The Summit

Teachers, principals and

support staff rolled out the

red carpet—literally—for

returning students in Au-

gust. Schools across the

county made sure their stu-

dents felt welcome and en-

ergized for the new year.

Sheffey Elementary had

a red-carpet entrance , com-

plete with “paparazzi” and

upbeat music. Two enthusi-

astic teachers, equipped with

cameras, tried to make sure

they snapped a photo of

each and every student that

walked through the front

doors that morning.

At Jackson Memorial

Elementary, teachers and

staff weren’t afraid to be a

little silly at an opening as-

sembly to put the students

in good spirits.

Thanks to a lot of hard

work and preparation from

everyone, this was one of

the smoothest school year

starts ever!

Welcome back students!

We’re so excited for an ex-

cellent year.

A red-carpet welcome

Amidst the business of

preparing to begin a new

school year, WCPS had the

rare opportunity to open

our campus to an important

political figure. Vice Presi-

dent Joe Biden stopped in

Wytheville during a cam-

paign tour through South-

west Virginia.

The August 14 event,

held at Spiller Elementary,

began with Spiller students

reciting the pledge of alle-

giance on stage. Frances

Watson, a veteran teacher of

WCPS and well-known sup-

porter of the local Democ-

ratic Party, was invited to

give Mr. Biden’s introduc-

tion.

Regardless of political

affiliations, we are proud to

have the opportunity to

engage in democracy and

practice good citizenship at

all levels of government.

Vice President Joe Biden visits Wytheville

Wythe County Public Schools

Autumn 2012

Volume 2, Issue 1

From the Superintendent 2

Kindergarten Camp 3

Calling All Communities 4

Teacher of the Year 4

Pre-Engineering Class 5

Briefly 6-7

Education in Action 8

Inside this issue:

Relevant Reads

“93 Percent of

Virginia Schools

Meet SOL Stan-

dards,” VDOE

“Virginia Stu-

dents Continue

to Outperform

Peers Nation-

wide on SAT,”

VDOE

Upcoming School Board

meetings:

Oct. 10 9:00 a.m. SBO

Nov. 7 7:00 p.m. SBO

Dec. 12 9:00 a.m. SBO

Nov. 6 is Election

Day. Don’t forget to

VOTE!

1570 W. Reservoir Street

Wytheville, VA 24382

Phone: 276-228-5411

Fax: 276-228-9192

http://wythe.k12.va.us/

Notes from the Superintendent

Educating students for success in the 21st

century.

Wythe County Public Schools Central Office Staff

Dr. Lee Brannon Division Superintendent

Dr. Melinda Robinett Exec. Director of Educational Services

Jeff Noe Exec. Director of Instruction

Richard Thomas Director of Personnel

Marcy Olinger Director of Elem. & Middle Education

Beth Cochran Coordinator of Federal Programs and Testing

Dr. Wesley Poole Director of Facilities and Operations

Keith Cochran Technology Supervisor

2012 School Board Members

William Kidd, Chairman East Wytheville

Chalmer Frye, Vice-Chairman Speedwell

Walter White Fort Chiswell

Stephen Sage Blacklick

Patricia Hines Lead Mines

Deborah Crigger At-Large

David Martin West Wytheville

The Summit Volume 2, I ssue 1 Page 2

The mission of WCPS, in partnership with our entire community, is to ensure that each student is empowered with

the knowledge and skills necessary to meet the challenges of the future.

Welcome back to the

start of another school year

in Wythe County! Students

and staff are settling into

their routines as the first six

weeks is now behind us.

Over the past few years

WCPS has made great

strides. This is the third year

in a row WCPS has achieved

full accreditation by the

state. We’ve enhanced our

teacher strategies to incor-

porate more technology as a

learning tool by equipping

our students and schools

with more than 1,000 differ-

ent technology upgrades,

replacements or purchases.

Alongside developing a

new Capital Improvement

Plan that will bring our fa-

cilities up to date, we have

completed several smaller

renovation or improvement

projects at our schools—a

resurfaced gym floor at

Spiller, more outdoor light-

ing for safety, cafeteria up-

grades, and much more.

Because of the School

Board’s commitment to en-

suring our teachers and em-

ployees are fairly compen-

sated, we’ve been able to

retain and attract some of

the best education talent in

Southwest Virginia and pro-

vide our retiring employees a

sustainable health care bene-

fit option. Even with de-

creases in state funding,

mandated VRS employee

contributions and a strug-

gling economy, WCPS has

become a fiscal leader and

model for surrounding

counties to follow because

of the Board’s proper and

thorough planning.

It takes all of these things

together to keep us pressing

forward to a better educa-

tion for our students.

