In my deep dive of vocabulary words related to reading or books I also came across this one: Biblomancy. This is a practice I hope your family takes the challenge to try over the break. Bibliomancy is the practice of foretelling the future by interpreting a randomly chosen passage from a book. This may be a fun way to get creative with the family or friends and make literacy a game of curiosity. Reading also becomes a theme as we see Spring Break ahead and many of us and our child(ren) may be picking out a new book to read during the break. Whether that is in our favorite nook of the house, local library, on an airplane or in a new location that we are exploring…books allow all of us to travel to new places!

Whether you are looking for what book to dive into next or you are one who does not read as often, we thought we would provide everyone with a GREAT reading opportunity today. This District Newsletter has something to interest everyone and will definitely take a few extra minutes this week to read. Thank you for taking the time to stay connected with our school community.

Sincerely,

Annalee Bennin

FPS District Administrator

Vocabulary source: bookglow.net

2023-24 Full District PDF Calendar | 2024-25 Full District PDF Calendar

District Calendar webpage - all calendars can be subscribed to! Follow the directions at top of page

Franklin Forward encompasses our Long-Range Facility Planning for the future. Through Franklin Forward, we look to bring together the best we can for our students and community in terms of infrastructure, safety & security, and our educational learning environments.

• We have concluded our (3) Community Engagement Sessions. These sessions allowed us the opportunity to present information to and seek feedback from community members about the work for Franklin Forward. We recorded one of the sessions and edited it down to just presentation pieces (42 mins) if you would like to view it here or below. Links are provided in the video description to jump to certain points in the video if you desire.

• UP NEXT: District leaders and FPS School Board members are putting the finishing touches on a community survey that will go out to all community members by mail in April to help inform and seek feedback on recommendations coming out of Franklin Forward.

For the most recent updates on our Franklin Forward planning, you can view this webpage here or by going to www.franklin.k12.wi.us/franklinforward

Note: If you want to jump to certain points in the video, please go to the YouTube link here and view the VIDEO DESCRIPTION for timecode markers that will take you to specific chapters in the video.

Wednesday night, FHS hosted the 2024 Youth Trades Hiring Event which showcased partnerships with more than 70 local companies in the Metro-Milwaukee area. The Southwest Milwaukee Consortium, a collaboration of Whitnall, St. Francis, Greendale, Greenfield and Franklin school districts helps these connections to happen. With chronic labor shortages being a significant concern for Wisconsin companies, this event was a win-win for helping to connect students with companies in manufacturing, skilled trades and healthcare. This event was open to students not only from Franklin but any students in the area and we had over 750 attendees.

In addition, both TMJ4 and CBS58 covered the event and you can see their stories below. TMJ4 featured junior Brielle Boudjou and CBS58 featured senior Michael Freuck. Click on their videos below to see their stories and enjoy other pictures from the event.

We are so proud of all the recent accomplishments taking place at Franklin High School! Check out these postseason, state-level and high honors updates below!

FHS GYMNASTICS TAKES FIRST IN DIVISION 1 AT STATE

The Franklin-Muskego team captured the state team title last Friday in Wisconsin Rapids by scoring 147.7167 to edge Verona-Madison Edgewood, the defending state champion. This is the 2nd title for Franklin-Muskego in the last 3 years. Seniors Kayla Schuerman, Leah Pereira, and Meredith Peters, along with sophomore Sophia Emanuelson competed on the team for the sabers. In addition, Senior Kayla Schuerman won her first state medal in individual competition by finishing 6th on the beam with a 9.1167 and she also finished 15th on the floor. Senior Leah Pereira finished 9th on the bars with a 9.0333. And sophomore Sophia Emanuelson finished 18th on the vault with a 9.1833. Congrats ladies!

FHS GIRLS BASKETBALL GOING TO STATE

Congratulations to our Sabers Girls Basketball program! They were seeded No. 2 and defeated No. 1 Muskego last Saturday night 54-50 in Sectional Semi-Final play to advance to the STATE TOURNAMENT! They will next face off against Arrowhead at the Resch Center in Green Bay this Friday night (3/8) at 6:35pm.

