Holiday Concerts

Old Dock Volleyball Team Goes Undefeated, Wins Championship

The Old Dock Elementary volleyball team went undefeated and were this years preseason tournament and season champions. Congratulations!

Six Columbus County Schools Athletes Named as Wendy's Heismans

Six local winners of the Wendy's Heisman were recently announced. They are

Caitlin Lane, Alex Williamson from East Columbus,
Bryant Edwards, Dori Faulk from South Columbus, and
Timothy Brown, Kimberly Cartrette from West Columbus.

For eight generations, the Heisman name has signified excellence, determination, and prestige among college football’s elite. In 1994, the next level of outstanding achievers ensconced their names into the Heisman lore when the Wendy’s high School Heisman (WHSH) was created. The WHSH program has set the standard for high school student-athletes, and gained tremendous prestige in its own right. Each fall, the program recognizes the nation’s most esteemed high school senior men and women for excellence in academics, athletics, and community/school involvement. To date more than 150,000 high school students have represented their schools and have been touched by the Heisman mystique. Of them, 157 have progressed to the National Finalist level, with 26 earning the designation of Wendy’s High School Heisman National Award Winners.

Hallsboro Artesia Student's Design Selected for Christmas Card

Kayla Bryant, student at Hallsboro Artesia Elementary School, was selected as the winner of Columbus County Schools Superintendent Christmas Card Contest. Kayla's design was used on over 300 cards that went out to other school districts in the state. She is the art student of Cheryl Stewart.

West Columbus High receives $25,000 Public Art Grant.

(above: Artist Brad Spencer discusses the West Columbus Project; below : a sample of the artists work on display in Charlotte.)
West Columbus High School has been awarded the prestigious SPARC (School/Public Art Collaboration Projects (SPARC) grant, awarded by the North Carolina Arts Council. It is the only high school in North Carolina to receive the award. The final result of the grant will be a permanent public art installation on the campus of West Columbus.

The grant process is an interesting and multifaceted one. The school created the SPARC Steering committee, made up of community members as well as school faculty, and members of the local arts council, community college, and students. The members met and discussed the overall project, and designated members of the artists selection team. The artist selection team, composed of Thomas Nance, Special Assistant to the Superintendent, Mark Brown, Principal, Ron Cole, Professor of Art at Southeastern Community College, Sally Mann, Executive Director of the Columbus County Arts Council, Kelly Jones Arts Education Coordinator, Larry Hewett, Art Instructor, Carlton Campbell, Teacher, Michael Powell, Teacher and Erik Sellars and Cheyenne Peacock, students at West Columbus, viewed portfolios of ten artists along with Linda Bamford and Jeffrey York of the NC Arts Council. From the ten artists, three finalists were chosen. These three consisted of a sculptor, who works in the medium of metal, a muralist who created the official mural for Columbine High School’s Renovation, and a sculptor who works in brick. All three artists are from North Carolina, and are world-class artists in their own right. Each one of the artists spent a class period talking to art students at West Columbus. The Artist Selection Team came back together and met with each of the three finalists, and made their final selection. The one chosen was Brad Spencer, brick artist from Reidsville, North Carolina. Erik Sellars, an art student on the selection committee explains some of the reasons: “I feel that with any public art, it is best accepted and enjoyed when the art is understood by the community, but has a sense of originality and creativity. Brick is a medium of common knowledge in our community. Everyone has seen it and everyone is familiar with it. Brick sculpture uses a common subject, but puts an exciting twist on it and leaves the viewer thinking "I didn't know you could do that!" Brad Spencer intrigues people with his artwork and I feel that people will like his art not only because it is art but also because they can understand the materials and the process that went into making it.”

