eagle newsletter - Jefferson Christian Academy

Eagle
Newsletter
May 1, 2014
Volume 4 Issue 9
Please Pl
J e f f e r s o n C h r i s t i a n A c a d e m y ~ 1 5 0 0 H e r i t a g e P l a c e D r i ve ~ B i r m i n gh a m , A L 3 5 2 1 0
www.jcaweb.net
205-956-9111 (phone)
2 0 5 - 9 5 6 - 9 5 0 8 ( fa x)
Mission Statement
With God's guidance, Jefferson
Christian Academy will
cultivate and maintain an
environment where the student
is nurtured and challenged to
realize his/her potential in
spiritual maturity,
academic attainment, athletic
achievement and social and
emotional development.
INSIDE THIS ISSUE
1
JCA GOLF
2
M ISS AL ABAM A
2
SPRING RETREAT
3
JC A DRAM A
4
SPIRITUAL EMPHASIS D AY
5
Eaglei
6
PRESIDENT’S DESK
7
SOFTBALL & B ASEBALL
8
PRESCHOOL H APPENINGS
9
APRIL IN PICTURES
May 2014
1st – Junior/Senior Banquet
3rd – Grandparent’s Day (1/2 Day, No
Aftercare)
6th – Yearbook Dedication
6th – Sports Banquet
7th - 9th – Senior Final Exams
8th - 9th – 5th Grade Trip Chattanooga
12th – 8th Grade Trip Atlanta
12th - 18th – Senior Trip
15th – Preschool Program & K4
Graduation
19th – Middle/High Awards
19th - 22nd – 2nd Semester Exams
22nd – Elementary Awards
22nd – Last Day of School (1/2 Day, No
Aftercare)
22nd – Senior Graduation
A Great Day at Castle Pines for the
18th Annual Jefferson Christian
Academy Invitational Golf
Tournament!
Great fun, food and fellowship was had by all who joined in for our 18th
Annual Jefferson Christian Academy Invitational Golf Tournament
Thursday, April 24th, at Castle Pines Country Club. Congratulations to
our 1st Place Team, David Lowery, Mike Chase, Neil Barker and Mark
Cornelius. We would also like to congratulate our 2nd and 3rd place teams
along with the winners of all contests.
This tournament was a success because of its sponsors. We would like to
thank Bryan L. Parker, CPA, LLC, Leeds Family Eye Care, NAFCO,
Sam’s Club, Mrs. Margaret Parrish, Pepsi, Dewey Barber Chevrolet,
Dewey and Gail Barber, Tri-Counties Heating & Air, Mr. Butch Watts,
Mr. Frank Sutton MD, and all of our Individual Sponsors.
A special thanks to our volunteers, Mrs. Gina Mann, Mrs. Julie Kizer,
Mrs. Cheryl Jones, Mrs. Yolanda Rice, Mrs. Lori Pruitt, Mrs. Kristi
Bryant, Mrs. Millie Layton, Miss Kayla Mann, Miss Jenna Taggart, Miss
Becca Sparks, Miss Taylor Mann, Mr. Tony Edwards, and Mr. Dale
Stripling.
The JCA Golf Tournament is one of four major fundraising events that
helps keep tuition affordable at JCA and support the continued
advancement of the Academy.
Page 2
Eagle Newsletter
JCA Welcomes Miss Alabama,
Chandler Champion
On Thursday, April 17th, we were honored to have the current reigning Miss Alabama,
Chandler Champion, on our campus. Chandler’s platform is literacy and she is the founder
of Chandler’s Challenge, which encourages children to read every day. During her visit,
she read to all of our elementary students. She also spent time at the Early Learning Center
visiting with the children and reading to the two and three year old classes. Everyone
enjoyed Chandler’s visit to JCA!
2014 High School Spring Retreat
This year we went on our 3rd Annual High School Retreat. The theme this year was, “Because I’m Happy”. Students
heard some wonderful lessons by Coach O’Connor and Mr. Edwards. They spoke on the topics of “Because I’m
Happy . . .I Can Overcome Failure”, “Because I’m Happy . . . I Will Serve Others” and “I’m Happy Because I Know
Where My Future Is”. Forty-eight students from the high school and 5 chaperones traveled to Camp Ney-A-Ti in
Guntersville, AL. They spent the day together on Friday and enjoyed times of fellowship and study. There was a
heated kickball game in the afternoon that all enjoyed! Students had the opportunity to fish and canoe as well. Friday
night, after another wonderful lesson, we were able to witness Emma Pugh’s baptism into Christ. We all then
gathered around a campfire to sing and make s’mores! This year’s retreat was the best ever and we are so thankful for
all the students and adults who attended!
Eagle Newsletter
Page 3
JCA Drama Department Shines with its Rendition of “Bye Bye Birdie”
The JCA drama students recently put on two excellent performances of “Bye
Bye Birdie.” The musical was first performed on Broadway in 1960, and was
originally titled “Let’s Go Steady.” It is a satire on American society in 1958,
and was inspired by the phenomenon of Elvis Presley getting his draft notice
into the Army in 1957.
