Notes From Mr. Snell's Office

End of Year Notes

With great anticipation, I look forward to the rapidly approaching 2008-2009 school year. As I proudly wish our rising ninth graders well in their high school experience, I enthusiastically welcome our rising sixth grade class. On June 25 I will have the privilege of meeting many of our new sixth grade students at our summer orientation day. I can say with confidence that these boys and girls will make a positive contribution to the successful tradition of achievement at Dodgen.

On a somewhat less enthusiastic note, have you heard much about the Critereon Referenced Compentency Test (CRCT)? Of course you have. The results that have been reported from around the state appear dismal. I believe that most educators find it frustrating that so much emphasis is placed on a single standardized test. "U.S. students are over-tested but under-assessed," charges Douglas Reeves, director of the Denver-based Center for Performance Assessment. Believing this to be the case, I also fear that too often the scores from these tests fail to capture the true measure of an individual student's learning. Oh well; so much for my soap box. I must defer to the wisdom of those who make the decisions that effect the lives of educators and the students they teach. So how did Dodgen students fare on these high-stakes tests? Reading and math are the two subject areas of greatest accountability for schools. Our percentage of students who meet or exceed standards are as follows:

Reading: 6th/99%; 7th/99%; 8th/99%
Math: 6th/93%; 7th/96%; 8th/88%

Not bad, huh? My comments from the preceding paragraph probably suggested that I was preparing you for the worst? Attempting perhaps to justify a poor showing on the CRCT. Just trying to make the case for a better system for determining accountability for students and teachers. Thank goodness for the influence of our outstanding teachers and staff. Thanks also to the involvement of parents/guardians.

Enjoy your summer vacation!

Students New To Dodgen MS

We will offer an optional orientation/activity day for students who will be new to Dodgen MS for the 2008-2009 school year.  Students will have an opportunity to learn more about the school and make new friends.  This orientation session is not required.  You can pick up a registration form at the front office, or click on the following link if interested Download summer_orientation_2008.doc 

Science Olympiad Team - Number 1 In Region!

Dodgen students (pictured at left with coaches) traveled to Georgia State University this past Saturday to compete in the regional Science Olympiad.  Our students placed 1st AND 4th in the competition!  The top four teams will travel to Augusta to compete in the state competition.  Each school can only send one team to state, however, so our 4th place team will have to yield to the 5th place team.  What an achievement!  Thank you to the many parent volunteers who assist our students!  And a special thank you to teacher coaches Debbie Amodeo and Jeff Miller.

Chess Tournament

Staff member, Benedette Moore, has been supervising students interested in playing chess for several years.  The chess club meets almost every Friday morning in the media center at 8:15am.  Recently, a group of Dodgen students who are interested in competitive chess traveled to Alpharetta to participate in the 2008 Western Regional Chess Tournament.  Our students came away with the 3rd place trophy!  These students earned the right to travel to Gwinnett County to compete in the state tournament!  Parent volunteer, Craig Thompson, has been gracious enough to coach the team.  Check out the impressive trophy in our case at the front entrance.

The Cat Is In The Bag!

Okay...when I signed on to be an educator almost 30 years ago nobody told me that my job description would include such a diverse range of responsibilities.  Don't get me wrong, I do spend a significant amount of time taking care of the more predictable responsibilities such as those associated with the title "Instruction Leader."  I have grown accustomed over the years, however, to roles less commonly associated with the job description of principal.  I probably know, for example, enough legal jargon to do fairly well on the state bar exam; while also boasting the ability to stop the constant running of water in the urinal of a boy's restroom.  From attorney to plumber and many tasks in between, I thought I pretty much had it covered.  Well...a particular cat chose a particular tree that just happened to be located on a particular plot of land on a particular campus that falls under the responsibility of a particular principal.  And so the fun begins...  Day one, I figure the cat will come down on his own and I try to forget that I ever saw him.  Day two, someone else saw him.  I reaasure her that cats must be able to get out of trees on their own.  I did contact some folks in nearby neighborhoods to get the word out that somone's pet was in a tree.  Day three, yep...the cat is still there.  Okay, by now more folks know about the cat, but no one is coming forward to claim responsibility.  There's that "R" word again.  Seems that the cat has now firmly become MY responsibility.  Folks are even saying to me, "YOUR cat is still up in that tree!"  Day four, you guessed it.  Still there.  The kids have now started getting on my case.  One more call to my neighborhood contacts yeilds the fruitless results I expected.  We had already tried calling the fire department (which understandably cannot offer this service), and a few other departments such as animal control.  No luck.  With a school building full of anxious cat lovers, and the impending threat of cold rainy weather on the horizon, I knew that it was time to call the experts.  Marietta Tree Experts to be exact.  After calling several tree services listed in the yellow pages, Marietta Tree Experts (770-425-2644) took an interest.  I think it would be safe to say that this is not a part of their business that they are trying to expand, they took the challenge none the less.  At 3:15pm on January 31, Bill Rhodes arrived on the scene.  By 3:30pm he had the cat in the bag, so to speak.  This company was good enough to cut the school a break in the interest of our kids and only charged us the cost of fuel to get to the school.  If you need tree service, give these guys a call.  Well...what now?  Not knowing what else to do I took the cat home with me for the night.  He actually got along very well with my Golden Retriever and two other cats.  Day five, happy ending!  After posting pictures of the cat on scrolling announcements (our school-wide TV announcement system) students recognized the cat to be none other than Carson who belongs to one of Dodgen's 7th students named Courtney.  And everyone lived happily ever after.

