Notes From Mr. Snell's Office

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.

Never Forget

God bless those who have died so that my family and I may live in the land of the free; the United States of America.  Let us remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice.  Let us send a special prayer to the mothers and fathers of those brave soldiers.  We must never forget the price of freedom.  Every day should be Memorial Day.
Photograph-(c)2004 Daniel J. Wood - All rights reserved.

CRCT Test Results

The results are in.  Our students did very well.  Congratulations also to our teachers who work so hard to help our students succeed.  Percentage of students who met or exceeded standards in reading, math, language arts, science, and social studies: 

6th grade-R98% M91% LA98% SC86% SS97%

7th grade-R95% M93% LA96% SC94% SS97%

8th grade-R98% M94% LA98% SC94% SS97%

Science Classes Highlighted

Soon you will see one aspect of our 8th grade science curriculum highlighted on COBB edTV.  You can visit the Cobb County BOE web site to find out additional information about the TV station, as well as program listings.  COBB edTV visited Dodgen last Thursday to do a story on what I believe to be the most unique outdoor classroom in the United States.  Our pond!  8th grade science students reap the greatest benefit from this special learning environment.  Some of our award winning (see February 23, 2007 post) students are shown at left as they are filmed for the program, and as they meet with their teacher, Judy Cox this past Thursday.

Teacher of the Year

Dodgen Middle School's Teacher of the Year for 2007-2008 is LaTease Drawdy, 7th grade language arts teacher.  Ms. Drawdy is pictured at left with her husband John.  Congratulations!

Campus Clean-Up

  More than 50 students, teachers, and community members came out this past Saturday to work on the grounds at Dodgen.  Some of the students and teachers are pictured above.  I also want to thank Johnson Ferry Baptist Church.  About a dozen church members were on hand to help out.  One of the primary tasks was to pull milfoil plants out of the pond.  They really got in there and made a difference.  Thank you!

Dr. John Crooks Visits Dodgen

Dr. John Crooks, Post 6 Board of Education member, visited Dodgen's campus twice in one week!  He was a special guest at our School Council meeting on Wednesday, March 28, and then returned on Friday, March 30, to join our faculty meeting.  The staff and I greatly appreciate Dr. Crooks taking time from his busy schedule to spend time with us.  He is shown above addressing our staff.

Pond Project Students and Teacher Recognized

 

Congratulations to Judy Cox and her 8th grade students!   Ms. Cox received two prestigious awards at an assembly yesterday for her work with the Dodgen Pond Project.  She was selected as the 2006 Outstanding Outreach Award Winner from Georgia Adopt-A-Stream.  She was also selected by the same organization as the Volunteer of the Year!  Ms. Cox's science classes have been utilizing the pond in front of our school as an outdoor classroom/lab for the past few years.  The students collect samples to find the amount of oxygen, pH levels, and air and water temperatures.  This year they have also researched the invasive plant called milfoil that is spreading rapidly in the pond.  A select group of her students traveled to the Atlanta Zoo on February 23, to conduct a presentation at the Youth Environmental Symposium.  I am extremely proud of Ms. Cox and her students!

State Reflections Award

Congratulations to Paige!  She won the PTSA State Reflections award in the category of Dance Choreography for 7th grade!  She accepted her award at the Atlanta History Center this past Sunday.  She is pictured with her 1st place ribbon and certificate in the photograph.  Way to go!