PARENT EAGLE NEWS

Congratulations to Our 2025-2026 Teacher of the Year & Educational Services Professional of the Year! We are so proud to celebrate two outstanding members of our school community whose dedication, passion, and commitment make a difference every single day.

Teacher of the year: Mrs. Heather Kramer

Educational Services Professional of the Year: Mrs. Kathy Dreger

Please join us in congratulating both of these amazing members of our WDHS staff!

On Wednesday, January 7th, West Deptford High School will host its FIRST Annual Alumni Sharing Day!

A panel of recent WDHS graduates will be back in the building to talk about their real-world experiences in college and trade school: what surprised them, what helped them the most, and what they wish they had known!

Our alumni are now studying at institutions such as Penn State University, the University of Delaware, and the Ford ASSET Program at RCSJ.

This is an awesome chance for students to hear directly from people who were in their shoes not too long ago!

Students: Be sure to sign up to gain valuable insight into navigating high school, the college search & application process, and what life is really like at their current schools!

Check your email for the Google Form to sign up or stop by the WDHS Counseling Office!

Don’t miss it!

Please remember that drinks and snacks should not be dropped off at school during the day. This helps minimize classroom disruptions and ensures all students follow the same guidelines. Lunches that students may have forgotten at home may still be dropped off if needed. Thank you for your cooperation and support in keeping our school day running smoothly!

Business/Marketing Ed – Lily Duong - not pictured

World Language – Neiko Bartolett-Hammond

Science – Jason Bain

Social Studies – CJ Mielechowsky

Visual & Performing Arts – Aryna Makar

English – Kayleigh Miller

Guidance – Chester Reklewski

Health/PE – Anthony Bosco

Mathematics –Alexis Stewart

Applied Tech – Paul Yaffe - not pictured

Business/Marketing Ed – Isabella Sylvester

World Language – Nyla Thompson

Science – Randy Lucero-Miguel

Social Studies –Juliyah Solomon

Visual & Performing Arts –Melody Parisi

English – Mylie Quinton

Guidance – Ethan Perry

Health/PE – Breydan Halter

Mathematics –Aziz Rabbani

Applied Tech – Stella Afflerbach

Congratulations to the newly inducted members of the West Deptford Chapter of the National Honor Society! We are all very proud of your accomplishments!!

Congratulations to this year's World Language Honor Society Inductees. These students were honored on December 2nd, in our high school auditorium. Thank you to our World Language Department for their efforts in recognizing these students' accomplishments.

Today, students in Mrs. Thayer's class visited Lincoln Financial Field, visited the sensory room, and got to tour the entire stadium.

The kids in Mrs. Thayer’s class have been busy this month! From packing to help families in need through Operation Blessing, to decorating the front entrance for the holidays, and finally finishing off with a visit to the brand new library!

Thirty WDHS STEM Club students presented Science Snacks to fifty 7th & 8th graders at the middle school. The Snacks included: Preventing an inflated balloon from exploding when held over a flame, creating a cloud in a 2Liter soda bottle, getting a magnet wire to dance, hearing music by biting on a pencil, making colored water from electrolysis, experimenting with the moment of inertia, knocking down a tower of cans with an air canon, making a lava lamp, slime worms, and observing photosynthesis.

The AP Physics C students got a conductive ball to continuously smack between 2 pie plates, and then explained how they could increase the ball's speed, or even stop the smacking without touching the ball.

The high school students learned how to be teachers, and the middle school students got to play with hands-on science. It was a great day!

Click the link to view the science snacks pictures:

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1qc02Imr2c-5X1hqeG1U3srW_WykAQQb6?usp=sharing

Some of our winter student-athletes attended our Colonial Conference Sportsmanship breakfast on Friday morning! Special shout-out to Positive Coach US and Coach Randy for an awesome presentation!

12 Teams. 1 Goal. Sportsmanship!!

M3 Challenge: Using Math and Data to Solve Real-world Problems

MathWorks Math Modeling Challenge is an entirely internet-based math modeling competition with no registration or participation fees. Schools in the U.S., England, and Wales are eligible to enter in teams of three to five students. Over $1.95 million has been awarded through 2025.

Unlike other math competitions!

• Address a real open-ended problem

• Use your math skills – all levels welcome!

• Work as a team under flexible 14-hour time constraint

• Access tons of free resources – books, videos, tutorials

• Finalists win scholarships & go to NYC to present with expenses paid

• Try for extra technical computing awards

• 37 team scholarship awards, so go for it!

Please see Mr. Seeley if you are interested!

Girls Who Code is an international nonprofit organization that aims to close the gender gap in technology by inspiring, educating, and equipping girls and non-binary individuals with computing skills.

We will be meeting on Wednesdays during homeroom in the Media Center.

Anyone who joins for our first meeting in January will be eligible to receive a free t-shirt!

For more information, use the Google Classroom code ic57pyv. Any questions, see Mr. Seeley!

For Computer Science Education Week, GWC celebrated by creating some Post-It Note Pixel Art in the stairwell windows. Pictured are some of the members of the club after adding the finishing touches to Ms. Pac Man and Inky!

