Schools

Chatham County Board of Education meeting summary for December 4th
[Dec. 5, 2006] The Chatham County Board of Education met on Monday, December 4, at Chatham Central High School. At 7:15 p.m. newly elected Board of Education members Gerald Totten and Kathie Russell and re-elected member Deb McManus were sworn in by Dana Hackney, Assistant Clerk of Court.

Frazier named Chatham principal of the year
[Nov. 9, 2006] Janice Frazier, Principal of Silk Hope School, is the 2006-2007 Chatham County Schools Principal of the Year. Dr. Ann Hart, Superintendent of Chatham County Schools, went to Silk Hope on Monday afternoon, November 6, to make the announcement. The Principal of the Year is chosen from nominations and voting by fellow county principals.

Bonlee School celebrates D.A.R.E. graduation
[Nov. 3, 2006] On Thursday November 2, Bonlee School held a graduation ceremony for students who completed their Drug Abuse Resistance Education (D.A.R.E.) course. Forty-four fifth graders were presented with certificates as well as D.A.R.E. certificates after completing a ten-hour course with Deputy Kyle Smith of the Chatham County Sheriff's Office.

Northwood Band ends competition season on high note
[Nov. 1, 2006] The spectacular finale for the competition season of the Northwood Marching Chargers came on Saturday, October 27, at the Lee Senior High School Brick Capital Classic. The eighty-three member band from Northwood traveled to Sanford in high spirits for a last opportunity to perform Heartbeat, the 2006 show. Family, friends and alumni filled the stadium to see the award-winning group that included twenty-three seniors making their final appearance in competition.

North Carolina releases elementary and middle school ABCs results
[Nov. 1, 2006] North Carolina has released preliminary results from the ABCs accountability program pending State Board of Education approval. The testing data is from grades three through eight in the 2005-2006 school year. Bennett School, North Chatham School, Perry Harrison School, and Silk Hope School had testing performance composites in the eighty percent range. As a result each of these schools earned School of Distinction status.

Aiken named new Moncure School principal
[Oct. 24, 2006] The Chatham County Board of Education has selected Charles Aiken as the new principal of Moncure School. The Board held a regular meeting on Monday, October 23, at Moncure School. Aiken will take over the principalship on December 1. George Cooper, a retired principal, has been serving as the interim principal of Moncure since the school year began in August.

Northwood band has another successful competition
[Oct. 24, 2006] The Northwood Marching Charger Band traveled to West Alamance High School on Saturday, October 21, for its eighth annual performance in the Central NC Band Festival. Competing with six other bands in their class, they achieved a superior rating of 88.73 and took the AAA second place award.

Chatham school district is attentive to school safety
[Oct. 22, 2006] The fifteen schools in Chatham County Schools have school safety plans and procedures in place to give students and staff a safe learning environment. All schools have completed the requirements for the Critical Incident Response Kit program as recommended by the Governor's office.

What happened to the Cole Park PTA drop box?
[Sep. 24, 2006] The Cole Park thrift shop box was removed for several reasons. The box was used as a garbage drop when the collection center was closed or for folks who did not have a sticker. Donations were often stolen from the box. Beautiful, fragile donations were left in the box and broken. By Dorothy Hammett

Chatham schools benefit from PTA Thrift Shop
[Sep. 22, 2006] Across Chatham County support for the PTA Thrift Shop is strong. Schools and community members volunteer time, donate items, and shop at three PTA Thrift Shop stores in order to help schools receive funding that bolsters school projects. On Tuesday evening, September 19, representatives from schools and the PTA Thrift Shop celebrated volunteerism and its benefits for students.

Northwood senior is National Merit semi-finalist
[Sep. 19, 2006] Lily Smith, a senior at Northwood High School, is a National Merit Scholarship semi-finalist. She is one of approximately 16,000 students nationwide to reach the semi-finalist level of the competition. She is the daughter of David Smith and Susan Strozier.

Walters named Chatham County Teacher of the Year
[Aug. 28, 2006] Trudy Walters, an English teacher at SAGE Academy, has been named the 2006-2007 Chatham County Teacher of the Year. Walters is in her twenty-ninth year as an educator and has been a teacher at SAGE since 1997.

Less than 50 percent of Chatham students scored well on state writing test
[Aug. 20, 2006] The North Carolina Department of Public Instruction (NCDPI) has released preliminary results of the 2005-06 state writing test. In Chatham County Schools, 47.7 percent of the 480 fourth graders, 49.5 percent of the 499 seventh graders, and 46.3 percent of the 589 tenth graders tested scored proficient in 2006.

Cooper named interim principal of Moncure School
[Aug. 20, 2006] George Cooper has been selected as the interim principal of Moncure School. He was approved by the Chatham County Board of Education on Monday evening, August 14, and reported to work on Tuesday morning, August 15. Cooper earned an undergraduate degree from Pembroke State (now UNC Pembroke). He taught physical education for three years at Ft. Bragg Schools. He later earned a Master of School Administration from East Carolina University.