Ray-Pec was pleased to have a great showing of performances this last Saturday, March 16th at MSHSAA District Solo & Ensemble Festival. 22 students performed in 21 events.
Two students received an exemplary rating and qualified for state!
Orchestra Exemplary Ratings(State Qualifiers):
Violin & Cello Duet- Charlotte Fobes and Lillian Spruell
Boys' Golf is teeing it up this morning for the first time this season at Hillcrest Country Club in the KC Metro Shootout.
Good luck boys! ⛳️
It's time for the 2024 Winter Guard Showcase!
This showcase will feature the High School’s “Hunger Games” based show, “The Girl On Fire,” and the Middle School Cadet’s “The Fire & The Flood” show, and many soloists and small groups.
• The showcase is set for 7:30 p.m. April 4 at East Middle School.
• Admission is free.
• Donations of sunscreen, bandaids, and nonperishable food items for the Panther Closet are requested but not required for entry to the showcase.
Prior to the showcase, the guard will host an audition clinic from 5 to 6:30 p.m. April 4 at East Middle School in preparation for the upcoming fall auditions. All incoming 9th and eligible students in 9th-11th grade are welcome to attend the audition clinic.
2024 Fall Color Guard Audition Information
Auditions for the Ray-Pec High School Fall Color Guard are April 10-11 in the main gym of East Middle School. Please enter the doors on the south side of the school.
• Optional Audition Clinic -- 5 to 6:30 p.m. Thursday, April 4
• Required Night #1 -- 6 to 9 p.m. Tuesday, April 9
• Required Night #2 -- 6 to 9 p.m. Wednesday, April 10
• Located in the Main Gym of East Middle School
• Please enter through the South side of East Middle School
• All incoming 9th and eligible students in 9th-11th grade are welcome to audition. • Students must have an activity physical on file to be part of the color guard.
• Both night 1 and 2 are required and are closed to spectators. Please complete the Fall Color Guard Audition Registration to register for auditions.
• Recommendation from a teacher, past coach, leader, or pastor required and are available through the audition registration.
• Bring water, and clothes and shoes you can move in.
• All previous band and guard fees must be paid prior to audition.
For more information contact Coach Walker at kelsey.walker@raypec.org.
Audition and Leadership selections are posted the evening of Friday, April 12.
Ray-Pec Learning Lens is back with another episode! 🎥
https://youtu.be/j_Rt2Z1enps
When we say that our mission is to Prepare EACH student for a successful and meaningful life, we mean EACH student. Check out how the Transition Skills program helps prepare students with disabilities for life after high school. To learn more about the Transition program, visit our website here: raypec.org/page/special-services
Over the weekend six STUCO representatives traveled to Carthage High School for the MASC (Missouri Association of Student Councils) state convention. Students and advisors met with other councils from across the state and discussed different ways to “turn the tide” in our schools and work to improve school culture overall. 💛🖤
Over the weekend Girls' Soccer fell to Park Hill South 3-2 in the first round of the Platte County Girls Soccer Invitational ⚽️
The second round of the tournament kicks off tonight at 5:00 pm as your Panthers take on Platte County High School! 🖤🐾💛
Special Olympics Basketball crushed it at State!
We had an amazing weekend of basketball in St. Louis and appreciate all the support. Our Unified Partner 3 on 3 teams ended up playing each other for medals!
Names of athletes/unified partners in pictures left to right:
1️⃣ Team in Yellow - earned Silver 🥈:
Phoebe Benson (Unified Partner), Emery Vaughan (Unified Partner), Kendalynn Torrance, Liam Lambertz, Owen Vanzandt, Owen Vaughan
Team in Black - earned Bronze 🥉:
Mallory Anderson, Sabrina Peek, Carter Nussbeck, Grant Hornbeck (Unified Partner)
2️⃣ Team in Yellow - Earned Gold 🥇:
BreAunna Ruiz, Trey Gethers, Elijah George, Caleb Nelson
Team in Black - Earned Silver 🥈:
Shawn Hunt, Dustin Haning, Ryan Hilliard (Unified Partner), J'Qwan Blackmon, Jag Davis
3️⃣ Mia Benson got the Gold 🥇 in Individual wheelchair skills!
The Boys' Tennis team starts their season today at home as they take on the Warrensburg Tigers!
Come out and support the team at 5:00 pm! 🎾
A very successful start to the baseball season saw your Panthers take down Smith-Cotton, Warrensburg, and Truman over the weekend, outscoring their opponents 25-9. They look to stay unbeaten tonight as they travel to Raytown High School with first pitch scheduled for 4:00 pm. ⚾️
Raytown streams games on YouTube: youtube.com/@RaytownHighSchoolLiveSports/streams
If you’ve driven past Peculiar Elementary School this week, you may have noticed excavation work under way at the corner of Third Street and South Street.
