June
28, 2004
New
Teacher Orientation
MCS
will present New Teacher Orientation
on July 21 & 22, 2004 at Hickory
Ridge Middle School. Sessions will begin
at 8:00 a.m. and end at 3:30 each day.
All teachers new to Memphis City Schools
are invited to participate.
Registration
forms will be available by July 2 at
each school, at the Teaching & Learning
Academy (2485 Union Avenue) and at the
MCS Information Desk (2597 Avery Avenue).
Please
contact Dr. Ann Nero (320-3414), Pat
Sutton (320-3430) or Dr. Freda Williams
(320-3404) if further information is
needed.
June
25, 2004
MCS
Board Postpones Negotiations with
Inman/Dawco
to Construct 3 New Schools
Memphis,
Tenn. - The Board of Education
of Memphis City Schools has postponed
negotiations effective immediately
with Inman/Dawco on their proposal
to oversee new construction of three
schools until expert consultants complete
structural reports on nine schools
experiencing roofing problems and the
settling issue at Germanshire Elementary,
and the Board has an opportunity to
thoroughly review their findings.
The
MCS Board's Capital Improvement Committee
(CIP) selected Inman/Dawco on June 3
from among three vendor finalists who
submitted proposals. On June 7, the Board
approved the committee's recommendation
to begin negotiations to consider final
approval of an agreement with Inman/Dawco.
The Board's action authorized staff to
begin the negotiation process only. Approval
of any final contract must be approved
by the Board after negotiations are completed
satisfactorily.
To
resolve the problems at the nine schools,
the Board has requested roof consultants
and other structural engineering experts
to gather essential data, and final reports
are being prepared for presentation to
the board. The structural engineering
report on the settling issue at Germanshire
Elementary is expected to be prepared
by July 15, and presented to the CIP
Committee at its next meeting later that
day on July 15. The roof report is expected
to be received by July 30.
A
detailed survey of Germanshire's buildings
is now underway to determine the nature
and extent of building movement. To complete
the investigation, underlying soils supporting
the school are being reviewed to determine
why building and subgrade settlement
are occurring. In addition, elevations
surveys are being made at two-week intervals
to establish settlement patterns over
time, and soil samples have been obtained
from inside and outside the buildings
to be lab-tested. Plumbing and other
building systems are also being thoroughly
checked for leaks and other factors possibly
contributing to the problem.
The
Board's goal is to conclude the investigation,
determine the findings and begin repairs
to correct the problems as quickly as
possible, so the schools can be absolutely
safe and ready for fall classes to begin
on August 9.
"We
are strongly committed to providing the
best education environment for our children.
Therefore, we are investigating this
issue thoroughly, and working hard to
insure any needed repairs are done promptly," said
MCS Board President Patrice Jordan-Robinson. "We
are communicating with Inman on the problems
at the schools, and they have expressed
a willingness to correct everything at
no additional cost."
June
22, 2004
Arts
Camp stimulates students' minds,
improves their talents
Usually
the main hall down Colonial Middle School
is pretty quiet during summer break.
But during the month of June, one classroom
at the end of that hall has been home
to Robert Feol's songwriting class, where
quiet just isn’t an option.
"Come
on," Feol encourages Robbie Palmer,
one of his students. "Stand up.
Sing it. I want to hear you."
Robbie
stands up and belts out the chorus to
his creation, a song called "Who
Am I?", as his teacher provides
background vocals and keyboard accompaniment
and fellow student Tierra Kendrick kicks
in on the drums.
The
song ends, but the performance doesn't,
as Feol spurs his students on to call
out their musical knowledge through constructive
criticism, and two new students take
their place next to the keyboard to try
out their own creation.
In
a room on the other end of the hall,
another kind of noise is being made — this
one by string orchestra students playing
away. In that room, Darmeisha Mister,
a 13-year-old Colonial student who's
been playing the violin for three years,
says she'd rather be there practicing
than hanging out at home over summer
break.
The
rest of the 107 fifth through eighth
graders who make up the annual Memphis
City Schools Arts Camp feel the same
way, which is why they auditioned and
petitioned for letters of recommendation
to gain enrollment in the camp, which
is in its 16th year.
