Julian Harris Elementary School's 2015 Teacher of the Year - Mrs. Jessica Lindsey

Julian Harris Elementary School is proud to announce that Mrs. Jessica Lindsey is their 2015 Teacher of the Year. Mrs. Lindsey is a graduate of Athens State University. She graduated in the spring of 2003 and began teaching at Julian Harris Elementary where she still works as an integral part of her students’ lives. She has always had the desire to be a teacher, “It’s just who I am and what I’ve always wanted to be” said Mrs. Lindsey. In college she worked at a day care and instantly connected with the older elementary children. It was then that she knew she wanted to teach fourth or fifth grade. Throughout her career at Julian Harris she has had the opportunity to teach both fourth and fifth grade. She credits her inspiration and passion for teaching to her mother. Mrs. Lindsey said her mother is her example of patience, consistency, innovation, and a loving attitude. Congratulations Mrs. Lindsey on earning Teacher of the Year at Julian Harris Elementary!

Cedar Ridge Middle School's 2015 Teacher of the Year - Mrs. Tammy Pickens

Mrs. Tammy Pickens was ecstatic when she heard the news she had been named the 2015 Teacher of the Year for Cedar Ridge Middle School. Mrs. Pickens teachers sixth grade science. She has been teaching for 23 years between Jefferson County, Decatur City Schools, a short break with AMSTI, and finally “back home” (as she said) with Decatur City Schools. Mrs. Pickens has been teaching since her childhood - being the oldest of four children. She would come home from school and teach her younger brother what she had learned in school that day. all the time! Mrs. Pickens majored in elementary education and originally did not want to teach sixth grade. Of course, the first job she got teaching was sixth grade and she has loved it ever since! Throughout her teaching career Pickens has taught third through sixth grade and has enjoyed each level for various different reasons. The teacher who Mrs. Pickens got her inspiration from was her kindergarten teacher, Mrs. Holland. Mrs. Holland was always kind and caring to her students and eventually later became Mrs. Pickens Sunday School teacher. When asked about a different career, Mrs. Pickens knew it would have to involve problem solving. Her other two choices were becoming a mystery writer or an investigator! Decatur City Schools would again like to congratulate Mrs. Pickens on this honor.

Decatur High School's "Best Kept Secret"

          On Wednesday, April 2nd, a group of 40 engineering technology students arrived at Decatur High School around 6:30 AM, loaded projects and luggage onto a charter bus and departed with Tuscaloosa, AL as their destination. These students, along with over 600 others from around Alabama, competed at the 35th annual Alabama Technology Student Association(TSA) State Competition. Decatur High School's TSA chapter is lead by Career Technology teacher, Paul Allen, and attends this conference every year. They are known state-wide through TSA for taking first place overall nearly every year. Allen refers to the DHS TSA chapter as "Decatur High School's best kept secret" due to their plethora of awards with limited recognition.
          TSA is the only student organization devoted exclusively to students engaged in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). It is only open to students enrolled in or who have completed a technology education course. It's membership includes over 200,000 middle and high school students in over 2,000 schools spanning 49 states.


Decatur High and Oak Park Middle School's TSA students

          This year's group was especially exceptional because it consisted of both middle and high school students. Paul Allen dedicated himself to starting the very first Oak Park Middle School TSA Chapter earlier this year, and gave them the opportunity to compete at this year's state conference. The two schools joined together to represent Decatur City Schools competing over the 2-day period in several different competitions from flight endurance and VEX robotics to photographic technology and graphic design.
          Oak Park Middle School students placed extremely well for their first time at this conference, placing in third overall for the middle school division. The individual awards are as follows:

Christian Castenada
     Problem Solving 8th Place
     Safety Illustration 7th Place
     Structural Engineering 3rd Place
Haley Fitzgerald
     Dragster Design 2nd Place
Alex Hurst
     Safety Illustration 2nd Place
     Structural Engineering 1st Place
Mac Johnson
     Safety Illustration 5th Place
     Problem Solving 8th Place
     Structural Engineering 1st Place
Annabelle May
     State Pin 1st Place
     State T-shirt 1st Place
Cole McCormick
     Dragster Design 3rd Place
     Structural Engineering 3rd Place
John Mobes
     Dragster Design 1st Place
Logan Roberts
     Structural Engineering 2nd Place
Trent Underwood
     Structural Engineering 2nd Place

