BACKPACK BUDDIES 5K: Dust off those running shoes and gear up for our 7th Annual 2023 Downtown Cartersville 5K and Fun Run August 26 in support of the Backpack Buddies initiative.
The Backpack Buddies program feeds more than 1,000 students a week in both county and city schools. They receive a bag every Friday containing nutritious, self-serve foods that will sustain them when school meals are not available.
Sign up today and support this worthy cause!
https://runsignup.com/Race/GA/Cartersville/TheDowntownCartersville5K
EXCEPTIONAL EDUCATION INFORMATION SESSION: What is Exceptional Education? What is an IEP? How do I prepare for a meeting? If you’ve had these questions or some of your own, please join us tomorrow, May 5, at 10:00 a.m. in the Central Registration cafeteria (2220 Joe Frank Harris Pkwy, Building B). Mrs. Tania Amerson, Director of Exceptional Education, will share important information – in Spanish and English – and there will be time for a question-and-answer session. Families from all schools are invited!
A DAY IN THE LIFE OF: Kingston Elementary School students! Perfect day for enjoying their one-of-a-kind outdoor classroom, listening to the sweet sounds of their new ukuleles, and so much more!
MAKING HISTORY: Do you know any middle school student who's amazing at graphic design and understands history so well that he's able to create real, meaningful flags for cities? No? Well, meet Redman. He is all that and more. 11 Alive reporters were so intrigued, they did a story on him. Check it out!
https://www.11alive.com/video/news/local/city-in-indiana-adopts-flag-created-by-atlanta-middle-schooler/85-156ba904-564d-449b-b6ce-9b7bea8cfa3b
APPLE OF OUR EYE: Take a good look at these two students, Paige Forman and Ally Schmanski! You might just see them back in a Bartow classroom one day as a teacher!
This week, we celebrated these students on Future Georgia Educators Day! They attend the Bartow County College and Career Academy, and their commitment to a career in education is impressive! Good luck, Paige and Ally! We are very proud of you!
SUMMER REGISTRATION: If you have summer registration needs, please note the new hours below!
SOARING...AS ONLY THESE EAGLES CAN DO: Oh, just a day in the life of Emerson Elementary School students! From regions to chickens, these students are finishing up their essential standards and having fun!
GREEN THUMBS: The Taylorsville Garden Club, also known as the Sprouts, know the old adage "you reap what you sow." They planted an assortment of salad greens from seed in February and were able to harvest them twice! Their first harvest consisted of a salad party during Garden Club, and the second harvest was this week! The Sprouts gave the greens to TES Cafe Manager Cassandra Simmons, and she prepared them to serve schoolwide! We loved hearing kids come through the lunch line, saying, "I made that!"
TES Sprouts consists of students in kindergarten through fifth grade. It runs year-round and is led by Georgia Holt, with help from multiple members of the TES community (Desiree Molinaro, Kim Kuykendall, Jessica Gardner, and Diane Myers)!
CONNECTION CHANGES EVERYTHING: These Adairsville Middle School students, along with other Bartow County School System middle and high school students, participate in a powerful culture-shifting movement called Whisper. Students wanting to be a part of the solution to end social isolation and loneliness, lead through simple conversations.
For more information, read the summer press release posted below.
Amazing work, BCSS middle and high schools! Way to be difference makers in your school community!
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If you listen closely, you can hear a whisper in Adairsville Middle School. It is not a murmur, mutter, or mumble, though, it is a movement that is raising student leaders, fighting back against loneliness and isolation, and changing the lives of students one conversation at a time.
“The community needs to understand that we are living in an epidemic of loneliness,” said Whisper Founder Bryan Davidson. “Seventy-three percent of Generation Z say they feel alone, and students are showing more signs of anxiety and depression than before COVID-19.”
In an effort to reverse nationwide trends, Whisper, a local, nonprofit organization, landed at AMS during the 2021-2022 academic year.
Whisper is a grassroots movement that empowers students to change the culture of their school through the power of simple conversations.
“We are all created as relational beings,” added Davidson. “We’re made for each other. But when we’re alone, isolated, and lonely, we fail to thrive. We become islands. Conversation is a bridge that brings us together.”
Every Whisper movement begins with fire starters – the few who take ownership of the movement and spread it to others.
Meet David Coon, a recent eighth-grade graduate and fire starter.
“Whisper helps kids break out of what I call a ‘shell’ that they lock themselves into,” said Coon. "They won't talk to anyone or tell anyone what is going on, but Whisper has stopped that.”
