Timberland's Wise Receives State Academic Honor

Timberland High School senior Jacob Wise has been selected for the 2013 Missouri Scholars 100, a statewide program that honors 100 of Missouri’s top academic students in the graduating class of 2013. Timberland senior Clarissa Mate received an Honorable Mention.  

Missouri Scholars 100 is a program sponsored by the Missouri Association of Secondary School Principals. Schools across Missouri are invited to nominate candidates for this state-wide recognition. The selection is based primarily on a formula using the student's grade point average and ACT or SAT score. Each student nominated had to first meet the criteria of an "Academic Decathlon", which included ten events, designed to test the academic strength of the student.

To meet the decathlon requirements, the student must have had a minimum GPA of 3.750, a minimum ACT score of 29 or a minimum SAT score of 1,900, be ranked in the upper ten percent of the class, and have taken upper level courses in mathematics, science, English, and a foreign language. The student must also have excellent attendance, be an exemplary school citizen, and be involved in school activities.

Wise has a 4.34 GPA and scored a 34 on the ACT. He has also scored a perfect 5 on multiple AP tests in calculus, physics and statistics. Wise was named a National Merit Scholarship Finalist this year and has been taking classes at the Missouri Academy, which is housed on the campus of Northwest Missouri State University, for the past two years. 

He will graduate in May with both his high school degree from Timberland and an Associate of Science Degree from Northwest. While at Timberland, Wise was inducted into the National Honor Society, tutored in connection with Missouri’s A+ Program, and was a member of both the Math Team and the Scholar Bowl Team. Wise will be honored at a luncheon at the Holiday Inn Executive Center in Columbia, MO on April 28, 2013.

From the Wentzville School District. 

DECA Students Excel at State Competition and Advance to Internationals

Dozens of Holt and Timberland High School marketing students joined 1,700 of their Missouri counterparts for the 65^th Missouri DECA State Career Development Conference at the Lodge of Four Seasons at the Lake of the Ozarks on March 17-19. During the statewide conference, DECA members were evaluated by more than 100 business and industry professionals who served as competitive event judges. 

Students competed as individuals or in teams in a variety of categories, and were asked to solve realistic workplace problems through one-on-one interaction with an executive or community member. Twenty-five WSD students qualified for the DECA International Career Development Conference/Competition in Anaheim, California on April 24-28. 

The winners from Holt were Courtney Jones, Ally Berry, Karlie Cavanaugh, Paige David, Sarah Wright, Olivia Bogolin, Abi Corbett, Alyssa Huffman, Josh Gilmore, Max Scholle, Brian Birza, David Jack and Nathan Hinds. 

The Timberland winners were Roshan Poptani, Sean McGuire, Mady Young, Kristen Kaestner, Jordan Brown, Morgann Mueller, Taylor Wenger, Bre Eckert, Shae Strom, Matt Thies, Aaron Owens and Kelsie Eckert.

The theme of this year’s conference, "SHINE!" focused on professional development, leadership, dressing for success, and community service.

Missouri students also raised funds for the Muscular Dystrophy Association as part of DECA’s international civic consciousness project. 

DECA is an international association of high school students studying marketing, management and entrepreneurship in business, finance, hospitality, and marketing sales and service. For more information, visit www.deca.org.

From the Wentzville School District

Timberland HS Journalists Bring Home Top Honors

The Timberland High School Publications Department brought home multiple awards from this year’s Sponsors of School Publications of Greater St. Louis Conference and Competition. The overall 2011-12 Yearbook was rated excellent and the overall 2012-13 newspaper received an Honorable Mention. This year’s SSP convention featured numerous guest presenters from a variety of media outlets including the St. Louis Post Dispatch, KMOV-TV and School Tube. Workshops gave students the opportunity to move outside the classroom and interact with industry professionals in subjects such as column writing, iPhoneography, embracing multimedia, and increasing editorial leadership skills.

“The conference was beneficial, because it taught me a lot I didn’t know and showed me a new way to think about journalism,” said sophomore Savannah Summerlin. For many, the highlight of the conference was hearing keynote speaker Mary Beth Tinker discuss the Tinker vs. Des Moines Supreme Court case, which dealt with the issue of censorship in schools. “It was awesome listening to someone who recognized a problem with society and stood up for what they believed in,” said senior Madyson Young. “It was very inspiring, listening to her talk about the struggles and setbacks that she overcame and how she is still reaping the benefits of attaining that goal.”

