Core Notes

Dear TCS Families,

This newsletter includes recent news and happenings from across the Tuscaloosa City School District.

We've got some great things happening to celebrate, including three of our schools being named State Schools of Character this week. Our students are also doing some really amazing things and deserve every ounce of recognition, from STEM Showcase winners to our annual Gifted Showcase. Read more below.

Thank you again for your continued support and for choosing the Tuscaloosa City Schools.

Mike Daria

TCS Superintendent

Three schools in the Tuscaloosa City Schools have been named a 2025 State School of Character for Alabama: Rock Quarry Elementary, Central Elementary and Northridge Middle School.

The award recognizes schools that demonstrate a dedicated focus on character development and have formed a positive and powerful school culture.

“We are excited and proud that three more schools in our system were recognized for their character education efforts,” said Superintendent Mike Daria. “It is truly having a profound, positive impact on our schools.”

To be named a State School of Character, a school must demonstrate a proactive approach to principles such as school culture and climate, social and emotional learning and student engagement. Each award recipient must also have a set of “core values” that guide and unite the school community.

"At Central Elementary, our commitment to our core values-respect, open-mindedness, accountability, and respect has fostered a stronger, more unified school community," said CES principal Cynthia Huff. "This unwavering dedication to character development is what helped us earn this recognition."

At Central Elementary, as part of its character programming, the school created "Character Houses" which enriched students' character but also strengthened a sense of belonging, Huff added.

"As a result, we have seen a significant decrease in discipline infractions compared to previous years."

At Northridge Middle, the recognition can be traced back to the question of "What does it mean to be a Jag," said NMS Principal Jami Rainey. "Throughout the school and NMS community, our daily interactions and expectations reflect these character traits. A Jag is respectful, supportive, dedicated to community and committed to excellence. We are all proud to be a Jag. NMS is excited and honored to be designated as a State School of Character."

At Rock Quarry, a well-rounded education means learning about academics but also about character, said Angela Chandler, counselor for the school.

"We know that academics are an incredibly important protective factor in our kids’ lives; but, we want them to be the best version of themselves that they can be," Chandler said. "We envision our students growing up to be healthy, well-balanced individuals with great friends, great citizens, and to do important work making the world a better place. We know that teaching about character plants the seeds for true character development. We do our best to make sure all of our students feel seen, heard, and understood."

Character.org, the organization that recognizes schools across the U.S. with the honor, named 98 schools nationwide as 2025 State Schools of Character. Twelve are in Alabama.

Since TCS started a focus on character education in the last few years, the district has had a total of eight State Schools of Character and five National Schools of Character: Tuscaloosa Magnet Schools- Elementary, Tuscaloosa Magnet Schools – Middle, Westlawn Middle, Skyland Elementary and Oakdale Elementary.

“We are excited to announce today the 2025 State Schools and Districts of Character,” said Dr. Arthur Schwartz, Character.org’s President. “Each of these schools and districts have put into place an initiative that equips and empowers their staff to reinforce and model a range of positive core values that will shape and form the hearts, minds, and choices of their students.”

Alabama’s 2025 State Schools of Character
Brock’s Gap Intermediate School
Central Elementary School-AL
Central Freshman Academy
Hartselle Intermediate School
Huntington Place Elementary
Louis Pizitz Middle School
Meadowlane Elementary School
N.E. Miles Jewish Day School
Northridge Middle School
Rock Quarry Elementary
Vestavia Hills Elementary at Cahaba Heights
Vestavia Hills Elementary Dolly Ridge

In TCS, we are growing critical thinkers, leaders and problem-solvers through a focus on math. Tuesday night, our board recognized students from across the district who placed in the recent Perennial Math Competition.

Students, ranging from 3rd to 8th grade, won a total of 41 awards! Students who won in the competition include: Hannah Nguyen, Lucy Bui, Tucker Ikard, Destin Dao, Ashley Dong, Findley Therrell, Ryan Powers, Victor Li, Mugabi Makorogo, Jack Bradford, Hayden Nguyen, Graham Roberts, Rachel Keith, Findley Therrell, Thomas Wingard, Charlie Monroe, John Jordan, Maxwell Snow, Abdurrahman Esad Altindis & Will Sterritt. Congrats students!

Midde School students from across the region, including 96 TCS students all five TCS middle schools, presented their science projects as part of the University of Alabama STEM Showcase Saturday.

