Rock Hill School News For March 29, 2010

Rock Hill Schools conducted a Voter Registration Campaign last month. Supt. Lynn Moody initiated the campaign stating: "If we don’t vote, we don’t count! Those running for office know who contributes to their campaign and who votes. Public school employees can cast a vote and let their voices be heard."
 
Rock Hill Schools has received a $23,750 grant from the Lowe’s Charitable and Educational Foundation to build an outdoor classroom on the campus of the Sunset Park Center for Accelerated  Studies. With an expected completion date in August, the classroom will be open to all elementary schools during the day and to the community evenings and weekends.
    
In addition to singing the praises of Lowe's, Deborah Maynard, the district's grant writer, stated that she would like to thank David Norton, instructional specialist; Sally Shive, science coach at Sunset Park; and Duke Power which has contributed $1,000 toward this project.
  
Sullivan Middle School will host a Spring Festival and Car Show on its campus from 10 am - 5 pm on Sat., April 17. Proceeds will help to kick off  the school's literacy initiative. Sullivan will accept vendors and business sponsors until Weds., April 14.                                

Congratulations to:

• Cathy Griffin (Northwestern High School) and Caroline Yetman (Rock Hill High School) and their Model UN teams on awards received at the Winthrop Model UN competition last weekend. Northwestern's team, representing Russia, won the  Winthrop Cup while Rock  Hill High, representing the U.S.A., won "The Delegation Most in Character" award. 
• Beverly Laney, choral music teacher at South Pointe High School and the Stallion Corral Concert Choir which, for the 3rd year in a row, placed 5th in the state out of 30 choirs. 
• Emily Thompson, orchestra teacher at Dutchman Creek Middle School. The 7th and 8th grade orchestra earned a Superior rating at the S. C. Orchestra Concert Festival on March 26. Members received straight superior ratings from the judges, including a perfect score from one judge.   
• Coordinator Sandra Holeman and the  Sullivan Middle School Junior Civitans on raising $2800 for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. 
• Coordinators Jason Werts and Jacob Stancil and the students and faculty at Old Pointe Elementary School on raising $3,291 for the American Heart Assn. 
• James Turner, band director at South Pointe High School, and the Band of Thunder's Winter Drum Line which placed first and the winter guard which placed third at the Carolina Winter Ensemble Assn.'s competition last weekend. 
• Marsha Gross and the Northwestern High School Chamber Orchestra. The orchestra performed Grade VI repertoire at the S.C. Orchestra Concert Festival and received a perfect score on their prepared musical selections.  

To bring attention that April is "Child Abuse Awareness Month," the Central Child Development Center is bringing a speaker to the Community Performance Center on March 30 to talk about recognizing signs of physical abuse, neglect, sexual abuse, and mental injury and what concerned adults can do.

 The South Pointe High School Prom Committee will sponsor a district-wide sale on April 24 in the Sullivan parking lot.

Who Are Your Rock Hill School Representatives?

Sometimes it's good to know what your Rock Hill School Representatives look like. The Rock Hill School Board contact information can be found here. The state and federal contacts can be found here.

We Get Emails

As you can imagine, the Rock Hill School Board has been getting a lot of emails.  There have been a lot of appeals to the board to save items on the "cut" list by the school district administration. Unfortunately, something has to be cut, and most emails only focus on saving items, which is only part of the issue.  One letter from Northwestern Band Director, Larry Wells, was particularly moving. You can read it (with permission from Mr. Wells) by clicking here.

An Interesting Look At South Carolina's Taxes

The Maps below show how South Carolina compares to the other states in tax rates. Yellow means some of the lowest rates and blue means some of the highest. You can find more information by clicking here.

Rock Hill Schools March Work Session To Be Streamed Live Over Internet

The Monday, March 22nd, 2010 Rock Hill Schools work session on budget issues will be streamed live over the internet. You can access the link by clicking here. The meeting is scheduled to start at 6:00 PM.

How Do You Know Who Supports Public Education in the State Legislature?

