January 12, 2017
The Winton Woods board of education has announced its schedule of regular and special meetings for 2017. All meetings are open to the public and will take place at the board office, located at 1215 W. Kemper Rd. in Forest Park, unless otherwise announced.
Regular board of education meetings begin at 6:30 p.m. January 23 February 27 March 20 April 24 May 22 June 26 July 24 August 28 September 25 October 23 November 27 December 11
Board of education work sessions begin at 6:30 p.m. January 9 February 13 March 13 April 10 May 8 June 12 July 10 August 7 September 11 October 9 December 4
Superintendent briefings begin at 4:00 p.m. March 13 April 17 August 21 October 16
Winton Woods Board of Education President Jessica Miranda and Vice- President Dr. Viola Johnson were re- elected to those positions at the organizational meeting on Thursday, January 5. Both Miranda and Johnson have been board members since 2014.
Miranda is married, with two children enrolled in Winton Woods City Schools. She is currently on the board of the Latino Coalition of Southwest Ohio, a member of the Cincinnati chapter of League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), as well as a member of the Cincinnati Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. A member of the Forest Park Chamber of Commerce, Miranda was the 2014 recipient of the Forest Park Business Recognition award for her exemplary community service through the annual Fiesta Holiday Toy Drive. She is the CEO of Fiesta Auto Insurance & Tax Service in Forest Park and is a licensed property and casualty Insurance broker and holds numerous IRS certifications.
Johnson and her husband, Ronald, have lived in the district since 1986 and have four district graduates. They are the owners of Express Employment Professionals in South Dayton, and they are regular volunteers at City Gospel Mission feeding the hungry. She has worked in administrative and professorial roles with Cincinnati State Technical and Community College for the past 26 years. Johnson earned her Bachelor's degree in Business Education from West Virginia Institute of Technology, Master’s degree in PM/Deaf Studies from St. Thomas University, and Doctorate in Education from the Union Institute and University.
Miranda and Johnson are joined on the 2017 Board of Education by members Jeff Berte, Paula Kuhn, and Katrina Rugless. School board members are elected at large for four-year terms. A member may serve unlimited consecutive terms. Board members are elected according to a schedule that staggers their term expiration dates. Officers serve a term of one year and may be re-elected.
PHOTO CAPTION: Winton Woods Board of Education President Jessica Miranda (seated left) and Vice-President Dr. Viola Johnson are shown with members (standing, l-r) Katrina Rugless, Jeff Berte and Paula Kuhn. Photo by Teresa Cleary.
The Winton Woods Middle School Choir Department will present Destination Rock ‘n’ Roll, a musical revue arranged by Mark Brymer, on Thursday, January 19, and Friday, January 20, at 7:00 p.m. in the school auditorium. The show covers the history of rock ‘n’ roll by visiting destinations throughout the United States, including the cities where the first recording companies and studios were located. The story is told through 15 dialogues that are interspersed between songs and sections. Each dialogue describes the circumstances surrounding a major development in the history of the art form. “Our three choirs—tenor bass choir, 7th grade treble choir and 8th grade treble choir—will perform separately and as a group, along with featured soloists and special dancers,” said Winton Woods Middle School Choir Director Amanda Westwood. “You’ll see characters like Elvis, the Jackson Five, the Beatles and the Supremes performing all the classics.” Tickets will be available at the door for $5, with discounts for students and seniors.
