Students from a variety of local schools have the opportunity to participate in an educational forum in which they can learn about the environment and collaborate with each other throughout the 2023-24 school year. Students from Western Wayne, Carbondale Area, Forest City, Lackawanna Trail, Lakeland, Mountain View, Old Forge, Riverside, and Wayne Highlands have already started their journey in this exciting, educational experience.
Each school will have a team of five students and a teacher-advisor. The forum will engage students through place-based educational field experiences and hands-on investigations.
For the month of February the students participated in a trip to the Lackawanna College Environmental Education Center.
“I really feel like my experiences through the Watershed Program are helping me to expand my knowledge of science,” Madelyn McClure, freshman said.
From left, Western Wayne students: Audrey Agnello, Sofia Ochlan, Madelyn McClure, and Abigail Bell.
Cheers filled the Western Wayne Middle School Gym during the annual Student vs. Faculty Basketball Game on the morning of Friday, February 16.
This year as a special treat both the middle school principal Mrs. Jennifer Bradley and the middle school assistant principal Mr. Matthew Barr participated in the game. The event was a morale booster for both students and staff.
The entire middle school student body and staff enjoyed watching the friendly yet intense game and are excited to attend the event again in years to come.
Picture One: Mrs. Jennifer Bradley, middle school principal, plays on the court with her students and staff.
Picture Two: The Western Wayne Junior High Cheerleaders entertain the crowd at the game.
The Western Wayne Middle School, Western Wayne High School, and Liberty Middle School Bands joined together on Tuesday, February 6, to participate in a one-of-a-kind clinic and exhibition concert sponsored by the KHS America Academic Alliance.
After working tirelessly on the festival music in their own schools, band students from the two districts met for the first time as a band early on the morning of the event and spent the day getting to know one another through music. Under the baton of esteemed clinician Dr. Peter L. Boonshaft, the students had the opportunity to collaborate and learn festival rehearsal techniques to take back to their schools.
Dr. Boonshaft, Director of Education for KHS America, is the author of the critically acclaimed best-selling books Teaching Music with Passion, Teaching Music with Purpose, and Teaching Music with Promise. He was honored by the National Association for Music Education and Music For All as the first recipient of the “George M. Parks Award for Leadership in Music Education.” Dr. Boonshaft was selected for the Center for Scholarly Research and Academic Excellence at Hofstra University in Hempsted, NY, where is Professor Emeritus of Music.
The culminating exhibition concert was free and open to the public and very well attended.
Western Wayne Assistant Superintendent Dr. Cynthia LaRosa gave the opening address to the audience and welcomed Dr. Boonshaft and the students and staff of Liberty Middle School to Western Wayne. She told the crowd she hoped they would “experience what can happen when students are motivated and inspired and to enjoy the magic of music.”
The audience certainly did enjoy the magic of music that afternoon being first treated to a variety of musical selections performed by the Pride of Western Wayne, the High School Marching Band. Then they experienced the truly unique musical collaboration of Western Wayne Middle School and Liberty Middle School students playing together after having worked with the esteemed Dr. Boonshaft.
“What happened here today is because of dedicated teachers,” Boonshaft told the audience. “Music allows someone to gaze into the infinite, and today I spent a few hours gazing into the eyes of the infinite with these talented students and their teachers. They are the future of music.”
The Western Wayne School District congratulations its 2023-24 FBLA State Qualifiers that will be competing at the State Leadership Conference in Hershey this April.
L – R Top Row:
Weston Nugent, Adrian Agnello, Graysen Valinski, Connor Bryant, David Elias, Jamie Chapman, Hunter Smith, Kayden Peifer, Logan Pauler, and Paul Borowski.
On February 7, 2024, the Western Wayne School Counseling Department held their 339 Advisory Council Meeting. Dr. Jill Murray, President of Lackawanna College, presented to the stakeholders on the “New Collar Economy”. The NCE is creating many opportunities for the people, especially students, of Northeastern Pennsylvania. On behalf of WWSD, we would like to thank Dr. Murray, Sara Grande (Assistant Director of Enrollment) and all our stakeholders for supporting our school counseling program!
