Awtrey MS

Week of Feb 11th

2010-02-13T20:22:00.002-05:00

This week I led a discussion with the boys on the Haiti situation. We talked about what happened, what our response should be as individuals, and as a nation with the capacity to help others. In an effort to get the boys to think critically, we also talked about the pros and cons of helping other nations verses using the money to help people here in America. I was pleased with the insights they offered.

Journal Topic: What are some ways Crossover can help the situation in Haiti?

Apology

2010-02-13T20:21:00.002-05:00

I apologized to the kids last night for the confusion of the KSU event. Frankly, I have no idea what happened and why the event was canceled. I am having conversation with our leadership team to resolve the breakdowns so this doesn’t continue. I’ll do my best to make it up to the boys.

KSU Basketball Game Saturday

2010-02-05T20:31:00.000-05:00

The boys were given permission slips for the KSU basketball game tomorrow night. This is the public education night I mentioned previously. The groups will be recognized at half-time of the game. For the few who were absent or who managed to make it home without their forms, another copy is attached for downloading.

KSU Permission Slip

Week of Feb 4th

2010-02-05T20:24:00.003-05:00

This was an unusual day. I was scheduled to lead the group in a discussion on the Haiti situation on Thursday. At 3:50 a teacher made me aware of a student crisis that kept me busy until 6:20. Because we didn’t have a speaker, and the other leaders were unprepared to lead in my place, I felt it best to send the boys home. Thankfully situations like Thursday are rare, but being the counselor means I have to step up when they do occur. Thank you for your understanding.

Awtrey to Help with Art Project

2010-01-23T12:43:00.002-05:00

The TRAX Art Project (TRAX) is a multi-panel mural art project collaboration between the CrossOver Mentoring Group and The Art Station - Big Shanty. This project will give students of CrossOver Mentoring Group opportunities to make a significant contribution to the development of the community in which they live through art. The mural will simultaneously depict historical information about the City of Kennesaw and the history of students in the CrossOver Mentoring Group.

TRAX will connect youth to the community in ways to increase their self-esteem and their level of art and history competency while at the same time improving the quality of life within the community as a whole. TRAX allows the students of CrossOver Mentoring Group to learn about the history of Kennesaw and to express their personal connection to the area through art. Train tracks are historically significant to the Kennesaw area, and their image also calls to mind the idea of a journey through time and space. Many of the students who participate in CrossOver Mentoring Group have come to Kennesaw, both physically and emotionally, from other places and situations. So while they learn about the journey (“TRAX”) that brought people to the Kennesaw area and helped it grow, hopefully they will find parallels and “ties” that connect with their own life stories.

TRAX is also intended to help the participating students and the public audience shed those popular misconceptions that art should only look a certain way, only be done by certain people, and is only accessible to special segments of society. A majority of the content of the mural will be decided by the students, but the format will be simple. At least three vertical strips of canvas will be assembled horizontally into one large stylized image of numerous train tracks—embellished with words, images, collage, and mixedmedia— so that the canvasses will form different images if hung together or separately.

This will give the students a chance to learn about abstraction, negative space, and the unique challenges of multi-panel pieces. The format will also make it easier for multiple students to work on a segment at one time, and, once the traveling exhibition is over, each group of participating students will be able to take a panel of the work back to their home school to hang as a permanent installation.

This Grassroots Arts Program is supported in part by the Georgia Council for the Arts through appropriations of the Georgia General Assembly as administered by Georgia Family Connections Partnership, a GCA certified Grassroots Regional Partner.

Our partners include The Cobb County School District – Success For All Students, who supports most of the operating budget for CrossOver Mentoring Group; Big Cat Records, LLC, Cobb- Kennesaw Senior Center, Kennesaw Community Center, Kennesaw State University, Mt Zion AME Church, and each of the CrossOver Mentoring Group Schools will allow us to exhibit TRAX at their facilities. Our collaborative partner, The Art Station – Big Shanty, will allow us to use their facility to create and unveil the original exhibition of TRAX.

