South Range Local Schools
Raider Review Spring 2023-2024
🍎 Welcome to the spring edition of the Raider Review 2023-2024 🍎
A message from Dr. Jarred Zapolnik, Superintendent of Schools
Dear South Range Local School District Community,
Spring has arrived, and with it comes the beginning of the fourth quarter of the 2023-2024 school year! This academic year has been filled with unforgettable moments for our students, staff, and community. We have continued to build upon the rich traditions of the past while also striving to create new opportunities aligned with the district's goals, encapsulated in the Raider Way! I am deeply grateful for the collaborative spirit that permeates our district. Together, we are steadfastly committed to the principle of Getting Better Every Day (GBED), and it is truly inspiring to witness this dedication to our shared mission. We will continue implementing the Raider Way into the 2024-2025 school year; please check out the Board of Education (BOE)-approved district calendar below!
The Raider Way encompasses four key pillars:
- High Expectations
- Communication & Collaboration
- Student Performance
- Safety & Resources
These pillars serve as the foundation upon which we base our efforts to provide our students the best possible educational experience.
As we embrace the arrival of spring and embark upon the fourth quarter of the 2023-2024 school year, I want to take a moment to extend a heartfelt shoutout to our winter sports teams and extracurricular groups for their outstanding achievements! Our winter sports teams and extracurricular participants have exceeded expectations and exemplified the true spirit of being a Raider. Their dedication, hard work, and perseverance have not only brought pride to our school but have also served as an inspiration to us all. From thrilling victories to remarkable performances, our students have demonstrated remarkable talent, sportsmanship, and teamwork. Whether on the court, the field, or the stage, they have represented South Range Local School District with distinction and pride.
As we transition into the spring season, I am confident that our extracurricular activities will continue to thrive. With the same passion, determination, and spirit of camaraderie, I anticipate that our students will create even more unforgettable memories, earn accolades, and achieve positive outcomes. To all our student-athletes, performers, coaches, advisors, and supporters, thank you for your unwavering commitment and dedication. Your contributions enrich our school community and inspire us to strive for excellence.
Let us continue to cheer on our Raiders with enthusiasm and pride as they embark on new adventures and accomplishments in the months ahead! As always, I encourage you to visit our district's website at https://www.southrange.k12.oh.us/ for important updates and information.
With great enthusiasm and excitement, let us continue to embody the spirit of the Raider Way and strive for excellence in everything we do.
Go Raiders!
Warm regards,
Dr. Jarred Zapolnik
Superintendent
📅 2024-2025 BOE-approved District calendar 📅
Communication & Collaboration
High Expectations
Student Performance
A message from Mr. Nero, Treasurer of Schools
School Funding Update
The unit of value for expressing the rate of property taxes in Ohio is called a “mill.” A mill is defined as one-tenth of a cent (0.1 cents) in cash terms. Millage is the factor applied to the assessed value of property to produce tax revenue.
2023 Mahoning County Reappraisal
Mahoning County went through a reappraisal for tax year 2023 (collection year 2024). Every three years, the county performs either an update or a complete reappraisal. The triennial update is less comprehensive than the reappraisal and property valuations are updated based on home sales data from the prior three years. In a complete reappraisal, property appraisers visit each property to make adjustments to property values.
2023 Mahoning County Reappraisal affecting South Range
How did the reappraisal affect South Range Local School District? The reappraisal lowered our effective millage on Class I (e.g., residential/agriculture) property from 19.97 to 16.91 mills. Our Class II (e.g., commercial/other) property effective millage dropped from 18.89 to 17.99 mills. In conclusion, the reappraisal to the 20 mill floor adjustment will generate approximately three additional mills in tax revenue.
🌟South Range Local School District Board of Education🌟
South Range Local School District Board of Education (BOE)
Brian Bagwell, President
Terri Lally, Vice President
Liz Johnson, Member
Tyler Bates, Member
Dr. Jack Dawson, Member
March - Read Across America Week
Theme: Reading Rocks!
- Each morning, the day will begin with a "Song of the Day" aligning to the dress-up theme. The music begins around 7:55 as the students enter classrooms, followed by Mr. Matos and announcements.
