CCSD Connections

Dear CCSD Families,

Welcome back from spring break and to the last leg of our school year!

This time of year can become so busy and hectic, but we in CCSD have a laser focus on a strong finish to a year of elevating the excellence.

A strong finish to 2024-25 will also start to set us up for a strong start when we are back together in August; and our School Board has already started to consider the priorities and district investments for next school year through the annual budget process.

Our proposed budget for next school year, which is posted online here, was designed to meet the School Board’s top priorities including: increasing compensation for teachers and staff directly supporting students, advancing school safety and security, and upgrading instructional resources and classroom supplies for teachers and students. Financial Facts, a supplement to highlight budget features, is online here.

The budget the School Board will consider for adoption later this month is based on no increase to the millage rate, which is recommended to hold at its historically low level. Other financial stewardship highlights include: cuts of more than 5% in operating costs across the central office, totaling $2.4 million; shifting $1.4 million from central office divisions’ funds to school-based funds to improve funding for fine arts, STEM and other classroom materials; and ending district contracts for redundant resources not aligned with learning standards.

Some of the budget’s proposed improvements include:

• For all teachers and support staff, increasing salaries for 3% in addition to the longevity step increase. Central office administrators will not receive the additional 3% increase;

• Adding more than 20 teachers to improve the student-teacher ratio in fourth and fifth grade;

• Investing in comprehensive K-12 English language arts and math instructional resources (textbooks, workbooks, digital resources) to build the toolbox of resources for teachers and students;

• Decreasing central office expenditures in order to reallocate and increase school-based budgets to support fine arts, STEM and other classroom consumable instructional materials, classroom supplies, and instructional expenses … in an effort to help reduce class fees to parents and teacher out-of-pocket expenses;

• Continuing the expanded CCSD Police Department (six police officers have been added since October) so that all high schools and middle schools have at least one officer and every two elementary schools have one officer. Add one campus security monitor to each of the three high schools with multiple buildings (Cherokee HS, Etowah HS, Sequoyah HS) to support the two POST-certified CCSD Police officers already assigned to each of these large campuses; and,

• Equipping all CCSD Police officers with body cameras.

Our budget is built around our students’ success, and the greatest resource on our team to achieve student success is our teachers and staff directly serving kids and families.

Thank you for all you do to support our schools and partner with them to support our students learning more, growing more and achieving more in our classrooms than they could anywhere else!

Thank you,

Mary Elizabeth Davis

Superintendent of Schools

Thanks to the support of our outstanding partner, Credit Union of Georgia, we’re able to invite you to participate in a special teacher appreciation celebration! Through our “Thank a Teacher” contest, you can help us recognize our outstanding teachers, and five of those teachers each will win a $200 Visa gift card.

You can nominate any of your children’s current teachers at your child’s current school. Please complete the easy entry form online here to make a nomination by noon on Thursday, April 24. Winners will be selected at random, but we will share the nomination remarks made about the winners publicly during National Teacher Appreciation Week (May 5-9). We also will share the names of all the teachers nominated.

Students Win at 2025 State Career Skills Competition

School Board and Superintendent Visit Creekview HS

CCSD Special Education Participates in Child Find Program

Board Business Briefs: Board Plans Financial Review

Top Young Musicians Perform in Middle School Honor Band

CCSD Practices Emergency Response Preparedness

CCSD School Nutrition Recognized at State Event

MUST Ministries and Kroger Partnership Boosts Cherokee HS Food Pantry

Students Win Display in Statewide Art Exhibits

Middle School Students Advance to Statewide STEM Contest

Students Perform with 2025 Elementary School Honor Chorus

Students Win at 2025 State Literary Competition Championships

Superintendent Meets with High School Student Delegates

School Board Members Tour New Free Home ES

Annual Employability Fair Delivers Skill Sessions for Students

Elementary School Students Advancing to 2025 State Science Fair

CCSD Recognizes Three Athletes of the Month

Students Named to 2025 All-State Band, Chorus and Orchestra

Students Advancing to 2025 State Social Studies Fair

Students Graduate from Prestigious Regional Leadership Program

Students, Teachers Rank Nationally as Erg Rowing Competitors

Superintendent’s Middle School Student Advisory Board Meets

Superintendent’s Elementary School Student Advisory Board Meets

School Board and Superintendent Visit Woodstock MS

The CCSD Community Agency Fair, presented by the CCSD Special Education Department, is from 2:30 to 6 p.m. April 15 at the CCSD Education Services Annex. This free event welcomes parents, students, educators, and community members to explore a wide range of services offered by nonprofit and for-profit organizations. These services include healthcare, therapies, arts, athletics, and more, all designed to support students with special needs

