Dear Leesville Road High School Parents:

 

A lot of positive things have happened in relation to our school during the early months of the 2005-2006 school year.  Thus, I want to use this communication to highlight some “high notes” for Leesville Road High as observed from my office.  This list, while not all-inclusive, will give you an idea of the many talented students and teachers associated with our school on a daily basis.

 

·               Our Guidance Department continues to do great things with our students.  The Newcomer’s Program, directed by Ms. Patty Roberts, welcomed 75 new students to our school during the first week of the year.  These new students were treated to a special lunch and small group activities during their lunch period.  Overall, the new students who participated in this program came to our school from 20 different states and 11 countries.  In addition to this group, the Guidance Department also sponsors a Tutor/Mentor Program.  This program officially started on October 5 and currently serves 20 students with volunteer tutors/mentors from the community.  Please contact the Guidance Office at 870-4260 if you wish to participate in this program as a tutor/mentor.  We can never have too many volunteers in this area.

 

·               Homecoming Week was October 10-15.  This week involved our traditional dress-up days and an assortment of student activities such as a pep rally on Friday, the football game on Friday night, and the annual dance on Saturday night.  In addition, we had our first-ever Homecoming Parade.  The student body and staff enjoyed this event a great deal and plan to make it a tradition for years to come.

 

·               Academically, several new initiatives were implemented this year in an effort to foster continual improvement for our school.  For example, benchmark tests are being used in Geometry, Biology, Civics & Economics, and U.S. History classes to enable teachers to assess their students’ progress in relation to the mastery of specific curriculum objectives on a regular basis throughout the semester.  In addition, academies for these four classes are offered one day each week to help with the reinforcement of the material associated with the daily lessons.  Overall, both initiatives are geared towards providing extra preparation/reinforcement for the students in terms of the End-of-Course (EOC) test material associated with these courses. 

“A day/B day” schedules for some Advanced Placement (AP) courses as well as the provision of a planner for every Freshman in the building are two additional examples of our staff’s efforts to improve the total school program at Leesville Road High.

 

·               Another academic concern on our campus is reading.  As a result, we presently have a group of teachers participating in a staff development program geared towards reading instruction.  Over the course of the next few years, it is our goal for all staff members to complete this training.  Hopefully, with the acquisition of these new skills, our staff will be better equipped to help students become more successful readers in all parts of the high school curriculum.

 

·               Our “Lunch Bunch Meetings” are off and running again this year.  These meetings, sponsored by the PTSA, are held one time per month with a focus on a specific grade level.  During these sessions, I meet with parents to discuss key events/issues on our campus and respond to their questions.  In addition, several members of the Guidance Department are present to provide feedback for parents as needed.  At the present time, meetings for Freshman, Sophomore, and Junior parents have already been held for this semester.  The “Lunch Bunch Meeting” for Senior parents is scheduled for December 15.  All meetings are held from 1:00-2:00 p.m. in the school’s Career Center.  Each grade level also will have a meeting during the second semester.  However, the Senior parents will go first with their meeting on February 2. 

 

·               On January 4, our school will hold an off-campus Open House at the Tarboro Road Community Center from 6:15-8:45 p.m.  The members of the Outreach Committee of our School Improvement Plan have worked very hard to plan this event.

 

·               Two staff members have been recognized for their extraordinary achievements as educators during the past few months.  Ms. Susan Taylor, a Social Studies teacher, was given the “2005 BB&T Economic Educator of the Year” award.  In addition, Mr. Dave Albert, our band director, was featured in the magazine entitled Fanfare! for his numerous accomplishments throughout his career. 

 

·               Our Drama and Technical Theater students, under the direction of Ms. Lou Whitmire and Ms. Jeannine Wrayno, did a great job with their Fall play, Frankenstein 1930, on October 27-29.  A special “thank you” also goes to all of the parents who helped make that event a success.  

 

Many other important events will occur on our campus between now and the end of the first semester.  Thus, I encourage all families to note the following events and their corresponding dates when making plans for the months of December and January.

 

1)                          Band concerts---December 8 and 9 (LRHS auditorium; 7:30 p.m.)

2)                          Progress reports for quarter 2 go home---December 9

3)                          Orchestra concert---December 13 (LRHS auditorium; 7:00 p.m.)

4)                          Awards Day for semester 1 (in classes only/no assembly)---January 10

5)                          Semester 1 exams---January 18 (periods 1&2), January 19 (periods 3&4),

January 20 (exam make-up day)

6)                          Mid-year Graduation Ceremony---January 26 (LRHS auditorium; 7:30 p.m.)

7)                          Report cards go home---January 31

 

In closing, I want to thank you for your continued support of Leesville Road High.  Your efforts are very valuable in our attempt to continually improve as a school.  Please do not forget how much our staff appreciates the great amount of parental support given to our school each year. 

 

Respectfully,

 

 

Stephen Gainey

Principal