Whiteland Community High School student Annabelle White has been selected as one of fourteen Johnson County students who have been named a 2025 National Merit Scholarship semifinalist. She will now have the opportunity to compete for nearly 7,000 available scholarships that will be offered in the spring.
Annabelle, who is undecided about her college choice, expresses her desire to pursue a degree in Computer Science. She has numerous accomplishments, including overseeing the “Girls Who Code” program. Additionally, the 17-year-old is a member of the marching band and jazz band, interns at Endress + Hauser, and is also a member of the National Student Council.
Congratulations Annabelle.
WARRIORS WIN!
Sign on the Dotted Line!
A special “signing” celebration, on Thursday, for our new staff either signing their first professional contract ever or their first in CPCSC! They invited loved ones and teammates joined in on the fun, too! We hope they feel special to be a Warrior!
CPCSC STAFF SPOTLIGHT
Geneva Nino, Crystal Hickey & Jill McIntire, The Transportation Instructors!
Geneva Nino, Crystal Hickey, and Jill McIntire are the transportation trio that trains Clark-Pleasant Community School Corporation bus drivers. They bring 60 years of school bus driving experience and 15 years of CDL driver training.
Geneva, a mother of three, often surprises people when she tells them she’s a school bus driver. She acknowledges that it’s not an easy job, but she loves it. Having worked as an instructor for five years, she finds the best part of the job is getting to know the drivers one-on-one. She says, “Driving candidates all have different driving-training styles, so we adjust to best meet their needs.”
Crystal has been an instructor for the past 7 years. She is also a mother of four. She enjoys being on her kids' schedule the most. An interesting fact about her is that she once took a month-long trip to Australia.
Jill is the newest instructor with three years of experience, but she’s been a driver for nearly two decades. When asked which role she likes better, she expressed, “Driving is my most important duty.” Jill, who is married with 2 children and one grandchild, also describes herself as a young grandma.
No one gets to drive a Clark-Pleasant school bus without the approval of Geneva, Crystal, and Jill. Training includes a lot of bus walkarounds (commonly referred to as pre-trips and many hours behind the wheel with an instructor to gain the necessary experience. Driver candidates are expected to train for several hours to prepare for their skills test. The typical timeline is approximately 4-6 weeks from start to finish. These ladies emphasize that safety is first and foremost. Additionally, passing a driving skills test is not easy. The process is an external assessment governed by the DOT. Crystal mentions, “There are also some rewarding moments. I had a student who got in trouble on my bus in elementary school, and he came back in high school and apologized.”
Michael Akers, Director of Transportation, says that, “Geneva, Jill, and Crystal, are the lifeblood behind our ability to successfully staff our department. All three work together to improve teaching and learning for new staff aspiring to be CDL drivers. We are extremely fortunate to have them on our team.”
A big thank you to the Transportation Instructors for all you do and for being our Staff Spotlight honorees!"
PCES Welcomes Grandparents!
Pleasant Crossing Elementary celebrated Grandparents Day in style Friday. Free coffee and donuts and a chance for grandma and grandpa to just hang out with their grandchildren at school for a bit. There were lots of smiles and hugs in every direction.
Attention Warrior Football Fans!
Due to the limited parking spaces on campus, we are excited to announce a new FREE shuttle service for this Friday's big game against Franklin.
We will be offering a free round-trip shuttle service from the CPCSC Transportation Center (bus garage) located at 999 Front Street to the CPCSC Academy (a short walk across the parking lot to the football stadium). Please share this information with anyone planning to attend the game.
Please note that public parking will not be available at the Academy; it will be reserved for shuttle buses only. Park at the transportation center to catch the shuttle.
Shuttles will be running from 6 pm until kickoff and will also be available after the game.
We would like to extend a huge thank-you to the CPCSC Transportation Department and the Clark-Pleasant Police Department for making this service possible!
Parent-Teacher Conferences!
October 2 & 3, 2024
CPMS Bookmark Design Contest Winners!
Clark Pleasant Community Schools Remembers 9/11
On this solemn day, the Clark Pleasant Community Schools family honors the memory of the lives lost on September 11, 2001. We reflect on the bravery and sacrifice of first responders, service members, and civilians who displayed incredible courage in the face of tragedy.
As Whiteland Warriors, we stand together in remembrance, embodying the Warrior Way—Be Respectful. Be Responsible. Be Safe. Let today serve as a reminder of the strength we find in unity and the importance of supporting one another through acts of kindness and compassion.
Together, we honor the past and continue to build a future grounded in respect, responsibility, and safety.
#NeverForget
#WarriorWay
The Season Begins!
A huge congratulations to the Marching Warriors on their outstanding first competition performance of the season this weekend at Columbus North.
The band placed 2nd in their class and received a lot of complementary comments from their adjudicators. It was a GREAT start to the season!
Next weeked we go up to Northwestern HS in Kokomo with a performance time of 8:45 PM. Hope to have lots of Marching Warrior fans in the crowd screaming for our talented students!
Thanks for your continued support!!
Peter Sampson
Director of Bands
Whiteland Community High School
NEW SCHOOL RECORD!
Lena Shipp has shattered the school record! In just her third meet of the season, Lena established a new Whiteland XC record with a time of 18:31.8, almost four seconds faster than Tori Jackson's previous mark of 18:35 set last season. Congratulations, Lena!
Community Career & Education Forum!
The Community Career+Education Forum would not be possible without the support of our sponsors. A special thank you to each of them to help inspire a love of STEM learning in our community.
