District NewsBrought to you by: Adam Carr and Sierra Fent

THE

Black & Gold Unfold

Vol. 6 No. 2 Official Newsletter of Parkway Local Schools October 2013

-Home of the Panthers-

ParkwayLocalSchools

Upcoming Events

10/25 End of 1st Nine Weeks10/28 Two Hour Delay (Teacher In-Service)11/1 Grade Cards Issued to Students11/3 Time Change “Fall Back”

Parkway Supports Breast Cancer Awareness

The Parkway volleyball and football teams have each supported breast cancer awareness during one of their home games. Prior to each contest, fans were able to buy Volley for the Cure shirts or a pink Parkway foot-

ball shirt. The volleyball teams hosted a “Volley for the Cure” game against the Crestview Knights on September 9. Proceeds earned by the volleyball team were donated to a Susan G. Koman for the Cure affili-ate. Volley for the Cure was created in 2006 to help raise awareness of breast cancer. Throughout the state of Ohio, many teams choose a game to have players, coaches, and fans all

wear pink. On October 18, the Panther football team welcomed the St. Henry Redskins to “Pack the Stands in Pink.” Donations were generously accepted at the gate. The donations and profits from all merchandise sold went to the Cancer Association of Mercer County. Many players who competed in these games were asked what it felt like to play in a game like this and they all said that it was a great experience to play for such a great cause. A total of 261 Volley for the Cure shirts were sold, and 325 Pack the Stands in Pink shirts were sold. Both games were very successful and were supported by fans who helped support breast cancer awareness.

“It was nice to know that we were playing for such a great cause.” -Raegen BransteterParkway Senior Volleyball Player

“We wanted to make this October meaningful.” -Austin Dennison Parkway Senior Football Player

Pictured Above are Seniors Austin Dennison and Raegen Bransteter.

District News Continued2

Parkway Local Schools Seeking Nominations for the “Academic Alumni Hall of Fame”

The goal for the Academic Alumni Hall of Fame is to recognize successful former students who have con-tributed to their profession and community while practicing character qualities such as perseverance, self-discipline, curiosity, honesty, responsibility, etc. They serve as an example for current students and former graduates as well as all of the community.Nominations for the hall of fame may be made by anyone. A committee will make the final selection of no more than three recipients. Criteria for nomination are: graduate of Parkway Local Schools (including Willshire, Rockford, Mendon-Union, and Parkway), graduated at least ten years prior to nomination, give time to enhance their profession, and demonstrate leadership, citizenship, and volunteerism.The award will be presented at the Parkway High School Spring Awards Program. Students will see how suc-cessful one can be if the principles of good character are practiced. Although “rewards” are public recognition, self satisfaction is the true reward. A plaque will be displayed in a high traffic area for students and community members to see frequently.Nominees may send testimonials or speak to the students about how character education helped them achieve success at the Spring Awards Night. The Academic Hall of Fame encourages students to develop good char-acter to succeed. To nominate individuals for the Parkway Local Schools Academic Alumni Hall of Fame, contact Parkway High School at 419-363-3045, ext #760 or mail Parkway High School, 400 Buckeye St., Rockford, OH 45882. Please provide the individual’s name, year of graduation, career position, and current contact infor-mation. Nominations must be submitted by November 22, 2013 to be considered for this school year. Upon nomination, individuals will receive an application to apply for the Academic Alumni Hall of Fame. Previous nominees are encouraged to send updates for their applications kept on file.

Meet the Candidates Night

On October 1 the Parkway Social Studies Department held a Meet the Candidates Night. In the auditorium the four school board candidates, Melissa Burtch, Tom Ly-ons, Ryan Thompson, and Steve Samples answered questions submitted by Parkway senior social studies students. Many inter-ested students and community members attended this event to learn more about the school board candidates. Some of the issues the candidates were asked about included how to raise school and commu-nity spirit, retire and rehire, post second-ary classes, and foreign languages. The candidates prepared and responded to the questions asked by Mr. Harrison Frech.