Brandon Peebles portrayed rock star Conrad Birdie, a play on the name of
Conway Twitty who is remembered for his long career as a country music
star, but was once one of Presley’s rock’n roll rivals. Albert Peterson (Adam
Roberts) and his secretary Rosie (Paige Watson) come up with a plan to
salvage Birdie’s popularity while he is away. Their plan is to randomly
choose one lucky teenage girl from his fan club and have him kiss her just
before he leaves in a huge publicity stunt. Kim MacAfee (Rachel Muncher) is
chosen to receive the kiss. The MacAfee family (Johnny Aycock, Abby
Anderson, and Kyle Wilkerson), as well as the mayor and his wife (Mr.
Edwards and Sheldon Copeland) and all of the adults in the Sweet Apple,
have a hard time dealing wih the rude Conrad Birdie when he arrives in Sweet
Apple, Ohio. The teens, however, follow Birdie wherever he goes singing,
“We love you Conrad. Oh yes we do.” In spite of his meddlesome mother
(Rebekah Schultz), Albert wins Rosie’s love in the end. The catchy songs and
funny plot seemed to be a hit with both audiences.
Page 4
Eagle Newsletter
2014 Spiritual Emphasis Day
The theme for this year’s Spiritual Emphasis Day was “God is Real, This I know.” We had an amazing time. Our
speakers were fabulous and our students’ behavior was exceptional.
The Psalmist said "Children are a heritage of the Lord." This being the case, the kids here at JCA are God's blessings
in our daily care.
Because of this we have a great responsibility to help parents teach and mold them into the type of people that please
the Lord. One way of doing this involves our Annual Spiritual Emphasis Day. This day is special.
The kids love it and the staff enjoys it as well. Although the school keeps a constant spiritual atmosphere, Spiritual
Emphasis Day is the one time out of the year where we can postpone all other curriculum and focus solely on God. I
love it! This day gives us a chance to really come together as a school and be recharged in our commitment to God.
Our speakers are great! Our supporters are great! I'm blessed to be a part of this school and I'm blessed that so many
wonderful kids have made Spiritual Emphasis Day what it was meant to be- GREAT!
Mr. Tony Edwards, Campus Minister
Page 5
Eagle Newsletter
at JCA
JCA’s Eaglei Interactive Classroom Initiative is wrapping up the first year of full operation, and the program has been a success already, says
Mr. Heath Stripling, the school’s Information Technology Director, Baseball Coach and a Certified Apple Technician.
“As excited as we were about rolling out the program to students this year, we are even more excited about this coming school year,” Mr.
Stripling said. “We have a year under our belts and we feel we are able to go forward.”
Eaglei is a technology program based upon the successful programs implemented by several of JCA’s sister schools, as well as the Apple For
Education Plan. Every classroom benefits from the Eaglei Initiative. JCA is the first school of its size, private or public, in the central Alabama
area, to begin a 1:1 iPad Initiative, and one of the first in the entire Southeast where K4-12th grade students have use of an iPad.
Students in K4 through first grade use the iPads three or more times a week, and the upper elementary grades through grade six use them for a
period of time every day. Classrooms are equipped with interactive projectors to create a smart surface on any board or wall. These boards are
interfaced with a computer and an Apple TV to allow students to experience an interactive, hands-on, digital learning environment. Teachers
use apps to help students learn reading, writing and math skills, and can see quickly if a child needs help.
The Eaglei program has been more than a year in the making. Before considering the program, school officials visited and talked with sister
schools that had the technology, carefully considering what worked well and what needed improvement. Then, teachers and administrators
used iPads for a full school year. This fall, the program grew to include JCA’s students.
“We have an Eaglei committee made up of two Elementary teachers, two High School teachers, Administrators and myself,” Mr. Stripling
said. “We get input from everyone, and we decide what apps we will be using. Many are free, but some have a cost, and that is part of our
consideration. We do want to use the same apps consistently for our curriculum, even though we do have a few choices, such as the apps
students use to turn in their work.”
Mr. Stripling says the first year of full implementation has gone much smoother than he expected. “We’ve grown a lot, we’ve learned a lot and
I think we’ll be even more prepared next year,” he said. “We will continue to make the changes and add improvements to enhance the learning
experience, such as more interactive textbooks as companies have them available.”
NEW THIS FALL
One major change this year is the new and improved filtering system that will not only filter and monitor a student’s iPad use at school, but
also at home or anywhere the student may be that has Wi-Fi. “We have had some concerns from parents about use at home,” he said. “While
parents are responsible for monitoring content at home, and we do check the history on the iPads, this will be so much better.”
Mr. Stripling said the school has very few content issues with the iPads. “We use a dual profile system – one institution profile is for apps and
items they have to have for classroom use, and the other individual profile so that the student can put their own content on there because kids
are more excited about learning if they can enjoy using the device,” he said. “The individual profile is a privilege, however, and we have the
capacity to shut it down if need be.”
Another big change is the Focus app for teachers, which allows a teacher to choose what textbook or app will be used in the classroom that day
and lock in that choice so that students can only use that textbook or assigned app during the class period. “It gives control back to the
teacher,” Mr. Stripling said. “Although we don’t have too many problems with it, we want kids focusing on the task at hand during class.”