Chess Tournament - We Need You

Do you know how to play chess?  Are you interested in competing in a school chess tournament?  We are forming a tournament team and need you to join.  We will play in our first match on February 9.  The tournament will take place at Webb Bridge Middle School in Alpharetta.  There is a $15 entry fee.  Parents should plan to provide transportation for their child to and from the event.  Craig Thompson (parent volunteer) will be serving as coach.  If you have questions about the competition please email Mr. Thompson at craigkthompson@gmail.com , or you can call the school.

For more information about the tournament you may click on the following link: http://georgiachess.org/downloads/GCA2008WestFlyer.pdf 

Going Green

I am excited to announce that very soon Dodgen MS students and staff will participate in another venture that will benefit our environment.  We have entered into an agreement with the Cobb school system to pilot a program that is desgined to recycle the Styrofoam lunch trays used each day by 1,250 students and staff.  This is something that our Enviromental Club has been interested in pursuing for some time.  Maybe the program will soon grow to include other schools.  Our staff and students are already very conscious of protecting the environment.  Joyce Kemper is pictured with two full bags of aluminum cans.  She collects cans at the school on a regular basis to take to the Good Mews animal shelter to help both the enviroment and animals.  Also pictured are Mary Barkley and Kyle Schnitger.  Notice the mound of pizza boxes behind them from a recent school event.  They arranged to have all of the boxes recycled rather than simply throw them out to take up space in a landfill.

New Year's Resolution?

The term "resolution" has several definitions.  When used in conjunction with the prospect of a new year, one dictionary has defined the word resolution as "something determined or decided upon, as a course of action."  This is the time of year when many individuals contemplate the feasibility of establishing their own resolutions.  Rather than offering a new beginning, may I simply suggest to students that you be resolute each day as you continue your quest to develop good character.  To be resolute means to be determined.  It often takes resolute courage to do what you know is right.  True friends will appreciate your actions and follow your good example.  Eleanor Roosevelt once said, "no one can make you feel inferior without your consent."  Further, I contend that no one can take away your resolve to do the right thing without your consent.  It is your job as students to make good choices.  It is our responsibility as educators to assist in your quest to keep your resolution of establishing greatness of character, as well as achieving academic success.  I am thankful that we have so many outstanding young ladies and young gentlemen who attend Dodgen Middle School.  I look forward to being there for you in 2008.

America's White Table

To honor the men and women who have served in America's Armed Forces, Dodgen MS set up what is referred to as "America's White Table."  Health teacher, Roberta Fletcher, came to me a few weeks ago with this unique idea.  With my enthusiastic approval, she set a table in our school cafeteria.  The little white table we have set for Veteran's Day at Dodgen MS is just like the ones that have stood in American dining halls of the Air Force, Army, Marine Corps, and Navy.  A small table is used to show one soldier's lonely battle against many.  It is covered with a white cloth to honor a soldier's pure heart when they answer their country's call to duty.  A lemon slice and grains of salt are placed on a plate to show a captive soldier's bitter fate, and the tears of families waiting for loved ones to return.  An empty chair is pushed to the table for the missing soldiers who are not here.  A black napkin is placed on the table to reflect the sorrow of captivity.  A glass is turned over to symbolize the meal that will not be eaten.  A white candle is placed on the table to reflect peace.  A red rose is placed in a vase and tied with a red ribbon in the hope that all of our missing will return one day.  It is difficult for us to understand the suffering that adults sometimes must go through to protect their families and friends that make up our great country, America.  The little white table should serve as a meaningful reminder to all of us, young and old.

I Am Thankful

As I sit here contemplating the topic for this month’s edition of the Dodgen Dateline the first thing that comes to mind is to take inventory of the things for which I am thankful.  It is, after all, that time of year.  First, I am thankful that my list includes items such as a wonderful family, adequate food and shelter, and employment at the best middle school in the United States.

Of course I could go on for many more pages.  I am blessed indeed.  How about instead, I share some things from my list that I am sure you would not have guessed? 

The baseball that has scrawled on it the words “I love you very much!,” comes to mind.  The words were written by my son when he was in Kindergarten.  He placed it in a bucket along with all of the other baseballs we used for fielding practice.  When I found it I immediately and permanently pulled it from the bucket.  It now rests in the ash tray of my vehicle so that I can look at it every day.  I don’t smoke, so the ash tray makes a perfect trophy stand.

And then there is a section of the ceiling upstairs at our home that is missing some plaster.  The small damaged area is about the size of two business cards.  It is located about twelve inches from the pull-down stairway that leads up to the attic.  You see, when my son grew tall enough he could not walk past the cord that hangs from the stairway without reaching up to give it a good swat.  This in turn caused the knot at the end of the cord to make contact with the ceiling, which caused minor damage to the plaster.  Okay, I know what most of you are thinking.  Why in the world didn’t you just tell him not to do this?  I wonder how the leading child psychologists would weigh in on the question; not that it would change my mind.  Truth is it did not occur to me that it would cause damage.  Swatting the cord was not an act that was done with intent to destroy property.  Bottom line, life is too short to stress about the little things.  Some of you reading this may argue that this is not a little thing.  We will just agree to disagree.

Oh well…  Now that my son has gone off to college I am especially thankful for those little things.  The baseball; maybe I can throw it with his kid one day.  The area of missing plaster; I think of him every time I walk past.