District Update

We hope you'll review this week's District Update filled with news and notes from across the Walled Lake Consolidated School District. Stay up to date with the District by visiting www.wlcsd.org and connecting with the district on social media.

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• October 31: Half Day for Students | Professional Development for Staff
• November 4: No School for Students or Staff
• November 6: Board of Education regular meeting; 7 p.m. at ESC
• November 18: Half Day for Students | Professional Development for Staff
• November 20-23: WLW presents "Hades Town: Teen Edition" - Tickets available now at www.wlcstickets.com
• November 24: PTSA Council Meeting; 7 p.m. at Oakley Park El.
• November 26: Half Day for Students and Staff
• November 27-28: No School for Students or Staff - Thanksgiving Break

Walled Lake Central was recognized by ESPN as one of its Honor Roll schools for their outstanding contributions to the Special Olympics Unified Champion Schools program.

“This recognition from ESPN is a tremendous honor,” said Vikings’ unified coach Deputy Nicolas Krafft. “It shows the dedication and hard work we have put into Unified Sports at Walled Lake Central.”

The Vikings are one of just 45 schools in the nation and the only one from the state of Michigan to make the 2025 ESPN Honor Roll. You can watch the Walled Lake Central unified team's reaction when they found out during the announcement on Instagram.

“From top to bottom, everyone at WLC has given Unified Sports everything they have,” said Deputy Krafft. “Coach Toni, Coach Lukavsky, Coach Ryn, Coach Dawn and I want to extend our gratitude to everyone who has helped us along the way.”

“We are so proud of this program and all the incredible things we have accomplished so far,” added Deputy Krafft. “We are excited to keep working towards the next milestone.”

Walled Lake Central was also recognized by the Special Olympics as a National Champion Unified School in September, as well as honored with the 2025 Most Improved Player Award in July from Special Olympics Michigan.

Walled Lake Central’s Giving Tree Club capped off its Socktober Drive this past weekend volunteering in Detroit and donating over 3,300 socks to those in need.

The Vikings spent Saturday morning serving up smiles, meals and warm clothes through their partnership with PBJ Outreach. Students helped pack food for the homeless in Plymouth before handing out the meals in Detroit.

The Vikings collected and donated 3,335 pairs of socks as part of their Socktober Drive, which set a new record for the annual drive. They collected nearly 300 more pairs of socks than a year ago.

Walled Lake Northern seniors Nikola Dahlgren and Finn Gammerath punched their tickets to the MHSAA Division 1 Cross Country State Championships this Saturday, November 1, at Michigan International Speedway. The Division 1 boys’ championship is scheduled to start at 3:30 p.m.

Gammerath placed fifth overall this past weekend in the MHSAA Division 1 Regional Final at Royal Oak High School. He clocked a 16:02.70 in the 5000 meter race. Dahlgren wasn’t far behind finishing twelve with a time of 6:30.70 to qualify for the state final.

The Knights, as a team, earned fourth place at the regional championships. Walled Lake Western finished twelve and Walled Lake Central sixteenth.

In the girls’ regional race, Walled Lake Northern took tenth, Walled Lake Central eleventh and Walled Lake Western fourteenth.

Dublin Elementary staff and students welcomed early childhood special education students and their families for an afternoon of Halloween fun!

Shamrock fifth graders (pictured above) led interactive learning stations for all of the party-goers, which included boo bowling, string a spider web, counting spiders and a bubble dance party.

Sarah G. Banks Middle Schoolers got creative at Mrs. Stassi's annual Pumpkin Painting Party!

The Bulldogs turned pumpkins into masterpieces while sipping cider and snacking on donuts.

There’s no better way to celebrate reaching your fundraising goal than with a Day of Awesome. The smiles from students at Clifford H. Smart Middle School on Friday say it all!

Principal Brie took over Walled Lake Elementary (yes, the kindergartener!) and absolutely crushed it! She handed out Golden Paws and book tokens, recorded the video school announcements, and even had a meeting with Dr. Lonze.

Fun fact: Brie and Mrs. Amann even packed the same lunch!

Six brand new buses arrived this week to help get our students to and from school safely!

They arrived, passed inspection and hit the road on Monday with three more new buses on the way.

In an effort to find additional ways to celebrate our staff, the WLCSD Community Relations department requests that families fill out the information below for staff who are rock stars in their classrooms and school communities.

A sample of what these shout outs will look like on social media and in our district newsletters is on the right.

The Walled Lake Consolidated Schools’ Board of Education appointed Heather Gitler the new principal at Keith Elementary during its October 23, 2025 meeting.

“I am so excited to be the new principal at Keith Elementary and join this incredible community of learners, dreamers and doers,” said Gitler. “I feel fortunate to be joining a school filled with talented and dedicated educators who have already created a space where students feel empowered to take risks, explore new ideas and be their authentic selves.”

Gitler brings 18 years of experience in elementary education, most recently teaching third grade at Norup International School in Berkley. Throughout her career, Gitler has served on a statewide math leadership team, led curriculum adoption across content areas, developed multi-tiered systems of support (MTSS) and advanced positive behavioral interventions and supports (PBIS) to foster inclusive school communities.

Continue reading on district website.

It has come to our attention that families in our community may be in need of additional assistance when it comes to food and nutrition. With the anticipated gap in SNAP funding beginning Saturday, November 1, some families may experience delays in receiving benefits. School meals (breakfast and lunch) will continue to be available free of charge to our students.

For families needing support at home, the following food resources are available:

• Hospitality House Food Pantry: https://www.hhfp.org/

• Gleaners Community Food Bank: https://www.gcfb.org/food-assistance-programs/

• Oakland Livingston Human Service Agency: https://www.olhsa.org/en-us/

• Michigan 211 Food Assistance Programs: https://mi211.org/food-assistance

• Forgotten Harvest: https://www.forgottenharvest.org/find-food/

• Findhelp.org: https://www.findhelp.org/

• Food and Other Resources Hotline: 1-888-544-8773

Please complete the following form in order to be considered for the Graduate Spotlight section of the WLCSD quarterly Learning newsletter. The nominated student needs to be a 2016 graduate or before.

Please contact pamelacole@wlcsd.org with any questions.

Our mission, in partnership with parents and the community, is to become the best educational system in America so all students demonstrate they are caring, responsible, and knowledgeable citizens.

Email: danieldurkin@wlcsd.org
Website: www.wlcsd.org
Location: 850 Ladd Road, Walled Lake, MI, USA
Phone: (248) 956-2000
Facebook: www.facebook.com/wlcsd/
Twitter: @WalledLkSchools