Western Wayne High School has six students who are state finalists in a Prevent Suicide Contest. We are asking the local community to help make them winners!
During the month of February, Art students from all four Western Wayne schools are participating in the 1st Wayne County Arts Alliance Student Art Exhibition! The opening for the show was well attended on Friday February 2nd, where students, their teachers and families enjoyed light refreshments and viewing the art from other participating Wayne County School Districts. Student work was selected based on a variety of criteria. Hopefully this show will become an annual event in the future! The show will be on display at the Wayne County Arts Alliance Gallery at 959 Main Street Honesdale through February 24, 2024. Congratulations to the participating artists; From Robert D. Wilson Elementary: Reaghan Sheehan, Nathan Klimczak, Felix Klimczak, Andie Trapper, Billie Joe Burnham, Orson Farley, Alice O’hora, Jameson Constantine, Luca Ferraro, Keira Marcel, Paige Weist, Zoe Borzek, and Caleb Tedesco. From the High School: Peyton Cook, Lila Rusin, Carly Schott, Kiersten McDonald, Aurora Morris, Cassidy Zeiler, Leo West and from the Middle School Teena Zotynia, Mackenzie Warnock, Abigail Wasman, Ava Borzek, Jailah McRae, Isabella Jason, Kenna Steinmetz, Jasmine Yamamoto, Makayla Franckowiak. EverGreen: Brooklyn Gill, Rayven Ford-Hetzel, Leiana Vetrano, Jereni Strocchia, Khloe Elias Lucy Olszyk, Mia Padula Emma Dougher, Nathanial Huff, Tucker Bell , Lillian Elders, Aria Takacs.
SCRANTON, LACKAWANNA COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU) — Nearly 100 fourth through eighth-grade students from schools in Lackawanna, Wayne, and Susquehanna County put their building skills to the test for the annual Northeastern Educational Intermediate Unit 19’s Stem Design Challenge.
Putting stem skills to the test.
On Tuesday Johnson College hosted and sponsored the NEIU 19’s 2024 Stem Design Challenge. the builds are made entirely of K’nex Construction toys.
“We built an agricultural robot, but it’s built out of K’nex pieces, and it has an arm and it rotates up and it’s supposed to move forward and help farmers,” said Sadie Booths a Western Wayne student.
This year’s theme is agriculture.
Working in teams, students had two hours to put their heads together to create prototypes of equipment designed to help farmers with their jobs.
“So it’s called the poop-en-a-tor. It cleans up chicken poop and turns it into fertilizer and it helps farmers because farmers spend a lot of money on fertilizers and they also spend a lot of time cleaning up chicken poop,” says Sadie Malamud a Lackawanna Trail student.
“So we built a solar-powered tractor with a solar-powered sprayer, and the sprayer is for irrigation,” added Cody Maros a Western Wayne student.
Students from King’s College and Johnson College help judge the projects.
The builds are judged based on creativity, attention to detail, and theme. Organizers say STEM and events like these teach kids valuable problem-solving skills.
“It also helps students that sometimes struggle in the traditional route to the kind of really showcase their talents which may not be necessarily just on facts and components like that, but it really gives them a different mindset and almost like a creative mindset also,” explained Stephanie Williams MIS coordinator in NEIU 19′
Teams from the Wayne Highlands school district took first prize in both divisions of elementary and middle school.
Those teams will go on to compete at the state competition in Harrisburg in May.
The Western Wayne Middle School, Western Wayne High School, and Liberty Middle School Bands will join together on Tuesday, February 6, to participate in a one-of-a-kind clinic and exhibition concert sponsored by the KHS America Academic Alliance.
After working tirelessly on the festival music in their own schools, band students from the two districts will meet for the first time as a band early in the morning and spend the day getting to know one another through music. Under the baton of esteemed clinician Dr. Peter L. Boonshaft, the students will have the opportunity to collaborate and learn festival rehearsal techniques to take back to their schools.
