We will distribute this newsletter on the Wednesday following the monthly Board of Education meeting. This newsletter will have information from District Departments and other helpful tips. If you have suggestions for content in this newsletter, please send them to Collin Brooks at BrooksB@jcschools.org.

February 2024

• Black History Month
• Career & Technical Education Month
• Dental Health Month
• National School Counseling Week - February 5 -9
• National Pizza Day - February 9
• Science Hill Orchestra and Chorus Valentines Event Feb. 13
  
• Valentine's Day - February 14
• National School Resource Officer Appreciation Day - February 15
• Random Acts of Kindness Day - February 17
• Regular School Day - February 19
  
• School Bus Driver Appreciation Day - February 22

March 2024

• Women's History Month
• Youth Art Month
• National Nutrition Month
• Music in Our Schools Month
• Read Across America Week - March 2 - 6 (RAA Day is March 2nd)
• Maintenance Workers Appreciation Day - March 1
• International Social Emotional Learning (SEL) Day - March 8
• National School Social Worker Week - March 3 -9
• JCS Spring Break (March 11-15)
  
• Pi Day - March 14 (Falls during Spring Break)

Calendars

• Click here to view Printable Calendars 2023-2024 & 2024-2025
• Click here to view the Staff Holiday Schedule for the 2023-2024 School Year.
  

The 2023-2024 School Year Calendar had three snow days built-in. After missing school due to inclement weather on Tuesday, January 16, Wednesday, January 17, and Friday, January 19, Johnson City Schools will now have regular school days on Friday, February 2, Monday, February 19, and Monday, April 1. An updated calendar can be found here, lunch menu updates for elementary schools can be found at www.jcschools.org/menus

Nearly 18 years ago, Johnson City Schools added 30 minutes per day to improve instructional outcomes for students. We also include inclement weather days in the annual school calendar so days missed due to inclement weather may be made up to ensure students are in school as many of the 180 days each school year as possible. This allows for a “day for day” instructional recovery approach for the first three days missed. After we have exhausted the built-in days, we use stock-piled days from the thirteen gained by the extra 30 minutes per day. The added 30 minutes to the student day was originally implemented to provide additional time for teaching and learning and not to stockpile days for inclement weather. District leaders believed this additional time represented one of the best strategies to improve student achievement. The additional time has been invaluable for tutoring programs (RTI) imbedded in the school day as well. We also explored several other ideas to extend learning opportunities for students such as before/after school tutoring, Saturday school, and summer programming. These strategies are critical elements for student academic improvement and support the culture of excellence expected in Johnson City Schools.

Congratulations to Helen Keaton from Towne Acres Elementary. She was the winner of the K-2 Grade Band in the November Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education STEM Competition.

Congratulations to Vincent Joseph from Towne Acres Elementary. She was the winner of the 3-5 Grade Band in the November Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education STEM Competition.

Congratulations to the following Science Hill Band students for being recently were named All East performers:

Logan Barry
Maddie Berry
Will Bond
Emmet Chandler
Jodi Creekmore
Anthony Damian
Arely Diaz
Allen Feng
Will Hagermeier
Jonathan Hansard
Kaylyn Hodge
Mary Catherine Holley
Ethan Rich
Cory Roberts
Lily Rochelle
Huxley Stout
Karsten Suits
Brady Vermillion

Congratulations to the following Science Hill Band students who were named All-State. These students will be attending All-State Band and Orchestra Clinic in Nashville in April at the Gaylord Opryland Resort and Convention Center. These students are:

Logan Barry
Emmet Chandler
Allen Feng
Jonathan Hansard
Kaylyn Hodge

The next Johnson City Board of Education meeting will be held on Monday, March 4 starting at 6 p.m. inside the Board Room at Central Office (100 E. Maple Street). Board meetings can be viewed on the Johnson City Schools' YouTube channel.

Science Hill High School’s class registration is RIGHT AROUND THE CORNER… For more information, please visit sciencehill.jcschools.org/class-registration. Rising freshman at Indian Trail and Liberty Bell will receive their letters on Monday with more details.

IMPORTANT DATES TO REMEMBER

February 12

Rising 9th grade 4-year plan appointment calendar opens

February 15

Rising 10th-12th Parent Meeting, 6pm, SH Auditorium

Rising 10th-12th grade class registration portal opens

February 27

Rising 9th Parent Meeting, 6pm & 7pm, SH Auditorium

March 1

Rising 10th-12th grade class registration portal closes, 3pm

March 4-28

Rising 10th-12th grade students attend scheduled counselor appointments to verify class selections

March 18, 21, 26, 28

Rising 9th grade 4-year plan meetings, 3-7pm, CTE building

Congratulations to Science Hill students Alex Asselin, Skyler Sines, Julia Bartkus and Dustin Harmon for earning their Carpenter Helper Certificate from TCAT in Elizabethton. To qualify for the Carpenter Helper certification, students had to master all modules in NCCER Construction Core with a 70% or higher and have basic experiences in framing, measuring, sawing, fastening, and complete at least one building project.

Opportunities are plentiful at Science Hill High School, and now even more options are available for Science Hill students thanks to a partnership with Bell, an aerospace manufacturer. On Thursday, three Science Hill students signed to intern for the spring semester at the Bell facility inside the Tri-Cities Airport.

