Chirp Sheet
Singing the praises of our DCS students and staff 9-15/23
DTV brings home four Student Emmy awards
We’re thrilled to share that DTV had an outstanding showing at the Michigan NATAS (National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences) Student Production Awards held April 27 at Michigan State University.
This year, DTV was nominated for a record-breaking six Student Emmy Awards—the most in the program's history—and brought home four wins, including:
- Best Newscast
- Best Non-Fiction Long Form for Undrinkable 3: Resilience, the 10-year follow-up to the Flint Water Crisis
- Best Hard News Report – Rex Poff for his piece on poverty
- Best Feature Report – Rex Poff and Makayla Herrick for their story on Mr. Fray
- Best Live Sports Coverage
- Hard News Report – Cooper Austin
"These wins mark a major milestone for DTV, and we couldn’t be prouder of the team’s hard work and storytelling," said DTV Teacher Mr. Randy Scott.
The winning entries will now move on to compete at the National Student Production Awards in Hollywood.
Familiar face returns as next Assistant Principal at DHS
Former Davison Alternative Education Assistant Principal Jesse Szatkowski is returning to the District next school year. Jesse has been selected to replace Davison High School Assistant Principal Andrea Ferguson who is retiring at the end of this school year. He officially begins his new position July 1.
“We are excited for Jesse to return to the administrative team at DCS,” said Superintendent Matt Lobban. “Jesse is a passionate educator who builds strong relationships and puts the kids first in every sense of the phrase. He will be an effective asset to the DHS team and I look forward to the impact he will have on students.”
Before coming to Davison Community Schools in 2017, Jesse taught elementary students for seven years at several charter schools in the Warren and Southfield areas including Michigan Math and Science and Pace Academies. He taught sixth grade at Hahn Intermediate until he was named Dean of Students at Hahn in 2021. He served in that role for one year before accepting the position of assistant principal at Davison Alternative Education in 2022. Jesse left Davison in February 2023 to take the principal’s position at his hometown school district of Memphis, where he has served for the last three years.
“I am genuinely excited to be returning to Davison,” Jesse said. “Whether it's the strong sense of community, the commitment to student success, or the supportive staff culture, there's something special about the district. I can't wait to get started!”
Jesse has a bachelor’s degree in elementary education from Oakland University and a master’s degree in educational leadership from Grand Valley State University. While at Hahn, he also served as School Improvement Chair and a head teacher before taking the Dean of Students Position.
“My philosophy in education is rooted in servant leadership,” Jesse said. “I lead with empathy, humility and a genuine desire to see everyone succeed. As I step into this role at DHS, my focus will be on leading by example, supporting both staff and students, and creating an environment where everyone can thrive. So be on the lookout for lots of fist bumps, high fives and a positive greeting each and every day!”
Jesse is married to Jessica, a nurse practitioner. They have three children: Jesse (J.J.), 11; Quinton, 8; and Ivory, 7. In his spare time, Jesse enjoys being a “fanatic” about his lawn and landscaping, being outdoors and connecting with nature, camping and spending time with his family, and cheering on the Detroit Lions.
ESports update and a trip to nationals
There has been a lot happening in the world of ESports, including an invitation for one of our high school teams to represent Michigan at the national competition this month in Wisconsin.
Here is the rundown from Coach Jake Balla:
- JV Crew Battles Smash team Davison Stage-Spike landed first place in their playoffs and earned a spot in the MiHSEF Varsity championship bracket as their reward! Starting their run, they beat Romeo High School's varsity team 2-0. This placed them into the number 1 seeded team and returning champions Kelloggsville High School. They tried their best but lost this round 0-2 putting them on the losers of the bracket. Next they upset Loy Norrix's Varsity team 2-0. Proceeding to their 4th round only to find defeat at the hands of Grandville 0-2, the JV team finished their run at 2-2 as the 9th ranked team in the Varsity bracket. "It was an amazing end to an amazing season from an amazing JV crew," Balla said. "Andrew Miller (Senior), Amelia Bayne (Junior) and Connor Rose (Senior) played their hearts out." Their JV teammates whom were unable to attend the event shouldn't go unmentioned. Tyler Glasco (Senior), Jordan Talaski (Freshman), and Hunter Paris (Sophomore) had a stellar season helping lead this team to finals.
- Moving on to the Varsity Crew Battles Smash team, Davison Jab-Lock, after an undefeated season, they entered the 24-team bracket as the 2nd overall seed. With a bye round one, Jab-Lock's first opponents were Rockford High who they solidly overwhelmed 2-0. The next round they sent Grand Haven Varsity Smash to the losers bracket in a similar fashion. Next they faced Novi's Wildcats Varsity and their star Mii-Swordfighter Zac "Z-Nado." Davison Jab-Lock bested them in a close but clean 2-0 set. The following battle pitted Davison's Varsity team against the returning champs and top seed Kelloggsville. The first round went to Kelloggsville, but Davison's Varsity starting team of Sam Laatz, Aidyn Harrison and Graham Williams and their ability to adapt would change the outcome of the next two battles. Davison upset the returning champs 2-1 and forced them to make a loser's run. "What followed for our Varsity Smash team was four hours of solo matches, side events, and waiting in winners side to complete their tournament run," Coach Balla said. Over the course of that four hours, Davison Junior, Sam Laatz crushed the solos competition taking First Place in the 32-person double elimination bracket. In that same bracket, Davison Junior Graham Williams placed top 8 and Senior Brady Sayles made top 12.
- In one of the more entertaining side events, JV's Amelia Bayne got second in the Blindfolded Smash Ultimate tournament.
- Some time after 8 p.m., approximately 13 hours after doors opened to the event, Grand Finals commenced. The first battle went to Kelloggsville. The next battle was in Davison's favor. "The third battle had everyone holding their breath, coming down to the last stock of the last player on both teams. Sadly, Davison lost the final game. With the league ruling a "No Grands Reset" for the bracket, Davison Jab-Lock finished their MiHSEF Finals Playoffs in the Runner up Position. "Emotions ran high," Coach Balla described. "Both teams and spectators alike were in awe as the tournament came to a close. The president of MiHSEF made sure to come and congratulate both teams, requesting Davison and Kelloggsville to represent Michigan at Nationals next month." Please congratulate the team of Liam Ward (Junior), Sam Laatz (Junior), Aidyn Harrison (Junior), Brady Sayles (Senior), and Andrew Ohlsson (Junior) on an incredible season and playoffs placement.
