Top Stories From LPS
REMINDER: Early Release Friday, October 19
Don't forget that Friday, October 19, is a two-hour early release day in Liberty Public Schools. Time in the afternoon will be allotted to teachers to participate in professional development opportunities.
Coffee with the Community Returns Thursday, October 18
Our Coffee with the Community series will continue on Thursday, October 18, at the District Administration Center. The meeting will begin at 10 a.m. and will provide an update on construction and facilities taking place around LPS! It is an exciting time as several projects have wrapped up, while the two large projects at both Liberty High School and Liberty North High School are about to begin. We hope you can make plans to join us!
LPS News to Know
Diversity Festival November 8
Liberty Public Schools is proudly hosting the 3rd Annual Diversity Festival, celebrating the many diverse cultures that make up our community. The theme this year is, THRIVE: Culturally, Locally, Globally . This year’s festival will be held Thursday, November 8, from 6-8 p.m. at Liberty North High School. Stop on by!
Student/Staff Recognitions
Speech/Debate Programs Off to Fast Starts
Congratulations to the Liberty North novice speech and debate team for placing 2nd in team sweepstakes out of 24 schools at the Blue Springs South tournament. 
 
1st - Duo Interp - Ava Wolesky/Georgia Barge
1st - Storytelling - Grace Johnson
2nd - Duo Interp - Jazlyn Summers/Jacob Aldridge
2nd - Humorous Interp - Lily Weaver
3rd - Duo Interp - Peyton Thompson/Abby Roberts
3rd - Storytelling - Lily Weaver
3rd - Poetry - Georgia Barge
3rd - Lincoln Douglas Debate - Maggie Morris
4th - Storytelling -  Heath Moravec
4th - Extemp - Tyler Trickey
4th - Duo Interp - Ashley Tree/Ellie Platt
5th - Original Oratory - Maya Anchondo
6th - Informative Speaking - Seth Faulkner
6th - Original Oratory - Aubrey Petty

The varsity team competed at the Kickapoo tournament in Springfield. Results are as follows:

1st - Policy Debate - Selma Khalil/Sadik Mohamed
1st - Program of Oral Interp - Noah Graham
3rd - Dramatic Interp - Sophia Bolin
4th - Congressional Debate - Blake Katzenberger
4th - Informative Speaking - Abby Keller

The Liberty High School Speech and Debate Team had an impressive performance this past weekend across three tournament sites. At Kickapoo, the team won the overall team sweepstakes competition , and the following students had individual honors:

Weston Brown/Jake Kane - Tournament Champions, Duo Interp
Grace Johannes - Tournament Champion, Champ Lincoln Douglas Debate
John Belfonte/Jordan Carlson - Tournament Champion, Champ Public Forum Debate
Grace Johannes - 2 nd place, US Extemp
Weston Brown - 2 nd place, Dramatic Interp
Katherine Vlamis - 2 nd place, POI
Olivia Newell - 2 nd place, Student Congress
Daisy Smith - 3 rd place, POI
Sam Torno/Halle Dittmer - 3 rd place, Policy Debate
Logan Heil/Jason Niffen - 3 rd place, Policy Debate
Makanna Brooks - 3 rd place, Big Questions Debate
Kimball Yeates/Lily Baughman - 4 th place, Policy Debate
Olivia Cotton - 4 th place, Lincoln Douglas Debate
Moroni Lehnardt/Grace Cotton - 4 th place, Public Forum Debate
Ian Wooldridge - 4 th place, Big Questions Debate
Regan Mills - 5 th place, Humorous Interp
Mackenzie Greenwood - 5 th place, Dramatic Interp
Jordan Carlson - 5 th place, US Extemp
Charlotte Brookins - 6 th place, Original Oratory
Grace Cotton - 6 th place, POI
 
A separate group traveled to Blue Springs High School and earned the following honors:
Lukas Hudson/Maggie Quinn - Tournament Champions, Duo Interp
Olivia Sherman - 2 nd place, Dramatic Interp
Sal Bonadonna/Olivia Sherman - 3 rd place, Duo Interp
Jonathan Edens - 3 rd place, Informative
Laura Kallenbach/Alexis Fischel - 3 rd place, Public Forum Debate
Faraz Pervaiz - 4 th place, Lincoln Douglas Debate
 
Meanwhile, at Blue Springs South, first year novice students competed with great success:
Eli Jolly - 4 th place, Humorous Interp
Rand Brown - 5 th place, Humorous Interp
Letsch/Pendergraft - 5 th place, Duo Interp
Rand Brown - 6 th place, Storytelling

