Dear Walton Families,

I hope everyone has an enjoyable spring break and comes back well rested for the last seven weeks of school before summer break.  As we get ready for AP exams and EOC testing, the time will go by fast and I want to encourage students to reach out to teachers for help during the last few remaining WEB sessions.

Recently, the Cobb School Board voted to approve our Charter request for an additional five years.  I have sent the paperwork to the state to get our final approval.  They have not given me an exact date, but I hope to be able to share information before we leave for summer break.  

Commit to the W CAPITAL CAMPAIGN

We are significantly behind in our goal compared to last year and support for the Commit to the W campaign is more critical than ever. These funds will provide Walton with the resources needed to fund two full-time teacher salaries.  These positions are critical in ensuring Walton class sizes remain small and we can continue to offer some of the most popular electives.  

If we can take care of our primary goal, we would welcome the opportunity to raise additional funds to utilize on campus for landscaping maintenance not supported by Cobb County, additional mental health resources for our students and to address emerging school needs as they arise.  Please head to the Walton Foundation home page and show your support.  https://www.waltonhighschoolfoundation.org/donate/

Walton’s long history of success has largely been due to outstanding community support.  This is the time of year when our PTSA, Foundation and Booster Clubs will start looking for parent volunteers for the 2023-2024 school year.  Whether you can help at a one-time event or can serve as a board member, please consider saying yes to the call to service.  Not only does engaging with the school help us all connect as a community, but these organizations truly focus on serving our students and giving them opportunities above and beyond what just the school can offer.    

I would like to thank our co-chairs and parent volunteers for organizing the Career Exploration Fair - they worked hard securing volunteers to introduce our students to several career opportunities.  

Career Exploration Fair 2023 – Stats

#Students Attended:  ~400

#Interviews Conducted: 1,095

#Career Coaches - 35

#Walton High Alumni Participating - 5

# Viewing Keynote speaker: 45

#Adult Volunteers - 12

#Student Volunteers - 25

As you will see in this newsletter, our students are continuing to see success in the classroom, on the field and through extracurricular activities.  

Please congratulate our newly-elected TEACHER OF THE YEAR Karen Duncan and CLASSIFIED EMPLOYEE OF THE YEAR Karen Maddin, our School Bookkeeper who helps me stay employed!  We look forward to celebrating them soon.

All the best,
Principal Richard Tischler

As we prepare to enjoy a much-anticipated Spring Break, the Walton PTSA and community have been busy the month of March fulfilling our mission:  Educate, Inspire and Empower.  Thank you to all who have played an active role.

Special thanks to Mr. Tischler, Natalie Collins, Jennifer Hickey, Paige Peck and Mary Katherine Holloway for serving on this year’s Nominating Committee.  See below for the slate of officers that will be presented for election at our April 18 General Membership Meeting.

2023-2024 PTSA Slate of Executive Officers

Co-Presidents: Caroline Whaley and Vicky Rice
VP of Volunteers: Mary Kate Blalock
VP of Programs: Laura Pettus
VP of Communications: Marlene Cohn
Treasurer: Mary Katherine Holloway
Secretary: Paige Peck

Thank you to LeRuth Bell, Niki Walker and Angela Paterson for an outstanding 2023Career Exploration Fair.  On March 15, 35 Career Coaches welcomed over 400 students as they explored and learned about future opportunities and Finding Your Fit. This event is a tremendous undertaking, and we are grateful to all that made it possible.

Finally, thank you to Sandy Sweeney and Margaret McAskill for their work with the Spring Raider Pride Reception.  96 students were recognized in March as Raider Pride recipients.  The Raider Pride Award recognizes students who consistently demonstrate exceptional character traits, including honesty, integrity, and kindness.

Wishing each of you a wonderful Spring Break.  It’s hard to think when we return, we will be in the final push.  Make sure you are receiving the weekly PTSA e-Blast and stay connected on social media to be up to date with all that is going on.

Thank you,

Walton PTSA Co-Presidents

waltonpresident@gmail.com

Congratulations to the following students who were nominated by their teachers this spring.

