Winter Break is  Friday, February 17 through Monday, February 20, President's Day. There will be no school for students and staff on that Friday or Monday.  
Classes resume on Tuesday, February 21.  
Monroe Messages
Newsletter of Monroe County Schools
Congratulations System Spelling Bee Winner!
Congratulations to Jhavier Locus, fifth grader at TG Scott Elementary School!  He is this year's System Spelling Bee winner.  He is pictured with TG Scott Elementary Principal Dr. Richard Bazemore. Congratulations to Lawson Harris, sixth grader at Monroe County Middle School.  He is this year's system spelling bee runner-up.  He is pictured below with MCMS Principal Dr. Efrem Yarber and Assistant Principal Patricia Napier. Both of these winning spellers will progress to regional competition.


System winner Jhavier Locus and Lawson Harris, runner-up, are pictured with Assistant Superintendent Alicia Elder and Superintendent Dr. Mike Hickman. 

KB Sutton Elementary School spelling bee winners are pictured with Assistant Superintendent Alicia Elder, Superintendent Dr. Mike Hickman, and KB Sutton Principal Becky Brown. KBS students participating were Hannah Simpson, Max Nichel, Celeste Scott, Jesse Chipman, and Jaise Davis.

Samuel E. Hubbard Elementary spelling bee participants are pictured with Mrs. Elder, Dr. Hickman, and HES Principal Jay Johnston.  HES participants were Bayleigh Fyfe, Aubrey Newman, Kaylee Ross, Lucas Horne, and Ethan Yancy.

TG Scott Elementary spelling bee participants are pictured with Mrs. Elder, Dr. Hickman, and TG Scott Principal Dr. Richard Bazemore.  TGS participants were William Little, Jhavier Locus, Christine Raposa, Zoe Oglesby, Maela McKallip.

Monroe County Middle spelling bee participants are pictured with Mrs. Elder, Dr. Hickman, and MCMS Principal Dr. Efrem Yarber.  MCMS spelling bee participants were Luke McBride, Lawson Harris, Cameron Sparks, Luz Pompa-Correa, Jordan Mayers, Aaron Sexton, Nic Meadows, Thomas Childress, Madelyn Causey, and Bryce Elliott.
Monroe County Represents Well at Science Fair
Monroe County school-based science fair winners recently represented at the regional science fair in Milledgeville.  In the Parachute Design/Engineering Challenge Competition.  There were first place winners in third through fifth grades:  
Lucas Wells (KBS)  Ella Magda (TGS)  Hunt McAteer (TGS)  William LIttle (TGS)
Cole Battles (TGS).
 
In science fair competition, all Monroe County projects either placed first or second.
Hubbard Elementary School winners were Luke Cantrell and Evan Barnett, second place; Ally Smith and Baylor Emami, first place.  KB Sutton Elementary School second place winners were Lucas Wells, Jesse Chipman, Emma Robinson, and Jordan Ogletree.  KB Sutton Elementary School first place winners were Braden Sumner and Donovan Williams.  TG Scott Elementary School second place winners were William Little and Maya Blanche.  First place winners were Cooper Horton, Emma Johnson, Eason Farmer, Maela McKallip, Ella Magda, Hunter McAteer, Cole Battles, and Elizabeth James.

TG Scott's Elizabeth James was awarded Best in Class, fifth grade and Best in Show Overall. 
Pre-K and Kindergarten Enrollment February 21
PRE-K:  Children four years of age on or before September 1, 2017 are eligible to enroll for the 2017-2018 school year.  Placement is made on a first come, first served basis with COMPLETED enrollment.  School assignment will be determined at enrollment appointments.

KINDERGARTEN:  Children five years of age on or before September 1, 2017 are eligible to enroll for the 2017-2018 school year.  School assignment will be determined at enrollment appointments.

Students currently enrolled in the Monroe County Schools Pre-K program are not required to complete the enrollment process for Kindergarten.

To enroll your student, you must provide a completed enrollment packet at the time of your enrollment appointment.  Below is the timeline for enrollment for Monroe County parents/ guardians.

February 21, 2017 Pre-K and Kindergarten registration packets will be available for pick up at the Monroe County Board of Education from 7:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.

