District Newsletter
Pride
The
Pride
The Pride exists to update, celebrate,
and inform, the community concerning weekly events at Willard
R-II
September 3,
2010
District
Office
There
is no way to get around the fact that it simply takes money to run a
school. It is the commitment of the Willard School Board and
Administration to utilize these funds in the most efficient and effective
manner. Last year when the economy suffered a huge turn for the worse, I
was involved in several discussions about our local tax efforts. We were
attempting to predict if our return rate would suffer due to the poor economic
situation. The answer turned out to be: "very little". The
Willard Community continues to offer solid support for our schools. The
majority of the local revenue is generated by property taxes. Each year
the district must hold a Tax Rate Hearing. This hearing is an opportunity
for local patrons to express their opinions to the Board of Education about our
Tax Levy. The tax hearing for the 2010 -2011 school year was held on
August 19th. The Board of Education accepted the recommendation of
Administration to set the Willard R-II Tax rate at $3.99. This tax rate
has remained unchanged since 2005 - 2006. This is not true for several of
our peer districts. Below is a list of our rate and those of our peer
districts.
Branson $3.90
Willard $3.99
Republic $4.28
Nixa
$4.31
Ozark $4.14
Needless
to say, Branson does not require a high tax rate due to the significant
commercial wealth. We have been able to secure the trust of our community
by working hard to have a 1st class school district and maintain a local tax
rate that does not overburden our community. I appreciate the continued
support of our community to help us in this effort.
Have
a great weekend.
Kent
Dr.
Kent E. Medlin
Superintendent of Schools
Willard MO
Activities
I
have two things to report this week.
First, fall sports are in full swing and second I actually saw an old man
building a boat and loading animals two by two on the soccer field.
Congratulations
to the soccer tigers on their ten to nothing victory over Aurora last week. The Joplin game was postponed due to
weather and no make up time has been reported. The boys will host Webb City next
Tuesday with the JV contest starting at 4:30.
The
volleytigers have started their season with their usually winning ways defeating
Buffalo and Hillcrest last week.
The girls will be at home next week hosting Central on Tuesday and
Bolivar on Thursday.
Softball
tigers look to get into the win column as they travel to Strafford tonight for a
5:00 contest. The girls will then
host COC opponent Carthage next Tuesday before traveling to Republic on
Thursday.
The
football tigers travel to Webb City tonight for a key COC showdown. Kick off is at
7:00.
Cross
country will be at Carthage, next Thursday at 4:00.
Its
good to be a Tiger!
Jeff
Staley
Director
of Operations
High
School
We
often measure student educational success by test scores such as the ACT / SAT,
or by statewide tests such as the MAP / EOC. Frequently, we become entangled
with publicized scores and miss some of the achievement picture. Within the
walls of WHS we have a classroom that measures success in a different light.
Sandy Gold, Willard Special Services Director, has put together a team of people
(Sharla Beuerlein, Deanna Vivas, Greg Hoskins, Sarah Killingsworth and 6-10
students who have specific physical and mental challenges. They have set goals
for themselves that seem simplistic for you and I, but are life changing strides
towards the possibility for independent living, for them. When my stress level
is high, I take a walk down the hallway to Sharla's room. Quickly, I realize my
little challenges are inconsequential in comparison to the challenges faced by
these students. It is truly an amazing room of accomplishment, not measured by
standardized test or statewide exam, but measured in life changing steps of
accomplishment.
Have a great weekend.
Stewart Pratt
WHS
Principal
Willard
Intermediate
What
a difference a few weeks makes! It was not that long ago that the building was
empty and it felt like summer outside. We are now full of activity and there was
a chill in the air this morning. After a week of getting back into the school
routine this week found WIS students fully engaged in learning and after school
activities.
Many of our after school clubs will be starting soon.
Running club, Friday choir, go green club and lego club will all meet next week.
Check out the WIS calendar on our building blog to stay up on all the
activities.
http://www.google.com/calendar/embed?src=spippin%40willard.k12.mo.us&ctz=Amer...
We encourage every student to
find a school activity to get involved with!
WIS also kicked off our 5th
annual Tiger Savings card fund raiser this week. This sale runs through next
Friday. If you want to save some money with local businesses for the next year
you need to get your hands on one. We appreciate the efforts of our students and
parents in supporting our building needs.
