DCSS Outscores State in Beating the Odds Analysis

January 17, 2020

A Gift of Literacy for All Babies Born at WellStar

Every baby born in Douglas County will now receive a special book before leaving the hospital, thanks to the Douglas County School System and the L4GA literacy grant.

On January 9, Superintendent Trent North presented WellStar Douglas Hospital President Craig Owens with 1,000 hardback copies of Love You Forever , a sweet story by Robert Munsch about the everlasting bond of love between a parent and child. The presentation took place at a Chamber of Commerce breakfast sponsored by the hospital.

In addition to the book, the new parents will receive a brochure from the school system with tips and resources for early learning. "Literacy is the foundation for success in all areas," said Superintendent North. "We are thrilled that we have the resources to provide a book to every baby born in our community. They are our future students, and we want them to be ready to learn on the first day of school. The grant allows us to spread literacy throughout the community to even our very youngest citizens."

Under the direction of sponsor Dr. Dianna Johnson, FBLA members at Douglas County High School contributed to the project by affixing a book plate in every book indicating that the book is a gift from the school system. Club members also placed a brochure in each book and packed them in boxes for the hospital nurses to distribute.

The book donations are made possible through a grant from the Georgia Department of Education. Douglas County is one of 38 school districts in Georgia awarded the Literacy for Learning, Living, and Leading in Georgia (L4GA) grant. The award included $1.6 million to improve student literacy learning.

Pictured above are FBLA members and WellStar President Craig Owens with Superintendent North.

Investigative Learning at YMS

Mrs. Whitfield, 8th grade ELA teacher at Yeager Middle School, created a cross-curricular challenge where her students engaged in conducting crime scene investigations. With peer support, students found clues, answered questions, wrote incident reports, and used their imagination to discover who was involved in illegal activities. This powerful learning experience gave Mrs. Whitfield's ELA students an opportunity to use critical thinking skills with various STEM components.

Bowling for Special Olympics

Students Learn Skills, Enjoy Time in the Community

Students had a blast in the Special Olympics winter bowling tournaments at Southern Lanes in November and December! Elementary, middle, and high school athletes enjoyed bowling and eating pizza at the tournament. They competed for individual ribbons, and the team with the highest score at each tournament received a trophy.

The highest team score winners were David Rahn's class at Mason Creek Elementary, Angie Maxwell's class at Sweetwater Elementary, Wendi Osborne and Lisa Daniels' classes at Mason Creek Middle School, Linda Dutro's class from New Manchester High School, and Stephanie Hilicus' class from Alexander High School.

Congratulations to all of our participants and winners!

Parent Meeting on Dual Enrollment

Parents of high school students will want to attend one of two meetings regarding dual enrollment. This highly popular program allows students who qualify to enroll on a part-time or full-time basis as a dual enrollment student and take college courses at their high school or on a post-secondary campus. Students receive high school and college credit simultaneously when attending and passing approved college classes.

The first meeting will take place on Wednesday, February 12, 6:30 pm in the theater at Douglas County High School. A second meeting will take place on Wednesday, February 26, 6:30 pm in the theater at Chapel Hill High School. Representatives from West Georgia Technical College and Georgia Highlands will make presentations.

Pictured are 2019 New Manchester High School graduates Alexandra Gaytan and Cristian Gonzalez. Through dual enrollment, they not only earned a high school diploma last May, but also earned a college associate degree.

Parents may direct any questions to their high school counselor or career center specialist. Additional information is also available on the GA Department of Education website . Rules for dual enrollment are established by the Georgia Legislature and are subject to change.

DCSS Outscores State in "Beating the Odds" Analysis

Twenty-six schools in Douglas County were designated as either “Beating the Odds” or performing “Within Expected Range” on the 2019 College and Career Ready Performance Index (CCRPI), according to calculations by the Governor’s Office of Student Achievement released December 19, 2019. Fourteen schools earned the distinction of “Beating the Odds,” while 12 schools scored “Within Expected Range.” There are 33 schools in the Douglas County School System.

The CCRPI is Georgia’s statewide accountability system. It measures schools and school districts on a 100-point scale based on multiple indicators of performance.

The Beating the Odds analysis compares a school’s actual performance on the CCRPI with the performance of schools with similar characteristics across the state. The analysis predicts a range within which a school’s CCRPI score is statistically expected to fall based on school characteristics typically considered outside of a school’s control, including student transiency and student demographics of race/ethnicity, gender, disability, English language learners, and poverty. If a school’s actual CCRPI score is above the predicted range, then that school Beat the Odds.

“While we are proud of the 14 schools that qualified for the Beating the Odds designation for 2019 and the 12 schools that scored Within Expected Range, we recognize that we still have much work to do,” said Superintendent Trent North. “We not only want all of our schools to ‘Beat the Odds,’ we also want our schools to score at a high level on the CCRPI regardless of the characteristics that are taken into account on the Beat the Odds analysis. We will continue to add resources and refine our instructional strategies so that all students are prepared for college and career. ”

Elementary schools in Douglas County that Beat the Odds for 2019 include Beulah, Bill Arp, Chapel Hill, Eastside, Factory Shoals, Holly Springs, Sweetwater, and Winston. Middle schools that Beat the Odds for 2019 include Chapel Hill, Chestnut Log, Stewart, Turner, and Yeager. At the high school level, New Manchester High School was designated as a Beating the Odds school.

Schools that scored Within Expected Range include Alexander High School, Burnett Elementary, Chapel Hill High School, Dorsett Shoals Elementary, Douglas County High School, Factory Shoals Middle School, Lithia Springs High School, Mason Creek Middle School, Mirror Lake Elementary, Mt. Carmel Elementary, North Douglas Elementary, and South Douglas Elementary.

79% of the schools in Douglas County were designated Beating the Odds or scored Within Expected Range in 2019, which compares favorably to schools statewide at 71%. In addition, 42% of schools in Douglas County were designated Beating the Odds, compared to 31% statewide.

Please click below for further information on the Beating the Odds analysis from the Governor’s Office of Student Achievement.

Beating the Odds Analysis

Stand Up and Be Counted in the 2020 Census!

It's very important that everyone participate in the 2020 Census. The Census count impacts federal funds our community and school system receive. School system programs impacted through the Census count include special education, Head Start, after-school programs, classroom technology, and food assistance, including free and reduced-price school lunches. Please take a moment to watch this video message about the Census from Douglas County Commission Chair Romona Jackson Jones.

Laila Bempah is a model student! She excels in all she does in her academic classes and extracurricular activities. She is a member of the CNN news team, BETA club, and is a 4-H officer. She is the school's character education representative for “responsibility”. Laila is well-liked by her teachers and classmates. She embodies the Chapel Hill Elementary School spirit and is always willing to go above and beyond to get her work done!

Kailey Belcher, a senior at Chapel Hill High School (CHHS), is an Advanced Placement and Honor student with a 4.0 GPA. She is a member of the National Honor Society, National Spanish Honor Society, a Peer Mediator, an AP Ambassador, a member of the yearbook staff, the Youth Leadership Program, the Youth Leadership Mentor Program, and serves as Executive Vice President of the SGA. She is also a member of the Varsity Competition Cheer team and Captain of the Varsity Football Sideline Cheer team. And if all of that doesn’t keep her busy enough, she owns and operates her own small business, “Kailey’s Balloons”, where she creates balloon art for events!

As the reigning 2019 Homecoming Queen, Kailey not only has the admiration of her peers, but also displays character traits that make her one of the stars at CHHS. After high school graduation, Kailey plans to attend a four year university to major in Public Health and minor in Spanish. She then plans to attend medical school to become a pediatrician.