April 11-13: Downtown Woodstock, CCSD Festival of the Arts

April 11-12: 7 p.m., Etowah HS, Etowah High School's theatre program presents the musical, "Cinderella"; tickets - $15 adults and $10 children 12 and younger, available in advance online here.

April 12: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., Cherokee HS, Cherokee High School's agriculture program annual plant sale featuring a variety of annuals, vegetables, herbs and hanging baskets.

April 12: 7 p.m., Woodstock HS, Woodstock HS Drumline fundraiser improv comedy night “Drumming Up Laughs” featuring Holly Springs ES STEM Academy teacher Joe Lemmo and paraprofessional Siobhan Brumbelow, Oak Grove ES STEAM Academy teacher Caty Mae Loomis; tickets - $15 adults and $12 students, available in advance online here.

April 15: 2:30 to 6 p.m., CCSD Education Services Annex, CCSD Community Agency Fair.

April 17: 6:30 p.m., Please join us for a virtual interest meeting to learn more about the Summer 2026 CCSD Districtwide Trip to Spain and Portugal with EF Tours! This incredible educational experience will take students on a journey through history, culture, and artistic traditions. Learn more here.

April 17-19: 7 p.m. plus 2 p.m. April 19, Cherokee HS, Cherokee High School's theatre program presents the musical, "Once Upon a Mattress"; tickets - $15, available in advance online here.

April 17-19, 21-23: 7 p.m., River Ridge HS, River Ridge High School's theatre program presents the musical, "Mean Girls"; tickets - $15.

April 17-19: 7 p.m., Sequoyah HS, Sequoyah High School's theatre program presents the musical, "Kiss me Kate"; tickets - $20 adults and $10 students, available in advance online here.

April 17: 7 p.m., School Board Auditorium at Dr. Frank R. Petruzielo Educational Services Facility,

Cherokee County School Board Meeting.

April 18: 6 p.m., Blankets Creek Park, Coach English Trail Run in memory of Sixes ES teacher Coach Brandon English. Funds raised benefit Building Fires, which help students in need with costs associated with athletics other activities.

April 18-19: 6 p.m., Mill Creek MS, Mill Creek Middle School's drama club presents the play, "Employees Must Wash Hands … Before Murder"; tickets $5 adults, $3 students.

April 21: Georgia Milestones testing begins

April 21: 4 to 6 p.m., Canton City Hall, Canton Teen Job Fair

April 23: Administrative Professionals Day

April 24-26: 7 p.m. plus 2 p.m. April 26, Woodstock HS, Woodstock High School's theatre program presents the musical, "Wizard of Oz"; tickets - $10 adults and $5 students, available in advance online here.

April 25: 7 p.m., Etowah HS, Etowah High School's theatre program presents the play, "The Somewhat True Tale of Robin Hood"; tickets - $12 adults and $5 students, available in advance online here.

April 29: 5 to 6:30 p.m., Open house for new Free Home ES. Learn more here.

May 2: School Lunch Hero Day

May 2: 7 p.m., Cherokee HS, Cherokee High School's theatre program presents the show, "A Night of Dolly"; admission is by donation.

May 13: 9 a.m., 2 and 6 p.m., School Board Auditorium at Dr. Frank R. Petruzielo Educational Services Facility, Consolidated Local Educational Agency Improvement Plan (CLIP) Stakeholder Review and Input meetings. Learn more here.

Please check your school’s website and social media for school event information.

Email: communications@cherokeek12.net
Website: www.cherokeek12.net
Location: PO Box 769, Canton, GA 30169
Phone: 7704791871
Facebook: facebook.com/CherokeeGASchools/
Twitter: @CherokeeSchools