On October 29, WSHS Principal Chase Bartlett spoke to the Kiwanis club. This is his second year to be principal at Winnfield Senior High School. He said he was very excited to receive an invitation to speak to the group. He appreciates that Kiwanis is changing the world one child at a time. 

In his opinion there is no place like Winnfield and he would not like to live anywhere else. You can assess a school based on its community.  He knows that WSHS has been a priority in the lives of most of the people in the room. He knows that we expect good, positive results from our schools. He is trying to cultivate a culture of excellence at WSHS. He asked the question of the assistant principal one of his first days as principal:  “What do we do to make WSHS the best school in the state?”  His answer was “Acknowledge our weaknesses and improve every day.” This is what Bartlett has written on a piece of paper on his desk. 

Their challenge was establishing a culture that expects every student to be the best they could be. They also want to be personal with the students. The question is “What does it mean to be excellent?”  The first year the theme was “Excellence Without Excuses.”  This year the theme is “Excellence every day in every way.” If the students know that the faculty cares about them then they can believe. 

He is proud of the students and teachers accomplishments. They blend academic and extracurricular activities in their success. They are bringing back declining clubs such as the Beta Club.  There is much success in the FFA and FHA programs. He takes pride in the increase in the size of the band. They have increased from 10 to 40. This year’s band director is a product of the Winnfield band and school system. There are many athletic opportunities.  Tutoring sessions (2 days a week) have been established for athletes and students involved in extracurricular activities to help them keep up their grades. 

Bartlett said the more we put into our students, the more we care, the more their excellence each day. Schools, of course, are graded. Their score (SPS rating) was 86.4 two years ago. He believes that when the numbers come out in a few weeks that the score will have increased. 

Questions were asked about the school day which has 8 periods (53 minute class periods) and is working better than the block system worked. The teaching profession is competitive and the four-day work week has attracted new people.

Principal Chase Bartlett is very enthusiastic about his job as principal and it shows in the way he talks about his school.