McGuffey School District held a special Board meeting on September 27, 2021, during which inaccurate information was given to parents in the audience concerning Western Area.

First, I want to make it clear to all parents and guardians that Western Area NEVER COVID-tested any students at our school. We do daily temperature checks on students as they enter the building to identify students that may have a fever so they do not enter into the school ill. Our main goal is to keep all students safe. This is the reason for temperature checks.

Secondly, it was reported that we opened and closed the school several times during the school year. This, too, is inaccurate. Because we house students from ten sending schools, adjustments must be made when several of our larger schools close. It is true, however, that when several teachers became ill we did close our building to thoroughly disinfect the school pursuant to DOH guidelines. I would like to add that we were congratulated for remaining open most of the school year.

We will continue to remain vigilant in helping combat this dreadful virus. Our Health and Safety Plan states that all students attending Western Area will be required to wear a face covering. We are going with face masks and/or shields. Gators are not acceptable per DOH recommendation.

Unless directed to close the school by our sending districts or the Department of Health, our goal is to remain open. If we have to close school, students will continue to learn through our Zoom capabilities and Google Classroom. Teachers will continue to teach our students daily whether it be in person or virtually.

Hopefully this clears up any rumors or misinformation you may have heard from the McGuffey special meeting.

I want to personally thank all of our parents and guardians for your patience with the COVID confusion we are having these days. Please note that we are requiring that all students wear masks when attending our school.

Because Career and Technical programs differ from the home school classes, and to ensure the safety of our students and staff, mask wearing is required. Our students spend very little time in theory and a lot of time doing hands-on activities working very closely with their teachers and other students in teams or small groups. You really can’t learn welding, auto mechanics or collision repair from a text book. You have to get down-right dirty.

We are excited to start off this new school year. We will continue to do monthly parent meetings both in the AM and PM and will be announced on our website. You will be kept updated on everything that is happening at the school so you are informed and aware of our happenings. We feel these meetings are very beneficial and provide you the opportunity to ask questions you may have about the school or decisions that have been made.

We are also very excited that this is our school’s 50^th anniversary. A few days of celebration are being planned toward the end of our school year. As soon as our plans are finalized, we want everyone to come back to Western Area to see all the changes, teachers, and maybe even a picture of you if you were a student here a few years back. We will keep you updated on this event as we continue to meet and discuss our celebration plans.

Again thank you for all your cooperation and patience with us. These are definitely different times in education. Please be assured that we are doing everything we can to keep everyone as safe as possible.

In order to dispel any confusion, mask wearing is mandatory at Western Area CTC for all students and employees at this time until further notice.

Well, we did it! Our school year was completed with great success! This goes to show you that no matter what obstacle is thrown in front of us we are able to achieve our goals.

We made it through the year with a limited number of COVID cases. And, when we had it in our building, we continued to deliver education via Zoom and Google Classroom. Even though this may not have seemed the best way to teach our Career and Technical classes, the enthusiasm and support displayed by our students and parents was greatly appreciated. A special “thank you” is extended to our teachers and support staff for doing an excellent job throughout the school year. This was a challenge you faced without hesitation. I knew you could do it!

First, we had three great days for our Certificate Ceremonies. Our “drive-thru graduation” brought not only fun but great car decorations. If you did not know, on each day we had a “best decorated car” contest to win great gift cards. The cars were decorated with a lot of thought and a variety of themes. To view the video of the ceremonies and parade of cars, visit Western Area Career & Technology Center Home - Facebook. Again, Congratulations to our seniors!  We wish you much success in all that you do.    

Now, summer. I hope everyone has a great summer. We will be back in full force in August-- August 25^th for teachers, and August 27^th for our students. This time will fly by, so enjoy the months that we have off. This will be a time to reflect on the past year and see how we can improve the next school year.

This year will mark our 50^th anniversary as a Career and Technical school in Washington County. Stay tuned for some great celebrations planned for the upcoming school year. We have started to put together a committee to help us come up with a great celebration. If you are interested in helping with our celebration, please call and let me know. We still have to select the month, day, or days that we will be celebrating. We are hoping for a great time.

We will be continuing with our Parent Meetings starting in August. Check our website for the Zoom link.

We look forward to another great school year. Enjoy your summer!