Sumner‑Bonney Lake board highlights student reading award and new staff 'golden elephant' recognition

The Sumner‑Bonney Lake School District board opened its Oct. 21 meeting with a series of recognitions for students and staff from across the district.

Annette Bowen, principal at Liberty Ridge, told the board her leadership team has been conducting a book study of Deep Kindness and has started a staff recognition program. "We added an extra layer, and we wanted to introduce the golden elephant of kindness award," Bowen said, describing how staff surprise recipients in their classrooms. Chelsea Ross Schiller was one of the early recipients; a colleague, identified as Alyssa, said receiving the award was "a good reminder of why those character trait rewards ... mean so much." The board presented flowers to the honorees.

Mountain View Middle School principal Amy Montgomery introduced seventh grader Kyla Kimball and described a summer reading challenge run in partnership with the Seattle Seahawks and PIMCO Insurance. Montgomery said Kyla was "one of the top readers in the state of Washington, logging 13,026 of reading over the summer," and that Kyla received a custom Seahawks jersey, a game‑day experience and a prize pack. The transcript does not specify the unit for the "13,026" figure (for example, minutes or pages); the number is reported as stated at the meeting.

Board members and district staff praised students and staff for community engagement and school culture. The recognitions preceded routine business and the board's approval of several administrative resolutions later in the meeting.

The board will continue routine recognitions at future meetings; no formal action was taken on the recognitions themselves.