          Decatur High School continued their tradition of excellence by placing first overall for the high school division. Mr. Paul Allen was also awarded the Michael Bradford TSA Advisor of the Year Award for the High School division. The individual awards are as follows:

Madelyn Hoffmann
Career Preparations - 5th place
Brian Zhang
Computer aided Design 2D Architecture - 3rd place
VEX - 1st place  
Davis Earley
VEX - 2nd place 

Computer Aided Design 3D Engineering - 2nd place
Desktop Publishing - 1st place
Erin McKee
TSA Creed - 1st place
Promotional Graphics - 2nd place
Shivam Patel
Dragster Design - 3rd place
Safety Illustration - 1st place
VEX - 1st place 
Hughston May
State Pin - 1st place
Dragster Design - 1st place
Digital Video Production - 3rd place
Photographic Technology - 2nd place
Promotional Graphics - 4th Place
T-shirt Design - 1st place
Jesus Alverez
State T-Shirt Design - 3rd place
Digital Video Production - 3rd place
George Brown
Digital Video Production - 3rd place
Technology Bowl - 4th place
Hunter Lee
Digital Video Production - 3rd place
Manufacturing Prototype - 4th place
Promotional Graphics - 3rd place
VEX - 3rd place
TJ Romine
Extemporaneous Presentation - 10th place
Daniel Cater
Flight Endurance - 5th place
VEX - 3rd place
Jakob Breuers
Manufacturing Prototype - 4th place
Extemporaneous Presentation - 6th place
Wiley Irish
Safety Illustration - 3rd place

Manufacturing Prototype - 4th place
VEX - 1st place  
Austin Rodgers
Dragster Design - 2nd place
Structural Engineering - 1st place
Manufacturing Prototype - 4th place
Tech Problem Solving - 4th place
Tyler Moore
Manufacturing Prototype - 4th place
State Pin - 4th place
Flight Endurance - 2nd place
Logan Batchelor
Tech Problem Solving - 1st place

Structural Engineering - 3rd place
Brett Drake
Structural Engineering - 3rd place
Dock Hunter
Structural Engineering - 1st place
Tech Problem Solving - 4th place
VEX - 1st place 
Will Hall
Technology Bowl - 4th place
Safety Illustration - 2nd place
State Pin - 3rd place
State T-shirt - 2nd place
Peter Neil
Technology Bowl - 4th place
John David Kennedy
Technology Problem Solving - 8th place
Structural Engineering - 2nd place
Dylan Osborn
Technology Problem Solving - 8th place
VEX - 2nd place
Alex Peterson
Computer aided Design 2D Architecture - 4th place
VEX - 3rd place
Eli Carle
Flight Endurance - 4th place
Photographic Technology - 1st place
Jessica Coffey
Structural Engineering - 2nd place
Briley Uptain
Structural Engineering - 1st place
Ezequiel Gonzalez
VEX - 3rd place
Jay Hoffmann
VEX - 2nd place
Rian Silvestri
VEX - 2nd place

          Decatur City Schools is so proud of the Decatur High School and Oak Park Middle School TSA Chapter and their many accomplishments.

The 8th Grade Raft Race!

     The 8th Grade Raft Race begins at 8:00 AM on Friday, April 26th, 2013, at Wilson Morgan Park.    Students must remember to bring their raft race scrapbook to the park for judges' review, along with a life jacket for each student riding on the team's raft, and 2 paddles.  Additionally, a tow rope should be attached to the front of each raft for use by the Morgan County Rescue Squad in towing the raft, if needed.  Thanks to GE for providing the judges for this event; thanks to the Morgan County Rescue Squad for insuring students' safety and for directing the race; and thanks to Parks and Rec for allowing us to use the park.  Thanks also to the many parents who have supported this fun, extracurricular learning opportunity for their children!   Dr. Gillespie and Ms. Winton will be supervising the raft race.  Parents are invited to bring a chair and join Mr. McIntyre on the shoreline as he cheers on the race participants. Students may bring snacks and a canned drink, plus a chair or towel to sit on as they observe other rafts traveling around the race course. 

Congratulations Decatur High School TSA!!

On March 12-13 in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, approximately 560 middle and high school students met at the Bryant Conference Center to take part in the 34th Annual Technology Student Association State Conference. The two day event featured 43 different competitive events that range from engineering design to photographic technology. The theme for the 2012-2013 conference was A Tradition of Excellence, and Decatur High School is a great living example of this. Paul Allen, DHS chapter Advisor, led his students to victory winning an award for most individual members and placing 1st overall high school. Decatur High had two students recieve the honor of being elected to State Office for the 2013-2014 school year. Austin Rodgers, former TSA State Seargent at Arms, was elected State Vice President. Jessica Cofffey was also elected State Reporter, an office formerly held by Hughston May of Decatur High. 

