📣 Calling all leaders!
KCS is forming a Student Leadership Team — a diverse group of middle, high, and career/technical school students ready to make a difference!
Each school will select 1–2 students who will:
💡 Lead projects that build belonging, wellness, and school pride
💬 Share student perspectives and ideas
🤝 Serve as ambassadors for their school community
See your school administrator for an application — due Dec 1!
🔗 Learn more about this new program on the KCS website
👉 https://kcs.kana.k12.wv.us/article/2539016
KCS is forming a Student Leadership Team — a diverse group of middle, high, and career/technical school students ready to make a difference!
Each school will select 1–2 students who will:
💡 Lead projects that build belonging, wellness, and school pride
💬 Share student perspectives and ideas
🤝 Serve as ambassadors for their school community
See your school administrator for an application — due Dec 1!
🔗 Learn more about this new program on the KCS website
👉 https://kcs.kana.k12.wv.us/article/2539016
❄️🚨 Weather Update – Sunday, November 9, 9:00 p.m. ❄️🚨
After tonight’s 8:00 p.m. briefing with the Charleston National Weather Service, we’ve learned that the forecast has been downgraded — ground temperatures are warm, and the chance of snow sticking is low.
As of now, Kanawha County Schools plans to operate on a normal schedule tomorrow, Monday, November 10.
If the forecast changes overnight and a schedule change becomes necessary, we’ll send an update between 6:00–6:15 a.m. via callout, text, email, and on our social media pages.
After tonight’s 8:00 p.m. briefing with the Charleston National Weather Service, we’ve learned that the forecast has been downgraded — ground temperatures are warm, and the chance of snow sticking is low.
As of now, Kanawha County Schools plans to operate on a normal schedule tomorrow, Monday, November 10.
If the forecast changes overnight and a schedule change becomes necessary, we’ll send an update between 6:00–6:15 a.m. via callout, text, email, and on our social media pages.
The October edition of the KCS Monthly Newsletter is now available 👇
🔗: https://5il.co/3ruj2
Content includes:
🔬A forensics lesson at SCHS
📅 Important November events and reminders
🛠️ HVAC Levy Project Updates
... and more!
💙 Many of our schools operate food pantries to help students and families when extra support is needed. With more families seeking assistance right now, several schools are starting new pantries to meet the growing demand — and schools with existing pantries are continuing to accept donations.
If you’d like to help, please contact your local school—or the school you wish to support—to ask what items are most needed and where donations can be dropped off. Thank you, Kanawha County, for always supporting students. 💛
If you’d like to help, please contact your local school—or the school you wish to support—to ask what items are most needed and where donations can be dropped off. Thank you, Kanawha County, for always supporting students. 💛
🚀 Nitro High School Leads the Way in Online Safety!
🌄 West Virginia is the first state in the nation to partner with Skyll, a new interactive curriculum designed to teach students how to safely and confidently navigate life online. 🌐
Nitro High School 🐾 students are the first in West Virginia to dive into the new Skyll lessons — which use game-based storytelling to help students recognize and respond to real-world digital challenges like scams, bullying, sextortion, and misinformation.
One student summed it up perfectly:
“I’m invested in the story. I NEED to know what happens.”
It’s learning that’s engaging, relevant, and empowering — preparing students not just for the internet, but for life. 💻✨
🌄 West Virginia is the first state in the nation to partner with Skyll, a new interactive curriculum designed to teach students how to safely and confidently navigate life online. 🌐
Nitro High School 🐾 students are the first in West Virginia to dive into the new Skyll lessons — which use game-based storytelling to help students recognize and respond to real-world digital challenges like scams, bullying, sextortion, and misinformation.
One student summed it up perfectly:
“I’m invested in the story. I NEED to know what happens.”
It’s learning that’s engaging, relevant, and empowering — preparing students not just for the internet, but for life. 💻✨
📣 We’re looking for the real MVPs of flexibility — Substitute Teachers! 🏫✨
Like being called “Mr.” or “Ms.” by everyone in the room? ☕🍎
You might just be the substitute teacher we’re looking for!
Join KCS and help keep learning going strong while having fun along the way.
