Paul McNeal, a Physical Education teacher at Alcott Elementary School, was the recent target of a student “pie throwing” event.  Earlier this year, Alcott students raised nearly $12,000 through the Jump Rope for Heart program, sponsored by the American Heart Association.  McNeal promised that each pupil who raised at least $40 could throw a pie at him.  Approximately 145 students met the challenge, but the big winner was the American Heart Association.

Even though school is out for summer, students can still be extending, enriching and enhancing what they know, as well as working on learning new skills.  The concept of WoWWithOutWalls is learning that can happen anytime and anywhere.

Students from Westerville Central, North and South high schools graduated at the Celeste Center on May 25.  Gratitude was expressed by the Class of 2013 for the unconditional love and support they received during their high school journey from parents, administrators, teachers and staff.

May 23rd was the date of a grand send-off that won’t soon be forgotten by two special Westerville City Schools students or the Transportation personnel who showered them with gifts and best wishes.  Twin brothers Pete and Harry Morley ran into financial difficulty several years ago when their father passed away.

In the fall of 2010, Westerville South High School students Hartlee Johnston and Sarah Leonard volunteered in the “Santa Shop” at the Church for All People in downtown Columbus.  The Santa Shop is an annual event during which families regularly receiving aid from the church and its Free Store can get Christmas presents for their children. The gifts are divided into age and gender categories, and along with toys and school supplies, each child receives a new outfit, including a set of new socks and underwear.  The girls noticed that in the 11-13 year old female category, there were no bras.  These teenage girls were getting new clothes and other gifts, but they would get no bras.

For the fifth year, the Lords and Ladies of the Emerson Reading Hall of Fame gathered for a Reading Round Table luncheon.  On May 20, 95 students where hosted by The Old Bag of Nails to honor their accomplishment.

Two Westerville North High School sophomores were named winners in the annual Ohio Poetry Association Student Poetry Contest.  Natalia Szwabinsky was awarded a First Place prize for her poem in the Voices from the Ground category.  Along with a certificate, the sophomore Honors American Literature student received a check for $25.  Szwabinsky is Leslie Baumann's student.

On May 17, each Westerville middle school sent their building Chess Club representative to participate in the Middle School Chess Tournament held at the Early Learning Center.  Family members, friends, and Westerville City Schools staff eagerly watched the round-robin matches.

Alcott Elementary School’s library turned into a wax museum on May 21 when fourth grade students in the classrooms of Cheryl Ortlieb and Bob Talley took on the challenge of portraying their favorite historical character. 

Way back in March, students and families at Robert Frost Elementary were challenged by the PTA to raise $10,000 towards the purchase of iPads for the school.  If they were successful, PTA representatives said they would match that amount, bringing the grand total to potentially more than $20,000.

More than 40 presenters visited Heritage Middle School on its annual Career Day held Friday, May 17.  Morning presenters covered a large range of careers including forensic science, engineering, social media, personal training, and much more.  Students visited three sessions and got the chance to learn about the requirements of the job, education required, and advancement opportunities.

Amanda Oakes’ third grade class of 20 students at Pointview Elementary School participated in a service learning project this month that resulted in the creation of 10 colorful blankets which will be donated to My Very Own Blanket in Westerville, an organization that provides blankets for foster children.

The Westerville Education Foundation held its fifth annual Mini-Golf Fundraiser on May 18 at the Westerville Mini-Golf and Batting Cages, 450 W. Schrock Road.  In addition to family fun on the venue's two miniature golf courses, the event featured food, music, entertainment, and prizes such as Columbus Clippers tickets, family passes to Zoombezi Bay and the Columbus Zoo, and an overnight accommodation at the Hampton Inn & Suites.

Heritage Middle School Science teacher Amber Harper has been selected to attend the 2013 Honeywell Educators at Space Academy (HE@SA) program at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center (USSRC) in Huntsville, Alabama in June.  She will participate in action-packed, life-changing activities and memorable social interaction with teachers from all over the world.

