December 2013

We Win

Brookwood Alumna Again Crowned UGA Homecoming Queen

In the photo, last year's UGA Homecoming Queen (& Brookwood 2009 grad) Collette Toney crowns this year's UGA Homecoming Queen (& Brookwood 2010 grad) Callie McRae.

We Lunge

Fencers Bring Home Medals

In October, twenty-four fencers from BHS Fencing Club participated in the On Guard Fencing League Tournament. Medalists were:

Gabby Issa: 1st place women's epee

Carleigh Brisendine: 3rd place women's epee

Ben Wakim: 3rd place men's epee

Jason Jang: 1st place men's foil

Evan Brown: 3rd place men's foil

Brittany Groussman: 1st place women's saber

Iris Liu: 3rd place women's saber

Our fencers hosted the November On Guard High School Fencing League of GA Tournament and won two Gold medals, one Silver, and two Bronze. Medalists were

Brittany Groussman: 1st Place Sabre

Jason Jang: 1st Place Foil

Gabby Issa: 2nd Place Epee

Brittney Gallagher: 3rd Place Foil

Iris Liu: 3rd Place Sabre

We Compete

Science Olympiad Dominates in Competition

In November, the Brookwood Science Olympiad Team competed in the Alpharetta Invitational. While competing against a tough field of 30 teams, the Broncos came home with medals in 14 individual events, in addition to five fourth place finishes. It was a great day for our Science Olympiad Program.

Individual event winners include:

Anatomy & Physiology: 1st place: Laboni Hoque, Susan Zhang

Chemistry Lab: 1st Place: Corey Zheng, Katie Lau

Materials Science:1st Place: Nick Bond, Heath Murphy

Water Quality: 1st place: Kathryn McKibben, Emily Ruengvivatpant

Boomilever : 2nd Place: Corey Zheng

Designer Genes: 2nd Place" Laboni Hoque, Adarsh Suresh

Entomology: 2nd Place: Wayne Kung, Sanah Aslam & 3rd Place: Carleigh Brisendine, Emily Ruengvivatpant

Experimental Design: 2nd Place: Areesh Zindani, Augustine Song, Nick Bond

Technical Problem Solving: 2nd Place Nick Bond, Areesh Zindani

Complex Machines: 3rd Place: Vamsi Reddy, Joey Calicchio

Disease Detectives: 3rd Place: Emma DeJarnette, Ryan Chen

Dynamic Planet: 3rd Place: Vamsi Reddy, Kathryn McKibben

Forensics: 3rd Place: Corey Zheng, PJ Collins

We Calculate

Math Team Competes in Mathematics Tournaments

The BHS Math Team competed against twenty-one teams from around the state in the Rockdale Mathematics Tournament and took 3rd place. Then, several weeks later, they placed fourth (out of 89 teams) in the UGA Mathematics Tournament. In tournaments, team members each do an individual round of ten questions, then work together on a team round of ten questions, a relay round and a power (proof-based) round. Congrats to our team: Chase Butler, Ryan Chen, Bowen Ewe, Amaan Marfatia, Tony Zeng and Corey Zheng.

We Care

Students Against Destructive Decisions Club Receives Grant

The Governor's Office of Highway Safety has rewarded a $2,500 grant to Brookwood's Students Against Destructive Decisions Club (SADD) to promote prevention, intervention, and awareness of issues concerning underage drinking, drug use, and other destructive decisions. The grant will help SADD foster a community of caring, letting the student body know that their lives are important to everyone in the Brookwood community and that we should work together to keep one another safe.

SADD plans to use the grant to fund programs to address the above issues as well as laws under the Teenage and Adult Driver Responsibility Act (TADRA). Programs include Red Ribbon Week, the oldest and largest drug prevention program, and Operation Drive Smart co-sponsored by Duluth Police Department and the Governor's Office of Highway Safety. Operation Drive Smart is an education fair conducted on high school campuses with the intent to educate teenage drivers on various subjects related to dangerous driving habits while encouraging relationship building with public safety officers. The programs will also focus on the harrowing consequences of poor decisions.

Grant money will also be used to obtain speakers, videos, and motivational literature to encourage positive peer pressure and leadership, ultimately creating lifelong role models dedicated to preventing underage drinking, drug use, impaired and reckless driving, suicide, teen depression, and teen violence. With this grant, SADD will offer life lessons that will enable students to continue to make healthy and positive decisions long after graduation.

We Honor

US History Classes Honor Our Veterans

US history classes created a thank you sign for Veterans Day. Students brought in family members' pictures and thank you letters and attached them to the sign, plus made treats for the veterans on our faculty.

We Cheer

Fox 5 Comes to Brookwood to Honor Team of the Week

When Bronco football was nominated in Fox 5's Team of the Week competition, fans got busy voting online. Almost 34,000 votes for the Broncos later, we won. The prize? Newscasters came to school to film a pep rally, segments of which were broadcasted on Good Day Atlanta this morning. Thanks for all the votes! You can watch all the Fox 5 segments at this link.