The Rock Hill School Board passed a resolution on March 8th, 2010 asking the York County delegation to make known their personal position on several items important to public education in South Carolina. Since this is an election year, ask them their position on those items. You can get a copy of the resolution by clicking here.

Improving education in South Carolina doesn't start in Columbia, it starts at home. Educate yourself and your legislator.

Rock Hill School Board To Have Extra Work Session in March For Budget Discussions

The Rock Hill School Board will not have a March Business Meeting so extra time can be spent discussing the 2010-11 budget shortfall. The extra work session will be on Monday, March 22, 2010 in the District Office Training room. The proposed agenda is as follows:



SCHOOL BOARD WORK SESSION

District Office - Training Room

6:00 p.m.

22-Mar-10


AGENDA TOPIC DISCUSSION LEADER Time
Additional Thoughts on Crisis Plan Lynn Moody  
    *Current Status of Cuts Made in 2009-2010   5 minutes
    *Consultants   5 minutes
    *Professional Development, Field Trips   5 minutes
    *Foreign Language   5 minutes
    *Band and Orchestra   5 minutes
    *Reading Recovery   5 minutes
    *Athletics   5 minutes
    *District Office Staff   5 minutes
Financial Crisis Plan Discussion Bob Norwood 60 minutes
Task Force of Business Leaders Lynn Moody 10 minutes
Overnight Field Trip Request - SPHS Wrestling Team Harriet Jaworowski 5 minutes
Recommended Change in 2010-2011 School Calendar Elaine Baker 5 minutes

Rock Hill School News For Thursday, March 18, 2010

Rock Hill Schools will host a forum for the seven candidates for the State Supt. of Education on Thursday evening, April 29, from 6:30-8:00 pm in the Sullivan Auditorium. Candidates are Frank Holleman and Brent Nelson (Greenville), Elizabeth Moffly (Awendaw), Kelly Payne (Columbia), Mick Zais (Newberry), Gary Burgess (Pendleton), and Tim Moultrie (city unknown).

Candidates will be given time to promote their platform on public education, and questions will asked by moderator Manning Kimmel, co-owner of local radio station WRHI (1340 am).
Each year the federal government allocates more than $400 billion to states and communities based on census data. This data is used to determine locations for hospitals, new housing developments, and other community facilities. The data also determines boundaries for state and local legislative and congressional districts.
During the 2000 Census, S.C. was 49th among the states in its participation rate, above only Alaska. That undercount translated into millions of dollars in lost revenue for our state.
Rock Hill Schools has partnerred with the Census Bureau to encourage everyone to complete the 2010 questionnaire that has already been received in many households. Those who complete and return the questionnaire by April 1 will not have a home visit by a census worker.

-Thursday, March 18, 4 p.m.
Saluda Trail will hold a 3 on 3 basketball tournament to raise money for the V (cancer) Foundation.

-Saturday, March 20, 4 p.m.
The S.C. All-State Chorus will perform in Byrnes Auditorium at Winthrop, featuring 450 of the best high school singers in the state and many of them from our high schools.

-Lesslie Elementory School raised $3,055 for " Jump Rope for Heart" (Trey McDaniel, coordinator)

-Richmond Drive Elementary School raised $1,857 for Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (Sally DeWeese, coordinator) and $317 from book fair profits to the Red Cross for Haiti Relief Fund (Donna Armstrong, coordinator)
-York Road Elementary School raised $2,585 for "Change for Changing Haiti" (Nakia Barnes/Susan Hosea/Patrick Robinson/Lucy Brazzell, coordinators)
-Oakdale Elementary School raised $552 for American Red Cross Haiti Relief Fund (Sharon Huffman and Sarah Johnson, coordinators)

-Independence Elementary School Raised $4,235 for Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (Maria Sylvester, coordinator)

-Old Pointe Elementary School raised $2,003 for Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (Suzanne Dalesandro, coordinator)

-Tyson Gardin and Crystal Gantt, from Castle Heights Middle School, recently were honored by the S. C. Middle School Assn. with a "Middle School Magic" award for innovative instructional ideas. Only five
awards were given state-wide.

