Better Together

Do you or does someone you know have a new student to register to attend pre-K or kindergarten in the Clarke County School District next school year? Pre-K and kindergarten early registration for 2024-25 is now open, and pre-K early registration runs through Friday, Feb. 9.

As a reminder, student registration is now completely online, but you may go online and schedule an in-person appointment at our Student Registration Center if you need assistance completing the application. Check out the flyer below for additional information about the application process, and go to www.clarke.k12.ga.us/registration to access the online application (available in English and Spanish) and for additional information about the required documentation.

Please note: Families of current CCSD pre-K students do not have to re-register their student for kindergarten. The student will be automatically enrolled at the school they are zoned for.

CCSD invites all communities of interest to review the district’s 2023-24 Code of Student Conduct (Spanish version begins on page 38) and provide feedback through this form (available in English and Spanish).

The feedback received will be evaluated in the development of a draft code for 2024-25 that will go to the Clarke County Board of Education for approval on Feb. 8. The feedback form will close on Friday, Jan. 19.

The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) had a soft launch last month for the 2024-2025 post-secondary school year, and prospective college students and their families who need to apply for federal student aid are encouraged to do so as soon as possible at https://studentaid.gov/.

Click here for more information.

CCSD currently has two school-based health centers for all CCSD students, staff, and families — the Clarke Middle Health Center and the Hilsman Health Center — and is considering opening clinics at Coile Middle School and on the H.T. Edwards Campus, which includes Classic City High School, the Athens Community Career Academy, and Early Learning Center West.

We would like your help in better understanding our students' and staff's healthcare needs and asks you to complete this brief survey. The survey is available in English and Spanish. Click on the dropdown menu above the introductory text on the screen to select your preferred language. Thank you for taking a moment to share your perspective on this important topic.

Congratulations to Bobby Bales, custodian at Timothy Road Elementary, for being named CCSD's Employee of the Month for January! Mr. Bales has worked for CCSD for 10 years and is in his third year at Timothy Road. He was nominated by more than half a dozen TRES staff members who praised his strong work ethic, attention to detail, and friendliness in creating and maintaining a school environment that is always clean, safe, and welcoming for students, staff, families, and other visitors.

Mr. Bales was surprised with the award this week by Superintendent Dr. Robbie Hooker and recognized at the Thursday, Jan. 11 Board of Education meeting.

As a reminder, anyone in the community (parent, staff, student, community member) can nominate any full-time CCSD employee with at least one full year of service for Employee of the Month. Nominations for February Employee of the Month will be accepted through Wednesday, Jan. 31. Click here for more information and to get started!

Congratulations to Jade Scott, ninth-grader at Clarke Central High, for being selected to the 2024 Georgia Music Educators Association (GMEA) All State Band for ninth- and 10th-graders! Jade placed fifth out of hundreds of ninth- and 10th-grade percussionists who auditioned from across the state and is scheduled to perform with the All State Band on March 2 at the Classic Center in Athens.

Jade and eight other Clarke Central students were also selected to perform with the GMEA District 14 Honor Band. Other students selected included:

• Yasmin Castillo-Negrete, 11th grade, oboe
• Colin Boyle, 9th grade, clarinet
• Myriah Burton, 10th grade, clarinet
• Ruby Frye, 10th grade, clarinet
• Nadiyah Collins, 12th grade, clarinet
• Anthony Landaverde, 11th grade, bassoon
• Haley Rucker, 11th grade, bassoon
• Benjamin Grogan, 12th grade, tuba.

Rucker and Grogan made the second round of All State auditions. And, in addition to Rucker, Castillo-Negrete, Frye, Boyle, Burton, and Collins, five other students were accepted into the University of Georgia's annual January festival for high school bands (JanFest), set for Jan. 18-20:

• Kayla Walker, 9th grade, flute
• Devon Simister, 10th grade, trumpet
• Alexander Lane, 10th grade, percussion
• Kelli Floyd, 11th grade, tuba
• Alexandra Carcamo, 10th grade, clarinet.

