January 9th is Law Enforcement Recognition Day. Western Wayne School District would like to publicly recognize and thank our School Police Officers. The primary goal of the school police officer is to assist school administration in maintaining a safe and secure environment, and we are so thankful for their willingness to go above and beyond to support our Wildcat Family.
To Officer Paul Semler, Officer Marty Robbins, Officer Wayne Thomas, and Officer Danny Martin- THANK YOU for your service and dedication to our students, faculty, staff, and community.
From left are Western Wayne Senior art students, who will be featured in the Scranton Times 2022 Artist of the Month Exhibit: Adelaide Treibley, Carleigh Galliford, and Ella Dougher
Carleigh Galliford’s piece called “Beacon of Hope.”
Ella Dougher’s piece called “Autumn’s Arrival”.
Adelaide Treibley’s piece called “A Moment with Monet”.
Adelaide Treibley’s featured artwork that ran in the December issue of Happenings Magazine.
Western Wayne senior artists have been selected to be a part of the Scranton Times Artists of the Month Exhibit. They include Carleigh Galliford, February artist; Adelaide Treibley, May artist; and Ella Dougher, November artist.
The students’ artwork will be featured in the Scranton Times for their designated month. Carleigh’s acrylic painting titled “Beacon of Hope” will be featured for February. The picture depicts a lighthouse by an ocean and a cabin. Carleigh has been accepted at Marywood University for the fall. She wishes to pursue an art therapy degree.
She explained that most of her pieces are based on self expression.
“I enjoy art because it helps me to express things that can’t be expressed through words,” Carleigh explained.
Fellow senior Adelaide Treibley also enjoys the aspect of creative expression in her art work. Adelaide’s acrylic piece titled “ A Moment with Monet” will be featured for May.
She explained how her piece is a very detailed nature scene that took her a lot of time to work on all of the coloring throughout it.
“I like to create artwork with animals, wild life, and nature the most,” Adelaide explained.
Senior Ella Dougher’s artwork also features nature. Her Scranton Times acrylic piece is called “Autumn’s Arrival.” Ella is excited to have already received a scholarship to Mount Saint Mary’s. She enjoys doing art and hopes to pursue it in some capacity in her college studies.
“I like having the freedom to create whatever I choose,” Ella said in regards to her art work.
The students look forward to having their pieces featured in the Scranton Times and are all currently working on creating more artwork for their upcoming spring art show which will be the culmination of their high school art careers.
Elaine Ort, band director for Western Wayne High School, will join band directors from across the country next January 1st in the annual Pasadena Tournament of Roses® Rose Parade.
A custom-designed animated float will lead a “marching band of band directors” up to 300 strong from across the country. The Michael D. Sewell Memorial Foundation, based in Pickerington, Ohio, is the sponsoring organization behind the project. The foundation was created to recognize and carry on the work of the late Mike Sewell, who dedicated his life to the school and community music programs in Pickerington and the Central Ohio area for more than 38 years.
The parade entry will convey the theme, “We teach music. We teach life.” The extraordinary dedication and accomplishments of band directors are well known to their students, to parents and to school teachers and administrators. No matter where they teach and work—public and private schools, colleges and universities, the military, community bands—dedicated music educators and leaders work long hours to not only teach and direct music, but to teach life itself. Students’ lives in particular are positively changed by a motivational leader who taught, inspired and mentored them.
“I am so incredibly excited for this experience, and so grateful to have had such wonderful colleagues and friends who have helped prepare me for this adventure,” Ort said. “ I hope that I will make all of you proud in Pasadena. Go Wildcats, and Go Band!”
Elaine Ort has devoted much of her life to the study and performance of music. A native of New England and graduate of Marywood University, Elaine is a member of the Scranton Brass Orchestra, the Providence Brass, the Schützengiggles Oompah Band, the Marywood University Wind Symphony, and performs often in musical pit orchestras throughout the region. As an educator, Elaine serves as the director of instrumental activities in the Western Wayne School District since 2014. At Western Wayne, her teaching responsibilities include sixth grade brass instruction, eighth grade band instruction, and the Pride of Western Wayne, the Wildcat High School Band. Under her direction and guidance the school continues to invest heavily in its music program, and was recently named a KHS America Academic Alliance Platinum school for its investment in instrumental education. It is the only school in Pennsylvania, and one of only 39 in the United States to have received that honor.