-Dr. Donald Williams, the AP/IB biology teacher at Northwestern High School, will spend his spring break in Frankfurt, Germany, as a judge for the European Regional Science and Humanities Symposium science fair.
-Major John Murray, senior aerospace science instructor at Rock Hill High School, is proud of the school's drill team which won one first and two second-place trophies at the recent drill meet at Indian Land High School.

-Michelle Kyzer, from Lesslie Elementary School received an $800 grant from Target which will be used for the third-graders' field trip to the State House in Columbia.

Former Rock Hill School Associate Superintendent A Finalist in Richland 2

Dr. Darrell Johnson (center), a Clover Grad and former Rock Hill  School District Principal and Associate Superintendent, is one of three finalists for the Richland 2 Superintendent's job. Read the article in Tuesday's State Newspaper by clicking here. You also might recognize the picture to the left. That's Katie Brochu, former York Schools Superintendent.

How Far Should Technology Use Go In The Classroom?

How far should the use of technology go in the classroom. Edu.blogs.com suggests in this post on teaching social networking, probably farther than most think. However, shouldn't schools prepare students for life after school?

Dolly Parton Imagination Library Bowl-a-thon Sponsorship

The Early Learning Partnership of York County and the 4 York County School Districts are sponsoring a Bowl-a-thon to raise money for the Dolly Parton Imagination Library on May 15, 2010. They are looking for lane sponsors, or just plain donations. All money raised will go toward providing books for children under 5 years old, a critical time to instill the love for reading. Please download a form here and become a sponsor.

Rock Hill Schools March Business Meeting Moving to April

The Rock Hill Schools March 22nd Business Meeting will now be held on April 12, 2010. This move, by a 6-1 telephone vote (or email) was made so the extra time could be used to get input on proposed budget cuts (Vining voted against). The March 22nd date will now be used for a work session and will be held at the District Office Training Room, beginning at 6:00 pm.

Rock Hill School News For Thursday, March11, 2010

The signature fundraising event for the Rock Hill School District Foundation will take place at 6:30 p.m. today(Thursday) in the main gym at Northwestern High School. The Culinary Arts Department at the Applied Technology Center will prepare and serve appetizers; Outback Steakhouse will provide an exceptional dinner; and guests will be treated to exciting entertainment by the Elementary Honors Choir, the Saluda Trail "Mayberry Crooners," and by the Northwestern Art Department, Elite Chamber Orchestra, Jazz Band, Theatre Department, and the Troubadours. Proceeds provide thousands of dollars in mini-grants for district teachers and schools.

-Thursday, March 11, 2-6 p.m.
A jewelry fundraiser to benefit teacher Phyllis Paden-Adams will be held at York Road Elem. Canceled earlier due to bad weather, the fundraiser will feature a huge selection of Premier Designs High Fashion Jewelry.

-Fri., Mar. 12, 11 a.m.-7 p.m. & Sat., Mar. 13,
11 a.m.-6 p.m. Rock Hill High's Band of Distinction will sell pork BBQ plates and one-half chicken plates at $7 each at Hopewell Presbyterian Church at 1571 South Anderson Road. Pork BBQ will sell for $8/lb.

-Saturday, March 13, 8:00-10:30 a.m.
The Dutchman Creek Middle School Chorus will sponsor a delicious pancake breakfast at Fatz Café. Tickets will be $7 for adults and $4 for children. These can be purchased at the door.

-Monday, March 15, 6:30 p.m.
The South Pointe School Improvement Council and the York County Ed. Assn. will co-sponsor an informational meeting in the South Pointe Aud. to address the state's public education financial crisis. Speakers will be Walter Brown, school board member, and Dr. Mike Fanning.

-Thursday-Saturday, March 18-20 (Free)
The York County Library will host its annual Patchwork Tales Storytelling Festival at the Baxter Hood Center, featuring nationally known story-tellers (Donald Davis, Carmen Deedy, and Bil Lepp), blue grass music, and family entertainment for all ages. Call 981-5840 or visit http://www.patchworktales.org for a schedule of events.

