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Making The Grade Fall 2013
Making The Grade Fall 2013
2411
2013-2014:
Every year seems to go by very quickly. This year is no different. Although the first day of school was in July, there were many smiling faces October 11th as we prepared for our first two week fall break. Our students and staff work very hard focusing on their continued improvement and celebrating their success! I am extremely proud of our school community. We have again displayed progress in many areas. Most notably is our continued success at Franklin Central High School. During the 2012-2013 school year, our high school was recognized by three national publications. There are not many high schools in this state that are recognized by Newsweek, US News and World Report and the Washington Post. Additionally, the Indiana Department of Education has named Franklin Central as a Four Star School, the only Four Star high school in Marion County. This success is no accident. It is due to the hard work of our administrative team, our students, and the staff members at every level. Our School Board and Administrative Team use the Strategic Plan to guide their decisions. This plan allows us to identify our needs, focus our priorities and use our resources wisely. The elementary schools are now wireless. As the cost of making a building wireless has decreased and our need for data collection using portable devices continues, we were able to set aside capital project funds to place wireless hubs in our elementary buildings. The middle schools and high school are next along with improving the infrastructure in our classrooms for technology. Our goal is to create a classroom technology standard with minimum equipment requirements for each classroom. The first step is updating the infrastructure so that as we implement equipment in the future we have the resources available. Our parent organizations have been very supportive in assisting this process by purchasing some of the equipment needed for the classrooms.
Our mission is to instill in all students a passion for lifelong learning and to inspire each one to contribute as a responsible citizen to the future of our interconnected world.
Welcome,
new building principals!
From left to right- Chase Huotari, Jeff Murphy, Melissa Morris
Jeff Murphy comes to FTCSC with nine years of teaching experience and 7 years of administrative experience, all at the elementary Thompson Crossing Elementary level. He spent 9 years teaching in Bloomington, IL before moving into administration as a K-4 elementary school assistant principal in Buffalo Grove, IL. He has spent the past 4 years as a principal at Franzen Intermediate School in Itasca, IL before joining the staff at Thompson Crossing as their new principal. Mr. Murphy has three daughters and enjoys traveling and any outdoor activities.
Franklin Township Community School Corporation has been Melissas school family for more than seven years. During that time Arlington Elementary she has been a paraprofessional, teacher, instructional coach, substitute, and now principal. Melissa received her Bachelor Degree with Highest Distinction from IUPUI and my Master Degree from Ball State University. Franklin Township has been her home for 16 years and is where she feels very fortunate to raise and educate her children. She has served as an active member in Girl Scouts of America, Franklin Township Middle School East PTO, Spokesperson with Horace and Mann for Donors Choose, and a Coach in Franklin Township Girls Softball League. This is Chases ninth year in Franklin Township. He started as a Physical Education and Health teacher at Franklin Central and also Franklin Township Middle School East spent time as the varsity baseball coach. In 2009 he moved into administration and since then has spent time as an Assistant Principal at both Middle School East and Franklin Central High School. Chase resides in Franklin Township with his wife, Barb, and their two daughters.
Jon Eckerle is starting his eighteenth year in education, Franklin Central High School and is proud to be part of the Franklin Township Community School Corporation. Jon is a graduate of Loogootee High School in Loogootee, IN. He attended DePauw University for his undergraduate degrees in Mathematics and US History and Butler University for his graduate degree in Educational Administration. Jon taught mathematics at Butler High School in Augusta, GA, Decatur Central High School and Franklin Central High School. Jon spent a year as a Master Teacher in Perry Township. Jon has also coached basketball and tennis at the high school and middle school levels. He enjoys spending time with friends and golfing. Lucas Zartman comes to Franklin Central from Monroe Central Jr./Sr. High School, where he was the assistant principal and varsity boys basketball coach. Before becoming an administrator, he ran an Alternative Education Program and taught science at Maconaquah Middle School. Early in his career he also taught business at Portage High School and PE and Health at Rochester High School. Lucas completed his bachelors degree at Manchester College, his masters degree at Olivet Nazarene University, and his principal licensure preparation at Oakland City University. He and his wife, Krista, have a 3 year old son named Atticus.
The Indiana Department of Education has awarded Franklin Central High School Four Star School status! In a congratulatory letter from Glenda Ritz, Superintendent of Public Instruction she states; The IDOE establishes the 25th percentile cut score for combined passing percentages of English/Language Arts and Mathematics as well as the percent of students passing both for all grades tested. In addition to meeting these criteria, all Four Star Schools must meet the 95 percent student participation rate. The fact that your school met these high expectations is evidence of the hard work demonstrated by your staff and students. For the second year in a row, Franklin Central High School has been recognized by the Washington Post for being in the top 9% of all public and private high schools in preparing their students for the rigors of college. FC has earned a spot on their lists of Americas Challenge Award winners due to the dedication of having the most sought after graduates by colleges, universities and the world of work.
http://www.usnews.com/education/highschools/articles/2013/04/23/us-news-releases2013-best-high-schools-rankings Newsweek magazine placed Franklin Central on its list of the Best High Schools in the United States! Making this list in Newsweek is an honor given to only the best high schools. Franklin Central is the only Marion County High School to earn Four Star School status from the State of Indiana and national recognition from The Washington Post, US News and World Report and Newsweek!
