A Note from the Leadership Desk
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Hello Friendship Academy Community!
My name is Dr. B. Charvez Russell, and I am your Executive Director. It is a privilege to serve the families and community of Friendship Academy of the Arts. Our theme this year is “Journey to Excellence,” which we have carried over from last year.
Here are a few updates:
- This is our first year with a middle school program (grades 5-7), after many years of parent interest.
- Our scholars’ Minnesota Comprehensive Assessment (MCA) scores continue to exceed expectations! We are a Star Tribune’s ‘Beating the Odds’ school for the 7th consecutive year.
- Our plans to expand in the Fall of 2020 are progressing. We have identified a property located within 5 minutes of our current site, which will serve grades 2-8. Our current location will have two classrooms of Kindergarten and 1st grade each.
- We have chosen a mascot, the Friendship STAR, at the suggestion of our 2018-19 student council. This is also an acronym that stands for Scholars Taking Action Responsibly.
More information is coming soon. We look forward to partnering with you on the next phase to Friendship Academy’s Journey to Excellence.
Thank you for trusting us with your child’s education.
Dr. B. Charvez Russell
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Week of October 7
Monday, October 7
Freedom School begins (4-5:30 p.m.)
Tuesday, October 8
Family Collaboration Meeting, 5:30-6:30 p.m. -- "Understanding Your Child's Test Scores" with Dr. Charvez Russell
Saturday, October 12
First day of coding class with Black Data Processing Associates--
register here
Week of October 14
Student Council Elections
Monday, October 14
Picture Day
Wednesday, October 16
Family Conferences
Thursday, October 17
Record-Keeping Day
Friday, October 18
Community Brunch, 11 a.m. - 2 p.m.
Record Keeping Day
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Our middle school program is off to a great start! A few weeks ago, our first-ever seventh grade class had the opportunity to do a science experiment using bottles of soda and Mentos with their science teacher, Ms. Tiffini Forslund.
Ms. Tiffini says:
"
The Pepsi/Mentos experiment was a physical reaction. In science the scholars learned that a
chemical reaction
changes
the makeup of the materials used, while a
physical reaction
does
not
change the materials. We discovered that the explosion happens because of the chemicals in the candy coating, and the carbon dioxide in the soda. We also looked at all the chemicals that are used in making soda."
You can read all about the science behind this experiment at
Scientific American
and learn how to do it yourself.
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Family Member of the Month
We'd like to thank Awana Moye for stepping up at our last Family Collaboration Meeting! Ms. Moye is a brand new Friendship family member who joined us at the start of this year. She runs A Wanna Massage? LLC, a massage business providing deep tissue, neuromuscular, and custom massage techniques. At our last Family Collaboration Meeting, Ms. Moye talked about how important wellness and self-care are. She presented her methods--and even offered free massages to attendees! Thank you to Ms. Moye for joining our community this year.
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Staff Shoutout
Family and Community Collaboration Team
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The Family and Community Collaboration (FCC) team is made up of 6 Friendship Academy staff:
- Ms. Juan Effiom, Marketing Director and Office Administration
- Ms. Lyn Smith, Fourth Grade Support Staff
- Mrs. Anna Phillips, Reading Specialist and Testing Coordinator
- Ms. Yolanda Lawhorn, First Grade Support Staff
- Ms. Angelica Sandoval-Martinez, Fourth Grade Teacher
- Ms. M.L. Kenney, Communications and Fundraising Coordinator
We focus on strengthening partnerships between family, school and community. We also oversee school volunteers, a family "Buddy System," and all Family Collaboration Meetings. We welcome your collaboration with us!
To learn about more ways to support your scholar's education, please email M.L. Kenney at mkenney@friendshipacademy.org, or call the main office at 612-879-6703 with any questions about how to get more involved.
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