Principal's Corner Newsletter

Dear Students and Families,

This week, members of the Social Action Club teamed with other Vermont high schools to host the Race and Rally Against Racism on the statehouse lawn in Montpelier. The event was the culmination of a year-long collaboration with students from Montpelier High School. Eighth-grader Tegan Miller performed an original song. Students fresh from their twelve-day educational trip to France and Spain shared their experiences with families. We are excited to host students from both countries next school year. AP Drawing students were selected to submit their artwork to Vermont’s congressional art show and competition; congratulations to Dillon Moss and Logan Sudol on their awards!

Warm regards,

Garon Smail

Members of the WUHS Social Action Club collaborated with the Montpelier High School throughout the year to help coordinate and sponsor an event: The Rally and Race Against Racism. In its 5th year, this state-wide annual anti-racist event, organized by youth from several Vermont high schools took place on Sunday, May 7th. The public rally, curated with a spectacular list of notable speakers, live music, and performances was attended by youth from around the state as well as members of the general public. Profits from the 2023 Race Against Racism will be donated to two, Vermont, non-profit organizations: Vermont Releaf Collective Building Fearless Futures . In

In addition to helping with the event, Woodstock was also proud to feature one of our very own at the event. A talented musician, singer and songwriter, Eigth grade student, Tegan Miller, performed a song that she wrote during the Rally segment of the event. She is a gifted young person!!

On Sunday evening, the 7th of May, language students along with their parents, enjoyed a tapas-style dinner here at the high school as the culminating activity of the trip to Spain and France. After dinner, which was held outside in deference to the weather and to the European habit of eating al fresco, the group watched a slide presentation of photos of the trip.

Students prepared for this educational experience by attending “immersive” lessons twice a month, every month, beginning in September. These meetings were organized in such a way that students would be familiar with both the geography and culture of the sites they visited. The goal was for the students to be able to maximize the travel experience by having some knowledge of what they were doing and seeing.

The cities of Madrid and Paris were chosen as the center pieces of the trip because the student group was made up of upper level French and Spanish students. Many of them were scheduled to travel in April of 2020, but that trip was canceled due to COVID-19. Going to Spain and France offered these students a last chance to travel together before heading off to college! And for some, the trip may turn out to be a preview of a study abroad experience they may embark on in the future

The 12-day trip began in Toledo, Spain, which is located about an hour southwest of Madrid. The city is known for its beautiful medieval architecture. Toledo was once home to Christians, Muslims and Jews, therefore the architecture reflects this confluence of religion and culture. In addition to touring historical sites, students (and the “Madames”) got an aerial view of the city on a zipline over the Tagus River. From Toledo, the group went to Madrid and visited many of the city’s iconic sites, such as Sofia Reina and the Prado. Mr. Villaneuva helped the group organize a two-day visit at the Colegio Salesianos. The visit gave Woodstock students the opportunity to experience a sense of school life in Spain. They also participated in activities in both Spanish and French classes.

After a week experiencing the life of a Madrileno/Madrilena, the group flew to Paris and started the day with a pretty comprehensive tour of Paris. Based in the 18th arrondissement, on the right bank of the Seine, and just streets away from Montmartre and Sacre Coeur, students moved through a very busy Paris by bus, metro, train and foot. The group visited such iconic sites as the Louvre, the Musee d’Orsay, the Tour Eiffel, and Versailles. They made a significant dent in the consummation of and other fine French foods! Students were also able to visit a school just 20 miles southwest of Paris. They spent the day at Sophie Barat, a private school with a wonderful climate and welcoming teachers and peers. Students participated in French and Spanish classes and had a typical French lunch thanks to the teachers who organized the visit. Sophie Barat school is the future partner of the Woodstock French Exchange Program.

In a quiet moment during the trip, Marie Anderson and Colleen O’Connell, reflected on the students traveling with them. Their thoughts were as follows: this group was fully engaged and we enjoyed seeing them squeeze every ounce of experience from everything we did. There was a good bit of history, art and culture; there was street life and food. No matter what we did, no matter how far we had to walk, the students were cheerful, adaptable and very much in awe of what they were seeing and doing. We could depend on them to meet us at designated times and designated places. They made their way through Madrid and Paris without any problems or fears. They listened to our advice about precautions to take when traveling in a city, and they shared with us their own small adventures as they made their way on their own. They rallied despite a few being sick, some family concerns; they rallied at the schools and showed the very best that Woodstock has to offer. They participated in classes, in the target language, and they made friends in both Madrid and Paris. We are grateful to have had such a wonderful experience together.

