Worthingway Weekly

I would like to take this opportunity to introduce you to our AWESOME front office team! From left to right:

Amanda DeBernardi - is entering her 10th year in the office at Worthingway. She is the mother of Olivia Trueman who is a 4th grade teacher at the elementary school where she attended, Wilson Hill, and Hadley Trueman, who is entering her second year at Ohio University. Amanda's degree is in Art Education, so she is at home in the school environment. She most loves the sense of community at WWay with the kindness, care and love shown for every student/staff member.

Cerita Todd - is our school counselor. This year marks her 8th year as a school counselor with this being her 4th year here in our wonderful building. Prior to becoming a middle school counselor, she served as a high school counselor for four years and before that served as a college admissions counselor at her beloved Alma Mater, Bowling Green State University. She met my husband and college sweetheart during my undergraduate studies and they have a 5 year old son and 1 year old daughter! She enjoys all things home decor, trying out new cookie recipes, hula hooping and simply spending time with her friends and family. She loves the strong sense of community that we share as our staff and loves being together and supporting our students.

Lara Ruffing - is our Mental Health Specialist. She is a licensed school social worker and has been in Worthington for over 20 years! Lara is the proud mom of two young adult children, both of whom went through Worthingway and graduated from TWHS. In her free time, you'll likely find her cooking, listening to music and spending time with her dog and family.

Joyce Casey, MS, RN - is our Licensed School Nurse. She is entering her 10th year in Worthington Schools, with over 30 years of nursing experience. She lives in Worthington with her husband, PR, and her three Thomas Worthington Field Hockey State Champions, Reilly (TWHS Class of 2023), Rowan (TWHS Class of 2025), and Delaney (TWHS Class of 2028). Go Cards!!!

Paula Lee - is starting her third year as an administrative secretary. She previously worked for nine years in a middle school office in Gahanna-Jefferson School District. She loves the students, families, and staff at Worthingway and the welcoming, friendly community of Worthington that she's become a part of. She and her husband, Richard, have two adult daughters, Alyssa and Amanda. They enjoy cooking together, traveling (especially to see their daughters), and hiking. A fun fact about Mrs. Lee is that she still writes in shorthand daily--speedwriting entire words and phrases with symbols!

Shawna Barrett (not pictured) - is entering her first year in the office at Worthingway, though she is no stranger to Worthington schools. She and her husband have two children who attend Perry Middle School and Shawna has been a long time substitute secretary across the district. She will be primarily responsible for student attendance and is the Building Testing Coordinator. Shawna is quite the Irish dancer and has even been featured in a solo at the Dublin Irish Festival!

First 3 Days!

We will operate on an altered bell schedule for the first three days of school. There are several reasons for this. First, it is best for students. They are all able to start each day in their Assist class and spend fifty minutes with their teacher. Second, this allows us (principal, assistant principal, counselor) to meet with each grade level in the gym. We will meet with the entire 8th grade class on Wednesday, 7th grade class on Thursday, and 6th grade class on Friday. Finally, it allows us the valuable opportunity to teach students The Cardinal Way (our building-wide behavior expectations, procedures, and routines).

In The News

Check out the article about our awesome new assistant principal, Mrs. Kami Novak.
Check out this podcast featuring Claire Cressman, sixth grade science teacher extraordinaire.

Annual Data Review

All Families must complete the Annual Data Review before the school year begins. This is where you update your family information, sign off on field trips, directory information, and more.
In order to do this, you must first have set up your own username and password in the Infinite Campus Parent Portal. You have been receiving emails from our District Technology Department regarding this.
You can find instructions on how to do all of this on our district Back To School page.
If you have any questions, please complete this google form and someone will be in touch to support you.

Medications at School:

Students in grade 6-12 are permitted to carry and self-administer over-the-counter medications at school, only if a form has been completed and signed by their parent/guardian, and has been turned in to our School Nurse, Joyce Casey. You may find this form here. Students are never permitted to share these medications with others at school. Parent/guardians are also able to elect for the over-the-counter medicine to remain in the health office, and dosages are administered and recorded by Mrs. Casey.
Prescription medications (with the exception of epipens and albuterol inhalers) are not allowed to be carried by students, and must remain in the health office. All medications, prescription and over-the-counter, must come to our school buildings in their original containers so they can be properly identified.
Please take extra care to make sure your student is only bringing medications to school that have appropriate forms filed with the health office. If you have any questions, please reach out to Mrs. Casey at 614-450-4300 or jcasey@wscloud.org

Recognize a Staff Member with a Cardinal Compliment

Has a teacher, counselor, or staff member made a positive impact on your child? We want to hear about it! Take a moment to fill out our form to recognize a Worthingway staff member who has gone above and beyond. Your kind words mean a lot and help us celebrate the amazing work happening every day in our school community.