This first step of the grant process took about 2 months. The next step in the process is to have Mr. Spencer come into the classroom and work with the students, which will occur early next year. The students will help create the design and the plan will also involve students working on the finished product. Mr. Spencer will spend 10 total classroom days at West Columbus, and the installation of the final piece will occur sometime in April or May. Kelly Jones, Arts Education Coordinator for Columbus County Schools, is excited about the project. “We feel this project will be something the entire county, an indeed the state, can be proud of. We are also very grateful to Jeffrey York and Linda Bamford of the North Carolina Arts Council for giving us this opportunity.” West Columbus Art Instructor Larry Hewett is also very excited about the project: “My students and I are very excited about the opportunity of helping design and work on this tailor-made sculpture for our school. We are looking forward to a wonderful experience with Brad Spencer in our classroom. What an awesome chance for us to work with an artist of his caliber and to leave a piece of artwork behind to be enjoyed long after we are all gone!”

American Indian Heritage Month

American Indian students from Hallsboro Middle & East Columbus High School performed at the Odum Home in Pembroke on 11-27-07 sharing their culture, history, and traditions of the Native Americans. Ms. Shirley Freeman & Ms. Tammy Patrick cooked Fry Bread for all the students.

ECHS Rocame Hosts Great American Smokeout

The ECHS ROCAME (Region "O" Council for the Advancement of Minorities in
Engineering) Club recently hosted their fourth annual Great American Smoke-Out. This is a national event that helps to raise awareness about the dangers of using tobacco products. Students signed a pledge to be tobacco free for a day.
Club members made treat bags for pledgers and had prizes for game participants. Display and handouts were provided by the Question Why for Teens and the American Cancer Society.

SCHS Football Finishes with Best Record

Congratulations to the South Columbus High Stallions who reached the finals of the state 2A football championship. This Stallions finished 15-1 for their best season ever.

Board Recognizes Senator Soles, Representative Hill

Dr. Dan Strickland and Mr. Norris Ebron present senator R.C. Soles and representative Dewey Hill with plaques honoring their work on behalf on education in the General Assembly at a recent Board Meeting.

Bright Ideas Winners

Click here for the detailed story.





Congratulations to Camela Babson of Acme Delco Middle School, Kathy Blake of Chadbourn Elementary School, Carol Blake of Chadbourn Middle School, Stephanie Sellars of Guideway Elementary School, Velvet Hardwick of Hallsboro Middle School, Amanda Edwards of Old Dock Elementary, Gay Strickland of South Columbus High School, Kelly Strickland Graham of Tabor City Elementary School, Daphne Long of Williams Township and Sherry Jordan of East Columbus High School for being elected as 2007-2008 Bright Ideas Grant Recipients.
All winners and projects are located here.








KJ

Joan Buck Named Outstanding Teacher

Joan Buck, teacher at Acme Delco Elementary School, was recently recognized and rewarded by the North Carolina Council of Teachers of Mathematics as an Outstanding Elementary Teacher. This recognition rewards teachers who make mathematics exciting for her students. It identifies Joan as a teacher who nurturers her students to make sense of math as a tool for everyday living and enhances their understanding by extending mathematics beyond the classroom.

Board Chairman Norris Ebron presented a plaque to Ms. Buck with principal Janet Hedrick in attendance at a recent board meeting.

Art Teacher Creates Murals for Cafeteria

Sabrina Malpass, art teacher at Hallsboro Middle and Acme Delco Middle Schools, helped create healthy figures for the cafeteria of Hallsboro-Artesia Elementary School. Ms. Malpass, who has an extensive background in illustration, created the figures in partnership with Columbus Regional Healthcare, which provided the materials.

Columbus County Students Excel at Play Competition

Students from East, South and West Columbus High Schools performed at the North Carolina Theatre Conference Play Festival at Ashley High School in Wilmington on November 2nd and 3rd. All three schools excelled with West and South receiving Excellent marks and East Columbus receiving Superior.

Chadbourn Elementary School Receives Books from DonorsChoose

Kathy Blake, librarian of Chadbourn Elementary School, recently received a grant of over $1000 to purchase books for the library from Donorschoose.org, an online agency that allows donors to select from a wide range of applications. The students will enjoy the generosity of this donor for years to come!

