Whitley County BOE honors large number of students

Want to know the secret to getting a bunch of people to show up at a school board meeting barring a tax increase or major controversy? You recognized a whole bunch of students for outstanding achievement, like the Whitley County Board of Education did during its April 21 regular monthly meeting.

Whitley County High School JROTC

The board recognized students for both individual and team achievements.

About 40 members of the Whitley County High School JROTC program were present to be recognized.

Col. Steve Sears, who is in charge of the JROTC program, praised the leadership of this year’s juniors and seniors as the reason for more than 40 cadets in the program this school year.

Sears said that the cadets won the equivalent of their second consecutive regional raider league championship this year.

Sears noted that raider competition is a lot like football or basketball in that it is an extracurricular activity that students aren’t graded on. Students compete in three categories of events, including academics, marching/drilling and physical events, which resemble track and field somewhat.

The cadets scored the program’s first ever perfect score in a drill competition this season, and the ladies tug-of-war team is now 40-0 the past two seasons.

The program also participated in a mountain raider competition where only 10 cadets were allowed to compete and all 10 were certified mountain raiders.

Whitley County Middle School Academic Team

Academic team

The Whitley County Middle School (WCMS) Academic Team went 5-1 during its regular season and won the district championship.

The group won the overall district tournament taking first place in the quick recall and future problem solving competitions. Nine students placed in written assessments to move onto the region.

The team went on to compete in the regional competition where they finished in third place overall. The team placed third in quick recall and fourth in future problem solving. Kambree Bunch, Reese Croley and Miles Leskiw all moved onto state competition in various written assessments. Bunch also moved forward in the state competition for composition finishing third at the region.

WCMS Academic Team members include seventh graders Emily Graves, Marcus Helton, Kali Shumate, Claire Thomas and Noah Vanderpool. Eighth grade members include: Faye Alsip, Bunch, Croley, Bret Day, Dawson Goley, Adrian Hughes, Samuel Lemons, Leskiw, Isaiah Massengale and Garrett Wilson.

Whitley County Middle Schoo

Odyssey of the Mind

WCMS Odyssey of the Mind Team (OM™) has done so well this season that they qualified for the world finals, which will be held Iowa State University in May.

The team placed third in its division during the Odyssey of the Mind (OM™) State Tournament, which was held March 26.

Students will stay on a college campus for one week as part of the competition.

WCMS Odyssey of the Mind (OM™) Team members include: Rachel Baker, Kambree Bunch, Journey Chitwood, Marcus Helton, Miles Leskiw and Grace-Anne Richardson.

“Odyssey of the Mind teaches students how to develop and use their natural creativity to become problem-solvers,” Odyssey of the Mind (OM™) writes on its website. “OM brings the classroom to life as students apply what they learn and combine it with their interests and passions to solve our unique open-ended problems. OM also emphasizes teamwork, budgeting, time management, public speaking, and so much more. This international program is designed to help students at all learning levels grow as individual learners, grow as team members, and to reach their full potential.”

National Merit Program Scholarship Finalist Samuel Hudson

National finalist

The board also recognized an individual student, Whitley County High School Senior Samuel J. Hudson, for being named a National Merit Program Scholarship finalist.

Whitley County High School Principal Julie Osborne said that Hudson scored in the top 1 percent nationally on the PSAT test to become a semifinalists, and then finished in the top third of the top 1 percent to become a finalist for the award.

“This is quite a tremendous academic accomplishment,” Osborne said.

He plans to attend the University of Kentucky and major in engineering.

Staff recognition

The school board also recognized one staff member during the meeting.

The board presented Whitley East Elementary School Teacher

Above and Beyond Winner Jennifer Croley

Jennifer Croley with the April Above and Beyond Award. Whitley East Principal Mike Partin nominated her for the award.

Building updates

In other business, the board also received an update on various building projects, including:

• Career and Technical Education (CTE) Building – 29 percent complete with Nov. 15, 2022, substantial completion date.
• Oak Grove Elementary School Cafeteria addition – limited demolition set to begin soon with Dec. 8, 2022, substantial completion date.
• High School physical education addition and renovation – design work and geothermal exploration underway.
• Whitley North Elementary School HVAC upgrades – 11 percent complete with Aug. 11, 2022, substantial completion date. Ceiling demolition underway and geothermal drilling expected to start after the school year ends. The board voted to reject a $7,158 pay application for a change order on the project. School officials said the work involves moving a simple waterline, and they feel that district maintenance staff can do the same thing at a much cheaper price.