TRAX Project Schedule

Aquarium Trip Set for 1-30-10

2010-01-22T13:07:00.000-05:00

We have tickets to the aquarium on January 30th. The group will meet at Awtrey at noon, eat lunch, then travel to the aquarium. Click the link below to download a copy of the permission slip.

Aquarium Permission Slip

Week of Jan 21st

2010-01-21T19:39:00.000-05:00

With the school dance originally scheduled for tonight, we thought we would have to move our meeting day. When the dance was cancelled, we followed back up with our scheduled speaker, a professional saxaphone player, but he was unable to attend.

In place of the speaker, I led the group in a discussion from a curriculum we are considering using with the programs. The lesson was on decision making and it revolved around three case scenarios. In one case, a person stole money not realizing she was being video taped. In another case, the person was hanging out with someone who had pot and the group was caught. In the final case, someone was playing with a handgun found in a drawer at home and someone was accidentally killed. The discussion was lively and the guys impressed me with their insights as we talked about these situations in theory. Once we started talking about situations I have seen them in here at school, they were less clear on what the "right thing" to do actually is in a given situation. It just proves how difficult decision making can be when you are in the heat of the moment.

Journal Topic: How can I show others the respect I want them to give me?

Ms. Beryl leads a discussion on an upcoming

community service opportunity.

Upcoming Calendar Items

2010-01-20T17:01:00.002-05:00

We are working on lining up an outing for this month. Hopefully I'll know something soon. In the meantime, here are two events to put on your calendars:

January 28th - No meeting due to the early release schedule
January 30th - Aquarium Outing. More details to follow.
February 6th - Crossover Night at Kennesaw State University. The boys will watch the game, be introduced at half time, and we are working on being able to tour the athletic facilities.

Week of Jan 14

2010-01-20T16:57:00.001-05:00

It was a long lay off with all the holiday and snow breaks, but we are finally getting back on track. On January 14th we had Jonathan Boisjolie of the High Museum of Art speak to the boys. Jonathan holds a degree in Arts Administration from the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, and has worked with cultural organizations in all genres of the arts throughout his career. Prior to joining the High Museum, he worked in the Group Travel industry as a Tour Operator. I was impressed by the level of interaction between he and the boys as they discussed the various art works in the Powerpoint presentation. Michael especially surprised me with his art knowledge.

Journal Topic: Why is it important to have an understanding of, and an appreciation for art?

Still Waiting on Thrashers Confirmation

2009-12-19T08:42:00.000-05:00

As of Friday evening, Ms. Fountain had still not received confirmation on tickets for the Thrasher's Hockey game Monday. Hopefully we will know something soon. Keep checking back for updates.

Dylan Recognized for Awtrey Attitudes

2009-12-19T08:40:00.000-05:00

Each month Awtrey teachers nominate students for demonstrating the "Awtrey Attitudes" as part of the school's character education emphasis. This month Dylan was nominated by several teachers.

Dylan with Assistant Principal Ms. Evans.

Break Activities

2009-12-17T20:31:00.000-05:00

We ended up being unable to obtain tickets to the KSU vs. Ga Tech game on Dec. 22. Tech only allotted KSU a small number of tickets. Because Tech is such a big game, KSU kept the tickets for their people.

KSU did graciously offer us tickets to a home game we will do on Feb 6th in place of the Tech game. Crossover will be offered special recognition during half-time, get to tour the athletic facilities, and things of that nature. This will be a fun night.

In place of the Tech game for a December event, we were offered tickets to the Thrashers hockey game on Monday the 21st. We responded via email saying we are interested, but have yet to receive confirmation. As soon as confirmation arrives, I will get word to you. I apologize for the late notice. Hopefully we will know something within the next day or so.

