On Tuesday, February 21st, students at New Bern High School participated in their Black History Month Celebration. The ceremony was sponsored by The Thurgood Marshall Club and included performances by cheer, step team, chorus, and theater.

Congratulations to our very own Havelock High School #NCJrChef finalists from Ms. Jessica Gardner’s Foods class. They will compete with seven other schools next month in the state cook-off for the best school lunch entree recipe.

After reviewing the feedback from the judges and a few minor tweaks to the recipe for the best results, the HHS JrChefs will record the preparation of the final product for submission in the final round. Judges will focus on many aspects including food safety. Ingredients must include 2 local food products and a cost analysis.

This entree may be a new menu item next year for students through the school nutrition program.

Best of luck to our JrChefs, Angela and McKenna! We will be anxiously awaiting the results on March 30th.

Educators Take Flight with the Civil Air Patrol

Three Craven County School educators experienced the thrill of aviation thanks to the Civil Air Patrol’s Aerospace Education Membership (AEM) program. The forty-five-minute-long flights in single-engine Cessna aircraft introduced the educators to the science that makes flight possible. The group met at the D2 Flight Academy in New Bern at 8:30 am on February 21, 2023. 

“I serve as the Aerospace Education Officer for my squadron. Typically, senior members are able to receive training to fly in an aircraft to serve as crew for missions, but they don’t get to fly the plane. As an educator, I was stoked to get the chance to be in the pilot’s chair. I want to take that thrill and exhilaration back to the students in my school,” explained Racheal Gliniak, Assistant Principal at HJ MacDonald Middle School.

After the flight brief and preflight of the aircraft, April Wimmer, a JROTC instructor from West Craven High School, was the first to take flight. Working with their pilot, Captain Matthew Blair, CAP, the educators were each given an opportunity to take the controls in the front seat. After flying over West Craven High School, they returned to the airport for Chantel Fortescue, a District Instructional Technology Facilitator, to move into the pilot’s seat. Last, Racheal Gliniak, flew over her school, HJ MacDonald Middle.

One of April Wimmer’s seniors, Luther Jones, said, “Lt. Col. Wimmer demonstrated that Eagles have no boundaries by flying an aircraft around our campus. Taking through the storm and rising above to a whole new altitude.” After returning to H J MacDonald Middle School, multiple students shared that they were excited to watch the plane. One student stated, “I watch Top Gun every day. I want to go with you next time!”

The Teacher Orientation Program (TOP) Flight aims to help teachers learn more about aviation and how STEM principles throughout the flight so they can share the excitement with their students. Through the AEM program, educators can access free aerospace and STEM opportunities and resources for ages K-12. This includes curriculum materials, STEM Kits, TOP Flights, and more.   

When sharing about what she was most looking forward to, April Wimmer explained, “My first memory of flying was with my uncle when I was a little girl. As we went through the pre-flight inspection, I remember thinking how smart he must be to remember that much information and know all the parts of the plane. Today’s pre-flight with Captain Blair was just as impressive and brought back wonderful memories of my uncle.”

The day began by helping preflight their aircraft. Working with their pilot, they taxied their aircraft to Coastal Carolina Regional Airport’s runway, gave it full throttle, and took off, climbing to around 3,000 feet. While aloft, the educators were handling the controls during the noncritical stages of the flight. 

After her flight, Chantel Fortescue, District Technology Facilitator, was filled with excitement. She said, “We flew over my house!” When asked what advice she had for other educators, she encouraged them to take the leap and sign up as an Aerospace Education Member so they can open the door to multiple resources and opportunities for their students and themselves. 

Civil Air Patrol pilot, Captain Matthew Blair, has done a fair share of cadet orientation flights over the last year. He shared that flying teachers is like taking cadets up for their first orientation flight, only with adults. After completing two of the three TOP Flights for the day, Captain Blair said, “The best part was seeing the smile on their face.”

For more information about joining as an Aerospace Education Member, visit https://www.gocivilairpatrol.com/programs/aerospace-education/for-educators. Membership is open to teachers, counselors, principals, superintendents, librarians, youth organization leaders, and more. Schools can use funding to cover the one-time $35 membership application fee. The Civil Air Patrol’s Cadet Program is open to youth aged 12 through 18. Additionally, there are volunteer opportunities for adults, pilots, and non-pilots alike that wish to join. For more information, visit GoCivilAirPatrol.com.

Literacy Instructional Standard Learning Series

 for All Content Areas

The NCDPI Office of Academic Standards will begin offering a Literacy Instructional Standard Learning Series in November and span through spring of 2023. These state-wide, virtual professional learning opportunities will focus on integrating the Literacy Instruction Standards (LIS) into standards-aligned content area instruction. The sessions are open to all K-12 educators (all content areas, including exceptional children's staff) and would greatly benefit your literacy leadership teams in building strong, standardized research proven instructional standards in all content areas. The sessions will support your Adolescent Literacy Leadership teams with implementation of their improvement goals. 

As you are developing your implementation plans for NC SIP, district literacy instruction plans, evaluating and modifying literacy curriculum and instructional methods, please consider these sessions as a resource and professional development to support your adolescent literacy improvement goals and content area literacy instructional practices.

Content Area Literacy Instructional Standards Learning Series

The following sessions will be offered this school year: 

Literacy in Social Studies: April 27, 2023

Literacy in ELD: May 11, 2023

For more information and where to register, please see the LIS Learning Series Promo.

If you have not already joined the ELA listserv, please consider subscribing to get the most up to date information and very valuable resources to support adolescent literacy instructional practices aligned to standards. To subscribe to the listserv, click here and navigate to the ELA SCOOP section of the page. Also, please find the latest edition of The ELA SCOOP on this page, which is the NCDPI ELA Section's quarterly newsletter full of valuable resources for implementation support.

2023-2024 Reassignments - Window Opens March 1, 2023

The 2023/2024 school reassignment window will be March 1-31, 2023. Beginning March 1st, forms will be available on the district website under Students & Families > Student Support Services > Reassignments and Releases. If needed, a paper copy of the form will be available at the school. Forms must be submitted by March 31, 2023 and can be submitted to the school or at the Board of Education. A separate form must be completed for each student requesting reassignment. Parents will be notified of the decision by the end of April. Note: If you had an approved reassignment for this current school year and want to continue, a new form(s) must be submitted for 2023-2024 during this window.

FAFSA is Open!

The 2022-2023 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) cycle is open!

Completing the application is a necessary step for prospective college students to receive financial aid. Not only does it make you eligible for federal aid, such as Pell Grants or work-study programs, but North Carolina’s colleges and universities also use the form to divvy up state aid.

The form is open until June 30, 2023. Many North Carolina schools give out aid on a first-come, first-served basis, so it’s best to fill it out as soon as possible, even if you haven’t finalized your plans.