Barnett Shoals Elementary fourth-graders Lakiyn Latimore, Alayah Ellison, Karlee Bethune, and Fendi Wade finished first out of 93 CCSD teams and 87th out of more than 3,500 teams across the state in the fall semester Georgia Stock Market Game! Sponsored by the Georgia Council on Economic Education, the Stock Market Game (SMG) gives participating students in grades 4-12 the opportunity to invest a virtual $100,000 for 10 weeks in real stocks, bonds, and mutual funds.

Congratulations to these students and their teacher, Ms. Eulanda Wise!

Ten CCSD high school seniors have been announced as the recipients of this year's scholarships — ranging from $1,000 to $2,500 — from the Athens Area Human Relations Council (AAHRC) to aid them in their quest to attend college. These students will be recognized and honored Saturday, Jan. 13, during the AAHRC's annual Martin Luther King Jr. Awards Banquet.

Scholarship recipients from Cedar Shoals High include Rachel Josephine Huff, Alejandra Cerrón-Palomino, Kelia Ariyah Johnson, Jakiera Adkins, Xavier J. Wymbs, Nayla Villafana, and Yasmin Lovett. Recipients from Clarke Central High include Addisyn Jade Huff, Tavarus Latroy Smith, and Askia Hylton.

You can read more about each of these recipients here!

Congratulations to the Coile Middle School FFA chapter, which has received its third Mini-Day of Service grant from the national FFA organization! The $400 grant will be used to purchase supplies for the Cougar Closet at Coile. The first Coile chapter's first grant was awarded in February 2023 to increase food security and access to fresh, local produce. The FFA members redesigned the school's garden space and planted crops specifically to harvest for the local community. The second grant was awarded in March 2023 to clean up play spaces and plant pollinator gardens. The Coile FFA is led by ag sciences teacher Chasity Tompkins.

Check out this feature story (subscription required) in the Athens Banner-Herald on Clarke Central High boys' basketball junior Marcus Gillespie, who recently eclipsed the 1,000-point mark for his career and is already drawing attention from several colleges.

Read more about Marcus' career to this point and gain insight from him, his coach, and some of his teammates on what makes him such a well-rounded player.

Come out and support the Burney-Harris-Lyons Middle Step Team, which will be competing Saturday, Jan. 27, in the League of Step third annual "Step Ressurgance" at the Oconee Civic Center, 2661 Hog Mountain Rd., Watkinsville.

Doors will open at noon, and the show will begin at 1 p.m. Click here or call or text 706-372-5450 for ticket information.

All CCSD high school students grades 10-12 are now invited to apply to take high school- and college-level pathway courses at the Athens Community Career Academy for the 2024-25 school year.

Students interested in high-school level courses (grades 10-12 for 2024-25) must have at least a cumulative high school GPA of 2.0 and no more than 36 unexcused period absences to be eligible. Students interested in college-level courses (11th and 12th grade only) must have a 2.6 or higher HOPE GPA and no more than 36 unexcused period absences to be eligible.

You can read more about and view flyers for each of the pathways here and go straight to the application at bit.ly/accaapp.

The Young Scholars Program at the University of Georgia is a paid, five-week summer internship opportunity for high school students interested in agricultural, food, and environmental sciences.

YSP aims to expose selected students to college life and encourage them to apply to the University of Georgia. Selected students work 30 hours per week, Monday through Friday, actively engaged in research under the guidance of a faculty mentor on the UGA campus. Young Scholars will be sent home on weekends and on the Juneteenth and Fourth of July holidays.

Learn more about this program by watching this video and viewing this presentation. Apply by Jan. 31 on the Young Scholars website here.

Athens Community Career Academy culinary arts students and ACCA staff will host a barbecue fundraiser for the academy's new Yellow Jacket Bistro on Friday, Feb. 9. Place your order at bit.ly/ACCAbbq by Jan. 31 with the choice of one pound of pulled pork (with buns), one pound of pulled chicken (with buns), or four chicken quarters, along with the option for an additional purchase of a quart-sized side of baked beans.

Order pickup will be Friday, Fe. 9, from 12-5:30 p.m. at ACCA, 440-1 Dearing Ext., Athens.

