Dunbar Elementary: Building Character, Building Careers

Dunbar students were full of energy and excitement on Career Day as they interacted with over 25 professionals in various career fields. In preparation for Career Day, students participated in activities that helped them discover their interests and dreams. DreamMaker Kids, a company promoting career awareness, visited the school campus with costumes and took photos of each student dressed up as professionals in their dream careers. This activity sparked the students’ interest and enthusiasm to meet with guest speakers on Career Day.

On April 3^rd, Dunbar welcomed professionals from businesses, public safety, government, corporations, and more. Students rotated to the various career stations, received interactive presentations, and asked many questions. The students had opportunities to explore and interact with technology, fire trucks, horse units, food, and more. Career Day was a great opportunity for elementary students to be exposed to professional fields and develop interest in careers at an early age.

Professionals from Dunbar’s Career Day represented:

• Smoothie King
• Center for Disease Control
• Black Girl Radio
• Gus Thornhill Funeral Home
• Delta Airlines
• Coca-Cola
• Nursing
• Photography
• Georgia Power
• Chief of Staff for the City of Atlanta
• Culinary Arts
• Retail Management
• Judge Phillip Jackson
• Attorney Odis Williams
• Social Work
• South Region Agricultural Education/Georgia Young Farmers
• Fulton Sheriff/Community Outreach
• Atlanta Police Department
• Fire Rescue
• Hero Unit/GA Department of Transportation
• Georgia Department of Public Safety
• Helicopter/Motorcycle/Horse Unit

“I want to be a fashion designer when I grow up because I love colors and clothes. My favorite part of Career Day was Coca Cola because they talked about new inventions, and I like technology so it was very interesting.”
- Amoria Heard, 5th grader at Dunbar

“Our motto at Dunbar is, ‘We expect excellence… Every student, every parent, every teacher, every classroom, everyday!’ Our idea for Career Day was to let the children see themselves in careers that they would like to be in through the photo shoots, and invite professionals who are active in those fields. We wanted the children to be exposed to a variety of careers and move towards excellence in all that they do.”
- Karen Brown-Collier, Principal at Dunbar Elementary School

WWE Stars Promote Anti-Bullying at Hope-Hill

WWE celebrities visited Hope-Hill Elementary on February 4^th, 2013, for Be a STAR rally against bullying. The Anti-Defamation League, which operates No Place for Hate, connected Be a STAR with Hope-Hill and co-sponsored this event.  The students were ecstatic to meet the special guests and enlightened by their presentations regarding cyber-bullying, disrespecting others, name-calling, and more.

Be a STAR Rally participants included:

• Stephanie McMahon, Executive Vice President of Creative
• Diva Layla, WWE Professional Wrestler
• Kofi Kingston, WWE Professional Wrestler
• Hornswoggle, WWE Professional Wrestler
• Josh Mathews, WWE Announcer and Be a STAR Host
• Ben Cohen, Founder of The Ben Cohen Stand Up Foundation

“Being different is being great,” said Kofi Kingston, as he shared his experience of being bullied in his childhood.  He told the students that people used to tease him by calling him Coffee rather than Kofi, and Hope-Hill students reacted by chanting Kofi Kingston’s name. Diva Layla discussed the difference between entertainment and reality by sharing her personal experience.  Hornswoggle inspired the students by never letting his size hold him back from reaching his dream as a WWE professional wrestler.

“Hope-Hill has zero tolerance for bullying, and our goal is for Hope-Hill to be designated as a No Place for Hate school. We will achieve this by continually implementing programs such as the one today to highlight the need for anti-bullying, not only at our school, but for schools across the nation,” says Angela Fortson, Counselor at Hope-Hill. “The students are thrilled to meet all of the stars who visited Hope-Hill today, and we appreciate and applause their support for anti-bullying.”

100 tickets were given away to Hope-Hill students to attend the RAW Event at Phillips Arena.

D.H. Stanton Students Have Their Wishes Come True!

In an amazing display of love and generosity, a coalition of Atlanta individuals, businesses, organizations, and churches made the holidays much brighter for all of the students at D.H. Stanton.  Back in November, Pre-K Paraprofessional Meiko Jones asked all students to create a “Wish List” of a few presents that they would love to have for the holidays. It was a mysterious request, as the students had no idea that a group of special benefactors was preparing to grant their wishes.

On December 14^th, a group of “Santas” arrived, heavy-laden with gifts and refreshments. Students were over-whelmed as they removed wrapping paper to discover items from the “Wish List.” One of the gifts included a bicycle for every second-grade student at D.H. Stanton!