Check out our FHS Girls Basketball team featured this week by Lance Allan at TMJ4. Seniors Natalie Meaux and Lauren Capstran are featured.

FOR STATE TOURNAMENT TICKETS: please visit this link and use either code D1T4ADULT for adult tickets or STUDD1T4 for student tickets. Children two and under do not require a ticket. This document shows how to purchase tickets and also has FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS you may have. Please note that if the Sabers advance, they will play on Saturday and the link above and codes will also work for tickets to that game.

LIVE STREAM OPTIONS - The following links are ones we found that may be carrying the livestream of the games. Some of the local affiliates mention having to download their app or that you can watch at their site.

All WIAA Live Stream Information

SKI TEAM HITS THE SLOPES AT STATE CHAMPIONSHIPS

The State Championship was an awesome experience for our team. The terrain at Mt. La Crosse is much more challenging than most of the race venues we have in our area. Ellie Mathe had a great weekend, finishing 3rd in giant slalom and 5th in slalom. Myles Navin had a strong showing as well, finishing 18th in giant slalom and 24th in Super G.

There were 130 boys and 130 girls competing in the event.

FHS VARSITY CHEER 3RD AT STATE

FHS Varsity Cheer placed 3rd at the WACPC State Cheer Finals in the Traditional LARGE division two weekends ago. The team placed 1st in all 7 competitions in the Traditional SMALL division, including earning Grand Champions and high-points scores throughout the regular season. They took 1st place and were Small Division Champions when they qualified for UCA Nationals. State Division splits moved the team into the Large division, meaning teams could consist of 11-34 athletes. FHS was the smallest team in the top 5!

In addition, Coach Mark Robinson was awarded the 2024 WACPC Cheer Coach of the Year! His dedication to the team is unmatched and he has pushed the team each year to master higher-level skills. The team is already looking forward to next football & competition season!

FHS MOCK TRIAL STATE LEVEL PLACEMENT

Congratulations to our FHS Our Mock Trial team who placed 4th (out of 20) at the state level with a 3-1 record and 9/12 of the Judges' ballots. They won the first two rounds unanimously. Harshini Meesala also won a Best Witness prize at the awards ceremony.

WI CHAMBER ORCHESTRA YOUNG ARTIST RUNNER-UP

Congratulations to Mason Ohm who finished as a runner-up in the WI Chamber Orchestra Young Artist Concerto Competition and earned a $1,000 scholarship! He performed Jacques Ibert's Concertino Da Camera for the competition.

ADAM TOETZ QUALIFIES FOR STATE BOWLING

Congratulations to Adam Toetz who qualified for the individual state bowling tournament in Green Bay this last weekend. He placed in the top 40% out of 107 bowlers with a 571 series.

Last week, FOX6 News Milwaukee featured senior Shamit Surana for his new keyboard idea that he developed as part of the 2024 Junior Achievement Young Entrepreneur project. The final competition took place yesterday (Wednesday 3/6) and we are proud to share that Shamit won the top honor, earning a $10,000 scholarship! You can see last week's story by clicking on the FOX6 link below. Congratulations Shamit!

VOTING is also occurring for a 'Viewer's Choice' award through 11:59pm TONIGHT (Thurs 3/7) if you want to help Shamit earn that award as well! CLICK HERE TO VOTE

We are very excited to announce our next principal for Robinwood Elementary, beginning August 1st for the 2024-25 school year. Please see this message from District Administrator Annalee Bennin announcing Lydia Sesing as the next principal. Welcome Lydia!

Franklin United Music Parents (UMPS) will be holding our March Into Spring Craft Fair THIS Saturday, March 9th from 9am to 3pm at Forest Park Middle School. There will be more than 90 vendors to shop from as well as a raffle, bake sale, concessions, and music. This is a tremendous fundraiser for our FHS Saber Marching Band and to make it a success we need volunteer help in several areas. Students are also encouraged to volunteer and can log volunteer hours accordingly. Areas to volunteer include:

• Donations of Baked Goods for the Bake Sale
• Vendor Registration, Lunches and Support
• Admissions
• Bake Sale
• Concessions
• Raffle
• Set-Up/Tear-Down

For a description of volunteer roles and to sign-up, please visit: http://tinyurl.com/SpringCraftFairVolunteers2024

The 2023-24 Winter/Spring Rec Guide is now available online here and registration for Franklin families opened on Tuesday, December 5th! We have a bunch of new programs including Basketball Camps, Athlete Performance Training, more cookie decorating with FHS Alum Abby Martin, Kayak Trips, Adult Gym Classes and more! Sign up early as spots are limited!