From what we see in our

vision of 21st Century edu-

cation, the future of WCPS

is looking bright.

K-Camp: Big success for little people Wythe County elementary

schools hosted Kindergarten Camp

this summer. Incoming Kindergar-

ten students got a jump start on the

2012 school year by spending three

days in school with their soon-to-be

teachers. 182 students spent half a

day in class learning kindergarten

routines, getting to know the new

faces of their classmates, teachers

and school staff along with becom-

ing familiar with the school, cafete-

ria, and playground.

Families were invited to lunch at

the end of the week where they

learned more about school expecta-

tions and ways to best help their

child succeed in school. Parents

loved the camp because it gave

them a chance to gradually intro-

duce their child to school and it of-

fered another opportunity to con-

nect with the teachers. Teachers

loved that K camp students ad-

justed more quickly to school rou-

tines when school did start and that

they were able to get down to the

business of teaching and learning

more quickly. Parents and teachers

alike agreed that knowing more

names and faces on the first day of

school make the transition much

smoother!

2012-2013 School Calendar

Oct. 11 12:30 p.m. Student Dismissal; Parent Visita-

tion (1:00 – 3:00, 4:30 – 7:00)

Nov. 6 Schools Closed for Students – Teachers -

Professional Development Day

Nov. 9 End of Second 6 Weeks; 12:30 Student Dis

missal

Nov. 21 12:30 p.m. Student Dismissal; ½ Teacher

Workday

Nov. 23 12:30 Student Dismissal: Beginning of

Thanksgiving Holiday

Nov. 22 & 23 Schools Closed - Thanksgiving Holiday

Dec. 13 – 18 Exams

Dec. 16 12:30 Student Dismissal; Last Day before

Winter Holidays

Dec. 19 & 20* Make up days for up to 2 days missed

prior to Dec. 16, Last Day in Attendance,

Student Dismissal 12:30 p.m.

Dec. 19 – Jan. 2 Schools Closed – Winter Holidays

Jan. 2 ** Teacher Workday; Make up day if more

than 2 days have been missed before

The Summit Volume 2, I ssue 1 Page 3

For WCPS fall sports calendar information, visit

http://wythe.k12.va.us/ to find links to the Mountain

Empire and Hogoheegee District schedules.

Smart Beginnings Wythe Bland helped to facilitate the experience and is actively seeking partners for K Camp 2013. K

camp was made possible by Wythe-Bland Foundation, Virginia Early Childhood Foundation, Wytheville Noon Rotary, Wytheville Wal-Mart, Wythe County

Public Schools Foundation for Excellence, Smart Beginnings Wythe Bland, and

Virginia Kids NOW!.

Teacher of the Year: Kristen Williams

special teacher wears lots of

hats, though. She counsels

students and families, leads the

bullying prevention program at

school, sponsors student coun-

cil and coaches girls’ basketball

at FCHS—just to name a few!

She is also continuing her

education at Radford Univer-

sity working towards her de-

gree in administration.

Mrs. Kim Frye, principal at

MMES, is especially grateful

and proud of Mrs. Williams,

who was chosen by the faculty

to receive this honor for their

school.

“She’s like my right hand,”

Mrs. Frye said. “She’s tremen-

dous with the children.”

Anyone who walks into a

classroom where Mrs. Williams

is teaching will immedi-

ately notice this too. Her

patience, humility and

gentle nature makes for a

rapt audience of other-

wise-wiggling first grad-

ers.

For all these reasons—

and more—Mrs. Williams

rose above an extremely

excellent pool of appli-

cants across the county

for this distinction. She

garnered the Wytheville-

Wythe-Bland Chamber of

Commerce Teacher of the

Year too. We’re certainly

proud to call her ours!

A “cooperative spirit” and

a “caring disposition” are just

two of the many things that

describe Wythe County 2011-

2012 Teacher of the Year Kris-

ten Williams.

Mrs. Williams is in her fifth

year as the guidance counselor

at MMES. Before that, she

worked for several years at

FCMS as an 8th grade English

and science teacher.

The most rewarding aspect

of her job, she said, “is seeing

improvement [in students]

throughout the year.”

The majority of the time,

Mrs. Williams is preparing and

presenting character education

lessons for the students. This

Voters do not have to be

U.S. Cellular customers to par-

ticipate. Anyone interested

needs to visit their local US

Cellular store, pick up a voting

c o d e , a n d g o t o

www.uscellular.com to place

their vote.

At its two-week tally of

votes, Spiller Elementary was

#86 on the list of Top 100

schools across the US Cellular

service region.

The campaign runs from

Cell phone company U.S.

