Last week in first grade, students talked about the importance of community helpers. To show their appreciation, students wrote thank you notes to our community's police officers and firefighters for helping to keep us safe.
Following yesterday's threat, Whitley County Consolidated Schools wants to thank our Whitley County Sheriff Department and Columbia City Police Department, along with the Indiana State Police, for their organized response and communication with our WCCS administration in resolving this incident. Our relationship with the police department stood up to the test of a threat, thank you.
Secondly, we know communication to our families can seem vague. Student and staff safety is our highest priority. We want to assure you we take all threats about our school and students very seriously and we act on them quickly. We share the details as soon as we can. Due to the nature of the threat, confidentiality has been upheld. WCCS is taking necessary disciplinary action for the student(s) involved.
Parents, please speak with your child(ren) about their role in school safety. It is crucial that if a student sees something, or hears something, they need to say something.
From the police, the investigation would have gone smoother if the initial social media post hadn’t been shared and re-routed so many times. When students know something, they should report the incident to either a staff member, police, or other authoritative figure, instead of sharing the post with their peers. This way authorities can begin the investigation and determine the severity and legitimacy of the threat.
Students can also use the anonymous tip line of STOPit via wccsonline.com/page/stopit or the mobile app. STOPit allows students and family members the power to help end harmful and inappropriate behavior they see online through social media, hear of incidents, and other means. STOPit can be used to report bullying, cyberbullying, discrimination, harassment, violence, threats, weapons, alcohol or drug-related issues, mental health struggles like suicidal ideations, or any other concerns.
This is a community that cares deeply for our students and their safety. We want you to know that while this incident did cause fear and concern, our systems worked the way they were supposed to and we saw clear evidence of our ongoing training and preparedness for crisis response.
As a reminder, official communication comes through the WCCS app (Whitley County Consolidated Schools in Google Play or App Store), Whitley County Consolidated Schools Facebook, WCCSonline.com, and email notifications, or as a phone call. Parents should verify their Skyward accounts are accurate. We know communication is a personal preference and continue to work to build transparent systems that work for all.
Please know that we will continue to build on what we learned yesterday and today, what went well and what can be improved.
Good afternoon, WCCS Families,
During student pick up today, a guardian had a medical emergency that required medical attention at Coesse Elementary. Fire and EMS were dispatched to the scene. There were no students involved and we would appreciate your well wishes for a full-recovery.
As always student and staff safety are our top priority and we wish to provide transparent communication. Thank you, medical professionals for your response!
Mrs. Windhorst's second grade class worked on making predictions, testing our theories and finding results with an apple science experiment! Students loved seeing how each substance affected the apples and were shocked by some of the results!
Friday, Sept. 13 | The Columbia City Police have identified the source of the initial post. There is no threat to student safety.
There will be increased police presence today, however, we know the threat was not credible.
Thank you CC Police Department for your investigation and support of our student and staff safety.
Our fifth- grade students went to the 4H Fairgrounds to discuss water, soil, recycling, conservation, and more!
#ExperienceWCCS
Coesse first graders have enjoyed making scribble monsters during art!
#ExperienceWCCS
Fourth graders at Coesse have been learning about the geography of Indiana. Students are learning to locate Indiana on a map of the US and how to draw our state borders. Students are also practicing labeling major cities, rivers, and all neighboring states.
#ExperienceWCCS #WCCSRelationshipBuilders
Second grade has been working hard on making Beetle Glyphs! They have been learning that glyphs are pictures that represent something else and each part of their beetles represents something about them. They also worked on sorting, creating categories, using venn diagrams and graphing them based on different attributes!
#ExperienceWCCS #WCCSRelationshipBuilders
Third grade is talking about what a good mathematician does and how they can be good mathematicians too!
They worked in small groups to build their dream school using mathematician skills like problem-solving, finding more than one solution, learning from their mistakes, and more!
#WCCSRelationshipBuilders #Math #Education #ExperienceWCCS
Remember, all WCCS students get FREE breakfast this year!
As part of a pilot program for the 2024/25 school year, each morning, WCCS students can join us for a nutritious breakfast free of charge. Breakfast is available after the morning bus drop-off.
A WCCS Connection is coming to your mailbox soon!
Each quarter WCCS publishes a newsletter for our community to see some of our highlights and our updates.
View the latest issue: https://core-docs.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/documents/asset/uploaded_file/2777/WCCS/4709892/WCCS_Connection_Summer_2024.pdf
What do you like most about the publication? What would you like to see? Let us know in the comments.
We are once again introducing our new teachers! Welcome to WCCS!
#WCCSRelationshipBuilders #ExperienceWCCS
Our custodial staff has worked very diligently this summer to make improvements and updates throughout Coesse. So much has been done behind the scenes to prepare our building for another great school year! Thank you Rod, Jesse, and Denny for taking such pride in our building and community.
#WCCSRelationshipBuilders #BetterTogether #ThankYou
Meet the teachers and walk through the building on August 12 from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m.
Open Houses are a great opportunity for your child(ren) and families to meet the teachers and the classrooms for the year. Ask questions and be fully ready for back to school with the Open House opportunity.
#ExperienceWCCS #BacktoSchool
WCCS School Nutrition is excited to announce Free Breakfast for all K-12 students as part of a pilot program for the 2024/25 school year. Each morning, WCCS students can join us for a nutritious breakfast free of charge. Breakfast is available after the morning bus drop-off.
School Supply Lists are Available!
It's never too soon to begin shopping for the school year. Our first day is August 16.
Find school supply lists here: .wccsonline.com/page/supplies-overview
WCCS is hiring! Our focus today is Elementary Teachers, but you can view all of our career opportunities here: applitrack.com/r8esc/onlineapp/default.aspx?choosedistrict=true&applitrackclient=37410
Long-term substitute posting is available, too!
#ExperienceWCCS #Hiring #Education #WCCS
Hey, Eagles!
Remember to be you this summer. There is only one you!
As a reminder with STOPit App, you can connect with local resources and anonymously text with trained counselors.
Learn more about STOPit on our page wccsonline.com/page/stopit.
#SummerBreak #SummerEncouragment #ExperienceWCCS #StudentSuccess
All Skyward SMS 2.0 systems will be down beginning Friday, June 21st at 6:00 p.m. and continuing until 7:00 p.m. Saturday, June 22nd, while our host is installing the latest updates. Please refrain from making eFunds payments during this time as well as they may not be properly recorded.