Kanawha County Schools -

🎓👏 Huge shoutout to our 11th grade students across Kanawha County Schools for knocking out the SAT School Day assessment! 👏🎓 The SAT is a big milestone — it’s a nationally recognized college and career readiness test from the College Board and is accepted by colleges and universities here in West Virginia and all over the country. Students put in the time and effort to prepare, and we’re so proud of how they showed up and gave it their all. 🙌 We also want to give a big thank you to our teachers and staff who helped get students ready and kept spirits high on test day. 💙 📸 Check out some of the highlights: ✅ Students and staff rocking their SAT School Day shirts ✅ Riverside students with a free pretest breakfast courtesy of Tudors ✅ Nitro High’s cookout celebration after the test 🌭🍔 ✅ SAT Proctor Bingo at Capital High — yes, it’s a thing, the nerves are high for teachers on SAT Day too 🎉 Way to go, Class of 2026 — your hard work is noticed, and your future is looking bright! 🌟

No class today? No problem! 👇 🌟 We are excited to share our April Powerful Partners tip sheets for middle school students. 🌟 💪 Powerful Partner activities provide an opportunity for schools and guardians to work together to help students continue to develop their 🧠 academic skills while they are away from school. ✍️These are suggested enrichment opportunities and are completely optional. You can view all the April tip sheets by clicking here 👇 🔗 https://bit.ly/powerfulPartners

🚨 Calendar Reminder 🚨 Tomorrow, Friday, April 18th is a PL Day! No school for students.

🎉 Leadership Day at Pinch Elementary! 🌟 Today, Pinch Elementary celebrated their annual Leadership Day, and this year’s theme was all about LEGACY! 💫 👧👦 Students took the lead, delivering inspiring speeches about the legacies they’re building and giving presentations on the legacy of many inspiring West Virginians like: ✈️ Chuck Yeager 🧠 Katherine Johnson 🎬 Jennifer Garner 🎶 The 5th grade choir sang several beautiful songs throughout the event! This year's guest speaker was, KCS Superintendent Dr. Tom Williams, who shared a heartfelt message about what it means to leave a lasting legacy. He reminded students that even the smallest acts of kindness can create a big impact over time. 💖🌱 📸 Check out some highlights from this inspiring day below! 👇

*April 7th Regular Session Board Meeting* The Kanawha County Schools Board of Education will host its monthly regular session meeting at 5 p.m. today (4/17). The meeting is open to the public. This meeting will be livestreamed, and can be viewed at the link here 👇 https://kcs.kana.k12.wv.us/district/board_of_education/k_c_s_livestream The agenda is available on the KCS website 👇 https://kcs.kana.k12.wv.us/common/pages/GetFile.ashx?key=6BrgDPfp

🎉🐎💛 Congratulations to the KCS students who earned the West Virginia Golden Horseshoe Award this year! 💙📚 This is a huge honor that recognizes your incredible knowledge of WV history. 🌄🏫 We are proud of you and you should be proud of yourselves as well! Your name's will be in West Virginia history forever as a 2025 knight of the Golden Horseshoe! 👏🏆 🌟🐴 Up Next: The Golden Horseshoe ceremony on Tuesday, June 10, 2025 at the West Virginia Culture Center.

🎉🏅 KCS Exceptional Spring Games - April 28th! 🏅🎉 Join us for an unforgettable day of fun, competition, and celebration at the KCS Exceptional Spring Games on Monday, April 28th at the University of Charleston Stadium at Laidley Field! 🌟 Schedule of Events: 🕘 9:00 AM – Parade Lineup 🎉 9:30 AM – Parade of Athletes 🎤 10:00 AM – Opening Ceremonies 🏃 10:30 AM – Let the Games Begin! Come cheer on our amazing athletes! 💙 Let’s fill the stands with support for our exceptional students!