🔗: Apply Today ➡️ https://bit.ly/KCSSubs
Like being called “Mr.” or “Ms.” by everyone in the room? ☕🍎
You might just be the substitute teacher we’re looking for!
Join KCS and help keep learning going strong while having fun along the way.
🔗: Apply Today ➡️ https://bit.ly/KCSSubs
Reminder: No school for students tomorrow — it's a Professional Learning Day for staff! See you Thursday, students!
🎃👻 THURSDAY — Trunk or Treat with KCS! 👻🎃
The KCS Office of Exceptional Students is excited to host a Trunk or Treat for all students with disabilities and their families! 🧡
📅 Date: Thursday, October 16th
📍 Location: Capital High School
🕔 Time: 5:00 – 6:30 PM
Come out for an evening of fun, candy, and community! 🍬✨ We can’t wait to see your costumes and celebrate together.
The KCS Office of Exceptional Students is excited to host a Trunk or Treat for all students with disabilities and their families! 🧡
📅 Date: Thursday, October 16th
📍 Location: Capital High School
🕔 Time: 5:00 – 6:30 PM
Come out for an evening of fun, candy, and community! 🍬✨ We can’t wait to see your costumes and celebrate together.
📣 Reminder for KCS Families
There will be no school for students on Monday, October 13th — it’s Parent/Teacher Conference Day! 🍎
Parent/Teacher conferences are a great opportunity to connect one-on-one with your student's teacher, learn more about how they’re growing, and hear ways you can support their success at home.
If you haven’t already, reach out to your student’s school or teacher to schedule your meeting. Every conversation helps strengthen the partnership that makes learning possible! 💬✨
There will be no school for students on Monday, October 13th — it’s Parent/Teacher Conference Day! 🍎
Parent/Teacher conferences are a great opportunity to connect one-on-one with your student's teacher, learn more about how they’re growing, and hear ways you can support their success at home.
If you haven’t already, reach out to your student’s school or teacher to schedule your meeting. Every conversation helps strengthen the partnership that makes learning possible! 💬✨
🌟 Academic Support for Everyone
Every student deserves the tools to succeed.
Kanawha County Schools has launched a new webpage — Academic Support for Everyone — highlighting the ways we help students stay on track and graduate with their classmates.
From social and emotional learning and personalized education planning to mentoring, tutoring, career readiness, and dropout prevention — this page is your one-stop resource for student success.
If you’re a parent or guardian who simply wants to explore the built-in supports already woven into the KCS curriculum, this page also offers a great overview of what all students receive as part of their education.
Whether your student needs additional support, a mentor, or guidance for life after graduation, KCS is here every step of the way. 💙💚❤️ You can find the page by clicking the link below, or by going to the KCS website ➡️ click menu on the homepage ➡️ look under the Parents/Guardians section ➡️ click on Academic Support Opportunities.
🔗 Explore all available supports (including a list of certified KCS tutors):
https://bit.ly/KCSAcademicSupport
(This page will continue to grow as new programs and supports are added or expanded!)
🌟 Honoring Service, Supporting Students. 🇺🇸
In 2021—on Pearl Harbor Day—the West Virginia Department of Education and Common Ground Partners proudly recognized the first class of Purple Star Schools and Districts across the Mountain State. What began with 130 schools and 3 districts has now grown to 315 schools and 17 districts dedicated to supporting military-connected students and families. 💜
Kanawha County Schools is honored to be among them as a Purple Star District, continuing our commitment to helping students thrive—no matter where their family’s service takes them.
The Purple Star Award is one of many ways the Common Ground Partnership helps make West Virginia one of the best places in the nation to live, work, and raise a family. 🌄
In 2021—on Pearl Harbor Day—the West Virginia Department of Education and Common Ground Partners proudly recognized the first class of Purple Star Schools and Districts across the Mountain State. What began with 130 schools and 3 districts has now grown to 315 schools and 17 districts dedicated to supporting military-connected students and families. 💜
Kanawha County Schools is honored to be among them as a Purple Star District, continuing our commitment to helping students thrive—no matter where their family’s service takes them.