From the Superintendent’s Office

Dear Students, Parents, and Community Members:Approximately every ten years the Ohio Department of Edu-cation and the Ohio state government create and/or adopt new standards to improve the education of all students in the state of Ohio. Beginning this school year, the Common Core Stan-dards are the new standards for every school district in the state of Ohio. Using the standards, staff members select the teaching materials (textbooks, novels, equipment, etc.) they think are appropriate for the Parkway Local School District. The teaching staff then uses the standards and selected materi-als as guidelines for daily curriculum. As I have stressed in the past, when you see me throughout the district, I am always open to ideas from the community.

Greg Puthoff, Superintendent

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High School NewsBrought to you by: Tanner Bates and Tim LaVergne

On Friday, September 27, Parkway played its annual fall homecoming game, hosting the Ft. Recovery Indians. The attendants were: Freshman Clista Hellwarth, escorted by Alec Schoenleben; Sophomore Madison Swan-der, escorted by Bailey Rodriguez; Junior Whitney Rollins, escorted by Kris Gangwer; and Senior attendants Cami Hellwarth, escorted by Dakota Schaffner and Brant Barna, Emilie Baker, escorted by Matt Heindel and Austin Dennison, and Emilie Fisher, escorted by Adam Carr and Dakota Hucke. Af-ter all the suspenseful waiting, Emilie Fisher was announced as the 2013 Parkway fall homecom-ing queen. Adam Carr presented Emilie with the homecoming queen sash, Matt Heindel presented her with the flowers, Dakota Schaffner presented Emilie with the game ball, and Brant Barna pre-sented the queen with the traditional kiss. The Parkway Panthers defeated the Ft. Recovery In-dians 43-13 to cap off a great night. Congratula-tions to the football team on their homecoming victory and to the 2013 fall homecoming queen Miss Emilie Fisher.

The students and staff at Parkway High School would like to welcome Luca Cardone, a foreign exchange student from Na-ples, Italy. When he was asked “What do you miss most?” he gladly stated, “I miss nothing, I really like the people in America. Everyone is very welcoming and food is quite interesting here.” When asked what his favorite food is in America he said, “piz-za!” Luca is a participant in every class. He has become an icon at Parkway with his Italian trends and designer clothing. Luca has made a great spot in the student body of Parkway High, and we are glad that Mr. Cardone could join our 2013-2014 school year.

From Left to Right: Jr. Whitney Rollins, Sr. Cami Hellwarth, Sr. Emilie Fisher, Sr. Emilie Baker, So. Madison Swander, Fr. Clista Hellwarth.

Parkway Celebrates Fall Homecoming

Introducing Luca Cardone

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High School News Continued

The National Honor Society held its fall induction ceremony on Sunday, October 6 at 2:00 p.m. Each Na-tional Honor Society chapter establishes rules for membership that are based upon a student’s outstanding performance in the areas of: Scholarship, Service, Leadership, and Character. These criteria for selection form the foundation upon which the organization and its activities are built. The present senior members include: President Emilie Baker, Vice President Raegen Bransteter, Secretary Emilie Fisher, Reporter Cheyenne Stant, Treasurer Taylor Suzuki, Courtney Dicke, Rachel King, and Victoria Rutledge. The senior members who were inducted on October 6 include Shannon Joseph and Kelsey Williams. There were also many junior class inductees including: Riley Armstrong, Kennedy Baker, Ashley Baughman, Raya Beerbower, Turner Bran-steter, Carl Felver, Allison Gaerke, Brandon Gibson, Paige Hamrick, Kayle Heckler, Emma Hipply, Cassandra Kuhn, Grace Linn, Madison Meyer, Kylene Murphy, Chloe Prichard, Madison Roehm, Seth Rollins, Whitney Rollins, Bethany Schlemmer, Kayla Stephenson, Devin Stover, and Kayla Walls. We would like to recognize and congratulate the new inductees to the National Honor Society.

