The Atlanta Public Schools District and The Atlanta City Regional Science & Engineering Fair winners have been announced! All participants of both fairs will be honored at an awards ceremony that will be held on February 28, 2014, at Coretta Scott King Young Women’s Leadership Academy. All participating students, parents, and sponsors are encouraged attend.
For more information, visit the APS Office of Science website.
At the February 20, 2014, meeting of the Georgia State Board of Education, nine APS schools were among 258 high schools awarded Advanced Placement (AP) Teacher Training Grants for the training of AP teachers at the 2014 AP Summer Institutes. The awards amounted to a total of $13,300.00 given to schools.
The AP Teacher Training Grants were awarded to:
Atlanta Public Schools offers AP classes on every high school campus. Research shows that students who succeed in rigorous course work such as Advanced Placement are developing college-level knowledge and skills while still in high school. These students are more likely than their peers to earn college degrees on time, providing an opportunity to save significant amounts of money. The College Board’s 10th Annual AP Report to the Nation, released earlier this month, shows that significant progress is being made in expanding both access to and success in AP.
Over the past decade, the number of students who graduate from high school having taken rigorous AP courses has nearly doubled, and the number of low-income students taking AP has more than quadrupled. Impressively, educators’ work to bring more students into Advanced Placement courses has resulted in a larger increase in the number of qualifying AP Exam scores (the scores typically required for college credit) than in the number of low AP scores.
“At the heart of the College Board’s mission is a commitment to ensuring that students have access to the opportunities they have earned,” said College Board President David Coleman. “While great strides have been made over the last decade to expand access to AP, we remain as committed as ever to ensuring that every student with the potential to succeed in an AP course has the opportunity to take one.”
Interested in an AP course that is not offered at your school? Talk to your counselor about possible opportunities to take the class online. They can help you locate an approved online class provider, ensure that you receive the proper credit for any online coursework you complete, and help you work through any steps necessary for possibly taking the exam at a school other than your own. View a full list of AP opportunities here: https://apstudent.collegeboard.org/apcourse
The College Board’s Advanced Placement Program (AP) enables willing and academically prepared students to pursue college-level studies – with the opportunity to earn college credit, advanced placement or both – while still in high school. Through AP courses in 34 subjects, each culminating in a rigorous exam, students learn to think critically, construct solid arguments and see many sides of an issue – skills that prepare them for college and beyond. Taking AP courses demonstrates to college admission officers that students have sought the most rigorous curriculum available to them, and research indicates that students who score a 3 or higher on an AP Exam typically experience greater academic success in college and are more likely to earn a college degree than non-AP students. Each AP teacher’s syllabus is evaluated and approved by faculty from some of the nation’s leading colleges and universities, and AP Exams are developed and scored by college faculty and experienced AP teachers. Most four-year colleges and universities in the United States grant credit, advanced placement or both on the basis of successful AP Exam scores – more than 3,300 institutions worldwide annually receive AP scores. In the last decade AP participation and performance rates have nearly doubled. In May 2013, 2.2 million students representing more than 18,000 schools around the world, both public and nonpublic, took approximately 4 million AP Exams.
The College Board is a mission-driven not-for-profit organization that connects students to college success and opportunity. Founded in 1900, the College Board was created to expand access to higher education. Today, the membership association is made up of over 6,000 of the world’s leading educational institutions and is dedicated to promoting excellence and equity in education. Each year, the College Board helps more than seven million students prepare for a successful transition to college through programs and services in college readiness and college success – including the SAT and the Advanced Placement Program. The organization also serves the education community through research and advocacy on behalf of students, educators, and schools. For further information, visit http://www.collegeboard.org.
Wednesday, August 28th marked the 50th Anniversary of the March on Washington. Students across the district participated in innovative classroom lessons focused on the march, Martin Luther King, Jr.’s ‘I Have a Dream’ speech, and important aspects of the civil rights movement in America.
At Mays High School, social studies classes watched documentaries highlighting the civil rights movement and presented research projects about topics such as segregation, the bus boycott, influential civil rights leaders, and comparisons of life then versus now. A reporter from the Los Angeles Times was on hand to cover the innovative and insightful classroom instruction.
Below is an excerpt from the Los Angeles Times article:
The focus in Room 2313 at Benjamin E. Mays High School this week was on civil rights. But as with much of life in Atlanta — a city steeped in history and muddled in the present — the past kept getting overshadowed by the here and now.
The occasion was the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington, an event headlined by this city’s favorite son, the late Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.
Desirée Welch, 15, consulted with a small group of classmates huddled around a classroom computer to research the forced integration of U.S. schools — former Alabama Gov. George Wallace standing in a University of Alabama doorway to prevent two black students from enrolling, the screams hurled at the first nine black students who attended Little Rock Central High School in Arkansas in 1957.