Cellular is hosting its 4th an-

nual “Calling All Communi-

ties” campaign. Since the pro-

gram began, the company has

donated $3million to 38

schools. This year they’re div-

vying up another $1million

among 18 schools.

The winning school will

receive $150,000 and the next

17 will receive $50,000 each to

spend however they want—

technology, playground equip-

ment, science equipment...

September 14—October 21.

There’s still time to vote for

the school of your choice!

Let’s put WCPS on the

map!

Page 4 The Summit Volume 2, I ssue 1

To cast a vote for your school:

1. Visit your local U.S. Cellular store to pick up a voting code.

2. Enter your information online at www.uscellular.com to place one vote for the school of your choice.

Calling All Communities!

In accordance with Federal law and U.S. Department of Agriculture policy, Wythe County Public Schools is prohibited from discrimi-

nating on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, disability, or age in its programs and activities.

Want to receive important

information about school

closings, parent-teacher

conferences or

announcements from your

child’s school right on your

phone?

Sign-up for the Honeywell

Instant Alert system.

Go to the WCPS homepage

and click on the link to the

Honeywell site under the

Parent Resources section.

The link will provide you

with instructions on how to

create your account.

Simple Machines, Bright Minds

Page 5 The Summit Volume 2, I ssue 1

The 6th Annual Foundation for Excellence Summer Enrichment program was a smashing success with 400 students, 20 high school volunteers and 50 teachers

enjoying a week of fun learning, nutrition, wellness and summer reading encour-agement. Students grades Kindergarten through 8th grade participated in classes

which included:

Fishing

Beautiful Braids and Neon Nails

Cake Appeal

Digging for Dinosaurs

Origami

Boys Club

and many, many more!

This great summer learning opportunity was made possible through a generous grant from the Wythe-Bland Foundation and commu-nity support from Gatorade, Jones, Adams & Delp, P.C., Dr. Michael Spraker, and other community donors.

Visit the

Foundation for Excellence

website to learn more about our pro-grams and opportunities!

works. For the first time, the WCTC is

offering Pre-Engineering.

The new program, made possible

largely by a $125,000 grant for equip-

ment by the Foundation for Excellence

and the Wythe-Bland Foundation, gives

students practical experience for engi-

neering theory.

Recently, they’ve been working on a

unit about simple machines—studying

things as simple as a soda can tab to

moving robots.

“ I want the students to understand

what it takes to make theory reality,”

said class instructor John Willis.

Part of the class he spends with stu-

dents brushing up on their geometry

and trigonometry, the other part of

class he shows them how to use tech-

nology and machines to fabricate and

explain the theories they learn about.

He also takes time to teach them

about real-world vocational opportuni-

ties for engineers and everyday object

an engineer helped to create.

“We always talk about how an engi-

neer had to design that [machine],” said

GWHS sophomore Travis Hedgepeth.

Josh Quesenberry, a junior at FCHS,

said the class has really opened his mind

to new career possibilities. He plans to

apply to Virginia Tech next fall.

His favorite project so far, like

Travis, has been building the Lego ro-

bot. “Seeing it all come together in one

product was a good feeling,” he said.

And getting to use all the cool new

technology has definitely been a plus,

students said. Their classroom is

quipped with iPads and two different

high-tech computer engineering soft-

ware programs.

“I want them to be comfortable

working on many platforms when they

get to college or into their careers,”

Willis said. He even makes them write

about their experiments—both success-

ful ones and “failures”—in their engi-

neering journal. By chronicling all their

ideas and tests, they can reflect back to

see what worked and what didn’t and

try to figure out why, Willis said. “I

want them to learn how to work

through a problem.”

All of the technology, math, and

science integration found in this class-

room is surely going to take our stu-

dents into the 21st century.

A new program at the WCTC is shaping the

minds of students who are thinking about pur-

suing careers that will change the way the world

Wythe County

students care about

their community.

They always find time

to give back!

A big shout-out to the stu-

dents at GWHS and FCHS.

Together, the schools raised

more than 15,000 items for the

Agape Food Pantry in Wythe-

ville. That’s about a month’s

worth of food for the twice-a-

month distributions.

As part of a friendly rivalry

before their football teams

faced each other on August 31,

the two schools collected can

goods all week long to pro-

mote school spirit and give

back to their community.

They had to wait until the foot-

ball game to hear the final tally,

as the number of items each

school had was kept top-secret

throughout the week. In the

end, FCHS brought in about

4,000 items and GWHS about

11,000.

The students, staff and admin-

istrators are all in agreement

that this is a tradition they

want to keep going for a long

time!

Picture Days, school breaks

and many other important

events will be happening at our

schools.

Additionally, the county

handbook is printed in this

calendar . The Program of

Studies, which used to be

printed in book form, can now

Mark it on your calendar:

this year was the first time

WCPS has printed a district-

wide comprehensive calendar

to help families keep up with

their busy school schedules.

