 SCHOOL BOARD
MEMBERS!
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March 17-21 is School Board Appreciation week in Georgia. GSCS five board members are dedicated professionals who share their time and talents to improve and support our school system. Please thank Barbara Jo Cook, Pete Graham, Zach Holmes, Mike Kendall and James Westbury for their service to GSCS.
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GSCS ELEMENTARY SCHOOL EMPLOYEES OF THE MONTH
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ATKINSON ELEMENTARY
Bridgette Jefferies is a 3rd grade teacher and sponsor of the Atkinson Schoolhouse Players Drama Club. Ms. Jefferies works hard with Atkinson students in and out of the classroom. Recently, students of the Drama Club put on two black history plays for the students of Atkinson. Ms. Jefferies did an outstanding job preparing students to perform in front of their peers and teaching history in the process. We are excited about the work Ms. Jefferies does daily and value her as a part of the Atkinson Team.
BEAVERBROOK ELEMENTARY
Beaverbrook's Employee of the Month is Meredith Byrd. Mrs. Byrd has assumed a leadership position in our fifth grade. Mrs. Byrd is energetic, dependable and thorough. Her love for students and teaching is evident in all that she does. We are very fortunate to have her as a teacher in our school. Meredith is true team player and exemplary educator.
CRESCENT ELEMENTARY
Crescent's Employees of the Month are our cafeteria staff. Congratulations to our staff for scoring 100% on their most recent health inspection. Our cafeteria staff supports EVERYTHING we do. They love our children, and we love them!!
FUTRAL ROAD ELEMENTARY
Futral Road's Employee of the Month is Cynthia Curtis. Ms. Curtis serves as a leader for our staff and gives her absolute best to our students. She is always willing to engage in tasks designed to improve our school and takes part in improvement initiatives. Ms. Curtis is one of the best and is valued very highly at our school.
JACKSON ROAD ELEMENTARY
Julie Riggs and Melissa Imes are our Employees of the Month for March. Through a shared love of baseball, these teachers encouraged and coached a struggling student to craft, write, and read sentences about a "red hat." This student beamed as they took him around the school to celebrate his accomplishment with other staff members, all while wearing one of their own red baseball hats. Ms. Riggs and Ms. Imes deserve to be recognized for inspiring students to work hard and for their unwavering belief that every student can achieve.
JORDAN HILL ELEMENTARY
Congratulations to Mrs. Addy Butler, Jordan Hill's March Employee of the Month. Addy worked hard with our Chili Cook-Off fundraiser benefiting Relay for Life. She is a wonderful math teacher who works hard with Math Mania and uses hands-on activities with students. Her students learn a lot from her.
MOORE ELEMENTARY
Congratulations to Mrs. Jo Covington and Mrs. Angela Foster the front office staff at Moore Elementary School for the quality customer service they display. No matter how busy it gets in the front office, their calm and peaceful demeanor help to keep everything balanced and under control. The Moore family salutes them for continuously exhibiting a sweet spirit to the parents, students, teachers and staff as they multitask on a daily basis.
MORELAND ROAD ELEMENTARY
Moreland Road's Employee of the Month is Crista Stubbs. Mrs. Stubbs currently serves as chairperson of the first grade team. As chair, she demonstrates great leadership abilities. She has been instrumental in fostering teamwork and collaboration among her colleagues. She has a cooperative spirit and is always willing to assist when needed. We are fortunate to have Mrs. Stubbs as a member of our Moreland Road team.
ORRS ELEMENTARY
Orrs Assistant Principal, Mrs. Becky Woodruff, is our Employee of the Month.What would we do without you Mrs. Woodard? In case you haven't noticed, you are the person that keeps this school functioning, keeps our children learning and makes Orrs Elementary School as an outstanding place where education flourishes.
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Griffin High School's Academic Team lost their second round of High-Q 295 to 440 against Yeshiva High School in Atlanta. Mary Holmes, Ricky Crook, Tyrique Hannah and Gerron Lewis did GHS proud!
The show will air Sunday, March 16 at 12:30 p.m.
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COWAN ELEM. FAMILY ENGINEERING NIGHT
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Message from Danielle Booher,
Cowan Elem. Science Lab teacher
Cowan Road Elementary held a Family Engineering night on March 4th. Several engineers from the community and presenters from the Flynt River Astronomy Club spoke with our families about STEM. Our guests also assisted families with the challenges. Families worked together to solve short engineering challenges at over 23 different stations. We want our students to be prepared for the future and feel that the spark of interest needs to start EARLY!
