Members of the Barrow County Board of Education, parents and educators gave students who participate in Kennedy Elementary School’s Special Friends Program a standing ovation recently after Principal Ryan Butcher described the remarkable relationship that unfolds between special needs kids at his school and their “special friends.”
“We have an increased percentage of special needs students at Kennedy Elementary,” Butcher said. “And we have 22 student peers who work with these kids to help give them the love and support they need to be successful.”
Butcher said the “special friends” do everything from helping their special needs friend off the bus, to getting them settled for the day, to eating lunch or reading with them.
“They are learning to put others first,” Butcher said, adding that these students in particular exemplify the Kennedy core values of “Ready, Respectful and Responsible.”
Current participants in the elementary school program are: Gracie Bailey, Ingrid Caicedo, Leslie Cervantes, Alyssa Clark, Casey Cole, Claire Cole, Quinterial Durden, David Garces, Destiny Gibbs, Davis Hayes, Shawn Key, Destiny Tanner, Kate Thompson, Amberly Truelove, Alyssa Wachtel, Shedrick Washington and Hannah Watson.
STATHAM ELEMENTARY TEACHERS RECOGNIZED
In other recognitions at Tuesday’s board meeting, Statham Elementary School principal Mac Almond credited 44-year teaching veteran Karen Bliss with “giving heart, soul and hope to so many children” during her career. He said when he came to Statham Elementary as a new elementary principal, with years of experience in middle and high school, he felt a little out of place, but “immediately recognized” Bliss as “one of the best teachers in the school.”
Bliss was recently recognized by 11 Alive News in Atlanta as a “Class Act” Teacher.
Almond also recognized Statham Elementary teacher Paige Ostrander for her diligent efforts in “building a trusting connecting between our school and (Spanish speaking) parents and students.”
For the past two years Ostrander has held informal English Language Learners (ELL) classes for Hispanic parents at the school on Tuesday evenings.
MIDDLE SCHOOL ACHIEVEMENTS
Superinendent Wanda Creel recognized the system’s middle schools for “working extremely hard this year” and achieving the following state and nation-wide recognitions: Haymon-Morris Middle School, Principal Sheila Kahrs, a National Breakthrough School; Westside Middle School, Principal Eli Welch, a Georgia School of Excellence; Russell Middle School, Principal Rob Johnson, a Statewide Accountability System Silver Award winner; and Bronze Award winner Winder-Barrow Middle School Principal Jennifer Wood.
Russsell Middle, Westside Middle and Winder-Barrow Middle were all also recognized as Title I Distinguished Schools.
OTHER AWARDS
Bethlehem Elementary was named “Clean School of the Month” for February.
Holsenbeck Elementary won the elementary “School Staff Attendance Award” for February with 92.5 percent all staff attendance; Westside Middle won in the middle/high school category 92.4 percent.