The Purple Star Award is one of many ways the Common Ground Partnership helps make West Virginia one of the best places in the nation to live, work, and raise a family. 🌄
🤖🚔 Nitro High robotics students experienced safety tech in action! The Kanawha County Sheriff’s Bomb Squad rolled in and to show their robot in action! 👀🔥
Robots + public safety = one unforgettable class! 🙌💯
Shout-out to the KCSD team for bringing the 💡 + 💥 and showing how tech helps keep our community safe!
Robots + public safety = one unforgettable class! 🙌💯
Shout-out to the KCSD team for bringing the 💡 + 💥 and showing how tech helps keep our community safe!
The September edition of the KCS Monthly Newsletter is now available 👇
🔗: https://5il.co/3qi3h
Content includes:
🚗 A trip to Safety City
📅 Important October events and reminders
🛠️ Two Roofing Project Updates
... and more!
🔗: https://5il.co/3qi3h
Content includes:
🚗 A trip to Safety City
📅 Important October events and reminders
🛠️ Two Roofing Project Updates
... and more!
🎓✨ Today, 1,261 KCS juniors and seniors took their next steps toward the future at our annual KCS College Fair, hosted at the University of Charleston!
Students had the chance to connect with representatives from 52 colleges, universities, and post-secondary organizations across five states. From asking about majors and financial aid to exploring career paths, this event was all about discovering possibilities. 💡📚✈️
A huge thank you to our incredible school counselors and staff who prepared students to make the most of this opportunity, and to the organizations who showed up to support our students’ dreams. 👏
Together, we’re helping our students see just how many doors are open to them after graduation! 💙💚❤️
Students had the chance to connect with representatives from 52 colleges, universities, and post-secondary organizations across five states. From asking about majors and financial aid to exploring career paths, this event was all about discovering possibilities. 💡📚✈️
A huge thank you to our incredible school counselors and staff who prepared students to make the most of this opportunity, and to the organizations who showed up to support our students’ dreams. 👏
Together, we’re helping our students see just how many doors are open to them after graduation! 💙💚❤️
🎃👻 Trunk or Treat with KCS! 👻🎃
The KCS Office of Exceptional Students is excited to host a Trunk or Treat for all students with disabilities and their families! 🧡
📅 Date: Thursday, October 16th
📍 Location: Capital High School
🕔 Time: 5:00 – 6:30 PM
Come out for an evening of fun, candy, and community! 🍬✨ We can’t wait to see your costumes and celebrate together.
The KCS Office of Exceptional Students is excited to host a Trunk or Treat for all students with disabilities and their families! 🧡
📅 Date: Thursday, October 16th
📍 Location: Capital High School
🕔 Time: 5:00 – 6:30 PM
Come out for an evening of fun, candy, and community! 🍬✨ We can’t wait to see your costumes and celebrate together.
💡📘 Students out — teachers in.
At Herbert Hoover High School, teacher leaders and administrators from every school launched the brand-new KCS Instructional Playbook. This playbook has six “plays” (lessons) designed to boost student confidence, spark engagement, and get everyone involved in learning. These leaders will share the plays back at their schools on the next PL Day so all teachers can put them into action. 🙌 As the year goes on, more "plays" will be added to the playbook!
Meanwhile, our Student Support Services team met at South Charleston High School to collaborate on best practices and strategies that help ensure every KCS student has a healthy, safe, and successful education.
👩🏫👨🏫 PL Days are all about sharpening skills, sharing ideas, and building stronger schools — When our teachers grow, our students win. 💙💚❤️
📸 Check out today’s collaboration in action:
At Herbert Hoover High School, teacher leaders and administrators from every school launched the brand-new KCS Instructional Playbook. This playbook has six “plays” (lessons) designed to boost student confidence, spark engagement, and get everyone involved in learning. These leaders will share the plays back at their schools on the next PL Day so all teachers can put them into action. 🙌 As the year goes on, more "plays" will be added to the playbook!
Meanwhile, our Student Support Services team met at South Charleston High School to collaborate on best practices and strategies that help ensure every KCS student has a healthy, safe, and successful education.
👩🏫👨🏫 PL Days are all about sharpening skills, sharing ideas, and building stronger schools — When our teachers grow, our students win. 💙💚❤️
📸 Check out today’s collaboration in action:
📚💡Calendar Reminder — PL Day
No school for students tomorrow, Wednesday, September 10th.
