On October 9th, students in Kindergarten to Fifth grade learned about bus safety which included rules and expectations while riding on a school bus. Bill and Gayle Hemmler, who own and drives buses for Western Wayne, along with Officer Robbins from the Western Wayne School Police Department spoke with all students. We thank these individuals for their time and expertise!
The National Honor Society is conducting our annual food and toy drive for the upcoming holiday season. Food and toy collection boxes are now in the various offices and classrooms. Please drop off donations. Food donations go to the Wayne County food pantry and the Ronald McDonald House. All toy donations go to the Wayne County Christmas Bureau.
Local students had the chance to work hands-on with a 3D-printing machine, robots, and dissection tools among many other things at the 5th annual Women in Science Symposium hosted by the Wayne Pike Workforce Alliance and the Lacawac Sanctuary& Biological Field Station on September 17 at the Woodloch Pines Resort.
Western Wayne was one of the schools present at the event along with Delaware Valley, Wayne Highlands, Valley View, MMI Preparatory School, and Wallenpaupack Area. Over 300 students attended the event. The keynote speaker this year was Dr. Katie Leonard, president of Johnson College.
The purpose of the event was to give students, like women, minorities and other underdeveloped groups, information on STEM career paths, which stands for Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics education. Students met with representatives from local colleges to discuss career options, hear presentations from female, working professionals and had the opportunity to speak with these professionals after the presentations finished.
Female students from both the Western Wayne middle and high schools had the chance to attend the event.
The high school students from Western Wayne in attendance who have attended the event for multiple years prior said this was the best symposium yet.
“It was all very interactive and hands-on,” Alexandria Bien-Aime, a sophomore at Western Wayne, explained. “I want to be a surgeon so I was particularly interested in the station where I got to use tools to dissect animals.”
Alexandria’s classmate Hudson Malinowski also liked the unique hands-on stations at the symposium.
“I got to work with a robot and program it to play music,” Hudson, who wishes to pursue a career in music, said.
The students explained how there were many different colleges represented at the event and that they were able to explore different majors.
Sophomore Mia Rovinsky especially enjoyed the college fair portion of the event.
“It was good to hear other students’ questions and concerns about the STEM field in the question and answer sessions,” Mia, who wants to be a doctor, said.
Mia’s classmate sophomore Rachel Tuman also enjoyed taking advantage of all of the information about colleges and STEM at the symposium.
“I think the experience helped us all to refine our knowledge,” Rachel, who wishes to pursue a career in forensic science, said. “I enjoyed seeing all of the people there willing to help propel us into a science career.”
From left: Western Wayne sophomores Hudson Malinowski, Alexandria Bien-Aime, Rachel Tuman, and Mia Rovinsky.
Western Wayne Middle School Administration has recognized Samantha Duval and Luckus Balmer as outstanding sixth grade students for the month of October.
Samantha enjoys her library and science classes best this year. She loves to read especially mystery and romance books. In her science class, she likes reading and learning about the earth. When she grows up, Samantha would like to be a veterinarian, and, therefore, she knows she will need to know a lot about science.
In addition, when Samantha isn’t reading. She can be found practicing her flute. “I’ve always loved music and love to play the flute,” Samantha said.
In her spare time, Samantha does more reading. Two of her current favorite books are A Dog’s Purpose and Wonder.
As a hobby Samantha likes to make rubber band jewelry for her family and friends. “It makes me happy that I’m making other people happy,” Samantha explained.
Luckus also likes to make others happy in school by showing them respect. He said he is working hard this year to participate in his classes especially his math class.
When Luckus isn’t answering discussion questions in his classes, he can be found practicing his trombone in band class.
“I like to play in band where I get to work on my music with a lot of kids who are really good at their instruments,” Luckus said.
In addition to band class, Luckus also enjoys his technology education class. He explained how they are working on a windmill project made of Legos. Luckus likes to do hands-on work.
In Luckus’ spare time he continues to work on his music skills.