SENIORS

David Baird

Samuel Beltran

Kyle Chatham

Sebastian Ciminel

Ainsley Clark

Chase Connor

Carmen Cook

Casie Cooper

Catherine Dierker

Preston Freund

Hannah Garas

Lexy Harris

Isabella Herrera

Benji Kuzmin

Samantha Langell

Kang Lee

Pax Loricchio

Brian Michaels

Andres Mier Yedid

Nate Monte

Harrison Morris

Jessica Morse

Piper Pearson

Bailey Raymond

Ella Sgrignoli

Joshua Stauffacher

Harry Tear

JUNIORS

Aara Ahn

Yoni Amram

Ellie Barry

Will Bradley

Terry Brennan

John Burwell

Carsyn Edens

Julie Edler

Zach Evans

Luke Flynn

Sreshta Gadiparthy

Kari Gardner

Omer Inan

Alexandra Johnson

Angelina Ann Johnson

Sophie Landrum

Rich Le

Nichole Lu

Emil Necula

Will Sasadu

Anthony Stoney

Alexander Stricklin

Kadee Teal

Melanie Thalhimer

Will Thorogood

SOPHOMORES

Abigail Armstrong

Nane Arsenyan

Tyler Benko

Buie Crawford

Ethan Dillon

Noelle Hendrickson

Lucas Henry

Lauren Hullender

Joseph Imperatori

Stefano Kern

Hussein Mahmoud

Jobi Medeiros

Haley Mena

Robert Mowry

Taylor Rice

Luke Rogers

Kate Schmidly

Ryan Siegle

Jake Sommer

Jiayi Song

Breanna Sterner

Adelaide Sumsky

FRESHMEN

Amelia Kuzmin

Ethan Baker

Dane Baker

Maya Caudill-Merida

Isabelle Cerqueira Perman

Sam Ghioto

Madison Grella

Shawn Jasrotia

Jay Joshi

Victoria Maselle

Reagan Mulberry

Jake Mundy

MacKenzie Nicholaou

Catherine Pitts

Julia Rutledge

Selah Shockey

Emily Tchou

Cooper Virant

Matthew Wilson

Anna Yang

Sean Zhu

Through the Georgia Scholar program, GaDOE identifies and honors high school seniors who have achieved excellence in school and community life.  Each Georgia Scholar receives a seal for his or her diploma.

Of the 20 scholars selected state-wide who reside in Cobb County, five were from Walton.  Congratulations to Brian Michaels, Sri Dhanya Muppalla, Elise Park, Kanishka Sindhwani and Tianyue Xu.

Thank you very much for all the awesome ways you express appreciation and support for the Powers Ferry community.  Our teachers and staff members were so surprised to receive a special treat from you this week.  Thank you for being so thoughtful and generous. Your kindness brought bright smiles to the faces of our teachers!

Sincerely, Aimee L. Pierre

School Counselor, Powers Ferry Elementary School

Our Enchanted Evening was attended by 750 students, guests and faculty members at the Carlos Center.  It truly was an enchanted evening.

Our 2023 Prom King was Davis Kambies and our Prom Queen was Amala Arun.

A HUGE shoutout to all the PTA volunteers, faculty chaperones, Abby, Pam, and especially Karen.

Walton Art Teacher Kathleen Petka is honored to share the below photos for Youth Art Month.  Chloe Labarthe and Katelin Anderson represented Walton at the Capitol Art Exhibit.  They were able to meet Superintendent Woods and met Senators and Representatives.  Well done!

PTSA was happy to host the 2023 Career Exploration Fair — themed “Finding Your Fit” — during WEB on March 15th.  Over 400 students and 35 career coaches participated.  Almost 1,100 interviews took place and many students stayed to hear keynote speaker Stephanie Street discuss “Choosing, Planning and Preparing for the Career Path of Your Dreams.”  Those who spoke to at least four coaches were treated to a candy reward and entered into a drawing for prizes.

Thank you to the Science department for sending more students than any other department (for the second year in a row!), and to Mr. Nichols and Ms. Boyle for sending the most students of any teachers.

Information was gathered, connections were made, ideas were sparked…and we look forward to doing this again next year!

Under the direction of Mr. Stoner and Dr. Mann, the six choirs of the Walton Choral Department - 9^th Grade Treble, Bel Canto, Men’s Ensemble, Varsity Treble, SWE, and A Cappella, performed for the District Large Group Performance Assessment.  The Walton singers represented the program and school with fabulous performances and were the only school in the county to bring six choirs.

Coached by Amy Merlin and Cathy Facer, Walton’s gymnastics team is on fire!  They won the 1^st place team award for their first five meets this year and are currently ranked third according to GHSA for 6A/7A schools.

Champions!!  Congratulations to the Walton Boys Golf Team on their 1st place win with a score of 298 at the Michael Diem Memorial Tournament!

Coach Fincher would like to congratulate the JV Boys tennis team on another terrific season.  The team was 6-0 in division play this year and won 2 rounds of playoffs before losing in the Finals.  Since 2021, the team is 16-0 in division matches, 6-0 in the playoffs, and has advanced to the Finals 3 straight times.  Great job team!

https://www.waltonhigh.org/Page/10#calendar459/20220715/month

Walton High School 

1590 Bill Murdock Road

Marietta, GA  30062

770-578-3225