Students and staff in the Westerville City School District raised a whopping $29,156.62 for the American Heart Association during the 2012-2013 school year.  They did so by participating in Jump Rope for Heart, Hoops for Heart, or Red Out.

Third graders at Emerson Elementary School got to experience a Japanese tea ceremony on May 17.  Keiko Hidaka led a group of Japanese women through the 20 minute exercise.  The children learned about the culture of Japan throughout the school year and then enjoyed taking part in this solemn ritual.

Westerville City School District (WCSD) Treasurer/CFO Bart Griffith on Wednesday presented Board of Education members with a revised five-year financial forecast, confirming that several factors, including continued belt-tightening measures by district officials, will allow the district to remain cash-positive through Fiscal Year 2017.  Maintaining a cash balance through FY17 is two years longer than originally projected when voters approved an emergency operating levy in March of 2012.

For meeting their fundraising goal, Huber Ridge Elementary students got to enjoy the new looks of Assistant Principal Dr. Aloma Gibbs (Hello Kitty) and Jonathan Langhals (Mr. Incredible).

Forty students from Blendon, Genoa, Heritage and Walnut Springs middle schools visited Ohio Wesleyan University on May 16 for a campus tour and meetings with the Admissions Department to learn about campus life, admission requirements, college preparation, and career information.

Walnut Springs Middle School students worked together to earn $1,003 to support the Buckeye Clinic in Southern Sudan.  Beginning last week with a visit from Bol Aweng, pupils learned about the journey of the “lost boys” of Sudan. 

A ceremonial signing took place for several students at Westerville South High School on Wednesday, May 15, who will continue athletic pursuits at the college level.

As the school year comes to an end, the Westerville North High School staff celebrated with a softball game. Team Ring and Team McGeorge battled in a close game with Team Ring winning with a score of 11 to 8.  Teacher John Birkhimer celebrated his retirement by throwing out the first pitch.

The 10th annual Central Ohio 6th and 7th Grade Battle of the Books Competition took place at the McCoy Performing Arts Center in New Albany on May 13.  Each of Westerville’s four middle schools competed along with other Central Ohio teams from Hamilton, Whitehall, Columbus, Groveport-Madison, New Albany-Plain Local, St. Brigid, and Canal Winchester.  Teams buzzed in with correct answers about titles from the 20-book list in a Jeopardy-style contest.

Pointview Elementary School has a brand new look for spring.  On Saturday, May 4, members of the Pointview PTA joined forces with volunteers from the Westerville Christian Church for a Spring Cleaning and Spruce-up work session at the school.  More than 40 volunteers gave three hours of their time that morning to clean out, replant and mulch flower beds and gardens around the building.

A special graduation ceremony was held at Huber Ridge Elementary School on Monday morning, May 13, when fifth graders received certificates for having completed the Drug Abuse Resistance Education (DARE) program, taught by Deputy Tony Casper.

Celebrating student achievement is fairly common at middle schools in Westerville, but what makes Blendon Middle School’s Renaissance Awards Program stand out is the way that achievement is celebrated.  Starting with an awards program in the school gym, each qualifying student receives not just a certificate for their accomplishment, but a tangible reward donated by various local businesses.

On May 8, 40 highly talented visual artists from each of the four Westerville middle schools attended the fourth annual “Career in the Visual Arts” trip.  Students visited the Columbus Museum of Art and Columbus College of Art and Design (CCAD), thanks to funding from the Career Education and Gifted Education Departments.

Mark Twain Elementary School students and staff gathered outside on the morning of Thursday, May 16, to dedicate a new piece of playground equipment in memory of Tucker Northeimer, a kindergarten student who died in an automobile accident in December.

Family Reading Night took place on Thursday evening, May 9, at Fouse Elementary School.  The event, dubbed “Camp Read-a-Lot,” was organized by the Fouse Literacy Committee.  Students and their families visited several reading activity stations throughout the school, watched plays at the Reader’s Theater, played reading bingo, and even got to make smores in the teacher’s lounge.