Monday, 3/18/24
- "Pink" - Wear PINK/Barbie
Tuesday, 3/19/24
- "Y'all Life" - Western Attire/Cowboy Hat
Wednesday, 3/20/24
- "Surfin' USA" - Beach/Summer Attire/Bring your beach towel to sit on:)
Thursday, 3/21/24
- "Happy" - Bright Colors/Crazy Socks
Friday, 3/22/24
- "Cover Me in Sunshine" - Wear YELLOW
Themed "Goodies"
Throughout the week, students will receive objects to participate in the week! For example, staff will distribute sunglasses on Friday and students will wear them to the school assembly!
Stop - Drop and Read Times:
Monday - 9:30
Tuesday - 8:45
Wednesday - 11:50
Thursday - 9:15
Friday - 9:45
Reading- Get Inspired! 👩🏾🚀
Read about women trailblazers! Click👇🏽
News from the Cafeteria 🍕🥞🌮
With three months of school left South Range cafeteria is not slowing down when it comes to feeding our students! During the month of March we will be participating in National School Breakfast Week (March 4th-8th) along with our 6 months to the Canfield Fair celebration during lunch all week as well. All students K-12 will receive a special fair treat when they receive a lunch that week.
March is also National Nutrition Month and Food Service Director Kaitlyn Pierce will be making her way to various classrooms in the district for nutrition education lessons for the students. “Molly the Cow” from The Nutrition Group, will also be making a special guest appearance during lunch promoting the importance of each food group. This month we will be introducing fun new a la carte items for lunch such as homemade fruit smoothies and boba lemonade.
Be sure to follow the cafeteria’s Instagram at southrange_cafe for weekly updates of specials and pictures of daily lunches. In April and May, the cafeteria will continue with our “Wellness Wednesday” monthly taste tests for students to try new healthy recipes. There will also be various themed days that coincide with the lunch menu such as “Beach Day,” “Zoo Day,” etc. The cafeteria and our students are looking forward to the fun new items and special days ahead!
A message from Mr. Rohan, Principal of South Range High School
Staffing
Congratulations to Inclusion teacher Bill Beaver and his wife Bre (Class of 2012) on the birth of their daughter Evalyn Elizabeth on February 8, 2024.
Student Performance
🗯️ Speech and Debate 🗯️
Congratulations to the following members of our Speech and Debate team:
JJ Kennedy, Lilah Angus, Ashley Kersten, Kaliegh Morrow, and Ava Ward were all state qualifiers.
Addie Sell, freshman- Quarterfinalist, top 24 in the state.
Solena DeJesus, sophomore-Quarter finalist, top 24 in the state.
Toby Sell, junior/Grayson Martz, senior- semi-finalist, top 12 in the state in duo
Brooke Nielsen, senior- top 12 in the state in drama
Peyton Hines-Junior/Zaeda Stiles, junior- 3rd place in the state in duo.
Quincy Bailey, sophomore- 3rd place in the state in humor.
Ruby Cleevely, freshman-STATE CHAMPION in Declamation!
The team was named a School of Excellence in Interpretation which is awarded to the schools earning the top sweepstakes points in a specific area. Brooke Nielsen and Grayson Martz were recognized for being four-year state qualifiers as well.
🥇🥈National Honor Society (NHS)🥇🥈
South Range High School celebrated the induction of 40 new members into the National Honor Society on Mar 12, 2024, at 6:30 PM in the auditorium. The ceremony also honored the 30 current senior members of NHS. Attendees were treated to desserts and refreshments following the ceremony.
South Range High School Drama Team
On April 12 and 13 in the Auditorium, under the direction of Nicole Fryfogle and musical director Niki Dispenza, the South Range Drama Team will put on a production of “Little Women." Twenty-five students in grades 8-12 have been rehearsing for months for this performance; please mark the date on your calendar and come support the Drama Team.
South Range High School Robotics Club
South Range Robotics has had an amazing 2023-2024 season! Beginning in September, the team has competed at multiple competitions and league events in VEX Robotics. Winning multiple awards throughout the season, the teams have brought home the Design, Build, and Create Awards. While at the Kalahari Classic, competing with world-class teams from across North America, the team won the coveted Create Award, one of only 9 various awards given out to over 180 teams in the competition. The team wraps up its season on March 9th at the VEX Ohio State Robotics Championship, where they will compete against the top-ranked teams in Ohio.