Currently in its fourth year, the Firefighter Fitness Drill has helped keep students throughout Winton Woods City Schools in shape and active. The program is run by Forest Park Deputy Fire Chief Jermaine Hill, who said, “The goal of the program is to promote and instill a lifetime of healthy eating and fitness habits in our students.” This collaboration between the district and the fire department is a measurable health and fitness initiative. The Fitness Drill has two parts. The first is an obstacle course that introduces students to firefighting activities like pulling a fire hose, raising a hose, tire chopping to simulate venting a roof, and sprinting. The second part is a health packet with diet tips and exercises that firefighters do to help them in their jobs. In grades 3-6, prizes are given to students with the fastest and most improved times. In grades 7- 12, prizes are given to the fastest students. All prizes were sponsored by the Greenhills-Forest Park Kiwanis Club. Firefighter Fitness Drill winners for the 2015-2016 school year were: Third Grade: Fastest Girl: Kelsey Wheeler Fastest Boy: Khy’lek Jarrett Most Improved Girl: Joselyn Samano Most Improved Boy: Trent Leach Fourth Grade: Fastest Girl: Ja’Kyah Bell Fastest Boy: Tranel Engleman Most Improved Girl: Reyna Careaga Most Improved Boy: Damien Frklic Fifth Grade Fastest Girl: Kiala Stanford Fastest Boy: KC Spears Most Improved: Morris Agyeman Sixth Grade Fastest Girl: Ashanti Bourne Fastest Boy: Caleb Belser Most Improved: Treasur’ Moore Seventh and Eighth Grades Fastest Girl: Izaria McWhorter-Martin Fastest Boy: D’Juan Wills Ninth Grade Fastest Girl: Amarah Kirkman Fastest Boy: Zyshaun Johnson
Tenth Grade Fastest Girl: Trinity Jordan Fastest Boy: Jayden Miles Eleventh Grade Fastest Girl: Daviah Shakespeare Fastest Boy: Elijah Johnson Twelfth Grade Fastest Girl: Danilla Eta Fastest Boy: Shaundale Green PHOTO CAPTION: Firefighter Fitness Drill winners from Winton Woods Middle School eighth grader D’Juan Wills and seventh grader Izaria McWhorter-Martin, are shown with Principal Doug Sanker. Winton Woods High School twelfth grade winners were (l-r) Shaundale Green and Danilla Eta. Photos by Jermaine Hill.
Winton Woods Middle School Honor Roll 7TH GRADE 4.0 Maria Adames, Wynter Edwards, Ariana Green, Kavita Nelson, Samikchhaya Oli, Shamiah Rice, William Rothan, Iris Samelak, Stacy Serwaa, Julian Vaca-Iber, Noelle Wolke
3.5 to 3.99 Le’aisa Bess, Obadah Daraghmeh, Leslie Gervacio, Gabrielle Hall, Sheldyn Harris, Nia Hooten, Quentin Jenkins, Aitana Lopez, Desiray Mabra, Manuel McMenemy, Taidgh Miles, Andre Reed, Chris-tian Rothan, Khaleah Smith, Ronnie Taylor, Laila Turner
3.0 to 3.49 Emmanuel Afolabi, Ashanti Bourne, RJ Brown, Ashley Castro-Morales, Bharat Chamlagai, Isaac Civils, Cameron Colbert, Amber Conner, Terrell Croom, Ana Cux-Saquic, Jordan Domingue, Adriana Duenas Uribe, Neraj Dulal, Jaleah Embry, Aaron Figueroa Ramos, Dawson Frisby, Laxmi Gautam, Kevin Gomez-Castro, Myonna Griffin, Anthony Hernandez, Ethan Hillard, Janelle Jackson, Gianna Lilly, Leonardo Martinez Arteaga, Marta Mendoza Rodriguez, Peter Ntumba, Juan Orduna Andablo, Oliver Perez-Perez, Faith Purdin, Dikshya Pyakurel, Sapana Rai, Caden Sanders, Amey Sewovi, EJ Short, Kyla Smith, Mangali Sunwar, Hannah Temke, Andrew Thompson, Shailin Uribe-Martinez, Shosua Uribe-Martinez, Erika Velasquez Sandoval, Britney Vickers, Ra Kiya Whaley, Talia White, Alayah Yisrael
8TH GRADE 4.0 Paige Adams, Faith Augustine, Trinity Azure, Mark Behrendt, Ayden Hassertt, Alex Ingram, Madison Kutchera, Camron Love, Jaida Lumpkin, Elizabeth Mavridoglou, Kelsey McMenemy, Cris Mejia-Sanchez, Hailey Miller, Elizabeth Okemmiri, Vicotoria Okoh Okai, Nicolantonio Prentosito, Lailah Robinson, Sheridan Semes, Emma Smith, Michael Stothfang, Binod Sunwar, Samba Sy, Josiane Umutoni, Alejandra Velazquez