Bell Schedule

Click here for our bell schedules

Parent Resources

Schoology:

Schoology is our LMS (Learning Management System). Basically that means it is the "website" that our teachers use to house and communicate learning goals, assignments, and even some assessments.
Parent Guide

Infinite Campus:

Infinite Campus is how you can access your students' grades, attendance, etc
Parent Guide

Securly Home: You can download the Securly app to keep your student safe while using their school issued chromebook at home. Click here to learn more.
Click here for a comprehensive document that will help you with Schoology and Infinite Campus and Securly Home.

How do I know by bus route/bus number?

Families will be able to see bus route information on August 14th. We will not have this information at the building before this date.
Students must ride their assigned bus throughout the school year. In the event that your student needs to ride a different bus to go to another students' house, this must be pre-approved. Both students will need to bring in a signed note to our office at least one day ahead of time which the office will approve and notify transportation. Due to safety reasons, the bus drivers will not allow a student on the bus that is not approved for that route.

How do I access my student's grades?

You will need to log into Infinite Campus. Information about the Infinite Campus Parent Portal is in the section below this.

How do I follow along with what my student is learning in classes?

Parent Guide: Schoology
What is Schoology?

How do I download the Securly app to help keep my student safe while using their school issued chromebook at home?

Securly Home (for parents)

Are there classroom fees this year?

Is there a fee to participate in athletics?

Yes. All athletic and activity fees are posted to MyPayments Plus.

Where can I find information about school lunch?

Parent Guide: My Payments Plus
Put money in the school lunch account through MyPayments Plus.
School district lunch information can be found here.
Apply for Free/Reduced if you think you might be eligible.

How can I get involved with the awesome PTA that I hear so much about?

We strongly encourage your involvement and support! Please see the PTA section in this newsletter.

Is there a classroom supply list for each grade?

Yes. Supply Lists for each grade can be found here.

If you ordered a kit, it will be at the school during schedule pick up (August 11).

My student has a medical need. Who do I need to communicate with?

Our school nurse, Mrs. Joyce Casey, will be at Worthingway during schedule pick up (August 11) for you to drop off medications for your student and submit any necessary paperwork.

What is the bell schedule?

Bell Schedule

And finally, click here for a comprehensive document that will help you with Schoology and Infinite Campus.

There has been an update to the Infinite Campus Parent Portal. Please see the following information from our District Technology Department:

On July 20, you should have received an email containing a unique URL. Simply click the link and follow the prompts to create your new username and password. Once logged in, it will look the same as before.
You can complete this setup on a computer or mobile device in a couple of minutes.
If you use the Infinite Campus Mobile App, you will need to sign in again with your new account.
Once you establish your new account, please be sure to set a security email to allow self service for your account and password recovery. Details were included in your Welcome email July 20.
This change only impacts parent accounts. Student accounts will continue to be established by the district.
To ensure you receive the email, please review our Parent Guide: Email Safe Senders guide.
Please complete this process promptly to have access to next year's classroom and schedule information in August.
If you have questions or are unable to complete the steps and need technical support, please complete this google form.

Dear Worthingway Families,

I need to start this week with a confession and hopefully a good laugh.

Last week's newsletter went out with a little surprise hidden right in the middle of it. Just as you were reading along about everything the PTA accomplished last year, feeling warm and inspired (I hope), you were treated to this gem: "I love that idea - here's a paragraph you can drop right before the Ways to Support section."

Yes. That happened. Your PTA President copied and pasted her AI-assisted draft, instructions and all, and sent it straight to the entire Worthingway community without noticing. Right in the middle. Not at the top, not at the bottom - smack in the middle - where it was absolutely impossible to miss.

So here I am, owning it completely. I used AI to help me write the newsletter. And obviously I also need to read them before I hit send.

As I was sitting with my embarrassment over the past week, I realized this might actually be the most relatable thing I have ever done. Because we are ALL in the thick of it right now, aren't we? Back to school nights, new schedules, fall sports practices, school supply runs, and approximately 147 emails a day from every direction. We are all just doing our best, moving fast, and occasionally sending things out before we probably should.

So consider this my reminder, to myself and to all of us as we ramp up to this school year, that it’s ok to make mistakes, it’s okay to not be perfect. It is okay to use every tool available to you to keep up with the pace of life. And it is absolutely okay to laugh at yourself when you forget to delete the instructions before hitting send.

We are all imperfect human beings just trying to show up for our kids… and that is more than enough.