Whisper identifies and equips leaders like David with the tools needed to facilitate meaningful interactions with friends and peers and host weekly gatherings.
Whisper worked. From a handful of AMS students to more than 300; they came together to teach and experience relational needs, such as respect, encouragement, support, compassion, and appreciation.
“It really helped so many kids and made the school a better place,” said Coon. "We made it to where almost none of those kids were locked in a ‘shell.’ Kids that didn’t talk to anyone would stop in the hallways to talk. That was the goal and the impact of Whisper.”
“Whisper is one of, if not the most, empowering student movements I've ever seen,” added AMS Principal Tony Stanfill. “The student leaders did an amazing job of first learning how to effectively communicate, then lead their peers in conversation, confidence, self-worth/awareness, and kindness towards their follow classmates. The culture changed. Students would say hello and ask, ‘How is your day going, Mr. Stanfill?’ They really wanted to know how others were doing.”
Whisper, founded in 2018, had only been in high schools until now. Since its recent success at AMS, you can anticipate this culture shift in additional schools come fall.
Whisper is the name of the movement, but the results are shout worthy.
NOW'S THE TIME, NURSES: Join our award-winning System!
*Must hold minimum of LPN licensure* Additional details below!
GRAB THOSE TISSUES: Kymoni's story is one we can ALL learn from.
https://www.fox5atlanta.com/news/adairsville-high-school-senior-thrives-despite-losing-parents
THE ROAD TO GRADUATION AND BEYOND: KYMONI'S STORY
When FOX5 learned about Adairsville High School Senior Kymoni Pullum's story, they just had to meet him! So, today, they traveled from downtown Atlanta to small town Adairsville to share his amazing story of perseverance. After losing both parents, Kymoni made the decision to overcome all obstacles and achieve the unimaginable. We are so proud of him. Watch FOX5 at 4, 5, and 6 tonight for the full story.
FULL BCSS ARTICLE: https://www.bartow.k12.ga.us/article/1084951
BARTOW VIRTUAL ACADEMY: The application window for the Bartow Virtual Academy will be open May 1, 2023, through May 31, 2023, for the 2023-2024 school year.
The BVA is open to all 6th – 12th grade students who meet the criteria.
The online application link and criteria information can be found on the BVA website at the link below.
https://www.bartow.k12.ga.us/page/bartow-virtual-academy
CONSTRUCTION PROGRESS REPORT: Setting precast panels this week at your new Mission Road Elementary School! How exciting! MRES students are loving each phase of the project.
LOOK WHAT'S COMING: Another new pathway at the Bartow County College and Career Academy!
Early Childhood Care and Education (Dual Enrollment through Chattahoochee Tech)
A new pre-K class will be housed at the BCCCA next academic year, which will provide wonderful opportunities for our students studying Early Childhood Care and Education!
TEACHING AND REACHING: Just one more reason it's #betterinbartow! Our Director of Counselors, College Readiness, Wellness, and Fine Arts, Dr. Brent Shropshire, earned the right to be on the Southern Association for College Admission Counseling Executive Board of Directors! This week, he's talking college admissions and the role of the high school counselor at the annual SACAC conference in Florida.
Seeing more and more students on college tours? Wonder how we're bringing in admissions directors from some of the top colleges in the South? Dr. Shropshire is one BIG reason why!
THE BLAZE TAKE ON HOUSTON: Who's more excited? Team Blaze or Superintendent Page and School Board Member Anna Sullivan? Love seeing the support from the top down! Their hearts are "on fire" for our kids! Best school system, hands down!
THE BLAZE TAKE ON HOUSTON: Clear Creek Master Builders Team Blaze held their own on an international platform and came home CHAMPIONS in our book! As you can see, this team of seven had unparalleled learning experiences and the love and support of a newfound family! Awesome job, Team Blaze! You made us all proud!
YOUNG GEORGIA AUTHORS WRITING COMPETITION: Pine Log Elementary School Student Collins Brown WINS Honorable Mention at the state writing competition! Congratulations, Collins!
BACK IN THE SPOTLIGHT: We want to wish the Cass Middle School Honor Band a huge CONGRATULATIONS for winning GRAND CHAMPIONS at the Southern Star music competition in Alanta this weekend! They competed against 15 instrumental groups, including five high school bands. They also took home the Sweepstakes Award for the highest instrumental score of the weekend! What a phenomenal and record-breaking year for the CMS Band!