At the January 24, 2024 School Board Meeting, the FPS School Board approved (139) open enrollment seats for the 2024-25 school year. Online applications for open enrollment are accepted beginning Monday, February 5th through Friday, April 30, 2024 @ 4pm. For all other open enrollment information, please view our webpage here which includes the breakdown of open seats by grade level and directions to follow for those wishing to open enroll. For any questions, please contact Heidi Engel, FPS Auxiliary Service Coordinator by email or phone (414) 525-7634.

Tickets for the FHS student musical "Newsies" are now on sale and can be purchased online here! The show will run on the following dates and times:

• Thursday, March 14 @ 7 PM
• Friday, March 15 @ 7 PM
• Saturday, March 16 @ 7 PM
• Sunday, March 17 @ 2 PM

Our partners at Forte Theatre are bringing their third main stage production of the Broadway hit to the Saber Center for the Performing Arts for (6) performances between April 13-21 as part of the center's 1st Annual Community Event Series!

• Click here for the Forte Theatre website
• Click here for the recent press release
• Click here for tickets!

This iconic Broadway hit bursts with humor, romance, energetic dance and some of the greatest songs in musical theatre history. The romantic and comic exploits of Dolly Levi, turn-of-the-century matchmaker, are certain to thrill and entertain audiences. Including songs like It Only Takes A Moment, Put On Your Sunday Clothes and, of course, the famed title number, Hello Dolly! is a theatrical experience for both young and young at heart.

Our next show in our "Franklin Community Series" is " Mutts Gone Nuts!" Imagine eight of the world’s most talented 4-legged performers in an uproariously funny, comedy dog spectacular that leaves audiences everywhere howling for more. The all-star lineup includes a two-time world champion frisbee dog, a hilarious six-pound Pomeranian Pikachu mix, and a host of rescued dogs that will dance, prance, flip, and skip their way right into your heart. Deemed “A must see!” by the Washington Post, Mutts Gone Nuts is sure to win “Best in Show!" Shows are at 2pm and 5pm on Sunday, April 28th. Click here for tickets.

All of the information regarding the FEF events & happenings can be found at their website.

Mark your calendar for March 16th for our semi-annual sale at FPMS. With over 120 consigners, we'll be selling everything from children's clothing, books, games, toys, baby items and more. We have a "Donation Hour" after the sale is closed for nonprofits and schools to "shop" the sale for free. Besides FPS schools, organizations that benefit from the sale are Kids Matter Inc., Street Angels Homeless Outreach, Next Door Milwaukee, Robyn's Nest at Children's Hospital, Ladies of Charity, Father Gene's, St. Vincent DePaul, and many MPS schools.

(click/tap the flyer below for more info!)

The Spring Election is coming up on Tuesday, April 2nd and we have (6) candidates running for (3) FPS School Board seats. The (6) candidates are listed below in the drawn ballot position order with (i) denoting an incumbent.

• Jon Peccarelli
• Maqsood Khan (i)
• Jaclyn Gaffney
• Angela Kallay
  
• Angela Bier (i)
  
• Ann Sepersky (i)

To see voting locations and other information for April 2nd, please view the city website here.

We are always looking for people to join our amazing support systems for students! Here are some current opportunities available in FPS:

• KIDS CLUB ASSISTANTS
• GO RITEWAY BUS DRIVERS (school & charter available)
• COOK 2 @ FHS (3-5 hours per day)
• SUB FOOD SERVICE POSITIONS (on call)
• SUBSTITUTE TEACHERS (on call)

In addition to the positions listed above, here are other SUPPORT POSITIONS we are looking to fill (Custodial, EA, Fitness Instructor, Coaches, Youth Sports Officials, and more!)