District News

Bay Elementary Students Experience Live Opera Performance!

April 4, 2017

Members of the Pensacola Opera recently visited and performed for students at Bay Elementary School as part of their educational outreach program.  They performed an operatic version of the story of Goldie Locks and the Three Bears titled Goldie B. Locks and the Three Singing Bears by John Davies.  The story is a "fun retelling of the classic tale with an operatic twist. Goldie, a little girl who has a great passion for bus and spiders, finds herself in a sticky situation when she stumbles upon dwelling of the three singing bears." The production features the music of Mozart and Offenbach to teach the importance of honesty and true friendship. Special thanks to the Pensacola Opera for sharing their talents with the students of Walton County!

BES Opera Performance

BES Opera Performance

Submitted by Keitha Bledsoe

PHS Aerospace Students Pilot Unmanned Aerial Systems

April 4, 2017

Paxton High School’s aerospace students are learning to pilot unmanned aerial systems, sometimes called drones, as part of their concurrent enrollment courses with Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. Through a partnership with ERAU’s Gaetz Institute, the students earn both high school and university credit while they learn aerospace concepts that lead to industry certifications. Submitted by Samantha Martin.

WHS 3rd Quarter 25 Book Challenge Trip

April 4, 2017

The 12 students listed below have read at least 21 books this school year.  Each book contained a minimum of 300 pages.  Nine of these students went to Blast Arcade in Miramar Beach on March 31 to celebrate this accomplishment.  They have just four more books to go to meet the year-long 25 Book Challenge.

Pictured left to right are Darien Mason, Cheyenne Cordle, James Coffman, Clay Lemay, Latayia Gregg, Kyle Burch, Rachel Smith, Anthony King, and Emma Kuykendall.  Not pictured: Hayden Clemmons, Paige Howell, and Hannah Mays

Keep reading, Braves!

Submitted by Christy English.

PHS 8th Graders Conduct Space Mission

April 4, 2017

Paxton’s eighth grade students had an out of this world time at the Challenger Learning Center in Tallahassee, Florida. Thanks to a grant from the Florida Space Grant Consortium, students participated in a simulated space mission to the moon where they navigated the spacecraft to landing, built rovers, maintained the health of the crew, monitored space weather, and more! They also viewed the northern lights in the planetarium and watched a 3D Imax movie about Earth as seen from the viewpoint of the astronauts on the International Space Station. Thank you Florida Space Grant Consortium and Challenger Learning Center for providing this opportunity to our students! Submitted by Samantha Martin.

Walton County Sheriff's Office Crime Scene Unit Visits WMS Law Studies Class

March 31, 2017

Toni Aguilar from the Walton County Sheriff's Office crime scene/evidence unit visited Mrs. Melissa Susenbach's Law Studies class recently.  Ms. Aguilar educated students about how techs work crime scenes and what tools are used in the field.  Students immensely enjoyed this realistic learning opportunity. Submitted by Kristen Rhodes.

State of Florida Recognizes High Impact Teachers of Walton County - South End Board Meeting

March 31, 2017

During the March 21, 2017 Walton County School Board Meeting, School Board Member Kim Kirby and Superintendent Russell Hughes presented certificates to several Walton County teachers for being recognized by the Commissioner of Education, Pam Stewart, as some of the highest impact teachers in the state of Florida. 

Pictured left to right: Superintendent Russell Hughes, Carol Davis, Van R. Butler Elementary; Wendy Anderson, Van R. Butler Elementary; Taylor Griffith, Seaside Neighborhood School; Joy Robbins, Seaside Neighborhood School; Dana Akridge, Seaside Neighborhood School; Brandy Wesson, Emerald Coast Middle School; Charlotte Sause, Seaside Neighborhood School, and Kim Kirby, WCSD Board Member. Not pictured, but also recognized are: Jeannine Abadie, Tracey Behr, Nina Borthwick, and Constance Morreale from Emerald Coast Middle School; Sharon Martin from Seaside Neighborhood School; Kasey Smith from Van R. Butler Elementary; Angela Reilly from South Walton High School; and Lisa Henry from Bay Elementary School.

A big congratulations and thank you to these teachers for their hard work in and out of the classroom.  One more example of the quality education and leadership being provided by the teachers, administration and staff of the Walton County School District! Submitted by Keitha Bledsoe.

WDE 5th Graders Participate in the Great Mail Race

March 31, 2017

5th grade students in Mrs. Currid and Mrs. Garrett’s classes are participating in a program called The Great Mail Race. Mrs. Currid received a letter from a fifth grade class at Al Burress Elementary in Marietta Georgia. The letter invited WDE students to join them in sending handwritten letters to different elementary schools across the nation. The goal is for students to learn how to write a letter and to communicate with other classes in the 50 states

Great Mail Race

For more information please visit the following website:

http://thegreatmailrace.weebly.com/

Submitted by Jessica Dawkins

WDE Kindergarten Students Learning About Proper Dental Care

March 31, 2017

On February 27th, West DeFuniak Kindergarteners were visited by Nurse Stacey Betts and her monkey friend, Mojo. They told students how important it is to keep their teeth healthy. With the help of Mojo, students were able to learn how to brush and floss their teeth properly.  Submitted by Jessica Dawkins.

FMS Hosts Fourth Annual Career Day

March 31, 2017

Freeport Middle School (FMS) hosted our fourth annual Career Day on March 9th. The goal was to expose students to a variety of career opportunities that varied in preservice educational experiences. Sixteen presenters visited fifth through eighth grade classrooms led by AVID (Advancement Via Individual Determination) students. AVID is a program which helps career-minded students reach their goals. 

FMS would like to extend a big thank you to all the people who volunteered to be a guest speaker for Career Day and to the PTO for organizing the event! From having the opportunity to tour an ambulance, pet a baby goat, to listening to Mr. Russell Hughes’s journey to becoming the Walton County School District’s Superintendent, the students’ exposure to the various careers was a priceless educational experience and one they are sure to remember for a long time. 

2017 Freeport Middle School Career Day Guest Speakers

Ronnie McBrayer- Writer, Musician, and Pastor

Theresa Devine and Charlie the Goat- Farmer

Kristin Pond- K-9 Deputy

Freeport Fire Department

Bo Wilkerson- Historical Fiction Author

Jenn Latusek-Nabholz- Marine Biologist & Environmental Scientist

Joseph Register- Bee Keeper

Dylan Laird- Regional Utilities Engineer

Trey Nick- Nick’s Restaurant Owner

Denise Rogers- Custom Impressions Painting Company Owner

Brittany Tate- Choctawhatchee Basin Alliance Representative

Chandler Williams- Photographer and Owner of Modus Photography

Rik Poloski- Five-Star Audio Visual Representative

Leslie Harrison- Forensics

David Swanick- Attorney and Mary Garner- Paralegal

Russell Hughes- Superintendent of Schools 

Submitted by Chelsea Ellison.

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