Bartow County School System

TEACHER TRIBUTE: Euharlee Elementary School and the Bartow County School System Family mourn the loss of EHES Physical Education Teacher Brent Higdon. On Tuesday, his school family heard his special, signature sign off one last time, “bye, good buddy!” Good buddy: they are two words now etched in the minds of so many, not just because he said them every day, but because he was a kind, thoughtful, generous, one-of-a kind friend himself. “Coach Higdon was a perfect gentleman and friend,” said EHES Music Teacher Kathy Cater. “He was a family man who loved his wife, Tina, desperately and was proud to be her husband. Coach also loved his three children, mom, shop, cat, and fishing. He was a shining example of true friendship and kindness. He was one of the most giving people I have ever known, paying out of his pocket for things that were needed, bringing small tokens of friendship to show he cared, and checking on our children after hours. Coach made friends everywhere he went and was one of the easiest people to be around. Coach had a special way with kids and loved having fun with them. His ‘good buddies’ will greatly miss his kind, generous heart and his child-like grin!” Coach Higdon was well-loved during his 28 years in the Bartow County School System. He knew when to share his favorite Seinfeld clip, and he knew when to collect student data for his weekly collaboration meetings with colleagues. “As a coworker, Brent Higdon was the most kind and uplifting guy to be around,” added EHES Art Teacher Margaret Bearden. “He helped anyone in need and was quick to share a joke with us, his ‘good buddies.’ He spoke often of his family and had so much love for his wife and children. Students loved going to PE class to play medic ball or dodge ball to Coach's classic rock playlist. His kindness went beyond the walls of the gym. He would call to check on sick students, buy gifts for students in need, help a teacher change a tire on the roadside, or bring us donuts just because. He was generous, thoughtful, and kind, and I am lucky to have known him. It is a shock to our community and our thoughts and prayers are with his family.” Today, as a school community, we share a moment of silence. Additional counselors are available on campus to ensure support to grieving students and staff. Those services will also be available after the holiday break. In the coming weeks, PE teachers districtwide plan to celebrate their “good buddy” by organizing his favorite game – medic ball.

STUDENT SPOTLIGHT: What's more exciting than finding out Cass High School Senior Loren Montoya was accepted to Vanderbilt University? Finding out she received a QuestBridge scholarship that covers the FULL COST OF ATTENDANCE, INCLUDING TUITION, ROOM AND BOARD, BOOKS AND SUPPLIES, AND TRAVEL EXPENSES! "I plan to major in Political Science because I find great interest in public policy and the direct reflection it serves to the American people," said Loren. "Climate change, the homelessness crisis, infrastructure bills, and so much more affect the lives of U.S. citizens every day. Through this major, I can effectively serve the American people to their best interest." Loren also plans to minor in Journalism and Spanish. Loren found out about this scholarship opportunity through her counselor, Donna Thomas, and received help completing the application through the new Etowah Scholarship Foundation's Future Shops! “Words cannot describe how elated and thankful I am in being awarded this scholarship," added Loren. "My acceptance validates that diligent work towards your passions does pay off. I am especially grateful for the support of my teachers, counselors, and family—all of whom inspired me to dare greatly.” Congratulations, Loren! --- Out of over 17,900 applicants, QuestBridge selected 5,613 Finalists to be considered for the QuestBridge National College Match Scholarship (Match Scholarship). This year, QuestBridge’s 48 college partners matched with 1,755 Finalists, who are recognized as Match Scholarship Recipients.

BARTOW COUNTY SHOP WITH A HERO: Every year, the Bartow County Board of Education Police Department helps raise money for the Shop with a Hero event, held by the Bartow County Sheriff's Office. This year, their goal was $2,000. With the help of administrators, staff, parents, and students, they raised $13,082.86! Wow! What a holiday hundreds of children will have because of this community!

SHOP WITH A WILDCAT: Woodland High School sure has some caring and compassionate student leaders! In their 2nd Annual Shop with a Wildcat event, 120 high school mentors took about 50 local students shopping at Target, and that's not all! Participating children also enjoyed crafts and games! Great job fundraising and doubling the number of families you're serving, WHS! What an unforgettable experience!

TIS THE SEASON: We caught Bartow County School Police Officer Donnie Scott spreading that holiday cheer for all to hear at Hamilton Crossing Elementary School!

MAKING SCHOOL HISTORY: For the first time ever, the Cass Middle School Honor Band was asked to perform at the University of Georgia Middle School Band Festival, and THEY WERE INCREDIBLE! They brought the audience to their feet! The CMS Honor Band was chosen for this prestigious event from a blind audition tape of their Large Group Performance Evaluation (LGPE). Congratulations, CMS and Band Director Abigail Russom!

