School Zone
Points of Pride
A-Team Program Kicks Off at Stilwell Middle School
On September 8, the students of
Joseph Stilwell Middle School were shocked when what they thought was an assembly to hear a motivational speaker turned out to be a surprise pep rally to kick-off the 2009-2010 A-Team Program, sponsored by Winn-Dixie and the Jacksonville Jaguars.
The A-Team award program, now in its fourth year, rewards teachers and middle school students for their hard work in academics, good attendance and overall attitude.
Stilwell was chosen as this year’s kick-off site because of the school’s recent FCAT success. The school earned a B in 2009, up from a C in 2008.
The school’s seventh and eighth-grade students walked into the gymnasium to the beat of the Jacksonville Jaguars D-line while handed teal and black pompoms. Several surprise guests were in attendance to congratulate and encourage the students, including members of The ROAR, Jaxson de Ville, and Jaguars players Clint Ingram and Quentin Groves, as well as retired Jaguar player and host of the Jaguar Radio Network, Jeff Lageman.
The school’s sixth graders were treated to their own rally in the cafeteria.
During each rally, guests congratulated the school on their recent FCAT success and encouraged the students to keep their positive momentum going until the school receives an A.
Lageman shared that one of his major accomplishments was being a member of his high school’s National Honor Society. He encouraged the students to set goals and to always push themselves to work harder.
During the event, 11 Stilwell students became the first members of the Winn-Dixie A-Team for this school year. These students were chosen by Principal Vincent Hall based on their good grades, positive attitudes and good behavior, and were awarded tickets to the September 20 Jacksonville Jaguars home opener against the Arizona Cardinals.
The school also received a $500 check from Winn Dixie.
For each of the Jacksonville Jaguars home games this season, Winn-Dixie will provide family four-packs of tickets to select students and two-packs to select teachers in Duval, St. Johns, Clay, Flagler, Baker, Nassau and Putnam counties.
Leaf-ing a Legacy at Enterprise Learning Academy
Kezia Sorenson, a third-grade teacher at
Enterprise Learning Academy, will leave a lasting memory at her school when she retires later this year – a butterfly garden that she and her students worked together to build.
Sorenson was inspired to develop the garden after meeting Brenda Harris, a.k.a. the “Butterfly Lady,” at Gregory Drive Elementary, the school Sorenson worked at before arriving at Enterprise. Ms. Harris was actually a school volunteer who had planted a garden on the school grounds, and would spend her free time teaching the elementary students (and their teachers) about growing plants and raising butterflies.
All of the students loved visiting the garden and seeing the butterflies and Sorenson incorporated this activity into her class curriculum. Students published a book, Project Butterfly, which had pictures and descriptions of the life cycle of the butterfly.
“The garden was an outdoor science lab for the students where they could acquire first-hand knowledge and observation about insects, nature and our environment,” she said. “Students were fascinated to see the butterflies up close, and were able to analyze their size, shape and coloring.”
She remembers fondly the joy one of her students, James, expressed when he realized one of the butterflies that had been born in the garden remembered him due to the insect’s strong sense of smell.
“He remembers me; he loves me,” James said.
When Sorenson began teaching at Enterprise several years ago, she wanted other students to experience the joy that Brenda Harris created. With the help of the PTA and SAC, as well as donations from The Home Depot in the Oakleaf Town Center, the school raised the funds to start the garden.
Sorenson designed a garden that not only had the appropriate plants and flowers to attract all the butterflies native to Northeast Florida, but also had plants native to wetlands, the type of ground the school is built on.
She also made sure in her design plans that the garden would be easy for the students to care for, as well as the workers who maintain the school grounds around the garden.
Sorenson, along with fellow teach Sam Corlew who maintains the school’s vegetable garden, plan to apply for a Lowe’s grant to purchase tools and brick pavers for the gardens.
Enterprise’s Science Committee will take over caring for the garden when Sorenson retires in December, but she plans to visit the school on a regular basis to help. She also hopes to attract the assistance of local high school students who are in need of community service hours.
“It is my hope that the butterfly garden becomes an entire school project, and then eventually becomes a place students from other schools can visit and enjoy, as it truly is an outdoor science lab.”
Sorenson is also thankful to see her aspirations of creating a school butterfly garden come true.
“It has been a joy to work with the students and staff at Enterprise Learning Academy, and I am fortunate that Ms. Brown let me pursue my dream of creating a bonafide garden and outdoor learning center for children.”
NASA Recognizes Director of Challenger Learning Center at Kirby-Smith Middle
Congratulations to Sheree' L. Kearns, the facilities director of the Challenger Learning Center at
Kirby-Smith Middle, who recently received two notable recognitions.
Kearns was selected in the Top Stars Program at NASA, which invited K-12 and post-secondary educators to submit their best examples of using NASA's Hubble Space Telescope for science, technology, engineering or mathematics education. Two of the lessons that Ms. Kearns submitted were chosen to be featured on NASA's website for educators around the world to use as a resource. To view these lessons, visit the Top Stars Web site.
Kearns also received the Challenger Center President's Award for hard work and dedication leading to exceptional achievement in the Challenger Learning Center network.
The award was presented to her by Dr. June Scobee Rodgers, the wife of Astronaut Dick Scobee who commanded the Space Shuttle Challenger 51-L mission which was lost on Jan. 26, 1986, and by Daniel Barstow, President of Challenger Center and retired NASA space shuttle astronaut.
According to Kearns, "Going the extra astronomical unit to get our students excited about math, science, engineering and technology is always worth the hard work."
Congratulations, Ms. Kearns, for your wonderful accomplishments!
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