To read the article in its entirety, click here.
Students at Bunche Middle School watched a live stream of President Obama’s commemorative speech and wrote essays on how they will advance the dream. 
Toddasia McClendon, an 8th grader at Bunche Middle School, explained how she will reflect the dream in her life.
“I can go to school, help out in the community, be proactive by taking responsibility of my actions, and encourage my peers to do their best,” she explained. “I will also follow my own dreams in life.”
Students at Fain Elementary watched a documentary during their social studies rotation, and visitors from 11 Alive news even paid the school a visit!
Students at Coretta Scott King were invited to participate in the ringing of the bell at Stone Mountain Park.
Numerous children and adults hiked up Stone Mountain, one of the places mentioned in King’s speech. At the mountain’s summit, Lunye’ Powers, Diamond Ellis and Cornaya Byrd — students at the Coretta Scott King’s Young Women’s Leadership Academy Middle School — divided the speech into three parts and read their parts aloud. The group listened to a recording of King’s speech, sang “We Shall Overcome,” and at 3:00 p.m., the exact hour King delivered his infamous speech, they “let freedom ring” from Stone Mountain, GA by ringing bells. 
Students in Mr. Weem’s class at Parkside Elementary took a virtual field trip to the King Center and read a picture book about Dr. King’s life and legacy.
11Alive captured some of the Dream Day activities students participated in at APS. Click here to watch the video.
Ten Atlanta Public Schools are awarded $5,000 grants from The Laura Bush Foundation for America’s Libraries. The Foundation announced that 212 school libraries are receiving $1,060,000 in grants to expand, update and diversify the schools’ library book collections. The grant application process is administered by The Community Foundation for the National Capital Region with guidance from The Laura Bush Foundation’s Advisory Committee. The grants are funded through generous donations to the endowment from individuals, corporations and foundations.
APS Schools receiving The Laura Bush Foundation Grant:
The Laura Bush Foundation for America’s Libraries was founded in 2002 as a fund of The Community Foundation for the National Capital Region. Since its inception, the Laura Bush Foundation has awarded more than $10.5 million to schools in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, the Marshall Islands and the Northern Mariana Islands. In addition to these yearly grants, the Foundation has also awarded more than $6.3 million to school libraries in the Gulf Coast region to rebuild their library book collections that were lost or destroyed by hurricanes or storms.
The mission of the Laura Bush Foundation for America’s Libraries is to support the education of our nation’s children by providing funds to update, extend and diversify the book and print collections of America’s school libraries. Additional information is available at www.laurabushfoundation.org
Visiting the White House is a momentous occasion for any student, but for Coretta Scott King 7th grader Percie Thompson, having the President of the United States toss you the championship soccer ball – well that’s historical! (Watch beginning at the 5:30 mark of the video above).
On Tuesday, March 26, 2013, America SCORES Atlanta youth from CSK Middle School flew to Washington, D.C. to be present when President Obama welcomed the Major League Soccer champion LA Galaxy to the White House.
These students joined children from Philadelphia, Boston, Cleveland, Columbus, Detroit, and Washington, D.C. in a Let’s Move soccer clinic led by LA Galaxy soccer players on the South Lawn and had a front row seat during the President Obama’s press conference and question and answer session in the White House. The students chosen for this trip to the White House are all enrolled at Coretta Scott King Young Women’s Leadership Academy and participate in America SCORES Atlanta’s after-school program at that site.
ond thrilled to be invited to the White House,” said America SCORES Atlanta Executive Director Laura McCrodden, “Kids in our program understand the importance of exercise and healthy lifestyles, but never dreamed they would one day play soccer on the South Lawn. What an amazing experience!”
The team member shared and documented their historic journey on the CSK Middle School Experience Facebook page and Twitter feed throughout the day.
Coretta Scott King Young Women’s Leadership Academy High School (CSKYWLA) students in the Biotechnology Research and Design pathway had an amazing laboratory experience on the Georgia Institute of Technology campus.
The students toured the science and engineering buildings and spoke with undergraduate and graduate students about their daily routines and college life. The CSKYWLA students had the opportunity to work with female graduate students and scientists to view breast cancer cells, load DNA samples in the electrophoresis chambers and analyze different types of cells using highly technical microscopes.
At the end of the session, the Georgia Tech scientists challenged the students by giving them biological problems and data to analyze in an effort to show them how scientists research and investigate real-world problems. They instructed the CSKYWLA group to research and develop answers to the assigned task, and they presented their projects to the Georgia Tech scientists on Tuesday March 5, 2013 on the CSKYWLA
campus.
This experience gave students an introduction to Project ENGAGE (Engaging New Generations At Georgia Tech through Engineering). Georgia Tech in
partnership with CSKYWLA High School and BEST Academy will provide students with a paid research experience during the summer and 2013-2014 academic school year. Students will ENGAGE in biomedical research, college preparation and professional development activities. For additional information regarding CSKYWLA High School, please visit the school’s website at www.cskywla.org.
