Better Together

Native Athenian and renowned self-taught metal artist Harold Rittenberry stands next to his newly-unveiled sculpture in the front parking lot at Hilsman Middle School. The sculpture will be at the center of a new pollinator garden project led by Rita Mathew and the Athens Area Master Gardener Association. The garden, to be planted next spring, will allow community members to connect with nature through citizen science projects like the Great Southeast Pollinator Census and will also be incorporated into the school curriculum. Hilsman teacher Barbara Gaertig's leadership students will help with maintaining the garden. The sculpture is named "Curiosity" and features much of the signature imagery found in Mr. Rittenberry's work over the last four decades. He said he hopes the sculpture will inspire curiosity, creativity, and imagination among current and future Hilsman students.

CCSD is grateful to the Athens branch of ABB for its $10,000 donation this week to the Athens Community Career Academy's Advanced Manufacturing and Welding pathway! This pathway helps students gain experience in high-demand, high-paying jobs in their area of interest while they are still in high school, setting them up with industry-specific certification and experience to be ahead of the curve by the time they graduate high school. ACCA and CCSD have collaborated with ABB and many other local businesses and companies to give students the opportunity to gain experience through internships and even employment once they finish high school.

CCSD made several gains in increasing content mastery, closing achievement gaps between student subgroups, and preparing students for postsecondary success during the 2023-24 school year, according to College and Career Ready Performance Index (CCRPI) data released by the Georgia Department of Education (GaDOE). However, the district remains focused on expanding effective instructional practices and implementing support measures across all grade levels to continue addressing areas of concern.

Read more here.

Four CCSD seniors are among the 2,600 students across the U.S. who recently received full four-year scholarships to 52 of the nation's top colleges and universities through the QuestBridge National College Match Program!

The program connects high-achieving high school seniors from low-to-moderate income backgrounds with a scholarship covering all of their tuition, housing, books, and food. Congratulations to these students pictured below!

We are pleased to announce the inaugural cohort of our Residency-Based Teacher Apprenticeship in Special Education! This new partnership between CCSD, national talent development provider BloomBoard, and Lake Erie College, allows educators who sign an agreement to teach special education within the district once they become certified teachers to complete a three-year bachelor’s degree in special-education instruction. These employees will be able to work directly in classrooms and gain hands-on special-education teaching experience while earning a salary and course credit as they learn and demonstrate mastery in their work.

Those selected included:

• Patrick Bishop, special education paraprofessional at Clarke Middle
• Harold Faison, academic interventionist at Fowler Drive Elementary
• Blake Hancock, special education paraprofessional at Bettye H. Holston Elementary
• Clark Pattman, academic interventionist at Whitehead Road Elementary.

These four individuals were selected out of a pool of about 100 interested applicants in the district, which was eventually narrowed down to a field of seven finalists before interviews and final selection to the program.

CCSD's federally-funded 21st Century Community Learning Centers program is partnering with the University of Georgia Mary Frances Early College of Education to help English to Speakers of other Languages (ESOL) students at Coile Middle School become involved in their communities through the arts.

Two professors in UGA's Department of Language and Literacy Education have been leading the partnership, which will support up to 30 bilingual learners this semester as they engage in arts-based activities and community building.

Read more here!

CCSD's Elementary Basketball League regular season has concluded, and the playoffs will be held starting next week! First-round games will be held at the District Office gym (595 Prince Ave. across the parking lot from the main building), and admission for those games will be free. Semifinal games will be held at Cedar Shoals and Clarke Central high schools, and the championships will be held Dec. 18 at Cedar Shoals. Admission for the semifinals and finals will be $5 adults and free for CCSD students and seniors (65 and older). Please note: All students must be accompanied by an adult at all times.

See the full playoff schedule below. Follow the Athens Youth Development Initiative Facebook page for bracket updates and any changes to the schedule. Good luck to all of our teams!

First Round

Monday, Dec. 9, at the CCSD Gym

• 4 p.m.: Girls Game 1 - Oglethorpe Avenue vs. Winterville
• 5 p.m.: Girls Game 2 - H.B. Stroud vs. Johnnie Lay Burks
• 6 p.m.: Boys Game 1 - Winterville vs. Bettye H. Holston
• 7 p.m.: Boys Game 2 - Johnnie Lay Burks vs. Fowler Drive

Tuesday, Dec. 10, at the CCSD Gym

• 4 p.m.: Girls Game 3 - Fowler Drive vs. Whitehead Road
• 5 p.m.: Girls Game 4 - Barrow vs. J.J. Harris
• 6 p.m.: Boys Game 3 - Timothy Road vs. Whit Davis
• 7 p.m.: Boys Game 4 - H.B. Stroud vs. Whitehead Road

Semifinals and Finals

Wednesday, Dec. 11, at Clarke Central High School

• 5 p.m.: Girls Semifinal 1 - Winner of Game 1 vs. Winner of Game 3
• 6 p.m.: Boys Semifinal 1 - Winner of Game 1 vs. Winner of Game 3

Wednesday, Dec. 11, at Cedar Shoals High School

• 5 p.m.: Girls Semifinal 2 - Winner of Game 2 vs. Winner of Game 4
• 6 p.m.: Boys Semifinal 2 - Winner of Game 2 vs. Winner of Game 4

Thursday, Dec. 18, at Cedar Shoals High School

• 6 p.m.: Girls Championship
• 7 p.m.: Boys Championship

Clarke Central High School senior quarterback Hezekiah Millender will be continuing his football career down the street. The Gladiator standout signed with the University of Georgia on Wednesday, Dec. 4, as part of National Signing Day and will join the Bulldogs after recently flipping his commitment from Boise State.

