Students from Pope High took a cue from their peers at Kennesaw Mountain and Kell high schools with their ‘Shop With A Greyhound’ program. Pope students raised money at school and in the community and  adopted underprivileged elementary school students and cancer patients from Curing Kids’ Cancer. The schoolwide goal was to raise $100 per child to help them shop for the holidays.

Over the weekend, these Greyhounds took their partnered students to The Avenues of East Cobb shopping center to shop ’til they drop! It was a great way for Pope students to get into the holiday spirit and give back to kids in their own community.

Mrs. Kerrie Jones-Simons an ESOL teacher at Acworth goes over an assignment with KarLeigh Trejo.

Destiny’s Daughters of Promise is a non-profit mentor and leadership program for teen girls.  The program strives to build self esteem and leadership skills through participation in one-on-one mentoring and weekly training sessions and activities.   Workshops are designed to strengthen the fundamental need for young women to commit to a process of self-improvement.  The organization’s long-term goal is for participants to achieve an independent and healthy adulthood as determined by society’s achievement profiles.  Needs the program addresses include: health risk behaviors, victimization, underachievement, and lack of career goals, lack of leadership skills, low self-esteem and lack of social skills.  

Parent Kim Trejo said, “I love that KarLeigh is able to be a part of this group!  I feel that she is learning a lot from Mrs. Simons.  She is a great lady and a wonderful role model for my daughter! I think you guys have touched KarLeigh in a good way!  She is so excited when Tuesday comes around!”  Mrs. Simons is one of several teachers from Acworth Intermediate actively involved in the program.    The needs that the program addresses include: health risk behaviors, victimization, achievement, career goals and planning, leadership skills, self-esteem, and developing social skills.  For more information about Destiny’s Daughters of Promise, please call (770) 421-8862 or visit destinysdaughtersofpromise.com.

Fifth graders from Acworth Intermediate in Mrs. Jenna Hanfland, Mrs. Stacy Melton, and Ms. Shanna Jones’ classes were thrilled when they received a personal invitation from Mayor Tommy Allegood to speak at a city council meeting. Mayor Allegood was very impressed with questions the students had asked him during the question/answer segment of a presentation he had given Acworth’s fifth graders on the topic of government. Parents and students as well as their teachers were invited to the city council meeting Thursday, December 4th to share the questions they had asked. Students who attended were Kianna Franks, Jacob Felton, Peter Diaz, Danielle DeVane, Jon Jones, Kyle Brady, Emma Warren, and Kaitlyn Fudge. After a brief explanation of the purpose of the Mayor’s previous presentation, the students individually reviewed their question before a standing room only audience. Mayor Allegood closed by saying how proud he was of the students as well as what he has seen from Acworth Intermediate.

The Dowell Elementary Singers helped the US Marine Corps kick off their annual Toys for Tots Campaign at the Georgia Capital with Governor Sonny Perdue on Nov. 10.  The students presented the National Anthem and two additional musical selections.

Julie Hartline, lead professional school counselor at Campbell High School, has been named the top counselor in the United States by the American School Counselor Association (ASCA).  Ms. Hartline is one of more than 400 applicants nationwide that competed for the title of School Counselor of the Year.  The award honors professionals who work tirelessly to make a difference in the lives of their students, parents, and communities. Mrs. Hartline received the award during a surprise assembly Dec. 15 at the Campbell High gym, with students and colleagues cheering her on. ASCA executive director Dr. Richard Wong made the announcement, with Superintendent Fred Sanderson and Post 2 Board of Education member Holli Cash on hand for the festivities.

Campbell High principal Kehl Arnson began the assembly presenting the Governor’s Cup to Superintendent Fred Sanderson. The school received the honor from Governor Sonny Perdue’s Office of Student Achievement for improvement on SAT scores. Mr. Arnson segued into the honor for Mrs. Hartline, introducing Dr. Wong for the national award announcement.

Ms. Hartline will visit Washington, DC. Jan. 28-31, 2009 with nine other national finalists to kick off National Counseling Week. The group will represent ASCA in meetings with members of Congress and will attend a black-tie awards gala at Union Station. They will also receive a guided tour of the Capitol building.

Julie Hartline is an experienced educator and school counselor, serving at Campbell High School since January 1999. Under her leadership, Campbell High received the prestigious ASCA Model Program (RAMP) award in 2007, recognizing exemplary school counseling programs. Prior to her role at Campbell, Ms. Hartline was a Latin teacher at Wheeler, Southwest DeKalb and North Cobb high schools and served as a Fulton County parole officer. She is a graduate of Georgia State University, the State University of West Georgia and Agnes Scott College.

Superintendent Fred Sanderson encouraged an entire class of new educators, nurses and other graduates as he delivered the Dec. 11 commencement address for the Bagwell College of Education at Kennesaw State University.

With more than 500 graduates and their families in attendance at the KSU convocation center, Mr. Sanderson talked about the importance of relationships, both personal and professional. He discussed how small words of affirmation make worlds of difference and that working to understand others is a key to success.

Kennesaw State University’s Bagwell College of Education has produced many of the Cobb County School District’s best teachers and continues to be a major partner for teacher recruitment efforts in Cobb.

Photo courtesy of KSU University Relations.