Students from around Missouri and western Illinois also submitted pieces in a variety of categories to be judged. As the panel reviewed the pieces, they also provide written critiques and constructive criticism. Timberland journalists won the following awards:

Yearbook

•           Becca Wilson - Best in Show - People Design

•           Becca Wilson - Best in Show - Student Life Design

•           Emily Baltz - Superior - Sports Design

•           Reagan Snavely - Superior - Student Life Design

•           Becca Wilson and Megan Podhorsky - Excellent - Student Life Design 

•           Reagan Snavely - Excellent People Class Design

•           Becca Wilson - Honorable Mention - Sports Photography

•           Hannah Roeper and Becca Wilson - Honorable Mention - Sports 

               Design

•           Reagan Snavely - Honorable Mention - Sports Design

•           Staff - Honorable Mention- Overall Theme Development

Newspaper

•           Sarah Reed - Superior - Front Page Design

•           Kristen Kaestner, Maddie Nowling and Mady Young - Excellent - 

               Double Truck  Design

•           Chance Koch - Honorable Mention - Info Graphic

•           Lauren Wortman - Honorable Mention - Sports News

“I’m so proud of all my students have accomplished,” adviser and journalism teacher Ida Hoffmann said. “It’s important for students to see their hard work recognized amongst their peers.” Timberland High School produces a 250 page fall distribution book and eight monthly issues of the Wolf’s Howl Newspaper. The content is created entirely by students, with the exception of the people photos. For more information on the Sponsors of School Publications of Greater St. Louis, please visit www.ssp-stl.org.

From the Wentzville School District

Holt High School and Stages St. Louis Partner

The Holt High School Theater Department has partnered with Stages St. Louis to present a special performance by the school’s acting students and special needs students. The production, held at Holt on December 11^th, was a “musical revue” that included songs and scenes from a variety of musicals including Annie Get Your Gun and Footloose. The performance was under the direction of Stages Instructor Brent Hunsinger, and was the culmination of a semester-long program that included students from Rob Gleason’s acting class and Stephanie Aubuchon’s essential skills class. “The idea is to integrate every type of high school student with multiple backgrounds into one cohesive unit,” said Hunsinger following the performance. “So you have kids who have disabilities right alongside kids who don’t have disabilities. They work together as a team to create a wonderful performance that hopefully is not only educational for them but entertaining as well.”

Holt junior Aislinn Hartman appreciated the opportunity to participate in the program. “It really changes your perspective about a lot of things. You may not know the other students because most of them are really shy. But then they come to class and they are not as shy and start to talk to people, and we all realize that maybe we’re not so different and we have things in common.”

This is the third year for the program conceived by Holt drama teacher Rob Gleason and Stages Director of Education and Outreach Rob Grumich, who both thought it would be beneficial to pair high school theater students with special needs students for a joint program and performance. “It’s about bringing some kids together who honestly, during the regular school day probably wouldn’t be spending a lot of time together. So even in a small way just breaking down those barriers is ultimately the point of this,” said Grumich. “The importance of this is the shared time working together in collaboration, the getting to know each other and the human life skills that potentially come from a project like this. That’s what we’re really excited about.”  

From the Wentzville School District

WSD Receives Meritorious Budget Award

The Association of School Business Officials International (ASBO) has awarded the Wentzville School District the Meritorious Budget Award (MBA) for excellence in budget presentation for the second consecutive year. The award is conferred only to districts that have met or exceeded the Meritorious Budget Award criteria, and last year Wentzville was one of only seven school districts in the state of Missouri to receive the award. “The MBA recognizes the District's efforts to inform the community about our financial operations,” said Chief Financial Officer Kari Monsees. “The budget document is more than just dollars and cents, it also explains how resources are generated and allocated for the benefit of our students.” To earn this award, the school district submitted its 2012-13 budget for a rigorous review based on stringent criteria.

Developed by ASBO for school districts, the MBA criteria guide school business officials toward a quality school budget presentation by enhancing the school business officials’ skills in developing, analyzing, and presenting a school system budget. “Our goal as business officials is to support the learning process through fiscal responsibility and strong financial practices based on transparency, accountability, and service,” said Director of Accounting Susan Dawson. “The budget supports this goal and is also a way for us to communicate our commitment to a quality education for our students.” 

The Association of School Business Officials International, founded in 1910, is a professional association of more than 5,000 members that provides programs and services to promote the highest standards of school business management practices, professional growth, and the effective use of educational resources. 

From the Wentzville School District

Thompson Commits to Culver-Stockton College

Timberland High School senior Crista Thompson has committed to play soccer for the Wildcats of Culver-Stockton College in Canton, MO. With her mother Donna and father Jim by her side, Thompson signed her National Letter of Intent today at Timberland High School. “When I went for my visit, it just felt like home,” said the center and midfielder. “It’s small, and I already know a lot of the girls on the team.”

Thompson is a true student-athlete, and is a member of the National Honor Society while maintaining a 4.1 GPA. She has also been named to the All-Conference Academic Team for three consecutive years. Thompson plans on majoring in psychology with an emphasis on occupational therapy while at Culver-Stockton College.

From the Wentzville School District

Monsees Named Ray-Pec Superintendent

The Wentzville School District would like to congratulate CFO Dr. Kari Monsees on his selection as the new Superintendent of the Raymore-Peculiar School District near Kansas City, MO.  Dr. Monsees has submitted his resignation to the Wentzville Board of Education effective June 30, 2013, which will allow him to assist in the transition process once a new CFO is hired. 

