In Focus

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Email: info@gwa.com
Website: www.gwa.com
Phone: (678) 635-3800

• Daily Morning Carpool: 7:30 - 8 a.m.

• LS School Day: 8 a.m. - 2:30 p.m.

• MS/HS School Day: 8 a.m. - 3 p.m.

• Ice Cream Social: Aug. 15

• Spirit Wear Day: Aug. 16 (see below)

• First Home Football Game/Majorette Night: Aug. 16

• Fall Sports Photo Day: Aug. 20 (youth, band, makeup day)

• Mandatory Senior Class Meeting: Aug. 21

• Yearbook Pictures: Aug. 28

• 9th Grade Retreat: Aug. 28-29

• School Holiday: Monday, Sept. 2, Labor Day

• Pink Out Game: Sept. 6 (see below to order shirt)

CLICK HERE for GWA calendar events

CLICK HERE for current 24-25 Important Dates

Welcome GWA Family!

I hope to see everyone at tonight's Ice Cream Social (a longstanding GWA tradition) and Friday night's Champions Club Tailgate (a new tradition!) held prior to the football game. Families, grandparents, alumni, and friends are all welcome! There will be live music, pizza galore, a bounce house and corn hole, face painting and much more. Please join us and make this first-ever Champions Club Bulldog family gathering a huge success!

Courage

This school year we will focus schoolwide on one character trait each month. We will emphasize this trait in our Pup Rallies, MS and US Huddle-Ups (assemblies), advisory groups, and even in faculty training. The trait for August is COURAGE. Having the moral courage to do the right thing, especially when no one is looking, or when others may not be, is important for both adults and children. The GWA Honor Pledge, which we expect students to follow, is clear and simple:

Bound by our honor, we, the students of George Walton Academy, will not lie, cheat, steal or plagiarize.

Let's demonstrate moral courage, come together, and support our children in every way to make this a stupendous year for them.

Go Bulldogs!

John D. Marshall

Head of School

Our K5 students enjoyed story time yesterday as they listened to Mrs. McDaniel read “First Day Jitters,” by Julie Danneberg. The book centered on the main character’s apprehension before the start of their first day at a new school and it finished with a surprise ending. Following the story, Mrs. McDaniel made “jitter juice” from Hawaiian Punch (courage), Sprite (excitement), and sprinkles (love).

The Class of 2025 and faculty and staff kicked off the school year with the annual retreat to Woodlands this past week. Students engaged in bonding activities, discussed the importance of mentorship, leadership, and leaving a lasting legacy during their final year at George Walton Academy.

The middle school got off to a great start with its annual Mega Relay. Teachers, students, and parents worked together to have a wondrous first day! Mega Relay is a series of events that teams of students perform in rapid succession- one right after the other, thus all middle school students are involved from start to finish. It is a bunch of fun and Mr. Lowe's group was the Middle School Champion for the second year in a row!

The winning teams were:

8th- Mr. Lowe

7th- Mrs. Garbach

6th- Mr. Jones

Lower schoolers enjoyed their first Pup Rally of the year on Wednesday. Our youngest Bulldogs will be celebrating their remarkable behavior in specials throughout the year and learn about the importance of being respectful, responsible, and ready during their monthly lower school gatherings.

The remaining fall sports photo day will be Tuesday, Aug. 20. This session will include youth sports, and band and serve as the makeup day for those middle/upper school athletes who missed the first photo day. CLICK HERE to access the schedule. Please refer to your email from Elizabeth Jones that was sent earlier this week for more details.

Get ready to light up Don Williams Stadium this Friday as the Bulldogs host the Knights from St. Francis! The Champions Club will host our pre-game tailgate from 6 p.m. - 7:15 p.m. (and before all home games this fall). Tailgates will feature food and drink, bounce houses, a DJ, and much more. We invite all our families to bring their lawn chairs, cornhole boards, and enthusiasm as we cheer on the Bulldogs! These events are open to all families, not just season ticket holders, so please come and join the fun!

We are very excited about The Champions Club and all it will do to support our growing athletic program! If you have questions about memberships, please contact championsclub@gwa.com.

Go Bulldogs!

Our varsity and middle school cross country teams kick off their season this Saturday at Apalachee High School. Varsity starts at 7:15 a.m. and middle school will begin at 10:15 a.m. Good luck to all of our runners and welcome to GWA - Coach Kinsey Snell!

This year, the College Counseling office is hosting our mandatory Senior College Meeting on Wednesday, August 21 at 6 p.m. We will keep it to one hour and cover any and all college related aspects. If you have a conflict, please let Mr. Terrell or Ms. Phillips know.

We ask every senior (and at least one parent) to attend. Our meeting will be in the cafeteria.

We look forward to seeing everyone there!

Jon Terrell

Director of College Counseling