Mid-term progress reports were sent home September 9. Students and parents who came to the open house on September 8 received their reports early. At the open house, parents voted for members of the Washington- Wilkes Middle School Council. The parents serving this year are Joy Martin, Amy Long, and Joe Nelson, with Beth Hodges as an alternate. The purpose of the school council, consisting of a group of mostly parents, the principal, two teachers and business persons in the community, is to help improve communication and parent involvement at W-WMS.

Students took benchmark tests last week to determine where they stand in the curriculum. A test was given for a different subject each day. Teachers will analyze the test scores and re-teach any standards on which students did not perform well. The benchmark tests will be given at the middle of each nine-week term. At the end of every nine weeks, the students will take final exams.

W-WMS has initiated a new feature with its Accelerated Reader program, the Accelerated Reader's Home Connect, that allows parents and students to monitor their AR progress at home through the internet. Accelerated Reader tests students' reading comprehension through on-line testing of books identified for the program.

In football, W-WMS lost 28-6 in an away game against Wrens, September 10. Washington will play another away game this Wednesday against Thomson.

Starting September 15, Washington-Wilkes Middle School will be acknowledging National Hispanic Heritage Month, which lasts through October 15. According to information found on the U.S. Census Bureau website, the observance begins on this date because it corresponds to the independence day of many Latin American countries. It was enacted by President Lyndon B. Johnson in 1968 as a week-long observance and was expanded in1998.