The month of May has arrived. SCS has had an amazing school year filled with increases in student achievement in academics and athletics, as well as increases in opportunities for artistic expression and career preparation. The week of May 8-12 is deemed National Teacher Appreciation Week. Please be sure to help us in celebrating our teachers and the work they do each and every day. The school year may be coming to a close, but opportunities continue for students throughout the summer. Please take a moment to look through the Summer Handbook and take advantage of these great opportunities that are in place as we continue to equip everyone for excellence. Go Aggies!

Dr. Michele Eller,

Superintendent

Click the image above for a list of end-of-the-year dates and summer program information!

We are so proud of how hard our 2nd-grade students worked on the yearly ACAP Summative assessment. We know your hard work will pay off.

In April, IVES staff and students brought awareness to Autism. Teachers were provided treats as we celebrated our wonderful students.

The Pre-K students enjoyed a trip to the Montgomery Zoo. They had fun pointing out the animals they studied in class.

We are proud of the students from Ms. Collier's class as they participated in the Special Olympics in Lincoln. They represented IVES well! Thank you Peer Helpers and Aggie Ambassadors for the fun send-off.

On April 21st the second-grade students enjoyed showcasing their career projects. Students created a display board and shared facts about their future careers. Parents enjoyed learning what the students wanted to be when they grew up.

Pre-K students enjoyed learning about the lifecycle of butterflies with edible manipulatives. Their faces were priceless!

The students had a BLAST at the Sock Hop! The students AND parents danced their hearts out.

We are looking forward to all of the end-of-the-year activities!

May events:

May 9: Kindergarten Transition meetings at 9:00 am and 5:00 pm

May 10: 1st-grade Transition meetings at 9:00 am and 5:30 pm

May 11: 2nd-grade Transition meeting at 9:00 am and 5:00 pm

May 16: Senior Walkthrough

May 17: Pre-K end-of-year event

May 18: Kindergarten Graduation

(8:30 am Thornbury, 9:30 am Fillingame, 10:30 am Nwogo, 11:30 am Cooley)

May 19: Kindergarten Graduation

(8:30 am Wright, 9:30 am Haynes, 10:30 am Price)

May 22: Robotics Team Showcase for parents

May 23: 1st-grade recognition day

May 24: 2nd-grade drive-thru celebration

May 25: Early release

Dr. Paula Bruno, Principal

Mrs. Cindy Cleveland, Assistant Principal

We are proud of all our students for their hard work during the yearly ACAP Summative assessment. Thank you students and teachers for your efforts during testing.

Congratulations to Aurie Stone on being the top seller for the Cookie Dough fundraiser.

She received a $50 Walmart gift card. Mrs. Sullivan's top-selling class received an ice cream

party and the top 5 sellers received a pizza party with Mr. Barron.

Pinecrest students participated in the Special Olympics in Lincoln. They did a great job and we

are so proud of you!

Thanks to a Foundation Grant 5th grade students got to have a real-life experience integrated

into their ecosystems unit. 5th graders used tools purchased through the grant to care for the

school garden. They also searched for insects that use the garden as a habitat. We used

observation boxes to further observe the insects once returning to class.

Pinecrest Robotics team was recognized during the April board meeting for their success during the AMSTI E3 competition. Pinecrest students were awarded Best Teamwork Awards. The Dinobots team won 1st place in addition to the Best Teamwork Award.

May Events:

May 3: 4th grade Wax Museum

May 4: 5th-grade visit to NLMS

May 5: 5th grade Camp Cosby trip

May 10: 4th grade Art Showcase

May 11: 2nd grade to visit PC

May 12: AR celebration

May 15: 4th and 5th grade APEX celebrations

May 16: Senior Walkthrough

May 18: 3rd grade awards day

May 19: Field Day

May 22: 4th grade awards day

May 24: 5th-grade graduation

May 25: early release

Mr. Monte Barron, Principal

Mrs. Jodi Shaw, Assistant Principal

Thank you to all the students, teachers, and staff for your hard work during April for the ACAP Summative assessment. We are proud of you!

