Jazz Combo Entertains, Educates Bay-Waveland Students

Bay High School Students & Principal Take to the Air Thank to AFJROTC

Pictures taken from the back seat of a 1958 plane that was a four-seater. Once the pilot got us up in the air, one of the Bay High School AFJROTC students took over and flew us over Hancock County and the Bay of St. Louis.

A senior cadet at Bay High School mentioned to Sergeant Snemyr that she would love to fly before leaving the Bay High School AFJROTC program. Well, she had that opportunity on Saturday. The Bay High School cadets who attended also had the chance to fly because about 6 or 8 pilots from the Diamondhead airport volunteered their time and airplanes.

"I had the great pleasure of joining the AFJROTC this weekend in an event that they coordinated for about twenty of their cadets. This experience was so very amazing for the students who participated and I wanted to share a bit of this with each of you," said Amy Coyne, Assistant Principal for Bay High School.

This was an opportunity of a lifetime for these students that was all made possible by Sergeant Paul Snemyr and Major Ed Butler.

Congratulations to our Regional Science Fair participants!

Devon Gilbert's Pattern Pig Art Wins Competition

Second Street Elementary Receives National Education Association Books Across America Library Grant

In collaboration with the National Education Association, the Foundation recently announced 50 awards of $1,000 each to public schools serving economically disadvantaged students to purchase books for school libraries. The awards are made possible with support from corporations and individuals who donated to the NEA's Books Across America Fund to bring the gift of reading to students.

Congratulations to Second Street Elementary School as being chosen as a recipient of NEA's Books Across America Library grant. Second Street was the sole recipient of this grant for the state of Mississippi and will be using the funds to replace worn paperbacks with new hard cover editions.

Way to go Second Street!

Alicia Kelly Receives Sprint Ahead Grant

Alicia Kelly, the Positive Behavior Specialist for Bay-Waveland School District received a $10,000 grant from Sprint as part of their Sprint Ahead for Education grant program.  Sprint Ahead for Education is a brand-new program that supports innovative character-education initiatives through funding of K-12 public schools and school districts programs through the issuing of grants for new ground-breaking approaches to student motivation and behavior modification.

With this grant money, Ms. Kelly was able to create and implement a district-wide comprehensive positive-behavior support program that has curtailed significantly the number of incidents of problem behavior occurring per campus.  Nearly every school in the district was destroyed during Hurricane Katrina. Since that time, the district had seen an increase in student behavior problems; the new program was put in place to combat the problems.

All classroom teachers received specialized training and implemented targeted lesson plans that teach and reinforce positive behavior traits and characteristics.   In addition, Ms. Kelly continues to provide follow-up sessions combined with peer-coaching to insure teachers have all of the information and techniques needed to be successful with this new approach to behavior and student motivation.

Bay High School Team Wins First Round in Economics Challenge
Students advance to state championship in Jackson

A team from Bay High School won the first round of competition in the Mississippi Economics and Financial Literacy Challenge and will advance to the state championship March 25 at Millsaps College in Jackson.  The Bay High School team was in the Adam Smith Division of the Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate and honors students category.  The students teacher is Stacey Pate.

Sponsored by the Mississippi Council on Economic Education and now in its sixth year of competition, this year's Challenge, for the first time, included an online first round. The number of participating teams almost doubled from 55 last year to 101 teams this year, and a total of 374 students took the first round online economics and financial literacy tests March 2-6. The highest scoring students and teams qualified to compete for scholarships and awards at the state level.

Bay High School’s team was one of only 20 teams whose first-round scores qualified them to advance to the state championship.

"This year's high participation rate in the Mississippi Economics and Financial Literacy Challenge indicates that our schools recognize the importance of preparing students to address the most relevant topic in our nation today – the economy," said Dr. Pamela Smith, president of the Mississippi Council on Economic Education. "Our competition will provide a look at our state's fiscally responsible future leaders."

Prizes include eight $1,000 scholarships for students on the two state championship teams. These teams will represent the state at the Regional Economics Challenge in April. An additional $500 scholarship will be awarded to the 2009 Economics Student of the Year. All scholarships are provided by BankPlus, Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Mississippi and State Farm Insurance.

