School news

Katie 3/8/26 Katie 3/8/26

Spirit team celebrates fellow students

Members of the Spirit Team made poster for upcoming Sports and YOH theater.

It has been a wonderful winter season of spirit, celebrating and supporting all the activitiies in our school!

WE ARE WOODSTOCK!

Katie 2/20/26 Katie 2/20/26

Interact Club returns after multi-year hiatus

By Kaitlyn Burres
Interact Club President

This year the Interact Club run by Lori Adams and Kim Carey was able to re-form after a multi-year hiatus. Interact has been a club dedicated to giving to our community and our world. We are a club made up of freshmen through seniors with a strong connection to the Rotary. After a quick start up at the beginning of the year Interact jumped quickly into how we could give back to our community. We have been fortunate enough to be supported by the Rotary throughout this year as well as connect with an Interact Club in Thailand. As Interact gains more funds and strength we hope to give to those in need in Thailand and organize trips there as well. Interact is committed to selfless acts of kindness to all those who need it and will continue to carry this commitment out.

Interact Club chose to kick off our first year back by organizing a canned food drive for those affected by the removal of snap benefits. Interact did a one day drive and gained over $100 worth of donations as well as multiple bags full of canned goods.

Above is a photo of Kaitlyn Burres Speaking at the Rotarian’s Night of Giving as well as the letter sent from the Rotary Club inviting students to accept their generous donation

Although Interact has not been running for long Interact was able to accept a generous donation from Max Comins. Interact was invited to speak at the Rotarian’s Night of Giving and Kaitlyn Burres and Mimi Kanda-Olmstead said words to give their immense thanks to the Rotarians.

Interact members also went to the Reading Elementary School to decorate food donation boxes with the 1st through 4th graders. A large aspect of Interact is building up the community and ensuring kindness and selflessness throughout the younger generations. This was executed perfectly throughout a two hour window organized by Kim Carey. Both Interact members and the Reading Elementary school enjoyed this special event.

Currently, Interact is running a winter clothing drive. In the main lobby every day Interact members collect old winter items that students donate. Many people in the community are not able to afford the necessary items to keep warm this chilly winter. Interact plans to hand these articles of clothing out to those who need them the most.

Katie 12/23/25 Katie 12/23/25

Introducing Spirit Club

The Spirit Club is a newly formed club for the 2025/26 school year. Led by a group of passionate students, their club mission is to encourage support of student activities and create spirit.

Pictured are two of the members who, along with the club created a poster for all Winter Sports and Arts Activities.

There is so much to be spirited about in our School.

WE ARE WOODSTOCK!

We are incredibly fortunate to have Noelle Nunes championing our students and school community. Through Noelle's dedication in organizing Spirit Club, she's empowered students to lead, build connections, and foster the spirit that makes our school special. Noelle's commitment to student voice and school pride doesn't go unnoticed—thank you for all you do to make our school a better place!

Guest User 4/8/25 Guest User 4/8/25

Woodstock Union HS Poetry Out Loud Contest 2025

Woodstock tucked in its 2025 Poetry Out Loud Competition on February 12th, ahead of winter vacation, and just ahead of the second of three big snow storms. Twenty two students participated in the recitation competition, held in The Rhoda Teagle Library, and attended by peers in 9th through 12th grades.
**Pictured above: Owen Courcey as Accuracy Judge**

Poetry Out Loud is a national competition that has its inception in high school classrooms across the country, and grows from there to schoolwide- competitions, state regional competitions, a state final competition and ultimately to a national competition in Washington, D.C.
**Pictured above: Josh Byrne recites "The Conqueror Worm" by Edgar Allen Poe**

Recitation is a particular art. Poetry Out Loud has rigorous judging guidelines, encompassing a student’s physical presence, voice and articulation, interpretation, evidence of understanding, and overall performance. Far more than memorization, in so many words recitation requires the competitor to be the “vessel” for the poem’s performance.
**Pictured above: Liam Wheeler recites "The Kiss" by Robert Graves**

