lead the District while we conduct an extensive and deliberate search."

Dr. Rhode has a Ph.D. in Special Education from Utah State University and is a widely published author of books on behavior management, including "The Tough Kid Toolbox," which has received national recognition.

A former special education teacher and principal, Dr. Rhode has worked as Davis School District's Director of Federal and State Programs and Coordinator of English as a Second Language Programs, and has extensive experience in school reform and improvement efforts. She has served as Special Education Coordinator and State and Federal Compliance Officer for the Utah State Office of Education and is an Adjunct Professor in the University of Utah's Educational Psychology Department.

Parents, students and patrons are invited to bid a fond farewell to the old Butler Middle School at the same time they can say goodbye to the eight teachers and staff who are retiring at the end of the school year.

Butler Middle, which will move into a new 177,000-square-foot school this fall, is hosting a “Bye-Bye Butler” event at 7530 S. 2700 East from 6-8 p.m. on Wednesday, April 24, 2013. At the open house, officials at the school will honor the eight teachers from Butler Middle who are retiring this year.

The retiring teachers and staff are Brent Johnson, Nan Kemp, Candy Patterson, Kay Willoughby, Barbara Ayrton, Tove Wayman, Bob Pliley and Betty Bleak.   

Community members also will be able to buy commemorative bricks from the 48-year-old building when it’s torn down this summer. A rough and cleaned brick is $5.  A rough, cleaned and stenciled brick is $20.

The new Butler Middle, which is being provided to the community through the generosity of voters who approved a $250 million bond in 2010, will have state-of-the-art classrooms, a 1,000-seat auditorium, a spacious commons area, a full gymnasium and a central air conditioning system, among other amenities.  

Butler Middle students have remained in the old school while crews worked on the new one.

VCBO Architecture led the project’s design. Hughes Construction is the contractor.

See a Salt Lake Tribune story about the party to say goodbye to the old Butler Middle.