The state competition produces a championship team in each of two divisions: the Adam Smith Division (Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate and honors economics students) and the David Ricardo Division (for single semester economics students).

Students from Madison Central High School in Madison won both divisions last year. 

"The Mississippi Council on Economic Education provides teachers with professional development in economics and financial education.  Many of the Economics Challenge competitors are taught by Master Teachers of Economics, a new endorsement established by the Mississippi State Board of Education.  As teachers' skills improve in teaching these complex courses, their students demonstrate great success in the annual competition," added Smith.

The Mississippi Economics Challenge is sponsored by Goldman Sachs Foundation, the Council for Economic Education, BankPlus, Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Mississippi, State Farm, the Mississippi Department of Education, Millsaps College, and the Mississippi Council on Economic Education.

Bay High's Lady Tigers Dedicate Softball Complex to Leo W. Seal, Jr.

Parent of the Year for the Bay St. Louis-Waveland School District: Patches Oliver

Bay High School Parent of the Year: Debbie Smith

Bay-Waveland Middle School Teacher of the Year: Angelina Vellon

Second Street Elementary Teacher of the Year: Patches Oliver

North Bay Elementary Parent of the Year: Denise Island

Oberlin Team Taught the 6th and 7th Grade Students About the Benefits of Composting

Teacher of the Year 2008-09 School Year

Area Educator Receives National Recognition

Pamela Richardson Kennedy, who works at North Bay Elementary School, was awarded Reading Model Classroom by the Wisconsin Rapids, Wis., based company. Model Classroom certification indicates that Richardson Kennedy's efforts to adopt Renaissance best classroom practices to a high degree have resulted in measurable improvements in student performance.

"Pamela exemplifies the kind of commitment to the success of every student that is at the heart of effective teaching," said Judi Paul, Chairman of the Board at Renaissance Learning.

To receive Renaissance Model Classroom certification, an educator must demonstrate that their students are maintaining high-quality practice for a minimum of 12 weeks. In addition, educators must be actively working with individual students to meet Renaissance-recommended standards and be helping each student work at the level that promotes the most growth.

In addition to national recognition, Richardson Kennedy will receive a certificate in recognition of this class-wide achievement, more opportunities for professional development, and other benefits to share with the class and school.

Renaissance Learning is the world's leading provider of computer-based assessment technology for K-12 schools. Adopted by more than 75,000 North American schools, Renaissance Learning's tools provide daily formative assessment and periodic progress-monitoring technology to enhance core curriculum, support differentiated instruction, and personalize practice in reading, writing, and math.

Their products help educators make the practice component of their existing curriculum more effective by providing tools to personalize practice and easily manage the daily activities for students of all ability levels. As a result, teachers using Renaissance Learning products accelerate learning, help students achieve higher test scores on state and national tests, and get more satisfaction from teaching. Renaissance Learning has seven U.S. locations and subsidiaries in Canada, India, and the United Kingdom.

Bay High Wins Big at FBLA Conference

 Students representing Bay High and their events were:

• Jessica Oliver--Accounting I

• Dominique Jones--Personal Finance

• Farren Washington--Business Law

• Austa Chasez--Business Procedures

• Sam Breeden--Business Math

• Gerard Frommeyer--Introduction to Business (Placed 2nd in his event)

• Bailey Luttrell--Introduction to Technology Concepts (Placed 1st in his event)

• Nicky Duvieilh--Technology Concepts (Only a 9th grader, Nicky placed 4th in what is a senior-level event!!)

Sweating for Scholarships

On Sunday, February 1 the Bay St. Louis-Waveland School District Mind, Body and Spirit Running & Walking Club members: Dr. Andy Parker, Principal at Bay High School, Dr. Cherie Labat, Principal at Bay-Waveland Middle School, Brad Barlow, Child Nutrition Administrator, Alicia Kelly, Positive Behavior Specialist, and Penny Rodrique, Instructional Technology Specialist were "Sweating for Scholarships," at the Mardi Gras Marathon in New Orleans. 

Club members asked individuals and organizations to pledge to pay them so much per mile.  In all the Running-Walking club ran or walked a total of 65.5 miles on Sunday.

The Mind, Body and Spirit Foundation  was created by a group of Bay St. Louis-Waveland School District employees who joined forces in an effort to promote healthier life-styles, and the teaching profession in the Bay St. Louis area. 

