Western Wayne High School students were thrilled to get to spend an evening together at this year’s Winter Wonderland Semi Formal, held at Ladore Conference Center in Waymart, PA on Saturday, December 4th . Students enjoyed a dinner together before they danced the night away! Students also nominated their classmates, sophomores Frankie Leyshon and Rhayni Carroll, to be crowned Semi Prince and Princess!
Western Wayne Drama Club students were treated to a performance of the musical Annie at The Ritz Theater in Scranton on the evening of Friday, Dec. 3. Nearly forty students went on the field trip, some of which had never seen a live show before. The students were glad to have the opportunity to see the musical and will use what they learned from their experience as they work to prepare their spring musical Little Shop of Horrors. Pictured are Western Wayne Drama Club members in grades 8 through 12.
Western Wayne Select Chorus students were thrilled to return to singing in the community this past Saturday, Dec. 4. The students under the direction of Western Wayne choral teachers Joyce Covaleski and Taber Starnes sang at the Hideout’s Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony and welcomed Santa to town. Pictured are members of Western Wayne’s Select Chorus in grades 6 through 12.
Western Wayne sophomore Hunter Smith has been chosen to represent Western Wayne at the 2021 Central Pennsylvania HOBY Leadership Seminar in June 2021.
Hunter is an accomplished Western Wayne honor roll student who enjoys being a part of a variety of clubs at school including: FBLA, FCCLA, and student council where he serves as president this year. Hunter, also, is a member of the track team where his main event is throwing.
In Hunter’s leadership essay for HOBY, he explained how he discussed his leading roles in the activities and sports he is involved with at Western Wayne.
“On track I use my leadership skills to help my younger teammates,” Hunter explained.
He looks forward to attending the conference in the spring and meeting other student leaders from various districts.
“I hope to learn about their different outlooks on life at the conference,” Hunter explained.
After high school, Hunter aspires to study education. He wants to work with high school students.
“I hope to become a leader for students in my classroom one day,” Hunter said. “Teachers are leaders who help their students become better members of society than they were before they entered their classroom.”
Western Wayne Wayne High School Celebrated their traditional Homecoming Court Ceremony this past fall in a home game against Honesdale. Pictured are the homecoming court from left: Thomas Chernasky, Jaiden DeRosa, Ashton Fitzsimmons, Homecoming King Joshua Mahnke, Homecoming Queen Rylee Sheehan, Brooke Richardson, Rachel Tuman, Sarah Collins, and Ella Dougher. Absent from photo: Caden Brungard.
The Western Wayne High School Chorus is excited to share a short performance that we recorded this October along with a spooky bonus song for Halloween. We hope you enjoy!
After School Tutoring will be starting in the High School. If you are interested, a permission form has been emailed to all of the students. Please fill it out and return it to the High School Main Office. There may be more days or teachers added and we will update whenever possible.
The Western Wayne School District will host a cavalcade of bands on the evening of Thursday, Oct. 14, at our football stadium. A total of eight schools will participate including: Lakeland, West Scranton, Valley View, Delaware Valley, North Pocono, Northwest Area, Dunmore, and, of course, Western Wayne will close out the show.
“It is exciting to get to perform in a cavalcade after not being able to do them last year [because of COVID],” senior drum major Hudson Malinowski explained. “I hope everyone comes out to enjoy our show!”
The public may start arriving at the stadium as early as 5:45 p.m. Lakeland will be the first school to perform starting at 6:30 p.m. with the National Anthem being played shortly beforehand.
Admission is $3 for adults, $1 for children under 12 and senior citizens, or free with the donation of pet food or supplies at the gate. All donations will be given to the “C Alley Cats of Lake Wallenpaupack” organization. C Alley Cats provides low cost spay/ neuter services, provides adoption and foster programs, and gives support to caregivers of medically challenged cats.
In addition, concessions will be sold with all proceeds benefiting Western Wayne band and color guard students.
Western Wayne’s field show this season is “A Full Course Meal” with the selections of “I’d Like to Buy the World a Coke,” “ Cheeseburger in Paradise,” Chicken Dance,” and “I Want Candy.” Come out and enjoy the hard work of all of the local school bands participating in this event.
