Warhawk News
Information/Updates about Westerville Central High School
Message from Mr. Lanier
Wow...January flew by didn't it? Please enjoy the stories and pictures of the exciting things that our students and staff did this past month. We are also excited about the upcoming registration process that began January 29 with class meetings. The consistent message we have with our students each day is to take care of their academic responsibilities by developing good study habits and accessing the study supports available to them at school.
Speaking of good study habits, did you know that 10 minutes of focused study time at school everyday can help students become better organized, which, in turn, should translate to better academic performance? 10 minutes a day adds up to 30 hours of extra study time when calculated for the entire school year. Encourage your students to take the 10 minute study challenge while they are at school and see if it helps improve their performance.
Enjoy the newsletter and stay warm.
"It's Time to Soar Warhawks"
Mr. Lanier
Important Dates
February:
2: Chinese New Year's Festival hosted by Central
4: High School Information Night/Activities Fair
6-7: Parent Teacher Conference Nights (4-8 p.m.)
8: No School
11-End of the Month: Counselor's meet with individual students to register for 2019-2020.
13: Black History Month Celebration (7 p.m.) $5 admission fee.
16: Winter Formal
18: President's Day: No School
March:
5: Choir concert
6: SAT test administered to students in the Class of 2020 (adjusted bell schedule)
12: NHS Induction Ceremony
14: Early Release
25-29: Spring Break (No school)
February 4 High School Academic Information Night and Activities Fair
We anticipate offering information sessions focused on the following topics:
* CCP work session: Students can complete all of their paperwork; apply for acceptance and learn more about the CCP process. This will be a come and go as you need to from 6:30-8:30 p.m. CCP students and families need to make sure that all paperwork is completed prior to the registration process beginning in February and this session will take care of everything at one time.
* Future Warhawk Night: New students to Central can learn about the different programs and get advice on how to find success as they enter high school or transfer from another community.
* College Planning/Timeline: This session will help families learn about the college application process and begin their planning for moving to a post-secondary academic experience.
* Career Center: Recommended for incoming 9th graders and next year's 10th grade students. Learn more about the exciting opportunities that students have access to at our Career Center partners in Columbus and Delaware Area. You will be amazed at the different programs offered by our career centers.
* Advanced Placement Courses/Information: Learn more about what it means to take an Advanced Placement (AP) course at Central along with the many different courses that are available to Central students. This session will also focus on ways to be successful when students move to a more rigorous academic experience.
Registration Presentations/Timeline
The timeline for registration is below:
January 29, 2019- Registration portal opens for classes 2020-2022
February 6, 2019-Registration portal closes for classes 2020-2022
February 7, 2019- Registration sheets due back to history teachers
February 11, 2019 to March 1, 2019 counselors will meet with students individually through history classes
March 4, 2019 students will receive a verification from that lists course request. Parents will need to sign these forms and forms are due by March 8, 2019 to the history teacher.
Important Information for Class of 2019
Senior pledge forms will be distributed to students in their homeroom next week. The forms must be returned to Mrs. Reed in the main office by March 1st.
Pledge forms are an essential piece of graduation information.
- Verify spelling of graduates name
- Indicate your intention to participate in graduation
- Select a single presenter
Please remind your seniors to take care of this as quickly as possible in order to make the graduation planning process run smoothly.
Senior Dates: (Mark your Calendars)
Evening of Excellence: May 14 (7 p.m.)
Senior Breakfast (6:00 a.m.)/Senior Walk: May 17 (end of 8th period)
Cedar Point Trip: May 20
Night of Reflection: May 21 (7 p.m.)
Graduation Practice: May 24 (Early practice, TBA)
Graduation Ceremony: May 25 (10 a.m.)
Central to Administer the SAT March 6
Students in the Class of 2021 also took the PSAT this past fall and have access to the same free SAT prep offered to our Juniors.
Feel free to contact your student's School Counselor to find out more details.
School Safety Corner
On Tuesday, January 8th, Westerville Central High School conducted an Enhanced Evacuation Drill. The building safety committee, in response to concerns for student safety during class change time, developed procedures to be followed for a building evacuation while students are changing classes. An additional part of the Enhanced Drill included piloting the uses of the NaviGate Prepared App.
The fire alarm was activated while students were changing classes. Students exited the building through the nearest exit. They then reported to their Home Room reporting area. More than a dozen staff members had the NaviGate Prepared App loaded on their cell phones. Using the App building principal Mr. Lanier was able to send a notification of the drill. Teachers were able to use the app to take attendance and report missing students. The app allowed building administrators to monitor which teachers had taken attendance on the app as well as the names of any students who were listed as missing.