This corner of the school property is being developed as a pickleball court that will be available for use by students, staff, and patrons. The project is a partnership between the school district, the Peculiar Charitable Foundation, and the City of Peculiar.
The Ray-Pec School Board approved donating approximately 0.48 acre of land on the school’s site to the Peculiar Charitable Foundation. The foundation is paying to construct the courts.
The school and school district have the first right of usage for the courts, and signage posted at the courts will indicate when the court is available for public use. Parking for the pickleball court will be allowed on the 12 southern parking stalls, and signage will be posted at those stalls.
The Ray-Pec Speech and Debate Team is proud to announce that both the Readers Theatre and the Competition One Act received 1st place at the MSHSAA district competition! Their performances qualified them for the State Tournament in April.
Congratulations! 👏
It's Opening Day! ⚾️
Ray-Pec Baseball kicks off their season with a doubleheader in Warrensburg. First pitch of Game 1 against Smith-Cotton High School is at 3:00 pm, immediately followed by Game 2 against Warrensburg High School at 5:00 pm.
This year you can follow the baseball team using the free GameChanger app. You can find live scoring updates, play-by-play info, and sometimes even a live stream.
A link to the app can be found on our website at: raypec.org/o/rphs/page/ray-pec-baseball
We are celebrating our School Board all month!
Meet Board Member Paul Coffman.
He was first elected to the Board in April 2017 and is currently serving his third term. He was attracted to Board service because he enjoys putting people in a position to succeed.
"Both of my parents were school teachers, and I saw everything they did to put students in a position to succeed. Serving on the Board is a way for me to help put teachers in a position to succeed.”
"My four children graduated from Ray-Pec and were blessed by the opportunities and encouragement they received at Ray-Pec. I don’t have children currently attending school, so I think I can look at the big picture to help provide opportunities for all students and their activities.”
Thank you, Paul Coffman, for your dedicated service to our District!
Samantha Larkins has earned a spot on the MO Basketball Coaches Association Academic All-State Team after being nominated by Head Coach Jonathan Benson! Sam has helped to create one of the most successful basketball teams for Ray-Pec High School in recent years. Congratulations!
This honor is one of the most distinguished scholar athlete awards based upon the following stringent criteria:
1) Senior standing
2) Player in good standing with the team.
3) Possess outstanding moral character.
4) ACT score of 27 composite or above
5) Minimum GPA 3.25
Mr. O'Neal's Algebra II class celebrated Pi Day this afternoon with a class photo as the clock read 3.14159 🥧😁
Former Panthers Jordan Jermain and Kian Scroggins are going dancing! 🏀
William Jewell (Jermain) and Sam Houston State (Scroggins) both won their conference and are headed to the NCAA Tournament. Congratulations! 👏🖤💛
🚨 NATIONAL CHAMPION! 🚨
2020 graduate Braden Zaner and his Pitt State teammates are the Division II Indoor Track and Field National Champions for the second year in a row! 🖤🐾💛
Congratulations to Harrisonville 7th grader Mariah Coffey on winning the Cass County Spelling Bee that took place at Ray-Pec on this morning!
Mariah qualifies to compete in the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C., later this spring. Mariah also won the Cass County Spelling Bee in 2023 and represented Cass County at the national event. Runner-up was 7th grader Henry Laffoon from the Belton School District.
Other participants:
🖤💛Helen Van Arkel, 8th grader, Raymore-Peculiar School District
William Henley, 5th grader, Pleasant Hill School District
Zeke Needham, 5th grader, Midway School District
Abigail Forgett, 4th grader, Archie School District
Our School Board celebration continues!
Meet Board Vice President Deanna Olson.
She was elected to the Board in April 2021. "I wanted to be a part of the district and have a voice in guiding the vision of the place that both my husband and I graduated from and where our kids are going to graduate from. Our district and board was doing great things and I wanted to add to it.”
What is Deanna's "why" for serving on the Board?
“I serve on the board because I am vested in our district and want to see us continue to expand and offer more choices to our kids to prepare them the best we can for life. I am so proud of all the ways we have expanded our options for every student to take advantage of!”
Thank you, Deanna, for your dedicated service to our District!
You are invited to attend the 2nd annual Ray-Pec Jazz Showcase at 7 p.m. tonight, March 12, in the high school main gym. The event will feature the Jazz One and Jazz Two bands, as well as the jazz bands from East and South middle schools. There is no admission charge.