Pictured is Malinowski conducting the Western Wayne Band during their recent performance at a home football game that also served as their senior night. Malinowski’s fellow drum major is junior Maggie Nagle.
Western Wayne students participated virtually in the FCCLA National Leadership Conference held the first week of July in Nashville, Tennessee, this past summer.
According to FCCLA’s official website, “More than 4,500 members, advisers, and supporters from across the country participated in FCCLA’s first-ever Hybrid National Leadership Conference. Whether attending virtually or in-person, FCCLA challenged all conference attendees to grow “Beyond Measure” through career exploration, virtual networking, Competitive Event recognition, professional development opportunities, student-led leadership sessions, and more!”
Western Wayne students Zoey Goldman and Kennedy Mistishin presented their community service project which involved a very successful Breakfast with Santa for our local community. The girls placed in the top five percent at nationals.
Fellow classmate Adelaide Treibley did a public speaking presentation on the effects of COVID on professional employment. She placed in the top ten percent at nationals.
“I enjoyed preparing my presentation and participating in nationals this year,” Adelaide said. “I look forward to another great year in FCCLA.”
The FCCLA program helps students to develop skills for life through: character development, creative and critical thinking, interpersonal communication, practical knowledge, and career preparation.
The Western Wayne School District is excited to announce the opening of Western Wayne High School’s Wildcat Den. The Wildcat Den will be available to students in need of a safe space to de-escalate, de-stress, and re-set. Initially, the Wildcat Den will be open and staffed during the lunch periods. It is our vision that teachers will reserve the space for their classes on occasion. In addition, any student wishing to utilize the space can talk to their school counselor.
“The Wildcat Den offers multiple stations designated to calm the sensory system,” Rachael Palko, high school guidance counselor, explained. “There is a station for auditory, tactical, visual, olfactory, vestibular, and proprioceptive. Examples of some tools in the space include: a weighted lap pad, balance pods, comfortable seating, elliptical training machine, fidget tools, games, music, and many other wonderful resources.”
The Wildcat Den is sponsored through Western Wayne School District and developed by the High School Counseling Department in conjunction with Dr. Katie Shemanski – Moro.
Students Attend World Language Day at The University of ScrantonMarch 7, 2025On Tuesday, March 4th, The University of Scranton held their second World Language Day in which they hosted over 100 high school students to experience lessons in Spanish, French, Chinese, Japanese, German, and Arabic. Some Western Wayne High School students were in attendance and loved their experience.
“It was very interesting to be immersed in so many different languages,” Kallie Wehrmann, Western Wayne senior, said. “I really loved making new friends and learning about different cultures. I am so excited to go to college next year and feel this experience makes me even more prepared for the future.”
From left: Mrs. Sara Orloski, Jack Sepelyak, Lance Hauenstein, Kaitlin Wargo, Leah Reeger, Julia Wehrmann, Katie Skirpan, Lily Kieva, Kallie Wehrmann, Chloe Gilpin, Maria Gadoua, and Mrs. Sandrowicz. [...]
High School February Students of the MonthMarch 5, 2025The following students were recognized by the Student Council as students of the month for February. 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, Leah Reeger is our selected freshman. Leah is an all-around excellent student who has a passion for art. In addition, she is involved in Envirothon, Student Council, and Ultimate Frisbee. One of her favorite classes is her Honors English class. She feels as though her writing is growing in strength this year, especially her poetry and literary analysis work.
She also is greatly enjoying her Introduction to Ceramics class this year.
“We are learning how to make basic items like bowls,” Leah explained. “I really like coming up with new items to create and then making them a reality through my art.”
Leah aspires to own a coffee shop with an art theme that focuses on nature.
Next, Eric McGrath is our chosen sophomore this month. Eric is an enthusiastic student who gives his best effort in all he does. His sports and activities include soccer, track, and Envirothon. His favorite class this year is English.
“I like writing best, especially fiction analysis,” he said. Eric plans to attend college after graduation with an undecided major at the moment.
In addition, Loucynthia Allen is this month’s featured junior. She is another very dedicated student who enjoys art. Her clubs and activities include Spanish Club, National Art Honor Society, and Envirothon.
Her favorite class this year is ceramics.
“I really like being in my own world when I create art,” she said.