We offer our deepest and most sincere thanks to McKenna Long and Aldridge, Smith and Howard, Robbin Geller Rudman and Dowd, CDC, The Collegiate Licensing Company, Jones Family and DHR, Christ the King, and Lady Shellie for this holiday miracle!

- Written by Brenda Street, Media Specialist
- Photos and video by Janis Richards, Adaptive PE Teacher

Whitefoord’s B.R.A.T. Club Hosts a Holiday Community Event

The B.R.A.T. Club at Whitefoord Elementary recently received funding by LOWE’S for their first Holiday Community Event called “Men Make A Difference.” The boys created a gingerbread house at LOWE’S with Media Specialist Mileeka Frank and Principal Timmy Foster. Fathers and siblings of the club members were also invited for the day full of events. The activities included a private breakfast at Kroger, Lowe’s Build and Grow, and Community Garden Volunteer with parents. The students made great memories to cherish over the holidays with friends, staff, and family.

The B.R.A.T. Club is full of glee as they also recently received a donation of 6 reading tablets from DonorsChoose.org. Mileeka Frank requested 6 tablets for group projects and as a reading source. “My job is to help them understand learning and technology goes hand in hand.” Mileeka says. “Having this type of technology will allow the students to be exposed to a world they never knew existed.”

B.R.A.T is a book and technology club for male students with difficulty reading below grade level and no interest in reading. B.R.A.T. embraces the energy and action-oriented enthusiasm of boys while encouraging them to read using technology. This program motivates reluctant readers to build reading skills and connect with books while having fun! A club that focuses on the importance of reading will help to open the eyes of struggling readers.

APS NEWS 22 for the Week of December 17, 2012

Science Week at Burgess-Peterson Academy

Burgess-Peterson Academy hosted a science week for the first time during the last week of November.  Students were engaged in various experiments, active explorations, science projects and presentations on each day of the week. Zoo Atlanta, Big Thinkers, and Young Audiences were key partnerships for the success of this program.

Science week started on Monday with a presentation by a magician/scientist to the entire student body. He fascinated the students by presenting a number of science concepts with a magical twist. On Tuesday, they held their annual one academic fair, where students presented their science projects to a panel of judges. There were several first-place winners and exciting projects that were related to solar energy and island creation.

On Wednesday, families joined the students for a special science night with presentations by Zoo Atlanta and Big Thinkers. Students and parents enjoyed a night filled with exciting experiments, animals, dinner, and laughter. Zoo Atlanta brought a tortoise, rats, and a python, and explained where the animals live and what they eat. All the students were allowed to pet the snake after the presentation.

Big Thinkers conducted experiments related to matter, and aroused the students’ interest with interactive presentation using dry ice. “The Big Thinkers were really talented because they can do all kinds of experiments, and it really helps me learn a lot,” says Robert Adams, a 5^th grader at Burgess-Peterson. The PTA also contributed by creating stations for the students to explore and interact with various science experiments.

Big Thinkers returned on Thursday with their science exploration on air pressure.  “My favorite experiment was the fog rings, because it blew out far to all the students and it was so cool,” says Matthew Clay, a 4^th grader.  On Friday, Young Audiences wrapped up science week with several science concepts catering to the younger students from Pre-K to 2^nd grade.

 “Science week at burgess has been an important opportunity for students to be exposed to a variety of science concepts that can be applicable in their everyday lives,” says science teacher, Lorraine McFadden.

Centennial’s PTA Hosts a Technology & Engineering Night

Centennial Place Elementary School’s PTA hosted a Technology & Engineering night with students, parents, and representatives from Stevens & Wilkinson, Atlanta Institute of Architects, Atlanta Streetcar, and Atlanta Beltline. The focus of this event is to celebrate students’ work, and provide an opportunity for students and families to be aware of projects in their local community.

The program began as participants of the Architecture club presented models of their buildings. Representatives from Stevens & Wilkinson, an award-winning architectural firm, committed the past several months in assisting students with their projects. They shared their love and joy of architecture as they created models of the students’ dream houses.

“It’s been a pleasure and really really fun,” says William Clark, Principal at Stevens & Wilkinson. “The energy level has been incredible during the last few months together as we discovered architecture.”

The “No Place for Hate” ambassadors presented an impressive 10-minute anti-bullying video that was created with the students.  The Atlanta Beltline and Atlanta Streetcar representatives explained the benefits and significance of their organization and how it impacts the community. These informational presentations allowed the students and families to be more aware and supportive as community members.

Centennial’s PTA offers family nights with different themes to provide an opportunity for students to share their work with their families. It’s also a great opportunity for parents to be informed of what their child is learning and how they are involved with the community. A food truck also catered the event to promote the engineering and technology theme.

