Stafford USD 349

Culinary Essentials students finished their study of the Garde Manger position in the Kitchen Brigade by creating a composed Fruit Pizza.

The 4th Hour Baking & Pastries class finished their Pumpkin Pie Layer Cakes today. This labor of love took 2 weeks to prepare and assemble each component. Layers consisted of pumpkin cake, pumpkin cream, brown sugar buttercream, pie crust, and marshmallow meringue that they toasted with the kitchen torch. Now the challenge is transporting the cakes home in one piece! Great job!

5th Hour Baking & Pastries students also finished their Pumpkin Pie Layer Cakes today. Great job on producing some beautiful cakes! Making, piping, and toasting the Marshmallow Meringue was a favorite activity for this class.

The 8th-grade Career & Life Planning class made some delicious Pumpkin Rolls this week! All of the students did a great job working quickly to finish the dessert on time, including clean-up! The hardest part was waiting overnight for them to chill before slicing and enjoying.

At breakfast I asked the kids, "If you could trade places with one adult you know, who would it be?" Here are the answers I got.

Go Trojans! Our floor is ready for action. We start NOW with middle school playing Fairfield. Come to Trojan Nation to cheer on the middle school basketball teams.

The cheerleaders hosted a fun pep assembly. The coaches inspected the floor, and we are ready to go!

Please keep all street shoes off the court.

Twenty-seven Trojans experienced Pratt Tech Day today. They learned about a variety of programs available to them during high school and after graduation.

Let's go Trojans!

Our gym floor is finished! Please see some spectator guidelines.

Stafford Middle/High School is excited to launch Strong Minds, Strong Futures, a
presentation designed to help middle and high school students grow academically and personally.
Thanks to support from a Community Grant from the South Central Community Foundation, the presentation will expand resources that build student confidence, resilience, and long-term success. Strong Minds, Strong Futures focuses on providing engaging learning opportunities, supporting student well-being, and ensuring
every student has access to the tools they need to thrive.
The community is invited to attend the presentation on November 18 at 10:30am.
The speaker for the event is Coach Potter.
Mark Potter's program, "Shatter the Stigma. Don't Suffer in Silence", will provide our students and community a raw and personal testimony into mental health and the impact it has on the individual, the family, and beyond. Potter will shares his battle with severe depression, including “incredibly dark thoughts" and even suicidal ideation during his time as head basketball coach at Newman University. He will include
reflections on the strain of societal and athletic-cultural pressures to "suck it up"—and how these expectations deepened his sense of isolation. His journey includes how, ultimately, personal encouragement, including even a push from his wife Nanette to seek medical support, led him to get treatment—an important turning point for him. His wife, Nanette, often participates in the talk; she offers the caregiver's viewpoint:
what it’s like to suddenly become a support figure for someone grappling with a mental illness they weren't prepared for. The key message from Mr. Potter's presentation is that mental health struggles are common—even in highly visible, success-oriented domains like sports—and there is no shame in seeking help.

Angel Tree Forms due by Friday! Print from here or pick up in one of the school offices.

This Tuesday, November 11th, will be our annual Community Veterans' Day celebration at Stafford Schools. The ceremony will be held at 2:00 P.M. in the High School Commons. All community members and veterans are welcome to come celebrate Veterans' Day and honor those who serve and have served our country!

XC runner Joel Valadez takes 3rd at State with a time of 16:44.10!

Ad Astra Radio is broadcasting today's game around the Hutchinson area on 95.9 FM KWHK, which can also be heard online at adastraradio.com and the Ad Astra Radio mobile app.

Yesterday, our high school students attended the ESSDACK Career Planning Expo, the largest college & career planning event in Kansas, which showcases career opportunities from two-year and four-year college degrees, industry certifications, apprenticeships, military opportunities, and business partners. One student noticed how many of the exhibits highlighted techinical education. The expo focuses on local, Kansas careers that are in high demand and provide high wages. Many careers preparation pathways can begin while in high school through Stafford's College and Technical Education (CTE) and dual credit college courses. Stafford Schools is proud to provide a phethora of opportunities for our Trojans!

📚 LAST DAY to shop the BOOK FAIR!
Today, October 30th, from 2:45–5:30 PM — don’t miss your chance to snag some great reads!

The online fair will stay open until November 5th, so you can keep shopping from home.

🎉 We FINALLY received the brand-new Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Party Pooper — but hurry, there are only 5 copies left! Come shop while supplies last!

Culinary Essentials students have been learning about the traditional and modern Kitchen Brigade system. One of the positions in the brigade is the Garde Manger. The Garde Manger is responsible for salad preparation - we continued learning about different types of salads. Students practiced their knife and plating skills by preparing ingredients for a Composed Salad, including selecting and preparing their own dressings. Students chose an Italian and Ranch dressing - both were delicious! Students composed their salads and enjoyed tasting the finished products.

Enjoy your long weekend!