Greetings!

Well, here we are at the end of the school year - and what a year it has been!

For those of you that have been following the life of our school, you know of our academic, athletic and extracurricular successes this year. Our athletic program continues to distinguish itself with League Championships in Boys' Soccer, Girls' Golf, Girls' Tennis, Volleyball, and Boys' Swimming and Diving. Moreover, many of these teams have gone on to represent us at State tournaments. Our Volleyball team won the State Championship and we can look to 2nd or 3rd place standings at State in Boys' Bowling, Girls' Tennis and Boys' Soccer. Additionally, we have an individual State champion in Jacob Morgan (Cross Country).

Our extra-curricular and co-curricular programs continue to flourish as well. Our Music program continues to distinguish itself in Kansas. Our Band program, for example, received numerous "1" ratings during Marching Band season and recently completed a fabulous trip to Orlando, Florida where the Symphonic Band and Wind Ensemble received "Excellent" ratings and "Gold" in their divisions! Also, the Band, Vocal and Orchestra programs racked up numerous "1" ratings at the KSHSAA Regional Solo and Small Ensemble Festival. All of the groups and individual performers will advance to the State Festival later this month in Emporia. Moreover, our very own Dancin' Blues traveled to Denton, Texas over spring break to compete in the ADTS Nationals Contest. They were the National Champions (medium team) in both Contemporary and Pom, and, more importantly, walked away as the National Academic Champions with an average team GPA of 4.032! Add to that our recent authorization as an International Baccalaureate World School and one quickly realizes that the parents, staff, students and community which WRHS serves have much to be proud of. It has been a truly exciting year!

Of course, this time of year also brings a great sense of excitement and anticipation for the upcoming summer months. In the past, some of this excitement has been shown in ways that reflected poorly on our school - most notably the graffiti that annually appears on road signs, streets and the personal property of homeowners in the district. It is disheartening to receive calls from the community when this occurs - particularly from the elderly, many of whom are not physically able to remove the graffiti themselves. If we all communicate the costs of such behavior, I am sure we can collectively address this concern in an effective manner!

Finally, bond-related construction and improvements to our campus will be coming to an end within the next several months. Scheduled for completion over the summer is the flooring for our new east Commons Area; a total remodel of the south Commons Area; new floor tile, ceiling tile and paint throughout major portions of our halls; a science addition; new theater classrooms, and; six newly remodeled, general purpose classrooms. As you might imagine, our journey over the last four years has not been without it's frustrations, but when one sees the changes that have been made, a deep sense of appreciation for the support of our district patrons sets in.

On behalf of the staff at WRHS, I would like to wish you the best of summers! It has been an honor and pleasure working with you this year.

Best,

Ed Raines