Dr. Boonshaft, Director of Education for KHS America, is the author of the critically acclaimed best-selling books Teaching Music with Passion, Teaching Music with Purpose, and Teaching Music with Promise. He was honored by the National Association for Music Education and Music For All as the first recipient of the “George M. Parks Award for Leadership in Music Education.” Dr. Boonshaft was selected for the Center for Scholarly Research and Academic Excellence at Hofstra University in Hempsted, NY, where is Professor Emeritus of Music.
The culminating exhibition concert is free and open to the public. The concert begins at 4:00 pm at Western Wayne High School Veterans Memorial Auditorium. Doors open at 3:30 pm.
The Kindness Club at RDW recently performed a play for students in grades K-2. The play was called A Day in the Life of an RDW Student and included five different scenarios that a typical student might encounter. In each scene, one or more of the characters chose to demonstrate kindness in a challenging situation. The club members had questions for students to discuss between acts. At the conclusion of the play, Kindness Club members encouraged students to practice acts of kindness throughout their day and to consider joining the Kindness Club when they are in fifth grade.
Members, left to right from first photo: Ryan Nixon, Paxton Shiner-Lewis, Caden Reeger, Saga Bryden, Lillian Sorrentino, and Kelly Talarico
ALL NEWS
Mental Health First Aid Virtual Trainings Cost: FREEDecember 19, 2024Mental Health First Aid training is an 8-hour evidence-based curriculum created by the National Council for Mental Well-being. This course helps adults working with youth ages 12-18 to identify, understand, and respond to the early signs of mental health and substance use challenges using the ALGEE action plan.
Participants complete a 2.5 hour online self-paced course prior to the virtual training. The next training is on: Thursday, January 16 from 6-9 PM AND Thursday, January 23 from 6-9 PM.
Download the full flyer below. [...]
Guiding Good Choices for 4th-6th grade parents and caregiversDecember 19, 2024Guiding Good Choices for 4th-6th grade parents and caregivers. Attend this FREE VIRTUAL five-session program to help your youth navigate the pressures and expectations of life during their teen years to succeed and achieve a brighter future.Parents and caregivers can enhance their parenting skills by learning how to:
Promote health and well-being during the teen years.
Develop health beliefs and clear standards for behavior.
Deal with anger in a positive way and manage family conflict to strengthen bonds with youth.
Protect their children from substance abuse and other problematic behaviors.
Strengthen family bonds and increase youth’s involvement in the family through the teen years.Youth attend session 4 with their parents and caregivers.The program will be held on five Mondays: February 3, 10, 17, 24 and March 3 from 6 to 8 PM via Zoom.For more information or to register, e-mail or call Christy Tomascik at cat127@psu.edu or 570-814-2392. [...]
“Tangled” Semi Formal sponsored by WWHS Student CouncilDecember 18, 2024On Saturday, December 14th nearly 300 members of the Western Wayne High School community including students, advisors, chaperones, administration, and SROs gathered to celebrate the 2024 Semi Formal at Camp Ladore in Waymart.
This year’s theme elected by Student Council was Disney’s Tangled and included decor complete with elements of long Rapunzel hair, frying pans, illuminated lanterns, and even a castle backdrop adorned with Pascal.
Students spent the time dining and dancing with opportunities to capture memories in the professional photo booth. Students received picture frames as favors to memorialize the event.
As is tradition, attendees voted sophomores Cole Combs and Makenzie Chearney as Price and Princess of the magical occasion.
Pictured (left to right):
Mr. Paul Gregorski (Principal), Cole Combs (Prince), Makenzie Chearney (Princess), and Mr. Robert Black (Vice Principal) [...]
High School December Students of the MonthDecember 18, 2024The following students were recognized by the Student Council as students of the month for December. Their teachers and administrators weighed in on the decisions. All of the students chosen hold a high standard of academic and personal excellence. They are true examples of the P.R.I.D.E. standards for PBIS at our school.
First, Abigail Wasman is our selected freshman. In school, she loves her art class having a special interest in drawing still life. Her other favorite class is Spanish. Abigail is highly involved in her local 4-H Club for many years. She shows pigs, goats, and cows. Working with and showing animals is her passion.
“I love working with and preparing animals for show and seeing how they turn out in the end,” she said.