Congratulations to the AP Drawing seniors who were selected to submit their artwork to Vermont’s congressional art show and competition. Annie Hauze, Dillon Moss, Kyra Tarleton, Ariana Winawer-Stein, Daphne McDermott, and Logan Sudol all had their work at the Vermont College of Fine Arts Gallery in Montpelier.. Each spring the Congressional Institute sponsors a nationwide high school visual art competition to recognize and encourage artistic talent in the nation and in each congressional district. Since the competition began in 1982 (in Vermont), more than 650,000 high school students have participated.

On Friday, May 5th, the AP Art class traveled to Montpelier to view the art show and to meet U.S. representative Becca Balint. After admiring the incredible art pieces created by high school artists from around the state, they attended an award ceremony. Dillon Moss’s piece “Crabbing” was the winner for Windsor county and Logan Sudol received a judge’s choice award for his work, “The Drive Home.” Congratulations to all of the artists!

Team Pathfinders
The Week in Learning: 5/5/23

Here is the link to our weekly newsletter.

Team Horizon, Issue #15, May 5, 2023

Here is the newest 8th Grade Newsletter link

Here is a link to The Buzz. High school journalism students write articles for The Buzz.

The editors are Tess Belisle, River Miles, and Alec Smail.

Upcoming prom and celebration events are upon us. Celebrate smart! Be safe during prom and graduation season. Brought to you by Green Peak Alliance!

Check out this video! https://youtu.be/hNjjH5H9A14

PROM HELP NEEDED!
The Class of 2024 would like to decorate Prom tabletops with local mismatched flowers. If you have any lilac, tulips, greenery, etc... on Saturday May 20th, please bring them to the buckets labeled "PROM" in front of the greenhouse by 9 am and leave them on the picnic table. If you are able to help, please email Maggie Mello (24mellma@wcsu.net) so we have a sense for the amount of flowers. Thank you so much!

Class of 2024 Prom Committee

Date: May 20, 2023

Location: Billings Farm and Museum, Activity Barn

CLICK HERE for full details regarding Tickets, Who, Promenade, Dance, Prom Royalty & Court, Rules and Parking

The Spring Plant Sale runs through May 31st. Be sure stop by and shop for flowers and veggie packs. Hours: 9 am-2 pm on school days.

The sale is located in the Large Greenhouse (behind/riverside of the WUHS/MS building).

All proceeds directly benefit the Woodstock Union Agriculture Department. Your support helps to ensure that our greenhouse and gardens are thriving spaces where we can continue to teach and learn about agriculture, stewardship, sustainability, and systems thinking through experiential learning.

We will also be holding a plant pot collection drive! Bring your used plant pots and we will either wash, sanitize, and reuse them or sort them by plastic type and recycle them with a company that specializes in horticulture pots! If you bring in plastic pots, you can take home one free 4-inch potted plant! As always, bring cardboard boxes if you have them for transporting your plants to you car.

This year, we are focusing on selling native, perennial plants — specifically, ones that benefit pollinators — and vegetables/herbs. We will still have many of the fan favorites. See the CRAFT website for the list of plants (subject to change). We will also be selling bird houses, No Mow May signs, and seeds.

Follow WUHS Athletics on Instagram @wuhsstudentsection

Interested in staying up to date on upcoming athletic events, as well as their outcomes? If you are an Instagram user, you can follow WUHS’s StudentSection account. This account was set up by Kendall Taylor (Class of 2022) last year and is currently being maintained by Junior Zach Martsolf-Tan, as an independent study in social media through the Center of Community Connections (C3). Know when the games and matches are happening--and come out and cheer on our student-athletes!

Recommendations for Respiratory Illnesses in School and Child Care

Covid-19 Fact Sheet

Save the Date: Prom is May 20, 2023 at Billings Farm

FREE Covid Tests

Households can order another round of free antigen tests! Go to https://www.covid.gov/tests
Also, just a reminder that through BCBS (and many other insurance companies), you can get eight free tests monthly from rite aid (and maybe other pharmacies).

Cognia to Replace SBAC Annual State Testing

Cognia to Replace SBAC Annual State Testing: Since 2015, students have engaged annually with SBAC testing to assess literacy and math on a district and state level. This year, the Vermont Agency of Education has decided to switch to a different assessment vendor called Cognia. The Agency of Education will provide further guidance to districts in the new year. As we know more, we will inform families through newsletters.

Our very own Earthbeat environmental club is participating in a NexTrex recycling program, for the purpose of recycling plastic films which would otherwise be discarded in landfills. From now up until the end of the school year, the club accepts all plastic films from ziploc bags to bubble wrap. Once our school collects 500 lbs of plastic film, it will be delivered to NexTrex and transformed into a bench. There are currently two drop-off locations in the WUHSMS school building, one in the main lobby and one next to the senior solarium. Thank you in advance for any contributions!

