Waynesville R-VI School District

4 WHS students recognized at school board meeting


Four Waynesville High School band students were recognized for their All-State honors during the Waynesville R-VI Board of Education meeting by Courtney Long, executive director of secondary instruction, on Dec. 15, 2025.



Kayden Wass (trombone) was selected to the 2026 Missouri All-State Band and will perform at the Missouri Music Educators Conference Jan. 28-31, 2026. Landon Boswell (tuba), Sarah Pierce (contra clarinet), and Chloe Williams (alto clarinet), were named to the Missouri All-State Honorable Mention Band.



Pictured left to right are WHS students Chloe Williams, Sarah Pierce, Landon Boswell and Kayden Wass, and Courtney Long, executive director of secondary instruction.

The LEAP program hosted a Shine Night for families on Dec. 11, 2025, in the Learning Enrichment and Acceleration Program located inside Waynesville Middle School. During the evening, students showed the projects and innovative work they have completed so far this year.

Waynesville R-VI Superintendent Hilary Bales and Courtney Long, executive director of secondary instruction at Waynesville R-VI, volunteered with Rotary President Ursula Lebioda to ring the bell for the Salvation Army on Dec. 10, 2025, at Walmart. They represented the Rotary Club of Pulaski County.

The Waynesville High School Chamber Choir performed holiday tunes before an audience of students at the Waynesville Sixth Grade Center on Dec. 12, 2025.

The full day preschools (Parker Educational Center, Pick Educational and Volunteer Center and Freedom Elementary) hosted their Holiday Program on Dec. 11, 2025, in the Waynesville High School Auditorium.

Williams Early Childhood Center will hold the final holiday concerts at 5 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2025, at Waynesville High School.

Freedom Elementary hosted three 4th and 5th Grade Holiday Music Programs at Freedom Elementary on Dec. 9, 2025, with West, East and South houses having separate performances.

Wood Elementary hosted its 4th and 5th Grade Holiday Music Performance at Wood Elementary on Dec. 9, 2025.

Waynesville Career Center culinary arts students prepared and served the luncheons for the Rotary Club of Pulaski County on Dec. 9, 2025, and the Waynesville-St. Robert Chamber of Commerce on Dec. 10, 2025.

The Waynesville High School Chamber Choir performed during the Rotary Club of Pulaski County’s meeting on Dec. 9, 2025, at the Waynesville Career Center. The choir is under the direction of Cydnee Gilmore.

The VOICES honor choir for Waynesville R-VI students in 4th-6th grades performed on Dec. 8, 2025, at the Waynesville High School Auditorium.

TONIGHT: The full day PreK programs from Parker, Pick and Freedom will perform at 5:30 this evening, Dec. 11, 2025, in the WHS Auditorium.

Route 66 Shootout to be held Dec.19–20 at Waynesville High School

The annual Route 66 Shootout will take place on Friday, Dec.19, and Saturday, Dec. 20, at Waynesville High School.

The third class of the WHS Athletic/Activity Hall of Fame inductees will be recognized prior to the 7:30 p.m. game on Friday, Dec.19.

Robert "Bob" Slaughter (Coach/AD)
Robert Sumter (Athlete/T&F & XC)
1974 Track & Field (Team)
Game Schedule

Friday, Dec.19

4:30 p.m. – Waynesville (Girls) vs. Capital City

6:00 p.m. – Poplar Bluff (Boys) vs. Capital City

7:30 p.m. – Waynesville (Boys) vs. Northwest Cedar Hill

Saturday, Dec.20

12:30 p.m. – Waynesville (Girls) vs. St. Elizabeth

2:00 p.m. – Northwest Cedar Hill (Boys) vs. Poplar Bluff

3:30 p.m. – Waynesville (Boys) vs. Hazelwood East

Admission

$10 per person for the weekend

$6 per person per day

All individuals over age 5 are required to purchase a ticket, including senior citizens, season pass holders, annual pass holders, and staff with athletic passes, as these are not regular season games.

Zetalyn Mansapit, a senior at Waynesville High School, has been named the Rotary WHS Student of the Month for December 2025 for best displaying honor. She was recognized during the Rotary Club of Pulaski County meeting on Dec. 9, 2025. She is the daughter of Josh and Leona Mansapit.



One of Mansapit’s nominators stated, "Zetalyn is a very honorable student. She is both a very respectful student and receives that same respect from all her teachers and peers. She has very high goals and achievements set for herself and she ensures she sets herself up to achieve them. Zeta participates in several after school clubs and activities, yet still challenges herself with AP courses and top academic classes, which she excels in. Zeta is one that can be trusted to volunteer and work additional events, be our point of contact when a sub is present, and is always caught doing the right thing. Her honor will help her achieve her dreams and excel in her future endeavors beyond WHS."



Mansapit is an excellent student with a 3.86 grade point average, ranking in the top 10% of her class, and has a 97% attendance rate for all four years of high school. She has taken five Advanced Placement classes and is part of the A+ Program. Mansapit is involved in multiple clubs and activities. She is a varsity volleyball player and has played volleyball since her freshman year. She is the president of the Asian American Pacific Islander Club, a representative for the Student Government Association, a member of the National Honor Society, Model United Nations and HOSA. She also coaches volleyball and volunteers at the local dog shelter.



After graduation, Mansapit plans to attend University of Texas-Austin, and become a pediatric nurse or doctor.

Waynesville High School students assisted with the Thanksgiving meal at the Waynesville-St. Robert Senior Citizens Center. Students from both HOSA (future health professionals) and the varsity girls basketball team and their sponsors/coaches helped make the day special.

In addition, the basketball players and coaches selected angels from the tree to sponsor for the holidays and later purchased them gifts.

Four of the 16 Waynesville High School students who auditioned for the 2026 All-State Band earned honors at Hickman High School on Dec 6, 2025.



“We are proud of these young musicians and their accomplishments,” said Director of Bands Jared Sabatasso. “Their drive and dedication attributes to the success of the entire band program here at Waynesville.”



Those recognized were as follows:

Kayden Wass (trombone) was selected to the 2026 Missouri All-State Band and will practice and perform with the band during our annual Missouri Music Educators Conference Jan. 28-31, 2026.



Landon Boswell (tuba), Sarah Pierce (contra clarinet), and Chloe Williams (alto clarinet), were named to the Missouri All-State Honorable Mention Band.

To review their learning standards, 8th graders rotated through stations, tackling questions that pushed them to sort and classify items like true scientists in Kelly Jackson’s science class at Waynesville Middle School.

Stations were filled with everyday items—an aluminum cube, an empty can, rusty metal, baking soda, fruit, gelatin, cereal, pasta and beans, sand, sugar water, melted crayons, and even air trapped in a balloon. At each stop, they answered questions such as:

· Is it a metal, substance or mixture? How do you know?

· Is it heterogeneous or homogeneous?

· Is it an element or compound?

· What variations make this easily categorized?

· How is a colloid different from a suspension?

This hands-on learning turned simple objects into a real-world learning experience.

The Waynesville High School choirs held their Winter Concert on Dec 2, 2025, in the Waynesville High School Auditorium.

Equipment Share of Lebanon, Mo., generously donated more than two dozen new coats for Waynesville R-VI students on Dec. 3, 2025. Shown delivering the coats are General Manager Sawyer Padgett and Territory Account Manager Kaitlynn Black of Equipment Share.