Kadir Nelson Visits Estes Hills Elementary

Estes Hills Elementary fourth- and fifth-graders were honored to host the award-winning artist and author Kadir Nelson on Monday, January 28. His visit was part of the Random House Teacher of Literacy Award given to Mary Andrews, a teacher at Estes Hills.

Kadir Nelson is an acclaimed author and illustrator who has won Caldecott Honors, Coretta Scott King Honor Awards, and the Sibert Medal. 

Kadir Nelson showed the students the evolution of his work from childhood to today, focusing on one of his more recent books, "I Have a Dream." This book just received the prestigious Coretta Scott King Honor for his extraordinary illustrations.

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Principals Hired for Elementary Schools

The Board of Education approved the hiring of two new principals at its January 17 meeting.  Patrenia McDowell was named the principal for McDougle Elementary and Lewis "Drew" Ware was named the principal for Estes Hills Elementary.

McDowell has served as the McDougle Elementary's interim principal since September and was the school's assistant principal since 2008.  McDowell holds a both bachelor of science degree in Elementary Education and a master of education degree in Educational Administration and Supervision from Winthrop University in Rock Hill, SC.  She also holds:  a NC Principals Certificate, Grades K-12; a NC Professional Teaching Certificate in Elementary Education, Grades K-6; a Curriculum Instructional Specialist certification; and Academically Gifted and Talented licensure.  McDowell also earned her National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS).  Before joining CHCCS, McDowell was an elementary school teacher in Durham Public Schools and in South Carolina.

"Patrenia McDowell's commitment to creating a rigorous, high functioning learning culture at McDougle Elementary School made her selection an easy one for the interview and selection team," said Superintendent Thomas A. Forcella.  "She has proven during her time as assistant principal and interim principal that she is up to the task of providing the leadership that will bring McDougle Elementary to new levels of student learning," he added.

McDowell begins her tenure as principal at McDougle Elementary immediately.

Ware is currently the principal at Aldert Root STEM Elementary in Wake County, a position he has held since 2009.  He has also been the assistant principal at Vance Year Round Elementary and prior to that a classroom teacher at Underwood Gifted and Talented Elementary from 1999-2007.  Ware earned both a bachelor of arts degree in Elementary Education and a master of education degree in School Administration from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.  He also holds:  a NC Principals Certificate, Grades K-12; a NC Professional Teaching Certificate in Elementary Education, Grades K-6.

"The experience that Mr. Ware brings to Estes Hills Elementary will prove to be a significant asset for staff and students.  Specifically, his background in the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) initiative will be a great benefit, for not only the school, but the entire district," said Forcella.  "His excitement for improving learning for all students is contagious!"

Susan Pegg will continue to serve as the interim principal at Estes Hills Elementary until Ware starts in March.  She will be supported by Deshera Mack, another retired CHCCS principal.

Patrenia McDowell
Principal, McDougle Elementary

Drew Ware
Principal, Estes Hills Elementary

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District Teachers Earn National Board Certification

Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools had 12 teachers from seven district schools achieve their National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) certification in their fields during the 2011-12 certification cycle.  The recipients were announced last week.

The teachers for the 2012 Class are: Nicole Bolden, Mathematics/Early Adolescence McDougle MS; Karen Eisner, Exceptional Needs Specialist, District; Tijuana Goodwin, Mathematics/Early Adolescence, McDougle MS; Katherine Gulledge, Social Studies-History/Early Adolescence, McDougle MS; Mary Catherine Hunt, English-Language Arts/Adolescence and Young Adulthood, Carrboro HS; Kimberly Manning, Science, Adolescence and Young Adulthood, East Chapel Hill HS; Abigail Martin, Early Childhood Generalist, FPG Elementary; Mary Grace Miller, Early Childhood Generalist, Morris Grove Elementary; Sandra Scheuermann, Exceptional Needs Specialist, Scroggs Elementary; Danae Shipp, Science/Early Adolescence, McDougle MS; Larisa Smith-Cortes, Middle Childhood Generalist, FPG Elementary; and Candace White, Middle Childhood Generalist, Glenwood Elementary.