Submitted by CSKYWLA High School principal, Termerion McCrary
Superintendent Erroll B. Davis’ demographic capacity study community meetings is scheduled for mid-March in each of the four APS regional (School Reform Team or SRT) areas.
The schedule is as follows:
March 12 – School Reform Team 1 & 4NW Cluster (schools zoned to Douglass, Mays, Washington high schools and B.E.S.T. and Coretta Scott King academies) – Douglas High School, 225 Hamilton E. Holmes Dr., 30318
March 13 – School Reform Team 4 NE Cluster (schools zoned to North Atlanta High School) — North Atlanta High School, 2875 Northside Dr., 30305
March 21 – School Reform Team 3 Cluster (schools zoned to Grady and Jackson high schools) — Jackson High School, 801 Glenwood Ave., 30316
March 22 – School Reform Team 2 Cluster (schools zoned to South Atlanta and Carver high schools) – Carver High School, 55 McDonough Blvd., 30315
The times of all meetings are 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m.
During the meetings, Davis will present the district’s proposed redistricting plan that was developed based in part on community input obtained from the first two rounds of demographic capacity study community meetings held late last year and early this year.
During the first two rounds of community meetings, independent demographers conducted the sessions and explained their redistricting scenarios, after which they solicited community input that was used to develop subsequent scenarios.
The community meetings followed a demographic survey launched in June, which allowed the public to provide input regarding the district’s student capacity situation. Focus groups were held in each of the four SRTs on this subject last year. The information has been available since last year on the district’s website.
Following this round of community meetings, Davis will present his proposed redistricting plan to the Atlanta Board of Education for consideration. Community input will also be part of the Board’s consideration of the proposed redistricting plan. The Board is expected to consider the matter in the spring.
“From the beginning, our goal has been to make this process transparent with input from parents and the community,” said Davis. “The opportunity for public input will continue up to the point when the Atlanta Board of Education approves a redistricting plan for implementation beginning the next school year.”
Representatives from the City of Atlanta’s Department of Watershed Management, Office of Water Efficiency taught Ralph J. Bunche Middle School sixth-graders how to conserve water and explore careers in environmental science through the ‘Be Water Wise Atlanta’ Water Conservation Workshop on Tuesday morning. Be Water Wise is a national program that engages partners from the public, private and nonprofit sectors to raise awareness of local water issues and improve water conservation in school buildings and grounds. The workshop is the first of many that will be conducted by the Office of Water Efficiency under the Be Water Wise Atlanta program.
During the workshop, Bunche students in groups of 20 rotated among the following stations: How to Build a Rain Barrel, facilitated by Kimberly Davis, environmental education specialist, City of Atlanta Department of Watershed Management, Office of Water Efficiency; Life of a Water Drop by Yolanda Boazman and Carol Jones; and Envioralscape by Jennifer Carlile. “We want their generation to be aware of how to conserve water, think about careers that lead to environmental science and to become good stewards of the natural resources we have,” said Davis.
Coretta Scott King Young Women’s Leadership Academy (CSKYWLA) High School welcomed 11 Alive’s Donna Lowry to speak to their students for Youth Motivation Day on Feb. 17. Lowry shared some experiences from her childhood that inspired her to become a journalist.
As a small token of appreciation, Lowry was presented with pink and brown links to add to the chain that is being created to help spread kindness and compassion in honor of Rachel’s Challenge. For more information on Rachel’s Challenge visit 11alive.com.
The students at CSKYWLA also were honored to have Elder Bernice King visit in Janurary to kick off the 100 Days of Nonviolence Campaign. All of the students signed a Commitment Pledge Card to live by the Six Principles of Kingian Nonviolence. Currently, the students are journaling their journey through the 100 days and reading the novel, “My Life with Martin,” written by the school’s namesake, the late Coretta Scott King.
Big ups to school counselor Star Whitley for sharing the information. Welcome to the APS family!
We had a chance to check in on the Georgia Music Educators Association District 5 Elementary and Middle School large group performance evaluation, which was held in the Douglass High auditorium. APS served as host for the event. Coordinators for this year’s event were Garnetta Penn as district chairperson and Lydia Williams as host.
Participating APS schools included Parkside Elementary Chorus, APS Honor Chorus, Inman Middle Chorus, Bunche Middle Chorus and the Coretta Scott King Young Women’s Leadership Academy (CSKYWLA) Chorus. Judges included college music professors. Dr. John B. Haberlen, chair of Georgia State University School of Music, judged on tone, pitch, rhythm and diction.
The two-day event at Douglass High is being supported by the efforts of APS Music district personnel who are donating their time to make sure this event went smoothly.
