Roswell Summer Reading Program

June 1, 2010
10:00 am	to	11:00 am

The Roswell Summer Reading Program starts June 1st and ends July 31st. This year’s theme is: Make a Splash – Read!

To kick off the Summer Reading Program, the Roswell Fire Department will be back to help out. They’ll talk about fire safety and bring a fire truck for you to explore. All ages. No reservations required. The program kicks off at Tuesday, June 1. 10:00 a.m.

Children can register in person at the Roswell Library (or any Atlanta-Fulton Public Library System library – 33 total!). They will receive a “reading record” where they’ll write down the title and author of the books they read (or the number of hours they read, if they’d rather do it that way).

Upon completing 10 books or 10 hours, children at the Roswell Library will get a certificate, a Chick-Fil-A coupon, a nametag for the big picture window (to show they’ve participated in the program ) and a free paperback book, courtesy of the Friends of the Roswell Library.

Because of the high demand, the library can only give away one free book per child and only one Chick-fil-A coupon per child. That said, children are encouraged to continue reading all summer long! For every set of 10 books or 10 hours, each child will get a gold star for their nametag. We want to see a window filled with lots of nametags and lots of stars on those nametags.

There’s also a reading program for teens and this year, for the first time, one for adults! For more details, stop by the Roswell Library anytime between June 1st and July 31st.

The Roswell Library is located at 115 Norcross Street, Roswell, GA 30075.

5th Annual Roswell Reads Program

March 20, 2010
5:00 pm	to	8:00 pm

Roswell Reads

The Roswell Reads Selection Committee is excited to announce that Outcasts United by Warren St. John, has been chosen as this year’s book for Roswell’s community-wide reading program.

Roswell Reads is a community reading program that works like a giant book club, but with many additional related activities to enhance the experience for all those who participate. Book discussion and programs involving the book and its content will be scheduled.

“The Roswell Reads committee selected Outcasts United as a book which should appeal to readers of all ages,” explains Morgan Timmis, Historic & Cultural Affairs Manager. “With its themes of sports, refugee resettlement and its impact on a small southern community, we felt it would attract a very broad audience. And, the fact that the community is local makes it even more interesting for Roswell readers. We are extremely excited to be able to bring both the author and the Fugees’ coach to speak at our final event on March 20.”

Roswell Reads provides a variety of programs centered around the book and culminates at the final event in which the author, Warren St. John, and Coach Luma Mufleh will be speaking. Click here to learn more about the Roswell Reads upcoming programs and to register for the final event to be held at the Roswell Adult Recreation Center at 830 Grimes Bridge Road on Saturday, March 20, 2010, from 5:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.

Fulton County Students Will Have Longer Days in 2010

Fulton County students will have an additional 10 minutes added to their school days next year when five half-days are eliminated, resulting in a 177 day calendar for the 2010-2011 school year.

The shorter calendar year will result in $1.1 million in annual savings!

New guidelines allow schools to deviate from the standard 180-day calendar as long as there is no reduction in instructional hours, and there is an 8.85 hour increase in the new calendar year.

In order to reduce the days in the calendar year, the school system has eliminated 5 half days. Although these half days have been eliminated and these days are typically used for teacher meetings and trainings, the staff will still continue to receive both before the school year on scheduled work days.

Critics of this change make a very valid point: Although class days are extended 10 minutes each day, it will not amount to much extra quality learning time as each class period is extended only one to two minutes.

Regardless, the board voted 5-1 to approve the new calendar.

The Fulton County Board of Education was presented with two options for the 177 day calendar. The calendar the board voted against would have students beginning school on August 16th. The board was not presented with a 180 day calendar to vote on.

Roswell High School 2008 – Ranked #5 in SAT Scores for the State of Georgia

The Fulton County School System had six North Fulton schools make the list of top 20 highest SAT scores in the state out of a total 402 public high schools.

As a county, Fulton had the highest overall average with a SAT score of 1593 out of a total possible 2400 points.  Fulton County’s score was 127 points higher than the 1511 state average and 82 points higher than the 1511 national average.