Millender had a terrific senior season for the Gladiators this fall, passing for 1,798 yards and 25 touchdowns with only one interception in 11 games while helping lead the team to an 8-3 record and the GHSA Region 8-AAAAA championship. He also finished with 606 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns on the ground.

Congratulations, Hezekiah, and best of luck at the next level!

Clarke Central and Cedar Shoals high schools were well represented on their respective GHSA all-region teams released recently. Congratulations to all!

Clarke Central - Region 8-AAAAA

Player of the Year: Hezekiah Millender

Co-Offensive Player of the Year: Corey Watkins

Lineman of the Year: Anthony Lonon

Coach of the Year: David Perno

All-Region Offense: La'gracion Little, Xayvian Berry, Chandler Wilson, Jackson Mullen

All-Region Defense: Laiji McCalla, Skylier Walter, Kelin Fanning, Tekit Gill

Honorable Mention: Jicaleb Barnes, Jaylen Willoughby, Damien Drake, Jordan Ball

Cedar Shoals - Region 8-AAAA

First Team Offense: Tybias Lay

Second Team Offense: Tim Gresham

Second Team Defense: Marcus Lawrence, Dexter Thompson

Honorable Mention: Jeffery Bailey, Anthony Hall, Keelin McClendon

The annual Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) window opened on Dec. 1. CCSD will hold a FAFSA Completion Event to offer assistance to high school students and families from 6-8 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 10, at the District Office, 595 Prince Ave.

Students should bring their school laptops, and families should bring their Social Security number or A-number (for non-U.S. citizens), 2023 federal income tax returns, and other financial records. Additional information can be found on the above flyer.

For additional information, contact your student's counselor.

Contemporary Art Studio (CAS) is a free after-school art program for CCSD middle schoolers. The program is hosted by University of Georgia Pre-service Art Education students and is focused on contemporary art practices. Applications for the spring 2025 sessions are now being accepted. Sessions will be held weekly on Tuesdays from 4:30-6 p.m. starting Feb. 4 and ending April 15 (no session on March 4 or April 8).

Participants will engage with the work in the gallery and experiment with various contemporary approaches to art-making. CAS is offered in connection with the Lamar Dodd School of Art’s contemporary art gallery, the Athenaeum, and is made possible with funding from a Parents Leadership Council Grant and AthFest Educates funding.

Transportation from CCSD middle schools to the Athenaeum will be provided via UGA vans and approved UGA student drivers. Students will need to be picked up from the Athenaeum, 287 West Broad St., by a parent/guardian at 6 p.m. after each session. Spots in the program are limited and will be filled on a first-come, first-serve basis. Middle school art teachers are being provided with the information, and application forms will be due to them by Wednesday, Dec. 11.

For more information, contact program director Lauren Copelan at lhc21670@uga.edu or Dr. Christina Hanawalt, Associate Professor of Art Education, at hanawalt@uga.edu.

CCSD is in the process of reviewing the district's Code of Student Conduct for potential edits and changes for the 2025-26 school year and is seeking public feedback.

Please complete this brief survey to share your feedback with the Code of Student Conduct committee! We look forward to using your feedback in our work. The survey is available in English and Spanish and should take approximately 10 minutes to complete. For questions, please reach out to committee chairs Tessa Barbazon at barbazont@clarke.k12.ga.us or Jabari Cobb at cobbja@clarke.k12.ga.us.

The Clarke County Board of Education welcomes community feedback. Here are ways you can share your voice:

• Contact BOE Members: Click here to view a list of the BOE members and their contact information.
• Attend a Meeting: The board's next scheduled meeting is Thursday, Dec. 12, with the work session beginning at 5 p.m., followed by the regular meeting at 7 p.m. All meetings are held in the Vernon Payne Meeting Hall at the CCSD administrative offices building, located at 595 Prince Ave. in Athens. The public is invited to attend meetings in person. Meetings are also streamed live and are available for on-demand viewing on the CCSD YouTube channel. Click here for the board meeting schedule.
• Agendas: Click here to access board meeting agendas.
• Board Briefs: Click to read the "Board Briefs" overview from meetings.
  
• Public Comments: Click here for information on how to sign-up to speak at a BOE meeting.
• Review Policies for Review: View and comment on district policies pending public review.

CCSD families are invited to participate in two research projects being conducted by the Augusta University-University of Georgia Medical Partnership. The first is to study preferences and barriers with electronic communication and improve communication between pediatricians and patients' parents and guardians. The second is to understand people's dental care experiences locally and how services can be enhanced with families. Survey results will help inform operations at the Clarke Middle Health Center, which is managed by the medical partnership.

Click the buttons below to access the surveys or scan the codes in the flyers above.

Athens Area Habitat for Humanity will hold a community bake sale from 1-5 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 22, at the Globe, 199 North Lumpkin St., Athens. The sale will feature baked goods from local businesses, and proceeds will benefit the Athens Habitat Global Village Project, which will consist of volunteers constructing and making improvements to houses in Guatemala.