Enjoy
your three day weekend!
Tom Davis
Principal - Willard Intermediate
School
Willard R-2 Schools
417-742-4242
417-742-0217 (fax)
tdavis@willard.k12.mo.us
Willard
East
Willard
East PTO held their first meeting of the year on Tuesday night and it was
standing room only! We are excited to have a new group of parents eager to help
our school succeed. Our agenda was packed with sharing routine information about
Willard East but next month we will be voting to spend money on a few things
that we need here at school. Texas Roadhouse provided warm rolls and sweet
butter to kick off our partnership with them and Subway donated sandwiches. The
PTO budget for the year is $8,000. This means that to exist and support our
annual efforts it will cost $8,000. Anything above that will go towards
purchases for our students and teachers.
If you did not make it to PTO this
week, or would just like to joins us for a social event we invite you to our
coffee social hour at Coffee Guru Saturday from 9:00-10:00. Everyone who attends
will have their name entered into a drawing for coffee guru prizes.
Today
is our first "Costumes" for Community Service and our students and staff will be
wearing CRAZY SOCKS and raising money for the Willard Children's Charitable
Foundation.
Reminder - Next week we host 2 parent orientation evenings.
Tuesday Sept. 7th 6:30-7:30PM K,1,2 & Thursday Sept. 9th 3rd &
4th.
Melinda
Miller, Principal
Willard East Elementary
Willard North
It is hard to
believe we are in the second week of school already. We are in full swing for the school
year. We will be having our first
PTO meeting on September 13th at 6:30. At this meeting, we will be celebrating
the addition of the concrete flooring and benches added to our pavilion this
summer. Willard North received a
grant from Lowes with the help of our PTO that allowed for the additions to be
made to the pavilion. It has
provided some much needed shade for our students the first week of school when
it was so hot.
Please remember
we will not be in school Monday, September 6th in honor of Labor
Day. I hope you have a great three
day weekend!
Angela Stevens,
Willard North Principal
Willard Central
WC parents took
their turn as students in the classroom at our Parent Orientation meeting last
week. It was a great evening for discussion and making home/school
connections. Thank you for your time and partnership as we work together
to provide the best education possible for our WC Agents-in-Training.
WC
would also like to thank Technical Sergeant Thomas Cook for visiting us at
Community Time to share advise for being a real-life Special Agent. Sgt.
Cook is the uncle of 1st grade student Mathew T. and has served in the Air Force
for more than 15 years. He has served as an intelligence officer all over
the world. As we go through this year, we will remember to focus on
integrity, service before self, and excellence in all we do. WC wishes him
the best in his upcoming assignment.
Enjoy the beautiful 3 day
weekend! ~ Shane Medlin, Principal
Willard
South
On
September 25th Willard South Elementary will be having our 2nd annual WHITE
TIGER MARKETPLACE!!!!!! Craftspeople as well as local merchants will
be offering special seasonal items for sale at great ONE DAY ONLY prices.
We have two gymnasiums that will be packed with items for sale just for
you. We will be open for business at 9:00 and closing up at 2:00 so make
sure you can be here for this ONCE A YEAR SALE!!!! If you have any
questions please call Chrysta Forrest or David Suits at 862-6308 for more
information.
UPCOMING
EVENTS:
Wednesday,
September 8th--PICTURE DAY
Thursday,
September 9th--Parent Information Night for 1st-4th grade
6:30-7:00
Friday,
September 10th--2nd Grade Grandparents Tea at 2:15
Don't
forget that school will not be in session on Monday, September 6th. We
will see everyone back on Tuesday, September 7th! Have a wonderful three
day weekend. Kara Crighton-Smith, Principal
Kara
Crighton-Smith, Principal
Willard South Elementary
4151 West Division
Street
Springfield, MO 65802
417-862-6308 office
417-862-4266
fax
Orchard
Hills
WOHE
is ready for a three day weekend! We have had a fantastic start to school.
The second grade hosted a parent informational meeting this week for their
parents. If you were unable to attend, please contact your child's teacher about
receiving the handouts.
