Schools

Stith enjoys challenge of teaching in low-income area

By Danielle Ozbat on December 24, 2018 Schools, Teachers

Every morning as students get off the bus at Falling Creek Middle School, Cecelia Stith greets them with a hug because she said that, for some, that will be the only hug they get all day. “It’s just rewarding … to be able to give them a hug and give them the love and support and confidence by praising them and … helping them to see that what they’re capable of doing,” she said. Stith is a seventh-grade English teacher. She chose to work at schools in high-poverty areas because those students have a greater need, she said, noting that…

Teacher remembers old Enon Elementary School

By Becky Wright on December 24, 2018 Schools

There are a lot of memories about the old Enon Elementary School. Evelyn “Emmie” Billings has claim to some of those memories. She taught for 27 years at the school.. “I started in 1962,” Billings said. “Things were different then. Everything was handwritten, no cell phones, no computers, no SOLs and no teachers’ aides.” School size was also different compared to today. During the 1960s, there were two additions to the school and 14 teachers made up the faculty. The first addition in 1961 added six new classrooms to the lower hall. In 1969, a “hall of glass” was added,…

Enon gets a new elementary school

By Caleb M Soptelean on December 24, 2018 Schools

A ribbon-cutting ceremony Dec. 18 heralded the completion of the new Enon Elementary School at 2001 E. Hundred Road. Teachers were allowed to set up their classrooms Dec. 19-20, and students will report Wednesday, Jan. 2. Enon-area students have been attending “learning cottages” (trailers) at Marguerite Christian Elementary School for the past 18 months after the original Enon Elementary School – built in 1938 – was demolished in the summer of 2017. The new school was the second in Chesterfield County built using a prototype, district spokesman Shawn Smith said. Beulah Elementary School, which was the first, opened in September.…

Primrose students collect goods for food bank

By Press release on December 18, 2018 Community, Schools

On Nov. 29, preschoolers and kindergarten students from Primrose School at Ironbridge Corner helped count and box up 767 non-perishable food items to donate to Chesterfield Food Bank to help families in need. The students created detailed shopping list and shopped at Lidl. As part of the school’s Caring and Giving program, the event helps students understand the value of generosity while creating a hands-on approach to math, nutrition and planning skills.

Ewalt earns statewide award

By Press release on December 18, 2018 Community, Schools, Teachers, Uncategorized

Chester resident Kate Ewalt recently received a Virginia Association of Science Teachers Recognition in Science Education (RISE) award. The award recognizes excellence in science education at the middle school level. Ewalt is a seventh-grade life science teacher at Colonial Heights Middle School.

Ettrick Elementary earns ‘distinguished school’ status for reducing ‘achievement gaps’

By Press release on December 18, 2018 Schools

ABOVE: Students and staff at Ettrick Elementary gathered for a surprise assembly Dec. 14. Ettrick Elementary School recently was named a “distinguished school” in accord with the Elementary and Secondary Education Act.Ettrick was one of up to 100 schools throughout the country that were recognized for outstanding student achievement in 2018. Ettrick Elementary, fully accredited by the Virginia Department of Education for the past two school years, is being recognized for reducing “achievement gaps” between student groups. Examples of increased academic performance from 2014-2018 include: black students’ English academic achievement increased 25 percentage points; economically disadvantaged students’ English academic achievement…

Waller enjoys teaching math and basketball at L.C. Bird

By Danielle Ozbat on December 11, 2018 Features, Teachers

Chevette Waller’s classroom and home are a revolving door of alumni. The special education teacher and girls basketball coach has been at L.C. Bird High School for 17 years. She said her former students sometimes spend the holidays with her and play pickup games with the basketball team. Waller is a collaborative teacher in the math department. She focuses on algebra and also teaches self contained coping skills classes. Being a teacher wasn’t her original plan. After graduation from Virginia Commonwealth University, she found her way back to Bird and was a special education substitute teacher. She realized she enjoyed…

36 CCPS teachers receive Gold Star financial recognition

By Press release on December 4, 2018 Schools, Teachers

CHESTERFIELD – Thirty-six Chesterfield County teachers were recently named recipients of W!SE’s 2017-18 Gold Star Teacher award. To be considered for this national recognition, a teacher must have achieved a 93-percent pass rate in at least one class on either the Fall 2017 or Spring 2018 W!SE Financial Literacy Certification test. Chesterfield County Public Schools’ 36 recognized teachers represented nearly 6.5 percent of the 557 teachers recognized nationally for their work last school year. The Gold Star teachers from the Village News’ coverage area are: L.C. Bird High School: Brent Deaner; Thomas Dale High School: Logan Mason and Patrick Sweet;…

It’s an art: Kuper a super teacher, peers say

By Danielle Ozbat on December 4, 2018 Community, Features, Schools, Teachers

ABOVE: Amber Kuper holds a student’s art project, a hamburger made of clay. Amber Kuper believes art is a skill akin to learning to ride a bike or typing and that there is always something to show when finished with a project. In her art class at Salem Church Middle School, Kuper’s students explore this concept. “One of the things that I’m really proud of is: I try to give them some baby steps … I call it my three steps of drawing, so I try to break down this … complex idea of drawing into something more simple.” At the…

Necktie ceremony continues at Falling Creek Middle School

By Caleb M Soptelean on December 4, 2018 Activities, Charity, Schools

LEFT: Jaden Jones ties a necktie with help from Steve Knox. CENTER: Kaquan Whitus, Tevyn Bennett, Steve Knox and others. RIGHT: Khalil Anderson looks for a tie. Some good students at Falling Creek Middle School were given neckties and taught how to tie them last week. An annual event recognizes boys who have good referrals from their teachers. Sixteen were honored Nov. 29 at the school. “The sole purpose is to highlight and recognize young men with a positive attitude who understand the importance of goal-setting and being responsible,” group advisor and teacher Angela Harris said. The boys meet after school once…

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