In alignment with the nature of technology, our lower and middle school technology department is ever-changing. With a brand-new physical space designed to provide hands-on exploration, the Innovation Hub offers students the opportunity to develop skills that are so crucial in today’s world.

The new tech lab is located adjacent to the lower school gym (in the former Guitar Lab space) and it features a fabrication center for creating robot parts. Students will design and make custom robots using original designs, 3D printers and a laser cutter. An open layout provides a place for students to program, test and evaluate their robots.

Robotics challenges students to solve problems and use computational thinking. They create solutions through coding, programming, and design adaptation. Lower and middle school students have enjoyed working with robots during classroom demonstrations, but can now take a deep dive into robotics, covering the full scope of the subject.

The Innovation Hub will also teach students how to use their digital devices to create projects and share information. Some classes have already learned how to make art using repetition of code to create colorful images.

Innovation and problem-solving are central to learning in the newly constructed technology lab. Students will have fun while learning skills that will be necessary now and beyond their time at GWA.

• Please contact the PARC if you are interested in exam prep and/or review with a peer tutor.
• If anyone is interested in a study group but is in need of a place to hold their session, please email dpower@gwa.com.

By Brian Cole

The Sustainable Living class continues to make improvements to our outdoor garden area. We now have direct access to water and power on the site. This makes a world of difference when we need to water our plants and we no longer need to haul 150’ of garden hoses across the parking lot. Up until this point, if we needed to use power tools, we were limited to battery power or we needed to hike back up to the sculpture lab to make cuts. With the addition of the water and power station, this is no longer an issue. The power panel was built with expansion in mind. It has room to mount irrigation control panels in the future as needed for our garden and a possible greenhouse addition.

The students are also in the process of installing wood chip mulch in the garden. We are working with a local tree service to utilize their waste product as a mulch around the garden. This not only helps divert the mulch from a land fill, but we are helping to control erosion and moisture retention in our garden. That’s a win-win in our book.

If you are looking for volunteer hours or just love the ideas of spending some time in the garden, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me at bcole@gwa.com and come grow with us.

Today’s Annual Christmas Tree Program was a celebration of the Christmas season and our Class of 2021 and 2032 students. The trees were decorated with plenty of love and flair – treasures for each first grader to display for many years to come! Following the presentation of the trees on the beautifully decorated stage, seniors, first graders and guests enjoyed the sing-along and especially, the 12 Days of Christmas, complete with traditional senior Santa hat toss. Since attendance was limited this year, we are pleased to share a video from the event – click HERE to view. High quality copies may be purchased from Jon Swarner.

Order your yearbook now! We would like all yearbook orders in by the end of the year. You can bring a check made payable to GWA for $85 per book (put your child’s name on the check and indicate that it is for the yearbook!) OR you can order online through January 1 at yearbookordercenter.com (job number 14485 or choose to enter school name instead). Orders placed now will guarantee a book!

Linked HERE is a list of everyone who has bought a yearbook so far (as of 12/7/2020). If your name is not on this list, you haven’t yet purchased a book. If you have any questions, email yearbook advisor Liz Jones at ljones@gwa.com.

We want to thank everyone who submitted an entry to the Gingerbread House contest. Your houses helped bring Christmas cheer to our campus!

This year’s winner was determined by popular vote on Facebook. While everyone is a winner in our book, we can only award two prizes. Congratulations to teacher Cortney Pickens & her mom for winning first place for their entry titled “las nochebuenas de Pepita.” Coming in with a strong second place was “Christmas at the Town Square” by students Barry Kate Huene & Amelia Shipman.

We would like to thank the following friends who also submitted wonderful entries:

The Gill Family

The Harris Family

Harlow Higgins Family

Reliant Homes

The GWA Band will share the gift of music this evening in the Nicholson Center at 7:30 p.m. Attendance is limited, and a voucher is needed to attend. Please enjoy the concert via the livestream link HERE.

Last Sunday, our GWA Piano Studio decked the halls with sounds of music in our winter piano recital. Students from grades first through twelfth shared their favorite Christmas (and a few non-Christmas) songs with family and parents in our lower school gym. We had students who performed in quartets, trios, duets, and as soloists. It was a busy weekend with over sixty performers, but it was a great addition to everyone’s Christmas season.

If you are interested in finding out more information regarding our piano studio, please contact Corrie Beth Noll at cnoll@gwa.com

Our George Walton Academy Bulldogs take on Calvary Day School in round three of the State Playoffs this Friday. Spectators are invited to attend. Admission is $12 at the gate by card (NO cash purchases) or tickets may be purchased online at GoFan (gofan.co). Face coverings are REQUIRED, and visitors should park in the visitor parking lot (Paulson St. gate). The address for the school is 4625 Waters Ave., Savannah, GA 31404. The livestream will be available on the NFHS network (subscription required).

Go Bulldogs!

Please join us in congratulating the members of our 2020 GWA Football Team that were selected to the 8A ALL-Region Team!

First-team Offense:

• (RB) Jackson Ellerbee
• (OL) Adam Head

First-team Defense:

• (LB) Bradyn Sorrow
• (DB) Jake Whitten

Second-team Offense:

• (QB) Gavin Hall
• (WR) Lawson Steele

Second-team Defense:

• (LB) Michael Dagenhart
• (DB) Trae Adkins

Honorable Mention:

• (OL) Austin Cole
• (WR) Will Bailey
• (RB) Laythan Folgman
• (DB) Carter Payne

First Team All-State:

• Caroline Conner
• Taylor Tinsley
• Reign Williams
• Riley Wilson

Second Team All-State:

• CC Veal

Please see updated protocols for home game attendance, MS and HS.

Please see an important notice from one of our valued Corporate Partners that was inadvertently left off yesterday’s Partners Promos.

Kim Minicozzi with Minicozzi Law in Loganville, has dedicated her law career to the courtroom and focusing on litigation. Kim has extensive litigation experience, appearing as lead counsel in over a thousand cases and participating in numerous jury trials.

After opening The Law Office of Kimberly M. Minicozzi, LLC in 2013, Kim has focused her practice on adoption, divorce and custody matters, criminal defense, personal injury, and wills and estates. Kim is an experienced attorney with a history of obtaining positive results for her clients. Kim understands how complex civil and domestic litigation can be and she strives to give every client the outcome they are seeking.

Kim is a member of the United States Supreme Court, the Georgia Supreme Court, the Georgia Court of Appeals, the Walton County Bar Association, and the Gwinnett County Bar Association. She practices in all cities and counties in the Metro Atlanta area with a focus on Gwinnett, Walton, Rockdale, Newton and Barrow counties.

Kim and her husband Joe reside in Monroe. Their daughter Ella is in fifth grade at GWA.