West Chester Area School District

Dear WCASD Community,

Welcome to May! It is the final full month of this school year, and I'm sure for many of us the countdown to graduations, retirements, summer celebrations, vacations, and more is now officially on.

While this is certainly a busy time of the year, the abundant activities and celebratory events make it a particularly special time as well. I love getting to see our students, staff, families, and community to come together for what may be the final time for some or simply an "until August" for others.

As we approach the end of the school year and experience all of the joys and the bittersweet feelings it brings, I want to express my gratitude to our students, staff, families, and community. Each and every one of you has made this year memorable. Especially to our teachers and staff, I am so appreciative of your tremendous work throughout the year to provide our students and families with an exceptional education and connection. To paraphrase Winnie the Pooh, you are one of the reasons that makes saying goodbye so hard.

Until we actually say our goodbyes and see you soons in June, I am excited to see and celebrate with many of you at the numerous events taking place this month and next!

To make sure that you don’t miss a moment, check out the list of upcoming events in our Celebrate the Arts Flyer.

Important Dates:

Asian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month | Mental Health Awareness Month |
National Physical Fitness Month | Prevention Month

May 5: Cinco De Mayo

May 5: School Lunch Hero Day

May 7-14: National Music Week

May 7-14: Teacher Appreciation Week

May 8: Pupil Services Committee Meeting | 6:30 p.m.

May 8: Education Committee Meeting | 7:00 p.m.

May 9: Teacher Appreciation Day

May 10: National School Nurse Day

May 12: School Communicators day

May 14: Mother's Day

May 15: Property & Finance Committee | 6:30 p.m.

May 16: Teacher Inservice - No School for Students

May 24: School Board Meeting | 7:00 p.m.

May 29: Memorial Day | Schools and Offices Closed

May 30: Class of 2023 Senior Walk

As Teacher Appreciation Week and Day approaches, we want to take a moment to express our gratitude and admiration for the incredible work that our WCASD teachers do every day. Your tireless dedication to our students is truly awe-inspiring, and it's no exaggeration to say that you are shaping the future of our community and our world.

Thank you for your unwavering dedication, your creativity, and your passion. You are truly appreciated, and we celebrate you this month and always.

During World Autism Month, which takes place in April, WCASD schools have been celebrating those with Autism and recognizing the month through activities, spirit weeks, and presentations.

A few examples include Ben Hartranft speaking with staff and students about his experience with Autism at Peirce Middle School, Exton and Fern Hill Elementary's Autism Spirit Weeks, and Fugett Middle School's bulletin board devoted to celebrating differences.

Thank you, Salae and Ara, for giving us a glimpse into all of the wonderful events, activities, and learning experiences taking place at Starkweather these past few months. We especially enjoyed the video of the staff interviews you shared - what an awesome way to truly bring us into Starkweather with you!

We are so proud to congratulate Peirce Middle School's Mrs. Meaghan Stolnis on receiving the Citadel Heart of Learning Award for the West Chester Area School District.

As the nominations for Meaghan said, “Mrs. Stolnis has a truly wonderful heart and brings incredible care, expertise, and joy to her classroom each and every day.” We are so grateful for her tremendous work.

We are thrilled to celebrate the 2022-23 WCASD Spellman Humanitarian Award recipients!

This award recognizes the outstanding citizenship, volunteerism, and humanitarian efforts of ten deserving seniors from each high school. These students have dedicated countless hours to making a positive impact in our community and beyond, and we couldn't be more proud of them. Congratulations to all of the award recipients! For the list of recipients and the event program, visit 2022-23 Spellman Humanitarian Awards.

Read a full article on the Daily Local or by clicking the blue button!

Fugett’s Science Olympiad Team qualified to compete at the State Competition at Penn State Altoona, which is quite the feat as only 36 middle school teams from across the state qualify to attend out of several hundred!

Special recognition goes to Jaydon Sam and Brian Chen for earning a 5th place medal in Bio Process Lab and to Jaydon Sam and Vihaan Sharath for earning a 3rd place medal in Fast Facts. Congratulations to all of our student participants!

The annual show gives students the opportunity to showcase their artwork in a professional gallery space. The following students were selected by the Art Association as award winners in various mediums. Congratulations to all our amazing artists!

Photography:

Honorable Mention: Eva Krewson, Self Portrait, Henderson High School

Third Place: Kai Ward, Aydel, Henderson High School

Digital Media:

First Place: Erica Martin, Room, West Chester East

Painting:

Honorable Mention: Emma Bryan, Still Life, Bayard Rustin High School

Third Place: Evelyn Baldwin, Fish, Henderson High School

Other:

Honorable Mention: Aydah Bythwood, Blue Moon, Henderson High School

Congratulations are again due to Brooklyn Callaghan and Joseph Iozzi as their project placed second within the website presentations at the National History Day State Competition in Scranton.

