The Tulare County Farm Bureau has announced “Celebrating Tulare County: #1 in Agriculture!” as the theme of its annual Student Calendar Art Contest. The theme was chosen in recognition of Tulare County’s status as the number one agriculture-producing county in the nation. The Farm Bureau’s Education Committee will select 14 winning entries and numerous honorable mention works to be featured in the full-color, 12-month calendar.

The calendar will be printed and distributed to Tulare County teachers in March during National Agriculture Month. Students have until February 15 to complete and deliver their artwork for the 2024-25 calendar. Entries must be received by mail or hand-delivered to the Farm Bureau at 737 North Ben Maddox Way in Visalia no later than 5:00 p.m. The Tulare County Farm Bureau and the Tulare County Office of Education annually sponsor the contest.

For more information, see the flyer here or contact Tulare County Farm Bureau at (559) 732-8301.

The Theatre Company has announced its annual spring classes for students in grades 1-12. The six-week classes in vocal, dance, and acting will be held once per week beginning February 13 and concluding March 21, 2024.

The vocal class will be led by vocal director Charlotte Garcia Da Rosa. Three sessions will be offered on Tuesdays each week – youth (grades 1-5), preteen and teen sopranos and altos (grades 6-12), and preteen and teen tenors and baritones (grades 6-12). The youth voice class will focus on foundational vocal technique and growing confidence as a singer. The preteen/teen classes will focus on performing techniques and continuing vocal development while navigating voice changes through the teenage years.

Theatre Company director Bethany Rader will lead the acting classes. This class will include monologue work, scene study and partner work, improv work, character study, and acting audition preparation. Three sessions will be offered on Wednesdays each week – grades 1-3, grades 4-6, and grades 7-12.

At the dance class, students will receive instruction in musical theatre dance styles from choreographer McKenna Friend-Hoffman. Students will focus on the fundamentals of jazz technique while building strength, increasing flexibility, and instilling confidence. Three sessions will be offered on Thursdays each week – grades 1-3, grades 4-6, and grades 7-12.

Each class series in voice, acting, and dance is $30 per student. To learn more or register for the classes, visit tcoe.org/TheatreCo/Catalog/Classes or contact Bethany Rader at bethany.rader@tcoe.org. Scholarships are available.

To stay updated on future workshops and audition opportunities, sign up for the Theatre Company newsletter at tcoe.org/TheatreCo/MailingList.

Several Tulare County high school teams and individuals wrapped up their cross country seasons this past Saturday with a trip to the CIF State Cross Country Championships at Woodward Park in Fresno.

El Diamante High School’s Devin Ibarra was the county’s highest finisher with a third-place finish in the Division II boys 5,000-meter race. The senior’s time of 15 minutes, 6.1 seconds was a personal record. Ibarra had previously won the CIF Central Section Division II boys race with a time of 15:49.61 on November 16.

At the Central Section championships, Monache boys won the Division II title while their girls team took home the Division III title. Central Valley Christian and Porterville boys were runners-up in the Division V and III races, respectively.

By placing at the Central Section meet, all four of the previously mentioned programs were able to send all of their runners to Saturday’s state meet. Individual runners from Central Valley Christian, El Diamante, Tulare Western, Mt. Whitney, and Woodlake also competed.

For a complete list of results from the CIF State Championship meet, visit https://rtspt.com/events/cif/xc2023/.

For a complete list of results from the CIF Central Section Championship meet, visit https://www.athletic.net/CrossCountry/meet/223042/info.

Photo above:

~ El Diamante's Devin Ibarra runs in the CIF State Division II Boys Championship race Saturday at Woodward Park in Fresno. Ibarra placed third.

Editor: Robert Herman, Communications Director
Contributors: Nayirah Dosu, Marlene Moreno, Jennifer Fisher, Bethany Rader

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