Back by popular demand, Garden State Cyber will be holding a Capture the Flag competition, the first round of which will run from Tuesday, February 24th through Saturday, February 28th. Like last year, this will be a two-round competition designed to engage students at a wide range of ability levels. More details will be forthcoming, and we are excited to provide NJ cybersecurity students with a chance to grow and showcase their skills!

Anyone interested in putting together or being part of a team, please see Mr. Seeley!

• The Winter months are coming! If your child has asthma and may need to carry a rescue inhaler at school/sports, and an asthma action plan has not been turned into the Health Office, please have your child see the Nurse for a plan. The forms are also available online on the high school's main webpage under the Nurse tab and click "printable forms" (Asthma Action Plan & Self Administration of Medication). See link here: https://hs.wdeptford.k12.nj.us/cms/One.aspx?portalId=3686&pageId=61914

• Please do not send your child to school with a fever (temperature 100.4 or greater) or other symptoms of illness and have them see the nurse for dismissal. Please evaluate your child before school and take him/her to a medical provider if needed. Please obtain a note for school to turn into the Attendance Office (if school is missed for an appointment).

• As a reminder, please have all Physical Education excuse notes delivered to the School Nurse.

• Seniors are encouraged to start exploring scholarship opportunities. As we receive scholarship information, we will post it under the scholarship tab in Naviance. Students can then link directly to the application.

• Scholarship searches can also be done through your Collegeboard account, as well as the following websites: fastweb.com; goingmerry.com; sallie.com.

• A virtual Financial Aid Night will be held on January 7, 2026, at 6:30 pm.
• A financial aid expert from NJ’s Higher Education Student Assistance Authority will present an overview of the financial aid process and walk families through completing the FAFSA form.
• All seniors and their parents/guardians were sent information about this new FAFSA COMPLETION graduation requirement.

All seniors and their parents/guardians were sent information about this new graduation requirement as well as resources and links to assist with filing the FAFSA.

· The 2026-2027 FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) is now available online.

Rowan University is offering a MEDacademy Summer Program at Cooper Medical School:

• MEDacademy is a four-week summer program geared towards motivated and talented rising high school juniors and seniors who have an interest in entering medicine.
• Students are exposed to four featured medical specialties - Pathology, Cardiopulmonary, Gastroenterology, and Neurology - and participate in lectures, hands-on demonstrations, case-based learning activities, and interactive clinical simulations taught by faculty, medical students and staff.
• The MEDacademy Program will take place starting Monday June 29th - July 24th 2026 - 9:30am-3:30 pm at Cooper Medical School of Rowan University.
• Tuition for the four-week program is $3,000. Limited scholarships are available.· Online Application (Located within this link in addition to additional program details: https://cmsru.rowan.edu/education/academic-credit-programs/medacademy.html

The NJ Governor’s School Program is an intense, three-week residential experience at either Rutgers or Drew University, where NJ’s best and brightest students come together to study and do research. Programs for the summer of 2026 will be offered at Rutgers New Brunswick, in Engineering & Technology, as well as at Drew University in the Sciences.

WDHS can only nominate one junior for each of these programs. Interested students should rank in the top of their class and must see Mrs. Quindlen by December 8th for consideration.

West Deptford High School has partnered with Camden County College to offer the High School Plus (Dual Credit) program right here at West Deptford High School during the 2025/2026 school year. This program allows students to potentially earn college credits for classes they may already be taking at WDHS. Eligible students and their families were emailed the information as well as the registration link.

Credits: These credits are NOT just good at CCC; they are highly transferable to other colleges and universities.

Registration Deadline: Students who are interested in earning these credits must complete the dual credit registration form by February 27, 2026. Students who do not register before February 27 will not be eligible to receive dual credit this year.

College Credit Cost: $150 per course.

How to Register: Click HERE to access the Application and Registration link.

The SAT will be given on March 14th, 2026. Register NOW at collegeboard.com if interested. Fee waivers may be available for qualifying families. Please see your school counselor for more details.

Interested students can register at www.collegboard.com.

• Families who qualify for free or reduced lunch are eligible for a fee waiver. Please contact your school counselor for more information.
• If you are not sure if you should take the SAT, please talk with your school counselor.

Today some of our WDMS 7th grade students got to come over to visit WDHS!! They toured the halls, ate lunch in the cafeteria, and visited some classes they are interested in taking when they come to high school in two years! They had a great day and we enjoyed having them! We are looking forward to the next group coming to visit soon!

PARENT/TEACHER ORGANIZATION

The WDHS Parent Organization will meet several times during the 2025-26 school year in the high school Media Center. All parents are welcome to attend and participate in the organization's various activities. Please check our high school calendar for the MOST CURRENT meeting DATES and TIMES.

Services this group provides to our students include scholarships and Project Graduation activities.

Your involvement and support are greatly needed to continue providing our students with these and many more activities. We hope to see you at one of our meetings.

You can read the PTO NEWS LETTER AND SIGN UP TO BECOME A MEMBER HERE.

Email: mspaventa@wdeptford.k12.nj.us

Principal: Mrs. Michelle Spaventa

HS Website: https://hs.wdeptford.k12.nj.us

Location: 1600 Crown Point Road, West Deptford. NJ, 08093

Phone: 856-848-6110

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61552841374461

X: https://x.com/WDHSATHLETICS

WDHS YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@WDHSTV