A MESSAGE FROM DEBBIE DEES

Dear Brookwood Community,

Blessed is the first word that comes to mind when I think about Brookwood. I am blessed to have had the opportunity in my life to be a part of something as great as Brookwood. I believe that it is difficult for anyone to comprehend just how much this school and community has meant to my life. It seems as though it was yesterday when I became a Bronco and I remember the first day I was on the Brookwood campus as a staff member. I knew then that Brookwood was a special school, but I had no idea that it would become my home for almost 18 years. My involvements in teaching, coaching, leading as an assistant principal and principal on this campus have all been wonderful experiences. The relationships gained have all played a part in the person I am today.

Those who know me best know that I eat, sleep and breathe Brookwood. And, although I am looking forward to this new position in my career, I am very emotional about leaving the school and community that I love so much. People have asked me what I will miss the most about being a part of Brookwood. Although there are many things that I will miss, the most obvious will be the climate, the culture and the people. Together, we figured out a way to build a great workplace where people love to come to work every day, a place where kids have a great high school experience, and a school that the community loves to support.

Great schools can endure and thrive in an engaged community. The heart and soul of the Brookwood Community is Brookwood High School, Home of the Broncos. The Brookwood Community is a model, a model of how local communities should support schools. The ability of this community to remain engaged over the last 33 years is commendable. The dedication of the staff is phenomenal. Please know that your children are taught by some of the best teachers ever accumulated at a school. Not only do your children benefit from their expertise, but they are loved and mentored by some of the finest individuals on this earth. I continue to be amazed at how much of themselves the adults on this campus are willing to give daily.

Brookwood High School knows no better than to put our nose to the grind stone and do what is best for our students and our community. At Brookwood, we choose to win, we choose to be the best, we choose to work together, we choose to be proud, we choose to care, we simply choose..... As I emphasize to our faculty on occasion - WE are BROOKWOOD and WE are GREAT by CHOICE!

That mentality, that sense of pride will remain with me and will always embrace my feelings for Brookwood. I am so proud of this school and our people. My hope is that I can take some of what Brookwood has taught me to help others as they strive to engage their staff, school and communities.

I am immensely grateful for my time as a Bronco. It has truly been my honor.

Once a Bronco, Always a Bronco........

With admiration,

Debbie

We Create

Student Artists Work Accepted & Honored in Ceramics Symposium

During the month of November, the Visual Art Department had 19 works of art accepted into the annual Georgia Ceramics Symposium. The exhibit is a juried competition, with work being selected from across the state. Brookwood had 15 students whose work was accepted. Of those students, Sophia Abeyta, Meredith Bradley, Andraia Henderson and Jenna Still were honored for their work by receiving awards. The exhibit was on display at The Centre, in Newnan, GA, in November, culminating with the awards ceremony.

We Speed

Boys Cross Country Wins 4th State Title in 5 Years, Girls are Runner-Up

The Brookwood boys cross country team captured their fourth state title in the last five years. Brookwood put two runners in the top five and won its 12th title in school history, finishing 16 points ahead of runner-up Peachtree Ridge with 121 points. Josh Ingalls came in second for Brookwood with a time of 16:19 and teammate Miles Yapp was fifth at 16:30. Ryan Massey came home in 17th (17:08), Garrett Adams in 33rd (17:25) and Jonathan Hanagriff in 52nd (17:36) to complete the top five for Brookwood. "This is a lot of relief," said Brookwood head coach Ben Dehnke. "It's stressful, especially considering that we've been up and down this year. But to see it come together today, it's a great feeling. This group had a confident calm about them, even last night. So I thought we had a good shot at it today." (text pulled from the Gwinnett Daily Post)

Brookwood girls finished as state runner-up. Senior Lauren Brennan finished third with a time of 19:16. Brookwood is so proud of the distance runners, who truly prove that hard work pays off.

We Communicate

International Club Helps Younger Students Adjust

Members of The International Club journey to Brookwood Elementary School each month to tutor students in all grades. Elementary students who are new to the United States or who need extra help reading are paired with high school students. Many times the elementary students do not speak English, making it difficult for their teachers to communicate with them. Bilingual students from the International Club work with these students in an effort to help them adjust to a new culture. In some cases, students tutor at the elementary school several times a week.

We Lead

Leadership Team Hosts Summit

Student leaders with the guest speakers and teacher Mary Britt.

The Brookwood Leadership Team hosted a Leadership Summit in November. About 300 students came to school to hear two Brookwood graduates speak about leadership and to give some amazing life lessons. Rennie Curran spoke about what it means to be a true leader and how actions and attitudes speak louder than words. Later, international speaker Dan Thurmon entertained the audience with juggling, unicycle riding, and other performances and related them all to leadership. Dan's son Eddie Thurmon is a current student at Brookwood and joined his dad on stage for some juggling!

We Salute

Bronco Softball's Amanda Ablan Named Gwinnett's Pitcher of the Year

More about Amanda and her incredible season in the Gwinnett Daily Post.