January 2010

Vo.lume 1, Issue 1

Inside this issue: WMS Food Drive 2

Positive Happenings at 2 WMS

WMS Yearbook 2

WES Interactive 3

Whlteboards

Mustangs Get Hooked 3

on Learning

A Note From Nurse 3

Nancy Downing

National Youth Leader 4

o{theYeat

Athletic Hall of Fame 4

First Team AII·Ohio 4

Football

WHS Important Dates 4

Missi'on?.atefi(f!ijt

Message from Jim Brady, Superintendent

With the 2009 portion of this school year corning to art end, I thought I would take a few minutes to review some of what has occurred so far this year. If y01,1 were not aware, Westfall received an "Excellent'tratinq on the state report card. Our district is also participating in the Ohio.

ImprovementProcess, which focuses on academic achieve- ment for all students and pro- vides a systematic approach toward improving instructional practices district-wide. Two waiver days were granted by ODE to conductprofessional development for the district. The next waiver day is Feb; 12th. Students will not report to school that day so please ma:rk your calendars.

The donation of the new bleachers and press box com- pliments o.f the Westfall Educa- tion Foundation, Boosters, Athletic Department, cornmu- nitymembers and all who. donated, isa muchappreci- ated addition to the campus. "Thanks" to all involved.

Torn Timbrook (28 years) and Kevin Steward (4 years) stepped doWn as school board members. Emily Nelson (35 years) .and Leigh Ann Wright (26 years) retireg..from teach- ing at Westfall. .All four Will be missed by the s.tud?nt.s anci staff.

As you were probCl.biy "ware, there were many athletic ac- co.mplishmentl> by o.urspo.rts teams. One impressive fact you might not have been aware o.f was that there were 2.6 juniors and senio.rs whb received Academic AlI-SVC hono.!s. This requires a cumu" lativ.e GpAof 3.25 o.{ higher.

The High School Marching B.andand Drill Team qualified and Co.mpeted at the State competitio.n, where they earned aI) "ExceUent" rating.

Hopefully, you had a chance to.

attend the Christmas Choir and Band concert, It was fabulous. The play written by the senior Swing Choir members follow- ing the concert, was one- ofthe best I have ever seen.

The Westfall FFA Chapter Par- liamentary Procedure Team recently placed lst with a go.ld rating at the sub-district and 4th with a silver rating at the district level. The competition tested members' skills in con- ducting a business meetinq accordinq to Robert's Rules of Order. Ian Fausnauqhand Gracie Hurley served as chair- men of this year's team.

The Math, Science and Tech- no.lo.gy Expo was attended by many. I was notable to. attend, but heard nothing but praise about the event. Our Vet- eran's Day ceremonies were impressive as well.

With the continued emphasis on "No Child Left Behind," all districts, including Westfall, struggle to. provide the type of education that is not only re- quired put that ourstudents deserve while wo.rking with less mo.ney. With the passage o.f the Arnelican Recovery and Reirtvestment ,8.ct (?) in 2009, Westfall was given ac- cess to. five (5) poo.ls of mo.n_ey (separate from the General FUnd) designated fo.r educa-. tio.n refo.J;m or to. hire person- nel. With the caution from ARRAthat tlte district needs to be· able to maintain ahynew emplo.yees hired with this stimulus mo.neywhen it ends i:tJ. two. years, we cho.se to.

spend the majority on educa- tional reform.

We are now ten yeCl.rS into the 21 sf century and the district was able to use the sfimulus mo.ney to. impro.veLin the area o.f tec.hno.logy. A o.ne to one Co.mputet repla.cement district- wide with software upgrades

such as Study Island, Brain POP, Statfall, PBS Online for Kids, Measure Up, Read please, Dreamweaver and Open Mind Suite, interactive whitebo.ardsandlapto.p mo- bile carts to. be used in the classroomsare some of the improvements in technolo.gy provided with the stimulus money. ARM also paid for a

vehicle to transport our special needs students educated out- side of our district,

AJ; you are aware, the district has go.ne through Significant financial cuts. Due to the ARM stimulus mo.ney, we are able to provide the up-to-date tech- no logy and professicnal devel- opment that the students and staffrequire to. remain. com- petitive.in today's technoloqy driven world without spending mo.ney from the General Fund. The General Fund is what drives the operations of our school district and the financial outlook for Westfall over the next five years is bleak. The School Board, Treasurer and I feel there is a significant need toapproach our voting corn- muruty with tl::le hope of having a successful levy campCiign to.

bring financial stability back to Westfall. Y o.ur involvement in the type o.f levy to be put QIl the ballo.tin.May is critical and we ns-ed yo.ur input. TWo COm- munity-Wide levy meefings are scheduledfo.t January 26th at 7:00 p. mand February 2nd at 8:00 p. m. Bo.th meetings will be held in the Elementary Schoo.l Cafeto.rium.· We loo.k forward to. your invo.lvement

Levy Meetings:

January 26th 7:00 p. m.

