APS School Construction and Renovation Projects

Springdale Park’s Chorus Performs “O, Canada” at Gwinnett Gladiators Game

On Saturday, January 12^th, the Springdale Park Advanced Chorus performed the Canadian National Anthem “O, Canada” at the Gwinnett Gladiators Game vs. the Kalamazoo Wings. Over 120 Springdale Park fans were present to support the chorus. The Gladiators are the ECHL Affiliate of the Buffalo Sabres and the Phoenix Coyotes of the National Hockey League and are members of the ECHL, the Premier “AA” Hockey League.

The event was part of a FUN-raiser with many benefits for Springdale Park Choruses:

• Family and friends of the chorus members were able to buy reduced-price ticket sales for the game
• The Children had an unforgettable experience singing for a huge professional sports team audience
• Because Springdale Park sold more than 100 tickets, their music program will receive a donation back from the Gladiators!

The Springdale Park Choruses have performed the US National Anthem for multiple sporting events around town, including Georgia Tech Women’s Volleyball and Basketball games and Springdale Park’s 5th Grade Basketball Challenge. The performers wanted to try something new for the Gladiators game by singing the Canadian Anthem. They further challenged themselves by learning the bi-lingual version of “O, Canada”, singing it in English and French!

“I am so proud of the beautiful singing and grateful for the dedication and hard work devoted by all of our Springdale Park Chorus and Advanced Chorus members! The kids blew me away with their lovely sound and excellent diction!” says Brianne Turgeon, Music/Chorus Teacher at Springdale Park.

Springdale Park is looking forward to the upcoming events:

• February 9 – The Community Children’s Chorus Festival, featuring choruses from Springdale Park, Mary Lin, The Swift School (private), Henderson Mill (DeKalb), and Atlanta Young Singers (of Callanwolde)
• February 13 – Advanced Chorus performance at LGPE at Mays High School
• April 27 – The Inman Park Festival Parade
• May 13 – Spring Music Concert

For more information, please visit Music@SPARK’s blog: http://springdaleparkmusic.blogspot.com/

Springdale Park Elementary School earns LEED gold certification by U.S. Green Building Council

Springdale Park Elementary School

ATLANTA – Springdale Park Elementary School has earned the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) gold certification by the U.S. Green Building Council (USBGC).  This is next to the highest certification for school buildings and campuses in recognition of the unique nature of the design and construction of K12 schools.

Springdale Park Elementary School underwent a $12.1 million total renovation and expansion recently that incorporated energy efficient and environmentally friendly, low-emissions geo-thermal technology into the school’s heating, ventilation and air conditioning system.

LEED promotes sustainable building and development practices through a suite of rating systems that recognize projects that implement strategies for better environmental and health performance.

The rating process involves evaluating schools and campuses for such things as classroom acoustics, master planning, mold prevention and environmental site assessment.

Miles and Springdale Park Elementary students represent APS in statewide elementary honor chorus

The Georgia Music Educator’s Statewide Elementary Honor Chorus was held the weekend of October 28th in Jonesboro, Georgia.

Students from Atlanta Public School’s LP Miles Elementary and Springdale Park Elementary represented APS among almost 500 of the best elementary chorus members across the state of Georgia.

The Georgia Music Educators Association Statewide Elementary Honor Chorus is a yearly event for excellent choral singers from all over the state of Georgia.  GMEA Honor Chorus is an opportunity for singers to meet kids from all over Georgia who share their passion for singing and music, plus each choir had the opportunity to work with widely-known choral conductors Craig Hurley from the Spivey Hall Children’s Chorus and Phillip Shoultz from Druid Hills Presbyterian Church, Gwinnett Young Singers, and the Gwinnett Choral Guild.

APS celebrates National School Counseling Week: Meet Jeanine Russo of Springdale Park Elementary

Update: Meet Andrew Ragland from Mays. Also, see the interview with Dr. Lenice Biggins Horton of Benteen and Humphries Elementary schools.

Last month, Atlanta Public Schools honored its school crossing guards for their dedication to protecting our students. This week, we go inside the schools and honor guidance counselors during National School Counseling Week, Feb. 7-11.

Professional school counselors at APS are certified, experienced educators with a minimum of a master’s degree in guidance and counseling. Not only do our counselors help students handle social issues such as bullying or peer pressure, they also offer support as students chart a path to college and careers.

“Counselors are the ultimate caregivers in a school and they wear so many hats,” said Ronald Garlington, Coordinator of K-8 Guidance and Counseling Services. “They tend to spend so much time taking care of everyone else and often go unappreciated and rarely acknowledged. They do not complain about this at all…they simply do what needs to be done and never ask for accolades.”

