This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Health & Fitness

Good News from the Etowah Zone

Check out the latest good news from Etowah Zone schools (Etowah High; E.T. Booth Middle; Chapman Intermediate; Bascomb, Boston Elementary; Clark Creek STEM Academy, Oak Grove Fine Arts Academy)…

Check out the latest good news from schools in the Etowah Innovation Zone…

Etowah High School
Three Etowah High School Class of 2013 graduates have been named 2013 Georgia Scholars by the Georgia Department of Education: Allison Guebert, Hannah Keith and Madison Miracle.
To be selected as a Georgia Scholar, a student must be a graduating high school senior who exhibits excellence in all phases of school life, in community activities, and in the home. The student must present evidence of having carried an exemplary course load in the four years of high school; performed excellently in all courses; successfully participated in interscholastic events of the school or community; and assumed an active role in extracurricular activities sponsored by the school.
The criteria are extremely strict, such that only 115 seniors in the entire state have qualified for this honor. Each Georgia Scholar receives a seal for his or her diploma. The School District’s 2013 Georgia Scholars were recognized by the Cherokee County School Board at its meeting on May 16, 2013.

Etowah High School Class of 2013 graduate Anna Smith is among the winners of this year’s Neocom Scholarships awarded by NeoCom Solutions, Inc., a telecommunication engineering and construction firm in Woodstock.
Anna won a $1,000 scholarship; her goal is to attend the University of Alabama majoring in business and computer science.
The scholarships were established by NeoCom to provide assistance to Cherokee County residents who are currently or will be enrolled in an accredited four-year college, university or two-year technical college, community college or trade school. Academic achievement and financial need are considered in selecting recipients.
 “All of our winners have maintained good academic standing while juggling very active schedules including community service, full course loads and extra-curricular activities,” said Kham Longstaff, Vice President of Corporate Development for NeoCom.

Find out what's happening in Woodstock-Towne Lakewith free, real-time updates from Patch.


Chapman Intermediate School
Chapman Intermediate School recently celebrated its final Field Days. Coaches Ed Koschewa, Chris Sears and Jessica Bruner organized a week of outdoor and indoor events. “This is an event that has an incredible reputation in this community,” Principal Susan McCarthy said. “The students look forward to it all year.”

Bascomb Elementary School
The Bascomb Elementary School PTA at the school’s Volunteer Appreciation Luncheon presented Principal Ruth Flowers with a check for $20,000 to complete Phase 2 of the new playground. The money was raised through a variety of PTA activities.

Find out what's happening in Woodstock-Towne Lakewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Bascomb Elementary School was the top fundraising school in Cherokee County for the American Heart Association this school year. The school recently presented the organization with a donation of $10,614 from its Jump Rope for Heart event, including $1,000 from second-grader Connor Green, the school’s top fundraiser.

Boston Elementary School
Boston Elementary School has been fortunate to call Cobb EMC one of its most valued Partners in Education since August 2004. This partnership recently won the coveted 2013 Excellence in Partners in Education Award from the Cherokee County Chamber of Commerce. “As one of Boston’s most dedicated and valued Partners in Education, Cobb EMC stands out as a leader in its quest to make a difference to the students at Boston Elementary,” Principal Joey Moss said. “Cobb EMC and Boston Elementary are honored to be chosen for this prestigious award.”

Boston Elementary School recently recognized students who achieved perfect attendance for the 2012-13 school year. The Perfect Attendance Award is for students had no absences, no tardies, and no early check-outs all year long. These students were able to choose a plush award for their dedication.

Boston Elementary School students recently enjoyed a “Building with Dad” Day using supplies donated by The Home Depot. The event was made possible by room mom Nicole Daniel, who works for the company’s corporate office, and Shawn Brooks, manager of the Woodstock store. “The children and fathers had a lot of fun assembling the kits, and everyone was quite pleased with their finished projects!” Principal Joey Moss said.

Boston Elementary School recently held a Tea Party for students’ moms. The moms and their children enjoyed tea and cookies and made small crafts together. “A great time was had by all as boys and girls enjoyed time with their moms,” Principal Joey Moss said.