February 27, 2017 Pre-K and Kindergarten parent(s)/guardian(s) may call or go on-line to
schedule an appointment to register their child.  A link will be available at
http://www.monroe.k12.ga.us to make the appointment or the parent/guardian may call Cindy Seymour, System Registrar, 478-994-2031 to schedule the appointment.

March 6, 2017 Registration Appointments begin.  

Monroe County Schools require the following documentation for enrollment:
  1. A birth certificate showing proof of age of your child;
  2. Your child's social security card;
  3. Georgia Form 3231 - your child's up-to-date immunization form;
  4. Georgia Form 3300 - your child's ear, eye, dental, and nutrition record; and
  5. Three Proofs of Residency.  See our website for more enrollment details.
Please contact Cindy Seymour, System Registrar, at 478-994-2031 with any questions or concerns.
3E Love Shirts to Benefit Students with Disabilities
The Mary Persons High School Access Department is selling 3E Love shirts to support students with disabilities. Checks can be made to Mary Persons High School. Money is due February 24th. Order Forms and money can be turned into Beth Chafin, Annie Dyke, or Elizabeth Holloway at Mary Persons High School. Please Contact Annie Dyke at annie.dyke@mcschools.org if you have any questions.
Georgia Parent Survey Open through March 3
The Georgia Parent Survey contains 24 questions. Parents may complete the survey using a personal computer, smartphone, or tablet.  For parents without Internet access, school computers may be used to complete the survey.  All parents are encouraged to participate in the Georgia Parent Survey.  Data will be used as part of the calculation of the School ClimateStar Rating. Survey responses are anonymous and will be submitted directly to the Georgia Department of Education for analysis.  Results from the Georgia Parent Survey will not be available to the public and will not be posted online.  Parents, thank you for taking a few minutes to complete this survey.
Georgia Parent Survey:


Volunteer with Monroe County Schools
Monroe County Recreation Department Director Keith Edge is pictured above with KBS students.  He recently took time to read to KBSutton Elementary School students.  He shared the story of Olympian Wilma Rudolph. Pictured below are Hubbard Elementary School volunteers Mrs. Cannon Hill, Mrs. Robyn LeCompte, Mrs. Charlotte Norris, and Mrs. Kristen Waldrep who set up the Hubbard Elementary Valentines Post Office for  Pre-K and Kindergarten classes last week. The students learned how the post office works and how their Valentines cards will be sent to their parents using the postal service.  Monroe County Schools welcomes volunteers, including guest readers. If you would like to volunteer, click the Volunteer link on our website,
BOE committee seeks projects supporting citizens with special needs
The Monroe County School System is looking for projects or initiatives designed to support Monroe County citizens with special needs and/or disabilities. Some projects may be eligible for a financial grant to support the efforts.
 
Recently, the Board of Education was given custodianship over funds from the now inactive Monroe County ARC organization that for many years supported special needs citizens. The Superior Court order giving the BOE custody over the funds states they should be used specifically for the benefit of Monroe County's special needs and disabled citizens. The Board of Ed has created the ARC Committee to oversee the administration of the funds.
 
Each year, during the month of February, the committee will solicit project proposals to be reviewed. The committee will then submit a recommendation to the Board of Education to fund one or more projects at the Board's March meeting.

Monroe Countians wishing to submit a project for consideration may do so by preparing a project proposal not to exceed one page. The proposal should include the dollar amount requested and a detailed description of how the funds would be used to benefit Monroe County citizens with special needs.
The proposal should be submitted to:
ARC Committee
c/o Monroe County Schools
PO Box 1308
Forsyth, GA 31029
Submission also may be made by email to chris.johnson@mcschools.org. Deadline for submission is 4 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 24.

A Message from Monroe County Schools Nurses:  Do You Need Antibiotics or is it Viral?


For High School Students and Their Parents
It's FAFSA Time!
Every student planning to attend college (4-year, 2-year, or technical college) must complete the FAFSA. " Prior-Prior Year" application season began on October 1st. This option was developed to aid families to complete their FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) applications earlier and allows families to receive financial aid packages earlier. In the past, families were not able to complete the FAFSA until January 1st. The problem with the former option is most parents did not receive their W2 information until late January or even sometimes, February resulting in late filing of taxes and later FAFSA completions. With PPY, families can use their tax information from previous year allowing earlier completions of FAFSA. The chart below shows changes of the FAFSA process.  For more information, students can contact a counselor.