Off to a Great Start! Two weeks in to the new year and things are going very well. Reports from both campuses reflect a positive culture and climate as we begin the 2022-23 school year. Principals Widener and Tenney have their own challenges adjusting to more or less students respectively, and overall staff are positive and looking forward to a positive year ahead. Mrs. Widener reports, “Students are learning procedures and protocols to make the learning environment accessible for all students. The systems put in place last year have held successfully with the addition of the Middle School students.”
Harrah Campus Open House was held on Wednesday with a great turn out. Students were rewarded for “popping in” to Mrs. Ritchie’s class with a bag of popcorn and Mrs. Chanthavisay’s Bingo Game had students searching out clues from around the building. It was nice to see all of the excitement and energy in the building which is now a fully functioning PreK-through 8th grade building.
WSSDA hosted their State-wide lunch meeting this week and had Chris Reykdal as a special guest. The Superintendent’s main message to Board members throughout the state is that there is a bill before state law makers to return “timber money” back to local rural school districts where the funds have originated. I plan to campaign emphatically for this Bill once it is heard by both houses. This Bill will also be one of WSSDA’s top priorities for the year. Mr. Reykdal also spoke about his plan to have all districts to offer a dual language program for students in the near future.
The District hosted our first Migrant Parent meeting of the year. Mrs. Widener and I were able to attend this meeting with about five of our migrant families. The meeting was led by our Migrant Coordinator, Ms. Michelle Navarro. Based on my experience in the district, this was a well-attended and well-organized meeting. The outcome of the meeting was the establishment of the Parent Advisory Committee, which now has three parents as new members. A special thanks to these parents who agreed to serve in leadership positions.
This week at White Swan High School, Mrs. Tenney reports that they have participated in several spirit building campus wide activities. On Wednesday, students looked at the number of credits they need to graduate on time, and worked on either beginning or adding to their high school and beyond plan. Students also examined their progress towards graduation and made goals for the current school year. Our students are already planning for the September 8th open house by making a “Who am I” poster that they will be presenting to parents, aunties and uncles, as well as grandparents and other family members.
Football has begun practice and we are now at 38 strong. Our new girls’ soccer team has 15 players including five girls who will be coming up from 8th grade. They are a new but enthusiastic team. Volleyball has also started and we have both a varsity and JV team with about 20 players. Our twelve-member cheer team has also been practicing and will be ready for the games. NHS will continue broadcasting live and on-demand Volleyball, Soccer, and Football games. In order to give our students a chance to stay eligible, we are running the eligibility list a week ahead and then working with students that need to improve their grades. Entry into the games and matches will still be free this year, so we hope to create a lot of excitement and positive energy on campus. Go Cougars!