She aspires to become a dentist or dental hygienist for her future career.
Finally, David Elias is our senior spotlight this month. David is an exceptional academic student and talented student athlete. His sports and activities include basketball, track and FBLA.
His favorite class is calculus.
“I enjoy problem solving and working with numbers,” he said.
David plans to attend a four-year university upon graduation with an undecided major.
The Western Wayne School District congratulates these February students of the month and wishes them the best in their future endeavors.
From left: Leah Reeger, Eric McGrath, Mr. Robert Black, high school assistant principal; Loucynthia Allen, and David Elias. [...]
PA State Grant UpdateMarch 5, 2025PA State Grant Information:
PHEAA has informed us that they will be not be using GrantUS to process the PA State Grant. They will be using their legacy system and expect to have initial emails to students to apply for the 2025-26 PA State Grant in April. Please be on the lookout for an email from PHEAA if you filled out your FAFSA regarding the state grant [...]
Students Win Big With Energy Efficiency!March 4, 2025A group of ninth grade students at Western Wayne High School received the Honorable Mention award in a special PPL contest.
Aidyn Graci and Mitchell Ferraro General Science, students from the high school were the Honorable Mention winners in the PPL Electric THINK! ENERGY Innovation Challenge. The contest required students to develop an interactive and hands-on presentation on energy, natural resources and environmental issues.
Science teacher Dr. Mark Nebzydoski led the challenge for Western Wayne by registering all Western Wayne High School students for free energy conservation kits, which consisted of three compact fluorescent light bulbs, a smart energy power strip, a shower timer, a faucet aerator and water-saving shower head. Each student was then asked to take the kits home, install the energy-saving equipment and survey how much energy was saved due to the use of the equipment.
“The students projects submitted were very creative and entertaining.” Nebzydoski said. “Seeing students learning about energy efficiency and applying it to the real world is the perfect model of how education should work.” “High school students are tomorrow’s homeowners, so reinforcing energy efficiency messages is important.”
The winning students’ project included a video on energy efficiency. They can be found from a link on the Western Wayne Website. https://youtu.be/EDmCGFHw4Lk Winning students each received Beats wireless earbuds. Dr. Nebzydoski received $250 for classroom supplies.
“I am proud of the student’s hard work and achievement,” Dr. Nebzydoski said.
The students really had a lot of fun making the video with the ongoing theme of “Come on, Mr. Nebz!” Throughout the clip, they kept telling their favorite teacher to be more careful about energy usage in his classroom.
Mitchell Ferraro, who of the winning students who aspires to be a social studies teacher, really liked how fun it was to make the video and tell Mr. Nebz what to do throughout it.
Fellow video creator Aidyn Graci, who aspires to study business one day be very successful, was relieved when they finished the project. “I was glad to get to the end and see our hard work pay off,” he said.
PPL Electric Utilities, in conjunction with National Energy Foundation (NEF) and the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE), is proud to sponsor the THINK! ENERGY with E-power educational program. There are three program offerings for various grade levels and each is designed to provide teachers and students with energy education. All program offerings are free and are correlated to Pennsylvania learning standards.
Please see contest link https://thinkenergy.org/ppl-innovation/teachers/
From left: Dr. Mark Nebzydoski, Mitchell Ferraro, and Aidyn Graci. [...]
PPL Awards Gift Certificate to Western Wayne SophomoreMarch 4, 2025PPL awarded Western Wayne sophomore student Liam O’Brien an amazon gift card as a prize for completing a survey about his usage of tools in the Innovation Kit that all Western Wayne 9th grade high school students got as a part of the PPL Think! Energy program this past fall. The students were challenged to use the items in the kit such as a smart power strip, LED bulbs, and a special shower head for water conservation, among other items. Liam, who aspires to study culinary arts or sports broadcasting in the future, and many other Western Wayne students used these items and then filled in a survey about their experiences. Liam was the lucky winner drawn at random for the Western Wayne School District. Liam said he got the most use out of the power strip from the PPL kit. He likes his science class and prioritizes helping the environment. “I think it is important to be environmentally conscientious so that plants in nature can thrive and people in general have better health,” Liam said.From left: Dr. Mark Nebzydoski and Liam O’Brien. [...]