No school for students tomorrow, Wednesday, September 10th.
🚍 New Way to Find KCS Bus Changes 🚍
We’ve added a “Bus Changes” quick link at the top of the KCS website!
✅ This link will take you to a page with all AM and PM bus changes, organized by terminal.
✅ Beginning Tuesday(9/2), district-wide bus changes will ONLY be posted on this page by the KCS Transportation Department.
✅ Some schools may still share their own school-specific bus changes on Schoology, but district-wide updates will not appear on Schoology anymore.
👉 Be sure to check the “Bus Changes” link daily for the most up-to-date information.
We hope this makes it easier for families to quickly find the information you need!
We’ve added a “Bus Changes” quick link at the top of the KCS website!
✅ This link will take you to a page with all AM and PM bus changes, organized by terminal.
✅ Beginning Tuesday(9/2), district-wide bus changes will ONLY be posted on this page by the KCS Transportation Department.
✅ Some schools may still share their own school-specific bus changes on Schoology, but district-wide updates will not appear on Schoology anymore.
👉 Be sure to check the “Bus Changes” link daily for the most up-to-date information.
We hope this makes it easier for families to quickly find the information you need!
👏 Learning From Leaders
🇺🇸👏 Students from Nitro High School’s ROTC visited Nitro Elementary to work with 5th graders on the importance of flag etiquette. The group also practiced properly raising and lowering the American flag. This student led lesson in leadership is a wonderful example of schools working together! 💙❤️🤍
🇺🇸👏 Students from Nitro High School’s ROTC visited Nitro Elementary to work with 5th graders on the importance of flag etiquette. The group also practiced properly raising and lowering the American flag. This student led lesson in leadership is a wonderful example of schools working together! 💙❤️🤍
👩🎓🔥 Breaking barriers at Nitro High!
Drew, a student who is visually impaired, is using The Monarch — a revolutionary device that lets him read braille text and tactile graphics at the same time. And a new app "Wing It" is leveling up the potential of this device!
🌟 Innovation in Action at Nitro High School! 🌟
Drew is putting the Monarch to work in his engineering class, exploring complex concepts through touch and gaining instant access to the same materials as his peers.
The Monarch is a first-of-its-kind, multi-line braille display with a library of more than 1,800 tactile graphics. It’s opening doors to new ways of learning, problem-solving, and creating. 💡👏
Even more exciting? With the new Monarch Wing It app, teachers and students can draw graphics on their devices and watch them instantly appear on the Monarch — giving visually impaired students immediate access to the same visuals as their classmates.
This week, Drew came in with a request: a tactile graphic of Nitro High School’s football field — complete with textures showing the bleachers, track, and more — for an engineering project. Without the Monarch and Wing It app that request could have taken hours (or even a week!) to create — but was ready in seconds.
In the photos below, Drew is working with his teacher, Mr. Wolfe, as they review the dimensions of the school’s scoreboard in engineering class.
This is inclusion and innovation at its very best. 💙
Drew, a student who is visually impaired, is using The Monarch — a revolutionary device that lets him read braille text and tactile graphics at the same time. And a new app "Wing It" is leveling up the potential of this device!
🌟 Innovation in Action at Nitro High School! 🌟
Drew is putting the Monarch to work in his engineering class, exploring complex concepts through touch and gaining instant access to the same materials as his peers.
The Monarch is a first-of-its-kind, multi-line braille display with a library of more than 1,800 tactile graphics. It’s opening doors to new ways of learning, problem-solving, and creating. 💡👏
Even more exciting? With the new Monarch Wing It app, teachers and students can draw graphics on their devices and watch them instantly appear on the Monarch — giving visually impaired students immediate access to the same visuals as their classmates.
This week, Drew came in with a request: a tactile graphic of Nitro High School’s football field — complete with textures showing the bleachers, track, and more — for an engineering project. Without the Monarch and Wing It app that request could have taken hours (or even a week!) to create — but was ready in seconds.
In the photos below, Drew is working with his teacher, Mr. Wolfe, as they review the dimensions of the school’s scoreboard in engineering class.
This is inclusion and innovation at its very best. 💙
