Barber Middle School held its 2nd annual health and wellness fair October 26th, featuring more than 35 exhibitors. Families and community members joined together to celebrate and discover about healthy decisions. There were giveaways and entertainment for all ages. The entire event was free to the public.

The highlight of the day included the Georgia CHIP Program which provided free child i.d. kits that included fingerprints, pictures, DNA samples and voice samples. Activities were available for all ages from the Alzheimer’s Association and Dogwood Forest a senior retirement facility to the YMCA and the Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta. The crowds were entertained by Barber’s 8th grade dance team and a martial arts demonstration from Atlanta Budokan. Participants were also able to get their flu shots, have their blood pressure checked, vision checked receive pedestrian Halloween tips from Safe Kids Cobb!

Additional exhibitors included the Acworth Police, Cobb County Police, Cobb County Library System, Cobb County Alcohol Task Force, Rite Aide, Walgreens, Depew Orthodontists, Foot Solutions, Comforting Arms, Georgia Department of Human Resources Right From the Start Outreach Program, Acworth Family Eye Care, Play it Again Sports, Atlanta Allergy and Asthma and much more.

Submitted by Lara Salzman, Barber Middle School

Cobb County students and families can learn how to earn college credit while enrolled in Cobb high schools at the College Credit Now Summit Oct. 29 at the Chattahoochee Technical College Acworth campus. Representatives from Chattahoochee Tech, Georgia Highlands College, Kennesaw State University, Southern Polytechnic State University and the Georgia Department of Education will be on hand to provide information and answer questions in a small group setting.

College Credit Now Summit

Tuesday, October 29th 2013, 6:30—8:30 p.m.

Location:
Chattahoochee Technical College
North Metro Campus – Building D, Room 400
5198 Ross Rd Acworth, GA 30102

• Meet College Representatives
• Learn about college credit options available while in high school
• Ask questions in small groups
• Hear about Move on When Ready, Accel, Joint & Dual Enrollment
• Learn about 100% Paid Tuition Options

Download and print an event flyer with a map of the CTC campus. For more information, contact Angela Kovachi with the CCSD Transitional Career Partnership Program at 770-426-3559.

South Cobb High School students were invited to attend the 2013 LSAMP STEM conference by Kennesaw State University on Friday, October 11 at the Hilton Head Marietta Hotel & Conference Center. Students were able to listen to keynote speaker Dr. Jimmy Davis, Jr., who spoke about the importance of science, technology, engineering and mathematics in our everyday lives. His speech further delved into the importance of highlighting STEM education in order fill gaps in our new, developing industries.

Breakout sessions followed the keynote speech and SCHS students participated in the high school workshop, focused on engineering of underwater robots. This provided an environment for students to use problem-based learning in order solve a real-world problem. Students identified a problem, took inventory of actual equipment and supplies, and designed a prototype using equipment provided. This was a great opportunity for students to work together in collaborative groups while applying previous and new knowledge to real-world scenarios. Each individual person had to design their own robot and then present it to the rest of his or her group. Once all students presented, the group voted for the best most practical design to share with the entire workshop.

The conference fieldtrip concluded with a luncheon at which Dr. Cheryl Davenport Dozier, president of Savannah State University, spoke about the importance of STEM as it relates to our economy. Our students heard her speak about marketability in all areas and the importance of acquiring and practicing proper oral and writing skills in addition to STEM fields in order to be successful in any career. Dr. Dozier also spoke on the importance of being able to be critical thinkers and problem solvers rather than simply having “book knowledge.”

The Peach State LSAMP is a collaborative effort to significantly increase the number of underrepresented minority students statewide who complete undergraduate degrees in the STEM fields.

Student Reflections:

“I felt empowered to by the words of those who spoke. They pushed the message of innovation, self – expression, and the ideology that the true rock stars are not those in the entertainment industry but those who become doctors, scientists and engineers.” - Daniella Krakue, 12th Grade

“This conference reinforced and encouraged students like myself to continue studies in the STEM field because we are the future and the future is now.” - Omar Benjamin, 11th Grade

“We had the chance to design our own underwater robot called Sea Perch, which gave us the chance to be creative and let our imaginations run wild. We were also presented the opportunity to ask college representatives about any questions we might have had about their college. Overall, the fieldtrip was a great experience and I gained a lot of motivation and information from it.” - Jazmin Lucio, 10th Grade

submitted by Juan Mora, science teacher, South Cobb High School

Graduation ceremonies for fourteen Cobb County high schools will be streamed live this week from www.cobbk12.org. The District has released a complete schedule of commencement events for May 23-25, including links for the live webcasts and ways to purchase commemorative DVDs for each school. Ceremonies for Lassiter, Pebblebrook, Osborne and Hillgrove high schools will be broadcast Thursday, May 23; Walton, Sprayberry, North Cobb, Pope, Campbell, Kell and South Cobb on Friday, May 24 and Harrison, Wheeler and Kennesaw Mountain high schools on Saturday, May 25.

Allatoona and McEachern high schools will conduct graduation ceremonies at their respective stadiums; these ceremonies will not be streamed online due to technical limitations of the outdoor venues.