Mr. Stripling said there have been few problems with student care of the iPads. The strong protective cases that parents have provided have
helped a great deal. Students also have found them easy to get used to, he said. “It really has helped some kids engage in learning who might
not otherwise have done so.”
Mr. Stripling, also JCA’s Baseball Coach, is uniquely qualified to run JCA’s Eaglei program, as well as maintaining other technology at the
school, and he is thankful to have the opportunity. He is a certified Apple Technician, a former college youth minister, a former Faulkner
University football coach and a former wrestling coach at Hewitt-Trussville High School and Moody High School.
“Apple is a great company to work for, but when I found out about this, I really wanted to do it because it helped me get back into a good
spiritual place, which was big for me,” he said. “I also wanted to get back into coaching, and it allows me to do a lot of technology work.”
Page 6
Eagle Newsletter
From the President’s Desk
Looking Ahead – Some Exciting and Very Important Announcements
As most of you are aware, our High School/Middle School Principal, Chad Hudelson, resigned at the end of the last
school year. Chad is from Oklahoma and wanted to move closer to his mom who is a widow and, like many of us, is
advancing in years.
What this meant for JCA is that we had to do what most schools dread, find a new Principal. We announced in May of
last year that we were going to take our time and find, what we hoped would be, the right person for JCA. In the
interim, Mrs. Taggart would serve as acting Principal for the Middle and High School and continue her duties as
Elementary Principal.
In a Principal search there is obvious criteria that must be met, such as the academic qualifications to be a Principal,
good work history, clean background check and, for JCA, experience in private education.
As the time went on I realized, and our Board of Trustees agreed that we needed to add one more qualification; we
needed someone who loved JCA and our students. We needed someone who would be here for the long term to lead
this school into the future. This last requirement of course greatly reduced the field from the better than forty who
submitted resumes and the over twenty who were interviewed.
At this time, we are extremely happy to announce that Mrs. Julie Taggart has been offered, and accepted, the position
as High School and Middle School Principal. Mrs. Taggart attended JCA for 13 years and graduated in 1992. After
receiving her teaching degree and certification, she taught at Tarrant Middle School and later returned to JCA. When
her husband was transferred to Atlanta, she taught at Arlington Christian School in Douglasville, Ga. When she and her
family moved back to the Birmingham area, she returned to JCA. Mrs. Taggart has been at JCA for a total of 25 years,
13 as a student and 12 as a teacher and administrator.
Mrs. Ruth Brooks has accepted the position of Elementary Principal. Mrs. Brooks began teaching at West Birmingham
Christian School, where she remained until the school closed. When West Birmingham closed, Mrs. Brooks was hired
by JCA, where she has been for the past twenty years. Mrs. Brooks currently teaches High School Language Arts, High
School and Elementary Spanish, heads the Drama Department and works with the Elementary Aftercare Program. We
look forward to working with Mrs. Brooks and we are very excited about the vision she has for our Elementary School.
Mrs. Cheryl Jones, who for the past year, has served as acting Director for the Early Learning Center, has accepted the
position on a permanent basis. Mrs. Jones has many years of experience in pre-school management and is a great asset
to the JCA Leadership Team.
For a school to prosper, meaning providing the best educational experience possible for students, there must be parental
support and involvement. We are very thankful for a group of parents who approached us and asked permission to
reorganize the PTF and make it an active and functioning support group for the school. We are very thankful to Mrs.
Cynthia Hill, Mrs. Melanie Baird, Mrs. Jamise Toyer, Mrs. Sharlene Jackson and Mrs. Julie Peterson for all of the work
you have put into our PTF!
“… and they shall
mount up on wings
like Eagles…”
Isaiah 40:31
Page 7
Eagle Newsletter
Eagles Baseball
We had a great season this year. When we restarted the baseball program last year here at JCA, we knew rebuilding
would take some time but we were overwhelmed at the support shown this year by both players and parents. We had
so many students interested that we decided to start a Junior Varsity team this year as well. We had a total of 22
students play this year. Even though we struggled in the wins and losses column, we achieved many victories this year
both on and off the field.
The teams played a full schedule this year compared to last year where we only played half of a schedule. We were
competitive in all our games this year and excited to play in our re-aligned area next year. The future for JCA baseball
is bright and we are looking forward to the years ahead and watching the program continue to grow.
Coach Stripling
Lady Eagles Softball
The 2014 softball season came to a close on Friday at the Area Tournament. The girls played hard but came up one
game short. This season has been filled with many ups and downs. On the whole, the team greatly improved as the
season progressed. The ending of a season is always sad, but the end of this season is especially sad because we have
to say goodbye to graduating senior, Becca Sparks. Becca has pitched for JCA since she was in the 7th grade. Her
skill, leadership and dedication will be greatly missed.
Coach Monosky
Page 8
Eagle Newsletter
Preschool
Happenings
Crawlers
Babies
K3
Toddlers
K2
Page 9
Eagle Newsletter
April in Pictures