👏 Cedar Grove Elementary welcomed Senator Jim Justice to their school today! He stopped by to meet the Bot Squad, a CGE robotics teams that qualified for the 2025 VEX Robotics World Championship! 🏆🤖 Senator Justice and State Superintendent of Schools Michele Blatt watched the team in action and took time to speak with students about the importance of education. And of course — Baby Dog came along too and was a big hit with everyone! 🐶💙 🏆🤖 In addition to the Bot Squad, The Coding Corgis from Chamberlin Elementary School are also heading to Dallas to compete in the VEX World Championship! Good luck to both teams when they take the world stage in May!

🎉 We are SO proud of our amazing students who competed in the 2025 West Virginia State Social Studies Fair! 🧠📚 Your hard work and creativity were on full display, and you represented KCS and your school with pride! 💙💛 A huge shoutout to all of our participants — and a round of applause for the students who placed at the top of their categories! 🥇🥈🥉 You knocked it out of the park! 🌟👏 Way to go, KCS students! We’re always cheering you on! 🎓🙌🔥 📷: Event photo courtesy of the WVDE

📣 Congratulations to Clay Dusenbury of GWHS — your 2025 Charleston Youth Poet Laureate! 🏆 ✨ The National Youth Poet Laureate program, is a celebrated initiative recognizing young poets who use their words to inspire their peers to make a difference. On Saturday, the University of Charleston honored Clay and an incredible group of young poets for their creativity, passion, and civic expression through poetry. 👏 Shoutout to the KCS finalists: Dwayne Ruffin (SCHS) and Mariam Hamdan (SCHS) 🎖️ Honorable Mentions + Special Recognitions were awarded to an additional 12 talented students across the region! These poets are using their voices to inspire change. 🔥📝

🙌 We are incredibly proud of the outstanding students who represented KCS at the ✏️ State Math Field Day competition over the weekend! Securing a spot in the state competition is a tremendous accomplishment, and every student who competed should be incredibly proud of the work they put in to get there. 👇 Below are KCS Students that earned a top spot in their grade level! 🏅 Roger Lin from Central Elementary earned 3rd place in the 4th grade division 🥇 Hope Wu from John Adams Middle School took home 1st place in the 8th grade division 🥇 Shrihan Malkaram from George Washington High School won 1st place in the 10th–12th grade division 🎉 Archana Krishnathas from George Washington High School placed 10th in the 10th–12th grade division 👏 To top it off, Region III — which includes Kanawha County Schools — was named the Highest Scoring Region in the 10th–12th grade division! ✨📐 We’re so proud of the hard work shown by these students. 🧠

💙 April is Autism Awareness Month, and we’re taking a moment to shout out some of the amazing people making a difference in Kanawha County Schools — our Autism Itinerants! KCS has four Autism Itinerants that travel from school to school, supporting students with autism, working with teachers and families, and helping create learning environments where every student can shine. ✨ Whether it’s coming up with personalized strategies, helping with communication tools, or just being a steady source of support, they’re making an impact every single day. 📸: Featured in this post is Meghan Cavendar. Check back throughout the month to meet the rest of the AUI Team!

🌟 We are excited to share our April Powerful Partners tip sheets for elementary students. 🌟 💪 Powerful Partner activities provide an opportunity for schools and guardians to work together to help students continue to develop their 🧠 academic skills while they are away from school. ✍️These are suggested enrichment opportunities and are completely optional. You can view all the April tip sheets by clicking here 👇 🔗 https://bit.ly/powerfulPartners

🇺🇸 Military Signing Week 🇺🇸 This week, we are celebrating students during Military Signing Week— these young men and women who have made the brave and selfless decision to serve our country by enlisting in the United States Armed Forces. Watching these students sign their commitment to serve the United States has been inspiring. These aren’t just names on paper—they’re our classmates, friends, and neighbors who are stepping up to something greater than themselves. We are so proud of each of you. Thank you for choosing a path that protects and uplifts others. 💙❤️ 📸 : Pictured here are signing military signing ceremonies at Riverside High School, South Charleston High School, and St. Albans High School

