News & Announcements

 

As part of the Community Eligibility Provision, or CEP, every Cheney Public Schools student can receive one free breakfast and one free lunch each school day, regardless of household income. Our district is able to participate in the CEP following the passage of RCW 28A.235.300 by the Washington State Legislature in 2022.

But free meals are only part of the picture. 

Depending on eligibility, students and families may qualify for even more benefits, like SunBucks (Summer EBT), waived extracurricular fees, community discounts, fee waivers for college applications and admissions tests. Completing the Benefits Application also helps secure important funding and resources for schools across our district. 

So, how do you know if you qualify? You should complete the Benefits Application if any of the following apply to your household: 

• Your household income is at or below the amount listed for your household size in the chart below; 
• Your household receives Basic Food, TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families), or benefits through the Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations (FDPIR);
• You are applying on behalf of a foster child who is under the legal responsibility of a foster care agency or court.

The Benefits Application must be completed annually, so even if you were approved for the 2025-2026 school year, you must submit an application for the 2026-2027 school year. 

The application takes about 10 minutes to complete. Taking a few minutes to complete the Benefit Application can help your family access additional benefits, fee waivers, and discounts while also helping Cheney Public Schools receive funding and resources that support students across our district.  

To qualify for these additional benefits, families must complete both the Benefit Application AND a Parental Consent Survey. Visit the Nutrition Services Benefits Application and Consent to Share webpage for more information. 
 

 

The Cheney Police Department boasts a brand-new mural on the southeast wall of the building, the result of a series of unlikely connections between the department, Cheney Middle School, and local artist Sierra Athos of ST Window Painting. It all started with a sixth-grade ELA unit, Passion Projects.

For nearly her entire career, Cheney Middle School sixth-grade teacher Kyndle Palmer has been integrating Passion Projects in some form into her curriculum. As a student teacher at Salnave Elementary in the early 2010s, Palmer was first introduced to Passion Projects by current Salnave Principal Celina Brennan and Highly Capable Coordinator Ann Ottmar. Since transitioning to middle school nearly six years ago, Palmer has built the concept into what it is today.

“I kind of started playing around with it, maybe three or four years ago,” Palmer recounted. “Ainslee [Lemery] came down from seventh grade two years ago, and I just found that partner that was like, yeah, let’s do it. Since then, we’ve re-created what our sixth grade scope and sequence and curriculum looks like using Passion Projects.”

The duo currently have three different Passion Project units integrated into their sixth-grade ELA curriculum. The projects provide students with quite a bit of agency in their learning. There are some parameters and guiding questions, but ultimately the projects reflect the passions of students.

“We give them a rubric, essential questions to answer, some of those things, and then let them decide the topic,” Lemery said.

“I think that’s kind of the whole point of the Passion Project; it’s what they’re passionate about,” added Palmer. “So, it was really whatever they were passionate about to show their learning.”

The spring Passion Projects posed a question to students: How do you bring joy to and uplift the community in times of hardship? In early March, local community leaders visited CMS to share how they bring joy to the community in their positions. Mayor Elsa Martin spoke about park beautification and making green spaces more accessible; Athos of ST Window Painting spoke about bringing color and art to businesses across town; players from the Eastern Washington University football team spoke about how their role as student-athletes can unite the community through sports.

“Having guest speakers allows students to connect what they are doing in the classroom with the world around them,” Lemery said back in March. “We hope this inspires students to see themselves as key members of their community who can have a positive impact, regardless of their age.”

Both Lemery and Palmer had no idea that these spring Passion Projects would lead to a real community service opportunity.

It just so happened that 24 students–12 from each class–independently chose the theme of community art as the topic of their Passion Project. Coincidentally, at the same time, Cheney Police Chief Chris Oakes wanted to add a collection of murals to the southeast exterior wall of the police station, and he wanted to have community kids involved in the process. ST Window Painting’s Sierra Athos–who spoke to sixth graders earlier in March–was slated to create the murals for Oakes, and her connection with CMS brought the entire project together.

“I loved the sixth graders,” Athos recalled. “They were awesome, and I had just presented to them [about bringing joy to the community]. Then I told the police chief, and he goes, ‘Perfect! Let’s do [the project] with the sixth graders.’”

Athos reached out to her CMS connection, student teacher Janise Cross, who was able to get her in touch with Palmer and Lemery. From there, just a few field trip logistics needed to be finalized, permission slips signed, and the opportunity for those 24 students to bring their Passion Projects to life became a reality.

“It was so funny because when we were starting, we were like, who knows what will come of this?” Lemery said. “Maybe we’ll actually get to do some of these projects these kids come up with. We don’t know! We don’t even know what they’re going to make, and then we ended up getting to.”

A smaller core group of six students met with Athos to help design the mural, working off a template that they then made uniquely their own. The group integrated a police badge, the Earth, and local wildlife into the final mural design.

“I was actually there for the [design] process,” Palmer said. “She really listened to the kids and what they had wanted. And so, that’s why I’m pretty excited that they got to have a voice in that.”

All 24 students who created Passion Projects based on community art were invited to participate in painting the mural, which took place after school on May 26, 27, and 28. Athos prepped and readied the space for painting ahead of time, leaving plenty of opportunity for students to paint.

“Since it was such a small space, we had to break it up into multiple days,” Athos said. “I wanted to make sure each student had a decent amount of work to do, rather than being bored.”

About eight students reported to the mural site each day, beginning with mapping out the design, forming shapes with chalk, and filling in background colors, followed by more detail on subsequent days. Athos taught students how to hold a palette, the importance of cleaning brushes and tools, and the basics of mural painting.

“It feels really cool to know that you were a part of something that people can look at and appreciate,” sixth grader Piper Zacher said. “And, for certain people, feel heard, just by looking at something that you helped create.”

Today, the first of about 20 planned murals is completed on the southeast wall of the Cheney Police Station. Athos and Chief Oakes hope to have sixth graders included in creating the mural every single year.

“We all worked very hard, and now it’s done,” said sixth grader Grace Ulbright. “I’ve actually heard that Sierra [Athos] every year wants more sixth graders to keep doing murals on that building, so you can just see how they evolve over time. I’m excited to see that over the years.”