Congratulations to Lisa Rhodarmer of Blackwell Elementary School and Tamala Simmons of Pebblebrook High School, who are among 42 Georgia educators that earned national certification from the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards. National Board Certification is a voluntary assessment program designed to recognize and reward great teachers – and make them better. As part of the process, teachers build a portfolio including student work samples, assignments, videotapes and an analysis of their classroom teaching.

The Cobb County School District now has 136 National Board Certified Teachers. For more information, visit the Web site of the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS).

The South Cobb High School marching band has been selected to participate in the inaugural parade for President-elect Barack Obama next month in Washington, D.C. The band was selected by the Presidential Inaugural Committee from more than 1,300 applicants and will represent the Cobb County School District, the state of Georgia, Cobb County and the city of Austell in the parade.

Under the direction of Zachary Cogdill, the band will march down Pennsylvania Avenue in front of the Presidential reviewing stand while performing “Georgia On My Mind” by Hoagy Carmichael, and “Summon the Heroes”, a tune composed by John Williams for the 1996 Centennial Olympic Games in Atlanta.

South Cobb submitted a powerful application to the Presidential Inaugural Committee. The application included 15 letters of recommendation from students, parents and politicians; a scrapbook of student expression cards expressing patriotism, school pride and passion for music; a DVD of the band’s performance at the Oct. 31, 2008 Bands of America competition at the Georgia Dome; an audio recording of the band and a video production by the South Cobb Video and Broadcasting production class. The committee selects at least one representative organization from each state in the country.

After the announcement of the band’s selection and its need for funds to make the trip possible, support from throughout the state of Georgia and beyond poured in. Q100 radio’s The Bert Show spearheaded a fundraising effort throughout Atlanta, collecting more than $100,000 for the band! That, along with other donations, total $107,409.22 as of Dec. 15.

Anyone wishing to make a donation can use the Cobb Educational Foundation’s secure online form.

More information about South Cobb High School and its band is available at www.cobbk12.org/~southcobb.

Fair Oaks Elementary, in 1958 and 2008.

On Dec. 7, Fair Oaks Elementary celebrated a half-century of education with current and former students and staff on hand for the festivities.

Former Fair Oaks teacher Janice Sharp, first media specialist Betty Sue Cook and original staffer Florene Ballew were among the attendees.

Fair Oaks opened in August of 1958, with 17 faculty members and approximately 500 students in grades one through eight. The PTA was organized just a month later on September 25, 1958, with 171 parents and teachers as charter members.

In 1963, Cobb County opened Osborne Junior High School, allowing 7th and 8th graders to attend a separate school.  Beginning in the 1963-64 school year, Fair Oaks contained only grades 1st through 6th. During the 1965-66 school year, a librarian and full-time secretary were added to Fair Oaks’ existing staff.  Until that year, the staff consisted only of classroom teachers and the principal. In 1971, instructional aides and paraprofessionals were added to the Fair Oaks staff.  The first two special education teachers, serving hearing-impaired students, started in 1973. Kindergarten was added to Fair Oaks in 1974, and at the same time, 6th grade was moved to the middle school.

In 1997, the first of three major construction projects was completed at the school.  What is now known as the “B building” was finished, containing an additional seven classrooms that included a computer lab, and music and art classrooms. In 2004, Fair Oaks opened a brand new wing for kindergarten and first grade classes – the “C building” provided an additional 17 classrooms and a teacher workroom. In 2006, Fair Oaks underwent another transformation when a new office suite and student services suite were built.  At the same time, five new classrooms were added and the media center was renovated.

In 2008, Fair Oaks has approximately 137 staff members, 58 classrooms, and over 800 students in grades kindergarten through fifth.

Click the images for images from Fair Oaks’s past and present.

Cobb County Schools and the Marietta Housing Authority are working to bridge the digital divide.  MHA and the School System have collaborated to bring free desktop computers and internet connections to families at MHA properties in Acworth who have students at Cobb County High Schools.

Sixteen-year-old Hillgrove High student Corinthia Beavers was so excited to receive a computer that she told her Mom that “I don’t need anything else for Christmas!”   Now when she needs a computer to help with homework, she won’t have to wait in line at the local public library. A shiny desktop computer, complete with a printer and Internet access, sits in the living room of the home she shares with her mom and three siblings.

Approximately 11 computer packages are being installed at MHA Acworth households, according to Ella Murphy, MHA Acworth Senior Property Manager.  Over the past two years, MHA has provided this equipment to other MHA families, much to the excitement of Marietta High School students who no longer have to rely on limited school computer time or go to the library for access.  Last summer, the Acworth Housing Authority agreed to contract with MHA to manage their public housing program and ultimately absorb the program.  MHA has therefore expanded the computer program to include Acworth families.

“The Marietta Housing Authority is pleased to be able to offer these computers to our residents in high school,” said MHA Vice Chair Fran Sutton.  “It is crucial in these times that our students have ready access to technology that gives them the same learning advantages as held by other students.  These students can then succeed in improving their lives and the lives of those around them.”  Angela Williams, an assistant principal at North Cobb High School, noted that having access to technology, including the Internet, is crucial for students and parents. “Students can use the computers for their assignments and parents can monitor students’ grades online,” Williams said.