Christmas Party and End of Term Celebration

2009-12-17T20:09:00.003-05:00

On December 17th we took the boys to Chilies to celebrate the ending of the first semester and the Christmas holiday break. My Christmas present to the boys was a dress down pass they can use when they forget to dress up for Crossover.

Journal Topic: Is it proper to say Happy Holidays or Merry Christmas? Please explain your answer.

Mentee of the Month Recipients

2009-12-17T19:53:00.000-05:00

The following students were awarded the honor of Mentee of the Month. In addition to the recognition, they also received certificates and $50.00 gift cards to Best Buy.

Matt Karneol for the month of October.

Jakeem Zagloul for the month of November.

Byron Alexander for the month of December.

Haircut Flyer

2009-12-13T21:01:00.000-05:00

Attached you will find the flyer enabling the boys to receive free haircuts. Hopefully we will have arrangements for the girls soon. Students will need to have this card in order to participate. While this arrangement is a perk of being in Crossover, parents will need to transport the students on their own for the haircuts.
To print the card, right click on the photo and select print.

Week of Dec 10

2009-12-13T20:02:00.001-05:00

Continuing our theme of law enforcement month, we had three officers from the Cobb Anti Gang Enforcement department. Officers Shawn Vereen, Mrs. Meshburn, and John McLaughlin discussed ways gangs try to recruit younger members, the traps they use, and options for avoiding involvement. Unknown to me is that Georgia law defines gang activity as a group of three or more people, and that some misdemeanors when coupled with a “gang activity” can become a felony offense.

Journal Topic: What steps can you take to avoid being drawn into gang activity?

I am still waiting on confirmation of the GA Tech tickets. I’ve put in another call and am waiting on a response.

Next week we will eat out as part of a Christmas celebration. Permission slips will be emailed home.

Officers Vereen, Meshburn & McLaughlin talk about

gang involvement with the boys.

Paintball is Coming

2009-12-05T20:40:00.000-05:00

I was able to get tickets for paintball! It will be a year end event we do toward the end of the school year. The boys will have to use extra dead presidents they earn to be able to go on the trip. The coupons cover equipment rental, field fees, and 500 paintballs each!

Week of Dec 12

2009-12-05T20:37:00.000-05:00

Officer Jeff Rose from the Acworth Police Department spoke to the boys about the dynamics of a career in law enforcement, the reality of gang participation, and the dangers of drug addiction. He commended the guys for the wise choice of participating in programs like Crossover where they have positive peer influence and warned them about the temptations they would be facing between now and when they graduate from high school.
Journal Topic: Why is it important to have a police force?

Officer Rose discusses police work with the guys.

Disability Simulations

2009-12-05T20:33:00.000-05:00

This week the counseling team and the graduation coach conducted disability awareness simulations as part of the classroom guidance curriculum. Students participated in twelve different simulations that allowed them to experience some aspect of having a disability in an effort to help them better understand what it is like to live with an impairment. The simulations include activities such as navigating an obstacle course in a wheelchair, doing a faith walk to demonstrate blindness, using sign language and muffled directions to show hearing difficulty, reading a passage that mirrors Dyslexia, completing tasks with excessive distractions to model Attention Deficit Disorder, and completing tasks having lost use of their arms or fine motor skills.

Dylan does the Wheelchair obstacle course.

Logan does Mouth Writing.

Aquarium Trip Resheduled

2009-12-05T20:26:00.002-05:00

Due to the football banquet and another conflict Saturday morning, I told the boys we would reschedule the aquarium trip for some time in the spring. I am working on tickets for the Ga Tech vs. KSU game on December 22nd. The game is at 2:00, at Tech. If it works out, we will meet at noon for lunch, then go to the game and be back around 5:30 or so. I should hear confirmation by Tuesday of next week.

With that being the week leading into Christmas, please let me know if you know for sure you won’t be able to attend. I can invite crossover members from the other schools to attend once I know how many tickets we will have available.