February 2nd 8:00 p. m. Elementary School Cafetorium

Middle School Student Council Food Drive The Student Council sponsored their annual food drive during the month of

December. This year they joined the high school Student Council in order to participate in the county food drive with other schools. There was a battle between all county schools to see which district could gather the most food items. Students were asked to

bring in non-perishable items to do- nate to a local church. The church makes food baskets to help people in need from our community. This is a

community service project for the

entire school headed by the Student Council. Approximately 600 items were donated this year from the mid- dle school. This is the first major pro- ject the Student Council does each year. The following students are a

part ef the WMS Student Council: Chase Adams, Kaitlin Clark, Josh Tru- man, Indigo Andril(o, Baylea Lyle, Veronica Satterfield, Justin Henry; Helen Hueqemann, Kali Park, Drew Glick, Lindsey Wolfe, Savannah

Positive Happenings at WMS

The staff and students at the Middle School are having a positive school

year. Each rnorninqthe students re- ceive a boisterous greeting by Miss

"T," Ms. Metzger, Ms. Smith and Ms.

Payne. The students look forward to "Shark Friday" which is a treat spon- sored by Miss "T." To end our "Wacky Color Wee'k" music greeted the students and everyone joined in the fun to display favorite college colors. The week was an incentive to

give the students a chance to express

Middle School Yearbook

The WMS yearbook staff has started its meetings (or the school year. There are nineteen 8th grade students

currently working on. thebeginrUngs ofthis year's yearbook under the di- reetionof Ms. Mary Haist. The stu- dents are currently learning how to use Photo Shop along with photoqra- phy. They will be.learninq to lise a

scanner and send pages via the inter-

themselves while having fun. Other incentives have been delicious ice

cream sundaes served by Mr. Shaw,

Ms. Payne and Ms. Smith during lunch periods to all students. On the Friday before winter break, the students

were treated toa movie at the high school. The students brought in a food item to assist with the Student Council food drive which gained them en- trance into the movie. It was a great way to end the week!

net to the yearbook company. They are learning marketing skills as they sell yearbooks to fellow students. Most importantly, they will work as a

team in order to meet deadlines. The students are in charge of proofread- ing, selling, surveying for "class picks and school picks," layouts and de- signs. It is a great Iearninq opportu- nity for all involved.

Smoyer, Ashley Salmons, Sierra VUl-

gamore, Rachel Griffith, Amanda O'Brien, Paul Jenkins, Parker Hughes, Emily Stevens, Haleigh Pence, Rachel Martin, Emily Barr, Zach Lemon, Amanda Curry, Summer Banks, McKenzie Music, Evan Hufford, Hali Schwalbach, Drew List KelsiDaniels, Eli Earich, Gina Rosshirt, Jessica

Miller, Jo:tdyn Hollenbeck, Garrett Exline and Shelby Smith.

Ms. Char Hott, Kyle Ratcliff and Nathaniel Petzel

"It is today we must create the

world of the future"

Eleanor Roosevelt

Interactive White boards Engage Learners Westfall Elementary School has been fortunate to use federal grant dollars to acquire thirteert interactive white- boards for elementary classrooms.

Mr. J. D, WUliamson, DistrictTechnol-

ogy Director, worked with prome- thean to install nine of the boards in primary classrooms through a "Try It, BuyIt" program where. they were sold to the district at a 50% discount. A

day of training was provided on site

py Promethean. Teachers using the

interactiveboards report high levels

of student engagement. Classes have been taught to use a wireless re- §ponse system allowing quick assess- tnenJ of understandinq.