Students in Mrs. Lane's Health Sciences class learned about organs that can be transplanted by participating in an organ race.

Students in Mrs. Coley's Advisory class last year partnered with Ms. Carlton to design a playground for multi-needs students. Students interviewed key leaders and researched equipment that is needed for multi-need students their age. They were showcased on CBS42 in April as they prepare to send letters to businesses asking for donations. We are proud of the vision of these students and teachers.

Mrs. Fowler's Life Science classes were "berry" excited about extracting DNA from strawberries. Why strawberries? Because they are octoploid, meaning they have eight copies of each set of chromosomes. (Humans, on the other hand, are diploid.)

Students in Mr. Browning’s class enjoyed Oreos as they participated in a 5E lesson. Students engaged, explored, explained, elaborated, and evaluated the chemical and mechanical process of the digestion of the Oreo.

Ms. Carlton's students had a great time in Lincoln at the Special Olympics. They worked hard and had a lot of fun. Good job NLMS Aggies!

Why don't airplanes stay in the air forever? There are quite a few forces at work, including gravity and friction. Mrs. Fowler's Physical Science students were tasked with constructing a paper airplane with only one sheet of paper in 20 minutes. After Trial 1, students had 5 minutes to make adjustments to their planes if needed. Trial 2 proved to be more successful than Trial 1. Trial 1 winner was Kendall Holcomb, and Trial 2 winner was Jada Harvell.

May events

May 4: 5th-grade visit

May 4 and 5: Positive Rewards trip

May 4: Snack Day

May 6: Math Competition

May 15: Testing incentive day

May 16: 6th grade awards day 8:30 am

May 16: 7th grade awards day 10 am

May 16: 8th-grade ice cream social 1:30 pm

May 17: 8th grade awards day 8:30 am

May 18: P.E. fundraiser 1:30 pm

May 22: 7th and 8th grade boys basketball try-outs

Mr. Chad Littleton, Principal

Mrs. Kristin Cox, Assistant Principal

Congratulations to all the students who participated in the spring ACT and CERT assessments. We are proud of your hard work and dedication. We are impressed by the preliminary scores and look forward to seeing the fruit of your labor! We wish the students who plan to participate in the upcoming AP exams all the best. We know you will be successful as you have worked and prepared for this moment.

Teachers and students continue to work hard in the classroom as they prepare for the end of the school year. With exams on the horizon, everyone is staying focused to finish the school year strong.

The SHS Marching Band performed in Orlando at Universal. The group of students who went represented SHS well. Thank you, parents and staff, for supervising our students.

We had a great representation in Lincoln at the Special Olympics. They all worked hard and had a great time. Thank you, staff and volunteers, for your assistance in the event.

Congratulations to the following students for signing letters of intent to continue their athletic and educational careers at the collegiate levels.

Hayden Owens softball at Lurleen B. Wallace Community College

Aiden Cochran baseball at Central Alabama Community College

Jaden Bryant football at Fountain City Prep

Noah Clifton eSports at Huntington College

The SHS Concert Band performed their Spring Concert on May 2. We are proud of your dedication to the performing arts. You sounded amazing! The Choir concert is on May 9, so make plans to come to hear them.

Congratulations to the spring sports teams for advancing to playoffs this season. The students have worked hard this season to reach the next level. We are proud of our student-athletes!

