WB - CONTACT
District Newsletter -- September/October 2022 Edition
Learning and Leading for Tomorrow
24821 Hall Road
Woodhaven, MI 48183
734.783.3300
mywbsd.org
CENTRAL OFFICE ADMINISTRATION
MARK GREATHEAD --- SUPERINTENDENT
Joshua Satterfield --- Director of Curriculum
Matthew Salah --- Director of Special Services
Gregory Roberts --- Director of Human Resources
Lyndsay Johnson-LeMieux --- Director of Technology & Instructional Integration
Joshua Smith --- Director of Finance
Michael Belcher --- Director of Facilities & Operations
2022 BOARD OF EDUCATION
Jenn Padgett --- President
Mikki Bertin-Kelsay --- Vice-President
Cara Pimer --- Secretary
Laura Berry --- Treasurer
Bruce Burke --- Trustee
Rob Harris --- Trustee
Shannon Bauer-Perry --- Trustee
Matt Salah MSCA 2023 Administrator of the Year
The Michigan School Counselor Association named Mr. Matt Salah, WBSD Special Services Director, as its 2023 Administrator of the Year.
Salah was nominated by WHS counselor Kelsey Smith and PHMS counselor Betsy Kanagawa, who noted that Salah "has always been an advocate for school counselors." During the 2021/22 school year, Salah observed that WBSD students needed more social-emotional support. He spent many hours collaborating with district counselors to determine the best course of action. It was clear after analyzing data that additional counselors were needed to better support student success. The Board of Education agreed and three additional school counseling positions were approved, one for each secondary school, beginning with the 2022/23 school year.
In a recent press release, the MSCA stated, "On behalf of the MSCA Board, we commend Mr. Salah for working to make sure the school counselors in his district have the resources they need to fully support their students and thank him for being a champion for the school counseling profession."
Congratulations to Mr. Matt Salah on a well-deserved honor!
WHS is Site Host for Victory Day 2022
What is Victory Day? It's an event that brings cognitively and physically impaired children together for an opportunity to play football or cheer. Typically, high school football players and cheerleaders from different schools volunteer their time and serve as mentors for the day.
Victory Day was started by downriver area football coach Aaron Segedi. Segedi established the concept in 2010 while he was an assistant coach for Trenton Public Schools. Trenton hosted Victory Day for 10 consecutive years. In early 2021, when Segedi took an assistant football coaching positon with Gabriel Richard High School in Riverview, the Victory Day Committee decided to hold it at different locations each year.
Fast-forward to September 24, 2022, and Woodhaven High School was chosen as this year's host school. Students from Wyandotte Public Schools' Center Program (Lincoln Center, Madison Center and Jo Brighton Skills Center) were invited to participate - 65 total. Fourteen high schools also joined in to make the day a memorable experience for all involved.
Homecoming 2022
The return to school and the kickoff of autumn gets us thinking about cooler temperatures, leaves changing colors, pumpkins and Homecoming.
WHS announced Homecoming Court in late September. Congratulations to the following students who were elected to Court:
SENIOR COURT
Kirsten Berceau
Emy Lora-Medina
Jaya Meeks
Makenna Poe
Jenna Shrum
Spencer Brant
Musa Bukhari
Garrett Crosson
Dawson Terry
Shareef Vaid
11th Grade Representatives
Andrea Watts & Darrius Houston
10h Grade Representatives
Hailee Reddick & Deon Robertson
9th Grade Representatives
Elizabeth Wood & Dominic Crawford
Homecoming Week kicked off on Monday, October 3rd, with the beginning of Spirit Week. Activities included: Monday - Country v. Country Club Day; Tuesday - Tropical Day; Wednesday - Anything but a Backpack Day; Thursday - Twister Colors; Friday - Purple & White Day.
The annual Powder Puff games where held on October 4th, and the Junior girls captured the title of 2022 Power Puff Champs. That's two years running for the Class of 2024. Leading up to Friday's big game against Wyandotte, Garrett Crosson was crowned Homecoming King during the pep assembly and Jaya Meeks was crowned Homecoming Queen during half-time of the football game. Seniors won the float contest, and the Warriors annihilated the Bears.
It was another exciting week throughout the district. Team-work was in full swing as classmates pulled together for float building. Above all, memories were made, and the seniors enjoyed one more "last" experience of senior year.
Senior Girls
Senior Court
Senior Guys
Spirit Week
BMS
WHS
BMS
PHMS
PHMS
PHMS
Wegienka Elementary
WHS
The Tribe
The Parade
Maryna Hedeen Named 2022/23 WIDA Fellow for the State of Michigan
What is WIDA? World-Class Instructional Design and Assessment, better known as WIDA, is a consortium of 41 states, territories and federal agencies dedicated to the design and implementation of high standards and equitable educational opportunities for English learners. WIDA strives to provide multilingual learners - of all ages and levels of language development - with an equitable opportunity to obtain a quality education.
