WHS/SMS Newsletter
5/11/20
Important Dates
May 12: Pre-Recording the Graduation Walk 3 - 7pm. Timeslots will be assigned. Please let us know if there is a time conflict or if a family member that will need wheelchair access.
May 13: Virtual Senior Award Ceremony at 5:30 pm
May 15: Virtual Graduation Ceremony at 7:00 PM on the school's YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC1zcJhg2fUVYMNVYn2IBmtA
May 18: Regular School Board meeting @ 6:30 pm
May 20 -21: Student Materials Drop Off. See below for more information.
May 21: Last day of school
May 21: Last day of lunches
Dear Parents/guardians,
The state of Alaska’s Department of Health and Social Services is recommending that families with children develop a plan in case the caregiver or caregivers in the family become ill with Covid-19. Below you will find several pages of ideas and suggestions put out by the Department. As you develop plans, please remember that your children are important to us. Let Megan Powell, Katelyn Reeves or myself know if there is any way we can help or assist you. One of the great things about Wrangell is the shared sense that we are all in this together. We’re willing and eager to help. Please keep us informed.
Bob Davis
Thank you Seniors!
Senior Class Advisors Jennifer Wiederspohn and Diane O'Brien, want to say it has been a joy to get to know and work with you all throughout your high school career! We have made special memories together: getting ready for prom, taking photos at Pats Lake and lunch meetings! We have been very busy working with the school, making graduation the best it can be, under these crazy times! "Congratulations" on your graduation and good wishes to you with the next chapter of your life! We look forward to seeing you around town and during visits from school! Graduation 2020 will not soon be forgotten! Be well! Do well!
Plans for Families with Children, Page 1
Plans for Families with Children, Page 2
Plans for Families with Children, Page 3
Plans for Families with Children, Page 4
Plans for Families with Children, Page 5
Student of the Week
Week of 4/20 - 4/24
WHS: Randy Churchill
SMS: Ben Houser
Week of 4/27 -5/1
WHS: Kendra Meissner
SMS: Abby Rifenburg
Week of 5/4 - 5/8
WHS: Devlyn Campbell
SMS: Amber Gifford
Congratulations to these students! They will be receiving a gift card for a free drink at the Stik Cafe in the mail.
Thank you to all of our students and families who are working so hard to make things work in these challenging times. We truly appreciate every single one of you!
2019-2020 Yearbooks!
If you have not purchased a Yearbook for the 19-20 school year, there are a small amount of extras for sale! Please call (874-3393 for MS or 874-3395 for HS) or email Katelyn @ kreeves@wpsd.us for MS or Megan @ mpowell@wpsd.us for HS, if you would like to check to see if you have purchased a yearbook or if you'd like to be added to the list for an extra! Thank you!
Library Books
2nd Semester Finals Cancelled
Students and Parents of SMS and WHS:
In order to alleviate pressures during this time, there will be no Second Semester Final Exams held for SMS/WHS classes this year.
We will continue to deliver regular instruction for the rest of the school year. Please watch for updates on PowerSchool, email, and Google Classrooms and continue to let us know if you have any questions or concerns; we want to know how remote education is working for you and what improvements can be made.
Senior Parents
Senior Letter Recording: If you have not completed the slideshow requirements, you must get that to Heather Howe by Friday, May 8th. This is a truly memorable highlight of your Senior's graduation ceremony and would be sad if this was not included for your Senior. Your Senior's Graduation Slideshow is a big part of the pre-recorded session. You will be viewing that, with your Senior at that time. The compilation of all the Seniors' slideshows will also be included in the streamed graduation. If you need help or have questions, please contact Heather Howe (hhowe@wpsd.us).
*If you are unsure how to record with your phone and get the recording to me, please check out this website which has directions for iPhones, Androids, and Windows phones. If you are still struggling, please contact Heather Howe right away so we can come up with a solution.
May 12th GRADUATION PRE-RECORDING session will take place at the WHS gym from 3 PM to 7 PM. You will be notified of your time slot. The order will be generally alphabetical. If you have specific time constraints, please email Diane O'Brien, Senior Class Advisor at obriens@aptalaska.net Specific directions regarding how the session will be conducted will be sent out beforehand. If you could help during the day, please let us know what time you would be available. This event will meet COVID 19 mandates. Everyone should wear masks at all times while they are in the school building, except for graduates and escorts while they are in the gym and commons and when family members are taking photos with the graduate. Thank you!
GRADUATIONS CARDS AND GIFTS may be dropped off at the WHS office. Between the hours of 12 pm and 1:00 PM would be best, as the door is monitored. Any other time, please call 874-3395 to let the office know you are at the door.
May 15 GRADUATION CEREMONY STREAMING at 7 PM Please share with friends and family. The stream can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC1zcJhg2fUVYMNVYn2IBmtA
COMMUNITY PARADE will take place afterwards. A map of Grads will be developed...stay tuned as that develops!
THANK YOU for your help in making this unique 2020 Graduation a success for our students!
Graduation Walk Through
A couple things to think about before:
- Mandates have recently changed a bit, so graduates can have up to 10 family members to attend with them. If anyone is from separate households, 6 ft distance should be maintained. Keep in mind that the elevator broke down last week, so we will have to modify the route for anyone that will have trouble with the stairs. Once we send out the packet and times, let us know if anyone in your party will need this, and we will make sure you're set up.
