STRETCH RUN
We're almost there!!! Next week is the final week of school before winter break across most Pender County Schools ❄️📚. For many students, that means exams, final projects, and doing their best to stay focused while their minds may already be wandering a bit. Stay focused and don't me like Ralphie! 😄
It’s also a full week in our schools, with concerts, performances, and classroom celebrations happening throughout the district 🎶🎭. There’s a lot going on, and a little extra energy in the air as students and staff balance learning with holiday activities. We appreciate families’ continued support as we wrap up the semester and get ready to head into a well-earned winter break.
CHANGING OF OFFICERS
At its December 9, 2025 meeting, the Pender County Board of Education unanimously elected new officers for the coming year. Don Hall, who previously served as Vice-Chair, was elected Chair. Mr. Hall represents District 3 and is currently serving a term from 2024–2028. Jennifer Hansen, the District 1 representative serving a term from 2022–2026, was unanimously elected Vice-Chair. The Board also expressed its sincere appreciation to outgoing Chair Beth Burns for her leadership, dedication, and service to Pender County Schools.
THANK YOU!
The November Dave & Buster’s fundraiser supporting Pender County Special Olympics was a great success, raising $406.99 to support the 2026 Spring Games 🎉🏅. Thank you to everyone who helped make this possible! Be on the lookout for our Pender Special Olympics athletes at local Publix and Jersey Mike’s locations in January, where they’ll represent Special Olympics North Carolina during designated giving and activation days 🤝💙 sharing the mission of Special Olympics and connecting with our community.
STUDENT ART SHINES ON PCS HOLIDAY CARDS 🎨❄️
Creativity is taking center stage across Pender County Schools this season! Each fall, students from around the district submit winter- and holiday-themed artwork for consideration as the official Board of Education Holiday Card, and this year’s selections showcase talent from elementary through high school. 🖌️✨ Chosen by Board members, the featured designs will be shared with staff, families, and community partners throughout December—celebrating student voice, creativity, and school pride. Curious to see which students were selected and the artists behind the scenes who made it possible? 👉 Read more HERE! 🔗🎄
COOKING UP SOMETHING NEW AT PENDER HIGH 🍳👩🍳👨🍳
A big change may be simmering at Pender High School next year! 👀🔥 The possibility of adding a food sciences class is gaining traction among staff and the Board of Education opening the door for students to explore food safety, cooking skills, and hands-on learning. While schools like Heide Trask and Topsail have already begun shaping the program, bringing it to Pender would come with its own challenges, from budgeting to space considerations. Still, the potential payoff, more opportunities and new learning pathways for students, has many feeling hopeful. Want to know what this could mean for Pender High and what’s next? 👉 Read more HERE 🔗🍽️
GRIZZLIES RISE: CAPE FEAR MIDDLE ROBOTICS MAKES AN IMPRESSIVE DEBUT 🚀🐻
The Cape Fear Middle School Robotics Team had a long but exciting day at their first competition, and the Grizzlies 🐻 truly rose to the challenge! 🚀✨ Competing against 14 teams—most of them high schools, Cape Fear Middle held their own with an impressive performance, placing 4th in piloting skills. A standout moment came when the team tied for the top score in autonomous flying, showcasing their technical skill, preparation, and teamwork. They finished 11th overall, a strong result in such a competitive field.
While they didn’t bring home a trophy this time, the experience gained was invaluable. The students had a fantastic time, built confidence, and left the competition inspired rather than discouraged. 💪🌟 With eyes already set on their next competition in February, the team knows they can, and will, do even better. The future is bright for Cape Fear Middle Robotics! 🚀
🍎SCHOOL LUNCH MENUS🍕
You can find school lunch menus for each grade level by following THIS LINK
WEEKLY SCHEDULES
FROM GOLD MEDALS TO COLLEGE DREAMS
After an action-packed weekend on the mat—highlighted by Lauren Hall’s gold medal at 132 lbs 🥇 at the Swiss Bear Classic—the Heide Trask Men’s and Women’s Wrestling teams kept the momentum going with an exciting visit to the University of Mount Olive 🤼♂️🎓. From exploring campus life and learning about post-high school athletic and academic opportunities to connecting with college athletes and coaches and watching high-level competition at the Trojan Women’s Duals, it was a trip full of inspiration and insight. Want to see how this experience is shaping the future for Titan wrestlers? 👉 Read more HERE
CHAMPIONSHIP DOUBLE-DIP 🏴☠️
From Topsail Middle - 🏆🖤⚽️ The Pirates showed heart, grit, and belief as the boys soccer team battled to a thrilling 1–0 championship win over Surf City—that clutch goal, lockdown defense, and incredible team spirit truly defined what it means to be champions. And the celebration doesn’t stop there! 🏀🔥 A big shoutout to our boys basketball team, who dominated the conference tournament and secured the conference title with an outstanding display of hard work, teamwork, and heart. What a proud moment to be a Pirate—great job to our student-athletes and coaches! 🏴☠️👏
From Pender Early College - Letters from members of Congress are coming in! Students are receiving replies to letters they sent in Civics class on topics such as pollution, healthcare, and taxes.
And...Congrats to PECHS student Olivia Sisco for being recognized by the Pender County Board of Education last night for her artwork on the county Christmas card!
From Surf City Middle - The arts are well and alive at Surf City Middle School. We applaud Mr. Judy and our outstanding band students for an awesome Winter Concert! VIDEO PERFORMANCE
From Topsail Annandale Elementary - ❄️✨ What a magical night! ✨❄️ Our 4th graders shined on stage tonight at the Winter Holiday Concert! From their beautiful voices to their big smiles, they truly brought the joy of the season to life. We are so proud of their hard work and the festive spirit they shared with our school community. ❤️🎶 Thank you to our amazing music teacher Mrs. Payne, our 4th grade teachers, Mrs. Carlisle, PTA, and supportive families for making this night so special!
