Academies of Finance at East Forsyth High and West Forsyth High Receive Top Ranking

Elizabeth Byrd of West Forsyth and Jennifer Haymes of East Forsyth

The East Forsyth High School Academy of Finance and the West Forsyth High School Academy of Finance have been awarded Model status by the National Academy Foundation.

Model status is the highest ranking given to an academy, and the academies at East and West were among only 77 academies across the country awarded that status.

The National Academy Foundation is a network of academies designed to – through a business curriculum, work-based learning experiences and contacts with business professionals - help students enter careers in business. More than 500 academies in 39 states serve more than 62,000 students.

Cheryl Cox directs the academies for Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools. Jennifer Haymes is the site coordinator at East, and Leslie Martin is the site coordinator at West.

“The Academies of Finance at East and West Forsyth High Schools are very proud of receiving the Model award from the National Academy Foundation. This award demonstrates the wonderful job and results of teachers, students, principals, community leads and businesses working together to bring real life world-work experiences to the next generation of professionals,” Cox said. “Thank you Winston -Salem for your continued support!”

In a release, J.D. Hoye, the president of the foundation, said, “These schools are shining examples of what can be accomplished when districts and schools move to a culture of linking education and business to benefit students.”

Volunteers Paint Picnic Tables and Spread Mulch at Kimberley Park Elementary

Volunteers paint picnic tables

Volunteers with Calvary Baptist Church work to support Kimberley Park Elementary School throughout the year. During the summer, they take on special projects, and, earlier this month, volunteers spent several days at Kimberley Park doing such things as painting the picnic tables that sit near the pond, painting a mural on a wall in a hallway and putting mulch around trees and other plants.

Last summer, the Calvary volunteers built the pond at Kimberley Park with the support of Jeff Porter, owner of Porter’s Lawn & Landscaping in Clemmons; Triumph Actuation Systems in Clemmons; a Lowe’s Toolbox for Education grant; Belk department store, and Habitat for Humanity of Forsyth County.

Looking at the pond and the area surrounding it, Suzanne Reed, who oversees the Calvary program at Kimberley Park, said, “This is a place of beauty.”

During a previous summer, Calvary volunteers painted a mural in the cafeteria. During the regular school year, Calvary volunteers do such things as organize a monthly meal for members of the staff and a monthly recognition for students who are excelling in one way or another. “I am here year-round,” Reed said. “This is our fifth year….We’re trying to be here for the long haul and be present throughout the year.”

Reed said that Principal Amber Baker knows that “if she needs help, she can give a call.”

The work at Kimberley Park earlier this month was done in coordination with an annual event called Community: Serve in which volunteers from a number of churches undertake projects throughout the community during the same week.

Student Art in July 2013 Issue of Forsyth Family Magazine

By Tumi Mabaso, Atkins Academic & Technology High School

By Ivana Bogdan, Career Center

By Larry Rogers, Reynolds High School

By Miriam Martincova, Mount Tabor High School

This art by students is featured in the July 2013 issue of Forsyth Family magazine. Mabaso's art teacher is Janet Blakely. Bogdan's art teacher is Shawn Beard. Ashley Hurst is Rogers' art teacher, and Alice Morley is Martincova's art teacher.

You will find the art of page 78.

School System Featured in Report on Student Achievement

The Center for American Progress has released a report that looks at progress in student achievement in Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools.

Called “Common Strategies for Uncommon Achievement: How Districts Enable and Support High-Performing Schools,” the report focuses on three North Carolina school districts and the steps they took from 2008 to 2011 to support student achievement.

The part about Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools focuses on the implementation of Single School Culture. The report details the system’s critical friend relationship with the School District of Palm Beach County, how schools implementing Single Cool Culture fared compared to other schools in North Carolina, and Principal Sharon Richardson's instructional leadership at Northwest Middle School.

The success of Forest Park Elementary, Hall-Woodward Elementary, Kennedy Learning Center, and Carver High between 2008 to 2011 is featured within the report's data analysis.

 “Well done, everyone!” said Bud Harrelson, the school system’s Program Manager for School Improvement and its Race to the Top Coordinator.

You can find author Robert Hanna's blog post at  Hanna blog. 

Here is a direct link to the report.