As part of the competition, students had to explain their science projects, including hypothesis and methods they undertook in their research, in nine different categories. The result was astounding: TCS students claimed awards in every category. Orlandria Stewart, a student at Westlawn Middle School, won "Best of Show" for her project "The Stroop Effect," which studied how people take longer to name the color of a word when the word itself is a different color than the ink it's printed on.

"We are so proud of Orlandria and her amazing work, and we are proud of all our students who presented today," said Westlawn Middle Principal Dr. Darlene Atkins.

The STEM Showcase, which began through a partnership between the Tuscaloosa City Schools and The University of Alabama, is important in the work being done by TCS to focus on STEM education, said TCS Superintendent Mike Daria.

"It is part of our vision to give all our students exposure to STEM education," Daria said. "This competition is a great example of a community partnership that helps further that vision and make a profound, positive impact on our students."

The STEM Showcase and other programs are hosted by the Center for Community-Based Partnerships in the Division of Community Affairs at The University of Alabama.

All STEM Showcase winners can be found below.

Behavioral & Social Sciences

Winner: Adam Abu'Qahoug, Maxwell Snow & David Delaire of Tuscaloosa Magnet Schools-Middle

Runners Up: Henry Brickman-Curzon, Michael McClain & Anson Chen of Tuscaloosa Magnet Schools-Middle

Biology

Winner: Lottie Bryan & Harper Hart from Tuscaloosa Magnet Schools-middle

Runner Up: Diya Mistry from Eastwood Middle

Chemistry

Winners: Zach Brummond, William Gilmore & Reyn Sims of Tuscaloosa Academy

Runners Up: Kylie South & Ava Aaron of Northridge Middle

Energy & Transportation

Winners: Benji Schwaeble, Francois Veillon & Lincoln Wood of Tuscaloosa Academy

Runners Up: Aaliyah Clark, Jakayla Gibbs & Bonnie Williams of Westlawn Middle

Engineering:

Winners: Liam Patel, Luke Poole & Auggie Watkins of Tuscaloosa Magnet Schools - Middle

Runner Up: Julia Muse of Northridge Middle

Environmental & Earth Sciences:

Winners: Addison Large, Emma Grace Kemmerer & Delina Menasse of Tuscaloosa Magnet Schools - Middle

Runners Up: Sofia Huebener, Layla Waller & Jireh Gibson of Tuscaloosa Magnet Schools - Middle

Mathematics & Computer Science

Winner: Anastasia Gleyzer of Northridge Middle

Runners Up: Zakiylah Carter & Jayden Kemp of Westlawn Middle

Medicine & Health Sciences

Winner: Orlandria Stewart of Westlawn Middle

Runners Up: Beren Melouk, Elliot Jarett and Jameson Cox of Tuscaloosa Magnet Schools - Middle

Physical Science

Winners: Carmen Hyche & Ma'Kynleigh Pearson of Eastwood Middle

Runners Up: Maddox Rice of Sipsey Valley Middle

Avantor Award: Lauren Strickland, Holley Crawford, Marley Wisdom from Sipsey Valley Middle

Microchip Award: Zakiylah Carter & Jayden Kemp from Westlawn Middle

Discovery Flight Award: Benji Schwaeble, Francis Veillon & Lincoln Wood of Tuscaloosa Academy

Best of Show: Orlandria Stewart of Westlawn Middle

Watch Orlandria Stewart of Westlawn Middle explain her best of show-winning project by clicking the video below:P

Elementary students from every TCS Elementary school gathered at the TCTA Event hall Tuesday to showcase their projects as part of the gifted education programs at their schools. From robotics to board games to science projects, students were showing how creativity and thinking outside of the box can lead to new ideas and innovation!

We've had more than one incident recently of students bringing toy guns to school. We want to remind TCS families and students that this goes against the TCS Code of Conduct and can carry serious repercussions, as it is a safety concern. Families, please talk to your children and make sure they know that toy guns of any kind are never allowed on school property.

The Tuscaloosa City Board of Education approved a $200,000 contract Tuesday for Ward Scott Morris Architects to make needed renovations and changes to STARS Academy so that the Tuscaloosa City Schools Children's Center, which is currently housed in a building owned by The University of Alabama, can move to the same building as STARS next year.

The program, which was previously run by UA and called Brewer's Porch, closed in May 2024. To ensure that TCS students with severe mental health needs continued to receive their services, TCS rented the facility and hired the needed additional staff to ensure students could be served. However, to save money on the facility rental, it will provide considerable cost savings to move the program to an existing TCS building.