SCHOOL SUPPLY KITS

If you were unable to attend Schedule Pick-up Night and you ordered a school supply box, you can pick those up from the school office on August 17 & 18 from noon-4pm. If those times don’t work for you, your student can also pick them up on the first day of school.

FALL CANTEEN - DATE UPDATE

We have an update on Fall Canteen! The date has changed from September 11th to Friday, September 18th from 4:00–6:00 PM at Worthingway Middle School. Mark your calendars, this is always such a fun afternoon for our students and we cannot wait!

Stay tuned for more information and ticket sales coming soon!

LOOKING FOR WAYS TO SUPPORT OUR WORTHINGWAY TEAM?

We have attached a flyer with QR codes linking to everything listed below - just scan and go!

Enroll in Kroger Community Rewards - one of the easiest ways to give back, and it costs you absolutely nothing! A portion of your regular Kroger purchases goes directly to support PTA programs.

Sign in to your Kroger digital account
Go to your account and click on Community Rewards
Enter the name (Worthingway Middle School PTA) or NPO number (RF924)
Select the organization from the list and click "Save"
That's it - every grocery run helps our school!

Donate or Become a PTA Member - every dollar goes directly to programs that support our teachers, students, and school community.
Make a Donation HERE
Join the PTA Today HERE
As a PTA member, you are also welcome to attend our monthly meetings, vote on decisions the PTA makes, and share your ideas and opinions. Your voice matters and we would love to have you at the table!
Sign Up as a "Cards Helper" - from chaperoning events to donating items, our volunteers make everything possible! Click HERE to add your name to our list. There is absolutely no obligation just for signing up - we will simply reach out when opportunities arise and you can decide what works for you!
Shop Spirit Wear - show your Worthingway pride AND support the PTA. 10% of sales come back directly to our school community! Shop the Spirit Store HERE
Volunteer at the Concession Stand - this one is a hidden gem! Our concession stand serves up popcorn, packaged snacks, and drinks during sports seasons - no hot food, no complicated prep, just good fun. It is an easy and enjoyable way to support the school, and we love it when volunteers bring their students along to help. It is a great experience for kids and parents alike! Sign up HERE

Thank you for being part of a school community that shows up, leans in, and gives back - and for being gracious enough to laugh along with me when I make a very human mistake. We are so grateful for each and every one of you. Let's make this year one to remember!

Warmly,

Jennifer Johnson
(Proofread twice this week, I promise.)

Students that are dropped off or picked up by car will enter via our main office entrance (Rieber Street). Buses will drop off and and pick up at our 6th grade entrance (Guyer Street side). Important notes:

Student Safety is our top priority. Please be mindful of our walkers and bike riders (we have bike racks on our bus drop off side). If you exit on the Guyer Street side, please yield to crossing students AND incoming buses.
Doors open at 8:50 for student drop off. Students will be instructed to remain in the cafeteria or gym until 9:03. Classes begin at 9:10 and end at 3:50.
We ask families to pull all the way forward to the end of our main lot at pick up time. Cars that stop at the front doors can create backups that extend onto Rieber St.
You may notice one or two cars in the bus loop at the beginning and end of the day. These vehicles have special permission to be here for their students' transportation needs.

Worthingway Middle School

Mr. Todd Keenan, principal (tkeenan@wscloud.org)

Mrs. Kami Novak, assistant principal (k novak@wscloud.org)

Mrs. Cerita Todd, counselor (ctodd@wscloud.org)

Ms. Lara Ruffing, mental health specialist (lruffing@wscloud.org)

Mr. Nick Wiedenhoft, athletic director (nwiedenhoft@wscloud.org)

Mrs. Paula Lee, administrative assistant (plee@wscloud.org)

Ms. Amanda DeBernardi, administrative assistant (adebernardi@wscloud.org)

Mrs. Shawna Barrett, attendance and testing (wayattend@wscloud.org or click here)

Mrs. Joyce Casey, school nurse (jcasey@wscloud.org)

Location: 6625 Guyer Street, Worthington, OH

Phone: 614-450-4300

School Website

Worthingway Weekly

August 14, 2026

Worthingway Middle School

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Principal's Message Principal's Message

Important UPDATES Important UPDATES

Important REMINDERS Important REMINDERS

Frequently Asked Questions Frequently Asked Questions

Infinite Campus Parent Portal Infinite Campus Parent Portal

PTA Update PTA Update

Athletics Athletics

Pick Up and Drop Off Pick Up and Drop Off

Upcoming Dates Upcoming Dates

Worthingway Middle School

Created with

Communicate quickly and effectively with interactive newsletters.

Principal's Message

Important UPDATES

Important REMINDERS

Frequently Asked Questions

Infinite Campus Parent Portal

PTA Update

Athletics

Pick Up and Drop Off

Upcoming Dates