Speech & Debate Excellence
Speech & Debate Excellence
Raiders Performing
A message from Mr. Szolek, Principal of South Range Middle School
Students In The Spotlight
Our South Range Middle School students continue to perform beyond expectations both in and out of the classroom!
🌟 Raider Spotlight🌟
We would like to congratulate the following students on being recognized as our “Raider Spotlight Students of the Month” for exemplary performance in the area(s) of scholarship, leadership, mentorship, friendship and/or craftsmanship.
Grade 5 - Kaitlyn Edwards
Kaitlyn has consistently demonstrated exceptional leadership and scholarship qualities throughout the school year. Her dedication to academic excellence sets her apart as an exemplary student. She exhibits natural leadership abilities in various aspects of school life and her peers look up to her as a role model due to her collaborative spirit and willingness to support others.
Grade 6 - Taylor Sewell
Taylor was chosen as the 6th grade Raider Spotlight Student due to her mentorship. Taylor can often be found helping her classmates with their schoolwork. She is very conscientious of her work and is influencing others to work hard as well.
Grade 7 - Lauren Meyers
Lauren demonstrates scholarship in all of her classes. She consistently earns perfect/highest-in-class scores on her math tests while participating in extracurricular activities such as Power of the Pen, speech and debate, and drama. In class, Lauren participates, pays attention, and tries her best. She is a prime example of how to display the characteristics of scholarship both in and outside of the classroom.
Grade 8 - Drew Starkey
Drew is the type of student who works hard and is a positive influence on those around him. Drew demonstrates leadership both in the classroom and in athletics. He consistently provides a positive example and encourages others to make good decisions. Drew demonstrates scholarship as he maintains high academic achievement across all of his classes.
Power of the Pen…
Our 7th and 8th grade Power of the Pen teams competed in the District Tournament here at South Range. Seventh-grade medal winners were Lillian Clowser (8th place) and Olivia Tranovich (3rd place). Our 8th-grade team finished in 2nd place overall. Medal winners were Callie Roller (9th), Atiana Alvarez (8th), Nicholas Wellington (7th), and Autumn Blackburn (2nd). Autumn also had 3 first-place rounds and received a Director's Choice Award for her story, "If Only," deeming her story the best of the entire tournament. Additionally, Nick Wellington received a Best of Round award for his story, "The School Prank."
Outside of School…
Five members of our Middle School Wrestling team qualified for the OAC state wrestling tournament on March 16th and 17th. Those qualifiers are Ralph Stelatto, Matthew Tomaino, Scott Leach, Sam Vivo, and Drew Starkey.
A message from Mr. Matos, Principal of South Range Elementary School
👨❤️👨Student Recognition 👨❤️👨
This fall, our students and staff collaborated to create our K-4 Raider Profile. They worked together to answer three questions about what it means to be a Raider at South Range Elementary: What are the hopes, dreams, and aspirations our community has for our students?; What skills and mindsets do our children need to succeed in this rapidly changing, complex world?; and, What actions do successful Raiders demonstrate? After combining our responses, our grade-level teams were asked to select one outstanding student who consistently demonstrated the answers to these questions. Throughout the year, many of our elementary students have shown outstanding leadership skills and answered the question, “What does it mean to be a Raider at South Range Elementary?” Congratulations to the following students for going above and beyond and receiving the South Range Elementary Raider Profile recognition at the February Board of Education meeting: Kindergarten - Rowan Miller; First Grade - Sara McMurray; Second Grade - Kaelina Gorcheff; Third Grade - Evelyn Wells; Fourth Grade - Viviana Mitchley and Colton Albert.