The
students are divided into specialization
groups: theatre, dance, choir, band,
strings, visual art and songwriting,
which is the only division in which students
can participate in addition to their
focus. The sections are taught by MCS
teachers, as well as staff members from
Theatre Memphis and a graduate student
from the University of Memphis.
"The
camp gives the students the opportunity
to focus on one medium in a concentrated
form, which they don’t get in the
normal school day," said Tom Raphael,
camp director.
"Here, they focus for four hours a
day on one thing and have a performance
to showcase their abilities."
But
the camp, which runs June 7 to June 29,
isn't just for students with outstanding
artistic ability. There are also students
enrolled who are not necessarily gifted
but "need to learn some group dynamics
and be in a positive environment," said
Jim Holcomb, performing arts specialist.
For these students, the $50 tuition fee
is waived as a scholarship.
During
this last week of the camp, students
and teachers are preparing for their
big send off —
a performance that will encompass all concentrations
— June 29 at 6:30 p.m. There will
be live performances as well as an art
gallery.
"The
work is all linked together," Holcomb
said. "We're trying to teach the
students how there are connections among
all mediums
— show them how everything works
together."
June
21, 2004
Summer
camps bring excitement and innovation
to learning
Memphis
City Schools is hosting camps to keep
children learning while having fun over
summer break.
Although
camps are held every summer, this year's
sessions are meant as enrichment, incorporating
an emphasis on innovation through Title
V funding. In the past, the camps have
focused on struggling students through
funding under Title I not readily available
to some 30 to 40 schools in the district.
However, now only about a dozen schools
lack Title I funding, so the district
planned for camps that would enrich the
students’ learning through experiences
they may not get during the regular school
year.
"We
wanted to do something different this
year,"
said Theresa Utley, MCS special projects
coordinator.
"We still have struggling students
in the camps, but the goal is to have innovation
engaged in the education process."
The
15 camps were chosen based on grant proposals
written by faculty members from individual
schools. Fifty-five applications were
submitted, and the final ones were selected
and awarded up to $20,000 based on criteria
that ranged from plans for advertising
for the camp to evidence of a creative
and innovative program to having a specific
budget outline.
Summer 2004 Enrichment Programs:
Alcy
Elementary
World of Discovery
June 7 to July 2
Cordova
Elementary
Exploring the Wonder of Science
June 1 to July 2
Crump
Elementary
Singing, Moving, Playing
June 7 to June 25
Ida
B. Wells Academy
It's a Mystery
June 14 to June 25
Lanier
Middle
Posterity's Project
June 1 to July 15
Larose
Elementary
Geo Globe Trackers
June 7 to June 25
Raineshaven
Elementary
Kwumba Poetry & Dance Institute
June 3 to June 25
Ridgeway
Middle
Learning in a Fun Environment
June 1 to June 29
Ross
Elementary
3 Rs + T: Reading, Writing, Arithmetic &
Technology
June 7 to July 2
Rozelle
Elementary
Elementary Performing Arts Camp
June 28 to July 16
Scenic
Hills Elementary
Our Minds, Bodies and World
June 1 to June 29
Shannon
Elementary
Summer Adventures
June 1 to June 30
South
Park Elementary
Zoom into Learning
June 7 to July 2
Westside
Elementary
Camp Connection
June 1 to July 2
Winridge
Elementary
It's My MINE: Many Interactive and New
Experiences
June 1 to June 28
June
18, 2004
Immunizations
available through city health fairs
The
Memphis and Shelby County Health Department
and Memphis City Schools will hold several
health fairs this summer to allow students
to receive their required immunizations
before registration.
Students
must have proof of required immunizations
in order to register for school in August.
The health fairs provide parents an opportunity
to have their children's immunizations
updated for free.
"Parents
should get their children's immunizations
early to avoid the rush," said Brenda
Heffner, school health coordinator for
Memphis City Schools. "Physicians'
offices are already over-scheduling to
meet the needs of the students, and by
August and September, there will probably
not be many available appointments."
Health
fairs will be held at the following
times and sites:
Saturday,
June 26
Memphis Health Center, 360 Crump Blvd.
10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Saturday,
July 17
Roscoe Dixon Annual Health Fair, Hamilton
Elementary School
10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Saturday,
July 24
Roscoe Dixon Annual Health Fair, Westwood
Elementary School
10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Saturday,
July 31
Katherine Bowers Annual Health Fair, Hillcrest
High School
10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
June
16, 2004
New
school, new friends, new country:
ESL
helps foreign-born students assimilate
to American life "That's gender.