CAMP JEKYLL: Another great group of Gateway students received the opportunity to travel to Jekyll Island this week! Gifted students from Allatoona, Clear Creek, Cloverleaf, Emerson, Euharlee, Kingston, and Mission Road Elementary schools climbed aboard an Eco Boat to watch dolphins and examine various specimens, like blue crabs, shrimp, and other fish! They also handled snakes during a Herpetology class, among many other activities!

CHECK THIS OUT: Hamilton Crossing Elementary School ESOL Teacher Katie Cline is featured in the University of Georgia's newsletter as an EDUCATOR OF THE MONTH! Congratulations, Mrs. Cline! Staff from HCES and Allatoona Elementary School participated in a 30-hour intensive Instructional Conversation Institute with UGA. They learned how to empower students in every class, not just ESOL, to take the lead in their learning. A few weeks after completing the institute, a coach from UGA came out to each school and observed teachers implementing Instructional Conversations in their classes. Mrs. Cline was honored shortly after for her amazing work in the classroom!

BARTOW CARES CAMPAIGN: Encouragement; let's talk about it! It's our relational word of the month through our new #BartowCares4U Campaign! Bartow Cares is a countywide, year-long initiative through a partnership with Relational Values Alliance that unites Bartow County Schools, Cartersville-Bartow County Chamber of Commerce, Bartow Collaborative, government and media leadership, the faith community, and many others. Bartow commits to live out relational values such as respect, support, and appreciation in multiple places: at home, at work, at school, and in faith. With caring connections, great things happen. So, in Bartow County, we want to know everybody’s story and show that somebody cares! MORE INFO: https://www.bartow.k12.ga.us/article/783187

A-TEAM AWARD: Superintendent Page and system leaders present the Bartow County College and Career Academy and its U.S. History team, which consists of William Dooley, Mike Fitch, and Meghan Johnson with the most prestigious award given by the District, the A-Team Award! William Dooley, Mike Fitch, and Meghan Johnson exemplify the three big ideas of our Professional Learning Communities culture as they continually demonstrate a focus on learning, collaboration, and results. Through observations and conversations with each team member, it is evident this team uses the PLC process to work together with collective responsibility for student learning. They ensure a guaranteed and viable curriculum for all U.S. History students, use common formative assessments to monitor student learning, use common assessment data to improve teaching and learning practices, and support the RTI process by providing systematic interventions and extensions for all students. It is also evident that Principal Greg Doss and the BCCCA Guiding Coalition have played a significant role in the development of this A-Team. Its Guiding Coalition was mentioned many times as a source of strength for the PLC process and as the means for the professional development which resulted in the efficacy of this collaborative team. Congratulations on this extraordinary achievement! William Dooley, Mike Fitch, and Meghan Johnson will now present at a future school board meeting, New Teacher Institute, and serve as role models for future A-Teams throughout our school system. This is our 16th collaboration team to earn an A-Team Award!

IT'S GETTING REAL: Heart-pounding excitement and nervous jitters are setting in for the Woodland High School Marching Band as students prepare for “The Greatest Event in the Greatest City in the World” – the London New Year’s Day Parade and Festival. Practices are complete, student instruments and equipment are set to be shipped “across the pond” in two short days, and students and staff depart for London December 26, 2022. They will fly home on January 2. “We are absolutely delighted that the Woodland High School Marching Band will be coming to London to help celebrate the New Year in style,” said Parade Director Joe Bone. “London has fallen in love with the marching band culture of the USA and our ears on the ground alerted us as to just how brilliant the Wildcats are. They will receive the warmest of welcomes from an enormous audience on the street – and tens of millions watching around the World.” The Woodland High School Marching Band will join about 10,000 performers from 28 countries around the World. However, only 24 marching bands from the United States were invited to perform after a rigorous audition more than a year ago. During the parade, the Wildcats will play Georgia On My Mind arranged by Michael Brown, An American Christmas arranged by Robert W. Smith, and Crazy Train by London’s Ozzy Osborne. In addition to performing down London’s historic two-mile parade route, students will experience other tourist attractions, like Buckingham Palace, River Thames, and the Golden Hinde – the first English ship to circumnavigate the globe in the 15th century. The globally renowned street spectacular will be streamed online January 1, 2023, at www.lnydp.com and aired on PBS starting at 7 a.m. Eastern Standard Time. Support your nationally recognized, award-winning Wildcats by tuning in to watch this historic event!