👥Building Leadership Team👥
Our Building Leadership Team (BLT) has been meeting to discuss how we can celebrate positive peer relationships in the elementary school. This challenge came from a broader discussion of the District Leadership Team (DLT) in February where we looked at our current district goals and decided to select one goal to focus on for the remainder of the year. Each BLT must decide what this looks like in their building based on the ages and needs of their students. In the elementary school, our BLT decided that we would challenge our students to define what it means to be a friend and to look for examples throughout the day when one of their classmates is doing something nice for someone else or being a friend to someone in their class. When they see this, they will write the act of kindness and the student’s name on a strip of paper and then place the strip of paper in their classroom’s flower pot that is labeled, “Watch our Friendships Grow.” At the end of the week, the teachers and students will share what is written on the strips of paper with their classmates. These colored strips of paper will then be placed on the walls in the hallway as part of our K-4 Friendship Bracelet. Our goal over the next several weeks will be to connect all of our classrooms, K-4, on the 1st and 2nd floor, with our Friendship Bracelet, by celebrating our students’ positive peer relationships.
💡Department Spotlight - Title I💡
Our Elementary Title I Department is responsible for small group intervention in both reading and math for our 2nd, 3rd, and 4th grade students. In March, our Title I staff also organized our Right to Read Week in the elementary. This is the time of year when we spend a little extra time to celebrate and enjoy reading. Each year there is a special theme, and this year the theme is, “Reading Rocks!” Our students will be rock star readers and enjoy a musically fun-filled week, March 18-22.
Throughout the week, the students and staff will have special dress-up days to go along with the Reading Rocks theme. There will be guest readers daily in our classrooms from community members and parents to former teachers, current staff members, and possibly a mystery reader! The students will complete an at-home Reading Log as part of a reading competition as each grade level tries to read the most minutes for an ice cream party! There will be other fun reading activities taking place during the week, culminating at the end of the week with an assembly in the auditorium by the high school music department.
Valentine's Day Dance
Valentine's Day Dance
Valentine's Day Dance
Save The Dates: Kindergarten Registration
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Kindergarten registration for students who live in the South Range Local School District occurred the week of March 4 - 8, 2024. Parents/Guardians of children who will be 5 years old on or before August 1, 2024 may register online and make an appointment for screening by going to our school’s website during the designated week. The kindergarten screening dates are set for Thursday, May 2, and Friday, May 3. Time slots will be from 8:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m. Students to be registered must be residents of the South Range School District.
Parents/Guardians of students who live outside the district can check the district website for the most up-to-date information about when open enrollment for new students will take place. This information will be available following the February 28, 2024 board meeting.
Winter Sports All-NE8 Recognitions
Congratulations to our All-NE8 selections
Basketball
PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Landon Moore
1st Team
Luke Rohan
Gwen Lowry
2nd team
Dylan Turvey
Madison Dado
Swimming
1st Team
Rogan Kelly, 100 Breaststroke
Adriana Habeger, 50 Freestyle, 100 Butterfly
200 Freestyle Relay: Avery McGrath, Ally Knapik, Norin Kelly, Adriana Habeger
Avery McGrath, 100 Breaststroke
400 Freestyle Relay: Adriana Habeger, Ally Knapik, Norin Kelly, Avery McGrath
2nd Team
Norin Kelly, 200 Freestyle
Ally Knapik, 50 Freestyle
Ally Knapik, 100 Freestyle
Norin Kelly, 500 Freestyle
Wrestling
Eastern Ohio Wrestling League (EOWL)
1st Team
165 Tyson Seesholtz
215 Patrick Lally
2nd Team
120 Kayden Welker
126 Charles Freeze
150 Edward Stachowicz
157 Johnny Tomaino
175 Xavier Winner
Northeast Eight (NE8)
1st Team
120 Kayden Welker
150 Edward Stachowicz
165 Tyson Seesholtz
2nd Team
126 Charles Freeze
138 Hayden John
157 Johnny Tomaino
215 Patrick Lally
Great job wrestlers!
Student Performance
Great job wrestlers!
👮A message from Officer Hassey, School Resource Officer👮
Ohio Safety Center
In early February, the Ohio School Safety Center (OSSC) sent five representatives to the South Range campus to meet with the district's safety team to conduct a security and vulnerability assessment. The assessment consisted of nearly 210 questions on policy and procedures, building controls, building security, emergency communications, and more. Next, the OSSC performed a thorough walk-through of the entire campus to assess security concerns from inside the building to outside at the football stadium. The questions covered any and every issue that a school may encounter.