In North Carolina, NBPTS certified teachers receive a 12 percent salary increase.  The state of North Carolina loans eligible teachers the $2,500 assessment fee and provides three days of paid release time and renewal credit for completing the portfolio portion of the process.  The loan is to be repaid over three years.  CHCCS teachers can also apply for $1,000 scholarships from the Public School Foundation for the fee.

The district offers a support group each year for teachers who embark on the national certification process.

Since the state process began in 1996, the district teachers has 277 teachers who hold national certification.

North Carolina leads the country with 18 percent of the teachers being certified, due in large part to the support provided by the General Assembly.  There were 636 who achieved their National Boards across the state in 2012.  There are now more than 100,000 National Board certified teachers across the nation since starting 24 years ago.  For more information, visit www.nbpts.org.


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Staff Tour Northside Elementary

The Northside Elementary staff toured their new school for the first time together on January 10.  Steve Nally, the project manager for the school's construction, led the group around the site, first showing them the blueprints and then going through the school.

Northside Elementary's first five staff members are: Cheryl Carnahan, principal; Coretta Sharpless, assistant principal; Alan Brown, technology specialist; Kathryn Cole, media specialist; and Cindy Fernandez, school secretary.

Brick has started to be laid on the outside of the buildings and can be seen on the walls of the three-story building, where windows are also being installed.  The stage area has been poured in the multi-purpose room.  Construction is being done on every floor, as the building begins to take shape.  Outside, the newly added rock wall complements the original rock wall, as well as the original steps that are still there from the OCTS/Northside School.

Once complete, the school will accommodate 585 students and have art, science and music rooms.  Northside Elementary is over 103,000 square feet and will be certified through the US Green Building Council's LEED Green Building Rating System.  Sustainable design include:

• stormwater management plan to reduce runoff and a rainwater cistern;
• vegetated roof area, which will also be used for science classes;
• rooftop solar thermal panels to generate hot water for the building's kitchen and space heating needs; and
• windows and clerestories to maximize daylight in classrooms.

Northside Elementary opens in August 2013.  For more pictures from this and other construction visits, go to the district's Facebook page.

Northside Staff
Row 1 - Cheryl Carnahan, Coretta Sharpless, Kathryn Cole, Alan Brown
Row 2 - Cindy Fernandez

Northside Elementary
(Media Center on left, Main Entry in middle, Three-Story Building on right)

Media Center 

View of Three-Story Building from the Green Roof off the Science Classroom

View of Cafeteria from the Third Grade Wing in the Three-Story Building

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Be Thinking About Nominations

Mark your calendars! The Chapel Hill-Carrboro Public School Foundation will soon be seeking nominations for two prestigious teaching chair awards. These awards are the Zora Rashkis Chair for Excellence in Teaching Middle School Language Arts and the Upper Elementary Chair for Excellence in Teaching Innovation (Grade 5). Information on the nomination process will be sent out later this month.

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Chapel Hill HS Honors the Newtown Community

Students and staff at Chapel Hill High School decided to offer their deepest sympathy and condolences to the community of Sandy Hook Elementary.  For most at CHHS, December has always been a time of great joy and happiness; however this year, they are also thinking about the tragic shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary and the unexplained act of violence that took the lives of innocent children and adults.

CHHS decided to initiate a letter writing campaign to the bereaved citizens of Newton, CT.  Any student, faculty or staff member was welcome to write their own condolence letter.  The sympathy notes were mailed on December 21.  The CHHS community hope to alleviate the unimaginable pain that the citizens of Newtown are feeling and to show that they are not alone.

Also, after school on December 19, CHHS staff and students packed roses for each of the teachers at their neighbor school, Seawell Elementary.  The roses were delivered to the Seawell teachers on December 20 as a surprise.

Both of these acts of kindness were CHHS's way of showing that the students, faculty and staff have the people of Newtown in their hearts and the Seawell teachers in their thoughts every day.

Roses awaiting the teachers at Seawell Elementary with a note from Chapel Hill HS students and staff

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Volunteers Support Students in Our Schools

The Volunteers and Partners Office has had a busy year.  They placed 798 volunteers this fall, made up of UNC students, community members and retirees, as well as some CHCCS parents and employees.  These volunteers serve throughout all 19 CHCCS schools as PreK-12 grade helpers, School Reading Partners, ESL Helpers, Writing Coaches, AVID Tutors and BRMA Tutors.