-Saturday, March 20, 9 a.m.-noon
Student leaders at Rock Hill High will host Youth Forum 2010 for teenagers, parents, and children age 11 and under.

-Sunday, March 21, noon-9 p.m.
The Zuma Fun Center in Charlotte will hold an "Open House" for employees of Rock Hill Schools. All employees will receive an unlimited ride wristband free. However, employees must present their employee ID to receive the wristband.

-Thursday, March 25, 6:30 p.m.
All elementary schools will hold "Kindergarten Transition Night" for parents and rising kindergarten students. Parents will learn what their child will experience and what they can do to ensure that their child will be successful in school.

-Thursday & Friday, March 25 & 26, 7 p.m.
The Related Arts Department at Saluda Trail Middle School will present the popular musical, "The Music Man Junior." Admission will be $5 a seat, and tickets are now available by calling 981-1800.

-Central Child Development Center raised $410 for the American Red Cross for children affected by recent earthquakes

-Mount Gallant raised $1,226 for Pennies for Patients

-Sunset Park Center for Accelerated Studies raised $5,030 for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society

-Orientation for rising sixth-graders and their parents for next school year will be held at 6 p.m. Mon., April 19, in each middle school auditorium.

-Julia Millar, a grade 6 science teacher at Saluda Trail, has been invited to attend the Science PLUS Institute this summer at Roper Mountain Science Center near Greenville.

-For those who would like to see one of the "sweetest" murals ever, go to http://stalliongumballmural.blogspot.com/ and view the work of art students of Ashley Beard at South Pointe High. This project, which required 42,000 gumballs, was funded through a grant from the Arts Council of Rock Hill and donations from area businesses. Over 42,000 gumballs were used in this creative endeavor.

WRHI Straight Talk - School District Foundation Fund Raiser

Hear Tuesday's straight talk show on the Foundation Gala by clicking here.

Sullivan Middle School To Host School Superintendent's Debate

Sullivan Middle School and the Rock Hill School District will host a state superintendent of education candidates’ debate from 6:30 to 8 p.m. on April 29 at Sullivan's auditorium. All candidates were invited and so far, five have confirmed their attendance. They are:

· Frank Holleman

· Brent Nelson

· Elizabeth Moffley

· Kelly Payne

· Gary Burgess

Candidates will answer questions solicited from York County’s teacher organizations, school boards, superintendents, parents, and students. Manning Kimbel (WRHI) , will moderate the debate.

Rock Hill School Board Hears Bad News At Monday's Work Session

The Rock Hill School Board heard Dr. Moody's recommendations for making up the difference with the 2010-11 budget shortfall at Monday's March Work Session. Tuesday's Rock Hill Herald has a good description of the major items. You can access that article by clicking here.

There was discussion about delaying a board vote until the April Work session so members will have time to get input on the superintendent's recommendations.

In other action, the board voted 7-0 to approve a required letter to the state department of education certifying the district had furloughed employees and agreed to approve a rewrite of a resolution via telephone.

After an executive session, the board voted 7-0 to approve a student appeal.

Rock Hill Schools Administration Cost

Representative Ralph Norman made several information requests to the Rock Hill School District which were answered this week. Two interesting findings were; District Office Administration costs are currently $4.1 million; and School Administration costs are currently $6.4 million. District consulting costs are somewhat difficult to pin down because often times they are paid for with federal dollars which require them to be spent for things such as professional development.