According to Dr. Andy Parker, Principal at Bay High School, “Mississippi is currently facing a teacher shortage.  At the present time 6,000 teachers in the state of Mississippi are eligible to retire and there are not enough certified teachers to take their place.  The scholarships are our way to encourage individuals to enter and stay in the teaching profession.”

The foundation will award two scholarships at the end of the 2008-09 school year.  One of the scholarships will be awarded to a graduating senior from Bay High School who will be pursuing a teacher education degree upon completion of high school, and the other scholarship will be awarded to a teacher from the Bay St. Louis-Waveland School District who is taking graduate courses from one of the local universities.

"As members of the education profession and citizens of Mississippi we all became increasingly alarmed by our pending teacher shortage, and our states status as the most obese state in the nation.  So we decide that we would address both of these problems by encouraging individuals to look at teaching as a career choice by offering scholarships from money raised through running or walking in races," stated Penny Rodrique.

Upcoming Events for the Mind, Body and Spirit Foundation are:

• Saturday, March 28 the  Thirty-Second Annual Azalea Trail Run

• Saturday, April 11 the Crescent City Classic

• Saturday, May 2 the Bay-Waveland School District Scholarship Sprint 5K & 1 Mile Health Run/Walk

The Mission Statement of the Mind, Body and Spirit Foundation is to encourage the pursuit of teacher education in our community through the issuing of college scholarships which are made available through fund-raising activities that promote and model healthy lifestyle choices.

BAY WAVELAND MIDDLE SCHOOL BECOMES A PROJECT FIT SCHOOL

“If you build it, they will come.”  This is the motto for Project fit, a grant recently received by Bay Waveland Middle School.  Dr. Cherie Labat, Coach Trina Kidd, and Mrs. Gina Pepperman’s efforts have brought in $26,000 in grant money from Blue Cross Blue Shield of Mississippi to support the Project Fit of America Program. 

Project fit is a national action based charity that works with schools and front line educators to create better opportunities for children to be active and healthy.  They will provide the materials and curriculum for the teachers of Bay Waveland Middle School. 

In the near future students and the community will have the opportunity to utilize a walking trail, balance beam, pull up stations and other fitness equipment.

Dr. Labat stated, “We were awarded this grant through supporting fitness and wellness in our curriculum in the past.  We have participated in many Health and wellness programs, and we support the whole child in academics and in wellness.” 

Trina Kidd, Bay Waveland Middle School’s Health Teacher, believes that through the equipment and curriculum they will receive, teachers will be better able to fulfill the 150 minutes required per week of instruction through physical education and activity.   

The middle school teachers plan to utilize the equipment to enhance what they are already teaching their students.   They recognize that everything in life relates back to wellness, and are trying to implement good habits into their student’s lives. 

Mrs. Pepperman agrees that this will help with the growing concerns of Health care today.  “Fitness is one thing that we should be teaching at an earlier age.  Students especially need to understand wellness and fitness with Mississippi ranking as the number one state of obesity for the third year in a row.”  

Dr Cherie Labat stated, “As we look at the rising issues of Health care today, Project Fit will make exercise a daily routine in the lives of students.  We as educators believe that it is key to teach motivation and responsibility as it relates to health.”

North Bay Rocks With “ Mr. Al”

Dancing and singing filled the auditorium at Bay High School as the students and the staff of North Bay Elementary were entertained by “Mr. Al” Rasso, a nationally known children’s singer/songwriter and performer.   Throughout the entire one hour performance students, teachers, and other staff members sang along and danced with Mr. Al as he shared several messages through music

 Mr. Al has been traveling throughout the country presenting workshops, consulting with school districts, performing conferences keynotes, and entertaining children and families since 1988.  He is not only a performer but also holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Elementary Education and a Master’s Degree in Early Childhood Education. 

Some of the activities during the show involved everyone putting on their grove, playing imaginary instruments, showing off their shoes, clapping, stomping, singing, and dancing.  There was never a dull moment throughout the entire performance. It was quit a treat for all attending. 