We
are working hard on our WOHE 5K run scheduled for October 23rd. We thank our
sponsors who have already signed on! Proceeds will benefit the Willard
Children's Charitable Foundation and WOHE. We will be distributing entry
forms to the elementary schools. Kids pay their age for entry! The race
will be timed and each participant receives a t-shirt. We hope to see a huge
crowd turn out! Don't forget we have a Toddler Run! It will be a
great time! If you would like information, please email me at rbishop@willard.k12.mo.us
Have
a great three day weekend! I will be heading to Webb City tonight to
support our football team. GO TIGERS!!!
Dr.
Rhonda Bishop
Middle
School
Greetings
from Willard Middle School. As we prepare for what looks to be a beautiful Labor
Day weekend, I believe we are already at a point in the year when we can make
some basic observations. First of all, I truly feel like we have a fantastic
group of kids to work with this year. I continue to hear from multiple teachers
who are really impressed with how respectful and polite this group seems to be,
and how much they enjoy them in class. Now remember, we are talking about people
who are 12-14 years old, and there are over 700 of them! Our classes are full,
every seat is taken, and yet these kids have shown themselves to be the kind of
people we can be proud of, which makes our jobs so much
easier.
Fall
sports are gearing up for the season, and we look forward to seeing them in
action starting the week of Sept. 13th. We will also be having our
Open House on Monday the 13th, from 6 7 pm, and hope to see as many
parents and patrons as possible, so that we can show off what is going on at WMS. Also in the coming
weeks will be our annual Growl Nite, which is fun for everyone, and our only
school-wide fund raiser for the year. We will have more details on this as the
date gets closer.
Finally,
I just want to take a minute to brag on another group that is vital to our
schools success. I have been able to get into several classrooms this week, and
get a firsthand look at what is going on. I must say I have been very impressed
with the quality lessons that are being prepared and presented. Technology is in
full display, and the kids are eating it up. There is no question that a school
we can be proud of is a team effort, with parents, teachers, and students all a
critical part. We are thankful for the great start we have enjoyed, and look
forward to the days ahead. Enjoy
the weekend, and stay safe.
Tom Merriott, Asst Principal WMS
Special
Services
Transition
House Update
As
many of you know, the Special Services department is embarking on a project we
have referred to as the transition house, also referred to by some as our
house. In earlier communications
we have discussed its purpose (to educate students with disabilities in life and
vocational skills, and to provide various students with hands-on learning
experiences), its design (an authentic, residential-style building), and its
location (southeast of the high school).
We are finally closing in on the big day to break ground, but the
learning has not been put on hold until that day. Students in Rene Flatness
Applied Communications class have designed brochures to help inform the public
of the project, and Steve Vaughns Building Trades students have been busy
researching permit, deed, and utility issues prior to the beginning of
construction. In addition, with the
use of some new classroom technology, these same students have been learning to
calculate the measurements needed for laying out the house on the lot given its
dimensions, required easements, and intended future uses. At a recent committee meeting Steve
commented about this part of the teaching/learning experience: I think this is the most important
phase the layout. Thank you, Steve for guiding these young people through
this process in a meaningful, authentic manner. Stay tuned for future updates as the
exciting our house project unfolds.
Kelli
Akers, Process Coordinator
Willard
Parks and Recreation: When youre ready to play!
Parks
Director: Kevin McDonald
Sports
Coordinator: Shawn Trent
Recreation
/ Aquatics Specialist: Brandon Eckhardt
Mission
Statement:
To
provide the City of Willard the highest quality of leisure opportunities and
programs to people of all ages in the following ways:
-To
provide a Parks and Recreation system that is responsible and directed by the
needs of the people of Willard
-To
preserve, protect and enhance the citys park lands as a way to improve the
physical and mental health of the people of Willard
-To
invite and encourage individuals, families, schools, businesses and other
community groups to become partners in our efforts to invigorate and sustain the
citys natural and leisure resources
-To
provide safe and fun sports programs, camps, senior activities, classes, courses
and outings in a organized and positive manner
Mighty
Mites Football 2010:
Willard
Parks and Recreation is proud to announce that we will be teaming up with Mighty
Mites Football for the 2010 Season. The Mighty Mites Football Program will hold
their games at the Willard Recreation Center on Thursday nights. Willard Parks
looks forward to continuing this relationship in years to come. For more
information on this please call Shawn or Kevin at (417) 742-2262.
Veterans
Memorial Garden:
The
City of Willard Parks and Recreation Department is in the process of developing
plans for a Veterans Memorial Garden to be located at Jackson St. Park. This
Veterans Memorial Garden is still in the planning stages. Stay tuned for more
information on this exciting project.