In this semester's Volunteer Spotlight, Jean Goeppinger was named the Volunteer Extraordinaire!  She is a School Reading Partners (SRP) volunteer at McDougle Elementary.  Goeppinger is also an ESL Helper and a Blue Ribbon Mentor Advocate (BRMA) mentor for a student at Smith MS.

"Jean's relationship with the class and her students is one of the many things that makes her effective," said Linda Poythress, a second grade teacher at McDougle Elementary.  "The students respond to her caring attitude."

Julie Dermody, an ESL teacher at McDougle Elementary said, "We were thrilled when Jean said she'd come back to volunteer in our second grade co-teaching classroom!  She has become a valuable part of our classroom and builds relationships with our students as she patiently supports them."

"Jean also shares her travels with our students," added Dermody.  "Through her postcards and emails, she introduces other parts of our country and the world to our entire class.  We're fortunate to have her volunteer her time working with us."

SRP and ESL Book Giveaway
The Volunteer Office is continuously looking for ways to get books into the hands of children.  At the end of each semester, SRP and ESL volunteers give books to the students with whom they work.  The books are provided by CHCCS and are purchased through a special Literacy Partner grant with Scholastic.  Volunteers love having a semester-end parting gift for students and, of course, the children are happy to receive a book of their own.

Many Volunteer Opportunities Are Available
ESL, SRP, BRMA and CoachWrite volunteers all receive training before working with students.

As an ESL volunteer, English-speaking volunteers work one-on-one or in small groups with K-12 ESL students.  Volunteers work to engage students in simple interactions.  One, four-hour training session is required.

A SRP volunteer is paired with beginning readers in CHCCS schools.  SRPs support reading instruction by giving children opportunities to explore books and language.  A three and a half hour training session is required.

CoachWrite volunteers work one-on-one with students to improve their writing skills.  A one, three-hour training is required.

BRMA volunteers are paired with a student to help foster the full development of a child's academic, physical, emotional and social potential.  Volunteers make a two-year, two-hour per week commitment to their mentee.  Training is required.

Anyone interested in being a volunteer for CHCCS, should contact the Volunteer Office at 919-967-8211, ext. 28281 or email them at volunteer@chccs.k12.nc.us.  Please visit the Volunteer website for more information.

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Board of Education Meets in Closed Session on Dec.17

The Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools Board of Education will  meet in closed session regarding student matters on Monday, December 17, 2012, at 6 p.m. at Lincoln Center.

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Coretta Sharpless Named Assistant Principal of Northside Elementary

At its December 6 meeting, the Board of Education approved the hiring of Coretta Sharpless as assistant principal of the new Northside Elementary. Sharpless is an experienced educational leader who truly celebrates both the past and the future of Northside – she grew up in the same neighborhood and now has a chance to return in a state of the art school that is sure to be a community hub.

Sharpless has served in multiple roles in Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools since 2003 including as an assistant principal, assistant principal intern, teacher, gifted education specialist, intervention specialist, grade level chair and student support team chair. Previously, she worked with Alamance-Burlington City Schools for six years.

“Coretta Sharpless is ideally suited for Northside Elementary,” said Superintendent Tom Forcella. “Her experience in the classroom, in gifted education and as an administrator will be invaluable in creating the standard of excellence we are expecting at Northside.”

Sharpless earned her Master of School Administration from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and her Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education from North Carolina Central University. She also completed a Gifted Education Certification at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.
Prior to college, Sharpless attended our own Estes Hills Elementary, Phillips Middle and Chapel Hill High. She will remain at Estes Hills Elementary until another administrator is hired.

Coretta Sharpless

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Meyer Visits White House

Graig Meyer, director of student equity and volunteer services, spent Thursday morning, November 29, at the White House.

Meyer was invited by the White House to join a delegation of community leaders from across North Carolina to discuss the fiscal cliff.

Meyer  also met with staff from the White House Internship Office and the White House Mentoring Initiative to seek partnerships that might benefit CHCCS students.

Graig Meyer

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