If you or a local student in the Johnson or Marion county areas are interested in participating in CCEF, sign up now! It is a night of fun and learning - you won't want to miss it. Sign up here: ccef-stem.com
Thursday, September 19, 2024
5:30 to 8:30 p.m.
Endress+Hauser,
2355 Endress Place,
Greenwood, Indiana 46143
Title Sponsors - Meyer Najem,Endress+Hauser
Gold Sponsors - Caterpillar, Cummins Inc , Lionshead Precision Metals
Silver Sponsors - B2S Life Sciences , Central Indiana Educational Service Center (CIESC) , Fineline Printing Group , Franklin College , George E Booth Co., Girl Scouts of Central Indiana , Indiana State University, Indiana Department of Transportation, Ivy Tech Community College , NSK , PLTW - Project Lead The Way , Purdue Polytechnic , Purdue University, STEM Education Works, Tetra Pak , University of Indianapolis See less
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/o9GjxqPnhB2CPZPK/?mibextid=WC7FNe
CPCSC Elementary X-Country!
https://cpxcchampionships2024.itemorder.com/shop/home/
"Be sure to order your shirt by Wednesday, September 11, if you plan to run in the meet. Purchasing the shirt is the registration for the meet."
Greenwood Sports Park Opens!
A ribbon-cutting ceremony took place on Friday to officially open the new park. It's located east of CPMS. Mayor Mark Myers thanked Clark-Pleasant Schools for their partnership in allowing street access to the park from school properties.
In Mrs. Lindsay Hackett's classroom, during her table-top Play-Doh activity, students used Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) devices to communicate with peers and practice vocabulary. This is an authentic and inclusive experience for our youngest learners who are learning language skills. This would not be possible without the support and training from CPELC's Speech and Language Pathologist, Erika Sasher.
Some vocabulary we targeted included colors, shapes, core words, and verbs! (Roll, make, cut, play, etc.) What a fun morning it was!
To encourage a love for reading, Ray Crowe Elementary unveiled its new book vending machine this week. All students at RCES can earn a token and “buy” a book from the vending machine each school year. Tokens are earned by reaching academic achievements or growth as determined by classroom teachers. This can be achieved through completing homework, increasing reading levels, meeting writing goals, and demonstrating perseverance with hard work, among other things. The RCES PTO purchased the vending machine using fundraiser money.
Always a Teacher!
Students in Callahan Walts Earth Space Science class at WCHS were pleasantly surprised by their substitute on Tuesday. It turned out to be Dr. Edsell, the superintendent a former high school math teacher. He seemed very comfortable in his role as a substitute.
Cassandra McQueen: Teaching, with an Artistic Flair!!
Cassandra McQueen graduated from Marian Catholic High School. and attended Purdue University getting a bachelor's degree in art education. She’s been an elementary art teacher for the past 14 years and joined Pleasant Crossing Elementary in April 2022. She and her husband, Marcus have four boys. The oldest attends middle school, a 2nd grader and a Kindergartener are at PCES with mom, and the youngest is a future Warrior on the way.
She says this profession almost didn’t happen for her. “My 7th grade art teacher was also my swim coach’s wife. I had skipped a swim practice to work on my art project, this little pillow. I was so proud of it, brought it in the next day and my teacher asked why I wasn’t at practice. When I showed her the pillow, she looked at it and then looked at me and said, ‘You’re not good at art. You’re good at swimming. Stick to that.’ I therefore didn’t take another art class until my senior year. However, I had a life-changing teacher, Mrs. Gunty, who realized that maybe I wasn’t too bad at art. I keep this pillow around as a reminder of how powerful my words can be to a child and the impact they can have good and bad.
She says her biggest challenge is time or lack thereof. Since she teaches 600 students in grades K-5, she only gets 40 minutes of class time each week with each child. Therefore she’s getting involved in the Robotics Club to help build stronger relationships with the kids. “It’s hard to get to know the kids with so little time, I feel like I’m kind of the fun aunt around here.”
Her biggest joy in teaching is experiencing long-term growth. “I love seeing my students grow up. It’s fun to watch them pick a college, post prom pics, get married, and pick careers.” A couple of her students have gone on to teach and several have come back to shadow as they venture into art education themselves. “Being told you made a difference, especially years down the road, means a lot. It makes the daily grind worth it.”
Mrs. McQueen says the PCES family is amazing. “The staff blew me away last year with their involvement in our art show. So many people showed up to help prepare for the show and helped out the night of the show. Everyone here from the office staff to every educator cares, they’re kind, and they are so supportive. It’s a wonderful group of people to work with. I’m so grateful”.
So what has Mrs. McQueen done that some people might not know? She’s lived in 5 states. She’s lived on a volcano and she says thanks to her father she got to co-pilot a Blimp
Congratulations to Mrs. McQueen for being our CPCSC Staff Spotlight.
Published, Published, Published!!!
Makenzie Anness, a 7th grade student at Clark-Pleasant Middle School, has already published three poetry books. Her first book, "Text Me Back", was published in 2023, followed by "Why I Moved On", and most recently, "Guilty". Makenzie has made a few hundred bucks from sales on Amazon, but she says that earning money is not her primary goal at this point in her career as an author.
She attributes her success to her writing teacher, Stacy Walton, at Clark Elementary, who has been a great inspiration. Walton says, "I am blown away by this girl's talent and I want to nurture her love for writing and her passion for publishing books for as long as I can."
To learn more about Makenzie's passion for writing poetry, tune in to this Friday's Warrior Wrap Up!