“I practice my trombone in my spare time, because that way I will get better at it,” Luckus explained.
Western Wayne faculty, administration, and staff are proud of both Samantha and Luckus’ accomplishments and wish them the best with their continued efforts for success.
Western Wayne students learned about the physics, artistic qualities, and chemical properties of glass among many other things when the mobile glass studio based out of Keystone College visited on Thursday, Sept. 26 and Friday, Sept. 27. Approximately 678 middle and high school students viewed the mobile glass laboratory, and 49 students had the unique opportunity of taking part in an individual hands-on demonstration.
The mobile glass studio is the only one of its kind in the region and is sponsored by the Dorflinger Glass Museum and Keystone College. Funding for the mobile glass laboratory comes from donations to the Dorflinger Glass Museum by corporations under the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development EITC program. The companies get tax credits for donations that support innovative educational programs such as the glass studio.
The glass studio last visited Western Wayne in November of 2017 and the district was thrilled to host this experience for its students again. Mark Nebzydoski, high school science teacher at Western Wayne, played a key role in planning this event. He believes that Western Wayne science students greatly benefit from unique educational opportunities such as this.
“It’s meaningful for students to learn about glass through these visual and hands-on demonstrations,” Nebzydoski said. “They get to have an educational experience that they wouldn’t have anywhere else.”
Keystone faculty member Brandon Smith, an advanced glass instructor and studio technician from Factoryville, was one of the teachers from the college that led the Western Wayne students through their experience with the mobile glass lab.
Smith explained how this glass lab is a part of Keystone’s STEAM project and that he helped to build the lab with various students from different parts of the world.
“The main goal of this project is to present information to students,” Smith said. “We want to show kids that with a single material you can drive yourself into many different careers.”
Smith explained that students who study glass can go into fields such as museum archaeology, architecture, chemical laboratory work, laser technology work, and so many other areas.
Seniors Cooper Mistishin, Matt Rosengrant, and Max Phillips had the opportunity to learn from Smith and Michael Swanson, who teaches an introduction to glass course at Keystone College. The boys participated in the individual hands-on glass demonstrations.
Cooper was surprised at the intensity of the heat used to mold the glass.
“It was interesting to see the differences in the glass from when it was really hot to when it cooled,” Cooper explained. “When it was warm it looked like all of the glass was blended together and when it cooled you could see its shape better.”
Cooper, who plans to study computer science in college, was glad to have this experience and especially liked molding the glass.
His classmate Matt Rosengrant also had fun molding glass during the demonstration.
“I liked how hands on the demonstration was and how they allowed us to shape the glass,” Matt, who plans to study electrical construction after graduation, said.
Senior Max Phillips agreed that having this experience was particularly helpful for him as a student because of everything he was able to see and do.
“I’ve never done anything like this before,” Max, who plans to study computer science in college, said. “I enjoyed learning about the properties of glass and how it works.”
In addition, Keystone College admissions counselor Colin Dempsey admitted three Western Wayne students to Keystone during the glass blowing event at the school. He read their transcripts and gave them admissions letters on the spot.
Nebzydoski and the Western Wayne community are excited for the prospects of having the mobile glass lab return for future learning events at Western Wayne.
In the meantime, Keystone College invites the public to their Keystone College Glass Harvest Sale and Glass Pumpkin Patch event from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on October 12 at their campus lawn. There will be live glass blowing at this event.
The October edition of Scholarships & Career Opportunities is now available. All grades should read this document to get information on college, careers, important dates, SAT/ACT exams and of course…scholarships!
Click here…
The Western Wayne School District hosted a very successful 12th Bi-Annual Cavalcade of Bands on the evening of Wednesday, Sept. 25. The stadium was standing room only. A total of eleven schools participated including: Dallas, Dunmore, Delaware Valley, Honesdale, Mid Valley, North Pocono, Northwest Area, Valley View, Wallenpaupack, West Scranton, and Western Wayne. Many coats also were donated at the event for “Warming Up Wilson.” Western Wayne would like to thank all schools who participated and all in the community who came out to support our local marching bands.