During the after drill debriefing Central’s administrative team all agreed that the app is very efficient at supplying up to the minute information on teachers and students and gives better and faster accountability. The Genoa Township fire marshal was impressed with the app and would like to have it added to the department’s computers.
Central Student Honored with MLK Fause Award
Sunshine Rotary Student of the Month
Drew Reed is a member of Troop 560 recently completed his Eagle Project. Drew organized the "Steps of Faith 5K & Food Drive" in September. The food drive was done through W.A.R.M. and extra race proceeds were distributed to Tesoros de Dios as well as Heinzerling Community. These are both organizations that help give therapy and daily care to individuals with disabilities.
Fast facts about the September event:
· Over 250 race participants
· Food Drive Goal 2,000lbs. For Church of The Messiah's 200th anniversary
· Final total- 4,056lbs.
· This equates to 3,590 meals. Around half of the food that was collected helped give kids a backpack with meals for the weekend.
· Around $6,000 donated from race proceeds to Tesoros de Dios in Nicaragua and Heinzerling Community here in Columbus.
Central is super proud of Drew and all that he is doing to help the community!!
Central Student Briana McNeal is a Student Leader for the Lymphoma Society
Briana McNeal was named as a Lymphoma Society Student Leader this year. She is leading a fundraising team that has set a goal to raise $25,000 for cancer research. Briana and her team will sell "Warhawk Life Saver" t-shirts for $10 beginning Monday, February 4, under the Hawk's Nest during lunches. In addition her team will host a fundraising event at Melt Bar and Grill at their Short North and Easton locations February 14. Download the attached Melt flyer and bring it with you to eat in order for 20% of the cost of the meal to be donated to the cause. All the proceeds raised by Briana's team will be donated at the end of the school year to the Lymphoma Society.
Central students are doing great things to support their community!!
Warhawk Special Olympic Athlete earns his Varsity Letter
Otterbein College Panel Meets with Central Students
How many college assignments require a lot of writing?
How many basic courses do you have to take before you get into your major?
What can I do now so I will be ready for college?
These are just some of the questions that were asked by Westerville Central students to a panel of educators from Otterbein University, who visited the high school on January 11 to discuss college preparedness.
The event was the result of several years of conversation between Central Teacher-Librarian Amy Farris and multiple university academic librarians. Her mission was to find out how to better prepare students to be successful in a collegiate environment and how to align high school instruction accordingly. By understanding university level expectations, she believes high school educators can do a better job of preparing students.
In the winter of 2017, Farris met with Jessica Crossfield-McIntosh, an Otterbein librarian who was engaged with the prospect of talking more with high school students about college readiness. Crossfield-McIntosh regularly works with pupils experiencing stress over college-level expectations, or those who find themselves taking remedial-level courses because they were not well prepared.
Crossfield-McIntosh was invited by Farris to visit Westerville Central, where she met with teachers Susannah Lee, Bridget Cargin and Jim Grannis, and they formulated a plan to connect Otterbein educators with Central students. The panel was well received and pupils left with a better understanding of what to expect, academically, at the collegiate level.
Students meet with Otterbein Professors and Students
Mrs. Lee facilitated the panel discussion
Central Teachers Often Collaborate to Provide Students with Unique Learning Experiences
Kindness Project
Mr. Ekis took time recently to work with students in Mrs. Perry's classroom to bring science to life.
Barn Bill Passes after 5 Years of Work
Perseverance Pays – Student Created Barn Bill Finally Passes after Five Year Wait
On December 19, 2018, Governor John Kasich signed Senate Bill 86 into law. Section 5.074 of
this bill reads, “The barn, an agricultural building located on farms and used for many purposes,
is hereby designated the official historical architectural structure of the state.” This happened
because of the hard work and perseverance put forth by a group of students and teachers from
Genoa Middle School.
The process started five years ago when pupils at Genoa were given an assignment to propose a
new symbol for the State of Ohio. One group of seventh grade girls took this challenge and ran
with it, ultimately creating a bill that would eventually make it all the way to the governor’s
desk. The team consisted of Anna Borders, Sarah Gellner, and Rachel Kaufman (who are now
11th graders at Westerville Central High School), along with Adriane Thompson (who attends
Wellington School.)
The girls came up with the idea that the barn should be designated as the Buckeye State’s official
historical architectural structure. In time, their school assignment evolved into a passion. With
the support of Representative Anne Gonzalez, who brought their idea before the Ohio House as a
bill, the students began a long and sometimes frustrating journey.
As the years went by, they learned a lot about the legislative process. While the Barn Bill was
moved, passed around, changed, argued and stalled, the girls grew up and moved on from middle
school. But they never lost their drive. They led the charge to get it passed by performing
extensive research, creating a website and a twitter feed, conducting surveys to create data in
support of their idea, writing letters, speaking at Ohio Statehood Day, and pleading their case
many times before committees at the Ohio House of Representative and Senate. With the help of
their teachers, Caley Nestor Baker and Debbie Pellington, and the support of their parents, these
students were finally rewarded for their efforts.
