GSCS
HIGH SCHOOL EMPLOYEES OF THE MONTH
A. Z. KELSEY ACADEMY
A.Z. Kelsey's Employee
of the Month is Tonga Releford. She had 100% of her students take and pass the GHSWT. Mrs. Releford serves as the team leader for her PLC and is working hard in her new role as our ESOL teacher. In addition, she coordinates our graduation each semester and does a great job making it special for our students. Mrs. Releford
is truly an asset to A.Z. Kelsey!
GRIFFIN HIGH SCHOOL
Griffin High School would like to recognize the Parent Involvement Coordinator, Theresa Tolbert as our Employee of the Month. Mrs. Tolbert invests many hours in and outside of the school day to give our students, and parents' productive academic and informational experiences. Her dedication to our students, parents, and staff is displayed daily through her hard work.
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COWAN ROAD
MIDDLE SCHOOL'S
6TH ANNUAL JINGLE BELL JOG
December 10, 2014
5:30 p.m.
Click HERE for the
race registration form
or click HERE to register online.
To guarantee your
t-shirt and race bag
filled with goodies,
register PRIOR to
Friday, Nov. 28, 2014.
 | | T-shirt design |
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SPALDING COUNTY PARKS & RECREATION PRESENTS:
November 25th, 2014
6:00 pm
Airport Road Park
(Airport Road Park will be closed to all traffic. Please park at Rose's Shopping Center. Shuttles will be provided)
This FREE Event Includes: Annual Tree Lighting, Santa, Christmas Carols Performed by Oak Hill Baptist Church, S'more Making, Games, Prizes, Face painting &
Food available for
purchase by 4H
Click HERE for flyer
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 Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!
The great weeks at GSCS continue. On Wednesday, the 2014-15 GSCS Teachers of the Year from each school were recognized at the Kiwanis Club of Griffin's weekly luncheon. The 2015 Georgia Teacher of the Year, Amanda Miliner, was the guest speaker. She talked about how the face of education is rapidly changing and that one of the keys to being successful is attitude. Unfortunately, I was not able to attend the lunch but I heard, and saw by the pictures, that it was a great event. Our Teachers of the Year are outstanding! I want to thank the Teachers of the Year for their hard work and dedication. I want to thank all of you for supporting them in their efforts to represent our school system and our community. I also want to thank the Kiwanis Club for recognizing them. Congratulations to our 2014-15 GSCS Teachers of the Year!
I was unable to attend Kiwanis because I had to be in Atlanta to meet with the Technical College System of Georgia board which will determine if we receive the $3.5 million grant to implement our Griffin Region College and Career Academy. We had 15 representatives attend. Eight of the new governing board members plus Chairman Dave Lamb and Dr. Randy Peters from Southern Crescent Technical College represented us well. I was really impressed with their knowledge, passion and dedication to this project. We will find out the decision in the next two weeks.
Lastly, State Senator Emanuel Jones held a meeting this week in Henry County that I attended. The purpose of the meeting was to complete a task given to him by Lt. Governor Casey Cagle. Lt. Governor Cagle appointed Jones and other senators to serve on the School Disciplinary Senate Study Committee. The committee was asked to study the conditions, needs, issues and problems related to how local school systems disciplined students. The mission of the committee is to identify any operational inconsistencies between students of different racial or ethnic backgrounds.
To be honest, I was a little concerned when I received the invitation to this meeting and really didn't know what to expect. The senators at the meeting were Emanual Jones, Hardie Davis and Lindsey Tippins. The panel chosen to attend this meeting was broad. Besides me, panelist included:
Superintendent Rodney Bowler, Henry County School System
Dr. Garry McGiboney, Department of Education
Attorney Teddy Reese - Ga Appleseed
Attorney Micheal Tafelski - Ga Legal Services
Deana Holiday Ingraham, J. D. - Director of Student Discipline, Fulton County Schools
Superintendent Robert Costley - Butts County School System
I believe that Senator Jones is going to propose legislation that may change how discipline is implemented in Georgia. However, I realized that the changes he is going to recommend are not really going to affect us.
One recommendation is that school systems implement Response To Intervention programs and initiatives. They must have a framework of identifying and addressing the academic and behavioral needs of students through a tiered system. Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) will be written into Legislation. We were identified by the panel as being one of the best in the state at implementing PBIS.
Another recommendation is that all appointed disciplinary hearing officers be an outside attorney that has received initial and ongoing training on the procedures and requirements for conducting a hearing. Our disciplinary hearing officer, Tom Ison, is an outside attorney and already receives annual training.
Another recommendation is that students in tribunal for long-term suspension or explosion must be placed in an alternative educational setting. We already require that students found guilty of violating our student code resulting in long-term suspension be transferred to alternative school. In addition, it is being recommended that the school system provide transportation for those students to the alternative school which we currently already do.
I concluded that all of the issues the School Disciplinary Senate Study Committee found over the past year are ones that GSCS has already identified and put in place. That's a good feeling! A. Z. Kelsey Academy is one of the best alternative schools in the state. I know now that one reason is that they are implementing PBIS at an alternative school.
All of this shows that we at GSCS are doing all we can to educate our students to the very best of our ability. It is a team effort and a team approach. You are to be commended for the work you are doing.
I wish each and every one of you a happy Thanksgiving. Relax and enjoy time with your family and friends. You deserve it.
Thanks everyone.
COLDR
PS: Thanks to Moreland Road for sharing Thanksgiving lunch with me. It was fun being with you!
