Some students enjoyed honing their skills at colleges and universities

Many worked at local restaurants and theme parks

Many learned the value of hard work through volunteering with community organizations

Many missed connecting with their friends and teachers

Many spent hours training in preparation for fall sports

Some extended the classroom borders by traveling abroad

And now it's time to get ready for... the greatest year ever!

DREAM, BELIEVE, ACHIEVE

As a testament to unwavering dedication and outstanding contributions to education, six remarkable teachers from the Douglas County School System were recognized as semifinalists for the DCSS Teacher of the Year (TOTY) award on August 10. Last spring, all 34 schools named a TOTY. These 34 teachers attended an informational meeting in May and completed an extensive application over the spring and summer. Then, a panel of judges composed of community leaders and former educators read and scored each application, with the top six scores being named as the District’s TOTY Semifinalists.

Last Thursday, these six teachers were surprised in their classrooms by DCSS Superintendent Trent North and other district administrators to present them with the distinguished honor of being a TOTY semifinalist.

Upon receiving the honor of being named a semifinalist, many teachers expressed their gratitude, while others said that they were honored to receive the recognition.

Next, the semifinalists will undergo classroom observations before participating in interviews with the panel of judges. Three finalists and the district-wide TOTY will be named at the TOTY celebration on September 28 at the new Alexander High School Performing Arts Center. The system-wide TOTY will also advance to compete in the Georgia Teacher of the Year competition later this year.

Congratulations to these six exceptional educators for being named DCSS’ TOTY Semifinalists.

Elementary School
Jennifer Waits, South Douglas Elementary School
Julie Buff, Winston Elementary School

Middle School
Shemeria Hatcher, Chapel Hill Middle School
Chelsea Montford, Stewart Middle School

High School
Jacqueline Roth, FLEX Academy
Teresa Wellmaker, Douglas County High School

Pictured from Upper left to right: Elliott Berry (Special Ed IRR), Anthony Hunter (Sports Medicine), Stacey Mathess (Special Ed IRR), Celine Maharaj-Gopie (Spanish) 2nd Row: Caleb Fields (Social Studies), Neil Strickland (Special Ed IRR), La'Tiana McDaniel (Autism); Bottom Row: Tuere Williams (Counselor), Angelia Bruce (Counselor), Shantel Turner (Counselor), Ricky Dobbs (PE). Not pictured: Sara Sealy (Spanish), Shaunte Cherry (Science), Ieshia McDaniel (Science)

Students are always welcome to visit their counselors.

For quick access, students are invited to schedule an appointment using the appointment link below:

https://calendar.app.google/o42iUMm3pfddPbBMA

They can also scan the QR Code by using a smart phone.

August 15 DCHS Staff Birthdays (Nothing Bundt Cakes)

August 16 Staff Treats (Trail to Success during planning)

August 21 DCSS Board Meeting 6pm

August 21 - 25 ELA DEPT. No Red Ink Assessment

August 22 Softball

August 22 Red Cross at DCHS Theatre 11:30 - 3:30

August 23 Parks at District Meeting 2-4

August 24 Parks at System Meeting 8 - 5

August 24 Parent Night for IB Senior families 6:30

August 25 Senior Sunrise Event 6:30am

August 26 DCHS Football vs. Mays HS 12:45pm at Midtown Stadium

August 29 DCHS Faculty Meeting (Facilitator Mrs. Moses ELL presentation) 3:30

August 29 Parent Information Night for parents of seniors 6:30pm DCHS Theatre (flyer above)

October 20 Homecoming Game 7:30pm

October 21 Homecoming Dance 6:30pm

Parents and Guardians: Please Verify Your Information in Infinite Campus

Parents and Guardians, we need your help with the enrollment verification process.

It is critical that we have the correct information for your family in Infinite Campus. Our automated messaging system pulls the phone numbers and email addresses from Infinite Campus, and we want to be sure that you receive all of the important messages from your school and from the district.

We ask that you log into Infinite Campus Parent Portal. Once you are logged in, you will click “More” and “Census Verification” and follow the prompts to verify or modify the contact information for your household.

We ask that you complete the enrollment verification by August 31. We appreciate your help with this important annual verification for our students.

Please see the helpful links below:

• Log into Infinite Campus Parent Portal here.
• Click here for directions on filling out the Census Verification.
• If you need to set up a Parent Portal, please follow the directions available here. For directions in Spanish, please click here.
• If you have any problem accessing the “Census Verification” section of Infinite Campus or if you have a problem verifying or modifying the information, please email parent@dcssga.org
• As a reminder, if you wish to receive text messages from your school and the district, please opt in by texting 67587 and typing “Yes.”