The school’s response to the questions resulted in a vulnerability score of district and police preparedness for potential problems. After a six-hour meeting, the results indicate our district is at a “Low risk” of any potential threats or security concerns on campus. This is the highest ranking a school can receive. Although there were still areas of improvement found within the assessment, everyone should be proud of how well the district performed and the positive feedback the Ohio School Safety Center shared.
Safety & Security: Tobacco Products and Student Health
While the use of e-cigarettes and vaping is declining overall nationwide, there is an increase in overall tobacco product use among middle school students. This is according to the Food and Drug Administration in November of 2023. According to this report, 10% of high school and 5% of middle school students vape or use e-cigarettes. Of those users, over 25% of them admit to using a vaping product every day. Within the district, the school administration and the School Resource Officers are aware of the increasing numbers of middle school students using tobacco-related products and seek to inform parents of resources at the school and online when speaking to the children about the dangers of vaping. Please feel free to call the school or visit sites such as “The Truth Initiative” or The American Lung Association.
🚗Student Pick-up & Drop-off🚗
If you drive around campus at pick-up or drop-off, you may have noticed an increase in law enforcement on Route 46 and Green-Beaver Rd. This is due to the calls to the SRO's office and Beaver Police Department for speeding along these roads. Please be aware that when exiting school property onto these roads, the speed limit is 20 mph. Many of the traffic stops recently are parents leaving the school and forgetting about the school speed zones.
⚠️Safety Drills⚠️
Additional lock-down and tornado drills are being planned out for March. Information regarding the lockdown drill will be provided later this month. The entire campus is planning on taking part in the state-wide tornado on March 20th during Ohio’s Severe Weather Awareness Week. At 9:50, the tornado sirens statewide will sound off to prepare for spring and summer.
A message from Mrs. Kanotz, Interim Director of Special Services✨
Welcome to Spring! In the world of Special Services we are super busy preparing for the completion of this school year as well as planning for the needs for next school year. Please be aware if you are a parent of a student on an IEP you may be invited to participate in meetings for a variety of purposes if your child is transitioning. We have team meetings to discuss the transition from preschool programs with the ESC of Eastern Ohio to kindergarten as well as meetings for students having an IEP as they transition to the MCCTC programs or graduation.
See below for more information related to gifted identification as we wrap up our whole grade testing in grades 2 and 5.
As always, if you have questions or concerns please feel free to reach out to your classroom teacher, intervention specialist, building principal or myself.
Gifted
The district is in the process of completing whole grade screening for grades 2 and 5. Parents should soon receive letters with their child’s results. For students who meet the criteria for gifted identification, classroom teachers will begin writing the Written Education Plans (WEP) and review those with you. For students who scored within the ranges for additional assessments, parental consent must be obtained and we included the forms in the mailing, please return those to your child’s homeroom teacher.
As always, teachers continue to review student assessment data to help identify students who may meet the requirements for identification as gifted students. We collaborate with the Educational Service Center of Eastern Ohio to help us with our gifted identification. If you suspect your child may be gifted, please reach out to Mrs. Jaclyn DiSibio to discuss the process.
Special Education Public Input
As we are considering program needs for the next school year, if you would like to provide recommendations, please feel free to reach out to Mrs. Jaclyn DiSibio.
Child FInd
For grades K-12 the laws require districts to screen students for a variety of needs and then to provide interventions for students. We utilize the results of screenings and interventions to help teams determine if a disability is suspected. The district is working to implement a multi-tiered system of support to help teachers and teams review the student data and identify levels of need and progress before determining if there is a suspected disability. Please know that the laws require the districts to screen all students in many ways and that alone does not automatically indicate a need for assessment for either a 504 or IDEA evaluation. Our ultimate goal is to assist your child to overcome their hurdles and make progress in the general education curriculum. If you have questions or concerns please feel free to reach out to your classroom teacher, intervention specialist, building principal, or myself.
For preschool purposes: the laws are somewhat different "A child with a disability” may include a child who is at least three years of age and less than six years of age; and experiencing developmental delays, as defined by standards adopted by the state board of education and as measured by appropriate diagnostic instruments and procedures in one or more of the following areas: Physical development, cognitive development, communication development, social or emotional development, or adaptive development; and who, by reason thereof, needs special education and related services. Parents who suspect their preschool-aged child may have a disability should contact Mrs. Jaclyn DiSibio.
