Columbus City Schools eNewsletter: Week of June 28, 2010

nn 06.28.2010 Follow us on ... CCS: http://twitter.com/ColsCitySchools Superintendent: http://twitter.com/DrGeneTHarris 2010 Columbus Board of Education Front, l-r: W. Shawna Gibbs; Ramona Reyes; Stephanie Groce, Vice Pres.; and Carol L. Perkins, Pres. Second Row, l-r: Micheal Wiles; Hanifah Kambon; and Gary L. Baker II. Click here for scheduled meeting dates, podcasts, and how to contact CCS Board of Education members. Back-to-School Register Early for the 2010-11 School Year In early August 2010, parents will receive a Back-to-School newsletter with their child's bus stop and route information if the student lives more than two miles from school. Parents and students that are new to the district or have moved during the summer months are encouraged to take advantage of Summer Central Registration July 12 through August 6. 2010-11 School Year Calendars New CCS/COTA Bus Passes Annually, Columbus City Schools provides high school students with COTA bus passes to facilitate easy access their required internships and summer school programs. The district will be updating its COTA pass system at the end of summer school and issuing new passes for 2010-11 after the start of the new school year. Accordingly, CCS/COTA bus passes issued for the 2009-10 school year will expire July 23, 2010, through the end of the summer school program. Four Innovative Schools for 2010-11 Academic Year As 2009-10 school year begins to wind toward a close, CCS staff members are working to prepare new programs for the 2010-11 school year. Inaugural classes, beginning this fall, are forming now! The innovative schools include the: Columbus International High School Columbus City Prep. School for Boys Columbus City Prep. School for Girls Expansion of Fifth Ave. International to a K-8 program The new schools were a levy promise made after reviewing community input and the result of the hard work of the Innovative Schools Task Force Committee, comprised of community members, parents, and educators. Columbus Downtown HS NetRiders Shine in Statewide Competition The IT/Networking students at the Columbus Downtown HS recently finished within the top 10 statewide in the 2010 NetRiders Skills Challenge. More than 4,900 students from 50 teams from across the state participated. NetRiders is a peer-to-peer competition that tests students' Networking/IT skills through a series of online exams and simulation activities using Cisco Packet Tracer. Packets are essentially how data and email travel over the Internet. CCS Bus Drivers Win Regional 2010 Safe Driver of the Year Award The National Safety Council recently named CCS bus drivers Marilyn Davis and Wanda S. Hector as recipients of the 2010 Safe Driver Award for the East North Central Region. The East North Central region includes Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and Pennsylvania. Davis has been serving the students of Columbus for 23 years, covering more than 331,200 miles. Hector has served for 24 years, covering more than 345,600 miles - further than the distance of the moon from the Earth (approximately 239,000 miles) - without an at-fault accident. Both drivers will be recognized at a formal reception during the National Safety Council's Annual Congress and Expo in San Diego, California, on October 5, 2010. We want to hear from you. Please send your feedback and story ideas to: e-News@columbus.k12.oh.us		Change in Columbus High School Bus Stops: Maps and Information One of Columbus City Schools' levy promises to the community was to conduct a comprehensive review of the transportation operation to help improve efficiency and operations and to reduce costs. However, at the forefront of any Columbus City School decision is to maintain the safety of our students in all situations. For the upcoming 2010-2011 school year, the district will consolidate school bus stops for high school students (only) to the closest open CCS building from the student's home. 8 Click here to learn more. Jumpstart to Kindergarten: July 14-23, 2010: Year-Round Schools | August 9-20, 2010: Traditional Schools A 2-week school-readiness program for children ages 4-5, services are also available for children whose first language is not English. Columbus City Schools has something special planned for 4 and 5 year-old children who have not attended a formal preschool or Head Start program and will enroll with in district Kindergarten class this fall. Forty-six (46) CCS elementary-level buildings will host "Jumpstart to Kindergarten," a two-week school-readiness program for Children, ages 4-5. Services are also provided for children whose first language is not English. Click here to download an application and to learn more! 2010 SUMMER SCHOOL Not All Students Taking the Summer Off CCS Summer School and Enrichment Classes Underway When many students hear the word summer, they envision lazy days around the pool. However, for students wishing to get a head start on the upcoming school year, or to get their academic careers back on track, the District has set aside more than 5,000 summer classroom seats. Monday, June 14, was the first day of summer school for high school-level students and incoming ninth-grade students enrolled in Summer Bridge. Summer Bridge is an academic readiness program for the upcoming college preparatory curriculum they'll face in high school. The elementary-level summer school programs began June 21. Seats are still available, but are filling quickly. Parents should call 614-365-5010 if they have additional questions. 