At the Tuesday, October 15 Board of Education meeting, SHP Architects Gregor Lewis and Jenny Gallow updated the Board on the new Kings High School building project.

They showed the board the overall site plan, including parking, traffic flow, and landscaping. In the photos below you can see how the exterior and interior designs are starting to take shape. They are working on materials, window patterns, and brick detailing. Additionally, they are working on how the design fits into teaching and learning and safety and security considerations.

The new high school will be a 3-story building with a great deal of natural light. It will also contain a first-floor and second-floor outdoor courtyard. You can watch the entire presentation beginning at the 2:15 mark to learn more.

The National Bureau of Economic Research, in their paper School Starting Age and Cognitive Development, found that children who are older when they begin kindergarten have a measurable advantage compared to their younger classmates over the long term. They tend to achieve higher test scores later in their academic careers and are more likely to attend college.

The Ohio Department of Education & Workforce allows school districts to choose either August 1 or September 30 as the cutoff date by which a child must be five years old to enter kindergarten. The Kings Local School District currently uses September 30 as the kindergarten entrance date. 

On Tuesday, October 15, the Kings Board of Education approved the changing of the kindergarten entrance date from September 30 to August 1, effective at the beginning of the 2025-2026 school year. This date change will also affect our students entering preschool at the Kings Early Childhood Center. Aligning with the District’s kindergarten entrance date, preschool children must be 3 by August 1 to enroll. 

The increased expectations in school are most challenging for our youngest learners.  Moving the entrance date to August 1 will allow some children an extra year to grow, helping them develop critical cognitive, social, and emotional skills. This additional time can lead to improved academic performance and long-term success.

Congratulations to the newest members of the Kings High School National Honor Society! The new members were inducted in a special ceremony at KHS on Thursday, October 17.

Lucy Ajebe, Paige Alford, Ofek Alon, Zach Arnold, Bennett Aston, Adalyn Aust, Daniela Balbi, Kiley Beck, Madison Butler, Gabby Cabrera, Joshua Cassio, Lucy Circello, Landon Clark, Connor Coyan, Sydney Coyan, Leah Daniel, Jenna Dargo, Aubrey Davis, Ryan Doughman, Savannah Douglas, Fiona Dwyer, Bridget Emery, Sammy Evans, Alexandria Farnham, Julie Gatto, Kara Grassman, Samantha Green, Akshita Gupta, Mirabella Gustafson, Greyson Hackbarth, Reese Hanlon, Derek Harris, Lily Hearn, Mason Hiegl, Jonathan Hoeting, Jacob Hollingsworth, Melana (Laney) Howes, Zach Hoying, John Hurst, Joshua Johnson, Caiden Kachele, Erica Katenkamp, Madelyn Kirby, Taylor Kleis, Drew Kohls, Sydney Konow, Natalie Land, Eden Lenney, Sydney Lewis, Lura Links, Ben Lockwood, Max Lockwood, Mallory Looney, Julia Lowry, Corina Macy, Arianna Maldonado, Averie Manley, Lucy Marketos, Sophia Mays, Neely McElhaney, Ava McIntyre, Chloe McKee, Caedmon McKee, Sofia McLain, Levi Miller, Leah Mitchener, Ella Morales, Sasha Neyman, Emma Niebauer, Natalie Nieuwoudt, Grant Nurre, Alison O'Rourke, Oscar Ortiz, Grace Parkhurst, Emiliana Pavlova, Brennan Pirk, Andrew Prater, Ben Pugh, Leah Race, Rebekah Reed, Logan Reyes, Sophia Richardson, Taylor Robinson, Ella Roundtree, Shelby Sagel, Allana Sarell, Nora Schult, Delaney Sealy, Keira Serrano, Ellie Sharp, Andrew Skerl, Malina Sok, Brayden Sparks, Audrey Spring, Addy Stylski, LilyAnn Takle-Flach, Gracie Tapp, Averi Taylor, Madison Titler, Gowthami Vidhya, William Watkins, Anna Wiery, Jake Williams, Rhys Williams, and Sam Zilliox

In a grand display of Pride and Togetherness, the entire Kings Junior High School student body of over 700 students spelled out "PACT" on the football field during PACT day on Thursday, October 17.

PACT - Pride. Attitude. Commitment. Together., represents KJH's school-wide initiative and the values they strive to instill in our educational community. Through this program, they have the opportunity to celebrate the outstanding achievements of their remarkable students! 

