In Focus Bulletins
Thomas Stone High School is hosting a college and career fair, "Bridging the Gap," 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, March 5 at the school. Representatives from more than 20 colleges and universities will be available for students and parents to speak with and financial aid information also will be provided for attendees. Students should bring their SAT/ACT scores and a copy of their official transcripts. Dave Owens, a sports anchor and reporter from WUSA-9 TV in Washington, D.C., is the guest speaker. The fair is free and open to the public. The event is sponsored by Thomas Stone High School's W.E.B. Du Bois Honor Society, Impact Sports Inc., College of Southern Maryland Talent Search, the National Pan-Hellenic Council of Southern Maryland and the Top Ladies of Distinction Southern Maryland.
The North Point High School Education Careers Program is looking for any Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) employees who graduated from the early childhood education program at the former Career & Technology Center (Luv Bear Program) or North Point's Education Careers Program. As part of a program presentation, staff is looking to talk with any CCPS employee who completed these programs and now work for the school system. Email Melissa Palmer at mpalmer@ccboe.com or Nicolette Kirby at nkirby@ccboe.com.
The North Point High School National Technical Honor Society (NTHS) inducted 58 new members on Feb. 24. Criteria to join include displaying high levels of skill in their chosen Career and Technology Education (CTE) programs, honesty, service, scholarship, responsibility, citizenship and leadership. Members must also maintain a grade-point average of 3.5 or higher. The NTHS promotes a strong tradition of community service and student leadership.
The North Point High School Drafting Program recently coordinated a service member care package drive at the school. The drive was also supported by members of the boys' basketball team and the Academy of Health Professions program. Through the drive, more than 70 gift packages were donated.
Spring Play Schedule
St. Charles High School will stage "Grease" 7 p.m. March 11-12 and 2 p.m. March 12-13 at the school, 5305 Piney Church Road, Waldorf. Tickets are $8 for adults; $5 for seniors, military members and students. Follow the theater department @SCHS_theater on Twitter. Call 301-753-2090 or 301-396-4201.
Maurice J. McDonough High School will perform "Mary Poppins" 6:30 p.m. April 14, 15 and 16 and 2 p.m. April 16 at the school, 7165 Marshall Corner Road, Pomfret. Tickets are $10 for adults and $8 for students, senior citizens and military members with identification. Tickets for children and thespians are $7 each and Charles County Public Schools employees can receive one complimentary ticket with their school identification badge. 301-934-2944 or 301-753-1755.
North Point High School will stage "Willy Wonka" based on Roald Dahl's book "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" 7 p.m. April 14, 15 and 16 and 1 p.m. April 16 at the school, 2500 Davis Road, Waldorf. Tickets are available at the door and are $8 for adults and $5 for children and students. Call 301-753-1759 or 301-885-2012.
Westlake High School will perform "The Wiz" 7 p.m. April 14, 15 and 16 and 3 p.m. April 17 at the school, 3300 Middletown Road, Waldorf. Tickets are $10 for adults, $8 for senior citizens, $6 for students and $5 for children 12 and younger. Call 301-645-8857 or 301-753-1758.
Henry E. Lackey High School will perform the musical "Into the Woods" 6:30 p.m. April 15 and 16 and 2 p.m. April 17 at the school, 3000 Chicamuxen Road, Indian Head. Play ticket prices are $8 for adults, $7 for students, senior citizens and military members and and $6 for thespians. Call 301-743-5431 or 301-753-1753.
La Plata High School will stage "Sweet Charity" at 6:30 p.m. April 28 and 29 at the school, 6035 Radio Station Road, La Plata. It also will be performed at 2:30 and 6:30 p.m. April 30. T icket prices are $10 for adults, $5 for students and school system employee can get a free ticket with their school identification badge. For advance tickets, email jjoyner@ccboe.com. Call 301-934-1100 or 301-753-1754.
Thomas Stone High School will perform "Once On This Island" 7 p.m. April 21, 22 and 23 at the school, 3785 Leonardtown Road, Waldorf. Tickets are $5 and school system employees can receive a free ticket with their school identification badge. Call 301-645-2601 or 301-753-1756.
Students advance to state level of NSDAR contest
A total of 39 Charles County Public Schools students recently advanced to the state level of competition in the National Junior American Citizens Contest, sponsored by the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution (NSDAR). The organization includes a Junior American Citizens Committee, which supports contests for children that promote patriotic development. The Junior American Citizens Contest is open to students in grades prekindergarten through 12, and entries range from banners, poems and posters to short stories and stamp designs.