The TCS Children's Center will move to the same building as STARS Academy, formerly Stillman Heights, for the 2025-26 school year. The program will stay in its current building through the spring.

A group of volunteers from Leadership Tuscaloosa are hoping to make a lasting positive impact at STARS Academy and the New Heights Community Resource Center by building a playground and pavilion area at the site.

The project, which cost $50,000 and will be paid for by donations, will include a full-sized outdoor basketball court and a 20X30-foot pavilion. A planned playground site is also part of the project, and will be located near the school's parking lot.

"This will benefit, certainly, the students at STARS, but also the community component of New Heights Community Resource Center," Superintendent Mike Daria told the board.

Representatives from Leadership Tuscaloosa came before the Tuscaloosa City Board of Education Tuesday as the project received approval.

"Each year, the class of Leadership Tuscaloosa is challenged to do a project, and this year, our class is very passionate and they want to do an impactful and meaningful project for our community," said Karen Burklew, who is part of the Leadership Tuscaloosa 2025 class.

The goal, they said, is to have the project finished later this year. The group is currently seeking donations for the project, which will go to the New Heights Community Resource Center Foundation and are tax deductible. The project is slated to cost between $50,000 to $77,000, all which will be paid for through donations. So far, $13,000 has been raised for the project, and all lumber will be donated.

"We are excited to be fundraising right now, if anyone would like to contribute, it is a tax-deductible donation through the New Heights Foundation, which is a 501c3," Burklew said.

Pre-K registration started today, Jan. 15 and will go through February 28, 2025!

For more information, visit: https://www.tuscaloosacityschools.com/.../pre-kindergarten

Qualifications:

-must be 4 before September 1, 2025;

-must live in the Tuscaloosa City School zone: https://www.tuscaloosacityschools.com/.../enro.../zoning-map

TCS Summer Learning is returning in 2025 to all schools that have a federal 21st CLCC grant! Applications will open on March 17. The schools include:

Arcadia Elementary
Central Elementary
Martin Luther King, Jr. Elementary
Oakdale Elementary Elementary
Skyland Elementary
Southview Elementary
The Alberta School of Performing Arts (elementary grades)
University Place Elementary
Eastwood Middle
Westlawn Middle
Central High
Paul W. Bryant High

Programs run May 28th - June 27th. Watch for more details from your school soon!

We are also currently examining "paid" options for other elementary/middle schools in TCS not listed here.

Neighborhood Bridges helps gather donations of items that are needed by our TCS students and schools. These items go directly to making a positive impact. Since TCS Neighborhood Bridges was launched in 2019, there have been 866 needs filled and 43,970 students have benefitted. Check out their current donation wish list today by clicking the link below!

Tuscaloosa City | Neighborhood Bridges

Reading Allies is an organization helping our students make big gains in achieving their reading goals. Volunteers work with elementary students for just 30 minutes each week.

This semester’s Reading Allies program kicked off THIS WEEK, and they need more volunteers to serve students!

Sign up at readingallies.org/volunteer or text (205) 722-1101 for more information.

If you see a threat on social media, especially coming from a student or relating to a school, report it. Let law enforcement, school resource officer, a teacher or school administrator know as soon as possible. Reposting doesn't help, but reporting it can. Remember if you see something, SAY SOMETHING! Parents, please speak with your child(ren) about how important it is to report.

BSN Sports has set up online "swag stores" for our schools where any student, faculty or parent can buy school branded gear. This was a desire that was expressed by students during the Superintendent's student advisory meetings at the high schools last school year.

The "swag" on these sites include a variety of price points, brands, and are in men's, women's and children's sizes, plus they have cups and other items as well. On the main page, they also have gear per sport.

There is also branded gear for the elementary and middle schools, too! To see the middle school and elementary options, on the desktop website, once you have clicked on the type of item to browse, you can go to the sidebar where it says "campus" and then select feeder school, where the items will pop up with other school names. Select the school that you want.

Each feeder zone will receive 10% back of all purchases in the form of a store credit/rebate that can be used for future branded purchases by the school(s). So, support your school and show school pride!

Northridge feeder zone store: NORTHRIDGE HIGH SCHOOL JAGUARS - TUSCALOOSA, Alabama - Sideline Store - BSN Sports

Central feeder zone store: CENTRAL HIGH SCHOOL FALCONS - TUSCALOOSA, Alabama - Sideline Store - BSN Sports

Bryant feeder zone store: PAUL W BRYANT HIGH SCHOOL STAMPEDE - COTTONDALE, Alabama - Sideline Store - BSN Sports