Bits and Pieces
A Newsletter from the Superintendent
December 2, 2022
FCSD3 Students Celebrate Arbor Day
Florence School District 3’s annual observance of Arbor Day culminated Friday with an awards ceremony at the Bean Market for winners of the literacy and art contests. More than 270 students, staff, parents and community members attended the event.
Each school participated in project-based learning activities to learn more about the importance of Arbor Day. Students engaged in both literacy and art design. The theme for this year’s Arbor Day observance was “Plant, Nurture, Celebrate.”
The program included the presentation of an Arbor Day proclamation by William Hall, city administrator of Lake City, musical performances by Main Street Elementary School’s Inspirational Choir and poetry readings by Brayden Burgess (Main Street Elementary), Devin Boyington (J. C. Lynch Elementary) and Lauryn Smith (Main Street Elementary).
Chet Foyle, projector forester in Florence and Dillion counties for the South Carolina Forestry Commission, was the guest speaker.
Winners received certificates and prizes for their entries. District-level winners of the grade-level literacy contest were:
- 4K/5K Class: Debbie McAllister (Scranton Elementary), first place; Rita Holt (Lake City Early Childhood Center), second place; Dawn Frazier (J.C. Lynch Elementary), third place.
- 1st-2nd Grades: Heidi Poston (Scranton Elementary), first place; Chrystiana Godfrey (Olanta Magnet), second place; and Jeremy Hammond (Lake City Early Childhood Center), third place.
- 3rd-4th Grades: Lauryn Smith (Main Street Elementary), first place; Brayden Burgess (Main Street Elementary), second place; and Devin Boyington (J.C. Lynch Elementary), third place.
- 5th-6th Grades: Avery Thompson (J.C. Lynch Elementary), first place; Maddy Eaddy (J.C. Lynch Elementary), second place; and Grayson Hardway (Scranton Elementary), third place.
- 7th-8th Grades: Brantley Marlow, Jarmal McFadden and Kamryhn Shaw (J. Paul Truluck Magnet), first place; Derrick Croker, Kelsey Dotts, Paris Eaddy, Mylah Lee, Spohie Matthews and Serenitie McFadden (J. Paul Truluck Magnet), second place; and Nature and Beautification Club (Dr. Ronald E. McNair Junior High), third place.
District-level winners of the art contest were:
- 5K-2nd Grade: Heidi Poston (Scranton Elementary), first place; La’Mason Kennedy (Lake City Early Childhood Center), second place; and Liam Bennett (Olanta Magnet), third place.
- 3rd-4th Grades: Makeda Harvey (J.C. Lynch Elementary), first place; Jacarri McCutcheon-Hughes (Scranton Elementary), second place; and Drelyn Brooks (Olanta Magnet), third place.
- 5th-6th Grades: Asia Davis (Scranton Elementary), first place; Daniel Boyington (J.C. Lynch Elementary), second place; and Mariana Townsend (Scranton Elementary), third place.
- 7th-8th Grades: Kahbree Tedder (J. Paul Truluck Magnet), first place; Kimani Avant (J. Paul Truluck Magnet), second place; and Madeline Tedder (J. Paul Truluck Magnet), third place.
- 9th-12th Grades – Mixed Media: Tylia Merritt (Lake City High), first place; Jada Ham (Lake City High), second place; and Chandler Brandon (J. Paul Truluck Magnet), third place.
- 9th-12th Grades – Photography: Hannah Cole (J. Paul Truluck Magnet), first place; Frenchaire Myers (J. Paul Truluck Magnet), second place; and Maria Singletary (Lake City High), third place.
-----------------------------------------------------------
DREM Students Participate in Mock Interviews
Dr. Ronald E. McNair School of Digital Communication and Leadership held fall “mock” student-job interviews that were livestreamed through the media center under the direction of Tonya Campbell Wallace.
Mrs. Wallace is the business and technology instructor at DREM and teaches Career Skills & Development and Financial Literacy to eighth grade students.
Staff at DREM and FSD3 Board of Trustees members volunteered their time to serve interviewers and to help make the project a success.
Mrs. Wallace has dedicated her instruction to FSD3’s mission and vision by putting them into action at the middle school level in her classroom in order to begin preparing students for college and/or to be career ready by high their school graduation. Mrs. Wallace’s students are trained on how use job search engines like Indeed.com, how complete job applications, create and build entry-level resumes using CANVA and how to conduct themselves professionally during future college entrance and job interviews.
The students were graded on professional appearance, body language, answers to interview questions such as “What are your strengths and weaknesses?,” and answers to social-emotional, problem-solving and conflict questions pertaining to the real world.
-----------------------------------------------------------
SESA Helps the Community by Donating Canned Goods
Over 1,400 canned goods were collected in Scranton Elementary STEAM Academy’s Clemson vs. Carolina Food drive in the month of November.
It was a friendly competition between students, staff, and parents to see which team could collect more items and it was certainly a close race. Carolina emerged as the victor this year with 729 cans being donated. All of the items were donated to a local food bank that serves the community.
-----------------------------------------------------------
Lions' Club Celebrates Winners of Peace Poster Contest
Students from Olanta Creative Arts and Science Magnet School and J. Paul Truluck Creative Arts and Science Magnet School participated in the Lions' Club Peace Poster Contest during the month of November.
This contest is held at the local organization level and extends up to the national level. The purpose of the contest is to allow children who are 11 to 13 years old to express their visions of peace through visual art. There are very rigid guidelines that students must follow to qualify. This year there were about 15 entries from both schools.
School-level winners were Hayden Matthews, a sixth grader from Olanta Magnet, and Kylie Dubose, a seventh grader from J. Paul Magnet. The overall winner was Kylie Dubose.
The entries have been sent to the club's district level to be judged in the next round of competition. They will also be on display with other winners from the surrounding regions at the Lions' Club district's conference.
The students have received their certificate and will also receive a cash prize from the organization. All entries will also receive a prize as well for participating.
We are excited to continue this contest next year and look forward to many more entries. A special thanks to Rutha Frierson, a local Lion as well as an FSD3 Board of Trustees member, for giving our students the opportunity to participate.
-----------------------------------------------------------
SESA Students Work Hard and Play Hard
If you walked into the auditorium at Scranton Elementary STEAM Academy on Friday, November 18, you may have felt like you walked onto the set of a hilarious game show. Students who met both their ELA and Math MAP goals for winter earned a spot to compete and participate in SESA’s Minute to Win It Game Show.
Some students got to eat donuts on a string, stack dice on Popsicle sticks they were holding in their mouths, bottle flip, move an Oreo from their forehead to their mouth with no hands and more fun games. Winners of each round competed in the final round of eating Fruit by the Foot with no hands to see who could do it the fastest.
There was so much laughter and celebration and it was a perfect way to recognize all of their hard work.
In order to get students excited about this incentive, SESA staff members competed in their own Minute to Win It competitions and the video was shared for all to see.
Here is the link for you to enjoy as well Minute to Win It Promo MAP Winter 22.