Cedar Shoals High School will host the second annual Joshua Sampson Memorial 5K Run/Walk in honor of the late CSHS teacher at 8 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 3, at the school, 1300 Cedar Shoals Dr.

There are three ways to register:

• online registration here
• mail in the attached PDF form (make checks payable to Fleet Feet Athens)
• or on-site, which will begin at 7 a.m. on the day of the event in the school gym.

Registration is $20 if received by Jan. 18 and $25 after that date. Only participants pre-registered by Jan. 18 will be guaranteed a T-shirt. Awards will be provided to overall Male/Female, Masters Male/Female and first, second, and third places in standard five-year age groups.

For more information, contact Dustin Shinholser at 706-207-5054 or dustin@fleetfeetathens.com or Carole Black at classicraceservices@gmail.com.

At its Thursday, Jan. 11 meeting, the Board of Education elected District 6 board member Dr. Mumbi Anderson as President and Mark Evans (District 9) as Vice President. Officer elections are generally held during the first meeting of even-numbered years, and officer vacancies are filled by election as they arise. Dr. Anderson, who had served as Vice President since 2022, succeeds Dr. LaKeisha Gantt (District 7) who had served as President since May 2019.

The Clarke County Board of Education welcomes community feedback. Here are ways you can share your voice:

• Contact BOE Members: Click here to view a list of the BOE members and their contact information.
• Attend a Meeting: The board's next scheduled meeting is Thursday, Feb. 8, with the work session beginning at 5 p.m., followed by the regular meeting at 7 p.m. All meetings are held in the Vernon Payne Meeting Hall at the CCSD administrative offices building, located at 595 Prince Ave. in Athens. The public is invited to attend meetings in person. Meetings are also streamed live and are available for on-demand viewing on the CCSD YouTube channel. Click here for the board meeting schedule.
• Agendas: Click here to access board meeting agendas.
• Board Briefs: Click to read the "Board Briefs" overview from meetings.
  
• Public Comments: Click here for information on how to sign-up to speak at a BOE meeting.
• Review Policies for Review: View and comment on district policies pending public review.

The Georgia Museum of Art, 90 Carlton St., Athens, will host its monthly free Family Day event from 10 a.m. to noon Saturday, Jan. 13. This month's theme is "Art and Tech." Through gallery activities and interactive art cart stations, learn how artist Nancy Baker Cahill uses drawing, sculpture, video, and augmented reality to create her unique interdisciplinary works of art. Then create your own tech-inspired work of art to take home. For those who can't attend in-person, to-go kits will be available for pickup starting at 1 p.m. Saturday through the end of the day Sunday, Jan. 14, while supplies last.

See the museum's calendar of upcoming monthly Family Day events below. The museum also offers Toddler Tuesday programming designed for children ages 18 months to 3 years and a Teen Studio art workshop for ages 13-18. Both programs are free, and seating is limited. Go to georgiamuseum.org for more information and email gmoa-tours@uga.edu to reserve a spot.

Registration is now open for the Sirius Athletics spring track and field program for children ages 6-15. Practice starts Feb. 11. See the flyer below for more information.

Casa de Amistad, with support from the CCSD Title III program, will offer free adult English language classes to parents and family members of CCSD students this semester, starting at the end of January. See the schedule below with days of the week and locations and go to athensamistad.com for more information about the classes and to register.

Redetermination is the process that the State of Georgia must follow to make sure current Medicaid and PeachCare for Kids® members are still eligible for coverage. Generally, both Medicaid and PeachCare for Kids® benefits require renewals every 12 months. However, during the COVID-19 pandemic, a Public Health Emergency (PHE) was declared, which allowed everyone on Medicaid and PeachCare for Kids® to maintain their coverage for the duration of the PHE.

Through May 2024, the State of Georgia will be reviewing all members' cases to determine who is still eligible to receive coverage. Students and their families can be prepared for their redetermination of eligibility by making sure their contact information is correct on gateway.ga.gov.

Click here for a list of resources (available in English, Spanish, and other languages) to help you prepare for your redetermination check.