3.50 to 3.99 Taras Alfavitskyi, Kyla Brown, Tyree Clarke, Kaycee Crocker, Bobby Dingle, Monica Escobedo Barahona, Elysa Griggs, Amy Gueye, Sierra Herrington, DJ Hooten, Bianca Horner, Tyra Howard, Cameron Hughes, Ella Johnson, Bryan Lopez, Karla Lopez, Bayron Danila Mendoza Alcon, Dawa Muktan, Arielle Mundy, Yesly Perez Morales, Betisha Pokhrel, Josephine Quao, Makayla Schmidt, Myala Sims, Briona-Joy Smith, Jamel Twumasi-Ankrah, Daija Wallace, Derek Wiggins, Ronin Williams, Kamiya Young
3.0 to 3.49 Brianna Aguilar Cardenas, Lauren Andrade, Damarion Arnold, Sienna Bailey, Anthony Bermudez-Brown, Oluwatoni Bewaji, Donovan Brown, Jarell Brown, Kayla Broyles, Tyson Carter, Samantha Castillo Lopez, Nowell Dankwa, Manuel Delgado Cubias, Demetreana Dillard, James Djangmah, Frida Joanna Escalante, Brandon Ferry, Amaya Fox, Kynnedi Gover, Lillian Gruener, Aihbrian Hall, Matthew Harris, Saray Hernandez Duran, Elena Hernandez, Mariah Hightower, Micah Hudgins, Camiyah James, Zy’reaija Johnson, Michael Jones, Tia Jordan, Asia Kelsey, Aariyah Kittles, Ahiya Knauls, Arriyanna McKinney, Alycia McNeil, Chrishay Miles, Elysha Miller, Carlos Nieves-Pineda, Ka’urie Olverson, Mykhael Peebles, Bre Philpot, Brianna Price, Nestor Quintanilla Mariona, Deeprasan Rai, Jacorey Reeves, Alyssia Simpson, Bethany Smith, Erica Smith, Se’bien Smith, Alondra Sotelo, Asia Taylor, Zakyla Thomas, Jerzie Turner, Tyja Williams, Mi’chale Wingfield, Alexander Wood, Charles Wood, Qeturah Yisrael
Winton Woods High School junior Aversa Prentosito performed with the OMEA District 14 Honor Band on Sunday, January 8, at Princeton High School. Prentosito, who plays oboe, auditioned for the band last fall. This year’s guest conductors were Kathy McGrady and Russell Mikkelson, with 26 high schools participating. Prentosito is pictured with Winton Woods High School Band Director Dani Ashbrook. Photo by Tina Prentosito.
Royalty Hightower, Winton Woods Intermediate School sixth grader, recently won the 2016 Breakthrough Performance Award (Female) from the National Board of Review for her role in The Fits. In the movie, Hightower stars as Toni, a young girl who leaves the world of boxing, which she has shared with her brother, to join the high energy drill team that practices in the same recreation center. Her performance was called “magnetic” by RogerEbert.com, “mesmerizing” by Vanity Fair and “extraordinary” by Indiewire. Rolling Stone called it “the girl power movie of 2016.” For over 100 years, the National Board of Review has dedicated its efforts to the support of cinema as both art and entertainment. Each year, this select group of film enthusiasts, professionals, academics, and filmmakers watches over 250 films and then talks with directors, actors, producers and screenwriters before announcing their selections for the best work of the year.
Winton Woods Primary South started off the New Year on Friday, January 6, with a Family Movie Night sponsored by the PTA. The featured movie was The Secret Life of Pets. “Despite frigid temperatures we had over 150 students, parents, grandparents, and friends show up for popcorn, the movie, and lots of fun,” said Principal Danielle Wallace. “Special thanks to the PTA and McKelvey Road Baptist Church for providing refreshments for all of our guests.” Photo by Courtney Hickey.
UPCOMING EVENTS 1/16/17 Martin Luther King, Jr. Day - No School
1/23/17 WWC PTA General Meeting, 6:30 p.m.
1/23/17 Board of Education Meeting (tentative) 6:30 p.m. 1/26/17 KG - Gr. 6 Parent Conferences, 5:00- 8:30
Winton Woods Today is brought to you by: Gina Burnett, designer; Teresa Cleary, writer and photographer.