In December 2016, the Ohio General Assembly passed House Bill 410 to encourage and support a preventative approach to excessive absences and truancy. Beginning with the 2017-2018 school year, several changes take effect.
Student absences will be tracked by hours and not days. All minutes missed, including tardiness and early dismissals, count.
The following are the reasons for reporting students to the county attendance officers:
When a student is referred to the attendance officer, a meeting of the Absence Intervention Team will be scheduled. The Absence Intervention Team will include a school administrator, the attendance officer, parents, student, and any other personnel that may be related to the matter.
Students who continue to be absent may be reported to Juvenile Court.
During the summer Washington-Nile LSD applied through the Office of Child Nutrition and Ohio Department of Education for our students to receive free breakfast and free lunches for the 2017-2018 school year. We just received great news, we were approved.
This does not include ala carte items.
Clothing, shoes, school supplies, and sundries are available for free to district students that may need some help with getting prepared for the new school year. Parents are invited to visit WestMart. Staff will be available during Open House to assist you with your school supply and clothing needs. WestMart is located at the elementary.
Eli Cole, a junior at Portsmouth West High School, has been named to the Ohio Center for Law-Related Education, 2017 Civics & Law Honor Roll by the Ohio Center for Law-Related Education. The OCLRE recognize and celebrate the achievements of Ohio high school students who are vested in civic learning and active in their communities. This is a great honor and the Washington-Nile Local School District is very proud. Eli is the son of Bobby and Sherry Cole of West Portsmouth.
According to usatoday.com, Red Nose Day aims to end child poverty by raising money and awareness for kids in the U.S. and around the world. This day was launched in the U.S. in 2015 and has reportedly raised $60 million that has benefited children in each of the 50 states. You may have seen the movie Love Actually, written and directed by Richard Curtis in 2003, in which the cast donned the giant, red, round nose (usatoday.com).
Phyllis Rice, bus driver for Portsmouth West School District, handed out red noses to each of her students that boarded the bus today, May 25, in Honor of Red Nose Day. Thank-you Phyllis for bringing joy to our students and bringing awareness to this important cause. We have the best bus drivers!
Photo by Carolyn Callihan
Mrs. Leah Blevins, high school math teacher at Portsmouth West, and Mrs. Malissa Sarver, dietician at KDHS, collaborated to implement a mini-grant awarded to the high school. The below article is from the Action for Healthy Kids newsletter and website.
For more information about the Action for Healthy Kids and programs they provide please use this link to Action for Healthy Kids Website.