Misericordia University (October 8th) and East Stroudsburg University (October 28th) will host Instant Decision Days at Western Wayne High School. Seniors will apply to either school, meet with an admissions representative…and get their decision immediately (see flyers for more details).
Good Afternoon,
This message is to inform you that there was a situation between two middle school students today in which an inappropriate statement was made. The situation was immediately addressed by school personnel. I am sharing this information with you to prevent any miscommunication. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me on Monday.
Have a great weekend,
School Police Department participates in specialized, hands-on training.August 21, 2026This summer members of the Western Wayne School Police Department participated in specialized, hands-on training at the Pennsylvania School Safety Institute (PennSSI) to strengthen emergency readiness and threat response protocols.
Interactive Crisis Simulations: Officers engaged with PennSSI’s state-of-the-art multi-room simulator and 360-degree augmented reality technology, experiencing realistic emergency scenarios to test real-time decision-making and spatial awareness.
De-escalation & Tactical Response: The sessions emphasized practical de-escalation tactics, threat management, and building muscle memory for high-stress situations occurring on school grounds.
Crisis Communication & Incident Command: Training covered coordinated communication strategies within the Incident Command Structure, aligning police tactics with district administration and emergency management partners.
Behavioral Threat Assessment: Personnel expanded their knowledge on identifying concerning student behaviors, threat assessment frameworks, and applying trauma-informed protocols to keep schools secure without sacrificing a supportive environment.
This immersive training underscores Western Wayne’s ongoing commitment to proactive school safety, ensuring officers are equipped with the latest techniques to protect students, staff, and the surrounding school community. [...]
Senior Competes at FBLA National Leadership ConferenceJuly 6, 2026Western Wayne senior Grady Farley represented the school and the WW FBLA chapter at the FBLA National Leadership Conference in San Antonio, Texas, the week of June 29th.
Grady earned the opportunity to compete at the national level in the Agribusiness event, where he demonstrated his knowledge, preparation, and professionalism among FBLA students from across the country. Competing at nationals is an outstanding accomplishment, and the district is proud of Grady’s hard work and dedication.
Pictured is Grady Farley at the FBLA National Leadership Conference. [...]
High School Student Secures Spot on the Great Wall of HonesdaleJuly 6, 2026Western Wayne High School junior Archer Long has secured a coveted spot on the Great Wall of Honesdale with his painting entitled 250 Years Under One Flag.This year’s competition theme, 2026: American Perspective, inspired artists to explore the nation’s history, identity, and future through original works of art. Archer’s selected painting is an American depiction of our nation’s history, illustrating the symbolism of westward expansion and industrial progress. It reflects the idea that our country’s freedom was forged through sacrifice and hard work, honoring the generations whose perseverance helped shape the United States.Each selected piece is digitally reproduced on an impressive 11-by-17-foot billboard vinyl panel and exhibited for one year at the intersection of 4th and Main Streets in Honesdale, Pennsylvania.More than a decade after its inception, the Great Wall of Honesdale has evolved from showcasing primarily local artists into a juried international exhibition featuring entries from around the world. The installation is enjoyed by the occupants of more than 5 million vehicles that pass the site each year and has become a popular tourist destination. Both the exhibition theme and artwork change annually, while each year’s collection remains permanently accessible online through the Wayne County Arts Alliance, where visitors can also learn more about each exhibiting artist. Please visit the website for more information: https://waynecountyartsalliance.org/windows-on-the-wall/Congratulations to Archer Long on this outstanding artistic achievement and the opportunity to share his work with thousands of visitors throughout the coming year.Pictured is Archer Long, Western Wayne High School junior, who secured a coveted spot on the Great Wall of Honesdale and is shown standing below his painting 250 Years Under One Flag. [...]