- If the seniors want, they can have an escort or two for part of the graduation walk in the gym(in yellow below- you'll see an example in the video we send). The escort/s should be from the same household. Graduates can also do the whole walk by themselves if they'd rather.
- Everyone should wear masks at all times while they are in the school building, except for graduates and escorts while they are in the gym and commons and when family members are taking photos with the graduate.
- In the diagram below, the Family route is in green, escort/s in yellow and the graduate is in pink.
College Credit Classes Information
Students enrolled in UAS FT120 - Fisheries of Alaska had one additional week of "spring break" and started back up last week (March 23rd) with the rest of the UAS students. They will continue to learn through online lectures and distance delivery exams.
Woods and welding class grades for UAS have been finalized and students will receive full credit as we were able to complete the majority of required standards and hours.
ETT students will also receive full credit for the University and Wrangell High School as they had completed the required course material, hours and the written test. As the students were not able to complete the hands-on portion of the testing they can not at this time receive their Certification. Instructor, Chief Dorianne Sprehe is interested in exploring options for a review and testing at such time that the COVID 19 virus is contained. She will contact students at that time to make arrangements.
WHS/SMS School Lunches
Please adhere to the following guidelines regarding WHS/SMS School Lunches:
General Guidelines:
Order your school lunch online as usual through the WPSD School Website at wpsd.us
All lunch pickup will be at 12 pm at the High School entrance on Reid St. Please do not congregate at the doors but call the High School at 874-3395 and someone will bring your lunch to your vehicle.
The following guidelines are for the ordering of lunches:
Mondays-City Market: Please have orders submitted no later than Monday morning at 8:20 am
Tuesdays and Thursdays-J&W’s: Please have orders submitted no later than 10 am on that day
Wednesdays and Fridays-Wrangell IGA: Please have orders submitted no later than 3:30 pm the day PRIOR (so for Wednesday lunch, you need to order by 3:30 pm on Tuesday; for Friday lunch, you need to order by 3:30 pm on Thursday). They are no longer making sandwiches but are doing sack lunches. Please still order to get your name on the list so we have an accurate count.
Should you have difficulties in carrying out any of these directions please email kreeves@wpsd.us or mpowell@wpsd.us or call the appropriate number below.
SMS Office at 874-3393
WHS Office at 874-3395
THE LAST DAY OF LUNCHES WILL BE THURSDAY, MAY 21.
Grades 6 -11 Student Materials Drop Off
All middle school students may drop off their materials (Books, Chromebooks, chargers, etc) to the middle school commons entrance on either day from 8 am - 3:30 pm).
All high school students may drop off their materials (laptops, chargers, books, uniforms, etc) to the high school entrance on either day from 8 am - 4:30 pm. You will need to call the high school office at 874-3395 when you are outside to drop off these materials.
Please be conscious of social distancing guidelines if there is more than 1 student dropping off materials at the same time. Please plan to be here for a few minutes while we run through our check out process, especially if there are others checking out at the same time.
All student materials MUST be dropped off no later than Thursday. If there is a conflict, please contact your site secretary immediately to make other arrangements.
WHS/SMS Tech Support Contact Information
Matthew Gore
907-305-1153
Or http://wpsdtech.us and submit a ticket.
You can also schedule a time to meet digitally with Mr. Gore here: https://x.ai/calendar/gore
Wrangell Public Schools Position Announcements
Wrangell Public Schools is accepting applications for the following positions for the 2020-2021 School Year:
- K-12 Special Education Teacher: This is a full-time teaching position in Grades K-12 Special Education. The position requires an Alaska teaching certificate with appropriate endorsements in Special Education.
- Secondary Language Arts Teacher: This is a full-time teaching position in Grades 6-12 English/Language Arts. This position requires an Alaska teaching certificate with appropriate endorsements in English and/or Language Arts.
For more information and detailed job description, please contact the District Office at 907-874-2347. Positions are open until filled. It is Wrangell Public School District's policy to not discriminate on the basis of age, race, color, national origin, sex or disability.
Regular School Board Meeting
Wrangell Public School Board will hold a Regular Meeting Monday, May 18, 2020, via Zoom, beginning at 6:30 PM.
In order to listen to the meeting, join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88915806515?pwd=YzJBcnhNK2UzcU5JVCsxTnI4Yno4UT09
Meeting ID: 889 1580 6515
Password: 5nhsNj
Community members are encouraged to turn in their comments in written format by emailing them to: kpowell@wpsd.us. If you prefer to sign up under Guests to Be Heard, please do so by emailing Mrs. Powell prior to 3:00 PM on May 18 or by texting
907-305-0802 between 3:00 and 5:30 PM the day of the meeting.
The agenda for the School Board Meeting will be available online four days prior to the meeting at https://www.boarddocs.com/ak/wrangell/Board.nsf.
The public is encouraged to attend.
Wrangell High School/Stikine Middle School
Email: mpowell@wpsd.us
Website: https://wpsd.us
Phone: 907-874-3395
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WrangellPublicSchools/