The full-color calendars feature

photos and events from each

school in the division. You

can see when PTO meetings,

be found online at the WCPS

homepage. .

A big “thank you” to

Teresa Wassum, Textbook

Coordinator, who spent

months designing and creating

this wonderful publication. A

limited number of extras are

available at the School Board

Office.

Healthy Competition

Calendars

offering students who partici-

pated in the 2012 program an

opportunity to continue their

art concentration while provid-

ing additional students the

basic drawing curriculum.

The generous support of

community donors and the

PLAY Fund made this excel-

lent opportunity available to

our students.

Art Intensive

interpretations of scenes

throughout the downtown

area, producing several pieces

to take home at the end of

the week. 150 parents and

community members at-

tended Friday evening’s won-

derful exhibition, “Drawing

Explosion”, where students

displayed their work from the

week.

We look forward to an

expanded program in 2013,

Mid-June brought 45 Wythe

County students to the down-

town Wytheville area for a

week of drawing instruction

with Savannah College of

Art and Design graduate

Meagan Averill. Students

enjoyed using different

mediums to express them-

selves as they learned dif-

ferent drawing techniques.

They enjoyed creating

artwork representing their

Page 6 The Summit Volume 2, I ssue 1

Congratulations Wythe County Public School teachers and students ... ...on achieving state accreditation for the third year in a row!

A special thank you

to Bristol Motor

Speedway, Triple B

Stone, 3M, and

NASCAR Driver

Greg Biffle!

What we’re already doing:

We serve fresh fruits and

veggies

Only 1% or fat free milk,

water, and 100% fruit

juices are available

Sandwiches are served

on whole wheat or whole

grain bread

Salads are offered every

Tuesday and Thursday

Introduced lower

sodium entrees

Cafeteria Changes

NASCAR Driver

Marimbas, Music and Math

Students who purchase

school lunches will be getting a

few more fruits and veggies on

their trays this year. Federal

regulations stemming from the

Healthy Kids Hunger Free Act

passed by Congress in 2010

have changed the requirements

for what is served in our

school cafeterias. Calorie allot-

ments have been fixed, less

grains and more leafy greens

are just a few examples of the

changes.

The traditional food pyra-

mid has been supplemented by

the MyPlate graphic, which

indicates what a healthy bal-

anced meal should look like.

Students are encouraged to

try new foods with taste tests

and free samples. (Weekly

menus are available on the

WCPS homepage.)

In addition to menu modifi-

cations, WCPS has imple-

mented Café-Prepay, which

allows parents/guardians to

have the convenience of put-

ting money into their child’s

lunch account through a credit

card on the internet. To set up

a Café-Prepay account, go to

cafeprepay.com and follow the

prompted directions.

The marimba was made

using the style and design

created by Jon Madin in his

book, Making Your Own Ma-

rimbas. Mr. Holl built the

frame and cut the bars and

resonator tubes to the exact

measurement needed for the

correct tones to be played.

The older students helped

chisel out the middle of the

bars to get the right vibration

and tone. The younger stu-

dents helped sand the bars to

make them nice and smooth.

Every student at RRES

had a part in building this

magnificent instrument that

will be used for many years to

come. The making of the

instrument required measure-

ments from math, sound and

vibration from science and

music, as well as performance

and learning in music.

Students at Rural Retreat

Elementary School worked

together to make a new bass

marimba to add to their collec-

tion of Orff instruments. Ms.

Heather Mills, elementary mu-

sic teacher at RRES, received a

grant from the Foundation for

Excellence to have Brent Holl

build a bass marimba. Mr.

Holl has built marimbas with

students since 1998.

Representatives from BMS

were also present and pledged

to give WCPS a $5,000 dona-

tion from them and their spon-

sors at Sharpie.

3M, Biffle’s main sponsor,

donated apple Post-It note

dispensers for all teachers in

Wythe County.

NASCAR driver Greg Bif-

fle paid a visit to Spiller Ele-

mentary in August in an effort

to drum up support for the

race at Bristol Motor Speedway

and to announce his intentions

to donate 5% of September’s

profits from the rock excavat-

ing company Triple B he and

his brother own in Speedwell.

Page 7 The Summit Volume 2, I ssue 1

Congratulations Wythe County Public School teachers and students ... ...on achieving state accreditation for the third year in a row!

The Summit is a publication of Wythe County Public Schools . It is published four times a year—autumn, winter, spring, and

summer . All materials, including photographs and content, are copyrighted by WCPS unless otherwise noted.

Education in action

The Summit Volume 2. I ssue 1 Page 8