This historic duo will now compete in Nationals from June 12-15 at the University of Maryland!

The Fern Hill Kindness Crew, a group of 4th graders and FHE teachers, is at it again! This time, they focused their efforts on supporting a local nonprofit called Furvivors Wonderland Horse Rescue and Animal Sanctuary.

The Kindness Crew encouraged FHE students to participate in a school-wide coin war competition this past month, with the proceeds going directly to the horses and other animals at the farm. Furvivors brought a sweet rescue horse, Aggie, to FHE to thank the Kindness Crew for all of their support and teach them about animal rescues!

Saanvi Bhatia, a graduating senior at West Chester East High School, has been named one of 628 semifinalists in the 2023 U.S. Presidential Scholars Program. The semifinalists were selected from over 5,000 students expected to graduate from U.S. high schools in the year 2023.

Congratulations and fingers crossed, Saanvi!

Don't miss spectacular performances of "Annie Jr." by the talented students of Peirce Middle School!

Join the cast from May 5-7 as they bring the heartwarming story of Annie to life, complete with unforgettable musical numbers and captivating choreography. Don't wait, get your tickets now to experience the magic!

WCASD high school students interested in STEM careers visited Pfizer for a career showcase!

They listened to a presentation on Pfizer and heard from professionals across various departments on their career path. Students also participated in an immersive technology activity.

West Chester East High School’s Indoor Guard earned first place in the Scholastic Regional Guard category at the Tournament Indoor Association’s Southeastern Pennsylvania Region 3 Championships!

Under the direction of instructors AK Hazel and Bridget Cuff, the West Chester East High School Indoor Guard performed their show, “The Break,” which told the story of a sneaky gang of prisoners who break out of jail by the end of their performance. The team competed against four other schools and placed first with a score of 75.4. This is West Chester East High School’s Indoor Guard’s fourth consecutive first-place win in the Scholastic Regional Guard Category.

The Chester County Transportation Association recently held their 42nd Annual Bus Safety Competition with over 90 bus drivers from several districts in the Chester County Area competing in the competition. The West Chester Area School District bus driving team placed 2nd in the overall competition and several drivers placed within the top ten of the competition!

The WCASD team included Barb Martz, Supervisor Krapfs West Chester, Dawn Huskey (Krapfs), Thamar Speksnijder (Krapfs), Kira Biddle (Krapfs), Patti Carey (Krapfs), Tammy Rutledge, Joanne Moser (On the Go Kids), Deven Garvey (Krapfs), Joanne Cowan (Krapfs), Jody AnnTait (Krapfs), and Cheryl Vogelsang (On the Go Kids). Additionally, individual drivers Patti Carey from Krapf Buses placed 9th; Joan Cowan from Krapf Buses placed 7th, Chery Vogelsang from On the Go Kids placed 6th.

Last month, Hillsdale held a planting day where every student gets to work in the Hillsdale garden to get it ready for spring!

The WCASD has quite a few musical events, accolades, recognitions, and record-breaking achievements to highlight this month!

Last month, Henderson High School's Concert Choir and Chamber Choir recently performed and competed at Immaculata University for a PMEA Music Performance Assessment. Both ensembles performed for a panel of three judges, and after each performance, the ensemble got to work with one of the judges in a workshop. Both ensembles received the highest rating of Superior. Congratulations to all the singers involved in achieving this high honor!

We are excited to share that we are one of only 830 school districts to receive this recognition – for scale, there are about 500 public school districts in PA alone. Thank you so much to our incredible band, choir, orchestra, musical, and more directors, our music educators, and our amazing students for sharing your talents with us. Read the press release, at WCASD's Music Education Program Receives National Recognition.

121 members of Henderson High School Music Department and their teachers, Mr. Kreamer, Ms. Woywod and Mrs. Kelly and chaperones, embarked on a trip to Boston. During their time, they went on educational tours of the Salem Witch Museum, visited the House of the Seven Gables, walked the Freedom Trail, spent time at the New England Aquarium, visited Plimoth/Patuxet, Plimoth Rock and boarded a replica of The Mayflower.

The HHS Music Department joined forces with the Salem High School Music Department. The Salem HS Witches performed for HHS and then the Henderson Warriors performed for them. They concluded their time with a collaboration of both departments on a piece performed at The Olympics called The Power of the Dream. Additionally, they attended a performance of Mahler 2 by The Boston University Music Department in Symphony Hall.