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Tumbling Towers Challenge
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SAVE THE DATE...
2014 Relay For Life of Spalding County
May 16, 2014
Kiwanis Fair Grounds
Theme:
Teaming Up Against Cancer!
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Greetings!
Honestly, I have been worrying a lot lately. I have lost sleep worrying about what was going to happen.... with Senate Bill 167. SB167 was legislation that began in the Senate and worked through the Georgia Assembly that was known, in many circles, as the anti-Common Core bill. The bill included many provisions that gave me great concerns. One main concern being that we would have a new set of standards...AGAIN! New standards that teachers would have to learn, students would have to experience, assessments would have to be written for, etc. This would be too much change in too short a period of time; and we do not need to change our curriculum AGAIN! The Quality Core Curriculum (QCC) needed to be updated and I thought the Georgia Performance Standards did that. I was even more convinced that the Common Core Georgia Performance Standards gave us the best opportunity to prepare our students to compete with students from anywhere in the nation. I did not want to see us go backwards. The information I was receiving from my fellow superintendents and various educational agencies made it sound like this bill was a done deal. I was worried. The response that the House received on SB167 was strong and powerful. Teachers, administrators, parents and stakeholders all let Legislators know that this bill was wrong and not in the best interest of children. Finally the verdict was delivered this week and I could rest. The House Education Committee voted down SB167 and it appears to be dead for this session. I say appears because it is still possible to attach that entire legislation to something else that has already passed the House or Senate. So while I am relieved, I remain a little cautious because crazy things are known to happen on the last day of the legislative session. But as of now SB 167 is not a threat to public education in Georgia and I truly hope it stays that way. Thank you all for staying involved in this process and letting your voice be heard.
Have a great week!
Curtis 
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| GEORGIA'S FIRST LADY VISITS BEAVERBROOK ELEMENTARY |
 Georgia's first lady, Sandra Deal, visited Beaverbrook Elementary on Monday. Her visit was in support of Governor Deal's reading initiative, Read Across Georgia. Deal read the book "Who I'd Like To Be" by Elizabeth Brown to Beaverbrook's pre-K and kindergarten students. |
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9+1 ASSESSMENTS: WHAT ARE THEY AND WHY ARE THEY IMPORTANT?
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Message from Sara Jones, School Improvement Director 
Traditionally, we have used assessments to measure how much our students have learned up to a particular point in time. This is called assessment of learning. We also measure using summative assessments to see if our students are meeting standards set by the state, the district or the classroom teacher. These summative assessments can be conducted after a unit or certain time period to determine how much learning has taken place. Although assessments of learning are important if we are to ascribe grades to students and provide accountability, teachers should also focus more on assessment for learning. Assessments for learning are what we call formative assessments and they support students during the learning process.
9+1 assessments simply defined are formative assessments based off of 9 instructional days and 1 assessment day in the varied content areas. You use the data from the formative assessment to check for student understanding along the way and guide teacher decision making about future instruction. These formative assessments also provide feedback to students so they can improve their performance.
Formative assessments help us differentiate instruction for continued efforts in improving student achievement. Many fear that formative assessments take up too much time, sacrifice coverage and insist they must move on quickly. Yet in the rush to cover more, students are actually learning less. Without time to reflect on and interact meaningfully with new information, students are unlikely to retain much of what is "covered" in their classrooms. Formative assessments are an integral part of the instructional process in three important ways. They must be used as sources of information for both students and teachers, follow assessments with high-quality corrective instruction and give the students second chances to demonstrate success.
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 Infinite Campus will be down for a system upgrade on Friday, April 4, 2014 from 6 p.m. - 12 a.m. After the upgrade is installed, the Campus user interface will have a new design theme and simplified navigation as well as other enhancements and bug fixes. Click HERE for an overview of what will change regarding the look and feel of the user interface. |
 SPRING OPEN ENROLLMENT APRIL 7 - 18, 2014 for
supplemental insurance. More information to come.... |
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MARCH MARKS THE START OF ACTIVE TORNADO 'SEASON' IN GEORGIA...ARE YOU PREPARED?
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 Prepare for a Tornado - Familiarize yourself with the terms that are used to identify a tornado hazard.
- A tornado watch means a tornado is possible in your area.
- A tornado warning means a tornado has been spotted in your area and you need to take shelter immediately.
- Determine in advance where you will take shelter in case of a tornado warning. Storm cellars or basements provide the best protection.
