WillardPublicSchools
 Student Focused | Strongly Connected | Success Driven
The Pride
April 22, 2016
In This Issue
Quick News
 
As we head toward the end of the school year, it's time to start thinking about summer school.  Get more info and register here.

 
Willard was recently recognized by the National Association of Music Merchants Foundation as one of the Best Communities for Music Education. Only two districts in Missouri received the designation, Willard and Liberty.
Willard Parks
   
       
District Office
Public Service at it's Best!

Public Service is such an important part of our community / state / country.  Our society is structured so that many aspects of government are "overseen" by a group of volunteers.  If people do not step forward and serve then this process fails to be impartial.  Evidence of this occurs in our community with the City Board of Aldermen / Park Board / Fire District Board / Church Boards / Educational Foundation Boards / etc....   The Board of Education is one of the most important examples of public service.   I would like to thank Dr. Devon Jarvis for his past service on the Willard BOE.   His leadership presented a positive, level headed, intelligent, common sense approach to the position.  He has shared that he will likely choose to serve again in the future and I will look forward to that occurring.   Filling Dr. Jarvis's open seat is Dr. Janell Royal.  Dr. Royal is a familiar face in Willard Schools.  Her experience in education spans in excess of 30+ years.  I believe she has a deep understanding of how public schools operate and best practice in BOE service.  I look forward to her continued contributions to Willard Schools.
 
Have a great weekend!

Dr. Medlin
Athletics & Activities
To say that our Tigers had a great week would be....well....and understatement!  Lets get to the results:

A huge congratulations to Coach Larson and the entire track and field teams on making history last night!  The girls finished in 2nd place as a team which is the highest team finish for the girls program EVER in the Jason Pyrah Invitational.  Then the boys team decided to go ahead and bring home the championship of the Jason Pyrah!  Not only is this the first time we have won the meet but it is also the first team championship in track and field for Willard since 2011.  Great job Tigers!
Next week they will travel to Republic on Thursday.  Here are the individual results from the meet:
Girls Results:
Girls Team 2nd Place in Class 4-5 Division
Brooklyn Bolin 1st Pole Vault 
Mystiana Sutton, Krissy Pharr, Naz Abihudi, and Kaitlyn Williams 1st in the Girls 4x100m Relay
Kaitlyn Williams 1st in the 200m Dash
Abby Woods 1st in the Pole Vault
Savannah Yeargan 1st in the Discus
Sarah Crain 3rd in the 300m Hurdles

Boys Results:
Boys Team 1st Place in Class 4-5 Division
Ryan Kern 2nd in the 200m Dash and 3rd in the Long Jump
Josh McGuire 2nd in the Shot Put
Josh McGuire 2nd in the Discus
Nate Swadley 2nd in the Javelin and 3rd in the Discus
Zach Manes 3rd in the 1600m Run
Corbin White 3rd in the 100m Dash
Wayd Davis, Corbin White, Brock Howard, and Ryan Kern 3rd in the 4x100m Relay

The baseball Tigers had a big win for the program last Saturday as they defeated nationally ranked Francis Howell 3-2.  They followed that up with a conference win over COC foe Republic last night.  The Tigers are now 14-8 on the season and 3-2 in the conference.  The Tigers will be at Hillcrest tomorrow for a double header vs. Hillcrest and Ash Grove.  They will continue conference play next week as they travel to Branson on Tuesday and host Ozark on Thursday.

And what about our golfers?.....Well they only finished in 1st place in the Greene Hills Invitational yesterday!  Here are the individual results:
Team Score: 346
Team Place: 1st out of 8
Individuals
Taylor Hession - 83 (Tied for 3rd)
Jacob Shackelford - 85 (Tied for 5th)
Sage Whiting - 86 (8th)
Brayden Swearengin - 92
Damian Engelbrecht - 103
Ben Zweerink - 99
Nathan MacLaughlin - 117

The soccer Tigers had a huge win over conference opponent, Carthage, this week and are now 3-0 in the COC and 7-6 on the season!  The girls are on the road next week as they travel to Republic on Tuesday and to Monett on Thursday.  Good luck ladies!

It's Good To Be A Tiger!

Curt Graves
Principal
High School
State testing and selling prom tickets has been the emphasis at WHS this week.  On Tuesday, students participated in ACT day organized by the counseling staff.  A college and career fair was also available to students in the afternoon that day.  We want to thank all of those that participated taking time out of their busy schedules to come to the high school and visit with our students. 

Wednesday through Friday
, student groups completed End of Course exams in Algebra 1, English 2, Biology, and Government.  Mr. Burns and a host of others have organized and supported this massive undertaking.  During important times and irregular days, the positive character and excellent work ethic of staff and students always shines!

Prom tickets went on sale on Monday, April 18.  Tickets are being sold at $25 and may be purchased by students during lunch.  Detailed information about date, times, locations, as well as other details can be accessed through the WHS website.  Mrs. Keeth is doing a superb job working with students and organizing what is expected to be an excellent event!

It is GREAT to be a Tiger!  

Curt Graves
Principal
Middle School
WOW, what an art show last Friday night!   WHS hosted the BIG Show for the art students across the district.  I was truely impressed with the high quality of projects that were on display. It was amazing to see the talent that we have across the district.  Thank you to Mrs. Treadway, WMS art teacher, for her guidance in helping shape these young artists.