Week of Nov 18

2009-11-18T19:13:00.000-05:00

Our speaker was a no show for this week, and the backup activity I had planned was one the boys had recently done in one of their elective classes. Unfortunately, this week was not all it should have been. I promise the speaker difficulties will be resolved by the time we meet after the break. Already this evening I am making contacts to insure a more successful month in December.

Journal Topic: What are you most thankful for and why?

Ms. Beryl and Mr. Jackson watch student during tutoring.

The boys work hard to complete their assignments.

Birthday Bash

2009-11-18T19:03:00.003-05:00

Cornelius' mom came and treated the group to some

birthday cookie.

Meeting change for next week

2009-11-12T20:19:00.000-05:00

I have been asked to chaperone a sixth grade dance on Thursday Nov. 19th during our normal meeting time. Therefore, we will meet Wednesday Nov. 18th. Times and everything else remains the same. I apologize for the inconvenience.

Week of 11-12

2009-11-12T20:16:00.001-05:00

Our speaker was scheduled for this week and last. Unfortunately, he was still getting over the flu so he was unable to be with us again this week.

This week we discussed the proper response to situations, even when you feel they are being wronged. To help the boys gain perspective, we used a game called Good, Bad, and Ugly. They boys were given case scenarios and were asked to write a good, bad, and ugly response. For example, how should you handle it if someone is talking bad about you behind your back? They give you three responses such as talking with the person involved about what happened, not confronting but disassociating with the person, or starting an argument. I used five scenarios and had discussion about the various responses as we went. I made up the scenarios based upon things I thought the students were confronted with regularly.

Journal Topic: Describe a good and bad way of handling yourself when a teacher corrects you even when you feel like you are in the right (provide a half page on each).

Hawks Outing

2009-11-12T19:56:00.003-05:00

Conrad, Nick, and Devin waiting for the game to start.

The boys were on their best behavior & made Crossover

look good to those around them.

It was a great night for Hawks fans since they won

by over 20 points.

Being typical boys, halftime was their favorite part of the night.

Jakeem and Brian hang out on the ride home.

Week of 11-5

2009-11-10T19:48:00.001-05:00

This week we had a change of plans because our speaker cancelled due to the flu. In place of the speaker, we played a game called "Don't Get Mad." A large pile of candy was placed in the middle of each table. If students rolled doubles, they were allowed to take a piece of candy from the pile. Play was passed to the next person. After a fair amount of candy was selected, I removed the pile and changed the rules. Now if they rolled doubles, they were allowed to take candy from any player they chose. Seeing others will large piles of candy, or taking theirs, made excellent discussion conversation.

Journal Topic: When you feel yourself losing your temper, what steps can you take to get back under control.

Matt receives his Mentee of the Month award from Mr. Jackson

Cornelius and Michael received gift cards from Mr. Jackson for

representing Crossover at the Success for All Students event.

The guys playing Don't Get Mad.

Hawks Trip Details

2009-11-05T20:36:00.001-05:00

Permission slips were passed out tonight on the Hawk trip Saturday. Mr. Jackson will be leading this trip. If you have specific questions, please contact him at 404 725-5940. The van will pick the boys up at 5:15 at Awtrey. This allows time for supper and time to get downtown befor the game at 7:30. Depending on variables, the boys should be back by 10:15-10:30. Please bring the permission slips with you to the game.

If you are planning on going, please contact Mr. Jackson as soon as possible. Any tickets we do not use will be gvien to the group at Palmer Middle School, so we will need to know how many slots we have available to offer.

Hawks Tickets for Saturday

2009-11-04T19:17:00.001-05:00

I just got a message saying we were given Hawks tickets for this Saturday. The game starts at 7:30. We are still working out logistics on when we would leave and all that. If you are interested in going, please let me know as soon as possible. The tickets we don't use will be offered to the other Crossover schools.

I hope to know the particulars by tomorrow's meeting.

