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 - Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | YouTube | LinkedIn

• Dec. 6: Community Conversation - 6 p.m. at Walnut Creek Middle School
• Dec. 7: Board of Education Regular Meeting
  
• Dec. 8-10: WLC presents "Fools" - Tickets at www.wlcstickets.com
• Dec. 12 - 13: Collage Concert, Northern, 7 p.m.. Tickets available at www.wlcstickets.com
• Dec. 15: Collage Concert, Central, 7 p.m.. Tickets available at www.wlcstickets.com
• Dec. 19: Collage Concert, Western, 7 p.m.. Tickets available at www.wlcstickets.com

Visit www.wlcsd.org/calendar for a complete list of events with details.

WLCSD will be hosting a community conversation about student mental health and school safety. The event will be held in the Walnut Creek Middle School media center on Wednesday, December 6 at 6:00 p.m. District administration will share information about funding opportunities available to local school districts in the State of Michigan and listen to input from the community.

Follow along on Tech Saturday as Walled Lake Western senior Brianna Kanable takes over our Instagram story. She'll give us a behind the scenes look at the preparations for opening night on Friday, December 8.

Make sure to follow us on Instagram for all of the fun!

Walled Lake Central senior Ben Swanson etched his name in the Walled Lake Cobra history books becoming the first player ever to be recognized as All-State.

Swanson was named second team All-State by the Michigan Water Polo Association. The Cobra’s hole set had 164 goals, 46 assists, 108 steals and 26 blocked shots in the 2023 season. Swanson was also named first team All-East Region.

Walled Lake Western’s Gavin Noonan and Liam Vaughan were named first team All-State in Division 3 by the Michigan High School Football Coaches Association.

Noonan, who’s a senior, averaged an impressive 8.5 yards per carry this past season. He rushed for 1,734 yards, had 189 yards receiving, and 30 total touchdowns in 2023, as well as racked up 214 yards on kick returns. Noonan was also recognized as All-Conference and All-Region.

Junior Liam Vaughan put together an incredible season of his own. The two-way lineman didn’t allow a single sack, quarterback pressure, quarterback hit, and had 104 pancake blocks in 2023. On the defensive side of the ball, Vaughan finished the year with 12 tackles, 2.5 sacks, 3 tackles for loss and a blocked punt. Vaughan has earned first team All-Conference, All-Region, and has been named one of four finalists for the Michigan Anvil Award. The Michigan Anvil Award is given annually to the state’s top player who is either an offense lineman, defensive lineman or linebacker. Vaughan is the only finalist who’s a junior and offensive lineman.

Walled Lake Western head coach Kory Cioroch was also recognized as the Division 3, Region 4 Coach of the Year for the second-straight season after leading Walled Lake Western to back-to-back Lakes Valley Conference Championships and its first District Championship since 2019.

The entire Walled Lake Consolidated Schools community is invited to attend the District's 25th Annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Celebration on Monday, January 15, 2024. This year's celebration will at Walled Lake Northern High School with a tour of student exhibits starting at 5 p.m. and a formal program starting at 6:15 p.m.

This year’s theme is “You Belong” with the focus on inclusivity. Our keynote speaker is Kevin Szawala, aka “Mr. Peace”. Kevin is a National Youth Speaker and Michigan native who travels the county speaking to students and schools on the topics of bullying prevention, diversity and inclusion, teen mental health, and suicide awareness.

Students of WLCSD are welcomed to submit an Express Yourself project. The theme for this year’s project is “You Belong”. Students should create a project that expresses what this theme means to them. Projects can be a speech, an essay, a picture, a poem, a drawing, a video, a musical piece or any other format to express “You Belong".

The winner(s) of this contest will share their projects, on stage, at the 25th annual WLCSD MLK Day Celebration. This is a great opportunity to recognize students and their creativity. It is by far the crowd’s favorite part of the MLK Celebration. Check out the project details and entry form.

All entries must be submitted to a school office by Wednesday, December 13.

Walled Lake Consolidated Schools is seeking nominations for the 2024 Alec Bender Friend of Diversity Award. This award honors individuals who are true friends of multicultural diversity in our school district and community. This honor will be bestowed on the recipient(s) WLCSD 25th Annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Celebration on January 15, 2024.

Any student, staff, community member, local business, or local organization is eligible to be nominated. Any member of the Walled Lake Schools community may submit a nomination.

Nominations must be submitted through the nomination form by Friday, December 8.

In an effort to celebrate our staff, the WLCSD Community Relations department requests that families fill out the form below to nominate 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.

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