GSCS COMMUNICATOR
System-wide Straight Talk for Employees
April 1-8, 2016
In This Issue
AMP-IT-UP NEWS
TEACHER APPRECIATION WEEK MAY 2-6
BENEFIELD NAMED GSCS MEDIA SPECIALIST OF THE YEAR
2016-17 EMPLOYEE WORK CALENDAR
GHS STUDENT CHOSEN FOR 2016 GOVERNOR'S HONOR PROGRAM
DOCTORAL DEGREE INFO. MEETING
TOP GSCS SCHOOLS AND TEACHERS IN SLDS PAGE VIEWS
MENTAL HEALTH ADVOCATE VISITS GSCS 9TH GRADERS
GSCS MIDDLE SCHOOL EMPLOYEES OF THE MONTH
CARVER ROAD MIDDLE
Carver Road would like to recognize Ms. Johnson as our Employee of the Month. She is dedicated to her caseload of students and actively instructs daily. We also appreciate Mr. Stinson, science department chair, for ensuring that our students were prepared for the science Olympiad competition. #2185pride
 
COWAN ROAD MIDDLE
Cowan Road Middle School's Employees of the Month are Teacher Support Coaches Jennifer Harper, Patty James and Linda Porter.  These ladies are continually learning new strategies and work tirelessly each day to provide support for our teachers and students.  They are fully committed to the mission and vision of our school and school system and demonstrate our core values in their work.  We are thankful for all that Ms. Harper, Ms. James and Ms. Porter do for our school!

KENNEDY ROAD MIDDLE
Kennedy Road Middle School would like to recognize Jameka Mallory as our Employee of the month.  Mrs. Mallory serves as our ELA academic coach.  She does an awesome job working with our teachers and helping lead our daily PL time.  Ms. Mallory is always willing to help out when needed.  She is a vital part of the success of Kennedy Road Middle School.  We are lucky to have her on our team!!!!

REHOBOTH ROAD MIDDLE
Rehoboth Road's Employee of the Month is Raye Aragon. Ms. Aragon is our academic coach for math. Her work with our teachers is invaluable. Whether it be providing guidance and materials for improved lessons or assisting struggling students Ms. Aragon is always giving her utmost to our school and its stakeholders. She consistently works with our staff in the area of analyzing assessments to address student needs. Ms. Aragon is a respected and vital part of our organization who does, with a positive and cheerful attitude, whatever it takes for student and staff success. We thank Raye Aragon for all she does at RRMS.
AMP-IT-UP NEWS
Click HERE to check out the AMP-IT-UP Bi-Weekly Digest newsletter.
STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION APPROVES NEW SCIENCE STANDARDS

The State Board of Education has approved the first Georgia Standards of Excellence (GSE) for science, which will be implemented during the 2017-18 school year following a full year of teacher training. The new standards were developed based on public feedback from teachers, parents and families, students, business and industry, and community members, who shared their input through survey opportunities and committee participation. Following that, the standards were posted for a 60-day public comment period, which ran from January 15 to March 14, 2016.  View a summary of changes here.

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LOOK AT GRIFFIN RESA'S "STACHE OF CLASSES" FOR MAY!
Click HERE for the current list of professional learning classes for May 2016 for teachers, administrators & paraprofessionals. 
TEACHER APPRECIATION WEEK MAY 2-6
How is your school going to celebrate Teacher Appreciation Week? Here are a few ideas to help your school plan something great before the first week of May...
  • Cover each teacher's classroom door with butcher paper and let students write special notes to teachers.
  • Have a contest for
    students to decorate each teacher's classroom door with all the things they love about their teacher.
  • In your morning announcements remind students to show appreciation for their teachers in all kinds of ways (making cards, writing letters or poems, drawing pictures, etc.)
  • Ask each teacher to complete the phrase, "If I had only one wish, it would be..." Provide large sheets of paper and have each class of students illustrate its teacher's wish. Display the paintings and drawings in the school.
  • Make a big deal out of your teaching staff and get your students in an uproar by creating a red carpet experience. Get a piece of red carpet and velvet ropes and have each teacher walk down the carpet as they arrive at school.
BENEFIELD NAMED GSCS MEDIA SPECIALIST OF THE YEAR
As the result of a competitive process, Futral Road Elementary Media Specialist Leslie Benefield is the Griffin-Spalding County School System (GSCS) Library Media Specialist of the Year (LMSOTY).
 
The LMSOTY is awarded for individual excellence in the library media field through service to students, teachers and community at the K-12 level. First nominated by her Principal Ben Steele and then having her application receive the highest score by the judging committee, Mrs. Benefield was identified as the school system's candidate for the state competition.
 