Both Roswell and Centennial High School made the top 20 with Roswell (1677) fifth in the state and Centennial High (1633) at 16th in the state.

The Davidson Magnet School in Richmond County ranked first with an average of 1733.  Only 89 students took the test at Davidson compared to the average 463 students that tested at each of the six North Fulton high schools.

GEORGIA’S TOP TEN

1. Davidson Magnet School (Richmond Co.) 1733

2. Walton High School (Cobb Co.) 1712

3. Northview High School 1691

4. Savannah Arts Academy 1681

5. Roswell High School 1677

6. Chamblee High School (Dekalb Co.) 1667

7. (tie) Chattahoochee High School 1667

8. Milton High School 1667

9. Alpharetta High School 1658

10. Columbus High School (Muskogee Co.) 1656

(Centennial High School came in at 16)

Website Shows How Much Georgia Schools Spend

Over $14 billion dollars is spent and spread across Georgia’s 180 school systems and more than 2,000 schools. That’s a lot of money. Where does it go? Who gets what? The Georgia Public Policy Foundation recently unveiled an interactive website that tracks how the money is spread and how it is spent.

The spending details data from the Georgia Department of Education and shows how money is allocated among each school system’s central office and its individual schools.

Every dollar amount is categorized into one of 11 different functions, such as spending for instruction or administration, and more than 100 detailed spending areas such as supplies, books or salaries.

The site was initiated in hopes to achieve transparency for school spending.  Results in other states show that money is spent more carefully when others are watching.  It is believed that this will lead to cost savings as it will help identify duplication, waste and opportunities for efficiencies.

The data excludes capital spending, such as building or buses.  Data is available per student or total dollar amounts. All of the data can be easily downloaded for Georgians who want to conduct their own analysis. Interactive charts allow users to compare per-student spending to similar schools across the state.

The Georgia Public Policy Foundation, a think tank formed in 1991, is a nonpartisan, member-supported research and education foundation that promotes free markets, limited government and individual responsibility.

Large Turnout Expected for Roswell School Redistricting Meeting

December 10, 2008
7:00 pm	to	9:00 pm

The third meeting regarding North Fulton school redistricting will be held tonight at The Milton Center (formerly Milton High School at 86 School Drive, Alpharetta) from 7-9 p.m.

The redistricting process is a result of the opening of the new elementary school on Birmingham Highway in Milton in August 2009. School capacity numbers will also be impacted by elementary school additions at several schools in Roswell and Alpharetta coming on line over the next few years. Elementary school additions will also be coming on line over the next few years in Roswell and Alpharettta at Alpharetta, Barnwell, Mimosa, Mountain Park and Roswell North elementary schools.

There have been large turnouts for the first two meetings and there is no reason to expect a smaller turnout for the third and final redistricting meeting. The last redistricting in northwest Fulton County occurred in 2004 with the opening of Cogburn Woods Elementary. Schools in the Roswell area have not been rezoned since 2001 with the openings of Hembree Springs and Hillside elementary schools.  

Fulton School staff are using this opportunity to adjust attendance zones at every elementary school in North Fulton west of Ga. 400. The changes could impact up to 14 elementary schools in Roswell and Alpharetta to some degree, with some seeing wholesale changes of their student body as a result of the new school.

The Fulton County School System redistricts schools based on the policy established by the Fulton School Board. That criteria includes primary criteria of geographic proximity, available school capacity and projected enrollment. Should the primary criteria not lead to a clear answer, staff will consider a second set of criteria, which include traffic, frequency of neighborhood rezoning, special programs and school feeder alignment.

While staff uses data for the primary criteria, it depends on the community to provide information on the secondary criteria in developing the zones.

Each time a redistricting effort is under way, the school system holds three rounds of meetings to gather information needed to draft a redistricting proposal that best meets the community’s needs. Unlike other school systems, Fulton uses a process that encourages public discussion before developing a proposal. This allows the community to have maximum input in how the proposed attendance lines are created. 

Tonight is the third and final meeting, so if school redistricting is important to your family, be sure to attend.