Book Club Goes to Teen Lit Mob!

On Friday, May 5 the Young Adult Diverse Books Book Club and the Middle School Book Club went to Teen Lit Mob at South Burlington High School. It was a great event for literary lovers! National Book Award Finalist and Micheal L. Printz Award recipient, An Na, was the keynote speaker. Speaking from experience, she gave the young writers in the audience inspiration to persevere and keep writing. Students attended workshops that focused on poetry, writing, horror novels, cartooning and CosPlay. After lunch there was an author panel and one of the highlights of Teen Lit Mob is all of the free books!

Each student receives a tote bag filled with new young adult books. Elizabeth Fraga said she was excited to get a copy of Icebreaker by A.L. Graziadei. She said, "Icebreaker is an amazing book with complex and compelling characters and plot." Paige Stone said, "One book I received and have finished was I Must Betray You by Ruta Sepetys. I had read two other novels by this author, Salt to the Sea and In Between Shades of Gray. The novel was an interesting account of a history that I was very unfamiliar with. It is set in 1989 Romania, when there was the fall of the Iron Curtain. It was set in the perspective of a teenager who fought for his country's freedom in protests. I'd really recommend it for anyone who would want to learn about communism and the fall of it."

To read more about Teen Lit Mob and other library events including the next Faculty/Staff Book Club pick and to get a reminder about returning overdue books and checking out more books for summer reading, please click here for the From the Library newsletter.

Early College @ CCV Virtual Information Session!

Join CCV staff for one of two virtual information sessions to learn more about the

amazing opportunities for Early College students at CCV! Topics include:

• How to apply for the Early College program and financial aid

• How to earn a certificate while in Early College

• How to earn a FREE associate degree through the McClure Free Degree Promise

WHEN:

Wednesday, May 24, 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Zoom

SIGN UP TO ATTEND A VIRTUAL SESSION: admissions.ccv.edu/portal/ECopportunities

Program Openings @ HACTC!

If any current 10th or 11 th graders are interested in the following program at HACTC please stop in the counseling office to learn more and apply!

1. Health Sciences

2. Intro to Engineering Design

3. Information Technology

4. Software Engineering

WE NEED VERMONT FREE & REDUCED MEAL APPLICATIONS!

Even though meals are free for all students this year, school meal applications play a critical role. Meal applications returned by families help bring in funding for your school and determine education tax rates, open the door for students to access additional programs, and make Universal School Meals successful this year. Completing and returning school meal applications is critical to helping make this program permanent in Vermont.

• Help our school access its fair share of millions in federal dollars for educational programs.

• Provide students in our district and across Vermont with healthy, nutritious food.

• Reduce the cost of universal school meals for Vermont taxpayers.

• Helps the Summer SOAK program secure funding and ensures SOAK participants who are Free & Reduced can access free meals during SOAK sessions.

You can download an application on the WCUD School Nutrition Program website or request a packet from the school’s administrative assistant. Please email the scanned completed application or picture copy to Gretchen Czaja, gczaja@wcsu.net or mail to: WCUD School Nutrition Program 100 Amsden Way Woodstock, VT 05091

STUDENT MEALS ARE FREE!

Students can access one free breakfast and/or one free lunch every school day. Students enter their 4 digit lunch number at the register stations as they exit the meal line. Student meal accounts will not be charged. This is for tracking purposes only.

SALAD BAR IS BACK!

In addition to the healthy main meal option, students can add items from the salad bar to their meal. Fresh veggies and fruit help complete the meal and keep students nourished for the school day,

GRAB & GO BREAKFASTS-Grab & Go breakfasts are available in the north cafeteria. A full breakfast includes 3 food items with one of the items being a fruit portion.

VEGGIEVANGO FREE FOOD DISTRIBUTION-Every second Wednesday of every month-Next one is June 14th. The distribution takes place at the Union Arena end of the WUHSMS parking lot @ 10am. The VT Foodbank distributes fresh produce items. Proteins are now provided by the VT Foodbank!

Scan the QR code to access lunch menus, program information and the VT Free & Reduced Meal Application.

Follow us on @vtschoolmeals on Instagram.

Alma Student Information System

Family-Student Handbook

2022-2023 School Calendar

High School Class Schedule

Middle School Class Schedule

Bus Routes

Windsor Central Supervisory Union

Email: gsmail@wcsu.net
Website: wuhsms.org
Location: 100 Amsden Way, Woodstock, VT, USA
Phone: 8024571317
Facebook: facebook.com/WUHSMS/
Twitter: @wearewoodstock