8 Click here for more information about the CCS Summer Enrichment programs. Ohio Senate Bill 311 Credit Flexibility: A New Option for High Schoolers Columbus City Schools provides students four different methods to earn high school academic credit toward graduation: Traditional, Integrated, Applied, and Career-Technical. Credit Flexibility is an additional opportunity for students to create unique learning experiences. Student proposals could include, but are not limited to: Distance learning (online), educational travel, independent study, internships, community service, performance, and field experiences. 8 Click here to read more! First Day of School for Year-Round Students: July 28, 2010 Wednesday, July 28, 2010, is the first day of the 2010-11 school year for students of the district's year-round schools: Africentric Early College K-12, Weinland Park ES & Woodcrest ES. With a balanced school-year calendar, the traditional nine-month, 180-day academic calendar is restructured so that the instructional and vacation periods are more evenly distributed over 12 months. A special 6th & 9th Grade Orientation Day is scheduled for Wednesday July 21, 2010. Click here for the 2010-2011 School Year Calendar. 34 New or Renovated State-of-the-art Schools Since 2004, 10 More Underway Learning Continues During Construction and Renovations As the work continues on the Segment 3 (and the final stage of Segment 2) of the seven-segment building initiative, one of the largest construction projects in the state, CCS is maintaining its focus on teaching and learning. This segment, to further bring more schools into full 21st-century learning environments, is a $159 million investment: $112.2 million in district funds from Issue 75, approved by Columbus voters in November 2008, and $46.9 million in state matching funds (approximately 30 percent). Meanwhile, most students will continue to attend classes in their existing schools while their new ones are being built. Others will temporarily attend a school in a different building, especially if their school is undergoing renovation. The plan strives to keep students close to their home schools and is constantly being updated to make best use of space while minimizing student disruption. 8 Click here to read more 8 Click here to read more about your Segment 3 school 2010-2011 School Year CCS to Host Orientation for Incoming 6th- and 9th-Grade Students August 18th The first day of school for the 2010-11 school year is August 25, 2010. Columbus City School (CCS) is again easing the transition for first time as kindergartners, as well as students moving onward as new middle or high school students for the upcoming school year with a special Back-to-School Orientation Day. 8 Click here to learn more. 8 Click here for more information about Summer Central Registration. Beechcroft Senior Excels in the Classroom and at Track and Field With a stellar 4.0 grade point average, Beechcroft HS senior, and top athlete Kalantra Franklin was recently announced as winner of the First Team Academic All-Ohio Track and Field Award by the Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA). She has also been named the 2010 Central Ohio Athlete of the Year by the Agonis Club of Columbus, Ohio; and the 2010 Scholar Athlete of the Year by the "Columbus Dispatch." Kalantra plans to attend The Ohio State University in the fall. Centennial HS Students Propose Solutions to Challenging Public Policy Issues in Statewide Showcase Expanding school internship opportunities beyond the current vocational/career center options or permitting students to "test out" of coursework, freeing their schedules for more advanced college-prep courses – these were among the tough public policy issues addressed by 25 civic-minded students from Centennial High School's U.S. Government class in the 2010 Project Citizen Portfolio and Hearing Showcase. 8 Click here to read more! Three Columbus Teams Win Top Award at The 2010 Central Ohio Invention Convention Who has the solutions to our problems? Invention Convention students do! Central Ohio's best student inventors showcased their creations at the annual Regional Invention Convention. More than 318 student inventors proved that every answer does not come from a world-renowned laboratory - but may come from an elementary or middle school student living next door to you. Three Columbus teams were named as 1st place winners of a $500 college scholarship: In the grade 4 category, the first place winner was Arielle Swinehart from Indian Springs ES for her invention the "Silencing Box," a quieter version of the electric pencil sharpener. In the grade 5 category, the first place winners were Ivy McKee and Tiona Cogar from Avalon ES for the "Zip N'Style," an interchangeable fashion for shoes. The Kids Choice Award went to Jasmine Mathis, a third-grader from Georgian Heights ES, for the "Cool J's Helmet." a helmet with a cooling fan. The Invention Convention inspires students to create and problem solve while developing their inventions. Are you receiving a pass-along copy of CCS eNews? To subscribe Click here CCS: http://twitter.com/ColsCitySchools | Superintendent: http://twitter.com/DrGeneTHarris
Columbus City Schools | 270 East State Street | Columbus, Ohio 43215 | (614) 365-5000