Shout-outs:

• Welcoming Mr. Malachi Smith, our second part-time AmeriCorps members
• To Mr. Kitchen for his current project in which students are creating a business plan for a new product
• To Ms. Ruffin for the calming climate in her classroom and for managing multiple art projects at one time
• To Mr. Sessoms for the pacing of his lesson and engagement of his students
• To Mr. O’Neill for his current project in which students are creating documentaries, including a great first cut that included interviews with community members about the impact of Drew
• To Mr. McCullough and Ms. Allen for the level of engagement the Organic World Language method is yielding
• To Dr. Spearman for regularly providing the opportunity for self-selected work time to students and for their engagement and productivity during this time

Calendar:

• Tuesday, October 13^th
  • B-Day
  • Flex Time – Advisory
  • 6:00 – Drew Board of Directors Meeting [Eva Davis Board Room]
• Wednesday, October 14^th
  • A-Day
  • 8:00-12:15 – PSAT Administration [10/11^th Grade Students]
  • 5:30 – Cross Country Meet: APS Championship [Grant Park]
• Thursday, October 15^th
  • B-Day
  • 8:00-12:15 – PSAT Administration [8/9^th Grade Students]
• Friday, October 16^th
  • A-Day
  • 2:30-3:00 – Homecoming voting and transition to theater
  • 3:00-4:00 – Columbian Exchange Program [Theater]
  • 7:00 – Homecoming Coronation

Upcoming Events  

• October 15^th – Quarter 1 PBL Showcase – Moved to November
• October 19-23^rd – Homecoming Week
  • Monday, October 19^th
    • Celebrity/Character Day –Dress up as your favorite celebrity, character, athlete, or artist
    • 9:00-10:00 – Royal Court Breakfast
  • Tuesday, October 20^th – Together Tuesday – We will be decked from head to toe in Orange to be United against bullying
  • Wednesday, October 21^st – Breast Cancer Awareness – Wear Pink to rally against breast cancer
  • Thursday, October 22^nd – Twin Day – Find your Best Friend and plan your outfit!
  • Friday, October 23^rd
    • Grade Level Color Wars –
      • 9^th grade will be decked out in White
      • 10^th grade with shroud themselves in Grey
      • 11^th grade is having a Black-out
    • 3:00-4:00 – Pep Rally
    • 5:30-6:30 – Teacher vs. Student Basketball Game
    • 6:30-8:30 – EagleNation Bonfire
  • Saturday, October 24^th
    • 9:00-10:30 –Parade
    • 11:00-2:00 – Fall Festival
    • 7:00 –Dance
• Wednesday, October 21^st – Principal’s Coffee: Tentative Topic – Project-Based Learning [Room A301]
• Thursday, October 22nd, 6:00-7:00 pm – 9/10th Grade Parent Night
• October 28-29^th – AdvancED Accreditation External Review Visit
• Thursday, October 29th, 6:00-7:00 pm – 11th Grade Parent Night
• Friday, October 30^th – No Place for Hate Movie Night [Outdoor Classroom]
• Monday, November 2^nd – Math PBL/PrBL Planning Day
• Tuesday, November 3^rd, 6:00 – Chorus Fall Concert
• November 4-7^th – 11^th Grade College Trip [Washington, DC]
• Thursday, November 5^th – SOARING: DCS Community Arts Showcase
• Friday, November 6^th – Parent Conference Half Day
• Tuesday, November 10^th – Spanish Field Trip to Carlos Museum
• Thursday, November 12^th
  • Dance be-Cause Assembly
  • 10^th Grade Medieval Times Field Trip
  • Drew’s Got Talent

Announcements:

• Ninth Grade PSAT Registration – Ninth grade parents it is not too late to register for the PSAT, which will be administered this Thursday.  If you are still interested in registering your student, the fee is $14.00.  Please reach out to Ms. Davis (tara.davis@drewcharterschool.org), the counselor, to arrange payment.
• Reminder: PSAT Resources – Drew Senior Academy will offer the Preliminary Scholastic Aptitude Test (PSAT) to students October 14-15^th.  The PSAT is great practice for the SAT Reasoning Test which students typically take in the spring of their junior year of high school. The PSAT is a comprehensive tool that gives valuable feedback to the student and the school. Students receive scores in critical reading, math reasoning, and writing.
  • This test will be mandatory for all 10^th and 11^th grade students and will be provided at no cost to the student.
  • Interested 8^th and 9^th grade students are strongly encouraged to sign up for this test at a cost of $14.00. We feel it is beneficial for eighth and ninth graders to take the test to get a head start on improving academic skills needed for success in college.
    • 8^th Grade Students can turn in the permission slipand $14.00 cash/money order to Ms. Hudson ASAP. 
    • 9^th Grade students can turn in attached permission slip and $14.00 cash/money order to Ms. Davis/Ms. Kaney ASAP.

All Senior Academy students received official PSAT study guides during advisory last Tuesday. Students will prepare for this test over the next three weeks during advisory and PSAT practice competitions will be held. Parents are encouraged to use the following additional resources to help your student prepare:

• Click here to access collegeboard.org
• Click here to access khanacademy.org
• Hands-on-Atlanta Volunteer Opportunity Calendar – Hands-on-Atlanta publishes a calendar of volunteer opportunities on their website.  This is one of the more comprehensive calendars that I have seen and provides great opportunities for students to get involved and earn community service hours.
• Atlanta Intown Magazine’s 20 Under 20 – “Each January, we feature students from Intown’s public schools, private schools and colleges who have given back to their community in a significant way. Over the last seven years, we’ve featured students who have created their own nonprofits, have given up summer vacation to work domestically and abroad to help the less fortunate and one even helped build a library by collecting books.  The 8th annual 20 Under 20 will appear in our January 2016 issue and we are now seeking nominations of students ages 19 and younger who have committed themselves to service to the community. Nominations are welcome from teachers, counselors, administrators, parents, siblings, fellow students or community leaders. Here’s the information we need:
  • Nominator (name, relationship to nominee and contact information)
  • Nominee (Name, age, grade, school, parent or guardian names, contact information)
  • Characteristics and service: Please provide a paragraph describing why this nominee deserves recognition. Include service projects, goals, interests and areas of interest to help illustrate your point.

The deadline for nominations is Nov. 6. Please email your nominations to editor Collin Kelley at collin@atlantaintownpaper.com.”

• Reminder: Sophomore and Junior Dues –
  • Sophomore dues of $30 were announced in the 10^th Grade Town Hall on Friday.  These dues will help supplement funding from the PTA for events like Midnight Madness, Homecoming, College and Career Week and the SGA Day of Play.  A flyer about the dues is available here.
  • A schedule of payment for Junior dues is now available and outlined in the flyer available here.

Links:

• Echo – https://echo.newtechnetwork.org/
  • Echo Access Request Form (Please submit these to Ms. Mills, the registrar, in the main office)
  • Echo Parent Guide

• Link to Sign up for Constant Contact Emails

• Remind (text message and email alerts) Enrollment Instructions:
  • Ninth Grade
  • Tenth Grade
  • Eleventh Grade
• E-mail Address to Reset Echo Passwords – tech.support@drewcharterschool.org
• MyGivingPoint – http://www.mygivingpoint.org/
  • All students should have accounts to this site in order to log community service hours.  Please direct questions about community services to Ms. Kaney [rachel.kaney@drewcharterschool.org].
• Hands-on-Atlanta Volunteer Opportunity Calendar
• Eagle Nation Booster Club – http://www.dreweaglenation.org/
  • Great information about our athletic teams, including their schedules and records.

A Quote to Think About – “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.”  Nelson Mandela