- Make sure NOAA Weather Radios are programmed correctly and prepare a ready kit of supplies that may be needed following a tornado.
Plan to Take Shelter - If local authorities issue a tornado warning or if you see a funnel cloud, take shelter immediately.
- If underground shelter is not available, go into an interior room on the lowest floor possible.
- A vehicle, trailer or mobile home does not provide adequate protection. Plan to go quickly to a building with a strong foundation, if possible.
- If shelter is not available, lie flat in a ditch or other low-lying area.
Stay Informed of Tornado Threats - Listen to NOAA Weather Radio, watch TV, listen to the radio or check the Internet often for official news and instructions as they become available.
- After a tornado, stay out of damaged buildings and stay clear of downed power lines.
- Help injured or trapped people. Check on others who may require special assistance, such as the elderly, children and people with disabilities.
Visit www.ready.ga.gov for more Georgia-specific tornado preparedness information and to create a customized Ready kit checklist and communications plan for your family or business. |
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DID YOU KNOW MARCH IS IRISH-AMERICAN HERITAGE MONTH?
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 Don't let the month of March go by without doing something that honors the Irish and all the contributions they have made to this country. It's just another way to appreciate all people. Here are a few Irish-American History Fun Facts: - Did you know that Henry Ford was of Irish descent? He is the inventor of the Model T and the reason why we all drive cars today.
- In the US today, there are 33.7 million residents who claim Irish ancestry. This number is almost nine times the population of Ireland itself.
- St. Patrick's given birth name was Maewyn Succat. Happy Maewyn Succat Day!
- Why is St. Patrick's Day celebrated on March 17th? St. Patrick died on March 17, 461 AD.
- Did you know that several U.S. presidents are of Irish descent? JFK, Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan are a few.
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| SHS STUDENT NAMED GEORGIA EMC DELEGATE |
Spalding High School junior, Corienne Garbison, has been selected by Central Georgia EMC to represent Georgia on their Washington Youth Tour. This leadership award includes meeting with state and national leaders in Washington D.C., personal leadership training, joining over 1400 other student delegates from across the nation, and touring major sights across our nation's capital.
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GSCS YOUNG GEORGIA AUTHORS
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 Message from Ashley Crawford, K-12 Curriculum Director Please join me in congratulating the winners of the GSCS Young Georgia Authors' competition. We wish them the best at the state level competition! State winners will be announced in June. |
Futral Rd. Elementary
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Olivia Shuman
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Cowan Rd. Elementary
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Rocio Alvarez
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Crescent Elementary
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Sally Waits
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Rehoboth Rd. Middle
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Annabelle Walsh
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Kennedy Rd. Middle
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Ryanne Allen
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Kennedy Rd. Middle
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Samantha Bentley
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Griffin High School
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Rachel Riordan
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Spalding High School
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Kiarra Howard
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Griffin High School
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Mary Holmes
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Spalding High School
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Jeremiah Johnson
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 Today's school buses are built with safety in mind. They are tougher, cleaner and more diligently maintained than ever before. School bus drivers are required to receive special security and medical training, and undergo regular drug and alcohol testing to provide a safe ride for our students. School bus traffic laws are strictly enforced. |
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Savon Stinson, Taylor Stringer, Cartavia Bryant, Brittany Casteel,and Jahlesia Ellis
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Congratulations to the SHS students who participated in
the HOSA State Competitions
in Athens Ga. They are:
Taylor Stringer- Law and Ethics
Shykeria Dallas- Medical Terminology
Cydney Swain- Dental Terminology
Madison Stansell- Clincal Nursing (1st place)
Jalesia Ellis- Clinical Nursing
Cartavia Bryant- Human Growth and Development
Savon Stinson- Medical photography
Walker Spivey- Clinical Nursing (2nd place)
Brittany Casteel- Nursing Assistant, Healthcare Issues
Bethany Flournoy-Clinical Nursing
Kaitlin Evans- State Officer
The following SHS students will go on to compete in the following exam areas at the HOSA National Conference in Disney World in June.
Walker Spivey: Clinical Nursing, Healthcare Issues
Madion Stansell: Clinical Nursing, Healthcare Issues
Brittany Casteel: Healthcare Issues
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 Question:
If I found a pot of gold I would...
Responses from GSCS ASP kids...- buy a bouncy house
- buy more gold and diamonds too
- share it with my family
- buy my auntie a car
- buy a big pencil
- buy the coolest car ever
- put it in a treasure chest
- donate some to charity and people in need
- help others
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