Get The Latest News!
Don't miss our top stories and need-to-know news everyday in your inbox.
EAST ALTON-WOOD RIVER - The school districts in East Alton and Wood River are off to a solid start and an abundance of events both before school opened and at the onset have set the spark for success.
An Oiler Nation Celebration started the process and it had significant participation. East Alton-Wood River Community High School, East Alton School District, and Wood River-Hartford School District all participated.
A Freshman Orientation Day was held on Aug. 16 and on Aug. 17, school officially started. A Senior Sunrise was one of the early highlights on Aug. 17 at the high school.
Athletics will get underway in full force next week and the Oilers have their home football opener on Friday, Aug. 26, against Harrisburg. The Oilers have 16 seniors back this season and expect a strong year under Head Coach Gary Herron.
Patrick Anderson, superintendent of the Wood River-Hartford District, loved the collaboration for the Oiler Nation Celebration.
“We were here to create a stronger community atmosphere,” he said. “We provided information on sports and other programs and this was also an effort to get the kids out in the community to be more community-minded.”
Mario Sherrell, superintendent of East Alton School District, said it was great to have a day to get all three districts together in a big activity and said good things can come of a community event like that one. He also is excited about the upcoming school year and having his students back.
Mark Beatty, athletic director at EA-WR High, said the Oiler Nation Celebration was a great event.
“We are excited to see what is happening with all three of our districts here,” he said. “It is very important to be involved in your school and the whole idea of Oiler Nation is to get kids more involved not only through athletics but other activities. At the start of the school year, everybody always gets a fresh start.”
More like this:
