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Griffins Connect
Week of January 7th #Together #WholeChild
🎉 Happy New Year, Sterling School! 🎉
Happy New Year! As we embark on the second semester, I want to extend my warmest wishes to you and our students. May the coming months be filled with growth, success, and joy for everyone throughout our school community. Let's work #together to make the second half of this school year a strong and positive chapter for our students. Here's to a wonderful 2024!
Dr. P.
2024 Sterling School Spelling Bee Finalists 🐝🐝🐝
On Friday, Sterling School held our elementary and middle school spelling bees. CONGRATULATIONS to Carys Annett (elementary) and Jackson Champion-Wescott (middle) for winning their respective bee. Carys and Jackson will go head-to-head later this week to determine our overall school winner. We are also very proud of this year's 20 elementary and 15 middle school classroom winners. Well done, everyone! Additionally, a word of thanks to Mrs. Matthews, media specialist, for her leadership of our school bee and to all of this year's callers, judges, and monitors for their support and involvement.
Carys Annett: Elementary Finalist
Carys (pictured right) is with her brother, Gabe, who was first runner up.
Jackson Champion-Wescott: Middle Finalist
📆 What's Ahead...
Monday, January 8: Last Day to Submit Winter Break Reading Challenge Forms
Tuesday, January 9: PTA Papa John's Spirit Night: Order w/Promo Code "Sterling" (info below)
Wednesday, January 10: 2nd Quarter Report Cards
Wednesday, January 10: PTA Papa John's Spirit Night: Order w/Promo Code "Sterling" (info below)
Thursday, January 11: School Improvement Council, 8:30-9:30am
Thursday, January 11: NCFC Parent Café; 5:30-7:30pm
Monday, January 15: MLK Jr. Holiday; No School
Thursday, January 18: 100th Day of School
Monday, January 22: PTA Spirit Night @ Clare's Creamery; 4:00-8:00pm (info below)
Thursday, January 25: Pancakes with the Principals (for qualifying students); 8:00-9:00am
January is National Mentoring Month
Imagine a world where young people feel empowered, encouraged, and understood. Mentors can make that world a reality by helping young people find and follow their passions, excel in school, and thrive wherever they are. Did you know that January is National Mentoring Month? #WholeChild
Join Sterling School as a mentor! We are looking for committed adults who are willing to support and encourage ONE student in an ongoing one-on-on positive relationship. If you or someone you know from our school community are willing to volunteer 30 minutes of your time weekly, we need you!
If willing to serve as a mentor, please complete the interest survey found HERE! We will follow-up with training information and other pertinent details. For any questions, email Mrs. Lindsay Berry (school counselor).
4K Application Window for 2024-25 Year
In order for our Griffins to start their education on the right foot, we encourage participation in our high quality, full day 4K program! The deadline to apply is January 26th. If you know of anyone in our community who will be four years old on or before September 1, 2023, spread the word! #WholeChild
How to Apply:
There are two ways parents can complete the application for their child. They can visit the Parent section of this website and set up a Backpack account. Once it’s set up, open the Backpack account, look for “Enroll A Student,” and follow the instructions.
For families that do not have internet access, the application can be completed at each school. Parents are urged to bring all the required documents when they visit the school. Children do not have to live in the school attendance area to apply at that location.
The following documents are required for online or face-to-face registration:
- Photo ID from any state or country
- Two current “proof of residency” documents (all must contain property address). These can be a combination of:
- Current bills – i.e. electric, gas, water, cable
- Current mortgage statement or current signed lease agreement with landlord’s name and phone number
- Child’s Birth Certificate
- Signed Certificate of Immunization, Conditional Certificate of Immunization, or Religious Exemption Certificate (Religious Exemption Certificate provided by Health Department)
Please note: completing the application does not guarantee enrollment in Greenville County Schools 4K program. Parents will be notified of application status by March 1, 2024.
For more information, please email 4K@greenville.k12.sc.us.
👩🏽⚕️ Upcoming Hearing & Vision Screenings
Over the next month, mass hearing and vision screenings will be conducted in the following grade levels. You will be contacted if your student doesn’t pass the screening. If you would like to refuse this screening, please email Nurse Heather: hgarrison@greenville.k12.sc.us.
- Vision: K4, K5, 1st, 3rd, and 5th
- Hearing: K4, K5, 1st, 2nd and 3rd
Sterling School Clubs: Information & Updates
Chess Club does not resume until January 26th and there will be a NEW SIGN UP LINK posted on our school webpage later this week. Both Free Play and Lessons will be offered again during the 2nd semester. There will NOT be any chess club for the next couple of Fridays.
Girls on the Run: This has been a very successful club for our female students in the past and we would love to have a team this semester. Are you willing to help sponsor/co-sponsor this great opportunity? (You don't have to be a runner to help.)
Is there a club that your child is interested in starting? Are you willing to be a parent sponsor of the club? We would love to start more new clubs - we just need adult sponsors to supervise students. For more information or to discuss possibilities, please contact Deborah Foulkes dfoulkes@greenville.k12.sc.us
❄️ From the Sterling/CTC PTA ❄️
Papa John’s Spirit Nights
Everyone loves Pizza Night! And having a pizza night that supports our favorite school is even better! Our school earns 15% of the proceeds this Tuesday and Wednesday, January 9th and 10th, when you order from Papa John’s and use the code STERLING! This is an easy way to support our school, skip making dinner, and feed your family! Participating locations are all over the upstate and select areas in North Carolina, so please encourage all of your family and friends to order!
You must use School Promo Code when ordering online, on the app, or by phone for our school to receive credit. Our school’s promo code is STERLING!