North Bay Elementary Celebrates the 100th Day of School

Mrs. Liles and Mrs. Jacobs, along with their second graders, celebrated the 100th day of school as their students enjoyed counting 100 “Fruit Loops” which were sorted by color and divided into groups.  Each student then made a necklace using the cereal.  Additional activities were enjoyed by all.  Stories were read and the students brainstormed a list of 100 animals.  Each estimated how many times they could write their name in 100 seconds.  The students were timed to determine whether the estimation was correct or not.  The students made as many words as possible using the letters in “One Hundred Days”.  After all of the excitement, everyone 100 seconds of silence to imagine what they would look like at 100.  The final activity was to draw a picture of themselves at the age of 100!

Ms. Griffin and Ms. Dian's kindergarten class celebrated the 100th day of school by making 100th day necklaces and hats.

Mrs Lape's first grade class has been studying and graphing the weather this winter. They are also learning about  using adjectives to describe the weather. So, they voted to write a crazy 100th day story titled, The Day It Snowed 100 Feet. The children made a story board to go along with their tall tale.

Students in Mrs. Kennedy's second grade class counted, sorted, and graphed 100 M & M's and 100 pieces of cereal.  They also searched for 100 words that they could read and spell correctly.

Mrs. Mestayer's class counted by tens the number of fingers they had in their class!  They predicted whether they had enough hands to make 100 fingers. Most students thought they would never have enough. They ended up with 250 fingers!  They also guessed where 100 steps would take them. Then they walked the 100 steps and ended up at the office. Six out of the twenty two students guessed the office.

Mrs. Craft's students celebrated the day by wearing hats that their families helped them create with one hundred things on them.  The students were asked to be creative and have fun with the project.  They also spent the day doing several writing pieces about a hundred and several math activities involving a hundred. 

Many great and exciting learning activities fill the 100th day of school at North Bay Elementary.  The teachers utilized the opportunity for some fun ways to address various skills and concepts.  Now the countdown is on for the last day of school.

New Elementary School Ground Breaking Ceremonies

Two ceremonies celebrated the ground breaking events of our new elementary schools on Friday, December 19.  Both of the cities served by the Bay St. Louis-Waveland School District were honored in these gatherings.

The upper elementary school will be approximately 88,500 square feet and can serve up to 772 third through fifth grade students. 

The lower elementary school will add an additional 49,695 square feet to two existing schools.  This school will serve up to 766 Kindergarten through second grade students.

The architect for both projects is the firm of Eley Guild Hardy.

The building contractor for the Upper Elementary School is Webb Building Corporation.  And the building contractor for the Lower Elementary School is Dan Hensarling, Inc.

North Bay Elementary Annual Christmas Program

Ribbon Cutting Ceremony for the Early Education Center

The Bay-Waveland School District’s new state-of-the-art Early Education Center will meet the educational needs of an often overlooked segment of our community, the newborn to Kindergarten age group. 

"Research has shown that preschool gives kids a good foundation for education for the rest of their lives," said Principal Donna Torres.

The center accepts children from 6 weeks to 4 years old. Each age group has its own section indoors, as well as a playground outdoors for the toddlers. The center can hold 70 children.

The funding for this project was provided by Chevron Oil Company’s “Energy for Learning Grant, and the Mississippi Hurricane Recovery Fund (a Fund of the Gulf Coast Community Foundation) in collaboration with Save the Children and the Help and Hope Foundation.

Mississippi State University has provided an additional $100,000.00 for the equipment and furnishings. 

The Keynote Speaker was Dr. Hank Bounds, State Superintendent of Education for the state of Mississippi.

North Bay Elementary Faculty Members Pick Up Where BWMS Faculty Left Off

Habitat for Humanity PPT

Bay Waveland Middle School Faculty
Lend a Helping Hand with Habitat for Humanity

Bay - Waveland Middle School is pleased to announce the initiation of a new faculty and staff community service project for the 2008-2009 school year.  Under the leadership of Dr. Cherie Labat, BWMS Principal and Mrs. Lynn Tammen, BWMS Assistant Principal, volunteer members of the team will work with Habitat for Humanity on a house on Amar Street in Waveland on October 11th.   Dr. Labat believes, "It is important not only to live in a community, but to also actively participate in its growth and restoration.  Our team members are very enthusiastic about working together on this project."  Marla Pennington, ISS paraprofessional, is taking this endeavor to a personal level.  "I believe I should give back.  We were helped so much after Hurricane Katrina that I want to make sure others receive what they need."  Bay - Waveland Middle School Habitat for Humanity team is eager and ready to assist the Bay St. Louis-Waveland communities.

