Warsaw Community Schools

Tonight's regular board meeting kicked off with a special reception celebrating Sheila Howe, our Director of HR, who is retiring after 8 dedicated years with WCS. Thank you, Sheila, for your passion and service to WCS. You will be missed! We were also treated to a fantastic performance by the Warsaw Tiger Marching Band, showcasing their state finalist piece, "Danzón," a Cuban-inspired show. Eight seniors were honored as they took part in their last performance, and the board congratulated the entire band for their hard work and a great season. The meeting also highlighted the success of the recent Hispanic Heritage Night, an event that keeps growing thanks to Coach Burgher and Coach Camargo's passion for uniting the team and celebrating the Hispanic heritage. The night featured tamales, music and dancing.

🎶 Huge congratulations to five of our Warsaw Community High School students who were selected for the Indiana All State Honor Choir! Out of all of the talented students who auditioned, five of our very own students were chosen to represent WCHS in the elite choir that will perform in Fort Wayne on January 18, 2025. Abi Fisher – Soprano I Abigail Fox – Alto II Alora Lafferty – Alto II Gabriel Busz – Tenor I Jack Stevenson – Bass I Great job, everyone! #WarsawInspires

Earlier today, the Warsaw Area Career Center hosted their annual N.E.W. (Nontraditional Employment for Women) Workshop. They had a great showing with over 150 sophomore girls from Warsaw and Tippecanoe Valley who explored nontraditional career paths and gained hands-on experience in fields like engineering, law enforcement, architecture and more.! Officer Paige Wood delivered the keynote, sharing her journey from education to law enforcement. HUGE thanks to all the presenters and sponsors for making this day possible, and to our future female leaders for their enthusiasm! #WarsawInspires

Huge congrats to the Washington volleyball team for securing the city championship with a 2-0 victory over Leesburg in the Tiger Den! Also ...a big shout out to the Harrison soccer team for their 3-1 win over Eisenhower in the city soccer final at the Tiger Soccer Complex! Way to go, teams! 🙌 #WarsawInspires

What an incredible night at Pink Out! 💗 A huge shoutout to our cheerleaders and cheer block for their energy and leadership in rallying the crowd, and to our football players for proudly wearing pink socks and donating $500 to the Cancer Care Fund. 🙌 Carson Chizum shared, “Wearing the socks and seeing all the pink means a lot to me, not only because it supports our student-led Cancer Care Fund, but it also gives awareness to anyone affected by breast cancer. My grandma was diagnosed in May, and I’m proud to support pink for the night.” Reese Finley added, "As a team, Pink Out is one of our favorite games of the year! With two of my loved ones now survivors, it's amazing to be a part of a group of students who give back in such a big way!" A special thank you to our incredible community members for showing up, spreading awareness, and supporting the fight against breast cancer! 📷 Photo credit: Jasmine McKinley for the photos and Kyle Carter for the drone shots. #WarsawInspires #PinkOutNight

Big shoutout to the Warsaw Marching Tiger Pride for securing a spot in the ISSMA Scholastic State Finals for the 10th time! Their performance earned them a Gold Rating and a place among the top bands in the state. Mark your calendars for their free Community Performance on Friday, October 11th, at Fisher Field at 6:30 PM. Show our support as they prepare for the State Finals on October 19th! Check out the full details: www.warsawschools.org/article/1807400 #WarsawInspires

Huge shoutout to our amazing teachers and administrators from Eisenhower, Leesburg, Lakeview and Central Office for spending the past several days at the 9th International Conference on Immersion and Dual Language Education. They even got to spend some time with Ofelia Wade (Utah Department of Education) who will be at WCS in a few short weeks for her annual visit. It was such a productive & impactful conference AND WCS was asked to collaborate on one of the future International DLI conferences in the midwest with IU and OSU. What a testament to our program! #WarsawInspires

We’re excited to share a few photos from this year’s DiscoverME event, hosted by OrthoWorx. Keep an eye out for the highlight reel tomorrow! Students from Lakeview and Edgewood explored local manufacturing careers, learned about the orthopedic industry and participated in hands-on activities like CNC machine demos and virtual reality medical training. These experiences helped them connect classroom learning to real-world applications and explore future career opportunities. #WarsawInspires #DiscoverME

Happy National Custodians Day! We want to give a huge shoutout to our amazing custodial staff who work tirelessly behind the scenes to keep our schools clean, safe and welcoming. Their hard work ensures that our students and staff have a great environment to learn and grow in every day. Thank you for everything you do! 👏 #WarsawInspires #NationalCustodiansDay

🍽️ Exciting News! Blue Apron, our student-operated restaurant at WACC, is officially opening for the new year! Join us every Tuesday and Thursday from 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM for delicious, chef-inspired meals crafted by our talented culinary students. High school parents—you can even meet your student for lunch during their A/B/C lunch period! Reservations and pre-orders are encouraged-- visit www.warsawschools.org/article/1794297 for the links! #WarsawInspires #BlueApron

👑 Congratulations to our Homecoming Queen, Hailey Fuller, and King, Noah Wilkins! Hailey plans to attend Ivy Tech to become a dental assistant, while Noah will study politics and law at Taylor University while playing rugby. Click the link to see the entire Homecoming Court and celebrate our nominees! 👇 https://wchs.warsawschools.org/o/wchs/article/1795085 #WarsawInspires Photo Credit to Maddie Lee (WCHS Yearbook Editor)

🌟 Mrs. Williams and Ms. Owens are building their 'Thinking Classroom' through poetry analysis! Students in Mrs. Williams’ English 9 class collaborated in groups of three to explore various elements of poetry, showcasing their insights and analysis on whiteboards for the whole class. INSPIRE is our theme for the year and we're always love sharing how our students and staff inspire each other-- Mrs. Williams and Ms. Owens were truly inspired by their students' hard work! #WCSmission #WarsawInspires