Recitation asks the student to deliver the poem in a way that clarifies the poem’s meaning, makes its words, imagery, figurative language, rhythm and meter, even punctuation, the star, over the person delivering the art. It’s a nuanced experience, demanding exactitude as well as effective interpretation.
**Pictured above: Tula Klock recites "What to Say Upon Being Asked to Be Friends" by Julian Brolaski**

The range of ideas and wisdoms across the twenty two poems students selected from The Poetry Out Loud Anthology was remarkable, cautionary, and encouraging, depending. And yet, “at bottom,” all boils down to “Words” (Haaken Oates’ choice by Pauli Murray) -- words’ selection, combination and arrangement. To offer a small sample: there were pleas for unity and community in poems like Santino Bohren’s recitation of “About Standing (in Kinship),” and Vasco Malik’s delivery of “We all receive the invitation”; Sam Hauze’s prose poem selection, “Don’t Bother the Earth Spirit” and Agnes Kardashian’s interpretation of “Walking with My Delaware Grandfather,” along with Jake Blackborn’s rendition of “Wind, Water, Stone,” offered nostalgic respect for ancestral and/or earthly wisdom, revealing the power of reflection to offer a kind of present eternity.
**Pictured above: Tegan Miller recites "Summer" by Chen Chen**

A number of student selections grappled with war and heroism/anti-heroism, from long ago, as was the case with Luke Pomeroy’s interpretation of Rupert Brook’s “The Soldier,” and Ayron Romanczak’s rendition of Henley’s famous “Invictus,” to the present, as reflected by poems such as Zara Khan’s selection “From the Sky,” or Mimi Kanda-Olmstead’s recitation of “To the Oppressors”. As Kirkegard once said, “Where tragedy occurs, the comic is present.” Such was the case with Josh Byrne’s rendition of “The Conqueror Worm”. In the end, poems having to do with some kind of love and humanity seemed to take the top slots: Quinn Eckler’s recitation of “The Universe as Primal Scream” (Tracy K. Smith) and Liam Wheeler’s rendition of “The Kiss” (Robert Graves) tied for third place (157 points each), Lylah Zeitlin captured second place (170 points), reciting “Siren Song” (Margaret Atwood) and Tegan Miller emerged as Woodstock’s 2025 POL School Champion with 178 points and her recitation of “Summer” by Chen Chen.
**Pictured above: Judges and Scoring Team prepare for the next recitation**

Tegan Miller, ‘27, will represent Woodstock at the southern Vermont Regional Poetry Out Loud Contest to be held at The Barre Opera House on Thursday, March 6th. Tegan will recite “Summer” at that competition, along with a second poem, “Friendship After Love” by Ella Wheeler Wilcox.
**Pictured above: Poetry Out Loud work in the classroom: Guest Teaching Artist Geof Hewitt works with Liam Wheeler on "The Kiss" by Robert Graves**

The state final competition will consist of the top 5 recitations from the southern and northern regional competitions, respectively, and will take place at The Flynn in Burlington on Friday, March 14th, where finalists will recite three poems each to vie for the state champion and the opportunity to represent Vermont at the national competition in Washington, D.C. (April, 2025).
**Pictured above: Mr. Clifford addresses the competitors and audience**

Congratulations to all the students who participated with verve and rigor in Woodstock’s 2025 Poetry Out Loud Contest! Many Thanks to our 2025 judges: Mike Loots, Nathalie Kramer, Janet North, Detlef Hagge, Jessica Oakman, and accuracy judge: Owen Courcey. Ms. SJ as prompter and the dynamic scoring team, Heather Vonada & Andy Smith, along with scoring sheet “runner,” Jack Quicker, were invaluable to delivering a smooth contest, as were Mrs. Murphy and Ms Piccoli in “styling” the library space to accommodate the contest.
**Pictured above: A poem is a sweet treat, but so are Ms. Hayslett's homemade heart cookies, Abbie's homemade pumpkin bread and Perk's oatmeal chocolate chip fruit bars**

Guest User 4/8/25 Guest User 4/8/25

VTLSP/OVX Students attended the State House Rally