Are you male or female?" Mr. Baade
asks.
The
student looks confusedly at his teacher
and shrugs his shoulders at the form
he's trying to fill out.
"Masculino
or feminino?"
Again
he looks confused, not understanding
the question.
"Are
you a boy or a girl?" Mr. Baade
finally tries.
This
the student understands: "Boy."
It's
not that this Hispanic student doesn't
know his gender. He just doesn't understand
the question in English. This is an ESL,
or English-as-as-Second-Language, student,
and he just learned how to answer one
question on American paperwork.
The
2004 ESL Summer Intervention Program,
where this student and almost 500 others
are spending the month of June, is designed
to catch students with limited English
reading, writing and, sometimes, speaking
skills before they fall through the cracks.
The
Summer Intervention Program is just one
of the numerous programs Memphis City
Schools ESL office is trying to find
ways to maintain amid hard financial
times and a never-ending flow of new
non-English-speaking students.
The
ESL office serves more than 4,000 Memphis
City Schools students, and this year,
the district expects about another 1,000
students, which, ESL Coordinator Rubbie
Patrick-Herring said is on par with normal
yearly increases.
"We
can't keep up with the increase well,"
Patrick-Herring said, adding that even
on the last Monday of the school year,
the office admitted five new ESL students. "The
funding will never keep up with the need."
The
district's ESL students come from more
than 100 countries and speak more than
63 different languages, but about 70
percent of them are Hispanic, Patrick-Herring
said. To cope with all these students,
the office employs 63 full- and part-time
ESL teachers.
But
that's just not enough, Patrick-Herring
said. So the office also sponsors educator
training for non-ESL teachers and principals.
OnTRACK
is a three-year collaborative grant with
the University of Memphis and Shelby
County Schools to provide ESL training
to classroom teachers with students learning
English. The grant provides educators
with up to three classes of ESL work
at the U of M but is up this December,
when Patrick-Herring will have to find
another way to continue non-ESL teacher
education.
"We're
looking at ways to provide teachers and
principals with more training, at least
workshops,”
she said. "We're trying to support
the schools to empower them to know that
they can help their ESL students as well."
Wells
Station Elementary School Assistant Principal
David Gaston is one non-ESL educator
who takes the program to heart through
his participation in the Summer Intervention
Program. Gaston took on the position
of school principal for the summer so
the intervention program could be held
at Wells Station, where he estimates
30 percent of the students are foreign-born.
"The
program is help for us because so many
of our children are attending it during
the summer,"
Gaston said.
The
Summer Intervention Program is growing
immensely year to year, especially on
the kindergarten level. Last year's program
served 300 students at two sites, a step
down from this year's nearly 500 students
at three sites —
Bruce, Hickory Ridge and Wells Station
Elementary Schools.
The
summer program is designed for students
who have been enrolled in U.S. schools
for a year or less, but some of the students
enrolled just weeks before school ended
for the summer, Gaston said. The levels
of proficiency vary from almost fluent
to not even close.
Through
the summer program, students improve
their reading, writing and speaking skills,
as well as learn protocol for American
schools —
things like raising a hand to speak, asking
to go to the restroom and waiting to be
dismissed before leaving.
The program also provides an opportunity
for the parents and family members of the
ESL students to get involved in the school.
Sometimes, the students’ relatives
speak less English than the students themselves,
making it somewhat intimidating to approach
a school and its faculty members.
To
try to relieve this uneasy feeling for
Wells Station summer program parents,
Gaston acts as crossing guard every morning
at the school, so the first thing parents
see at the school is "a comfy face," he
said. In another effort to make relatives
feel more at ease, the summer programs
will hold a culmination day June 30,
with awards and student musical performances.
"If
we can make the students and families
feel more comfortable," Gaston said, "they'll
begin to think more of Memphis and Memphis
City Schools as home."
June
15, 2004
Former
Kingsbury High student's leadership
and
community service activities take him all
the way to D.C.
A
2004 Memphis City Schools graduate will
be one of only seven young people from
across the country to take part in the
first celebration of America's Promise--The
Alliance for Youth, which will honor
politicians dedicated to American youth.