CrossOver night at the Kennesaw Chilies

2009-10-31T15:32:00.002-04:00

Crossover has entered into an agreement with the Kennesaw Chilies to have a monthly Crossover night. On the first Monday night of each month, if you present the attached coupon, Chilies will donate 10% of your total bill to Crossover mentoring group. Just right click on the image and select "print picture."

Jordan earns an Awtrey Attitude award

2009-10-30T23:34:00.001-04:00

Each month teachers nominate students they observe living out one of the five Awtrey Attitudes. Students are given a t-shirt and some type of desert to celebrate the achievement. This month our own Jordan was recognized for having outstanding character.

Jordan poses with 6th grade counselor Mrs. Zell

during the Awtrey Attitude celebration.

Meeting 10-29-09

2009-10-30T23:29:00.000-04:00

This week Mr. Chris Shaw spoke to our boys about job skills. As a Coke representative, he travels to sporting events, races, and various trade shows with the Coke racecar and simulators for fans. He challenged the boys regarding working as a team, communication, and nurturing relationships. In one story, Mr. Shaw related how networking contacts made in one job led to his being able to obtain a new position when he was ready to make a move.

Journal Topic: explain the importance of relationships, communication, and working as a team for success in life.

Mr. Shaw shows slides of the simulators he uses when

he goes to events as a Coke representative.

In addition to talking about his career experiences,

Mr. Shaw talked about being a linebacker for UGA

while he was in college.

Success for All Students Celebration

2009-10-30T23:09:00.001-04:00

The Success for All Students Celebration was a great event. Thank you to Michael, Cornelius, and families for helping represent Crossover. In addition to interacting with our supporters, we also lined up some guest speakers and outing opportunities.

Cornelius poses with CrossOver founder Dee Fountain

and GA State School Superintendant Kathy Cox

13 StoriesTrip

2009-10-26T21:44:00.000-04:00

13 Stories Haunted House is located behind the mall at Towne Center.

The guys got to hang out with some of the actors.

Brian had his picture taken with Billiard Pro Johnny Archer

who was there with his son.

Success for All Students Celebration

2009-10-24T21:44:00.005-04:00

Success For All Students is the grant that funds Crossover.

Parents and students are welcome to attend the event.

Fred Sanderson, Cobb County School District Superintendent
Tommy Allegood, Mayor of Acworth
Mark Mathews, Mayor of Kennesaw
Pat Vaughn, Mayor of Powder Springs

Invite you to attend:

The Sucees for All Students Kickoff Celebration

Join Local, State and Federal Legislators, Business and
Community Leaders for Coffee, Tea and Dessert

KEYNOTE SPEAKER:

Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

2:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Cobb County Safety Village
1220 Al Bishop Drive (near Jim Miller Park)
Marietta, GA 30008

Week of 10-22

2009-10-24T20:47:00.008-04:00

This week the students completed a version of the Myers-Briggs Type Inventory (see http://www.humanmetrics.com/). After completing the inventory, students were given a four letter combination that represents a personality type. I then defined each letter to help them better understand the scoring.

Next, students participated in an exercise on study habits. Students read passages from a paper, once while listening to music and once without. After each time they were asked to answer questions based on the passage. Obviously they were able to remember more without the music, despite their efforts to skew the results in favor of listening to music while studying.

Journal topic: Describe your personality to someone who does not know you.

We confirmed obtaining tickets to 13 Houses Haunted House. Permission slips were emailed home.

Byron is completing the study habits exercise.

Michael shows off his MBTI results.

Students discuss Logan's MBTI results.

Ms. Paiment stopped by to talk with some of the boys.

Outing planned for 10-26

2009-10-22T22:29:00.002-04:00

We were able to get tickets to 13 Houses Haunted House off Barrett Pkwy for this coming Monday. The permission slip was emailed home. If you did not get one, please let me know and I can resend. Also, please confirm one way or the other if your son can attend so I can plan transportation arrangements. The boys can bring the signed slip with them to the event, or to school Monday.