The day was built around creating relationships, teamwork, and spending time together with activities that help remind and further enrich the PACT qualities.

Congratulations to Kings High School Junior, Ali O'Rourke who was selected as a winner in her age group in the COSI Jurassic Art: An Exploration of the T. rex Tyrannosaurus Rex art contest.

Her digital illustration will be on display during the T. Rex: The Ultimate Predator Exhibition from November 2, 2024, through March 2, 2025, at COSI, 333 West Broad St., Columbus, Ohio.

Columbia Intermediate School Student Council recently spent some time on redesigning the CIS Playground.

The students ranked their current equipment, thought about priorities for play spaces, looked at and discussed the new locations, and finally, in small groups, drew diagrams of what they thought their future playground should look like.

On Tuesday, October 8, the Council had the unique opportunity to present their designs to Architects, Abby, and Tom from SHP, the architecture firm working on the new CIS addition. 

CIS Principal, Shelley Detmer-Bogaert said, "I am so proud of their critical thinking and communication skills. Abby Anastsio and Tom were both very impressed with the student's efforts and their thoughtful designs to make sure our future playground is inclusive for all of our students!"

The students in Michaela King's Biology classes at Kings High School are learning a lot! In her College Prep Biology class, the students investigated biomolecules (carbohydrates, lipids, nucleic acids, and proteins) through a fun Murder Mystery Lab. Students analyzed evidence from a fake crime scene to determine which restaurant poisoned a food critic. Students had fun learning that chemical indicator tests determine the presence of certain biomolecules. Miss King said, "They used this information to solve the mystery!"

In her Honors Biology class, the students are learning about proteins. They did a lab about protein folding. They created 3-D protein molecules and learned about the different amino acid side chains and their unique properties. These unique amino acid side properties bind together to create the folds in proteins, which then get used by our bodies! 

The Kings Local School District encourages all families to submit an application for free- or reduced-price meal eligibility regardless of family income. Students will qualify for free or reduced lunches if the household income falls within the limits of the Federal Income Guidelines.

Students who qualified last year are required to complete a new application each year to extend their eligibility. Parents or Guardians will be responsible for paying for any charges that incur until the free or reduced meal application is fully processed and notification of eligibility is determined. 

Free and Reduced Meal Applications can be obtained in the front office of each school building, as well as the Kings website. Parents can also apply for the program online at https://payschoolscentral.com. Check your eligibility by completing an application TODAY.

Board Members

Kings Board of Education (L-R): Janelle Groff, Board Member; John Skerl, Board Member; Deb Cowan, Board Member; Stacie Belfrom, President; and Peggy Phillips, Vice-President.

The Kings Board of Education meets twice a month. They hold a Work Session on the second Tuesday of the month and a Regular Meeting on the third Tuesday of the month. All meetings are held at 6:00 p.m. and are livestreamed on the Kings Youtube channel.

Visit the Board of Education page on our website for meeting dates, meeting recordings, and agendas.

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In an effort to be "green," the District does not send paper flyers home. We use a platform called Peachjar that houses flyers of community programs and resources. 

Parents receive approved flyers via email, and they are posted on our digital flyerboard for easy retrieval. Any organization can distribute information to our community by creating an account!

We are looking to bolster our Kings Alumni database. Are you a Kings High School graduate or know someone who is? Please share the form with your fellow graduates. This will help our reunion committees and keep you updated on what is happening at your alma mater!

Please complete this Alumni Roundup Form.

Do you know someone worthy of being inducted into the Kings Athletic Hall of Fame?  We are accepting Athletic Hall of Fame nominations.  Athletes must be a graduate of Kings High School and have lettered in a minimum of one sport and have been selected All-Conference at least once in that sport. Athletes do not qualify until 5 years after graduation. 

Please complete this form with a document explaining why you feel this person is worthy of consideration for induction into the Kings High School Athletic Hall of Fame. Include a biography of the candidate being nominated, as well as information relative to the nominee’s high school and post-graduate (collegiate if applicable) careers and present-day information. The use of statistic sheets and/or newspaper clippings is encouraged to support your nomination.

The deadline for nominations is Sunday, December 1, 2024. Documents can be mailed to the athletic office (see nomination form) or scanned and emailed to etaylor@kingslocal.net.