Boston Elementary School, as a leader in the Cherokee County School District’s primary grade implementation of the BYLD (Bring Your Learning Device) initiative, is developing new ways to use technology in the classroom. First-grade teacher Laura Mikes, the school’s Teacher of the Year, recently led her students in a project to create Mother's Day lockets. The lockets feature the child's thumbprint on the front and a QR (Quick Response) code on the back. When scanned with a reader, the QR code plays a recording of the child reciting the poem "Thumb-Body Loves Me."

Clark Creek Elementary School STEM Academy
Clark Creek Elementary School STEM Academy has been selected for the Georgia Partnership for Excellence in Education’s annual showcase of achieving schools.
The school will be featured on the Partnership’s 13th Annual Bus Trip Across Georgia to be held in the fall. The theme this year is “Birth to Work Pipeline – Ideas That Work.”
“These schools and communities are employing partnerships with a wide range of stakeholders and they are using innovative practices to drive improvements in teaching and learning,” said Dr. Stephen Dolinger, president of the Partnership. “We both celebrate achievement of these winning schools and showcase their exciting education ideas to the influencers who join us from all over the state.”
The independent non-profit, non-partisan Partnership consists of business, education, community and government leaders who share a vision of education excellence. The annual Bus Trip Across Georgia includes a combination of educators, business, government and community leaders from around the state riding two tour buses. The other tour stops on this year’s tour are Calhoun High School, Calhoun City Schools; Murray County Pre-K, North Murray High School/Bagley Middle School, Murray County Schools; and the Community Partnership for Dalton City and Whitfield County Schools.
Dr. Dana Rickman, the Georgia Partnerships policy and research director, manages the process to select featured schools.
“This selection was made through a rigorous process that included a thorough review of each school and partnership activities as well as an extensive analysis of school and achievement data,” she said. “These are truly outstanding programs doing outstanding work.”
Exact dates for the tour will be announced as soon as they are set. The application process to participate usually opens in early September but local participation is encouraged at each stop. For more information, see the Annual Bus Trip page on the Partnership’s web site at www.gpee.org.

Cherokee County School District schools, staff and volunteers recently were recognized with District 13 PTA Awards.  The Clark Creek Elementary School STEM Academy PTA won the Best Ideas Award - Best Fundraising and Student & Parent Involvement Idea for the Clark Creek Camp-O-Ree.


Oak Grove Fine Arts Academy
Clay Gunter, a teacher at Oak Grove Elementary School Fine Arts Academy and the Polaris Evening Program, has been selected to participate in The Jimmy Carter Library and Museum 2013 Summer Seminar for Educators. “The Camp David Accords 35 Years Later: Looking Back to Discover Future Prospects for Mideast Peace” is a week-long, hands-on professional development seminar from July 15 – 19 at the Presidential Library & Museum in Atlanta. Participants will leave the institute with Georgia Performance Standards and Common Core-correlated classroom-ready lessons, as well as new ideas for teaching using primary sources. The institute includes hands-on activities leading to the creation of classroom-ready lesson plans with a focus on integrating history, civics, and primary sources; presentations of best practices by K-12 educators; talks from Carter Center & Carter Library & Museum staff; behind-the-scenes tours of the Jimmy Carter Library & Museum; a field trip to The William Breman Jewish Heritage Museum; and training which allows participants to receive an archives researcher card for all Presidential Libraries. Although the emphasis for the week is the Camp David Accords, the skills acquired by the participants will help educators engage students in authentic learning experiences across the curriculum.

Oak Grove Elementary School Fine Arts Academy students in Jillian Nichols’ second-grade class recently participated in a “Lemonade and Cookies for a Cause” service-learning project. After reading a story, the students applied what they learned to combine counting money, making change and graphing data while raising money for a great cause. The class opened a lemonade and cookie stand for the entire school on April 30 and raised $281.21 for the school’s donation to the American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life fundraiser.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?

More from Woodstock-Towne Lake