Spring has sprung and so have the beautiful red tulips planted by Bullard Elementary School in for the national PTA’s Red Ribbon Week. In October 2012, Bullard students, teachers and administrators planted 1,000 red tulips on the school grounds, symbolizing their commitment to “Say No to Drugs.” Each student had an opportunity to dig a hole in the prepared soil and plant their bulb as they reflected on their pledge. Months went by and the long anticipated spring has brought new life to the campus.

“My students pass the tulips every day,” said Kindergarten teacher Bonnie Adams. “They have been so excited to see their flowers bloom and are so proud.”

Bullard Elementary, located on Old Stilesboro Rd., marks its 10th year anniversary this year.

The staff and students of Mableton Elementary invites the Cobb County community to attend the building dedication ceremony Sunday, April 21, from 4 p.m. – 5:30 p.m. The new Mableton Elementary building replaced the former school that existed on the same site from 1952 to spring 2012. One of the many capital projects funded by SPLOST III, the new Mableton Elementary is a state-of-the-art, contemporary school facility that nearly doubled the capacity of the previous building.

Check out videos from the Timber Ridge Elementary READioactive challenge, a month-long program encouraging students to read for fun! Timber Ridge students spent almost 4,000 hours reading during the month of March, in advance of the school book fair.

The Marietta Daily Journal also covered the READioactive event [subscription required].

UPDATED WITH MORE PHOTOS!

Cobb County schools joined in the fun of Read Across America Day on Friday, March 1. For 16 years, this nationwide celebration of literacy has taken place on or around March 2, the birthday of famed children’s author Dr. Seuss. The National Education Association launched Read Across America to foster a love of reading in our nation’s youth.

Many Cobb schools welcomed special guest readers from the community and held special, literacy-focused events. We’ll update the gallery of images from Read Across America in Cobb as we receive them!

International Baccalaureate French teacher Mrs. Svetoslava Dimova coordinated a week-long visit between Campbell High School students and French visitors from Charles Jully High School in Lorraine, France. Mrs. Dimova was one of seven teachers in metro Atlanta selected for the collaborative project as part of a Georgia Department of Education exchange program. In 2010, Campbell High School hosted a French student ambassador and signed an official Memorandum of Understanding. Initial collaboration began between a 2010-2011 junior IB class and an English language class in Saint-Avold, France.

Since that time, junior and senior International Baccalaureate French classes from Campbell High School have exchanged e-mails, done cultural and linguistic research, produced Power Point presentations, and created films. Projects were shared between groups during videoconferences.

During spring 2012, Campbell students were hosted by their French counterparts where they were immersed in French culture and language. They attended the Charles Jully High School and stayed with French families in the Lorraine area.

In return for their hospitality, twenty-two French students from the Academy of Nancy-Metz visited Campbell High School for a week and stayed with local families. They spent time in classrooms and participated in extracurricular activities.

On Tuesday, Feb. 19, a luncheon was held in the Campbell High School Media Center welcoming the visitors and their special guests. Dignitaries attending the event were (from left to right): Dr. Cheryl Hungerford, Cobb County Deputy Superintendent for Leadership and Learning, Mme. Stephanie Dehove, Assistant Principal of the Charles Jully High School in France, Dr. Greg Barfield, Georgia Department of Education Program Specialist for International Affairs, Dr. Denise Magee, Principal of Campbell High School, Susan Wilkinson, City of Smyrna Councilwoman for Ward 5, and Max Bacon, Mayor of the City of Smyrna. Also attending the event with Mrs. Dimova was Mr. Dan Penick, Director of the Campbell High School International Baccalaureate Program.

On Wednesday, Feb. 20, the French students and their chaperones toured downtown Atlanta, visited the Martin Luther King Center, and went to the Lockheed Martin plant. On Thursday, French and American students shared film presentations that they had created for the visit.

Friday afternoon, the guests had dinner in the Smyrna Village, followed by a theater show presented by the Campbell High School Drama Department. Other weekend activities included sightseeing with parent volunteers and enjoying a Potluck Supper.

Submitted by Becky Robinson, Campbell High School

The Hillgrove High School Foundation will host the third annual Performing for the Dream benefit Feb. 22, featuring legendary University of Georgia football coach Vince Dooley as guest speaker.

In addition to hearing inspiring words from Coach Dooley, attendees will enjoy feature performances from the visual and performing arts students of Hillgrove High School’s Fine Arts Department. General Admission tickets are $20 and may be purchased at the door or by visiting the Hillgrove Foundation website.

A limited number of 50 VIP tickets will be available, which include an hour long meet-and-greet with Coach Dooley and light hors d’oeuvres starting at 6 p.m. VIP Tickets must be reserved at Hillgrove High School at 4165 Luther Ward Rd. Powder Springs GA 30127, or by contacting 678-331-3961.

The Hillgrove Foundation is a philanthropic organization of Hillgrove High School dedicated to raising funds to support the students of Hillgrove High School in Academics, Arts, and Athletics.