This year's contest theme is "Celebrate America." Students advance to the state level for earning a first-place award in the local competition. A total of 135 Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) students participated in the local contest. The following students advance to the state level.
• Allison Ament, first place, banner category, third grade, Mary H. Matula Elementary School;
• Kenyse Graham, first place, banner category, third grade, Matula;
• Austin Ashley, first place, banner category, third grade, Matula;
• Trinity Boyce, first place, banner category, fourth grade, Matula;
• Angela Farnham, first place, banner category, fourth grade, Matula;
• Kaitlin Candela, first place, banner category, fourth grade, Matula;
• Hanna Leszczynski, first place, banner category, fourth grade, Matula;
• Nick Quade, first place, banner category, fifth grade, Matula;
• Aashiyana Brown, first place, banner category, fifth grade, Matula;
• Ervin De Leon, first place, banner category, fifth grade, Matula;
• Zharria Wilson, first place, banner category, fifth grade, Matula;
• Elijah Jones, first place, community service category, kindergarten, Arthur Middleton Elementary School;
• Alyssa Gerhart, first place, community service category, seventh grade, Benjamin Stoddert Middle School;
• Joshua Sokol, first place, community service category, freshman, North Point High School;
• McKenzie Perrier, first place, photo essay category, third grade, Gale-Bailey Elementary School;
• Journey Gardner, first place, poem category, second grade, Matula;
• Allison Ament, first place, poem category, third grade, Matula;
• Faith Rothell, first place, poem category, fourth grade, Gale-Bailey;
• Mackenzie Fox, first place, poem category, fifth grade, Dr. James Craik Elementary School;
• Trinity Long, first place, poem category, fifth grade, Craik;
• Morgan Vicha, first place, poem category, seventh grade, Stoddert;
• Kristal Hines-Pressley, first place, poem category, eighth grade, Stoddert;
• Nya Whitney, first place, poster category, second grade, Craik;
• Rajan Venkatesh, first place, poster category, third grade, Gale-Bailey;
• Colin Takeuchi, first place, poster category, third grade, Matula;
• Katherine Bowling, first place, poster category, fourth grade, Matula;
• Caleb Borst, first place, poster category, fourth grade, Matula;
• Zoe Hakim, first place, poster category, fifth grade, Matula;
• Aliyah Brazile, first place, poster category, fifth grade, Matula;
• Eric Hodgson, first place, poster category, fifth grade, Matula;
• Elaina Winkler, first place, short story category, fourth grade, Matula;
• Mary Fisher, first place, short story category, fourth grade, Matula;
• Jeannie Hughes, first place, short story category, fifth grade, Craik;
• Chandler Bell, first place, short story category, eighth grade, Stoddert;
• Joshua Sokol, first place, short story category, freshman, North Point;
• Da'Juon Washington, first place, short story category, junior, North Point;
• Eliza Freundel, first place, stamp design category, second grade, Mt. Hope/Nanjemoy Elementary School;
• Jadyn Woolsey, first place, stamp design category, third grade, Craik;
• Ryann Tompkins, first place, stamp design category, fourth grade, Matula;
• Kendall Vermillion, first place, stamp design category, fifth grade, Walter J. Mitchell Elementary School; and
• Madeline Sullivan, first place, stamp design category, fifth grade, Craik.
The local contest was sponsored by the Port Tobacco Chapter of the NSDAR. Local winners first advance to the state level. First- and second-place state winners advance to the national level. A total of 333 students from CCPS and private schools entered the competition.
All local winners will be honored at a May 7 awards ceremony at the Maryland Veterans Memorial Museum in Glasva, where contest submissions will also be on display. For more information about contests available through the NSDAR, visit http://www.dar.org/.
First HITS Expo is March 19 at St. Charles High School
Charles County Public Schools is hosting its first History, Industry, Technology and Science (HITS) Expo starting at 12 p.m., Saturday, March 19 at St. Charles High School in Waldorf. The Expo replaces the annual Science and History Fairs, and will feature both science and history fair projects from Charles County Public Schools students, as well as private school students.
The Expo will showcase several school system programs available for students. These programs include robotics, the Code.org computer science partnership and offerings, Project Lead the Way, the Teacher Academy of Maryland (TAM), interactive media production and more.