Senior violinist and East student, Daniel Cheng, was awarded concertmaster of the All-State Orchestra. This is a first in the history of the WCASD and means that of the hundreds of violinists that auditioned for PMEA this year he was deemed the best!

11 WCASD music students earned a spot in PMEA All-State 2023. The All-State festival took place in April at the Kalahari Resort in the Poconos. Students rehearsed for 3 days and then concluded by performing a concert on Saturday. To get to the All-State level, students had to pass through three intense auditions, the first to get into districts, an audition to move on to regionals, and finally an audition to move on to All-State. Our PMEA district and region are amongst the most competitive in the state.

We would like to recognize the following students,

Heidi Krug, HHS Oboe; Michael Li, HHS Bassoon; Daniel Cheng, EHS Violin (Concertmaster); Vidhu Sriram, RHS Violin 1; Adelyn Kelly, RHS Bass; Connor Orkin, RHS Tenor; Corinne Atwell, RHS Alto; Molly Hopton, HHS Soprano; Brooke Kauffman, HHS Soprano; Ryan Hughes, HHS Tenor; Daniel Krewson, HHS Baritone.

The directors of these students, Ann Ellis, RHS Choral Director; Jonathan Kreamer, HHS Choral Director; Tim Celfo, EHS Orchestra Director; Liz Shafman, RHS Orchestra Director. We would also like to acknowledge, Kendra Woywod, HHS Band Director, for her support of and work with these students throughout the process.

These talented East seniors, Brady Foytack, Kaylob Jabkowski, and Jesse Giobbe, took home 2nd place and $1000 at the West Chester University Business Idea Pitch.

Their business idea, At Home Blood Counts, focused on providing a safe and convenient way for people with diseases that require blood counts to test at home. We are so proud of their hard work and dedication to this project, which they developed completely on their own as well as their pitch.

3rd-grade students created bubble wands during their STEM activity on Friday. They put their creations to the test with great success and a lot of laughter!

East DECA had an amazing international career and development conference in Florida. 27 students competed, 5 attended leadership conferences, and 4 received recognition during the conference!

Congratulations to 11th graders Peter Carr and Alex Chen for placing 2nd in the world for Business Law and Ethics Team Event as well as Alex receiving a high test score medal. Alex and Peter were also the only students from Pennsylvania to place in the top 3 for any event. Sophomores, Jimmy Helferty and Jacob Vengal, were finalist (top 20 in the world) and received a high role play medal. This is an amazing accomplishment, there were approximately 200 competitors in their event from around the world.

Thank you to all of these students and WCASD staff for being amazing ambassadors for East High School and the district!

Attention all parents with school aged children! Children's Summer Food Program 2023 is open every Thursday afternoon from 4:00 - 7:00 pm starting June 15. Watch a video for more information.

West Chester Food Cupboard | 431 S. Bolmar St. | West Chester, PA 19382 | 610.344.3175 wcfood@gmail.com

Thank you to all of our exceptional donors and sponsors who made it possible for the WCAEF to provide over $290,000 for West Chester Area School District (WCASD) classroom mini-grants, over $270,000 to send WCASD students to Pennsylvania Free Enterprise Week to work with business leaders from across the state, and thousands of dollars to provide low-income families with internet access .

Thank you to all of the generous donors and sponsors who continue to support our mission! Thank you as well to our Rustin students and staff members for engaging with donors and sponsors during the breakfast and preparing a delicious meal!

Following approval at the WCASD April board meeting, the last day of school for teachers and students is Tuesday, June 13!

Additionally, the high school graduations will take place on the following dates:

• East High School - Tuesday, June 6
• Henderson High School - Wednesday, June 7
• Rustin High School - Thursday, June 8

At various times throughout the year, community members may request a review of instructional materials or books related to the WCASD. When this occurs, the Superintendent can create a committee to review the material in question. Parents and community members are an important part of the committee and review process.

If you would be interested and willing to serve on review committee if the need should arise, we encourage you to complete a brief interest form by clicking the blue button.

Did you know that the WCASD offers a Senior Tax Reduction Incentive Volunteer Exchange Program designed to assist Senior Citizens with the burden of Real Estate Taxes? In return for volunteering their services through this program, senior citizens may be entitled to a rebate of property taxes in accordance with the guidelines outlined on our Senior Tax Reduction Incentive Volunteer Exchange Program webpage.

Before applying to the program, we encourage those interested to review the attached brochure below and the guidelines on our website.