I hope that this weekly update finds you in good health and enjoying a wonderful week with your families. It is so hard to believe that it is almost Thanksgiving. Thank you for all you do for students each and every single day. Please take this next week to relax.
Xenia Board of Education Member Gil Esparza has taken a new job out of the State of Ohio and thus is leaving the board. His resignation was effective Nov. 18. We are now looking for someone to replace him. If you know of someone who might be interested, please let them know of this opening. Final date to apply is Dec. 2. Additional information is on the district website.
At a special Board of Education Meeting last Wednesday the Board approved moving forward with the same facilities plan as we had on the ballot in November. The $28.5 M from the State of Ohio is available until August. It would go away at that point if we cannot raise our local share.
Our student enrollment continues to look good. As of last Friday, Nov. 18, we had 4,480 students enrolled. The State predicted that we would have 4,283 students for this year. Thank you staff for all you do.
Our District Leadership Team consists of principals and teachers from every building in the district and they meet regularly.
Around the schools
Xenia Preschool Donuts with Dad was very successful, 106 dads and grandpas joined the students for this event. Thanks to Tim Horton’s for the donation of coffee.
The PTO is sponsoring a “Food for Friends” Drive the week of Dec. 12-16. Students will be asked to bring in non-perishable foods. In conjunction with the Food Drive they will also be having a spirit week which includes, PJ Day, Holiday Spirit Day, Backwards Day and Xenia Spirit Day.
The Arrowood Girls on the Run Team sponsored a canned food drive this past week. They collected over 1,800 canned goods. Several church pantries benefited from the donation.
For the past three weeks, the two fifth grade classes at Cox have been keeping track of their independent reading by logging their minutes on a chart. To spice things up, the two classes have been competing against each other.
The student council at Cox sponsored a food drive and collected over 500 food items. They will be donated to the American Red Cross and the Xenia FISH pantry.
McKinley’s Mrs. Flohre’s 5th grade classes wrote letters of encouragement to cancer patients. This went along with the collection of items for cancer patients.
Many of the classes held their Thanksgiving feast last Friday. Along with the feast the 2nd graders did a program for many parents. Students sang songs, recited poems, and told jokes related to Thanksgiving. The students dressed as Native Americans and Pilgrims.
Fifth graders at Shawnee participated in STEAM Day sponsored by the Gifted Department and the XHS Biotech Program led by Molly Wavra. Students participated in a variety of hands-on activities such as extracting DNA from strawberries.
The third grade classes participated in the Greene County School Environmental Education Program last week. Students learned about habitats with hands-on activities. This program was responsible by a Science Grant from the Xenia Community Foundation.
Tecumseh students are reciting the behavior expectations or “Tecumseh Core Beliefs” over the announcements each day. This is to make certain that the goals of the district are being clearly communicated.
Tecumseh students worked on a Pillowcase Project with the American Red Cross. This project included a presentation that teaches children how to be prepared in case of an emergency such as extreme winter storms and home fires. Students received a pillowcase to color and take home.
Twenty Thanksgiving boxes were given out to needy Warner families. Thanks to all who donated during this needy holiday season.
Congratulations to Xenia High School’s Mr. Neuenschwander and all of the high school student performers for doing such a great job in the fall play this past weekend. The play they put on was Picnic by William Inge. Everyone did a terrific job.
XTAR Students continued to work on the Tribal Challenge which included themes and vocabulary from The Cay. The challenge included cartesian art, word scramble, crossword puzzle and word search, all requiring teamwork.
Thank you to Walter Jones and his daughter, Kathleen Napper, for donating turkeys and food baskets to many families for Thanksgiving. They generously gave these items to a large number of families at every school in the school district.
