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By Erica Dolson, Sentinel Reporter, December 2, 2009

Last updated: Wednesday, December 2, 2009 8:33 AM EST

Three representatives from the Cumberland Valley School District will soon depart for China for an educational trip through the Chinese Bridge for American Schools.

School board member Bud Shaffner, Middlesex Elementary School Principal Don Snyder and Good Hope Middle School Principal Gary Quigley should arrive in Beijing Thursday.

“My goal for this trip is to gain a better understanding of China and the Chinese educational system,” Quigley said. “Chinese-American scholar Yong Zhao believes that the United States and China can learn from each other’s educational system by studying both strengths and weaknesses. I will be interested to speak to Chinese educators and share ideas on educating children.”

The trip will include visits to historical sites and tours of schools and provinces as a way to learn about the Chinese system of education, district spokeswoman Tracy Panzer said.

“The in-depth school visits and educational workshops will provide an opportunity for us to observe classes, to learn first-hand about successful educational models and to link Cumberland Valley directly with schools in China,” Shaffner said. “By expanding the horizons of our students, it is our goal to prepare them for a global economy.”

As possible, Shaffner, Snyder and Quigley will use technology to communicate with students during the trip, Panzer added.

The costs of flights to and from China and meals, travel and hotels while there are paid for by the Chinese government.

Last summer, district Superintendent William Harner traveled to China through the same program, which selects educators through a nomination and/or application process.

Cumberland Valley School District

• Three cheers for a fifth state title.

On Nov. 21, the Cumberland Valley High School Varsity cheerleading squad received first-place honors in both the Super Large Varsity Division and the AAAA division and the title of Pennsylvania State Champions at the Pennsylvania State Cheerleading Championship.

The squad performed a two-and-a-half minute routine that included elements of dance, cheering, tumbling, stunting and pyramid-building, head coach Kristi Shaffner said.

The squad will compete in a couple of other local competitions before heading to the Battle at the Capitol National Championship near Washington, D.C., in March and the Reach the Beach national competition, which carries a grand prize of $5,000, in Ocean City, Md., in February, Shaffner said.

In the past, the squad has earned national titles at both major competitions, Shaffner said.

Cumberland Perry Vocational Technical School

• When social studies teacher Lindsey Troup spent six weeks teaching in Uganda over the summer, textbooks were hard to find. There was one textbook for each class, locked in the principal’s office, she said.

Now Troup and her students at the Cumberland Perry Vocational Technical School are holding a book drive for children in northern Uganda through the organization Invisible Children.

The class has collected more than 1,000 textbooks to benefit the all-boys Sir Samuel Baker High School in Gulu, Uganda, Troup said. The donations came from the vo-tech school as well as from its affiliated school districts, Troup said.

The books will be shipped to Uganda through Invisible Children at the end of January, Troup said. Of the 1,500 schools participating across the country, Cumberland Perry Area Vocational Technical School is currently ranked 12th in number of donations, Troup said.

For more information, contact Troup at ltroup@cpavts.org or 697-0354.