South school briefs

New principal to start at Farmington High School this summer The Farmington School District announced Thursday that it has hired a new principal for Farmington High School to replace the retiring Monica Kittock-Sargent at the end of the school year.

Ben Kusch, currently the assistant principal at Tartan Senior High School in Oakdale, holds a master's degree in teaching from the University of St. Thomas and earned his administrative license at the University of Minnesota.

He will start as principal this summer and will spend one year on the job before the school moves into a new building, which is under construction.

Winner of space camp scholarship announced Megan Auge, a ninth-grade student at Lakeville South High School, was awarded the Brad Boyum Memorial Scholarship, the Boyum family announced Thursday. The scholarship will cover airfare and tuition for an eight-day camp at the U.S. Space and Rocket Center starting July 25 in Huntsville, Ala.

This is the 20th and final year of the memorial scholarship. The Boyum family has sent a ninth-grade student from Lakeville to the space camp since their 14-year-old son, Brad, died in 1988.

Mary Ann Boyum, Brad's mother, said Auge was chosen from about a dozen applicants.

Lakeville North wins mock trial championship A team from Lakeville North High School won the 2008 state mock trial championship on Wednesday, and it will represent Minnesota at the national championship in Wilmington, Del., in May.

Since January, more than 1,500 students from Minnesota high schools have argued the case of a state seeking to forfeit a resident's property, alleging that the resident used his or her real property in the sale of controlled substances.

Board approves artificial turf at Lakeville North The Lakeville school board last week approved a bid to replace the grass on the football field at Lakeville North High School with artificial turf.

The project, which also includes work on the softball field, will cost $1.4 million and will be paid with funds left from the construction of Lakeville South High School, said district spokesperson Linda Swanson.

The proposal met with opposition from some Lakeville residents, who argued that the district could put the money to better uses such as replacing outdated technology. The board approved the plan on a 5-1 vote, with Board Member Michelle Volk voting no.

Kenwood Trail team wins state competition Kenwood Trail Middle School took home first place at the state Science Olympiad competition March 8. Students competed in 18 science and engineering events, with Kenwood Trail team members bringing home top-three medals in seven. The school's team, made up of sixth-, seventh- and eighth-grade students, will move on to the national competition at George Washington University in Washington, D.C., on May 29 and June 1.