“This decision was really bittersweet for me and did not come easily. I work with great people and have really enjoyed working for Wentzville R-IV, but this new leadership opportunity is one that I could not pass up. Ray-Pec is a progressive district with many similarities to Wentzville. I’ll also be closer to my family farm and my new grandson. I thank everyone for their support during my time in Wentzville.”

Dr. Monsees is in his fifth year with the District, and has produced an impressive list of accomplishments during his tenure. He was instrumental in the passage of both Proposition A and Proposition 3, which raised over $100 million for new construction in the fastest growing school district in Missouri. He has supervised the construction of Lakeview and Discovery Ridge elementary schools, as well as the addition of 75 new classrooms around the District. He has led the planning and construction of the new high school, all while managing an annual budget in excess of $150 million. 

During his time in the District operating balances have gone from 19% to 33%, and for the first time ever the WSD has been awarded the Meritorious Budget Award (MBA) by the Association of School Business Officials International. 

“Our loss is Ray-Pec’s gain,” said Superintendent Dr. Terry Adams. “Kari has accomplished great things while he was here, and we hate to see him go, but it’s a great opportunity for him. He’s one of the best school finance officers in the whole state, and I have no doubt that he’ll be one of the best superintendents as well.”

From the Wentzville School District

Senator Rupp visits Heritage Elementary

Missouri State Senator Scott Rupp spoke to students at Heritage Intermediate on Nov. 30 about the important functions of state government. 

The Senator divided the 172 fourth graders into two groups, one representing the Missouri Senate and the other the Missouri House of Representatives. Senator Rupp asked the students for ideas that they thought would make a good law. Students responded with items that included a law mandating ice cream at school, not having to make up snow days and one that would make the school day shorter. Additionally, a suggestion was made that a mandatory six-hour recess would make a great law, and quite a few students agreed. 

One of those in agreement was 10-year old Abi Jessen, who, when recognized by the President of the Senate, said “Mr. President, we should have six hours of recess because it would give us more energy to learn.” 

Another student and member of the Senate, Olivia Harmann, argued against the bill saying “I think it’s a bad idea to have a six-hour recess because we wouldn’t be spending that time learning.” 

The bill ultimately passed a voice vote in both the House and Senate, but Governor (and fourth grade teacher) Brandis Genebacher quickly vetoed the legislation. “We have too much important learning to do.” The veto was overridden in the Senate, but lost by one vote in the House, so there would be no change in recess on this day. 

“This is a fun exercise that shows students what we actually do in the Capitol,” said Senator Rupp. “They learn how we make laws, why we make them, and how difficult the process can be sometimes. But in the end they have a much better idea of how government works on a daily basis. This is one of the most fun things I get to do as a Senator.” 

From the Wentzville School District

Holocaust survivor shares story with students

On Thursday, November 29th, Holocaust survivor Ben Fainer shared his moving story with eighth grade students from Wentzville Middle School. In communication arts class these students are reading "Night" by Nobel Peace Prize winner Elie Wiesel, based upon his story of survival while in the concentration camps. WMS teachers Marcus Hirsch and Scott Kiehl arranged for Mr Fainer to visit with the students and share his own story.

"My message is my experience," said Mr. Fainer with a shrug. "I had the greatest mother in the world, and she was taken away from me when I was 9 1/2 years old by the Nazis, and she perished in Auschwitz. So I remind these children that they should listen to their mother."

Born Bendet Fajner in Poland in 1930, Mr. Fainer was separated from his mother and his siblings and sent to the Buchenwald concentration camp by the Nazis in 1939. He still bears the tattoo ID number 178873 on his left forearm. "To survive the camps you had to be able to walk and to work in the factory. If you couldn't do either, you would soon be dead."

After more than six years spent in several different camps, he was finally liberated by the U.S.Army's 26th Infantry Division in April of 1945. After the war, he lived in Ireland and Canada before settling in St. Louis. "The children in America, what they have is greater than any other children anywhere in the world. They have the world on a string."

"I have done a lot of research on the Holocaust, but this was the first time I had heard a survivor speak," said eighth grader Amy Smith. "It was really eye opening, and I thought he was very strong to talk about it after all he has been through, I was impressed. It's something my kids won't be able to experience, so I was very lucky today."

As students lined up to hug Mr. Fainer and have their picture taken with him after the assembly, student Hunter Mize said he had been moved by his presentation. "It's a once in a lifetime opportunity to listen to someone who survived, and is brave enough to tell us about his experiences. I think everyone should know what happened in WWII, how these people suffered, because what Hitler did was so evil and filled with such hatred. People need to know what the Jewish people went through in the Holocaust, so nothing like this could ever happen again."

From the Wentzville School District