Back to school: New teachers, construction update, WMS nut policy

Summer is nearly over and students will soon be heading back into the classroom with Whitefish School District’s first day of school set for Wednesday, Aug. 28.

Whitefish High School

Construction continues this year on the new high school building and some impact on classes and traffic is expected.

“We don’t anticipate any major disruptions,” principal Kerry Drown said. “Other than a little noise and dust it’s not too bad. That’s the great part about the whole construction plan is that its designed to minimize impact.”

Remodel work of the gymnasium has been completed and it is ready for use. The gym has a new floor, new bleachers, new scoreboards and a fresh coat of paint.

Work continues on the new locker rooms and showers, with completion expected in September. In the meantime, physical education classes will modify their curriculum accordingly.

“The P.E. classes will have to be creative as we don’t have places for the students to dress out or shower,” Drown said. “They’ll do some units at the beginning of the year like bowling, archery and walking the track.”

For sports, the football, volleyball and cross country teams will use temporary locker rooms set up in the new cardio and weight rooms. Visiting teams will use locker rooms at the middle school.

“The refurbished lockers have been brought in and athletes have been asked to bring in a camp chair,” Drown said. “We’re trying to build team ownership of the rooms and trying to do our best until the new locker rooms are ready.”

Also because of the construction, there will be no welding class offered this school year.

Instead, a building trades class will allow students to assist with construction in the old weight room.

“Students will help build walls, do plumbing and drywall,” Drown said. “They will be able to take advantage of the opportunity to build something right here and learn what’s involved in the construction trades.”

Traffic around the school will be rerouted the same as it was last spring. Various areas around the school have been designated for student, faculty and visitor parking.

In effort to make the transition to high school as easy as possible, WHS has implemented a new freshman mentoring program. Members of the junior class will serve as mentors to freshman students and will meet with them periodically.

The school will hold a freshman “Walkabout” on Wednesday, Aug. 21 from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. Freshman will have the opportunity to receive school information, pick up their class schedule, find their locker and locate their classrooms.

On the first day of school, freshman begin classes at 8:30 a.m. with a half-day orientation and all other students start at 12:30 p.m. Lunch will not be served that day for sophomore, junior and senior class students.

New staff members at WHS include English teacher Kyle Fedderly and Aric Harris, who serves as activities director and teacher.

For questions, call the high school at 862-8600.

Whitefish Middle School

The middle school has hired one new teacher, Jessica Kress, who will teach fifth and sixth grade special education.

One change is the school’s new nut allergy policy. The school is asking that parents and guardians refrain from sending special treats to school that contain peanuts, tree nuts or any nut by-products.

Principal Josh Branstetter said a few students in the school have nut allergies and some of the classrooms will be nut-free zones.

“We will have signs in areas where there can and can’t be nuts,” he said. “This is mostly about the educational opportunity to let people know the effects nuts can have on those who are allergic.”

Branstetter also reminds those dropping off students at the middle school to do so by pulling their car into a parking space. Those walking or riding bikes should use the crosswalks and take advantage of the crossing guards posted around the school.

“We want everyone to be safe,” he said.

For questions, call the middle school at 862-8650.

Muldown Elementary

New this year is the implementation of the WATCH D.O.G.S. (Dads of Great Students) program. The national program asks fathers, uncles and grandfathers to volunteer in the school by walking the halls or meeting buses and greeting students.

“I’m really excited about this,” principal Linda Whitright said. “The goal is to invite father figures to volunteer at the school and have positive male role models for the students.”

More information about the program will be shared at Muldown’s open house in September as the school begins recruiting volunteers.

Muldown will shift from quarters to trimesters this year, and improve its report card format. The school will be using the Standards Based Report Card that reflects the Montana Common Core standards and reports progress three times during the school year.

“The report card documents student performance over a period of time and provides feedback regarding concerns and strengths,” Whitright said. “We feel the additional information provided through these reports will be beneficial as we partner to provide the best educational experience for our students.”

Whitright said by moving to trimesters it will give students more time to demonstrate their abilities by the end of the first grading period in late fall, as well as, for teachers to provide more individualized instruction based on that longer time period.

Several new teachers join the staff at Muldown. Taylor Bertelsen will teach second grade, Lindley Couser will teach first grade, Lacy Eccles is the new elementary counselor, Alisa Hoover will teach kindergarten and Laura Raykowski is the new special education resource teacher.

The continued construction at the high school will impact the travel routes around the high and elementary schools. Drivers are reminded to follow the traffic changes that were implemented last spring.

For questions, call Muldown at 862-8620.