Calhoun County Schools

Good morning, You may hear students talking about the our new alert system today. Calhoun County School is in the final stages of testing the system, provided by the COPS Grant, in our schools. This system will allow quicker response times for schools and first responders in case of an emergency. Evaluation of the system is starting, to ensure all the settings and various announcements are working.

Join us at any of the following locations.

Career Exploration Camp at Calhoun-Gilmer Career Center

UPDATE: One lane is open on Route 16, from the accident near Vaughn Road. Busses are able to pass. We are expecting some delays, but not as much as originally planned.

Due to an accident on Route 16 towards Pleasant Hill near Vaughn Road, busses will be delayed. We are routing buses through alternate routes to get them home. We expect at least a 15 to 20 minute delay.

Join us for Mother's Day Tea.

Calhoun County Schools received a $20,000 grant from the Sisters Health Foundation to provide tobacco prevention/intervention and mental health awareness & wellness: Train Your Brain; Help, Hope, Live in Calhoun for students through a brokered partnership with Westbrook, Minnie Hamilton Health Systems, Communities in Schools, 21st Century Learning and the Brother Up Foundation. We appreciate the additional support to continue our focus of help by creating a framework for connectedness and improvement in the lives of our students and families.

Calhoun County Schools and the West Virginia Department of Education is honored to announce the 2023 Golden Horseshoe winners for Calhoun County. Cooper Morris & Orion Swearingen Since 1931, students have been honored as knights of the Golden Horseshoe having demonstrated exceptional knowledge of West Virginia history on the state administered exam. This year, 226 winners will join the ranks of WV citizens who have won this prestigious award. Your county winners will have an opportunity to be recognized at our Golden Horseshoe ceremony on June 13, 2023 at the West Virginia Culture Center in Charleston, WV.

Save the Children has an opportunity for children and families in Calhoun County! We offer weekly Parent Child Groups throughout the county. The focus of these groups will be Kindergarten Readiness Skills for children 3 to 5 years old, but all younger siblings are also welcomed to attend. Snacks will also be provided! One lucky parent/caregiver will win a small door prize. During the weekly Parent Child Groups, we will be exploring the following Language, Literacy and Math Kindergarten Readiness skill areas: Knowing about the alphabet, books and print; talking and listening; understanding words and sounds; numbers, counting, patterns, sorting and classification; comparison, measurement and geometry. These are all critical skills that your child needs in order to be prepared for Preschool and Kindergarten. I look forward to meeting you and helping prepare your child for school success! These groups are great for those who are entering Preschool for the 2023-2024 school year. They will help them become familiar with the school, classroom and staff. Group location and dates for the week of May 2-5, 2023 ▫️Tuesday 11-12 Calhoun Family Resource Network ▫️Wednesday Upper West Fork Park Offcial Site 2021 1 to 2 p.m. ▫️Friday: Arnoldsburg Elementary School 1-2 p.m Pleasant Hill Elementary School 4:30-5:30 p.m.

Calhoun County Schools is currently seeking applications for the following positions. If interested in applying please go to https://boe.calhoun.k12.wv.us/page/employment for more information. $1 ASST MS BASEBALL COACH - closes 4-28-23 KINDERBOOST TEACHER PHE - closes 4/28/23 SUMMER SCHOOL SUBSTITUTE TUTOR_TEACHERS K-5 (A) - closes 4/28/23 SUMMER SCHOOL SUBSTITUTE TUTOR_TEACHERS K-5 (B) - closes 4-28-23 NURSE, (EXTENDED YEAR) - closes 4/28/23 SUMMER SCHOOL SUBSTITUTE CUSTODIANS - closes 4/28/23 SPECIAL EDUCATION TEACHER SS & ESY K-12 - closes 4/28/23 SCHOOL PSYCHOLOGIST, COUNTY ITINERANT - closes 4/28/23 ELEMENTARY TEACHER AES - closes 4/28/23 CUSTODIAN III, AES - closes 4/28/23 ELEMENTARY TEACHER, PHE - closes 4/28/23 ELEMENTARY TEACHER, CMHS (2 POSITIONS) - closes 4/28/23 AFTER SCHOOL SITE COORDINATOR,AES - closes 4/28/23 AFTER SCHOOL SITE COORDINATOR, PHE - closes 4-28-23 AFTER SCHOOL SITE COORDINATOR, CMHS - closes 4/28/23 AFTER SCHOOL TUTOR TEACHERS, AES - closes 4/28/23 AFTER SCHOOL TUTOR TEACHERS, PHE - closes 4/28/23 AFTER SCHOOL TUTOR TEACHERS, CMHS - closes 4/28/23 MS HEAD WRESTLING COACH - closes 4/28/23 $1 ASST VARSITY GIRLS VOLLEYBALL COACH - closes 4/28/23 ASSISTANT DIRECTOR, CGCC - closes 5/8/23 PRINCIPAL, CMHS - closes 5/5/23 TREASURER_CSBO_CFO - closes 5-5-23 SUBSTITUTE TEACHER, COUNTY - closes 5/26/23 Substitute Bus Operators - closes 05/31/23