Below are the awards given to the talented students of the Decatur High School TSA. These students will get a chance to compete at the National TSA conference held in Orlando, Florida from June 28 to July 2, 2013.

Career Comparison

4^th Hadden Kershaw

7^th TJ Romine

Computer Aided Design 2D Architecture

3^rd Rowe Price

Computer Aided Design 3D Engineering

2^nd Jacob Farris

5^th Tyler Moore

Creed

3^rd Davis Earley

Desktop Publishing

5^th Shivam Patel

Dragster Design

1^st Davis Earley

2^nd Daniel Cater

3^rd Austin Rogers

Essays on Technology

2^nd Josh Echols

Extemporaneous Presentations

5^th Jakob Breuer

7^th TJ Romine

Flight Endurance

1^st Connor Rawlings

2^nd John David Kennedy

3^rd Mason Kennedy

Manufacturing Prototypes

1^st Bobby Doyle, Tyler Moore, Connor Rawlings

Photographic Technology

1^st Hughston May

5^th Mimi Walker

Prepared Presentation

7^th Jessica Coffey

Promotional Graphics

5^th Hughston May

6^th Austin Rodgers

Safety Illustration

1^st Austin Rodgers

2^nd Mason Kennedy

3^rd Josh Echols

State Pin Design

1^st Austin Rodgers

2^nd Ethan Paradise

3^rd Saul Becerra

State T-Shirt Design

1^st Hughston May

2^nd Mason Kennedy

3^rd Austin Rodgers

Structural Engineering

1^st Logan Batchelor & Hadden Kershaw

2^nd Bobby Doyle & Ethan Paradise

3^rd Jessica Coffey & Austin Rodgers

Technology Bowl

5^th Saul Becerra, Jessica Coffey, Peter Neil

Technology Problem Solving

5^th Bobby Doyle & Ethan Paradise

6^th Dock Hunter & David Petersen

10^th Mason Kennedy & Briley Uptain

VEX Robotics

3^rd David Petersen, Jay Hoffmann, Dustin Seal, Davis Earley

Congratulations DHS TSA! You have made us proud!

Congratulations to the Oak Park JUNA team!

Congratulations to the Oak Park JUNA team!  At the recent Junior United Nations Assembly held at Birmingham Southern College on January 31-February, 1, Oak Park students collected a lot of prestigious awards!  Madelyn Hoffman won the Erin McPherson Outstanding Leadership award.  Cayla Riehl and Madelyn Hoffman each received a trophy for Outstanding Girl Delegate (two winners from one school has never been achieved before at JUNA!), Beau Claborne and Stuart Thornton won a blue ribbon for outstanding display, Sanders White won $50.00 for a mini-grant proposal that will help a child in Ghana to have a save haven and an education. Sixth-graders Kira Williams and Raegan McNeil contributed research articles to support the team's written resolution which received an Honorable Mention Award.  Finally, Sadie Casteel did an excellent job as the team photographer!  Thanks to all the parents, teachers, and administrators who made this fabulous learning experience possible!  Great job Dr. Robin Gillespie and JUNA team.

The Doctors and Nurses of Tomorrow

Austin High School offers an excellent medical program. The program, taught by Mrs. Heather Tucker, is made up of three courses: Medical Professions 1, Medical Professions 2, and Medical Professions 3. The program gives students a solid background in medical technology, including anatomy, physical medical terms, career exploration, hands-on skills, CPR, and first aid. Third year students have the opportunity to shadow professionals in the medical field. This wonderful experience gives students actual hands-on experience, showing them the in's and out's of being a health care professional. The medical program can help save money for students who are considering a degree in the medical field by giving them the opportunity to see what the field is like before attending college. 

Last year, 100 percent of Austin graduates, who went through the program, went on to attend college to pursue a degree related to the medical field. Most of these students will eventually acquire a four year degree.  If the student decides that being a nurse or doctor does not suit them, they will have saved money that would be spent on another year of college, changing their major.

Mrs. Tucker says she enjoys teaching these classes, because she is a nurse with a love for teaching high school students. She also stated that the health care field is continuing to grow, and many career opportunities can be found in health care, making it a great path for students to consider.