Acme Delco Elementary Literacy Night

On September 25, 2007 Acme Delco Elementary hosted a K-2 Literacy Night for parents at the Riegelwood Public Library. Rebecca Ham and Stephanie Nelson, both teachers at the school, presented techniques to help parents increase their child’s reading. Public Librarian, Robin Creech, discussed the library’s programs and helped parents get new library cards for students. The school provided each parent a take-home reader that can be exchanged for a new book as often as the parent wishes. Parents read a page and the child reads the next leveled text page. Approximately 30 parents and students were in attendance. Our goal of is to increase parent involvement in literacy. The night was a huge success and the school plans to have a annual Literacy Night.

Students Prepare for Play Competition

For the first time ever, all three high school will participate in the North Carolina Theatre Conference's One Act Play Contest at Ashley High School in Wilmington on November 2nd-3rd. Recently, students gathered on a Saturday to perform for each other and get feedback from theatre professionals. Adjudications will also take place at the play festival and students will also watch over a dozen plays from other schools.

North Carolina Yam Festival

Columbus County Schools participated in many facets of the recent Yam Festival. Tabor City Middle School won first place for their school made completely out of yams, all three high schools participated in the parade along with several school groups, and over 50 students contributed artwork.

CMS Travels to NC Mountains

The Chadbourn Middle School National Junior Beta Club and the GEAR UP program recently sponsored a three day, two night trip to the North Carolina Mountains. During the trip, students toured the campus of UNC-Asheville, explored Linville Caverns, climbed Chimney Rock, visited Kings Mountain National Military Park, and toured Biltmore Estates.

CMS would like to extend a special thanks to the families and community members who supported our students in their fund raising efforts. Additionally, CMS would like to thank Mr. Odell Graham and the GEAR UP program for helping to make the trip possible.

Second Annual Convocation

Columbus County Schools second annual convocation was held on August 22nd, 2007 at South Columbus High School. Teachers and Principal of the Year were recognized, and our guest speaker, Mr. Larry Bell, inspired the audience with "The Power of a Teacher". Many vendors also participated in the Vendor Fair, allowing staff to sample the many products and services available.

All County Band Camp

A camp for all band students for the upcoming school year was held recently at West Columbus High School. The camp included members of the bands from East, South and West Columbus High Schools. The band directors from each of the schools, as well as outside clinicians, worked with students on playing and marching techniques. The main purpose of the camp was to utilize the strengths at each school for the benefit of all students throughout the county. The camp culminated with a short concert on the stage at WCHS.

Family Reading Rally at Cerro Gordo Elementary

Family Reading Rally at Cerro Gordo Elementary
CGES in, conjunction with Reading First and the counseling program, hosted a
Family Reading Rally on May 17th with approximatly 150 parents, teachers and
students in attendance. Family members were provided with information on
essential reading components, actively participated in the CGES Reading
First K-3 supplemental reading computer program, played jump rope rhymes and
other reading games, and enjoyed a book walk and a Scholastic Book Fair.
The highlight of the evening was a Book Character Scavenger Hunt where
students had to locate live book characters throughout the school and
identify them by matching book information provided. A few of the special
guests were: Clifford the Big Red Dog, Curious George, Pink Panther,
Chamelon, The Principal in his new clothes, and the Jester. We hope this
will become an annual event as a great time was had by all.

New Playground at ADES

Acme Delco Elementary children cannot contain their excitement as they enjoy
their new jungle gym. The new equipment is a result of a two year project
made possible by a combination of grants, fund raisers, and donations. The
school wishes to thank everyone who contributed to the project.

ADES Participates in Pennies for Patients

Mrs. Susan Patrick's 1st grade class came in 1st place during Acme Delco

Elementary School's Pennies for Patients campaign.  The school raised $1,657

for the Leukemia/Lymphoma Society.  This year's campaign was in honor of 1st

grader, Shelby Parks, who has undergone treatment for Leukemia for nearly

two years and is doing well. She is an inspiration to everyone with her

positive attitude and love for school.



Shelby Parks is pictured with the Leukemia/Lymphoma Society Representative.