We will leave Awtrey promptly at 5:30 and go somewhere for supper, then head to the haunted house. I padded the pick up time for variables, but we should be done sooner than 8:00. The only money they will need is for extras they might want to buy. The food and event are covered. Let me know if you have questions.

Week of October 14

2009-10-17T14:25:00.008-04:00

This week I used my experience as a former small business owner to show how the subjects students study in school are used in the workplace. We discussed each subject, even the obscure electives, to show how the content knowledge in each class is relevant. More importantly, classes like history teach us how to learn from others so we do not repeat this same mistakes as those who have gone before us.

The journal topic is detailing what strategies they will use to improve their grades in the next term. With a new term starting last Monday, they all have a fresh start and an A in each class. Now all they have to do is maintain that grade.

Upcoming news:

We are still working on outing ideas. At this point it looks like we will tour some haunted houses and go out to eat. We also are expecting some pro sports tickets soon. We will get word to you as soon as we can.
Guest speakers will start in two weeks.
The theme for November will be the Armed Forces since a number of the boys expressed the desire for a career in some aspect of the military.

A number of them also expressed a desire to play professional sports, so I am talking with some colleges to see if I can get some of their athletes to come speak with us at some point.

Ms. Marsh helped answer questions about assignments.

Students worked hard during the tutoring portion of the meeting.

Meeting Change for the upcoming week

2009-10-10T22:10:00.002-04:00

Awtrey is hosting a dance Thursday during our normal meeting time. We took a vote and the guys decided to meet another day. That being the case, we will meet Wednesday instead of Thursday. Rooms and times will remain the same.

October Outing

2009-10-10T22:08:00.003-04:00

We are working on an outing Halloween weekend. Our first choice is a six flags trip, but the logistics are not working out. The leaders are going to discuss alternatives when we meet this week. As soon as I know more, I'll get word to you.

Week of 10-8

2009-10-10T21:56:00.006-04:00

The guys did an icebreaker exercise where they discussed their plans after high school, occupational dreams, where they would like to live, and who they would like to talk to if they could talk to anyone they wanted past or present. The answers were enlightening and connections were made between students who shared similar answers.

A parent letter was emailed on 10-10 to make sure the email addresses were accurate. If you have not received the email, please contact me and I can resend it.

Additional emails were sent to students who are missing some of their forms. Because the program is grant based, we have to provide monthly data to continue receiving support. It is a lot to keep up with, but the program could not exist without the generosity of the supporters.

The journal topic for this week is "Describe your dream if you could be anything you want."

Awtrey 10-1

2009-10-05T11:48:00.004-04:00

Awtrey had its first Crossover meeting for the 2009-2010 school year on October 1. We had an excellent first meeting and the boys seemed ready for the program to begin.

Since Crossover is funded by a grant, lots of data must be collected to demonstrate the effectiveness of the program in order to continue receiving funds. To help establish baseline data, student were given a form titled Parent Feedback - Initial review. If you have not completed the form already, please have your student request an additional copy.

Student Awards

2009-10-05T11:43:00.002-04:00

Dr. Deane is reviewing the rules and expectations for being a part of Crossover Mentoring Group.

Three students received Best Buy gift cards for being the first ones to return their parent information packets.

1st Meeting

2009-09-27T11:28:00.002-04:00

Awtrey's Crossover Group will have its first meeting Thursday October 1st. The meeting will be from 4:20-6:00 starting in Mrs. Emmett's room then moving to the Dell lab for tutoring.

Welcome to Crossover at Awtrey

2009-09-16T19:20:00.001-04:00

Crossover Mentoring Group will host a parent's meeting Thursday at 6:00 PM in the cafeteria at Awtrey Middle School. Fifty students have been nominated for the program. Only 15 will be accepted into the program. It will be an exciting year working with an outstanding group of boys.