Brandon Elementary kicks off holiday food-donation season

Brandon Elementary and Brandon Primary School launched the first of several food donation drives scheduled for this school year. With the help of parents, the Roots and Shoots organization, and the staff at Brandon, a food pantry was stocked with non-perishable goods today. The school’s social worker and counselor were able to help 23 families have a better Thanksgiving holiday. Food drives will continue throughout the school year with an aim to help families over holiday breaks and other times that they may be in need.

Hat tip to Janet Bernstein, school social worker at Brandon, for sharing this good news.

Annual String Fling allows APS students to get in tune with their peers

Orchestra teachers throughout APS hosted the second annual String Fling on Thursday (May 13) at Grady High. This event was an excellent performance opportunity for all of the district’s orchestra students to celebrate their talent and play in a large ensemble comprised of elementary, middle and high schools. About 200 students performed, according to Erik Herndon, orchestra teacher at Young Middle School.

The program began with selections for the elementary orchestra programs, and were conducted by Centennial Place Elementary‘s director of orchestras and Suzuki Strings Carole Kane and accompanied by Brandon Elementary Orchestra Director Carol Barach. (Kane also teaches at Boyd and Hutchinson elementary schools, while Barach also teaches at Warren T. Jackson, Garden Hills, Brandon and Smith elementary schools.)

APS reading teams have their eyes on the prize Saturday

Congratulations to Morris Brandon, Centennial Place, Garden Hills, Parkside and D.H. Stanton elementary schools for their outstanding  performance in the third annual APS Helen Ruffin Reading Bowl last weekend. As the highest-scoring teams,  D.H. Stanton and Morris Brandon will proceed to the Metropolitan Atlanta Regional Helen Ruffin Reading Bowl on Saturday (Feb. 6). 

The teams from D.H. Stanton and Morris Brandon will be accompanied by a team from Sutton Middle School and a team from The New Schools at Carver. Thanks to all the parents for their hard work and dedication to the students, and best of luck at the Metropolitan Atlanta Regional Helen Ruffin Reading Bowl. For more information on the Helen Ruffin Reading Bowl, please visit http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us/hrrb/georgia.html

Schools around APS rally for aid to Haiti

Help for Haiti seems to be springing up all around Atlanta Public Schools, from pennies to dollars to blankets and clothing. The level of caring and giving rises with each day as students, faculty, staff, parents and community supporters rally to the nation’s aid.

For example, what started out as a hallway conversation among teachers at Brandon Elementary School has ballooned into a full-blown fundraising drive led by the students that has raised $4,000 for Haiti. Read more about that effort here.

Fundraising efforts at Forrest Hill Academy have raised nearly $1,000 in Haiti relief — thanks in part to a spaghetti dinner. Read more about that effort here.

Continental Colony Elementary School recently conducted a two-week “Pay It Forward” campaign for the victims of Haiti. During that time, the school collected a total of $485.48. The proceeds were mailed to the America Red Cross Foundation. Read more about that effort here.

King Middle School has rallied around one of its teachers who has a personal connection to the tragedy with a range of fundraising activities. Read more about that effort here.

Parkside Elementary teachers and students (including its cheerleaders) got together to help out Haiti. Read more about that effort here.

Inman Middle School seventh-grader Hope Van Duyne helped lead a penny drive and a bake sale to raise $1,200 to get water purifying packets to be made in Haiti and handed out to survivors for cleaner drinking water. Read more about that effort here.

Walter White and Frank L. Stanton elementary school students and staff and gotten into the help for Haiti. At White, students and staff collected a range of supplies including toiletry items, water, medical supplies, baby food and other baby needs. At Stanton, staff and students focused on donating cases of bottled water. Read more about that effort here.

Walter Leonard Parks Middle School students participated in a program Friday sponsored by the Haitian-American Women-Children Health and Educational Services, Inc. (HAWCHES, INC.). Students have started collecting money from people in the Pittsburgh community for the Red Cross organization. Students have also started to create a series of art projects that depict the destruction of the earthquake. Read more about that effort here.

With daily French classes and a teacher with Haitian roots, Fickett Elementary chose to act quickly to contribute to the country’s disaster relief efforts. On Jan. 21, more than 500 students packed Fickett’s gym for a sock hop to raise funds for Haitian earthquakes victims. With a $1.00 admission fee and a packed concession stand, Fickett raised over $1,000. Read more about that effort here.

Inman Middle School joins a growing list of schools in the APS system banding together to help provide relief for the victims of the Haiti earthquakes. Inman will provide “A Night of Jazz for Haiti” at 6 p.m. Friday, Feb. 12, at the school’s gymnasium. Read more about that effort here.

Gideons Elementary students, faculty, parents and staff raised $1,000 for the Red Cross to help victims of the earthquake in Haiti. It’s yet another example of how Atlanta Public Schools seeks to prepare global leaders.

Deerwood Academy students made an immediate connection with the children of Haiti. With members of the faculty as well as some of its students having family in Haiti, it was a no-brainer that the students of Deerwood Academy would extend a “helping hand,” thus the beginning of its school-wide service learning project. The goal: collect 1,000 hand sanitizers. Read more about that effort here.

In an effort to help babies who are struggling in Haiti, Mary Lin Elementary School has collected diapers and baby wipes. The collection was done during the week of Jan. 21-28, and provided a great experience for children to be able to help. The school collected 3,013 diapers and 13,548 baby wipes. Read more about that effort here.