He noted that National School Counseling Week allows everyone to step back for a moment and honor the hard work of the school counselor. “It also helps the counselor to understand just how much they are actually appreciated. It is specifically important to us as counseling coordinators because it allows us to pat them on the back and say,  ‘THANK YOU FOR A JOB WELL DONE!!!!!!’ “

Check back each day as TalkUpAPS.com features a few of our committed counselors, starting with Jeanine Russo of Springdale Park Elementary.

Hat tip to Ronald Garlington, coordinator of K-8 Guidance and Counseling Services, and LaVerne Ware, coordinator of High School Counseling and Student Support Services, for proudly sharing information about our amazing team of counselors.

Springdale Park Elementary students sing a happy tune

Pictured: Nick Page, Lia Walker, Kate Jern, and Elizabeth Jern; Dawn Shipp (parent), Brianne Turgeon, Elizabeth Jern, Kate Jern, Andy Beck, Lisa Jern (parent), and Ben Shipp; Joann Maples and Brianne Turgeon.

Four students from Springdale Park Elementary participated in the Georgia Music Educator’s Association (GMEA) Statewide Honor Chorus, which took place this past weekend at the Clayton County Performing Arts Center. The students were selected to sing along with four to six of the best singers from elementary schools across the state of Georgia under the direction of two world-class composer/conductors, Nick Page and Andy Beck. Selections included “Let There Be Peace,” “Alleluia Round,” “Firefly” and “Niska Banja,” the latter a Romanian folk song that students learned in Romanian.

APS teachers sing loud and proud with ASO Chorus … at Carnegie Hall!

With APS employees like Springdale Park and Usher-Collier Heights elementary music teacher Brianne Turgeon contributing to Talk Up APS, we know we’ve got the district covered. Turgeon shared the following report with us:

On Saturday, Oct. 30, three APS teachers had an amazing opportunity to perform on the most famous stage in the US. Staria Lovelady (F.L. Stanton Elementary, kindergarten), Quyen Nguyen (Peyton Forest Elementary, kindergarten), and Brianne Turgeon (music and chorus, Springdale Park and Usher elementary) performed Janáček’s “Glagolitic Mass” with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra as members of the ASO Chorus at Carnegie Hall in New York City.

APS students beef up — in a very healthy way

Atlanta Public Schools, for the very first time, served local beef from grass-fed, pastured and certified Animal Welfare Approved White Oak Pastures earlier in the week. So, you could say that Atlanta school children ate better than just about everybody else in the metro area – except for the folks dining at the city’s best restaurants. Georgia Organics President and White Oak Pastures owner Will Harris ate with kids at Springdale Park Elementary (which is LEED-certified, and has a rooftop garden, by the way). After lunch, Harris and Georgia Organics staff were given a tour of the students’ gardens, provided by Farmer D.

APS and Sodexo are to be commended for this great step forward in supporting local farmers and providing the kind of beneficial food Georgia children deserve everywhere, every day.

Springdale Park Elementary offers a ‘SPARK Sneak Peek’ at 2010-11

Springdale Park parents Dominique and Arturo Cruz-Tucker show their son Triston his kindergarten class.

Springdale Park Elementary (SPARK) students and parents got a chance to visit their classrooms and tour the school today at the second annual “SPARK Sneak Peek” back-to-school event. Students had the opportunity to spend time in their classrooms and interact with their teacher and classmates, while parents learned about after-school enrichment programs, signed up for PTO volunteer events, and chat with Principal Yolonda Brown.

“Our annual ‘Sneak Peek’ is our most exciting back-to-school event because it gives our parents and students an opportunity to meet the entire staff before school starts and for our children to spend two hours with their teacher,” said Brown. “This gives them a sneak peek of the great instruction and enrichment that they will experience daily at SPARK throughout the school year.”

“The first year was really exciting,” said David Rein, SPARK PTO president. “To be able to go into the second year with everything so organized is so great. It’s a unique experience to have the combination of the physical space, the community, and the leadership and staff come together in such a perfect way.”

“We are really impressed with all the options children have at SPARK. The hands-on approach to learning, the talented teachers and principal, and the LEED certification,” said Dominique Cruz-Tucker, mother of entering kindergartner Triston. “They are very organized and have it together.”

‘APS Today’ showcases Principal for a Day program tonight at 9 p.m.

Tune in to PBA30 tonight at 9 p.m. for the latest episode of “APS Today,” hosted by Nwandi Lawson. This month’s episode will focus on the exciting Principal for a Day program in which high-profile members of the community spend a day learning more about Atlanta Public Schools. While every school participates in the October program, the featured schools for this episode are Toomer Elementary (pictured), Springdale Park Elementary, and Coan Middle. (See the PFAD profile on Toomer here, and the Springdale Park profile here.)