Back in April, WBSD ELL/ESL teacher, Maryna Hedeen, applied to be a WIDA Fellow. The WIDA Fellows program brings expert teachers and WIDA professional specialists together in a collaborative effort to enhance the development of WIDA professional learning products and services. WIDA Fellows serve as classroom implementation experts to the WIDA professional learning team.
In August, Hedeen learned she was chosen to represent the State of Michigan as its WIDA Fellow for the 2022-23 school year. Soon after, Hedeen attended the WIDA Fellows Annual Conference which took place in Louisville, Kentucky, September 28-30. Hedeen commented, "I learned a lot about the latest trends in multicultural education and look forward to growing as an EL teacher."
Congratulations on such a great accomplishment!
The StoryWalk Project Finds a Home at Wegienka Elementary School
The idea of Wegienka Elementary's StoryWalk began when Sarah Noto, Wegienka's speech pathologist, was walking in downtown Wyandotte and noticed framed reading stations posted around the city. Once she realized that an actual story book was contained in the frames, Noto thought this could be a great enhancement to Wegienka's walking path. She shared the idea with colleague Stephanie Guimond. Both did some research, and they soon learned that the frames were actually part of The StoryWalk Project.
Noto and Guimond then presented the idea to Principal Michelle Briegel. The thought was this would be a good way to bring families together for some exercise and to build literacy in the community. Briegel agreed and applied for a grant from a local philanthropic foundation. Their efforts paid off, and Briegel received word in late August that Wegienka Elementary would be awarded a StoryWalk grant.
What is a StoryWalk? It's a way to combine physical activity with literacy; it's an innovative way to get people of all ages out walking while reading children's picture books. Pages of a book are transformed onto signs that are laid out on a trail inviting people to follow the path of pages. The goal of the StoryWalk is to help build children's interest in reading while encouraging healthy outdoor activity for both adults and children.
WBSD's Support Services Dept. spent some time in late September installing the 20 StoryWalk frames along Wegienka's walking path. On Thursday, October 6th, Wegienka Elementary hosted a ribbon cutting ceremony. Briegel told those in attendance, "I am excited that this is a permanent installation to encourage the love of reading." The whole school participated in the outdoor ceremony and Briegel acted as Master of Ceremonies. Student Council members read a poem. Both Noto and Guimond spoke briefly about the journey, and then, finally, it was time to cut the ribbon. Students walked the path, and read the story before heading back to class.
Look for a new story each month. You won't want to miss it!
**The StoryWalk Project was created by Anne Ferguson of Montpelier, VT and developed in collaboration with the Vermont Bicycle & Pedestrian Coalition and the Kellogg Hubbard Library.
WBSD Celebrates Bullying Prevention Week with the Theme of "Bee Kind"
As the month of October is National Bullying Prevention Month, the WBSD chose the week of October 24-28, 2022 to focus on this very important event district wide. This year's theme, "Bee Kind", kicked off on October 19th in conjunction with Unity Day. Unity Day's key message is to unite for kindness, courage and inclusion for all. Staff and students were encouraged to wear orange in support of inclusion.
Words of wisdom were shared during morning announcements each day. Videos and stories were also shared throughout the week focusing on the following daily themes.
Monday, October 24 - Be Inclusive (team up against bullying - Sports Day)
Tuesday, October 25 - Be Empathetic (empathy is our superpower - Super Hero Day)
Wednesday, October 26 - Be Respectful (hats off for being respectful - Hat Day)
Thursday, October 27 - Be Younique (celebrate being you - Be You)
Friday, October 28 - Be the One (put bullying to rest - PJ Day)
Job well done Warriors!
WBEF 9th Annual Signature Event
Thursday, Apr 20, 2023, 06:00 PM
Crystal Gardens, Fort Street, Southgate, MI, USA
A Day in the Life of a Warrior ...
Athletics
Athletics
Athletics
Bates Elementary
Woodhaven High School
Yake Elementary
BMS
Erving Elementary
Wegienka Elementary
WHS
WHS
WHS
Athletics
Athletics
Athletics
Woodhaven-Brownstown School District
Business Hours:
7:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Monday - Friday
Email: wbsdcares@wbsdweb.com
Website: mywbsd.org
Location: 24821 Hall Road, Woodhaven, MI, USA
Phone: 734.783.3300
Twitter: @WBSDStrong