John
David Reynolds III, who graduated from
Kingsbury High School in May, will represent
his home district while introducing U.S.
Rep. Harold Ford Jr. in Washington D.C.
at the America's Promise to Our Youth
gala celebration. The celebration Wednesday,
June 16 at the Ronald Reagan Building
and International Trade Center will honor
six members of Congress for their commitment
to young people.
In
addition to Congressman Ford, honorees
are Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, Sen.
Edward Kennedy, Rep. Tom Osborne, Rep.
Deborah Pryce and Sen. Ted Stevens. Grammy
Award-winning recording artist Naomi
Judd will host the event, and multi-platinum
recording artist Clay Aiken will perform.
America's
Promise--The Alliance for Youth advocates
the five fundamental resources young
people need to succeed: ongoing relationships
with caring adults, safe places with
structured activities during non-school
hours, a healthy start and future, marketable
skills through effective education, and
opportunities to serve.
The
seven young people, who will introduce
each of the honored members of Congress
and Aiken, were chosen for their services
in their communities as well as their
outstanding characters. Each youth representative
will receive a $1,500 scholarship from
The Bubel/Aiken Foundation, formed in
2003 by Aiken to help children with disabilities
gain full inclusion in every sector of
life.
Reynolds
has shown leadership skills by being
elected to office in numerous school
clubs and participating in many community
service activities, including projects
that served Le Bonheur Children's Medical
Center and St. Jude Children's Research
Hospital. Reynolds plans to attend Southwest
Tennessee Community College in the fall.
June
15, 2004
Last
Chance To Pass TCAP Competency Test
Students
who entered the ninth grade during the
2000-01 school year or before must take
and pass the language and math subtests
of the TCAP Competency Test to graduate.
The test will be administered a final
time on July 27-28. If a student has
not passed both subtests of the TCAP
Competency Test, the student should register
at the school last attended to participate
in the July test. Any student who falls
under the TCAP Competency Test diploma
requirement, and does not pass the subtests
by July 2004 will be required to pass
ALL three Gateway exams to graduate.
The
final TCAP Competency Test will be administered
on the following date:
Final
Administration
Tuesday,
July 27, 2004 - Language
Wednesday, July 28, 2004 - Math
For
more information, call Testing at 325-5450.
June
10, 2004
Soccer
Builds Bridges across Cultural Barriers
for MCS Students
When
Sheffield High School's boys soccer team
made it to the state semifinals last
month, the players, all foreign-born
students, none of whom play club soccer
and many of whom never played organized
soccer before last year, got a lot of
attention.
But
Sheffield’s situation isn't entirely
unique to Memphis City Schools, where
soccer is a fast-growing sport and one
of the only sports that brings together
students from all backgrounds, languages
and cultures.
Over
the past three years on just the middle
school level, soccer has grown from a
seven-school program to now 16 programs
at Memphis City Schools, all competing
in the Memphis Interscholastic Athletic
Association. On the high school level,
teams compete with Shelby County Schools
teams, a practice that began for lack
of sufficient MIAA high school competition.
The
programs are growing fast on the middle
school level, where a new focus on developing
these programs has taken shape, said
Wayne Weedon, MCS athletic director.
"We
put so much emphasis on middle school
soccer to start feeding the high school
programs, and hopefully the interest
and emphasis will bring more inner-city
students to the sport,"
Weedon said. "If we have the need
and the coach, every school should be playing
soccer."
The
new focus, he said, comes from increasing
local popularity of the sport, in large
part due to its increased international
exposure over the past few years, as
well as the influx of international immigrants
to Memphis. Many of the children of these
African, Asian and Hispanic immigrants
grow up watching soccer like many Memphis
children watch football or basketball.
At
Hickory Ridge Middle School, Eric Garner,
who coaches boys and girls soccer, said
the skill of the Hispanic players in
the area inspired other students to pick
up soccer.
"We
had an increase of Hispanic students,
and with that, an increase in the success
of the team," Garner said. "That
made the program more popular, and now
we have more African- American students
coming out for the team."
The
team has also helped settle cultural
disputes between groups, Garner said."They
don’t speak the same language,
but they have a common ground and can
understand each other on the field," he
said.
"Now
they (players) get along better both
in and out of school."
