Middle School

Thank you to the Woodland Educational Foundation for hosting a Staff Appreciation BINGO Night on Friday. We had a great time! https://www.dist50.net/page/foundation

Congratulations to the WMS Girls Track Team for your performance at State!!! 💚 4X100M relay team - 3rd place 💚 4X400M relay team - 7th place 💚 400M Zoey D. - 7th place

Congratulations to Jeff Winiger - Bus Driver of the Year! Jeff Winiger was recently awarded the Bus Driver of the Year Award from the Transportation Department. His students know him as Mr. Jeff, and he has been part of the #LifeintheW team since 2021. To students and families, he is known for being kind, friendly and happy. To his friends in the Transportation department, he is known for his willingness to help and being a supportive coworker. Mr. Jeff has excellent attendance, and he strives to be a good role model for the Wildcats in his care. He has great student management skills and is always willing to lend a helping hand. Even though he has the largest Elementary route in over 12 years, he takes the time to get to know all of his students and their families. Learn more about Mr. Jeff and why he was selected as Bus Driver of the Year in the weekly newsletter: https://secure.smore.com/n/nbd6k Thank you for always going the extra mile Mr. Jeff!

It's a beautiful morning in Gurnee, and many of our Wildcats may be walking or riding bikes to school. Thankfully these amazing partners in safety get up early each morning to see our students safely through the crosswalks. Thank you to Angelo White and Joann Metzger for being one of the first friendly faces to greet our staff, students, and families as they walk, bike or drive by. We appreciate you and your big morning energy! Smile/Honk/Wave to show your appreciation today and help us spread the love to our crossing guards. 💚

An 8th Grade brother surprises his 3rd Grade sister as the "Mystery Reader" and their smiles might melt the internet! Thank you to Mrs. Estrada and Mrs. Bogdala for sharing this #LifeintheW moment with us 💚

Congratulations to Margarita Castrejón! Ms. Castrejón was named Lake County Middle School Teacher of the Year at the Regional Office of Education Awards Ceremony on May 8, 2024. Margarita is a Spanish Language Arts teacher at Woodland Middle School and a member of the Dual Language Team. In addition to her incredible work in the classroom, Ms. Castrejón was recognized for her contributions to the climate and culture of the district through the connections she builds with staff and students and her involvement in various clubs and committees. Thank you for making #LifeintheW such a great place to learn!

Which teacher brings MAGIC to the classroom? Which educator cares about the whole family? Which teacher makes learning fun/has a great sense of humor? Which educator makes sure students and their families feel heard? Find out in Episode 3 of the Woodland Wildcast! https://woodlandwildcast.podbean.com/e/teacheroftheyear/

WMS Cares - Day of Service, May 4 Join us for the 1st outdoor community service event to "Go Green" at WMS! Lend a hand as we clean-up the building exterior and take pride in the appearance of our school. We are looking for volunteers to help plant flowers, remove weeds, mulch, landscape clean-up, painting and more! Flyer: https://5il.co/2k13s

In celebration of National Arab American Heritage Month, the Arabic Club at WMS hosted a cultural exchange event for teachers and administrators. Guests were welcomed with Moroccan mint tea served by Mr. Aablouche, and then Arabic Club members presented insights into Arabic language and culture. The students also shared highlights from club meetings and activities throughout the year. Guests had the opportunity for hands-on learning as they were taught how to write their names in Arabic script.

We are excited to announce that five wonderful Woodland staff members will be recognized by the Lake County Regional Office of Education at their annual awards banquet on May 8! School districts across Lake County will be sending the best of the best to this event to celebrate excellence in teaching and to recognize school district personnel who contribute to the education of our youth through their work as administrators, educators, and support staff. Please join us in congratulating these amazing #LifeintheW team members: 💚 Amber Beutel, Educator of the Year: Diverse Learner Teacher – Primary 💚 Sherri Peck, Educator of the Year: Elementary/Early Childhood Teacher – Elementary 💚 Margarita Castrejón, Educator of the Year: Middle School Teacher – Middle School 💚 Tiffany Drake, Educator of the Year: School Administrator – Middle School 💚 Kenny Lohfink, Educational Service Personnel of the Year – Operations & Facilities

Woodland is hiring! We are looking for the next Director of Educational Services to join the #LifeintheW team. Learn more about this opportunity HERE: https://www.applitrack.com/dist50/OnlineApp/default.aspx?Category=Administration

The Woodland D50 Board of Education will meet on Thursday, Apr. 25, 2024. Meeting Information & Agenda - https://www.smore.com/n/3s9kb

REMINDER! April 17 is a School Improvement Planning (SIP) Day which is an early release for students. Staff professional development will take place in the afternoon. Calendar: https://www.dist50.net/o/dist50/page/school-year-calendar Early Release Times: Primary - 10:40 a.m., Elementary - 10:50 a.m., Middle School - 11:35 a.m., Intermediate - 12:20 p.m.

April is Child Abuse Prevention Month Woodland D50 has once again joined forces with area organizations to help raise awareness for Child Abuse Prevention Month in April! We are participating in the Blue Kids Lake County Program because sharing knowledge and resources about child abuse sends the message that all children deserve a chance at a safe childhood. Thank you to Detective Hansen for creating beautiful blue pinwheel displays with Woodland students! And thank you to Woodland staff members for wearing blue today to show that we all play a role in the safety of children in our community.

Reserve Your Spot for Wildcat Summer Adventures! Looking for something fun AND educational for your Wildcat this summer? Wildcat Summer Adventures (WSA) is Woodland's summer school program. The program runs June 11 - July 3, Monday - Friday, 9 a.m. - 2:30 p.m. (No School June 19) Program Flyer: https://5il.co/2drlg Registration for Wildcat Summer Adventures will be open until May 1! Log in to Skyward Family Access, and select "Online Forms" from the column on the left. Questions? Risa Cohen, rcohen@dist50.net https://www.dist50.net/page/summer-adventures

We are officially releasing Episode 2 of the Woodland Wildcast into the wild today! Episode description: Dr. Machak gets to know four Woodland educators who have something very unique in common. Listen in to hear about their favorite things to do in Gurnee, first concerts, and inspiring stories from the classroom! Listen Here: https://woodlandwildcast.podbean.com/e/inspiring-stories-from-four-educators-with-something-unique-in-common/

Eclipse Safety & Reminder - https://www.smore.com/n/9zg4j Includes information from the district and each school.

In January, we asked you to submit nominations for the Village of Gurnee Teacher of the Year program. From your 246 nominations, the district selected a winner from each school, and today we celebrate the Woodland D50 Teacher of the Year School Winners for the 2023 - 2024 School Year!!! 💚 Carrie Monterroso, Woodland Primary 💚 Amber Dennis, Woodland Elementary 💚 Erica Veronie, Woodland Intermediate 💚 Richard Haines, Woodland Middle School One of these amazing educators will be selected as the District Winner and will move on to be Woodland's Gurnee Teacher of the Year! Congratulations to all the amazing Woodland educators who were nominated this year. We appreciate you!

Woodland School Libraries/LRCs are magical places where books and resources come to life for our Wildcats. Today is School Librarian Appreciation Day, and April is School Library Month. Thank you to the Library and Learning Resource Center teams at each school for supporting literacy, helping students find new and exciting subjects to explore, and providing a wealth of resources to our learning community.

There is a group of people on the #LifeintheW team that make a world of difference in the classroom and in our learning community. They are Paraprofessionals, and today we celebrate their dedication to our schools and the compassion they show our students. They are a crucial network of support across the district, not just today, but every day. THANK YOU FOR ALL YOU DO! Happy Paraprofessional Appreciation Day!