May Events

May 9 AP exam English

May 9 Choir concert

May 11 Blood Drive

May 12 - 14 Musical Production

May 16 Senior walkthrough at elementary and middle schools

May 18 Senior Awards day

May 19 Spring Game 6 pm

May 23 Graduation

Mr. Gary Rivers, Principal

Mr. Bennie Lewis, Assistant Principal

Mrs. Rhonda Courson, Assistant Principal

Career and Technical Education (CTE) awards recognition will take place on May 16 at 4:00

p.m. in the Sylacauga High School Auditorium. Students will be recognized in the following

areas:

Career Readiness Indicators (CRIs) - credentials, Arts and A/V, Business, Early Childhood Education, Health Science, Hospitality, Project Lead the Way Engineering, Senior CTE Completers, Arts and A/V, Business, Early Childhood Education, Health Science

Hospitality and Project Lead the Way Engineering

Career and Technical Student Organization (CTSO) Competition Award Winners

FBLA, FCCLA, HOSA, Skills USA, TSA, CTSO Officers, FBLA, FCCLA, HOSA, Skills USA

TSA, PCT & CNA Pinning

Students enrolled in Commercial Photography and Video Editing classes visited the Auburn

University Media Programs (Photography, Art, Journalism, Radio, Sports Media) on April

17. Such a great exposure to all the opportunities in this career pathway!

The new Technology Student Association (TSA) attended the Alabama TSA State Leadership Conference in Montgomery on April 18. The team will use these experiences to help prepare for VEX Robotics' competitive events.

Congratulations to Sylacauga High School FBLA for the outstanding performance in Mobile at the Annual Alabama FBLA State Leadership Conference. We appreciate the dedication of Ms. Sutton and Ms. Hosey in preparing students for the competition.

We also want to give a special shout-out to Estela Padgett, who served this year as the Alabama FBLA District V Vice President.

The following students advance to the FBLA National Leadership Conference in Atlanta in June.

Local Chapter Annual Business Report

1st Place- Catherine Abernathy and Lily Kate Lucas

Public Service Announcement

3rd Place-Elizabeth Atkinson and Natalie Robinson

Impromptu Speaking

3rd Place-Jonas Scofield

Introduction to Business Presentation

3rd Place-Taylor Hosey, Madelyne Reeves, and Abigail Williford

March of Dimes- $3,000 level

Gold Seal Chapter

Blue Print for Success

District 5 Who’s Who- Estela Padgett

Sylacauga High School HOSA Health Science interns and Mrs. Kirkland shared with interested 8th graders on the Health Science pathway at SHS. The Health Science Internship students gave an overview of the program and their experience in the internship.

Check out our recent graduates from the Skills for Success Food and Beverage course, led by the amazing Ms. Amethyst Vineyard and her talented students. We want to express our gratitude to the Sylacauga Alliance For Family Enhancement Inc. (SAFE) and Central Alabama Community College (CACC) for partnering with us to make this possible. These students are now job-ready and poised to make a difference in the workforce.

Several students completed a two-day Skid Steer lab to increase their construction credentials. Thanks to Central Alabama Community College, Skills for Success, and SAFE for partnering with us.

The following Sylacauga SkillsUSA students earned a bronze medal at the Alabama SkillsUSA State Leadership Conference in Mobile. Congratulations to Rebekah Wykoff for receiving the bronze medal in Photography and Christopher West for receiving the bronze medal in Digital Cinema Production. Thanks to the SkillsUSA Advisors, Mr. Reynolds and Mr. Elliff.

Mrs. Deana Goodwine,

Director of Workforce Development

Thank you once again to our fabulous partner, Toyota Of Sylacauga, for sharing the love of Sylacauga and our students with their amazing partnership. The March sales check for $1,350 was presented at the April Foundation board meeting. With this check, Toyota has now given $40,500 in total. When the recently approved $8,000 Toyota grant-matching contribution arrives, they will be $1,500 away from their second Chair. Toyota donates $30 per new car to our local school Foundation. Our teachers submit grants each year for funds to supplement their classrooms. Let's all support Toyota of Sylacauga. It's a Win-Win!!

On April 12, 2023, the Sylacauga City Schools Foundation hosted a ceremony to award its 64th Chair to the Vaughn family. The family, consisting of Barry, Jane, Dale, Max, and Alex, are all alumni of Sylacauga High School. Mr. and Mrs. Vaughn have dedicated 29 years to serving the community and supporting the Foundation's endeavors. We express our gratitude for their commitment to Sylacauga students and extend our heartfelt congratulations to the Vaughn family.