Next, Olivia Haines is our chosen sophomore this month. Olivia is a dual sport athlete participating in both track and volleyball at Western Wayne. In the classroom, she enjoys studying history most. In addition, she absolutely loves animals and has ridden horses since she was young. She aspires to be a veterinarian upon graduation.
“I want to study veterinary medicine because of how much I enjoy animals,” she said.
In addition, Lauren Beamer is this month’s featured junior. She is extremely involved in volleyball being both a part of the Western Wayne team and a club volleyball team out of Allentown. Her favorite class is English. In addition, she aspires to go into the nursing field.
“I feel that the competitive environment that I thrive on being a part of through my volleyball experiences will help to prepare me for college,” she said.
Finally, Lance Maiocco is our senior spotlight this month. Lance is also a dual sport athlete having played football and baseball at Western Wayne throughout his high school career. In football, he primarily plays the positions of wide receiver and cornerback. In baseball, he plays pitcher and outfield. In addition, he is a member of FBLA and National Honor Society.
Lance will attend Marywood University upon graduation with a scholarship to play baseball. He plans to study health and exercise science.
“I think that being a part of a team and facing adversity through that experience has helped to better prepare me for the future,” he said.
The Western Wayne School District congratulates these December students of the month and wishes them the best in their future endeavors.
From left: Olivia Haines, Lauren Beamer, Abigail Wasman, Lance Maiocco, and Mr. Paul Gregorski, high school principal. [...]
High School November Students of the MonthDecember 18, 2024The following students were recognized by the Student Council as students of the month for November. Their teachers and administrators weighed in on the decisions. All of the students chosen hold a high standard of academic and personal excellence. They are true examples of the P.R.I.D.E. standards for PBIS at our school.
First, Maha Tanveer is our selected freshman. Maha is new to the district and has been really enjoying her academic and extracurricular experiences here. She tried out a few after school activities so far including the Drama Club, and she can’t wait to continue the rest of her high school career at Western Wayne.
Next, Gavin Morcom is our chosen sophomore this month. Gavin is a triple sport athlete who also values academic excellence. He plays golf and volleyball along with being a member of the wrestling team.
His favorite subject in school is math, because he has a natural aptitude for it. After high school, he aspires to follow in the footsteps of his father and join the Air Force.
“I think the discipline I am learning in all of my experiences in sports is helping to prepare me to enter the military,” he explained.
In addition, Audrey Agnello is this month’s featured junior. She is an exceptional student involved in numerous sports, clubs, and activities.
She has participated in competitive swimming from a young age. She is currently an athlete with Pacers Aquatic Club out of Marywood University. Also, she has done track since seventh grade and cross country since 8th grade at Western Wayne. Her other activities include: PJAS, FBLA, Student Ambassador, CATS Club, Tomorrow’s Leaders Today, Youth Advisory Committee, National Honor Society, Yearbook Club, and Scholastic Team. In addition, she has the honor of being the elected President of the Class of 2026 through Student Council.
Her favorite class this year is anatomy, and she wishes to pursue a career related to the sciences through studying nursing in college.
“I think that the multitude of experiences I have had in my high school career so far working with various groups of people is preparing me to be a strong leader both now and after graduation,” Audrey said.
Finally, Julia Wehrmann is our senior spotlight this month. Julis is also involved in many activities at Western Wayne including: Student Council, Engineering Competition, Envirothon, and Science Olympiad. Julia enjoys her biology class the most this year. She wishes to pursue a career in Environmental Science upon graduation.
“I want my future career path to involve me helping to make the environment better for everyone,” she explained.
The Western Wayne School District congratulates these November students of the month and wishes them the best in their future endeavors.
From left: Gavin Morcom, Audrey Agnello, Julia Wehrmann, and Mr. Paul Gregorski, high school principal. Absent from photo: Maha Tanveer. [...]
Safe2Say Something is a youth violence prevention
program run by the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General.
The program teaches youth and adults how to recognize
warning signs and signals, especially within social media,
from individuals who may be a threat to themselves or others
and to “say something” BEFORE it is too late.
