After months of preparation, Woodland Heights School opened its doors to teachers, students and families on August 30th.
Teachers started the day by hosting a special breakfast to thank the WHS custodial crew for their outstanding effort over the summer months. During the hot and dry months of July and August, our custodians worked tirelessly to clean our building from top to bottom. By the time that school opened on August 30th, our building absolutely sparkled. On behalf of the entire WHS Community, I'd like to extend a heartfelt 'Thank You!' to Corey, Scott, Bill, Ben, and summer helpers Garrett and Zachary. You guys are amazing!
For the balance of the day on the 30th, the teachers were involved in whole staff and team meetings in preparation for the upcoming school year. Many staff members also made finishing touches to their classrooms before the evening, during which they invited students and families into the school for our annual 'Warm Woodland Welcome'.
The evening event drew a large and enthusiastic crowd. Everyone in attendance seemed to be very excited to be back in the building together again. Our Warm Woodland Welcome set a warm, comfortable, and joyous tone for a fabulous school opening day on September 1st.
On Tuesday, August 31st, the entire Laconia School District Staff got together at the Laconia Middle School for a series of meetings and workshops to bring everyone up to speed on district initiatives and projects for the coming year. School Board Chairman Scott Vachon and School Superintendent Bob Champlin gave inspirational, technologically rich presentations that got us all 'fired-up' to start school, and continue the district's strive for academic excellence.
Our first day of school on September 1st was largely uneventful, with all school systems operating like clockwork. Some people commented that it was like the students, staff and families had never left for the summer: everyone was already in rhythm! What a relief!!
A smooth-running school right from the start is quite a achievement given how many new students, families, and staff members we have in the building this year. To name a few big changes (that you might already be aware of), the following staff members have been welcomed into the WHS Community this fall: Jessica Ganchi (School Nurse), Deborah Burrell (Occupational Therapist), Catherine Pelletier (Preschool Tacher), Nicole Rogers (Attendance Coordinator), Jerome Kramer (Behavioral Specialist), Mollie Babcock (School Counselor), and Dennis Dobe (School Principal). That is a lot of new talent in your school!
Major developments over the past few days include: getting our school computer system up and running after major disassembly over the summer for cleaning, organizing our student support teams and coordinating student service times, conducting our first series of emergency preparedness drills, and scheduling NWEA testing for the coming two weeks -- NECAP testing will follow in early to mid-October.
It definitely feels like the school year is underway now, and everything is looking good for the time ahead. It has been absolutely wonderful getting to know the talented staff, wonderful students, and supportive families of WHS. I think it is going to be a fabulous year!