The WMS Speech and Debate team wrapped up the season on Saturday, April 16 at the Southwest Missouri Speech and Theater Association regional tournament at Republic Middle School.  With three strong competitors, the team earned a 5th place overall finish.  Matthew Wilkinson received 4th place recognition in Radio Speaking out of 20 competitors and also earned 4th place in Storytelling.  Justin Albright also had a strong finish in Radio Speaking coming in at 6th place.

The previous week, the team competed at the Marshfield Invitational tournament, also earning 5th place overall.  The Improvisational Duet Acting team of Matthew Bishop and Matthew Wilkinson earned a 4th place finish and Wilkinson received a 4th place finish in Radio Speaking.  The Public Forum Debate team, competing in their first ever debate event, won 2 debates and lost 2 debates, earning a position in the quarterfinals, where they lost in a very close 2-1 decision over the #1 seeded, undefeated team from Republic.

This was a tremendously successful season that saw the students grow immeasurably in their speaking and presentation skills.  We wish the team of "Matthew Squared" great success at the high school, and look forward to seeing Justin's successes grow next year.

Please come out and join the Speech and Debate team next year and enjoy the fun!!!

Amy Sims
Principal
Intermediate

Orchard Hills
The year is winding down but we are still focusing on learning. It's really nice when our students get to learn while doing something they enjoy and really care about. Nearly a month ago, the students in Ms. Bowen's 3rd grade class were working on writing persuasive letters. A couple of students chose to write a letter to Dr. Medlin in hopes of persuading him to invest in our playground. Dr. Medlin received those letters and responded. He asked the students to put together a proposal of the things they would like to see added or improved upon on the Orchard Hills playground. 

Ms. Bowen and her students took this opportunity and made the most of it. The class worked to develop two different proposals for improvements. Below you can see a picture of just one of the presentations. I was fortunate enough to be able to attend their presentations and hear their thoughts on what could be improved. The good news is, their work will not be in vain. We will be working to make their improvement plan come to life in the next few months. I am thankful for Dr. Medlin's willingness to invest in this project and I am even more thankful for this meaningful learning experience for our students.


Have a blessed weekend,

Dr. Prevo
Principal
 
Central
Last week, our students finished up the Willard Central Cup Stacking Championship. Students from 2nd-4th grade practiced through PE, recess time and at home to prepare for the challenge.  Congratulations to our students on their hard work and congratulations to Peyton Gayer for being the fastest stacker! 


A special thank you to Mrs. Mello for helping display all of our students' art work at the High School last week for The Big Show.  It was a great evening to celebrate our students' hard work and talents.  We are looking forward to the WC Fine Arts Night on May 5th to see more great student artwork!

Looking to the coming weeks, please mark your calendars for May 6th for our school's 20 Year Celebration.  We want to invite our community, parents and former staff members to join us to honor the past and future of our school.  Please see the information below and we hope you can join us for a great day to celebrate 20 years of learning!

Dr. Shane Medlin
Principal
East

North

South
This week our 3rd and 4th graders rocked the MAP test.  They worked hard to show off all that they have learned in class. We are very proud of our students and teachers for all of their efforts.

Our 4th grade BOYS group will have a busy night filled with lots of activities on Tuesday, April 26th at 6:00.  This evening will be filled with guest speakers, dodge ball games, strong man show, food, drinks and more.  Don't miss this exciting evening!

Our end of the year dance is scheduled for Thursday, May 5th from 6:00-7:30.  We will have music, dancing, food, drinks and plenty of games to play.  This is a school wide event for the entire family. We hope you are able to attend and can help us celebrate another amazing year at Willard South.  

Coach Ferguson has been working hard to plan our field day event. Mark you
calendar for May 11th.  We will have K-2nd graders in the morning and 3rd-4th in the afternoon.  We will have a day filled with games outside and inflatables in the gym.  If you would like to help with this event, please contact [email protected].  

Have a great weekend and enjoy the sunshine!

Kara Crighton-Smith
Principal
Special Education
Recently, I had the privilege of participating in the Council for Exceptional Children's National Conference held in St. Louis, MO along with two teachers from our district, Allison Tourville and Wendy Climer. 

Over 4,000 educators from across the world (yes, world) came together to share research, innovative programs/ideas and network. One of the highlights for me personally was being present at the opening session and hearing Temple Grandin speak.  She gave us incredible personal insight on autism since she herself experiences this. I would encourage you to take a look at her website where she shares all about her life.  http://www.templegrandin.com

The information and networking at this conference will be used to continue to improve our special education and related services for all students with disabilities.  In the spirit of April Autism Awareness, here are some facts you might be interested to know.

Autism facts.

- 1 in 88 U.S. children has been identified with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD).
- 1 in 85 Colorado children is affected by the disorder.
- The national estimated prevalence of ASDs increased 78 percent between 2002 and 2008.
- ASDs were found to affect almost five times as many boys as girls.
- The majority (62 percent) of children with ASDs did not have intellectual disabilities.

Have a great weekend!

Caryn McDonnell
Director of Special Services 
Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment




Willard Public Schools | 417-742-2584
500 E Kime
Willard, MO 65781