October 11, 2019
Bright Star Students Rewarded with Bikes
October 2 was a day full of surprises for a group of adults and children!

The Douglas County Chamber of Commerce hosted the Build It: Team Building Workshop at Georgia Highlands College. Participating businesses and organizations believed they were gathered for a team-building session that involved assembling bikes that they thought would be used in a race against other teams in the workshop. After hours of building the bikes, they were surprised to find out that the bicycle "inspectors" who showed up were actually a group of deserving students from Bright Star Elementary who would be surprised with free bikes!

The children from Bright Star earned the opportunity for the free bikes by writing winning essays, but they believed that their reward was a field trip in Douglas County. They were as surprised as the workshop participants to learn they won free bikes!

"We appreciate our close relationship with the Douglas County Chamber of Commerce," said Superintendent Trent North. "This is just one example of how they support our students and the school system as a whole. In addition to the Chamber, I would like to thank Cobb & Douglas Public Health, DeNyse Companies, Douglas Dental Care, and Georgia Highlands College for their contributions to this project."
DCHS Defeats Reigning Champs on High Q
"The kinetic frictional force on an object is given by a coefficient mu times what force that acts perpendicular to a normal surface?" and "What author of the Aeneid guides Dante through Hell and Purgatory in The Divine Comedy?"

These are examples of questions that can pop up for high school students competing on WSB-TV's High Q competition.

Douglas County High School's Scholar Bowl Team, coached by Victoria Burnett, won the county tournament for the 13th year in a row and now represents the Douglas County School System on High Q. They recently defeated 2019 champions, North Atlanta High School! The team will move to the second round against Oconee High School on February 1, 2020. The program airs on Sundays at 1:00 pm.

Pictured above are Katie Walls, host of High Q; Faith Guger; Neah Danku; Lloyd Bush, question writer for High Q; Leine Frutoz; and team captain Ayesha Saeed.

For more information on High Q, click here.

(And in case you are wondering, the answer to the first question is Normal Force. The answer to the second question is Virgil.)
Parents: We Need Your Input for the Strategic Plan
Parents, the Douglas County School System is developing the Strategic Plan for 2020-2025, and we need your suggestions on how we can make our schools the best they can be.

Please look for an email from Hanover Research on or around October 16. The email will contain a link to an important survey regarding the school system’s Strategic Plan. The survey should take 10 or fewer minutes to complete and will include questions about the instructional program, our communication with stakeholders, and resources provided to our students and staff.

Thank you in advance for helping us identify school system priorities for the next five years.
Good Luck to the LSHS and AHS Softball Teams!
Both the Lithia Springs region 6-AAAAA softball champions and the Alexander High School softball team defeated their opponents on October 8 in exciting double headers!

LSHS beat Clarke Central and will advance to the next round of state playoffs on October 16 in a double header against Jones County at 4:00. The games will be played at LSHS.

Alexander finished 2nd in Region 5-AAAAAA and went on to beat number 3 seed Dunwoody. The Cougars will next face Evans on October 15 at 3:00 in a double header. The game will be played at Evans.
We Appreciate Our Community Partners!
The Rotary Club of Douglas County generously donated almost 1,600 backpacks to Douglas County School System students at the beginning of this school year. Some schools gave the backpacks to students who showed up the first day of school without one, and some are using them to send pantry items home with students.

“This act of giving by Rotary Club is amazing,” said Jill Smith, homeless and foster services coordinator for the school system. “The Club invited every school that has a significant number of students with need to go to their warehouse and get up to 60 backpacks each."

“The Rotary Club of Douglas County is committed to our community and the children within it,” said Amy Hayes, Club president. “We feel honored to have the opportunity to assist so many students this school year with such a simple but critical need.”

The Rotary Club also gave backpacks to A Gift of Love, the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office, and the Douglasville Police Department.
Jayda Young is kind, determined, positive, and respectful to everyone she encounters. She is a great student and athlete. She is described as “fierce” on the softball field and in the classroom while still being positive and respectful. Jayda skillfully balances school and her aspirations to be a top athlete. Her ability to accomplish so much is an extension of the support she receives from her parents. She is Turner Middle School’s All Conference Softball Player for the 2019-2020 school year, the first 6th grader in recent school history to hold this title. Congratulations, Jayda!
Reminder for 8th Grade Parents:
Magnet Information Sessions Are Underway!
NMHS Will Hold Magnet Meeting October 16
Did you know that all five high schools in Douglas County offer a magnet program? Students in 8th grade may apply to attend any of the high schools in the county or the Academy at CCI. 

Applications for the magnet programs at all five high schools are due on Monday, December 16, 2019, for the 2020-2021 school year. For the Academy at CCI, students may register for the lottery between January 10, 2020, and January 29, 2020.

For a list of informational meetings at each school and other important dates, please click the link below. Please consult each school's website for details on the various programs.

Free Christmas Gifts for Eligible Children!
Children enrolled in Douglas County schools and their younger siblings may once again receive a free Christmas gift through the generosity of the folks at Operation Christmas Douglas County. Among the fabulous gifts available this year are accessories for Wii, Xbox 360, Nintendo, and Playstation. Each registrant will also have a chance to receive one of over 200 donated bicycles in addition to their gift.

To qualify, children must reside in Douglas County and receive free or reduced price lunch. This is a community effort and is not sponsored by the school system.

To register for this opportunity, please go to the link below where you will find registration links in English and Spanish. The deadline to register is November 10.

Upcoming Events
October 14, 15: Holidays (Except for 240 Employees)
October 14 (Week of): National School Lunch Week
October 16: Magnet (FAME) Info Meeting at NMHS
October 21: Board of Education Meeting
October 21 (Week of): National School Bus Safety Week
October 23-31: Red Ribbon Week
October 23: Magnet (IB) Info Meeting at DCHS
October 30: Magnet (STEM) Info Meeting at LSHS
To apply for Principal 4 A Day online, click here .
Check out opportunities that are available in our area by clicking the Community Bulletin Board below!
Douglas County School System |770-651-2000 | response@dcssga.org | dcssga.org