“Our wonderful PTA has embraced our work around common core, science and technology by allowing our students to be authentically engaged in architecture and engineering,” says Alison Shelton, Principal at Centennial Place Elementary. “This is a memorable experience for the students and opens a horizon of career opportunities as well.”

Woodson Elementary gets $100k Target Library Makeover from Target and Heart of America Foundation

Target Corporation and The Heart of America Foundation in partnership with H.J. Russell & Company unveiled a $100,000 state-of-the-art library makeover Friday, November 2, 2012 at Carter G. Woodson Primary School.

Participating in the ribbon-cutting ceremony were board members Byron Amos and Brenda Muhammad, APS Associate Superintendent Steve Smith, and Target Store Manager Donna Stalter.   Woodson Interim Principal Susan Crim-McClendon alowell as Carla Daniels, our 2012-2013 Elementary School Teacher of the Year and educator at Woodson Primary also participated in the event. The library features 2,000 new books, as well as furniture, carpet, shelves and a complete technology upgrade, including new computers and iPads.

As part of the makeover, each student received seven new books to take home for his or her personal collection.

A big THANK YOU to our corporate sponsors for giving the students of Woodson Elementary a safe place to read, learn and discover.

Atlanta Civic and Business Leaders Bring Project for a Day to Atlanta Public Schools

Business partners visited over 90 APS schools and helped students with various academic activities, including essay writing for college applications.

Approximately 150 Atlanta business and civic leaders fanned out to public schools across the city recently to participate in our first-ever Project for a Day (formerly Principal for a Day) event.

Professionals from Coca-Cola, the Fulton County District Attorney’s Office, Georgia-Pacific, IBM, Junior Achievement, Project GRAD Atlanta, Target, Tyler Perry Studios, UPS and other organizations spent the morning of October 23 participating in a hands-on, student-focused activity on nearly every APS school campus. Afterward, business professionals and community partners joined an audience of more than 600 – including principals and partnership coordinators – at the Omni Hotel for the Atlanta Partners for Education Celebratory Awards Luncheon.

Mayor Kasim Reed, Superintendent Davis and APS students recognized partners and schools for their outstanding partnership programs. WSB-TV anchor Jovita Moore served as the emcee.

Please visit the media gallery on the district website to view photos from this event.

Partners from Tyler Perry Studios spent the day at Continental Colony Elementary School. The school has a robust partnership with the nearby movie studio.

House Minority Leader Stacey Abrams Inspires Students at the 12th Annual Lowery Lecture Series

House Minority Leader Stacey Abrams (D-Atlanta) recently served as the keynote speaker during the 12th annual Joseph Lowery Lecture Series on Civic Engagement at Therrell High School delivering a memorable message to students.

This yearly lecture series, held during the week of Rev. Lowery’s birthday, allows students the opportunity to hear from key local, state and national leaders while also asking and receiving answers to questions about politics, human rights issues and education topics.

More than 500 individuals – mostly seniors from every APS high school – the event. This year’s event marked Rev. Lowery’s 91^st birthday. Students and adults alike were inspired by the living legend’s quick wit and frank talk. Both leaders answered questions about the persistence of civil rights activists, the 2012 presidential election, and students’ responsibility to be aware and engaged civically. Joining the celebration were Superintendent Erroll Davis, Chair Reuben McDaniel, Vice Chair Byron Amos, and board members Cecily Harsch-Kinnane and Brenda Muhammad.

Abrams serves as the House Minority Leader for the Georgia General Assembly and as State Representative for Georgia House District 84 – soon to be District 89. Her district currently includes the communities of Candler Park, Columbia, Druid Hills, East Lake, Highland Park, Kelley Lake, Kirkwood, Lake Claire, Oakhurst, South DeKalb, Toney Valley and Tilson. Beginning in January, District 89 will add East Atlanta in DeKalb.

Lowery, a native of Huntsville, Ala., served as one of the chief organizers of the Selma, Montgomery marches in 1965 that led to passage of the Voting Rights Act.  A longtime president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, Lowery created the SCLC with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Ralph David Abernathy, Sr.  and Fred Shuttlesworth, who died last October.  At ninety, Lowery is the oldest surviving leader of the non-violent civil rights demonstrations of the 1950s and 1960s.

In 2009 Lowery delivered the benediction at President Obama’s inauguration.  Later that year, the nation’s first African-American president awarded Lowery the Presidential Medal of Freedom—the country’s highest civilian award—to honor Lowery’s service to the nation.