Calhoun County Schools is currently seeking applicants for Treasurer/Chief School Business Official/Chief Financial Officer. If interested in applying for this position please visit https://nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.applitrack.com%2Fwvde%2Fonlineapp%2FJobPostings%2Fview.asp%3FFromAdmin%3Dtrue%26AppliTrackJobId%3D1024%26AppliTrackLayoutMode%3Ddetail%26AppliTrackViewPosting%3D1&data=05%7C01%7Ccldickey%40k12.wv.us%7Ce1f12213b6d8453db09608db45a0742b%7Ce019b04b330c467a8bae09fb17374d6a%7C0%7C0%7C638180327664251759%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=CwG8a4d5MkY4zSHazD%2FszpTdoeXhaSf4zoXq%2BLONBM4%3D&reserved=0 . Application deadline is Friday, May 5, 2023.

Save the Children has an opportunity for children and families in Calhoun County! We offer weekly Parent Child Groups throughout the county. The focus of these groups will be Kindergarten Readiness Skills for children 3 to 5 years old, but all younger siblings are also welcomed to attend. Snacks will also be provided! One lucky parent/caregiver will win a small door prize. During the weekly Parent Child Groups, we will be exploring the following Language, Literacy and Math Kindergarten Readiness skill areas: Knowing about the alphabet, books and print; talking and listening; understanding words and sounds; numbers, counting, patterns, sorting and classification; comparison, measurement and geometry. These are all critical skills that your child needs in order to be prepared for Preschool and Kindergarten. I look forward to meeting you and helping prepare your child for school success! This week will be making Bubbles and talking about sorting and counting. Group location and dates for the week of April 24-28, 2023 ▫️Tuesday 11-12 Calhoun Family Resource Network ▫️Wednesday Upper West Fork Park Offcial Site 2021 1 to 2 p.m. ▫️Friday: Arnoldsburg Elementary School 1-2 p.m Pleasant Hill Elementary School 4:30-5:30 p.m. This week will be making Bubbles and talking about sorting and counting. If you have any questions, I can be reached at Pleasant Hill Elementary School at 304-354-6022 or Arnoldsburg Elementary School 304-655-8616 Derba Smith, KRA, or email d.smith@k12.wv.us.

Good luck at the state Social Studies Fair today! #calhounproud

Good evening, Calhoun County students will be off on Friday, April 14 for Faculty Senate and professional development. Staff will report as scheduled.

Save the Children has an opportunity for children and families in Calhoun County! We offer weekly Parent Child Groups throughout the county. The focus of these groups will be Kindergarten Readiness Skills for children 3 to 5 years old, but all younger siblings are also welcomed to attend. Snacks will also be provided! One lucky parent/caregiver will win a small door prize. During the weekly Parent Child Groups, we will be exploring the following Language, Literacy and Math Kindergarten Readiness skill areas: Knowing about the alphabet, books and print; talking and listening; understanding words and sounds; numbers, counting, patterns, sorting and classification; comparison, measurement and geometry. These are all critical skills that your child needs in order to be prepared for Preschool and Kindergarten. I look forward to meeting you and helping prepare your child for school success! Group location and dates for the month of April: Calhoun FRN on Tuesdays (4/11,4/18,4/25) from 11-12 Upper West Fork Park on Wednesday (4/12, 4/26) from 1-2 Pleasant Hill Elementary on Friday’s from (4/21,4/28) 4:30-5:30 Arnoldsburg Elementary on Fridays from (4/21, 4/28) 1-2 Here’s a tip card to use with your littles. Acting Out: Every child sometimes does something they should NOT do. Use this time to talk to them about WHY they should not have done it. Then ask them to draw and picture of what happened on a piece of paper. On the other side of the paper, have them draw what they could have done in a better way. Ask them why this new idea would be a better choice. Brainy Background: Using this strategy changes you approach from dealing with misbehavior to growing and learning. Coming up with new solutions helps your child learn to avoid going on autopilot. Instead, they can think of better ways to deal with problems. Suggested age: 4-5 years If you have any questions, I can be reached at Pleasant Hill Elementary School at 304-354-6022 or Arnoldsburg Elementary School 304-655-8616 Derba Smith, KRA, or email d.smith@k12.wv.us.