Futral Road Elementary Principal Ben Steel stated, "Mrs. Benefield is full of innovative ideas and energy. She has a unique ability to motivate both our staff and students. Mrs. Benefield serves on our leadership team, our Better Seeking Team, as our parent liaison and plays an integral role in teacher support in literacy.  Her ideas have helped make Futral Road students leaders in standardized and local tests in reading and language arts. Her love of reading is infectious and has spread throughout the building."
 
Mrs. Benefield will represent the Griffin-Spalding County School System in the Georgia Library Media Association (GLMA) state-level competition. She has been with the school system and Futral Road Elementary since 2006. Prior to becoming the school's media specialist three years ago, she taught third grade. Benefield received her Bachelor's Degree in Arts History from the University of Georgia in 2002 and her Master's in Education Media Specialist from the University of West Georgia in 2009.
Read more...
2016-17 EMPLOYEE WORK CALENDAR

Click HERE to view the GSCS employee work calendar for 2016-17. 
GHS STUDENT CHOSEN FOR 2016 GOVERNOR'S HONOR PROGRAM
Congratulations to Griffin High School Junior Jeramie Paz and his CTAE Engineering Teacher Eric Harper! Jeramie has been selected as a finalist for the 2016 Governor's Honors Program at Valdosta State University this summer, where he will pursue his interest in engineering. He was chosen out of more than 3,000 state-level applicants that were culled from a pool of more than 25,000 nominees state-wide. This is a tremendous honor!
DOCTORAL DEGREE INFO MEETING

TOP GSCS SCHOOLS AND TEACHERS IN SLDS PAGE VIEWS
TOP SCHOOLS:
Congratulations to these schools for having the most teacher page views in SLDS so far this year:

School# of page views
Rehoboth Road Middle21,773
Carver Road Middle
14,625
Crescent Elementary
9,911

Click HERE to view the totals for each school.

TOP TEACHERS:
Schools receive "Exceeding the Bar" points in CCRPI if half of the teachers in the school have 500 or more page views in SLDS during the year. Congratulations to these teachers for having the most page views so far this year in SLDS:

TeacherSchool# of page views
Sandra MerrittRRMS6,640
LaTesa ParkerAtkinson Elem.3,803
Katy PhillipsAnne Street Elem.2,496

Click HERE to view a list of all GSCS teachers who currently have 375 or more page views.

"THE GREATEST LESSON IN LIFE IS TO KNOW THAT EVEN FOOLS ARE RIGHT SOMETIMES"

~ Sir Winston Churchill

CHANNEL 46 VISITS CAMS
On March 25, Channel 46 weather team visited Carver Road Middle School.  Students learned about the weather and its impact around us. Thank you to Ms. Worley, 6th grade science teacher, for arranging the visit.
MENTAL HEALTH ADVOCATE VISITS GSCS 9TH GRADERS
Part of Project AWARE, Kevin Hiles will speak to all GSCS 9th graders on April 15.

Kevin Hines is a mental health advocate, award-winning global speaker, bestselling author and documentary filmmaker who reaches audiences with his story of an unlikely survival and his strong will to live. Two years after he was diagnosed with bipolar disorder (19 years of age), he attempted to take his life by jumping from the Golden Gate Bridge. He is one of only thirty-four to survive the fall, and the only one to regain full physical mobility. He is the only Golden Gate Bridge jump survivor who is actively spreading the message of living mentally healthy.  The fall would break his body, but not his spirit. Today, Kevin dedicates his life to saving lives by spreading the message of hope and sharing his art of living mentally well. He is one of the most respected and admired voices of lived experience. Kevin's story is a remarkable testament to the strength of the human spirit and a reminder for us to love the life we have.
APRIL IS STRESS AWARENESS MONTH
STRESS RELIEF FROM LAUGHTER? IT'S NO JOKE
 
The fact that stress contributes to the majority of health issues in America today is no laughing matter. And, according to the Mayo Clinic, "when it comes to relieving stress, more giggles and guffaws are just what the doctor ordered."
 
A good laugh has great short-term effects. When you start to laugh, it doesn't just lighten your load mentally, it actually induces physical changes in your body. Laughter can:
Stimulate many organs. Laughter enhances your intake of oxygen-rich air, stimulates your heart, lungs and muscles, and increases the endorphins that are released by your brain.
Activate and relieve your stress response. A rollicking laugh fires up and then cools down your stress response and increases your heart rate and blood pressure. The result? A good, relaxed feeling.
Soothe tension. Laughter can also stimulate circulation and aid muscle relaxation, both of which help reduce some of the physical symptoms of stress.
The next time you are feel stressed give it a try.
 
Need help reviving your sense of humor? Watch some funny youtube videos, read the comics or look up some funny knock-knock jokes.

Check out this these for a good chuckle...
 
You can't watch this video and not giggle!  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pa1fP3DH_qk




















 
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Communicator is edited using the AP Stylebook 2010 edition.
 
Laura Beaber, Editor
GSCS Communications and Partnerships Department
PO Drawer N
Griffin, GA 30224