District salaries have never been hidden. You can find salary scales by clicking on one of the links below:

Administrative Salary

Teacher Salary

Support Services Salary

Salary Supplements

Maintenance Wage Scale

Rock Hill School Board To Get Superintendent's Recommended Cuts This Monday

The Rock Hill School Board will hear the Superintendents recommended cuts for the 2010-11 school year at the March Work Session this Monday. The agenda is below:

SCHOOL BOARD WORK SESSION LOCATION: Sullivan Middle School - Auditorium DATE: March 8, 2010 START: 5:30 p.m. AGENDA TOPIC DISCUSSION LEADER TIME Presentation by Sunset Park Elementary School Tammy White 30 minutes Funding Flexibility Letter Elaine Bilton 10 minutes School District's Recommended Cuts Lynn Moody 60 minutes Town Hall Meeting Update Bob Norwood 15 minutes School Board Resolution on Financial Crisis Bob Norwood 10 minutes Noresco Energy Contract Update Bill Mabry 30 minutes SCSBA Annual Conference Update Ann Reid 10 minutes Executive Session For Student Matter

South Pointe High School Prom Committee Would Like Your Help

Will you be cleaning out your closets over the holidays and trying to figure out what to do with it?

Well, wait…..

The South Pointe High School
Prom Committee would like to invite you t0 participate in their district wide sale.

* Reserve your spot today *

$10 for 1 spot

$15 for 2 spots

This sale is going to be Saturday, April 24^th.

You keep all the money that you make.

More information will come later.

Questions or reservations

Kay McNutt 803-980-2108 kmcnutt@rock-hill.k12.sc.us

Tiana Gardner 803-980-2114 tgardner@rock-hill.k12.sc.us

Rock Hill School News For Wednesday, March 3, 2010

Julie Marshall, a fifth-grade teacher at Oakdale Elementary and 2009 Teacher of the Year for Rock Hill Schools, has been selected as one of five finalists for South Carolina's Teacher of the Year. If Julie's name is announced on April 28, she will succeed Bryan Coburn, Rock Hill Schools 2008 Teacher of the Year, and 2009 state teacher of the year.

Choirs at Northwestern and at South Pointe will be among 12 in the state that will be featured on March 8 on ETV's "Celebrate America" musical special at 7 p.m. (Channel 30 in Rock Hill). Northwestern's Choir, under the direction of Gene Bumgardner, will perform an arrangement of "Danny Boy" with nationally acclaimed composer Tim Janis. South Pointe's Choir, under the direction of Beverly Laney, will sing "America the Beautiful." The 2-hour show will spotlight our

state's youth and celebrate music that inspires.

-Monday, March 15, 6:30 p.m.

The South Pointe High School Improvement Council and the York County Education Assn. will co-sponsor an informational meeting to address the state's public education financial crisis. Speakers will be Walter Brown, advocacy coordinator for the Rock Hill school board, and Dr. Mike Fanning, with the Olde English Consortium. During the hour-long

meeting, strategies will be offered to empower those concerned about public education.

-Thursday, March 18, 6:00-9:00 p.m.

Rock Hill High School will host a Community Prom Showcase in the school gym to promote prom fashions and accessories. Vendors will be on hand the entire time, but a Prom Fashion Show will be held at 7:00.Admission will be $3.

-Saturday, March 20

The 8th Annual Jazz Discovery Music Festival at Northwestern High School will feature14 middle and high school bands from N.C., S.C., and Georgia and a number of jazz artists. The evening concert is sold out, but there are several opportunities to hear some great jazz during the day. Go to http://www.nhsjazz.com/festival for a detailed schedule.

-More "Q & A" have been added to the district's website under the link "Budget Crisis 2010." Supt. Moody will present her "priority list" at the school board's work session on Monday, March 8, in the Sullivan Auditorium, beginning at 5:30 p.m.

-Ebenezer Avenue Elementary School raised $1,436 for the Leukemia &

Lymphoma Society.

-York Road Elementary School has a new club called "Bulldog Buddies." It's comprised of boys in kindergarten through second grade who are

learning how to work together, give back to society, and become better individuals. After one week of collecting money for "Change for

Changing Haiti," students collected over $1,000. Hats off to Nakia Barnes, Susan Hosea, Lucy Brazzell, and Patrick Robinson, co-sponsors of the club.

-Jean Stillman, adviser to the Junior Beta Club at Saluda Trail, is reports that students collected 2779 non-perishable food items and

$1,279.10 to donate to the Dorothy Day Soup Kitchen and Food Pantry on Crawford Road in Rock Hill.