Two-hundred-seventy student representatives in grades 3-5 attended the Spring 2013 Elementary Leadership Summit on Friday, May 10, for the purpose of further developing their leadership skills, as well as sharing community service endeavors conducted in their schools.

The paparazzi was out in full force on Wednesday afternoon, May 15, for the gala, red carpet premiere of Reflections through the Years, a celebration of short films featuring some of Westerville’s finest senior citizens.

The Westerville Education Foundation (WEF) recently announced that four grants totaling $4,608.51 were awarded to school employees.  These groups and individuals were recognized on May 10 at an award ceremony and breakfast held at the Westerville Public Library.

Westerville City Schools Superintendent Dr. Dan Good was surprised on May 15 when Sunrise Rotarians named him as the monthly recipient of the Westerville Sunrise Rotary Diane J. Conley Service to Youth award.  He was attending the breakfast meeting, held at the Old Bag of Nails, to support all Service to Youth winners during the 2012-13 school year.  Under his leadership, the district was rated as Excellent with Distinction for three years in a row by the Ohio Department of Education.

Meghan Wilson, a Westerville Central High School junior, has been awarded one of approximately 625 National Security Language Initiative for Youth (NSLI-Y) scholarships for 2013-2014.  The NSLIY program is funded by the U.S. Department of State and provides merit-based scholarships for eligible high school students to learn less commonly-taught languages in summer and academic-year overseas immersion programs.  NSLIY offers overseas study opportunities in Arabic, Chinese, Hindi, Korean, Persian, Russian, and Turkish.

Solutions to today’s energy challenges are being developed in classrooms and homes around Westerville.  The Ohio Energy Project’s annual Youth Energy Celebration on May 14 at The Ohio State University’s Ohio Union welcomed more than 350 students, teachers and partners from around the state.  In Westerville, 70 students and six educators were recognized for their outstanding work this school year through the Westerville Energy Education Partnership.

The Westerville Education Challenge (WEC), established in 2009 to raise private support for public education in Westerville City Schools, will be awarding $10,000 in grant funds this year. Applicants may apply for up to $5,000, or request a portion of the available award dollars. The grant funds are intended to reward teachers and the school district by funding creative and innovative projects that enrich curricular and extra-curricular activities and directly enhance educational opportunities for a significant number of students in Westerville City Schools.

At a dedication ceremony held May 13 at the Larimore Land Lab, Westerville North High School was officially certified by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) Division of Wildlife as a WILD School Site.  School officials and students watched and listened as Karen Norris, Wildlife Communications Specialist, presented two plaques of commendation.

Using grant funding, students from each of the four Westerville middle schools’ advanced 6th grade Social Studies classes spent a day on Capitol Square, a complex that includes the Ohio Statehouse, Senate Building, and Atrium, providing the opportunity to bring lesson plans to life on such subjects as history, civics, architecture, and art.  In addition to viewing and interacting with the museum’s treasures, students participated in active discussions and simulations regarding Ohio government.  Some trips included personal visits from Representative Anne Gonzales, who was able to take students onto the House Floor.

Westerville City Schools will be working with the Westerville Area Resource Ministry to provide meals to students this summer.  The 2013 season of the Westerville Area Kids Summer Lunch Club will run weekdays from May 28 through August 9 at six sites. This year there will be five open sites: Alum Creek South Park, Huber Village Park, La Vista Townhomes, Ridgewood Park and Strawberry Farms Park and one enrolled site: Church of the Nazarene.

Westerville City Schools announces the sponsorship of the Summer Food Service Program for Children.  Free meals will be made available to eligible children 18 years of age and under or persons over 18 who are determined by a state or local public educational agency to be mentally or physically disabled.  Children who are members of food stamp households or OWF assistance units are automatically eligible for free meals. To be eligible, children participating in residential camps must meet the income guidelines for reduced meals in the National School Lunch Program.