"SUPERPOWERED" ROBOTICS COMPETITION: More than 25 Robotics teams from Bartow County and beyond participated in the prestigious First LEGO League regional qualifier event this weekend at Adairsville Middle School! Out of those teams, nine won awards. Bartow County took home eight of those nine awards, and eight teams advanced to the Chattanooga, Tennessee Region FLL Championship, which will be held next month! Wow! Judges said several of our Bartow County teams even have a chance at earning a trip to the WORLD COMPETITION in Texas! CONGRATULATIONS: Cass Middle (Champions) Woodland Annihilators (Breakthrough Award) White Elementary (Rising Stars Award) Adairsville Elementary (Engineering Award) Clear Creek Elementary (Team Blaze and Green Seas, Top Robot Game Award and Top Innovation Project Awards) Mission Road Elementary (Motivate Award) Cloverleaf Elementary (Top Core Values Award)

SERVICE AWARDS: Mission Road Elementary School Principal Sherrie Hughes Congratulations on 20 years of service in the Bartow County School System! Wonderful work raising student achievement year after year!

SERVICE AWARDS: Cloverleaf Elementary School Principal Amy Heater Congratulations on 20 years of service in the Bartow County School System! Your sweet demeanor and work with children make you a favorite at "The Leaf!"

SERVICE AWARDS: Red Top Middle School Principal Wes Dickey Congratulations on 25 years of service in the Bartow County School System! Your work on all levels and loyalty to our children is unmatched.

RIGHT WORK: Let's recognize our new Ms. Dot STAR Award winners for going above and beyond in their line of work. Their impact can truly be felt districtwide! CONGRATULATIONS: Tracy Wyche, Registrar, Allatoona Elementary School Susan Ponder, Paraprofessional, Adairsville Middle School Michelle Richards, Lead Secretary, Emerson Elementary School

THE BUZZ AROUND BARTOW: Cam Bishop, fifth grade Emerson Elementary School student, and Xander Bergeron, sixth grade Woodland Middle School student, battled it out for several rounds today during the district bee! They spelled words like "cauterize" and "antithesis" correctly before Xander spelled "compatriot" to take home the WIN and move on to the regional competition! Congratulations! Have you seen a bigger smile?! 😀🥇📚 "I was unbelievably anxious," said Xander. "I didn't think I'd make it. I didn't prepare. I am so excited, though, and I'm incredibly scared of the regional bee."

THE BUZZ AROUND BARTOW: Congratulations to our 16 District Spelling Bee contestants and numerous participants! Adairsville Elementary - Nate Mathis (Runner up - William O'Dell) Adairsville Middle - Kaprie Avalos (Runner up - Wyatt King) Allatoona Elementary - Jaycie Harris (Runner up - Victoria Castronova) Cass Middle - Katie Fears Clear Creek Elementary - Madalie Furey Cloverleaf Elementary - AJ Law (Runner up - Jazlene Nava) Emerson Elementary - Cam Bishop (Runner up - Adelina Koziar) Euharlee Elementary - Breilynn Yates (Runner up - Carter Naiser) Hamilton Crossing Elementary - Monica Poulos (Runner up - Emberly Hutchings) Kingston Elementary - Aiden Wilber (Runner up - Mason Wiseman) Mission Road Elementary - Judd Bailey (Runner up - Lori Jones) Pine Log Elementary - Coulson Stegall (Runner up - Mayson Owen) Red Top Middle - Ranson Hite (Runner up - Sebastian Decker) Taylorsville Elementary - Isabel McCafferty (Runner up - Ashlyn Bailey) White Elementary - Yashvee Parmar (Runner up - John DeLauder) Woodland Middle - Xander Bergeron (Runner up - Braeden Roberts) --- Participants Superintendent Page Dr. David Chiprany Ms. Dot Frasier Dr. Bunny DiPetta Dr. Sharon Collum Anthia McStatts-Santini Kay Barron Phil Frasier Mayor Matt Santini Heather Carter Dr. Davis Nelson Amanda Creel Jason Dailey Jennifer Mauldin Mirannda Garrett Dawn Wood Heather Misztak Katie Cline Michelle Madden School Spelling Bee Coordinators

THEY DID IT: Taylorsville Elementary School earned its District STEM Certification! It's not easy to achieve, but the people you see in these pictures put in the long hours and work because they know STEM teaches critical thinking and innovation, and STEM jobs are the future of our economy! Congratulations, TES!

STEM CERTIFICATION: Congratulations, Adairsville High School students and staff, for earning your District STEM Certification! It’s evident that your STEM practices help shape your school’s culture! Now, on to State STEM Certification! 🏆