The Franklin Township Education Foundation has organized an Alumni Club which represents all Franklin Township graduates. It is the goal of the club to reunite for the good of the community and the schools. Every graduate and former student of FTCSC has a lifelong connection to Franklin Township, and the Foundation will strive to keep alumni connected and engaged in local happenings. If you are a graduate of the Franklin To w n s h i p schools, FTEF would love to hear from you. Please send your current contact information, along with your graduation year, to: FTEF@ftcsc.k12.in.us If you would like more information on how to be involved with the Foundation, please contact Marikay Raters at 803-5037 or Marikay.raters@ftcsc.k12.in.us.
Attention, ALUMNI:
Middle School West counselors Danielle Etter and Calvalyn Day sponsored a Girls Night Out event for 6th grade girls and a significant women role model in their lives. The evening consisted of viewing the movie "The Clique" and discussing types of bullying, explaining to them how "relational aggression" is a type of bullying. After the movie, small groups met to discuss the movie and ways to counteract bullying.
10:00-12:00 FT community members are welcomed to the food and clothing pantry. Project SPARC students serve these community members while gaining valuable retail, clerical and interpersonal vocational skills.
GET CONNECTED!
Twitter: @DrFloraIndy @FTCSC Facebook: Franklin Township Community School Corporation Web: ftcsc.k12.in.us
Kitley Elementary is proud to announce Kitleys Year of Sharing: Take a Stand, Lend a Hand. The PTC, All Pro Dads Club students and staff are working together to instill service oriented projects into our classrooms and school. Kitley wants to give back to the community and families who have given so much to Kitley. Each grade level is planning a service project for the year. Also, the PTC is sponsoring initiatives toward ICAN, SPAARC Center, Kitley Kids, and more. The school is collecting pop tabs for Riley Childrens Hospital. In the month of September, Kitley students and raised $834.15 to give to the ICAN organization. ICAN service dogs are trained and matched specifically to people with specific needs. Service dogs serve clients with various developmental and physical disabilities by assisting them with full range of day-to-day activities. They also provide the emotional connection and unconditional love. Kitley has an ICAN dog named Bixby. Bixby works with Kitley students daily to find success, independence and confidence. Grade level service projects include making cards for nursing homes, Operation Christmas Child, Veterans Day, Bears on Patrol, ICAN, the SPARC Center, Riley Hospital,
Kerry McCafferty- Counselor, Jaylen Inman, Connor Stevens, Ella Magyar, and Madyson George, Tammy Beechler4th grade teacher and owner of Mr. Bixby, and Mr. Bixby
Photos
Bunker Hill Elementary and The Southeast Project joined efforts to support the WaterStep Organization. Bunker Hill students collected 2, 175 pairs of shoes. WaterStep uses funds from selling the shoes to place clean water systems in developing nations. When Bunker Hill counselor, Alison Picket, announced the number of shoes collected, WaterStep representative Coralyn Turentine broke down in tears because as she stated, Nobody in Indianapolis has ever collected that many shoes.
South Creek Dads Club helped provide picnic tables for their courtyard.
A current and former FC student performed in this years Macys Thanksgiving Day Parade. The present FC student is senior Hailey Enos and the former student is 2012 graduate Jessica Evinger. The other Air Bears included Mallory Burnett, junior from Center Grove High School and Hannah Nuthak, senior from Shelbyville High School.
The 2013 Franklin Central Boys Tennis team completed a "dream season" the Saturday prior to Fall Vacation. The Flashes, coached by Bruce Torgersen, played in the IHSAA Semi-State for the first time in school history. Although the season ended with a 2-3 loss to Northeastern, the Franklin Township School Corporation community should be proud of the efforts of the young men representing FCHS.
Cassandra Timmons, Adams Elementary art teacher, hosts an Art Club on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons. Lydia Frost, Madeline Burton, and Cassie Childs have used "junk" to create a piece of artwork!
Special thanks to our 2nd graders who posed for our new banner photo. FTCSC wanted to highlight students from each elementary school. Elijah Shankle Adams Joshua Walter Arlington Zoe Gilliland Bunker Hill Mariagabriela Tapia-Galeno - Kitley Nandini Sachdeva South Creek Kaden Elkins Thompson Crossing
Thompson Crossing took the first Spirit Award during Franklin Central High Schools annual homecoming parade featuring entries from each elementary and middle school. This year the first Homecoming Spirit Award was presented to Thompson Crossing Elementary for their Willy Wonka themed entry. FC students Avarie Bowman and NaTazah ONeil traveled to Boston with Pilot Flashes Adviser Amanda Allen to attend the Journalism Education Association Convention, held Nov. 14-17. ONeil and Bowman received an excellent rating for editorials and an honorable mention for feature, respectively. They were recognized for their writing skills in a timed write-off contest. Out of 2,032 students, only 859 were acknowledged for their talent. 141 students received a superior rating, 259 received excellent ratings, and 459 received honorable mentions.
This issue of Franklin Townships digital newsletter was designed by senior Eman Mozaffar, co-editor-in-chief of the Pilot Flashes, Franklin Centrals student publication.