The Community Service Project Team from the Westerville Leadership Class of 2013 is taking on a project to honor Hospice nurses and staff.  June is Hospice Awareness Month and donations are being sought to...

The Westerville City School District (WCSD) Board of Education on May 6, 2013, voted 5-0 to approve revisions to administrative employment guidelines that will cap Board obligations to administrators’ retirement contributions, modify vacation benefits and reduce severance payouts to future retirees.

The Ohio Department of Education (ODE) has named Annehurst Elementary School a High Progress School of Honor, based on its 2011-2012 Local Report Card.  The department established the High Performing Schools of Honor and High Progress Schools of Honor programs this year to recognize Ohio schools that have sustained or increased student achievement over time in reading, math and graduation rates, while serving many disadvantaged students.

550 students from 80 schools participated in the State History Day competition on April 27 at the Ohio Union on the campus of The Ohio State University. Genoa Middle School pupil Madison Seabury received Honorable Mention in the Junior Individual Website category for her project, “The Little Rock Nine:  A Turning Point for Educational Equality.”  She ended the competition with a fourth place ranking in the entire state of Ohio.

When the Laws of Life State Awards Banquet at Villa Milano concluded on April 25, two Genoa Middle School students walked away with cash prizes.  Seventh grader Madison Seabury and eighth grader Megan Haller were honored at the gathering, where keynote speaker Clarence Mingo, Franklin County Auditor, spoke passionately about the importance of character.

The Westerville Elementary Boosters hosted the first annual Starry Night astronomy festival at Westerville South High School on Sunday, April 28.  More than 1,000 were in attendance for this free event featuring approximately 50 different exhibits on the intersection between science and art.  Perkins Observatory Director Tom Burns gave a special presentation, and families were treated to sky shows within the inflatable planetarium.

Starting and ending times for preschool during the 2013-2014 school year have been announced.  Morning preschool classes will begin at 8:45 a.m. and dismiss at 11:15 a.m.  Afternoon preschool classes will begin at 12:45 p.m. and end at 3:15. p.m.  The first day of preschool will be Monday, August 19, 2013.

Third grade students from Hanby Elementary classrooms of Kristina Roggenkamp and Rachel Lacy took a walking field trip to “California” via video conferencing to learn about the Journey of Milk: From Cow to Carton.  With the help of Dr. Scott Ebbrecht (Liaison for K-12 Partnerships, Otterbein University) and Willie Franklin (Senior Technology Specialist, Otterbein University), the children walked to Otterbein and used the technology resources available on campus in Roush Hall.  They met Dr. Kathy Krendl, President of Otterbein University, and Kristi Robbins, Chief of Staff at Otterbein and Vice-President of the Westerville City Schools Board of Education.

The Ohio Department of Education (ODE) has notified Westerville City Schools that it will partially fund its Third Grade Guarantee Early Literacy and Reading Readiness grant proposal. The ODE considered the strength of each proposal and its use of funding.  “Congratulations to your team for developing a quality proposal that demonstrates an innovative and replicable initiative to improve the early literacy and reading readiness in students,” wrote Sasheen Phillips, Senior Executive Director at the ODE’s Center for Curriculum and Assessment.

The Westerville Parent Council, Roush Honda, the Superintendent of Schools and the Westerville City Schools Board of Education recognized Great Educator and Mentor (GEM) award winners at a reception and special ceremony held Monday evening, April 29.  GEM awards are given to individuals who make a difference in the lives of the students in the Westerville School District.

The Bette Marschall Memorial Education Fund of The Columbus Foundation has announced the recipients of nine grant awards totaling $2,599 to Westerville City Schools personnel for applications submitted this spring.

Westerville South High School inducted three alumni into its Hall of Fame at a luncheon and ceremony held April 26 – Thomas Baker, Kevin Knapp and Jeffrey Reschke.  The school’s Superintendent’s Student Advisory Committee selected those honored from a pool of applicants who graduated at least 10 years ago, have demonstrated success in their career, and have made significant contributions to their community.