This year Mr. Marcus Hileman has joined the Parkway High School staff as an industrial technology teacher. Mr. Hileman decided that he wanted to learn industrial technology because of some of the jobs available in that career field, and the more he went to school for it the more Mr. Hileman enjoyed it. Mr. Hileman attended Bowling Green State University, receiving his degree in technology and engineering education. Before acquiring his new teaching job at Parkway, he taught as an industrial technology teacher at Springboro High School. Mr. Hileman also uses his industrial technology skills outside of the classroom. He has dedicated his free time to woodworking, model making, and electronics. His thoughts about the school are that Parkway is a very great school, with great students, and a top notch educational system. Parkway is glad that Mr. Hileman could join our school this year and many more years to come.

National Honor Society Holds Induction Ceremony

Mr. Marcus Hileman Joins High School Staff

Middle School NewsBrought to you by Luke Cron and Jacob Stein

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School Calendar Parkway Local Schools has a calendar on the school homepage (http://www.parkwayschools.org) that shows when report cards come out, when each grading period begins and ends, and when school will be closed for holidays and vacations. The school calendar also shows the dates when open houses, state tests, and confer-ences are scheduled. Look at this calendar and have your student write all of the important dates in his or her student planner. Also, put these dates on your calendar at home.(www.woodburnpress.com)

Code of Conduct/School Rules In order to have a safe, inviting place for students to learn, Parkway Middle School has rules regarding stu-dent conduct and behavior. Most students understand that rules are necessary, and they follow them. For the students who don’t follow the rules there are consequences.

Consequences can range anywhere from getting detention to being expelled. In most cases, the consequence will depend on the seriousness of the offense and the past history of the student involved. Students can find the rules for Parkway Middle School in their student planner. All students need to take an active role in making their school a safe place where students want to come to learn. If students ever feel threatened or if they know of a situation that may put someone else at risk, they should tell a teacher, principal, or counselor immediately. (www.woodburnpress.com)

Making Good Choices As students enter middle school, they are going to have more freedom and independence than they have ever had before. Of course, with greater freedom comes greater responsibility. It is important to remind middle school students that they are responsible for the actions and choices they make.

Students will be making lots of decisions during middle school, so it is important for them to have good decision-making skills. Whenever faced with a difficult decision, encourage your student to try going through these steps:1) Figure out what your choices are2) Write down the positives and negatives for each choice3) Make sure you have all of the information you need4) Think about your choices, and then make your decision

Too often young people do things they normally wouldn’t do just to go along with the crowd. Of course, many students later regret their actions. Encourage students to think about who they are and who they want to be before they end up in a difficult situation.

Get the Most Out of Your Middle School Student!

Middle School News Continued6

Parkway Middle School attended the Ceci Wiselogel, “Let Freedom Ring” presentation at the Niswonger Per-forming Arts Center in Van Wert, Ohio on September 27. Parkway Middle School students and staff looked forward to and was not disappointed to hear the speaker, Ceci Wiselogel, talk about the unique facts surround-ing many of our noted historic landmarks. The students walked away equipped with an enlightened understand-ing and appreciation of valued American history that unites the nation.

Parkway Elementary Parking Lot Update

A “No Parking” area has now been designated in the elementary school parking lot. The areas where the curbs have been painted yellow are now off limits for parking. These areas are from the intersection of Buck-eye Street and the elementary entrance way westward around the curve and the handicapped ramp directly in front of the elementary office. This has been done to alleviate the occasional blocking of the entrance to and exit from the elementary lot. If you cannot pull up past the no parking zone, please find an empty parking space to use. Thank you for your cooperation!