Hill-Hope Elementary has launched a “Flip-Flops February Hygiene for Haiti Initiative” for the entire month of February. Students, parents, teachers, staff, and community members are encouraged to donate hygiene products including (but not limited to) deodorant, toothpaste, toothbrushes, hair products, baby powder, baby oil, lotion, Vaseline, female products to the school. Read more about that effort here.

Meet the Atlanta Families’ Awards winners: Nza Willingham (first in a series)

We’d like to celebrate the winners of the 2010 Atlanta Families’ Awards for Excellence in Education with a series of profiles, starting today with Nza Willingham, third-grade teacher at Brandon Elementary. (We’re starting with Ms. Willingham, frankly, because she was out on a rare sick day when we came out to Brandon on Jan. 22 to present her with her check!) In these profiles we’ll provide a little bio of the winner followed by a description of their projects.

The youngest daughter of two educators, Nza Willingham always knew she loved children. Her journey as an educator began as an little girl in her mother’s classroom, where she graded papers, completed bulletin boards and helped to prepare lessons, all the while proclaiming that she would be a pediatrician when she grew up. As she matured, she realized that her interest in medicine was not as strong as her affinity for children.  Her deep curiosity in how the mind develops, led her to begin a course of study at Mercer University.  She graduated with honors and earned a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Early Childhood Education in May of 2003.

SRT-4 schools among Georgia schools awarded for outstanding achievement

There were 327 Georgia schools honored under Georgia’s Single Statewide Accountability System (SSAS), which awards schools based on their performance on state curriculum exams and Adequate Yearly Progress status. And APS’ SRT-4 schools were among them. The recognized schools will receive a congratulatory letter and a banner announcing the accomplishment.

The schools are awarded on four levels — Platinum, Gold, Silver and Bronze in two categories:
Greatest gains:  Schools that showed the greatest improvement in scores on the Criterion-Referenced Competency Tests (CRCT) or the Georgia High School Graduation Tests (GHSGT).
Highest Performance:  Schools that demonstrate the highest achievement on the CRCT or GHST.

SRT-4 is proud to announce the following schools:
Greatest Gains for Students Meeting and Exceeding Standards
Platinum — Blalock Elementary
Platinum — Sutton Middle

Highest Performance for Students Meeting and Exceeding Standards
Platinum — Jackson Elementary
Gold — Brandon Elementary
Bronze  — Sarah Smith Elementary

Morris Brandon Elementary helps get out the vote

Recently, the Buckhead Coalition dreamed up a promotion to urge citizens to vote. Our city was electing a new mayor, new council members and school board members. They offered each school in the Buckhead area $1 per “I Voted” sticker up to $800. They upped the bet for an additional $1,000 for the best presentation of the stickers.

Brandon Elementary’s International Baccalaureate coordinator, Theresa Bowen, and our school ambassador, Mary Plumer, came up with an idea: “We are all under the umbrella of the world.” The school took the idea of being under the umbrella of Atlanta, our community, our school and our students – that everyone is a part of one big idea. The students were very excited about the competition and encouraged their parents not only to get out and vote, but also to turn in the stickers. Everyone watched as the stickers were turned in.

 Brandon turned the “umbrella” idea in to the Buckhead Coalition after Election Day. The school was so excited about getting its community involved in this small project. You could see it as representatives walked in the doors of Buckhead Coalition President Sam Massell’s office.

 The company witnessed the infectious smiles. Morris Brandon showed its commitment to the children, therefore the parents and even the neighborhoods.

The Buckhead Coalition decided that it wasn’t necessarily the “art” that won the competition, but the enthusiasm that forced a tie with North Atlanta High’s art department’s rendering.

Thanks to Brandon Media Specialist Claudia Zurbrick for the info.

Inaugural APS Neighborhood Celebration a glowing success

UPDATE: Check out Media Production Manager Scott King’s photo gallery here.

More than 800 APS students, parents, faculty members and staff welcomed prospective students, parents, and members of the community during the inaugural neighborhood education celebration on Saturday at North Atlanta High School.

The two-hour event included a pep rally, open house, live performances, a parade of schools, educational displays and other colorful events highlighting the educational experiences of students attending North Atlanta High School, Sutton Middle, and Brandon, Bolton, Garden Hills, Jackson, E. Rivers and Sarah Smith elementary schools. All of these schools offer the acclaimed International Baccalaureate (IB) academic program. 

Save the date: Neighborhood Celebration at North Atlanta High, Nov. 21

Atlanta Public Schools introduces the inaugural APS Neighborhood Celebration at 2 p.m. Sat., Nov. 21, at North Atlanta High School. Part pep rally, part open house, the “All for All, One by One” event will celebrate our neighborhood schools through student performances, a “Parade of Schools,” school displays, a canned food drive and even a few surprises!

Featured schools:
• North Atlanta High
• Sutton Middle
• Brandon Elementary
• Bolton Academy
• Garden Hills Elementary
• Jackson Elementary
• E. Rivers Elementary
• Sarah Smith Elementary

Parents, prospective students, Realtors and school, civic and business partners from the Northside community are invited to attend to experience what’s happening at their neighborhood APS school. For more information, please call 404-802-2836 or email kwgreen@atlantapublicschools.us

INFO:
Saturday, November 21, 2009
2 p.m.
North Atlanta High School
2875 Northside Dr., NW
Atlanta, GA 30305