Clare’s Creamery - Parkins Mill Neighborhood Shop
Join your friends for a delicious treat at Clare’s Creamery on Monday, January 22 from 4-8:00pm! What’s even sweeter? Mention Sterling/CTC at checkout and a portion of all proceeds will be donated back to our school!
Parkins Mill Neighborhood Shop
1901 Laurens Road - Suite C
Greenville, SC 29607
Furman Basketball Game
We are excited to once again partner with Furman University for their upcoming basketball game! Save the date - February 18th - when Furman takes on Chattanooga! You won’t want to miss our very own Sterling School Chorus perform the national anthem before the game!
More details and a link to purchase tickets coming soon!
🗺️ Save the Date: International Night
We hope you will join us for our PTA’s International Night on Friday, February 2nd. If you are interested in representing a country or region, please contact Priya Manavalan.
🌟 🎈 Congratulations, Mrs. Beard! 🎉 🏆
Mrs. Beth Beard, Sterling School's 2024-2025 Teacher of the Year!
Congratulations to Mrs. Beth Beard, who will represent Sterling School as the 2024-2025 Teacher of the Year! Mrs. Beard spent her early years in the Maryland/Washington DC area, and graduated from high school and started college in Honolulu, Hawaii. These geographic locations provided her with the foundation for her outlook on life with an appreciation for diversity, travel, adventure, and a love of learning. She loves to SCUBA dive, travel anywhere and everywhere, and is known by her family as their personal paparazzi due to the number of photographs she takes. Having two daughters had the most profound effect on Mrs. Beard’s teaching philosophy, as she became acutely aware of what kind of teacher she expected for her own children and decided to become the teacher she would expect for them. That teacher would see their failures and their successes as equal opportunities to grow, and that teacher would appreciate their quirks and individualities.
This is Mrs. Beard’s 24th year of teaching and her 2nd year as the Project Lead the Way (PLTW) and Technology teacher at Sterling School. As an educator, Mrs. Beard strives to provide her students with hands-on, real world activities to get them interested in furthering their technology skills while learning how to balance their real and digital lives. The goal of her classes is to inspire her students to want to learn more about technology and open doors to future career and learning opportunities. She wants her students to understand the power and possibilities of technology but also the dangers. She makes a concerted effort to make her classes fun in order to spark curiosity for the content area and to show students from all backgrounds that technical topics like coding and robotics are accessible to anyone.
Mrs. Beard majored in Elementary Education at The University of Hawaii and Clemson University, and earned her Master’s Degree in Technology Education from Lesley University. Mrs. Beard has taught middle school science and social studies as well as technology and PLTW, and earned National Board Certification in Adolescent Career and Technical Education. She is also middle level science certified. Mrs. Beard has coached Odyssey of The Mind, sponsored the Junior Beta Club, and coached First Lego League at previous schools, she has been a Girl Scout Leader, has served as a teacher sponsor for the Running Club at Sterling, and is currently the coach of two VEX Robotics teams as well as a co-coach of a First Lego League Team.
Light Up the Season with Kindness
Last week, our Students in Action Club hosted “Light up the Season with Kindness” Day. Students limboed their way into the holiday spirit, complete with a Winter Wonderland Photo Booth and a holiday treat for showing how they can light up this season with kindness. A huge thank you to our Students in Action Club and our amazing school counseling team for reminding us the importance of showing kindness this season.
Purchase Your Yearbook Today!
Don't forget to order your child's yearbook! The process is super easy! Visit the Jostens site to order.
- Elementary: CLICK HERE!
- Middle School: CLICK HERE!
Can You Serve As A Substitute?
At Sterling School, we have amazing substitute teachers. These dedicated individuals help ensure that our school operates smoothly when a classroom teacher is absent. However, our list of active subs is short.
If you are able to help serve as a substitute for Sterling School and Greenville County Schools, please follow this link to get started and be sure to let us know (email Dr. Patterson!). We will be happy to help facilitate the process or connect you with current substitutes who can answer any of your questions. You may choose to work at any school or you can select Sterling exclusively. Work only on the days that fit your schedule. We appreciate your consideration to help the school by serving as a substitute!
Support a Griffin & Become a Mentor!
The Sterling School has a partnership with Mentor Upstate, a nonprofit organization that seeks to support children with one-on-one positive relationships. We are looking for committed adults who are willing to support and encourage ONE student for the year. If you or someone you know from our school community are willing to volunteer 30 minutes of your time weekly, we need you!
If you are interested in serving as a mentor, please complete the interest survey found HERE! Near the start of the 2023-2024 school year, we will follow-up with training information and other pertinent details. For any questions, email Mrs. Lindsay Berry (school counselor).
We Need YOU! Volunteer Training
Thinking of chaperoning a field trip, becoming a room parents, or mentoring a student? Parents at Sterling School may now participate in volunteer training either in person or online.
Upon completion of the online training module, you will be asked to take a short quiz which will be submitted to Mr. Murphy for scoring. All volunteers must answer each question correctly. Failure to do so will result in potential volunteers being asked to review the training module again or attend a face-to-face training.
To apply to be a Level II volunteer, please CLICK HERE! Follow "Level II" process and select "Field Trip Chaperone" as one of your functions/roles (even if you never want to go on a field trip). This needs to be selected to pull the background check. You may select as many other roles or all that you may be interested in. This does not commit you to anything.
If you have questions about the process or anything related to volunteering at Sterling, or if you prefer a face-to-face training, contact Mr. Murphy via email or (864) 355-4480.
Sterling School
Email: jpatterson@greenville.k12.sc.us
Website: www.greenville.k12.sc.us/sterling
Location: Sterling School, John McCarroll Way, Greenville, SC, United States
Phone: 864-355-4480
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theSterlingSchool
Twitter: @SterlingSchool
Principal - Sterling School & Charles Townes Center; Greenville County Schools, South Carolina.