Complete details on the project are available on the Saluting America’s Band Directors website, BandDirectorSalute.org.
Mrs. Joyce Covaleski conducts the 7th grade chorus at their recent concert.
Mrs. Joyce Covaleski conducts the 8th grade chorus at their recent concert.
Piano soloist 8th Grade Beja Marcel plays at the recent holiday concert.
On December 14th, the 7th and 8th Grade Choruses of Western Wayne proudly presented their annual Winter Holiday Program to a very receptive audience. Through their singing, these students shared the joy of the holiday season!
Taber Starnes conducts the Western Wayne High School Chorus at their recent concert
Elaine Ort and Taber Starnes conduct the Western Wayne High School Band and Chorus in their final joint number at their recent holiday concert.
Elaine Ort conducts the Western Wayne High School Band at their recent concert.
The Western Wayne High School Chorus and Band students performed their holiday concert on Friday, December 17, for family, friends, and members of the community under the direction of Mr. Taber Starnes, chorus, and Mrs. Elaine Ort, band. A great time was had by all.
The winners of this year’s Holiday Door Decorating Contest are as follows: 1st Place is Mrs. Jenkins Room 104 with her Buddy’s Starbucks Café! 2nd Place is Mr. Hayden Room 102 with the Polar Express. 3rd Place is Ms. Ferraro Room 101 with her Cozy Log Cabin. 4th Place is Mrs. Orloski and Mrs. Rush with their Cat Lady Meme. Runners up are Mrs. Masankay with the Year without a Santa Claus AND Mr. McCaffery with Putting the Fro in Frozen.
For their final project, the RDW Kindness Club decided to do something nice for the younger students in the building. They wrote inspiring messages on over 150 snowflakes and delivered them to Pre-K, Kindergarten, First, and Second Grade classrooms while they were away at lunch. Teachers later reported that students “loved” receiving the snowflake surprise.
Mrs. Germani is proud of the work that this group accomplished and is excited to be welcoming a new group of KC students after the holiday break!
TUESDAYS, FEBRUARY 15 – MARCH 29, 2022 5:30- 8 PM WESTERN WAYNE MIDDLE SCHOOL
Eligible to ALL students ages 10-14. Limited to the first 15 families.
A Free and Fun Program for the Entire Family. Take advantage of this opportunity to make your family stronger and give your child the skills to transition into their teen years successfully.
Western Wayne middle school students in Ms. Starlah Robbins English Language Arts classes were treated to a book tasting this week during class time. The students got to sample a variety of new books to see what new flavor of reading sparked their interest. The students were thrilled to get to experience so many new books at once, and many chose a new story to start reading for class assignments and for pleasure! The classroom was decorated as a sort of book café with table cloths and other trimmings, and Robbins herself dressed as book chef to make the atmosphere fun. Ms. Robbins hopes to do more engaging activities of this nature in the future, and the students are looking forward to it as well!
The Western Wayne Drama Club will be wrapping gifts for community members and/ or faculty and staff on Tuesday, Dec. 21, from 3 to 5:30 p.m. in the high school auditorium. Snow date is Wednesday, Dec. 22. Let the students wrap your gifts for you! All are welcome! Cost of wrapping is a donation of your choice. Hope we can take some stress off of you during this busy holiday season! All proceeds benefit our Drama Club students. Our spring 2022 production will be Little Shop of Horrors. From left, sitting in the back row, Drama Club members: Colette Schmitt and Joanna Regalbuto. From left in front row: Robert Scramuzza, Julia Phillips, Amanda David, and Gabe Treibley.
ALL NEWS
Special OlympicsApril 23, 2025Thank you to everyone who participated in the Special Olympics. [...]