The team begins the week ranked 4th in the nation, and will head to Oak Park and Park Hill this weekend, where they will look to build on their success.
Upcoming District/Community Events
DMS Presents Crazytown!
Discovery Middle School presents Crazytown! , a play by Jonathan Rand. Take a tour of the most messed up town in America, from the police interrogation room where the nicest guy in town has issued a strange ultimatum to the elementary school for a heated political debate on critical issues like tater tots. Welcome to Crazytown, where our motto is: Welcome to Crazytown.  Crazytown will be presented Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, November 1, 2, and 3, at 7 p.m. on the Periwinkle stage at Discovery Middle School. Tickets are $5 at the door or online by clicking here .
HMS Presents Alice in Wonderland
Heritage Middle School will present Alice in Wonderland November 1, 2, and 3 at 7 p.m. inside the HMS Auditorium. Tickets are currently being sold for $5 and can be purchased online by clicking here , or at the LPS Fine Arts office, or at the door.

As the curtain rises, Alice slides into view at the end of her long fall down the rabbit hole. It is a more delightful place for the audience than for Alice, though, who is trying desperately to get back home. She tries to get help from the Mad Hatter, the Rabbit, and from the 
very nice Cheshire Cat to name a few. Instead of helping her, Tweedledee and Tweedledum get into a fight - The Mad Hatter has a tea party - and even the Cheshire Cat is enigmatic. So poor Alice even decides to ask for help from the evil Queen of Hearts. The action in this show is fast-paced and depicts all of the delightful charm of Lewis Carroll's great classic! 
Liberty High School Presents Mamma Mia !
Liberty High School Presents MAMMA MIA! Set on a colorful Greek island, the plot serves as a background for a wealth of ABBA songs. A young woman about to be married discovers that any one of three men could be her father. She invites all three to the wedding without telling her mother, Donna, who was once the lead singer of Donna and the Dynamos. In the meantime, Donna has invited her backup singers, Rosie and Tanya. Performances begin   November 8-10 & 15-17 at 7 p.m. with matinee performances on November 10 & 17 at 2 p.m. Tickets may be purchased online by clicking here . We would advise to purchase your tickets as soon as possible. We expect all performances to be sold out due to our limited seating capacity. Ticket prices are $5 for children and senior citizens and $10 for adults.
Medical Careers Night
Register now for the November 15 Medical Careers Night at Liberty Hospital. This event will take place from 6-8:30 p.m. and is come-and-go (both students and parents). Medical Careers Night is open to both Liberty and Kearney school districts, 6th-12th grades, and to Staley High School students. Although the event is free, registration is required at libertyhospital.org to reserve student tour times. For more information, please contact Colleen Jones, 736-5320.
LEF Presents
4th Annual Education Uncorked
The Liberty Education Foundation invites you to join us for our 4th Annual Education Uncorked event this Saturday, October 20, at Gary Crossley Ford. You won’t want to miss this evening of drinks, hors d'oeuvres, live and silent auctions, and musical entertainment. All proceeds benefit the programs and services we provide to Liberty Public Schools. Back by popular demand, we will have the dueling LHS vs. LNHS celebrity bartenders and food and entertainment provided by LPS students!

We look forward to gathering as a community to support Liberty Public Schools (while having some fun in the process). Tickets are $50 each, and you may purchase them by clicking here . For any questions, please contact Tanna Campbell at 736-7119.
Step Up Walk for Down Syndrome This Saturday
Please join our team, and support our students with Down Syndrome, by marking your calendars for the 2018 Step Up Walk on October 20. Our team name is: Liberty Leads
Click here , then click Register, and type in our team name. Questions? Contact Paula Meiners at 736-5400
Liberty Giving Thanks 5K Scheduled for Thanksgiving
The 9th Annual Liberty Giving Thanks 5K will be held on Thanksgiving Day 2018 in Liberty, MO. This event benefits Hillcrest Hope by raising awareness and funds to support its mission to transition homeless families to self-sufficiency. This event that will be chip timed. This is a family friendly event for runners, families with strollers, and walkers.  Strollers and walkers will be asked to start at the back of the line-up for safety purposes. NO PETS ALLOWED. 
LPS Insider for Wednesday, October 17, 2018
LPS Tweets of the Week
Twitter has become an important communication tool for our schools, teachers, programs, and district. Each week, we will be sharing with you a few highlights from the previous week that have been shared on our page. If you do not follow us, you can find us at @LIBERTYSCHOOLS.
Upcoming District Dates at a Glance
Friday, October 19, 2018 - Teacher Workday (Early Release)
Mon., Oct. 22 - Thurs., Oct. 25 - Parent-Teacher Conference Week
Thursday, October 25 - Two-Hour Early Release Day
Friday, October 26 - No School
LPS Mission:  Inspire and equip all learners to discover their voice and unlimited potential.

LPS Vision:  A future-focused community with a passion for lifelong learning.

Liberty Public Schools
8 Victory Lane
Liberty, MO 64068
816.736.5300