A message from Dean Pagnotta, Director of Technology
Please welcome Richard Fitch to our custodial/maintenance staff!
Rich comes to us with 20-plus years of experience in multiple trade experiences. Rich will be part of our day crew to help manage over 250,000 square feet we have under the roof as well as over 150 acres of grounds. Over the years our staff has been an important part of special projects to maintain our facility and keep it safe. An example of just a few:
- Verizon hotspots - provided by Verizon at no cost to the school district in which our custodial staff ran over 2000’ of wire to complete this project.
- Installation of LED lights - providing these updates has saved the school district's electric expenses as well as the cost of incandescent, HID bulbs, and ballast.
- Future projects - Our custodial staff works closely with our technology department. We often provide in-house installations. This reduces the cost of new technologies like the interactive flat panels we are considering for K-12 Classrooms.
Our custodial staff also performs routine maintenance to meet the needs of activities that occur in the K-12 as well as outdoors. We are thankful to have a great staff that exemplifies the Raider Way!
Counseling Messages 💡
High School Career & College Preparation
In February, the Class of 2025 (Juniors) participated in activities relating to life after high school. On February 8th, they traveled to Pittsburgh to attend a national college fair. On February 15, Mrs. Burkey hosted an assembly about planning for college. Then, on Tuesday, February 27, juniors at SRHS took the ACT for free, funded by the state of Ohio. Our juniors who attend MCCTC took the ACT at South Range on March 5. Finally, on Friday, March 1, the junior class gathered one last time to hear about post-high school options provided by the Educational Opportunity Center from Kent State University. The program focused on college timelines, microcredentials and short-term certificate programs, career assessments, and job shadowing. In March, Mrs. Burkey met with students in grades 8-11 to discuss high school scheduling for the 2024-2025 school year. Each student received a course request sheet with recommended academic subjects to take next year. Like last year, students will know their next year's schedule by the time they break for summer.
As in elementary and middle schools, the high school will participate in state testing in April. Beginning April 19, students in grades 9, 10, and 11 must take subject tests in English, math, biology, American history, or American government. Each test day focused on certain grade levels, so if a grade level did not have to report to school for a test, they must complete online learning using a remote school day schedule.
The month of May belongs to our seniors! It begins with the Ruritan Senior Dinner on Thursday, May 2. The Greenford Ruritan hosts a dinner in our cafeteria to celebrate the seniors as they are about to graduate high school. In the middle of May, seniors will pick up their caps and gowns before they take a senior class trip to Cedar Point on Friday, May 17! The following week is busy for seniors as they will take senior exams, attend senior awards, and have graduation practice. Their ultimate moment is participating in graduation, which will take place on Sunday, May 26 in the high school gymnasium. CONGRATULATIONS TO THE CLASS OF 2024!
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Middle School Counseling/Career Planning
SRMS has been busy promoting social and emotional skills with several programs this winter. Each grade level integrated Start With Hello objectives and No Child Eats Alone conversation cards into their lessons to encourage conversations among classmates and promote an inclusive environment. 6th grade students spent several days working with Mrs. Petit, utilizing the Speak Up program, to focus on Empowerment and fostering safe and healthy relationships.
Student Council sponsored our annual dress-up dance for 7th and 8th grade students. Attendance was outstanding and students had a great time. Student Council members will attend a Pirates game at PNC Park this spring as part of their Student Council Recognition Day. This is an excellent opportunity for students to interact with leaders from other schools and participate in special activities during the game. This has always been a memorable event for Student Council members.
Annual state testing will begin in April at the middle school. English Language Arts tests will take place between April 16 and April 26, 2024. Math and Science tests will take place between April 26 and May 7, 2024. Science tests are for grades 5 and 8 only. We encourage students to get a good night's sleep and have a nutritious breakfast on test days. Also, parents are asked to schedule doctor and dental appointments in the afternoons or on non-test days for their children.