Pellington and Nestor Baker said the passage of this bill is a great achievement for these young
women and a testament to their work ethic, dedication, and passion. Students received from
them a special Christmas ornament for their trees last month, one they will likely keep forever
and one that will always hold special meaning. It was, of course, a barn.
Academic Boosters Update
Some highlights of what this group supports includes:
* College Scholarships: Over $30k in scholarships were awarded to students in the class of '18 this past school year.
* Educator Grants: Teachers at Central can apply for $$$ to support cool ideas and programs in their classrooms that benefit our students.
* Purchase the awards for the Underclassmen Awards Night and the Senior Evening of Excellence events.
* Sponsor the Student of the Month program that recognizes students throughout the school year for their excellence in doing their best, exhibiting kindness, and embracing uniqueness in themselves and others.
* Conduct several Teacher Appreciation events throughout the school year.
* Sponsor the Senior breakfast during Senior Week in May.
Please consider supporting this group by joining the Boosters and volunteering some of your time. Single membership costs just $5 and family membership costs $10. Many hands make light work!! Click the links below to learn more about the great work that our Academic Boosters do for Warhawk Nation and where to buy your Warhawk Spirit gear for the '18-'19 school year.
January Students of the Month
She'terria Sparks
Marissa Ballard
Laith Hijazeen
Will Arnett
Sydney Ballinger
Tyler Gebbie
CJ Dickerson
Kayley Covert
Athletics Info
Please visit our Athletic Webpage for the latest in Warhawk Athletic News and upcoming contests.
Athletic Director Andy Ey at eya@westerville.k12.oh.us.
Central Student Drafted to the MLS
Cameron Hubble came close to winning the halftime shooting contest at the basketball game v. WNHS recently. Barely missed the half court shot!!
North defeats Central in the Food Drive
Hoops w/ the Hawks Fundraiser
Attendance Info
Students who attend school regularly will experience greater success than students who have poor attendance. Helping students with attendance issues is a team effort that includes the family, school counselors, administration and health care providers. Proactive communication around attendance will help the team work together to support students in their efforts to be successful in their academic experience.
Please find some helpful hints from our attendance clerk below to help get the school year started off on the right foot:
Attendance Office Phone #: 614-797-6820
Please call when you know that your student is going to be absent from school for any reason.
Appointments
Occasionally students have a medical or dental appointment during school hours. In the event that such an appointment is necessary, the following procedure must be used or that student will be considered unexcused: A note from the parent/guardian prior to the appointment is appropriate. A phone call/voice mail message at least 1 hour prior to the student’s necessary dismissal time is acceptable. Parental/guardian calls and notes must be specific about the reason for and the time of the appointment and the approximate time of return. Prior to leaving the building, the student must stop in the attendance office to sign out. Upon return, the student must sign in to the attendance office and bring verification of his/her doctor, dentist, or court appointment.
Thanks for your help in helping us track your child's attendance.
Communication
Central will use the following means of communication throughout the year:
* Daily announcements are found on our webpage.
* School Messenger: School wide messages will be delivered via phone calls and emails through our School Messenger account.
* Newsletter: I will send a monthly newsletter (Warhawk News) updating Warhawk Nation about the great things our students and staff are doing during the school year. The newsletter is electronic and will be emailed and distributed via Twitter.
* Remind 101: To receive text messages directly, consider signing up for Central's Remind 101 service. It's easy...text @6k39d7 to 81010.
* Twitter: Consider following me on Twitter @ThomasWLanier. I share lots of fun events and great pics about Warhawk Nation via Twitter. Be sure to tweet @ThomasWLanier and use the hashtag, #hawkssoar when you see great things that our Warhawks are doing.
Winter Weather Keeping the Custodians Busy
Administrators/Counselors
Administrators:
Tom Lanier, Principal
Brad Adams, Assistant Principal
Nick McIlwain, Assistant Principal
Eric Nickel, Assistant Principal
Andy Ey, Athletic Director
School Counselors:
Monica Johnson, Counselor A-CO
Jim Kloepfer, Counselor CR-HE
Megan Lemmon, Counselor HI-ME
Erica Guice, Counselor MI-SA
Carrie Ackermann, Counselor SC-Z
Email: laniert@westerville.k12.oh.us
Website: http://www.westerville.k12.oh.us/29/Home
Location: 7118 Mt Royal Ave, Westerville, OH, United States
Phone: 614-797-6800
Twitter: @ThomasWLanier