The goal of the Expo is to showcase student accomplishments in the area of science and history, as well as expose students, parents and the community to programs and extracurricular opportunities available. Programs include activities and student skills in the areas of science, history, technology, computer science, Career Technology Education (CTE) and engineering. Expo presentations begin at 12 p.m. and conclude around 4 p.m. An awards ceremony to honor student winners in the History and Science Fair project portion of the Expo starts at 5 p.m.
The Expo is open to the public and planned as part of the Expo are representatives from Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) science, technology and industry programs at North Point High School. Staff from the Robert D. Stethem Educational Center also will be present to talk about CTE programs at Stethem for high school students. James E. Richmond Science Center staff will speak to attendees about enrichment opportunities for students and public engagement offerings.
Several hands-on learning activities will be featured for attendees to participate in at the Expo. These activities range from a photo booth, strawberry DNA, physical science demonstrations and a hand-on S.T.E.A.M. activity to a polar ice and fingerprint activity, flinkers activity, a vortex wave cannon and dissection demonstration. Other hands-on activities include robotics and computer programming, an American Indian ceramics station, Code.org and several North Point CTE programs.
Re-enactors from local historical organizations will lead several interactive demonstrations. Community groups such as the American Indian "Let's Dance" program, the Maryland Historical Society, the Thomas Stone Historic Site and the War of 1812 Traveling Trunk will hold activities. Interactive sessions are planned for CTE programs such as Pharmacy Tools, Interactive Media Production, Academy of Health Professions and Educational Careers, and from the popular Choose Your Own Path series featuring the assassination of Abraham Lincoln.
Additionally, several programs from the College of Southern Maryland including the Kids College, robotics team and Workforce Development are included in Expo presentations. Expo displays will also highlight community organizations such as the Maryland and Charles County Archeological societies, The Charles County Commission for Women, the Port Tobacco Chapter of the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution (NSDAR), and the Alpha Kappa Alpha and Sigma Gamma Rho sororities.
Starting this school year, only students in ninth-grade honors Earth and space science courses complete a science fair project as a requirement. Students in all other grade levels can complete a science fair project as an enrichment opportunity for extra credit.
Also new this school year is a change to the history fair project requirement. Only students in seventh-grade enrichment social studies classes are required to complete a history fair project. Students in all other grade levels can complete a history fair project as an enrichment opportunity for extra credit.
In prior years, science fair projects were required for students in grades 6-12 enrolled in enrichment and honors-level classes. History fair projects were required for middle school students enrolled in enrichment level courses, and high school students who took honors courses. As part of the annual CCPS Science and History fairs, students could submit their projects for judging in the local competition, and advance to the state and/or national levels. Students who participate in the Expo with a science or history fair project are still eligible to compete at the state and/or national levels.
Students win Maryland American History Essay awards
Kylie Bradshaw, a fifth grader at Walter J. Mitchell Elementary School, and Evangeline Gilmer, a seventh grader at Benjamin Stoddert Middle School, were recently named state-level winners in the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution (NSDAR) American History Essay Contest. The contest was open to students in grades five through eight and featured the theme of, "A Colonial Family's Reaction to the Stamp Act."
In their essays, students had to describe a colonial family's discussion about the Stamp Act and what role it played in organizing the colonists against the British King and Parliament. As state winners, Bradshaw and Gilmer will be recognized at the Maryland State Society, Daughters of the American Revolution Annual State Conference March 19. This is the second consecutive year that Gilmer has received a first-place award at the state level.
Both students advance to a divisional level of competition, of which those winners are eligible to compete at the national level for a monetary award. Earlier this school year, Bradshaw and Gilmer earned first-place awards in the local essay contest. They will be honored with their local-level awards at a ceremony scheduled for May 7 at the Maryland Veterans Memorial Museum in Glasva. Their work will also be on display.
Alyssa Gerhart, a seventh grader at Stoddert, will also be honored May 7 as a second-place winner at the local level. Gerhart won a second-place award at the local level in 2015. This year's local contest was coordinated by the Port Tobacco Chapter of the organization. First-place winners at the local level advance to state judging.
A total of 78 students submitted entries for the local contest. Participating schools included Mitchell, John Hanson Middle School, Stoddert and St. Peter's School.
The Port Tobacco Chapter coordinates the National Junior American Citizens Contest for students in grades prekindergarten though 12. This contest promotes good citizenship and appreciation of American heritage and history.
For more information about the essay contest and other contests available through the Daughters of the American Revolution, visit http://www.dar.org/national-society. The Daughters of the American Revolution is a non-profit volunteer women's service organization dedicated to promoting patriotism, preserving American history and securing America's future through education.