Good News for Logan County schools in October
By Jim Turner


Posted on November 9, 2014 5:48 PM



Each month the Logan County Board of Education hears/sees a presentation about activities at the various schools and gets Good News Reports from the schools. They learned the following at the October meeting:

DISTRICT:

The District’s dark fiber network, providing 10 gigabit service to all the schools, is connected and operating.

ADAIRVILLE:

Eighth grade volleyball players were recognized during Morning Assembly and at 8th Grade Night. They are Lauren Barnes, Olivia Bouldin, Shelby Byrum, Brittany Garrett, Katie Ray Holloman, Bailey Howell and Chloe Prince.

There was an outstanding turnout for “Super Leaders” Family Math and Reading Night on Thursday, Sept. 25. Several family members came together for a family picnic; a family Super Hero Challenge; Leader in Me student presentations; fun reading, math and art activities; a puppet play; free books, math, science, and social studies activities; and so much more.

AUBURN:

Auburn conducted the annual Walk/Bike to School Day on Sept. 25. Each student received a bottle of water and certificate of participation.

Auburn Girls Volleyball took the runner-up place in the Logan County Middle School Volleyball Tournament held on Sept. 23.

CHANDLERS:

The Russellville Wal-Mart chose Chandler’s School as its 2014 – 2015 recipient for Teaching Excellence, giving away $1,000 worth of gift cards to teachers for classroom supplies.

U.S. Representative Ed Whitfield visited with students in grades 5 – 8 Friday, Sept. 26, discussing the role of government in their lives.

LEWISBURG:

Lewisburg had a great turnout for Family Fun Night, with the community enjoying a PTO fundraiser.

Data Day on Sept. 15 was very beneficial for all staff.

Grow Your Own’s first session was well attended by Lewisburg staff with many positive comments.

OLMSTEAD:

Teacher Nathan Powell along with students Ethan Haley, Jaden Hayes and Rachel Taylor presented a Fall Treee of Knowledge demonstration at the school board meeting. Each Olmstead middle school student is given a leaf to display something they have learned this year. They write out the standard, create and solve a problem on the leaf. Once finished, the leaves are displayed on a tree trunk in the hallway at Olmstead School.

Olmstead’s library hosted Dr. Rick Gregory, local expert on the Black Patch and Tobacco Wars which gripped our region around the turn of the century. Dr. Gregory spent the morning sharing stories of our county and its involvement in the conflict. Dr. Gregory is the host for the outdoor dramas "Smoke" and "The Bell Witch", both set in Adams, Tenn.

Olmstead Elementary is ranked in the 98th percentile in the state and Olmstead Middle is ranked in the 96th percentile, both labeled Schools of Distinction by the Kentucky Department of Education.

Olmstead 8th graders visited Octagon Hall, an antebellum home in Simpson County as they hosted Civil War (War of Northern Aggression) reenactors who share history of this turbulent time in our nation's history.

Olmstead Rambassadors for the 2014-15 school year have been selected. They are Carlie Alvis, Jaden Hayes, Hunter Hadden, Dylan Penick, Hannah Matthews, Nathan Cates, Harley Robertson, Rachel Taylor, Blake Wood, Blayke Bingham, Ashlyn Tracey, and Price Violette. The Rambassadors are selected though an application process and serve as hosts, role models and representatives for Olmstead.

Olmstead recently held its annual Fall Festival where, with the help of our student, families, and community, we raised over $10,000 to be used for classroom supplies and teaching materials.

LCAS:

The LCAS had one student complete the program before fall break and is expecting another to complete the program the first week back.

LCHS:

On Sept. 27, the LCHS Cougar Band competed at the WEHS Raider Invitational and received the following awards: 1st Place AAAA, Best Percussion Class AAAA and Best Color Guard Class AAAA.

RATC:

Kudos to SkillsUSA for sponsoring a float in the Tobacco & Heritage Festival Parade on Saturday, taking second place for a nonprofit organization. It was the first time the school’s SkillsUSA has participated in this event.

Seniors who participated in the Monster.com event in Bowling Green were part of over 400 students from the Barren River Area Develop District. Students were motivated to network with peers and develop their “personal brand,” while learning specific tips on résumé preparation, job interviewing skills, college planning and financial aid resources.

As part of its continued effort to meet CCR as of October 10, 2014, RATC has 52 LCHS students that have received industry certifications in the areas of Automotive – 13 certifications given, Internet and Computing Core Certification (IC3) – 30 certifications given, Microsoft Technology Associate (MTA) – 1 certification given, and State Registered Nursing Assistant (SRNA) – 8 certifications given.

SUPERINTENDENT’S REPORT:

Dr. Kevin Hub said, “In the three short weeks since our last board meeting, we have celebrated our student achievement results and enjoyed Fall Break. Before Fall Break, I met for the second time with each of the teams working in Central Office. We shared a potluck breakfast and discussed “Shaping a Positive Culture.” I’m so appreciative of the hard work and support seen every day in the office. I hope visitors to the office are seeing an increased focus on positivity, customer service and support.

“Fall Break was a busy time for our Tech Staff. They deployed two computer labs at the high school, one lab at Chandlers, and several SmartBoards throughout the district. This week we will begin to see the benefit of the ‘dark fiber’ initiative, resulting in Intranet speeds nearly 100 times faster than before. We are also nearing the delivery date of almost 200 computer workstations and monitors from a partner agency in Frankfort. This partnership will essentially free up more than $200,000 to be spent on other instructional initiatives.

“I spent some of my time during the break establishing relationships with several regional universities. I think we deserve more student teachers. That will increase our applicant pool and make them better teachers by having them see the instruction in our classrooms. The feedback has been positive, beginning with an offer to address each of WKU’s fall student teachers as part of a panel discussion later this month. My goal is to get in front of teacher candidates early in their college career and share the successes of our schools. I hope this will result in more and better teachers to fill our certified vacancies.

“Tomorrow night will be the second session of our Grow Your Own (GYO) program. The purpose of this program is to promote leadership development and growth; build positive relationships among teachers and staff; foster the development of positive, professional learning communities; and improve the individual performance of staff in our schools. It was exciting to see more than 80 people attend the first session.

“Earlier today, I visited several classrooms at Olmstead. I’m so impressed with the dedication and hard work of our students and staff. Visiting classrooms, and seeing teachers teach, validates the high scores we see each year. This week is National School Lunch Week, and I joined Mr. Kemplin as we served lunch for an hour at Olmstead. Lots of chicken nuggets, mashed potatoes and green beans were served, along with smiles from the cafeteria staff.

“This week’s Leadership Logan session is “Education Day”. Among other places, we will visit Auburn School, the Adult Education Center, Logan County High School, and the Russellville Area Technology Center.

“I’m also excited to share that on Friday, Nov. 7, we will get a visit from KDE Chief of Staff, Dr. Tommy Floyd. I worked with Tommy for several years, serving as his assistant superintendent for nearly six years. He’s excited to see the great things we do for students in Logan County, and I’m excited to welcome him here.

“At our Nov. 11 Board meeting, we will meet with each SBDM Council. The Board and I look forward to a casual and collegial environment where real discussions on what schools need will be the focus.”

 


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