T-Mobile
Tower:
Have
you noticed the construction behind the Willard Recreation Center? T-Mobile is
installing a tower in the construction area. This tower will bring additional
revenue to the Willard Parks and Recreation Department. This tower will help
enable us to continue to offer the Parks and Recreational needs of the
community.
Registration
for fall soccer and volleyball is complete. If you registered you will receive a
call soon about practices. If you have any questions please call 742-2262.
2010
Aquatic Season:
Thank
you to everyone who helped make the 2010 Pool Season a success. This year
featured six sessions of swimming lessons, water exercise classes, a guard start
program, a swim team prep program and much more. Thank you for a great season.
Adult
Basketball:
Willard
Parks has begun another session of Adult Basketball. Games are held on Wednesday
nights at the Recreation Center. .
Willard
Featured Again in the upcoming MPRA magazine:
Willard
Parks will again be featured in the Missouri Recreation and Parks Association
magazine. The article will feature some of the events going on in the Willard
Parks and Recreation Department. The article should be released soon.
Cardinals
Care Grant:
Willard
Parks and Recreation has applied again for the St. Louis Cardinals Care grant.
We applied for $5000 for the baseball / softball fields. The grant is for shade
structures for the dugouts.
2010
Fall/Winter Out of School Camps:
These
camps are held at the Willard Recreation Center and are $17.50 per day. Camp is
for grades K- 6th. Registration forms are at the Willard Recreation Center.
Camps will be held on most days when school is not in session.
Senior
Activities:
Willard
Parks and Recreation is doing its best to try and offer senior activities and
programs to the senior citizens in the community. Every Wednesday from 11 a.m.
1 p.m. at the Willard Community Building. All seniors are invited to attend.
Movie
in the Park:
Come
to the Movie in the Park Series on the dates listed below. Bring your entire
family for a night of fun and movies. We will be selling hot-dogs and
hamburgers.
October
23rd 7 p.m.: The Haunted Mansion
Fall
Rummage Sale:
Willard
Parks and Recreation will be hosting a fall rummage sale on Saturday October 9th
from 8 a.m. 12 p.m. at the Willard Recreation Center. This is a huge yard sale
but indoors of course. Booth spaces are $15 per booth (booths are 10X10). Sign
up for booths begins in August.
Safe
Halloween:
Saturday
October 30th 6:00pm
Attend
the 2010 Safe Halloween Festival! Enjoy Trick or Treating, Trunk or treating,
getting your face painted, playing games, walking through the Parks Haunted
House and much more. Admission is a canned food item.
Frisco
Highline 5K Race:
Saturday
November 20th 8am. Beginning at the Willard Community Building.
Children's
Dance Classes
Dance
classes for children ages 3 and up are held at the Willard Recreation Center.
Fall
Session: Oct 12th-Dec 9th
Winter
Session: Jan 11th-Mar 3rd
Spring
Session: Mar 15th-May 3rd
Dance
Review: May 3rd 6:30 pm
Creative
Dance classes for ages 3-5
Ballet
& Tap classes for ages 5+
Ballet,
Tap & Jazz classes for ages 9 & up.
Classes
are 8 weeks. The fee is $50-$65. For class availability and
registration forms please contact Ms. Patrice at 818-3659.
Willard's
2010 Zumba Classes:
The
Zumba program fuses hypnotic Latin rhythms and easy-to-follow moves to create a
one-of-a-kind fitness program that will blow you away. Our goal is simple: We
want you to want to work out, to love working out, to get hooked. The routines
feature interval training sessions where fast and slow rhythms and resistance
training are combined to tone and sculpt your body while burning fat. Add some
Latin flavor and international zest into the mix and you've got a Zumba class!
August
30th December 16th
Monday
and Thursday Classes: 6:30pm 7:30pm at the Willard Community Building. First
session is free. Classes are $45 for 10 visits. Punch cards will be available at
the first class.
Soccer
Grant:
The
Willard Parks Department has received a grant from Kwik Goal in the amount of
$1,000. This grant will be used for new soccer equipment for our fall season.
If
you have any questions please contact the Willard Recreation Center at (417)
742-2262.
Kevin
McDonald
Parks
and Recreation Director
City
of Willard