📚✨ A Night at the Museum… Weberwood Style! 🏛️🎨 Weberwood Elementary was transformed into a living museum today, and it was fantastic! Each grade level turned their classrooms into immersive exhibits, complete with creative decorations, detailed research, and enthusiastic student presentations. Families and visitors spent the morning exploring and learning—all led by WES student curators! 🎨 Here are the themes each grade brought to life: 🧒 Preschool – Nature 🍃 🦋 Kindergarten – Butterflies and Owls 🦉 🌊 1st Grade – Under the Sea 🏺 2nd Grade – Ancient Egypt 🏞️ 3rd Grade – West Virginia Regions 🪨 4th Grade – The Rock Cycle 🗺️ 5th Grade – The 50 States From the coral reefs of the ocean to the deserts of Egypt, the mountains of West Virginia to the diverse landscapes of America, students wowed museum guests with their knowledge, creativity, and excitement for learning! Huge thanks to the staff, students, and families for making “Night at the Museum” such a memorable experience! 💙📖

🎶 Big shoutout to all of our amazing middle and high school bands across Kanawha County Schools! 🎺🥁 We couldn’t be prouder of the hard work, heart, and talent you’ve shown this season. Out of our 20 KCS middle and high school bands: 🏆 11 earned a Superior rating (the highest!) 🌟 6 earned an Excellent rating 🎶 3 earned a Good rating Every group gave it their all, and it shows. From early morning rehearsals to late-night practices, your dedication doesn’t go unnoticed. Huge thanks to our directors, students, and families who make it all happen. You make KCS proud! 💛🖤

🌿🌱 A few months ago, students at Kanawha City Elementary planted tiny coleus seeds and have been patiently watching them sprout and grow. 🌟Now that their plants are thriving, each student created their own terrarium! 🪴✨ 👩‍🔬🔬They’ll spend the next few weeks caring for their mini ecosystems, learning firsthand about responsibility, growth, and the magic of nature. 🧠 We’re so proud of these young scientists! 💚

🎓💃 Project GPA: Celebrate Smart, Stay Safe! 🚗🎉 Prom and graduation season is such an exciting time—memories are made, friendships are celebrated, and the future feels wide open. As students celebrate these wonderful milestones, we want them to do so safely. That’s why, for 19 years, Project GPA (Graduation, Prom, Alive) has helped keep Kanawha County students safe while they celebrate. Thursday morning during an event in Charleston, the Kanawha County Commission once again provided funding to every high school in Kanawha County to help schools host fun, supervised post-prom and post-graduation events. Giving students have a safe place to continue the celebration. At the same time, the Kanawha County Sheriff’s Department increases patrols around high schools to help keep students safe and remind everyone to make smart choices. To all our students—have fun, be safe, and look out for each other. Your future is bright, and we want you to enjoy every moment ahead. 💙

🎉 Congratulations to Charvitha Sanjaya, an 8th grader at John Adams Middle School, for winning the 2025 Charleston Gazette-Mail Regional Spelling Bee! 🏆 This win means Charvitha is headed to Washington, D.C. to compete in the 2025 Scripps National Spelling Bee starting on May 27th! Way to go, Charvitha! Best of luck—we know you’ll do great! 👏🐝

⭐💜 Kanawha County Schools Renews Purple Star District Status with 100% Participation! 💜⭐ We are proud to announce that Kanawha County Schools has been recognized again as a Purple Star District! Every school in KCS has successfully renewed its Purple Star Award status, demonstrating their commitment to supporting military-connected students and their families. ⭐ The Purple Star Award is given to schools and districts that go above and beyond to provide resources, programs, and support for students of military families. This designation recognizes schools that: ✅ Identify a trained military family point of contact ✅ Provide military family resources on their website ✅ Complete at least two military support activities ✅ Submit a localized plan of action to ensure ongoing support Kanawha County Schools is honored to maintain this status with 100% participation across all of our schools! We are dedicated to ensuring that students from military families feel supported, connected, and empowered to succeed. Thank you to our staff, families, and community partners who help make this program a success year after year! 💜⭐