Dr. Mark Nebzydoski Receives Prestigious Charlie Bright Award from Wayne Pike Trout UnlimitedApril 15, 2025On Saturday, April 12, 2025, during the annual Wayne Pike Trout Unlimited Banquet and Fundraiser, Dr. Mark Nebzydoski—a science teacher at Western Wayne High School and passionate participant in the Trout in the Classroom (TIC) program—was honored with the 2025 Charlie Bright Award.Presented by the members of the Wayne Pike Trout Unlimited Chapter, the Charlie Bright Award recognizes individuals who demonstrate exceptional leadership, dedicated service, and meaningful contributions to cold-water conservation. The award is named in honor of Charlie Bright, a beloved long-time Trout Unlimited member and owner of the Charlie Bright Fly Fishing Shop in Rowland, located on the banks of the Lackawaxen River, which he operated for more than 40 years.“It was truly a humbling experience to be recognized for my work in watershed education and cold-water conservation,” Dr. Nebzydoski said. “I am deeply grateful for this kind gesture.”Dr. Nebzydoski leads the Trout in the Classroom (TIC) program at Western Wayne High School, where students raise rainbow trout from eggs provided by the Pennsylvania Fish Commission. Throughout the school year, students care for the trout and learn about aquatic ecosystems, biology, and the importance of clean, cold water for trout survival. The program culminates in a spring field trip to the Varden Conservation Area, where the trout—now fingerlings—are released into the wild. Wayne Pike Trout Unlimited proudly partners in this annual release, helping to connect students directly with conservation in action.This recognition highlights Dr. Nebzydoski’s commitment not only to science education but also to fostering environmental stewardship in the next generation.
Picture Caption: (Left to Right: Vice President Wayne Pike TU – Tony Capitano; President Wayne Pike TU- Paul Ranello; Western Wayne Science Teacher, Dr. Mark Nebzydoski; Wayne Pike TU Youth Advisor – Don Strathy) [...]
Independent Order of Odd Fellows Freedom Lodge #88 Donates Bench to WWHSApril 15, 2025Western Wayne junior Connor Buchinski is in The Independent Order of Odd Fellows Freedom Lodge #88 in Honesdale. Connor has been a part of this organization for about a year now. Membership in The Independent Order of Odd Fellows is somewhat of a legacy in his family with his grandfather Dennis Buchinski being a member along with his father Doug Buchinski and other family members.
One of the community outreach efforts of Freedom Lodge #88 is collecting soft plastic. There is even a collection bin in the office of the Western Wayne High School. Once 1,000 lbs. of plastic is gathered the organization recycles with the Trex Bench program and donates a Bench to a non-profit organization. It was Connor’s idea to donate one of the benches this year to Western Wayne High School.
“I thought students would enjoy it during their lunch periods,” Connor said. “I really like working with this organization because of the new people I get to meet and the members of the community that I get to help.”
On Monday April 14th Freedom Lodge #88 members donated the Trex Bench to Western Wayne High School.
Freedom Lodge #88 also donated a history book to the Western Wayne High School Library on the Pennsylvania history of The Independent Order of Odd Fellows.
Connor plans to work to collect more plastic and donate another bench to the Western Wayne High School before his senior year is over.
From left, standing: Sarah Rickert, high school teacher; Dennis Hiller, Lodge #88; Mr. Paul B. Gregorski, high school principal; Dennis Buchinski, Lodge #88 member; Maria Phillips, high school teacher; and Forrest Goodenough, Lodge #88 member. From left, seated: Doug Buchinski, Lodge #88 member; and Connor Buchinski, Lodge #88 member and Western Wayne junior. [...]
High School’s Student Council attends Student Council ConferenceApril 4, 2025Western Wayne High School’s Student Council was invited to attend the annual Pennsylvania Association of Student Council’s Region H Conference, hosted by Lakeland Jr./Sr. High School, on Friday, March 28th. Several of our students joined the 535 delegates, presenters, and advisors for a day of networking and learning more about what it means to be an effective leader in school and how to become one! Our students were thrilled with the opportunity to attend and left energized to put much of what they learned into practice here at Western Wayne! Pictured from left to right are Autumn Sawicki, Leah Reeger, Sadie Booths, Dakota Douglas, Madison Forgione, Raegan Fox, Makenzie Chearney, and Madie Kizer. [...]
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.