From West Pender Middle - 8th grade students had the opportunity to play a science version of the Amazing Race with a scavenger hunt of science related questions around the school! Shout out to Ms. Harris for thinking outside the box!
And...We are shouting CONGRATULATIONS to Alice Kaemmer. Alice is a first grader in Mrs. Pierce's class. Her artwork was selected for Pender County's Superintendent's Christmas Card. She was recognized at the School Board Meeting last night. We are so proud of you Alice!
From South Topsail Elementary - What a chilly 🥶 but ABSOLUTELY INCREDIBLE morning for our STRIDE and Girls on the Run buddies! 🏃♂️ 🏃♀️ We are so proud of how hard you've trained and how you all showed up for today's 5K. And a special shoutout to our STE first place boy, Calvin🥇 and girl, Emery🥇
From Burgaw Middle - Students made observations at the Burgaw Creek💦 and then brought water back to test and see if it was healthy enough for fish🐠 . They found out that the water was healthy!
And...🚀 Future Innovators Alert! 💡Our CTE students just crushed it during their Shark Tank project presentations! 🦈 They pitched them live in front of a panel of teacher judges. Way to go, Red Devils!
From Cape Fear Elementary - Mrs. McCall’s earned 50 paw prints for a special reward — a guest reader — and we chose Ms. Hamilton! Students enjoyed listening to her read a few of her favorite holiday books on Monday afternoon.❤️📚
And...Today during Wit and Wisdom in Mrs. McCall’s class, students practiced publishing a detail from their writing by typing one sentence on their Chromebooks. Each student typed and illustrated a page that will become part of a class book. Learning to type is not easy, but they showed wonderful focus and perseverance. We are impressed with their hard work!
And!!! Today Mrs. Johnson’s class completed a Gingerbread vocabulary “Write the Room” activity! Gingerbread vocabulary was hidden across the class and once each word was found they wrote the word beside the corresponding picture. They had 10 minutes to finish and once the Christmas music stopped it was over! We had so much fun and the students worked together to help one another located words or even write the words!!
From Rocky Point Elementary - Our "Girls on the Run" team completed their 5K this past Sunday, December 7th! Girls on the Run participates in the William H. Craig Race for Life 5k each year at UNCW. The race was established to honor the life of Dr. Bill Craig and his many contributions to the community! Thank you to Ms. Stewart and Ms. Tidler for leading this group of amazing girls!
From Malpass Corner Elementary - Mrs. Boerigters class won the November Math Challenge and had a shaving cream party in their classroom. Mrs. West brought the shaving cream and the students brought the imagination and fun! Drawing their names, math problems, and pictures! The best part was all the desks were sparkling clean afterwards!!
And...Our 2nd graders enjoyed an in-school field trip experience when Mr. Butler, from Field Trip Delivered, came to share his knowledge of Native American History. They helped him set up a full-sized tipi, and even got to step inside and see what it was like to live in a tipi. They learned about hunting and trapping, how Native Americans would have processed animal hides, and how to make useful things from leather. The most exciting part was when Mr. Butler made fire by rubbing sticks together, which he extinguished with his hands!
From Cape Fear Middle - 🐻 THANK YOU, GRIZZLY FAMILY! 🐻 What an incredible STEAM Night! Thank you to everyone who came out Tuesday evening to explore, create, and celebrate with us! A special shoutout to the amazing women in STEM who shared their experiences and inspired our students during the Girl-Powered showcase. Your presence made a lasting impact on our Grizzlies! 💪 From hands-on activities to our talented band students' Winter Concert, it was a night full of learning, creativity, and community. We're so grateful for our supportive Grizzly family! 🐻💙
And...🐻 DAY 7 IS DONE, GRIZZLIES! 🐻 SEVEN days of perfect attendance! Lucky number 7! 🍀🎉 You've conquered more than HALF the challenge! The Hot Chocolate Bar is SO close now! ☕✨ Your consistency is AMAZING, Grizzlies! Don't stop now! 💪🔥 Keep that momentum going strong! 🐻💙
From North Topsail Elementary - Huge congratulations to our amazing students who participated in the Girls on the Run and STRIDE 5K — your hard work, teamwork, and smiles made us so proud! 🏃♀️🏃♂️ By completing this program, you showed determination, GRIT and heart. 💪❤️A special thank-you to our coaches, volunteers, and families for supporting these kids every step of the way — you make moments like this possible.
And...We are so proud of you, Mrs. White!
From C.F. Pope Elementary - 🎉🏃♀️ Congratulations to Our Girls on the Run & Stride Teams! 🏃♂️🎉 We are so proud of our incredible students who wrapped up a fantastic season of Girls on the Run and Stride! Your dedication, teamwork, perseverance, and positive attitudes were on full display as you represented our school in the William H. Craig Race for Life 5K. What an amazing accomplishment! A heartfelt THANK YOU to our amazing sponsors and coaches for your time, encouragement, and commitment to empowering our students to build confidence, character, and healthy habits. This season would not have been possible without you. Way to go, runners! We celebrate your hard work and can’t wait to see all you continue to achieve—on and off the course! 💙🐾
From Heide Trask High - We had a special guest at Trask today — Dakota McFadden! A former Titan who now plays for the Firefighters in Banana Ball. 🔥🥎 Thank you, Dakota, for spending time with our students today! Once a Titan, always a Titan! 💙🤍#24
WECT - Pender County Schools shares 2025-2026 graduation dates, locations WWAY - Pender County Schools announces 2025-26 graduation dates WWAY - Pender County board of education elects new officers
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