The Future is Bright

As a relatively new person living in Cass County, I was surprised and honored when asked to help with the interview process for winter homecoming at Harrisonville High School. I have been involved in many interviews, but never for King and Queen of a school. To my delight and hope, every single one of these young men and women were positive, involved, smart, and well groomed. It was a fun morning and I left Harrisonville High School with a renewed sense of excitement for the future of our country.

- Jane Wallace, Executive Director

Cass County Historical Society, Inc.

I truly appreciate the opportunity to be a part of the interview process.  The experience was outstanding for me because of one reason - the students. All of the candidates were very impressive regarding their character and service within their school and the community. I am proud to be a citizen of the Harrisonville and this experience gave me one more reason. Regardless of who is crowned King and Queen, all the candidates should be proud for being selected by their peers for this great honor. 

- Chris Deal, Director

Harrisonville Parks and Recreation

I appreciate greatly the opportunity to do interviews for Winter Homecoming.  Harrisonville is very fortunate to have such an impressive group of students.  It was a very difficult task given that each and every candidate was so tremendous.  What struck me most was that each of the candidates clearly saw in their future the obligation of assisting others in some way.   They each were concerned with making their school and their community a better place and that they saw themselves a necessary part of that.  Thank you for that opportunity.  I am sure I gained much more from the experience than the students did from the interviews. 

- Anonymous Interviewer

Thanks HES & ECC

I recently had the pleasure of visiting Harrisonville Elementary School and Harrisonville Early Childhood Center with some teachers from our school district.  The purpose of our visit was to observe the use of the Math in Focus curriculum in elementary classrooms.  The positive conversations that the teachers' lessons have sparked for the Clinton teachers regarding their triumphs, struggles and questions about Math in Focus are priceless.  After talking with some of our teachers, I have discovered that they are already reflecting and implementing essential components of the program in lessons that they gathered from Harrisonville teachers' classrooms.  I think that they were able to walk away from the HES and ECC with a clear idea of what Math in Focus looks like in a developed classroom and truly see the impact that this math series can have on students. 

Beyond the math series, they were also very impressed with classroom/behavior management and the welcoming, warm feelings that both buildings provided.  A special thanks to the teachers and administrators for allowing us to come and watch you do what you are all so wonderful at doing.  Harrisonville Schools never disappoints when it comes to true, real and useful classroom instruction.

- Annie Knox, Asst. Principal, Henry Elementary, Clinton School District

Giving Spirit

I recently received an email and pictures from an HHS graduate in the Army who is currently stationed in Afghanistan.  Before Christmas, Ms. Susie Yoder's Foods classes prepared cookies and sent them to the troops. As our graduate soldier put it, "I would like to show great appreciation not only from my self but everyone else in my squad that got to enjoy the treats. It’s little things like that over here that make your day and put a smile on your face. . . I just want to say thank you from all the guys here and myself for all of your support and all the work that got put into making and sending out that package."   In addition, the postage for the mailing was taken care of by a Sunday School Class at the United Methodist Church and the Cass County Elks Lodge.  What a great example of the giving spirit by our students, staff, & community!

 - Mr. Andy Campbell, HHS Principal

Beyond the Classroom

We have so many excellent teachers at HHS who go above and beyond for our students.  Dr. Roseann Hoffman is one such example.  She took her own personal time on a Saturday earlier this month to take a group of students to the Nuclear Power Plant in Fulton, MO.  She set up this trip and drove the students there.  They spent the entire day touring the facility and were taken out to dinner by their host.  The students who went had a great experience and learned a lot about the real world application of what they are learning in school.

 - Mr. Andy Campbell, HHS Principal

Impressive Performance

I had the opportunity to accompany high school students to a production at the New Theatre, a theatre where guests enjoy dinner and a show.  The group included students in the Drama Club and FCCLA (Family, Career, & Community Leaders of America).  After the first act, our server approached Drama Club sponsor Mrs. Snowden and said, “The servers here always get nervous and sometimes dread it when we hear that a high school group is coming.”  He went on to say that our group had proven them wrong.  He told her that our students were well behaved and respectful as a group and he wanted her to know.  It was no surprise to me that our students dressed and behaved in manner that we would expect of Wildcats.  However, it’s wonderful when other people notice it too.  I know the students had a good time and enjoyed the day and I did too.  Special thanks to Mrs. Snowden and FCCLA sponsor Mrs. Yoder for making this day happen for our students. 

-       Dr. Bryan McDonald, Superintedent

Artwork Amazes

Harrisonville High School has many outstanding things occurring on a daily basis.  Our students continually amaze me each and every day.  I could write about their accomplishments both big and small for hours. One area that always intrigues me concerns the art that students create. The pieces they make are simply amazing. Our teachers do a wonderful job rotating the pieces in the main corridor of the high school. It is not unusual to see all of us that work in the main office come out to the hallway and stare as Mrs. Chaney or Mrs. Bruns start to rotate the pieces.  Equally intriguing is seeing the name of the student who created the art.  Some of our most talented artists have never uttered a word about their amazing talent to me in any of the casual conversations we have had over the years they have been in the high school.  Further, I also love the fact that in the four years I have been here we have never once had an incident of any vandalism or damage to a single piece of student artwork. It makes me not only proud of the students who created it, but also all of the students who choose every day to admire it and respect the effort of their fellow students.

- Dr. Beavers, HHS Asst. Principal

Let's Get Started

This blog's title echoes a phrase commonly heard at pep rallies, sporting events, and activity competitions.  It's meant to instill pride in participants when they are headed into competition or when they've achieved success.  

However, the phrase can be used to describe every day in our schools and community.

We are so very lucky to live in a community in which we are all Wildcats.  Each and every day, there are stories to share about successes, achievements, kindness, generosity, compassion, and hard work.  We have nearly 400 staff members, 2,600 students, countless parents and family members, and 10,000 community members who make it a "Great Day to be a Wildcat" in Harrisonville.

This blog will be a place to share those stories.  It will be different from many blogs as there will not be one author, but many.  We want you to share the stories that illustrate the blog title.   The stories can be short or long, anonymous or credited.  They can be from the classroom, grocery store, athletic field...anywhere you experience the feeling that "It's a Great Day to be a Wildcat."

These stories can be e-mailed to jill.filer@harrisonvilleschools.org.   We do reserve the right to exercise editorial control over what is posted here.