Each student will spend at least two class periods at their facility in Bluff City. Science Hill junior Brayden O’Neil will work within the logistics department, while junior Samantha Wilder will work in manufacturing kitting. Science Hill senior Xander Duman will spend three class periods working with landing gears, before returning to Science Hill’s campus for his 4th-period welding class.

Read more here

Congratulations to Liberty Bell 8th grader Mehal Dubay for winning the Johnson City Schools Spelling Bee last week after 42 rounds! Indian Trail 8th grader Cara Haynes finished runner-up. Towne Acres Elementary 4th grader Vincent Joseph held his own for 28 rounds against the older competition. There were some proud principals in the audience as every contestant represented their school well!

KNOW. ALL. OUT. is a quarterly e-newsletter from the City of Johnson City featuring announcements and timely topics. In KNOW. ALL. OUT., readers will learn about the many City services, amenities, and opportunities available to every citizen who calls Johnson City home.

To subscribe, visit https://www.johnsoncitytn.org/government/communications___marketing/newsletters.php

The Johnson City Planning and Development Services Department is embarking on a comprehensive Growth Management Plan (Horizon 2045) that will guide how our community grows in the next 20+ years. Currently, organizers are in the second stage of the process, which includes developing a growth boundary line and compiling information from a host of stakeholders.

“Public input is crucial to this plan,” said Director Will Righter. “Input meetings are one of the ways we can better understand how our citizens want the community to grow. We are looking for input on development, infrastructure, zoning, and preservation to guide our decision making.”

The meeting will be held between 5:30-7 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 29 at Indian Trail Middle School, 307 Car-Mol Drive. The public can drop in during this time period to discuss the City’s future with organizers.

Visit the Johnson City Public Library's website here.

See all upcoming events at the library by clicking here

Your Library is partnering with the Northeast Tennessee Holocaust Education Council to host Sonja DuBois, a child survivor of the Holocaust who lives in Knoxville.

DuBois will speak about her experience on Saturday, Feb. 17 at 2 p.m. in the library’s Jones Meeting Center. Her autobiography, Finding Schifrah: The Journey of a Dutch Holocaust Child Survivor, will be for sale at the event and there will be a book signing after her talk.

Sonja DuBois was born in the Netherlands in 1940 to a Jewish family. When she was two years old her parents secretly gave her to a friend before they were sent to the Auschwitz concentration camp, where they were murdered soon after.

More information here

Children in grades K-6 can register to join us in the Library's Jones Meeting Center on Tuesday, February 13 at 4 p.m. for a cooking class with Margie Foodie, who will teach us how to make soft pretzels from scratch. This will be a hands-on class in which young bakers will learn how to make pretzel dough, roll and shape it, bake it, and then cover it with classic toppings such as salt and cinnamon—or maybe a few other fun varieties! Every kid will be able to make and eat a pretzel or two, then they can take home recipes in order to make fresh pretzels over and over again! Space is limited and registration is required.

All ages are invited to the Library's Jones Meeting Center one Monday each month from 6-7:30 p.m. for game night! The Library will provide games for people to learn, play, and enjoy together. No registration is required for this free event.

Library volunteers Callie, David, Felipe, and Matthew lead conversations for those who wish to practice their Spanish language skills on Thursdays at 6 p.m. in the Library's Jones Meeting Center. All language levels are welcome, from beginners to advanced speakers.

To continue developing your language skills, visit your Library's free online learning tool, Transparent Language.

Visit the Johnson City Parks and Recreation website here

See all upcoming Parks & Rec events on their calendar page located here.

Registration is now open for the following spring youth sports offerings from Johnson City Parks and Recreation. Visit www.myjcparks.org to register.

Girls Machine Pitch Softball
$25/city resident | $30/non-city resident
Ages 6-8
Register Feb. 22-March 26 ($20 late fee if registered after March 26)
Practices begin March 30; games begin April 17

Girls Fast Pitch Softball

$25/city resident | $30/non-city resident
Ages 9-13
Register Feb. 22-March 26 ($20 late fee if registered after March 26)
Practices begin March 30; games begin April 17

Start Smart Tennis
$25/city resident | $30/non-city resident

Ages 4-6
Memorial Park Community Center, 510 Bert St.
Tuesdays, March 21-April 25 | 5:30-6:15 p.m.

Community members are encouraged to head to Memorial Park Community Center, 510 Bert St., from 9 a.m.-noon on Saturday, Feb. 11 for native, heirloom and veggie seed swapping at the Nature’s Garden Seed Swap & Share.

In addition to the opportunity to swap seeds, participants can enjoy a featured speaker and variety of exhibits, many emphasizing pollinator needs and Citizen Science opportunities.

9 a.m. Doors open

9-9:45 a.m. Exhibits open

9:45-10:15 a.m. Speaker Ashley Kite - Growing Community Ecosystems: Utilizing Concepts of Ecology to Build Engaged & Impactful Human Networks

10:15 a.m.-noon Exhibits open and seed swap opportunity

All ages are welcome. The event is free, and no registration is required.

For more information, call 423-283-5821.

Johnson City Schools loves celebrating the accomplishments of our students, staff, and community. If you know of any events, awards, programs, or other compelling stories involving the Johnson City Schools' community, please fill out this form or reach out to Collin Brooks at BrooksB@jcschools.org