Charles
Rugel, boys soccer coach at White Station
Middle School, said his team, which consists
of Asian, Hispanic and American students,
not only fosters better understanding
between cultures, it also helps players
new to this country assimilate to American
culture easier.
"People
coming to this country have to deal with
the newness of being in America," Rugel
said.
"But they (players) all have a common
enthusiasm for the game."
The
soccer team also draws students' families
into the school community by providing
them something in which they can participate.
"The
families come because it's such a big
deal for the child to be playing on a
team,"
Rugel said. "And it brings people
to the school who might not have come otherwise."
Although
these teams consist of players from diverse
backgrounds, the most diverse team in
the district is certainly at Sheffield
High, where the team is made of only
English-as-a-Second-Language students,
coached by their ESL teacher, Stephen
McNeal.
Half
of Sheffield's 2003-04 team was made
up of Hispanic players, and the other
half of the team was made up of African
players, not because the team was especially
for ESL students, but because these were
the young men who wanted to play.
Sheffield's
program formed six years ago, when several
of McNeal’s students asked him
to coach a soccer team. Since then, the
team has had its ups and downs, with
occasional cultural divisions among players
and varied season records.
But
this year was different, as the players
found a cultural “leveler” on
the soccer field.
"Everyone
got along really well," McNeal said.
"They started depending on each other
with soccer and then spending time with
each other, and then they could kid around
with each other. By the end of the season,
everyone could joke around with everyone
else on the team."
One
of the problems McNeal faces with his
team is a communication barrier. However,
because he is an ESL teacher and speaks
most of the languages his players speak,
this difficulty is softened for him.
Other
coaches aren't so lucky, but finding
a way to communicate on the playing field
is more of a challenge than a hindrance,
Weedon said.
"It’s
exciting to see the challenges of the
coaches putting together a team of all
different cultures,"
he said. "You’re dealing with
all different personalities, but it's also
the personalities of all different countries."
Weedon
sees athletics as a way for students
to come together for a common reason,
forgetting the differences they have
the rest of the day.
"Athletics
provides an avenue for all cultures to
come together on a level playing field
with the concerns of the world's problems
forgotten for a period of time," he
said. "The athletes practice and
play together, and the issues - the concerns
that separate cultures - take a back
seat."
The
next step in the district’s soccer
emphasis is to create more ways for successful
soccer programs to exist in Memphis City
Schools, Weedon said. He hopes to do
this through soccer clinics for both
coaches and athletes, as well as providing
some sort of off-season play for students.
"If
we can produce winning programs in the
district's schools, it’ll spill
over and bring pride to the school and
the community,"
Weedon said. "These people win and
lose together, and they learn how to live
together."
June
10, 2004
MCS
Seeks Community Input On Corporal
Punishment
A
community forum on corporal punishment
will be held Tuesday, June 22 from 5:30
- 7:30 p.m. in the Frances E. Coe Administration
Building auditorium located on 2597 Avery
Avenue.
Memphis
City Schools is seeking community input
on its corporal punishment policy. Citizens
will be given an opportunity to speak
during the two-hour forum. The purpose
of the forum is to determine if the MCS
Board of Commissioners should retain
or modify its policy on corporal punishment.
The school district's corporal punishment
policy was adopted on August 22, 1958.
The policy has been revised twice since
its adoption, once in 1963 and again
in 1982.
The
MCS Board of Commissioners and Superintendent
Carol Johnson will be in attendance.
For more information, contact the Department
of Policy and Planning at 325-5791.
June
9, 2004
Students
must obtain vaccinations, provide
immunization records to register
at MCS
In
the midst of summer fun, parents should
not forget about school registration
requirements for the fall. Summer is
the perfect time to get these tasks out
of the way, and making an appointment
now with the family doctor to get children's
immunizations updated will make for smoother
back-to-school preparations.
"Parents
must do this early to avoid the rush,"
said Brenda Heffner, School Health
Coordinator for Memphis City Schools.
"Physicians' offices are already over-scheduling
to meet the needs of the students, and
by August and September, there will probably
not be many available appointments."
Before
enrolling in a Memphis City School for
the upcoming 2004-05 academic year, students
must provide proof of the following immunizations
required by the State of Tennessee:
Kindergartners:
