By Greg Schwab, Principal

Graduation for seniors and the end of the school year for underclassmen is just around the corner. I am very excited about all that we have to celebrate this spring.  Here is a small list:

1. Senior Presentations on May 21, our seniors presented their Culminating Projects in a school-wide celebration of the work they have done this year.  Students formally presented their projects to a panel of MTHS teachers and community members.

2. Arts Celebration Assembly. May was National Arts Awareness Month and we planned an all school assembly in the afternoon on May 21 to showcase the talents of our students who are in the Performing Arts.  Band, Choir, Dance, and Drama students all had the chance to perform for the student body as we recognized and celebrated these students for their talent and commitment.

3. Seniors’ Last Day and Graduation, June 10 is the last day of school for our seniors and our Graduation Ceremony is June 11 at 6:30 p.m. at the Edmonds School District Stadium.

4. Last Day of School, June 19 is the last day of school for 9 – 11 grade students.  We will be on a ½ day early release schedule with school being dismissed at 10:20 am.

5. Our MTHS Drama Department has been selected to perform a play in Edinburgh, Scotland at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in August of 2010.  This is an incredible honor for our director, Jeannie Brzovic, and her students.

A topic that I wanted to give some additional emphasis to is the state of our school budget in light of the cuts we are making as a district. For us here at MTHS, the budget cuts have resulted in a loss of approximately six full time teaching positions. We have had to reduce by half our credit recovery program. Elective courses offerings have been reduced and class sizes will increase across the board. We are doing the very best we can to preserve as much of our academic program as possible. There are some difficult choices we have had to make but in the end, I feel we are keeping MTHS a great place for our students and staff.

Finally, I want to congratulate the Class of 2009.  Our seniors have been outstanding this year. They have provided us with leadership, energy and spirit and they will be missed. I want to wish all of our graduates they very best. I also want to say thank you to the families of our seniors for their support in helping our seniors get to graduation.

To everyone else, have a wonderful end to the school year and a fantastic summer vacation. I look forward to seeing you all in September.