Four SMARTboatds were installed in intermediate classrooms again using federal grant dollars. The school was limited to four by the available dol- lars, so teachers wanting the boards submitted applications. Boards were installed in the four classrooms scor- ing highest on a rubric developed for the applications. Grant.opportunities

Mustangs Get Hooked on Learning

This year's theme at the Elementary is

"Hooked.cn Leaminq." this theme was created and. voted on by WES

staff, -and the teachers have been im- plementing the theme into their class-

rooms. As our teachers prep ate en- gaging lessorrs-and activities, Ute

learning is contagious. We want all of our Mustangs to be "hooked on learn-, ing" new and important concepts. Of

course. when a Mustang shows a COm- mitment to school. community and learning, then he or she should be

recognized. During this school year. students will have an opportunity to

earn a WESMustang lanyard. Each

nine weeks a lanyard will be given to

.A Note From Nurse Nancy Downing The school year is half over and I

would like to take this time to say a

big THANK YOU to all my students, the staff and parents for cornrnunicat- ing pertinent information regarding the medical needs oJ our students. Dr. Deborah Fernandes has continued her services for our district by providing

an on-site medical clinic every Wednesday from 7:30 a. m, to 1.1:0Qa.

m, at the elementary school clinic. 8ervicesare provided for all grades Pre-K through 12. This does not take the 'Place of the child's pediatrician; it is just an additional service for the

parent and child. Paperwo_rk does

and available federal dollars are. ba- ing pursued to further implement this engaging technology in each elemen- tary classroom.

any student earning Perfect Atten- dance, Honor Roll or Student of the Mont!}. qfudents will also receive a

pin that can be "hooked" onto the lanyard. End oftheyear awards will include a gold medal for All Year Honor Rolland lUI Year Perfect Atten- dance that can also be "hooked" onto the lanyards. We hope to spread our Westfall pride and our commitment to

learning as we wear our Mustang lan- yards hooked with school awards!

need to be filled out prior to the office visit with a copy of the insurance cargo

Please-call 140-986-4008 to set up an

appointment.

Hfrnsl:lotsare now available to the

public. Call the local He?th Depart- mentat740-477-9667. e?t. 240 for times.

CURRENT RESIDENT OR

National Youth Leader of the Year

Gracie Hurley. a senior at WHS. was named "National Youth Leader of the Year" by the National Council on Youth Leadership (NCYL). She was recoqnized at the na- tional conference. "Town Meeting on Tomorrow" in St. Louis. MO. GraCie received $1.500 in scholarships for winning this prestigious award. Sherepresented Westfall andPickaway County at the conference and was selected as the National Youth Leader of the Year from a field of 66 young people from across fhe nation. Gracie was also awarded the "Team Spirit Award." Oonqratulations, Gracie!

Athletic Hall of Fame

Congratulations to the newest members- of the WestfaIIAthletic Hall of Fame.

Becky Barnes: 2000- Cross Country and Track; Melissa (Azpell) Rosales: 1982- Basketball; Kelsey (SChleich) Blackburn: 2:002-VolleybaU and Basketball; Paul

Athletic Hall of Fame newindue- Hoskins: Coach, Baseball. Ms. Barnes was tees and family members.

a member of the Class oi2QOO and was active in cross country. track .and basketball. Ms. Rosales (Azbell) was a .mern=

berof the Class of 1982 and Was active in basketball. Ms. Blackburn (Schleich) was a member of the Class of 2002 and was active in volleyball and basketball. All three ladies received numerous awards in each of the sports theypartici- pated. Mr. Paul Hoskins taught sciences and coachedbaseball and. basketball in the Westfall District. Mr. Hoskins was killed -in a car accident in 2009. His wife, Sylvia, and family members came to accept his award. Thank you to eve- .

ryone for coming to celebrate with all of these new members and their families.

Seniors

NON-PROFIT ORG US POSTAGE PAID

WILLIAMSPORT OH

PERMIT #11

Gracie Hurley and Mr. Brady

First Team All-Ohio

Football

Westfall Senior, Vinnie Williamson was named the Associated Press' First Team All-Ohio quarterback for his peffQrfu-

ance this year. Conqratulationsl

IMPORTANT DATES

Feb. 12?Waiver Day-No schoolfor students

Feb. 24 & Mar. 3-WHS PT Conferences Mar. 5 & 6-Gospel Sing Ma.r. l5?26?OG'1.' Week Mar. 26-28-5pring Musical

High School Seniors, be sure to check the guidance office for important dates and scholarship deadlines.

This newsletier was produced and printed in the Westfall Local SChool District by current staff members and students.