Reminder: We offer Kindergarten Readiness Groups at the following locations and time this week. Tuesday's-Calhoun Family Resource Network 11-12, Wednesday's- Upper West Fork Park Official Site 2021 1-2 p.m. , Thursday's-Pleasant Hill Elementary School 4:30- 5:30 p.m., and Friday's-Arnoldsburg Elementary School 2-3 p.m. During the weekly Parent Child Groups, we will be exploring the following Language, Literacy and Math Kindergarten Readiness skill areas: Knowing about the alphabet, books and print; talking and listening; understanding words and sounds; numbers, counting, patterns, sorting and classification; comparison, measurement and geometry. These are all critical skills that your child needs in order to be prepared for Preschool and Kindergarten. I look forward to meeting you and helping prepare your child for school success! If you have any questions, I (Debra Smith,KRA) can be reached at Pleasant Hill Elementary School at 304-354-6022 or Arnoldsburg Elementary School 304-655-8616, or email d.smith@k12.wv.us.

Calhoun County schools will be on a 3 hour delay tomorrow March 27th. Administration will report and check schools. Bus drivers will need to drive their routes to make sure they are passable.

Springtime on the Meadow at Heartwood in the Hills.

The Sound & Light Project, Inc is now a registered non-profit corporation with a business license, a tax number, a checking account and we’re ready to collect some funds. We’ve applied to the IRS for 501(c)(3) status. We also have a Facebook page, The Sound & Light Project, and a GofundMe program. We formed a Board of Directors – me, Chip Westfall, MG Gainer, Loren Howley and Paul Brown. The board met earlier this month and made some general decisions, which we ran by Superintendent Kelli Whytsell who agreed with our direction. The plan is first to repair or replace the house lights for reasons of safety. Meanwhile we are making an inventory of the equipment that is currently in the auditorium and whether it is working or not, available for upgrade, or needs to be replaced. We are also working with several community members who have expertise in these types of systems and the school personnel who use them to determine the system needs – and wants. The school opened in 1998 so the systems are 25 years old. We are investigating the necessity and expense of upgrading the lighting system to modern LEDs. This may be cost prohibitive, but we want to explore our options. We hope to make the auditorium usable for all of its functions by the beginning of the 2023-24 school year. Along with house lights, this includes a simple system for assemblies, professional development, and continuing education for which the lighting and sound requirements are fairly basic. We are also prioritizing construction of a barrier for the control booth, which is currently completely open to anyone who might want to climb in from the audience. As we work toward these basic goals, we are focused on installing systems that can be upgraded and modernized – if not immediately, then in the future – to satisfy needs for musical and drama performances. I’m attaching a handout to share around the county. If you have any thoughts, questions or, especially, ideas of how & where to raise the funds for this project, please share them.

Early Steps to School Success Kindergarten Readiness Groups • Free early childhood education services for children three through five years of age and support for their parents or caregivers • Assist children with early language, literacy, math, social, and emotional development • The result will be a strong foundation of learning for the child which will prepare him/her for success in school! • Help introduce your child to peers. • Fun parent-child activities! • Support and connections to community resources • Parent/child group setting, small fun lesson and story book hours Tuesday Calhoun FRN 11-12 Wednesday's-Upper West Fork Park 1-2 p.m. Thursday- Pleasant Hill School 4:30-5:30 Friday's-Arnoldsburg School 2-3 (no group 3/17/23)