Did you know adults aged 62 and above are eligible for a district lifetime activity pass? The passes offer access to every home athletic event, with the only exception being post-season KSHSAA-sponsored events. Stop by the Shuler Education Center during business hours to acquire your pass!

There will be food pantry on Thursday, December 7 at Pauline South Intermediate School. District families can schedule an appointment for pickup between 3:00-4:00 pm or walk-in from 4:00-5:00 pm. Spread the word!

Sixth graders at Jay Shideler Elementary School have been learning about the basic structure and function of cells. As part of their curriculum, they were tasked with creating an accurate representation of either an animal cell or a plant cell. Creating a 3D model helps students gain a better understanding of cells and their organelles – concepts that can be difficult to understand without clear visualization. Students were required to display and label all cell parts, and were encouraged to exercise creativity in the process. Have a look at what they came up with!

There's still time to register for the STEAM Carnival! In celebration of Computer Science Education Week, the Washburn Rural High School Computer Science Honor Society (CSHS) is offering this FREE event to Auburn-Washburn elementary and middle school students on Thursday, December 7 from 5:00 to 8:00 pm. Students will rotate through a variety of STEAM-related activities and carnival games. Registration is limited to the first 300 students. Sign up today! https://sites.google.com/usd437.net/cshs/events/steam-carnival

Pauline South Intermediate School music teacher, Meridith Neuer, is in New York City to march in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade as part of the Band Directors Marching Band. Neuer was chosen to join the band of 400 directors, who will be marching to the theme, "America's band directors: We teach music. We teach life." The parade will be broadcast on NBC beginning at 7:30 am CT on Thanksgiving day.

Thank you to the Shawnee County Farm Bureau Association for their generous donation to assist those experiencing food insecurity. Funds from their Farmers Feeding the Future program were used to restock our food pantries and distribute groceries to help sustain students during this week-long break from school. Pictured is one of many loads of groceries that were delivered to our various food pantries this week. In these days leading up to Thanksgiving, we are especially mindful and grateful.

Kindergarteners at Indian Hills Elementary School were in for a real treat last week when they received a visit from Hiland Dairy! Not only did they learn about milk production and distribution, they also learned some key nutritional facts and health benefits about dairy. And much to their delight, they were surprised with a tasty ice cream treat at the end! Thank you to Hiland Dairy for this enjoyable and educational experience!

A special note of thanks to our food services team and all those who helped serve and host Thanksgiving meals in our schools this week. A remarkable 8,500 holiday meals were served! The ability to welcome families into our schools for a shared feast is a special tradition we take great pride in upholding!

The National Speech & Debate Association has announced their list of "Top 100 Schools," and we are beyond excited to share that Washburn Rural High School came in at no. 11! The "Top 100” designation is given to schools with the largest number of new degrees in the National Forensic League Honor Society. To earn degrees, students accumulate merit points through competition, service, and leadership activities. The team also earned a Leading Chapter Award, an honor bestowed upon just three percent of schools in the nation!

The Debate and Forensics programs are under the direction of head coach Tim Ellis. In his 10-year tenure, Washburn Rural has won three national championships and eight state championships in policy debate and has been runner-up state champions for team forensics on five separate occasions.

4️⃣ teams remain, but only 1️⃣ is UNDEFEATED! Help us pack the stands on Friday night and cheer on our Junior Blues to victory as they take on the Derby Panthers in the sub-state game!

📆 Friday, November 17
⏰ 7:00 PM
📍 WRHS Bowen-Glaze Stadium
🎟 $8 Adults | $6 Students
🔗 PLEASE NOTE: WE ARE NOT PERMITTED TO LIVESTREAM THIS GAME. Livestreaming is exclusively available at https://www.nfhsnetwork.com/associations/kshsaa.

GIVEAWAY: Show your school spirit by leaving an encouraging comment for the team below and you'll be entered into a drawing for two free tickets to the game! Three winners will be chosen at random in a drawing held at 12:00 pm CT on Friday, November 17.