The Black & Gold Unfold is created by high school students in the School Publications class. The advisory committee for this publication includes Superintendent Greg Puthoff, High School Principal Brian Fortkamp, Middle School Principal Brian Woods, Elementary Principal Mark Esselstein, and Advisor Curtis Hamrick. If you have any questions, comments, or concerns about this publication, please email them to Mr. Hamrick at hamricc@parkwayschools.org

Middle School Cookie Dough Fundraiser Results

Parkway Middle School held a cookie dough sale that started on Monday, September 23 and ended on Monday, October 7. Tasty Batters was the provider for all the delicious cookies that were sold. The cookies are chocked full of premium ingredients and contain zero grams of trans-fat. The cookie dough is pre portioned and packed in re-sealable tubs for freezer-to-oven convenience. The students were very successful, selling a total of 2,342 tubs of cookie dough generating a profit of $11,710. The profits from the cookie dough sale are used to support each student as they prepare for their trip to Washington D.C. their 8th grade year.

Let Freedom Ring

Elementary Unleashed7

Brought to you by:Ryan On and Cody Carmean

Monica Young, a fourth grade student at Parkway Elementary, thought she was going to have an ordinary day until she arrived at her bus stop one morn-ing. Monica found a wallet on the ground with $400 in it! Having a good conscious and heart Monica did the right thing and turned it in to her bus driver, Mr. Steinke, before getting on the bus. We want to give a big THANK YOU to Monica for doing the right thing and turning in the wallet and for being a good example for others who might find something that is not theirs.

Autumn time is here once again! The days are getting shorter and the leaves are changing color. That means it is time for the kindergarten students to visit Lincoln Ridge. A trip to Lincoln Ridge consists of a fun-filled day on a farm. While at the farm the kindergarten students enjoyed a walk to the pumpkin patch for an educational talk on “How Pumpkins Grow.” Each child even got to pick out their own small pie pumpkin! Along with that, they took a trip through the “Great Autumn Adventure,” a mystical and magical forest. The kids then took a climb of their life as they scaled “Straw Mountain.” Then they said “hi” to Bea, Betsy, and Babette (the goats) and their barnyard friends, Josh and Nash

(alpacas). The Parkway kindergarten students enjoyed their activity filled day and would like to thank the friendly people at Lincoln Ridge.

A Trip to Lincoln Ridge

Caught Being Good!

On October 2, Mr. Steinke had Nikki Hawk come into his 4th grade sci-ence classes. Nikki Hawk is a water and soil conservationist. She taught the 4th graders about pollution, sediment from runoff, and human erosion. Using an envrioscape model she was able to show the students how wa-tersheds function. Watersheds are regions or areas of land that drain to a particular body of water. The students enjoyed a fun, yet educational day and would like to thank Nikki Hawk for coming in.

Parkway Elementary Students Learn from Envrioscape Model

Elementary Unleashed 88

Parkway first graders are very busy in the month of October! They are working hard on learning to read. The first graders spend the month of October mastering the short vowels sounds. They are also busy learn-ing between six and eight new vocabulary words each week to help them learn to read new stories. The first graders also spend some time reviewing kindergarten skills such as consonant sounds, number words, and color words along with knowing what an author does and what an illustrator does. The children also spend a lot of time listening to what a good reader sounds like. It is hard work being in first grade! Not only do the students work on all this,

but they also work on counting all the way to 120! The first graders work on finding the numbers on the 120 chart, writing their numbers, and counting by 1’s 2’s 5’s and 10’s all the way to 120. All this work can make a first grader’s brain overloaded so brain breaks are needed every once in a while along with some exercising and wild dancing!

On September 18 Parkway elementary students experienced COSI On Wheels. COSI On Wheels was started in 1982 and targets Midwest schools; it is a program that is designed for all students in grades K-6. The program focuses on dynamic science topics. COSI On Wheels has six different program varia-tions that can be presented. This year Parkway students experienced Exploring Ecology. It was a full day loaded with hands on activities. While the students were having fun with the hands on activities, they were learning about the science of the great outdoors including prairies, forests, rivers, and wetlands.

Lots of Learning in First Grade!

COSI On Wheels