Waitsburg Secondary School starts each day with an assembly

WAITSBURG - Waitsburg secondary students and staff meet in the Cage before each day before school begins. It is an opportunity for Secondary Principal Joe Wirtzberger and his staff to foster a positive environment and help students smoothly transition to the classroom after the morning bell.

Wirtzberger makes the daily announcements, followed by faculty and student shout-outs. A teacher starts the week by giving a shout-out to a student. That student will give a shout-out to someone the following morning, and the process continues.

The assembly stands together to recite the Pledge of Allegiance and sing the school's fight song. On Fridays, teacher Dan Nechodom invites a local Veteran to lead the school in the Pledge of Allegiance.

"I was reflecting on how, despite the fact that some schools are moving away from regularly reciting the Pledge of Allegiance, I have essentially not missed a day since I started teaching in 1992," said Nechodom.

Nechodom said the idea of inviting Veterans to the assemblies came from a friend, Lanny Adams, who posts the Pledge on his Facebook page each day. He invited Adams to an assembly, and the idea to invite others, including Jim Duncan and Jim Romine, sprang from there. The experience gives students a chance to recognize some of the people who work hard and sacrifice much on their behalf.

On Friday, November 21, teacher Elizabeth Jagelski's father, Juan Arabelos, and husband, Tom Jagelski, were invited to lead the Pledge. Arabelos received a Purple Heart while serving in the 24th Division -19th Regiment from 1949 to 1952. Jagelski was an Army artilleryman and served from 1969 to 1971.

"As you can see, many of the things we do here start with staff ideas. One of the best parts of my job is giving our staff the space to bring forward great ideas and then getting out of their way so they can make them happen," said Wirtzberger.