Written by Shelley Dalrymple.

Promethean Boards Add Excitement to Kindergarten Classes

Kindergarten students in Mrs. Brupbacher and Mrs. Hair's class at North Bay Elementary are enjoying lots of new and exciting experiences.  The promethean board lessons are so much fun and seem magical to the students.  Promethean boards have been added to the classrooms at North Bay as an innovative technological tool that is certainly enhancing learning.  Mrs. Brupbacher's class is also working hard to build respect among her students, which is one of the school's expectations of all students this school year.

Local Artist Teaches Printmaking to Teachers

Student Art Work Provided by
Joan Estapa, Science Teacher at Bay Waveland Middle School and
Tammy Raymond, Teacher at Second Street Elementary

Hands On Printmaking is a pilot program developed by local artist, Gwen Impson, and sponsored by the Mississippi Arts Commission and the National Endowment for the Arts. The purpose of this program is to integrate art in the form of printmaking into the curriculum. Printmaking is not another subject to teach but, rather, another tool for teaching. During the 2008-09 school year, there will be a series of workshops for teachers.

http://www.handsonprintmaking.com/

L to R.  Student Ambassadors:  Kaleigh Magee, Tynisha Johnson, Rebecca Oliver, and Guidance Counselor Suzanne Gilmore

Bay Waveland Middle School will begin a new student incentive program promoting Positive Behavior, Attendance and Achievement.  The program was developed by Guidance Counselor Suzanne Gilmore through research of a positive behavior initiative being implemented in several schools in Mississippi.  Gilmore wrote and received a grant from I.N.G financial and was the recipient of the "UNSUNG HEROES AWARD." 

The "PAWS" program will begin after progress reports and students will be able to achieve Platinum, Gold, or Blue Paw status.  The word "PAW" was custom-made for this program because it is used as an acronym for the characteristics we want to see in our students: P (Positive Behavior), A (Attendance), and W (Work Ethic).  The incentives and recognition students will receive can be attained by all students who set goals for themselves to improve their overall educational tenure at Bay-Waveland Middle School.  

Gilmore also hopes to bridge this initiative to the high school to help coordinate a positive incentive program that appeals to our high school students.  Our student incentive and recognition program will work because it is researched based and will appeal and be attainable for all students on our campus.

Dr. Andy Parker is Selected as New BHS Principals

The Board of Trustees for the Bay St. Louis-Waveland School District recently approved the position of grant writer and program evaluator since funding continues to dwindle after Hurricane Katrina.  The Board has decided that this position is a "must" to keep the district on the cutting edge of academic programming and competition. Board President Dr Sherry Ponder stated, "We must become creative in seeking funding and the only way to do that is to have someone write grants for us on a full time basis.  The position will eventually pay for itself as grant money is awarded."

Fortunately for the district, Mrs. Marca Alexander will step into the position, bringing with her a wealth of knowledge.  She has worked in the district for over fifteen years and knows the needs of the district quite well.  As high school principal, Mrs. Alexander was successful in writing a high school redesign grant that brought in approximately $500,000 that enabled her to implement new programs of study and enhance community involvement through business and industry.  Mrs. Alexander has worked in the district as a teacher, elementary principal, federal programs director, and high school principal.  Her experience will serve her well in this new central office position.

Dr. Andy Parker will take over as principal of Bay High School.  "He will be on the job when the teachers arrive August 4," states Dr Stasny, superintendent for the district.  "Dr. Parker has the experience necessary to step into the job on short notice."  He has served in various administrative positions including assistant superintendent, assistant high school principal, and middle school principal.

Dr. Parker's first priority is to make sure the opening of school goes smoothly and believes it will since Mrs. Alexander has done such a great job laying the foundation.  Dr. Parker stated he is delighted that he has been given the opportunity to work in the Bay-Waveland District.  "The district has a great reputation and I'm looking forward to being a part of it," he stated when asked about his new position.