Parent-Teacher Organizations (PTO)
Elementary PTO
The elementary PTO sponsored two events in February for our students. First, on Saturday, February 3rd, the PTO held our 1st annual Father/Child Dance for our 3rd and 4th grade students. If a father could not be present, any other male role model was invited to attend the dance as a chaperone with our students. The boys and girls danced to the tunes of DJ Munson, took pictures at 2 different Magic Moments photo booths, had their faces painted by Mrs. Durch and enjoyed refreshments from the PTO. Over half of our 3rd and 4th grade students attended the dance and we look forward to more events like this in the future. Next, on Wednesday, February 14th, the PTO organized our K-4 Valentine’s Day classroom parties for our students. The boys and girls exchanged their Valentine’s Day cards, while they enjoyed a healthy snack and played games.
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Faces in the Crowd
Mrs. Kristen Scott, SRHS
Kristen has been the Family Consumer Science teacher at SRHS for the past 17 years as well as the Student Council advisor. She always has the student's best interests in the forefront and is an advocate for all their needs. She has the pulse of our HS staff, our students and is a valuable member of our staff. Over the years, she has organized and run numerous Blood Drives which have raised thousands of dollars in scholarship money for our students.
Ky Tullis, Maintenance
Ky Tullis is an eight year veteran of our South Range Maintenance staff. He has earned the respect of his fellow employees by setting good examples of leadership and hard work. His warm personality and caring attitude fits the Raider Way. Prior to being employed by South Range Local Schools, Ky comes to us with 25+ years of various trade experiences. We look forward to working with him and serving our community for many more years to come.
Mrs. Kandace Best, SRMS
After 9 years at East Palestine Middle School, Mrs. Best came to us as our 8th-grade Science teacher. She has two sons, Brayton (grade 2) and Brady (grade 1), who are students in our Elementary School. Mrs. Best has proven to be a wonderful addition to our school and the entire South Range Local School District. She demonstrates a passion for science and technology in her classroom and instills in her students a desire to learn. Residing and coaching in the community, Mrs. Best said "I've known my whole career I wanted to be a Raider. The end goal or dream job was always South Range and it hasn't let me down. I absolutely love the K-12 complex at South Range and how easy it is to be connected with everyone in the district and feel like one big family." Welcome, Mrs. Best!
Mrs. Katie McMurray, SRES
Katie has been a teacher at South Range Elementary for the past 2 years. She started her teaching career after graduating from Youngstown State University in 2006. Katie started her teaching career at Forest Hill Elementary School in Morganton, North Carolina. She taught there for 11 years while living at the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains from 2006-2017, with her first 8 years teaching kindergarten and the next 3 years teaching 2nd grade. Katie then moved back to Ohio to raise her girls near her extended family and to take a 5th grade teaching position at Jackson-Milton Elementary School beginning in 2017 before moving to a 2nd grade position in 2021. In the fall of 2022, we were fortunate to hire Katie as a Title I/RTI Interventionist and she now is in her first year with us as a kindergarten teacher. Throughout her educational career, Katie has received numerous awards such as the First Year Teacher of the Year in 2007, Teacher of the Year in 2010 and Educator of the Year in 2020.
Katie and her husband Adam, who is a driver for Pepsi, have 2 daughters who attend South Range Elementary, Lyvia (4th grade) and Sara (1st grade). Katie enjoys hiking, walking, spending time outside, family movie nights, watching her girls play sports, and spending time with family and friends. She likes to go shopping with her girls and her whole family likes to go out for pizza or sushi and they love having big Sunday breakfasts with homemade waffles! Katie and her family love to spend time at the homes of various family members to enjoy big family meals and parties with their large extended family. In her short time at South Range, Katie has demonstrated her drive, determination and dedication to her family, her teaching and to her students. We are lucky to have Katie McMurray as part of our South Range Elementary family!
Interested in hosting an evening with Dr. Zapolnik and his team?
We have had a few families interested to host Dr. Zapolnik and a few members of the team for a meet and greet at the family's home. The purpose of the meet and greet is for the families to share their insights about the district: Wishes, wonders, and worries! Dr. Zapolnik and his team will spend time listening to learn from YOU how to Get Better Every Day (GBED)! If you are interested in hosting Dr. Zapolnik and a few BOE members, please complete the subsequent form. Thanks!
Click here to access the student handbooks
Click here to view the calendar