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 | | L-R: Amanda Miliner, 2015 Georgia Teacher of the Year with Jacky Summerville, 2014-15 GSCS Teacher of the Year |
 | | Amanda Miliner, 2015 Georgia Teacher of the Year, and James Westbury, Board of Education Chairman, with all of the 2014-15 GSCS Teachers of the Year |
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STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION PROPOSES REVISIONS TO CCGPS STANDARDS IN ELA, MATH
Proposed changes posted for public comment for 60 days
 November 12, 2014 - The State Board of Education has posted, for a 60-day public comment period, revisions to the Common Core Georgia Performance Standards (CCGPS) in English Language Arts and math.
The standards were revised based on a formal review and evaluation process, as directed by an executive order from Governor Nathan Deal. The review and evaluation process included several survey opportunities, along with legislative and State Board of Education listening sessions.
"Through this process, we have taken every opportunity to hear the concerns of educators, parents, and other stakeholders," State Superintendent Dr. John Barge said. "It's on the basis of that feedback that we are proposing these changes. This revision is not a retreat from our standards, but a refinement to ensure they are the best standards for Georgia's students."
Read more... |
 GSCS 2015-2016 EMPLOYEE WORK CALENDAR
GSCS principals received the Employee work calendar for 2015-2016. Highlights include:
- School in session: August 3, 2015 - May 26, 2016
- Early release dates for students: September, 15, 2015 & March 9, 2016
- If student make up days are required, then the order the days will be made up are: February 19, 2016, February 18, 2016, February 17, 2016, February 16, 2016, & February 12, 2016.
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TRS MEMBERS ONLY
The upcoming Teachers Retirement Workshop is scheduled for February 24, 2015 in the GSCS Learning Center. The one-on-one sessions will be held on February 25 and 26. You can register online by following the instructions below. Due to the massive responses in the past, TRS has requested that the one-on-one sessions be open only to those TRS members who are planning on retiring between 1 and 3 years from now. All who are interested in the workshop are invited to register. The registration goes live for Griffin Spalding County employees on December 1, 2014.
To register for either event, follow these easy steps:
- Visit www.trsga.com
- Click on Account Log-in at the top of the page
- Click on Active Member Login (If you experience difficulty logging in, you will need to contact TRS directly, as HR does not have access to your personal account (404-352-6500)
- Look under: "I Want To" and click on register for an event
- There is NO event code, just search for our school system
- Click Register
- Once you have registered, you should receive a confirmation email.
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 HELP GSCS EXPAND OUR TEAM OF SUBSTITUTES Attention GSCS employees! We need individuals who are enthusiastic about student achievement, have two years of college credit and are interested in becoming a substitute teacher. HR is currently accepting applications online and eager to expand our team of substitute teachers to better serve our students and staff. If you know someone who meets this criterion, please encourage them to visit www.gscs.org and complete an application by choosing "I want to" then "Apply for a job." For more information contact Ashley Evans at 770-229-3700 ext. 358 or ashley.evans@gscs.org. |
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CENTRAL OFFICE BLOOD DRIVE
GSCS Central Office will be hosting their semi-annual blood drive on Thursday, December 4th from 10 AM -
5 PM. The drive will be located inside the Learning Center and will be open to anyone wishing to participate. All donors will receive a free lunch and complimentary gift.
To secure a time slot for donation, sign-up in the Central Office reception area (216 S. 6th Street) or email jullian.rafter@gscs.org with your preferred time and I will email you a confirmation. Walk-in donations are also welcomed.
The blood drive will be provided by LifeSouth Community Blood Centers (primary supplier of blood for Spalding Regional Hospital). One of the great things that set LifeSouth apart is that the blood supply collected from our blood drive will stay in our community for local patient transfusion.
If you have any questions contact 770-229-3710 ext. 321 or jullian.rafter@gscs.org.
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GSCS SCHOOL NURSES DO
MUCH MORE THAN BANDAGES!
 DID YOU KNOW???
IN THE FIRST TWO MONTHS OF THIS SCHOOL YEAR
(AUG. & SEPT.) GSCS SCHOOL NURSES....
- Had 9631 illness visits.
- Treated and returned 92% of students to class from illness visits.
- Administered 6,822 doses of medication.
- Completed 128 vision screenings and 127 hearing screenings.
- Ensured ALL 850 seventh grade students were in compliance with the new immunization regulations by Sept. 1, 2014.
- Ensured 100% of GSCS Pre-K students met immunization requirements.
- Enrolled 807 students in the Hope Health Clinic Dental Program.
- Helped 200 GSCS students get various procedures done at The Hope Health Dental Clinic during September.
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PLAN TO START THE NEW YEAR WITH RESA PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
CO-TEACHING: MAKING THE MARRIAGE WORK
This Teacher Choice Series class will focus on the Least Restrictive Environment--the General Education Classroom--and how Co-Teaching partners can effectively support their students and one other within this environment.
Date: January 14, 2015 from 8:30 am to 3:30 pm
Location: Griffin RESA
Cost: $35.00
Credit: 0.5 credits as part of the Teacher Choice series
Click HERE for flyer
 CLASSROOM BOREDOM BUSTERS FOR HIGH SCHOOL TEACHERS
Come participate in a high energy course for 9-12 teachers in all content areas who want to banish boredom from their classrooms, create a positive learning environment, and get feedback from every student.
Date: January 15, 2015
Time: 8:30 am to 3:30 pm
Location: Griffin RESA
Cost: $35.00
Credit: 0.5 as part of our Choice Series
Target Audience: Teachers of grades 9-12 seeking to meet the diverse needs of
Click HERE for flyer
For more RESA trainings visit http://www.griffinresa.net/
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Click HERE for our non-discrimination statement.
Laura Beaber, Editor
GSCS Communications and Partnerships Department
PO Drawer N
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