We kicked off our WCS Tiger Ambassadors Cohort 3 today! They got to join us for a Lunch & Learn, where they got an exclusive look into athletics, food services and transportation. They also had the chance to connect with our Central Office admin team. Our Tiger Ambassador program offers a unique, behind-the-scenes glimpse into WCS operations—covering everything from finances and building projects to curriculum. Plus, in a few weeks, they’ll get to shadow our building principals for a sneak peek into the day-to-day. Meet this year’s group of ambassadors: Grace Whalen Drew Flamm Stephanie Pahl Lenord McCreery Tiffany Howe Kim Slaymaker Heath Simcoe Travis McConnell Kim Lezark Leo Patino Sheriff Jim Smith Emily Hornaday Jessica Hauck Erin Sarafino We can’t wait to follow their journey! #WarsawInspires #TigerAmbassadors

🎉 We're Hiring-- We have exciting career opportunities available, and we need YOU to join our team! 🎉 Here are just a few of our immediate openings. If you're ready to inspire and equip students while making a difference, apply today! 📲 Visit www,.warsawschools.org/careers for more info #warsawinspires

Yesterday, our 4th graders participated in Lake Adventure Day in Winona Lake! The event is always a fun one since it is hosted by Grace Education students. Students explored stations to learn about erosion, pollution and even had the chance to go fishing! 🎣 Thank you, Grace College! #WarsawInspires

There were several district and community updates at the board work session tonight as we kick off the new school year! Dual Language Immersion Program: Presented by DLI Instructional Coach Crystal Kreider and Assistant Superintendent Tracy Horrell, the board learned about the growth and success of WCS's Dual Language Immersion (DLI) program which now serves over 800 students and will expand to 9th grade next year. Future plans include a partnership with Indiana University Kokomo to offer advanced college courses. Tools for Schools Highlight: Presented by Combined Community Services' Ami Pitt and Randy Polston, this event was a huge success, providing 150 lunches and 1619 pairs of shoes. Held at Lakeview (primarily for the cosmetology program), it also allowed WACC cosmetology students to gain hours towards licensure while serving 150 students with first day haircuts. There are over 1215 Warsaw students at the event. We are so grateful for CCS's partnership and contributions to the community! Mentor Program: Chief Academic Officer Aimee Lunsford presented on the revamped WCS Mentor Program. The program offers ongoing support for new teachers, including level-specific guidance, procedures, and a structure for meetings and support. #WCSmission #WarsawInspires

🚗 Important Drop-Off & Pick-Up Info for WCHS/WACC Families! As a reminder, with the new entrance last year, drop-off and pick-up routes were permanently adjusted for the high school. In addition to the attached map, here are some tips: - Follow the arrows showing traffic flow and use designated drop-off/pick-up spots - Stick to the marked routes – creating your own route holds up the line! - Do not mix yellow and red routes. - Watch for pedestrians crossing to enter the building. - Avoid turning left back onto SR-15.

Our NEW Warsaw Community Schools Welcome Center (in partnership with the Kosciusko County Health Department and Health First Kosciusko) is having an open house today until 3pm. If you are new to WCS, you should have received a direct invite to the open house, but if not, stop out and check it out (located at 1515 Provident Dr)! We have a team ready to assist and to connect you with resources within WCS and the Warsaw Community. If you can't make it today, please reach out to our Welcome Center Coordinator Tracey Akers (trakers@warsawschools.org) for more info. #WelcometoWARSAW #WCSmission

🎭 Warsaw Community High School Theatre students just got back from the International Thespian Festival and they have a lot to celebrate! WCHS students participated in various workshops, built meaningful relationships with other theatre enthusiasts, watched award-winning theatre productions AND performed My Heart Says Go for thousands of thespians! Several students also competed in individual Thespy Events: Elle Brouwer: Solo Acting - Ranked Superior Emma Ferguson and Chase Carl: Duo Acting - Ranked Superior Joel Montoya and Lillian House: Duet Musical - Ranked Superior Elle Brouwer and Shannon Smith: Duo Acting - Ranked Excellent Joel Montoya: Solo Musical - Thespy WINNER! 🏅 (HUGE deal!) with his performance of "Words Fail" from "Dear Evan Hansen" Congrats students! Thanks for representing Warsaw well! #WCSmission

It may be July, but our combined board meeting tonight was still FILLED with exciting highlights... check out several of them below! 🏆 Special Recognition- Girls Rugby: Congrats to our undefeated Girls Rugby State Champions! Led by Coach Trevor Cracknell, they are ranked 17th nationally, with several players heading to college teams, including Notre Dame. Their favorite memory from the season was winning the state championship! 🥇 🔬 Board Spotlight - STEM Strategic Planning: STEM Instructional Coach Dan Graney presented the 2024-2029 K-12 STEM Strategic Plan for WCS. After 13 months of site visits and focus groups with stakeholders, the plan includes curriculum goals, professional development, certifications, materials, communications and community support. 🩺 Annual School Nurse Report: Tracey Akers reviewed the new school nursing framework and introduced Kennedy Wagner as the new Nurse Coordinator. Tracey will be moving into the WCS Welcome Center Coordinator role as she works to establish the WCS Welcome Center, supported by the Health Department and Health First Indiana grant. The Welcome Center, which will be located at the Health Services Pavilion. The Welcome Center will welcome new WCS families and get them connected to resources within Warsaw Schools and the Warsaw community. 🆕 Administrative Introductions: Hilary Stouder, new Lincoln Elementary principal, and Lydia Fisher, Interim Technology Director were introduced to the board and had a few moments to share about some of their plans for the year. #WCSmission