Principal's Blog
Top Ten Things I Love About Woods #1
During this 2012-2013 school year, my final year at Woods, I’d like to use as a theme for this blog - “Top Ten Things I LOVE About Woods Charter School.” When we were “a little school in the mall” – before I arrived at Woods in 2008 – we were already resolutely headed down the road from “good to great.” During each of our last five years together - here on Woodland Grove Lane – we have continued to move steadily down that road with a sense of adventure and fun. The things I love most about Woods are those things that have helped us become who we are today. My list is in no particular order; all of these items are important to many of us.
Gratitude: Extraordinary Volunteerism
We have added five volunteers to our Volunteer Wall of Fame. Stop by and take a look at the full list of 30 people. Without your hard work and dedication, Woods would not be where it is today! Thank you.
Gardens and Rollercoasters
I am sitting in one of my favorite places in Raleigh, the Japanese Garden at the J. C. Raulston Arboretum. It's Sunday afternoon. On my way home from church, I have spontaneously decided to stop off here for a few moments to sit and reflect on the past week at Woods. I appreciate the value of this opportunity, and I don't do it often enough. It's good to be here. The near-perfect spring weather, the comforting breeze, the miraculously ethereal Japanese maple which is indescribably red, green, and brown all at once, bird chirps, people chirps, a crying unhappy child just outside the gate in the arms of a comforting father, the sea of pebbles, amazing and beautiful trees, shrubs, and flowers from Japan and other assorted Asian locations, and the solid rock which anchors all of the above. I love this place.
A Vision for Woods in 2022
Please join the live conversation over the next two months! Come to one of our community forums to discuss the future of Woods Charter School. We need your input and your ideas! Plan now to attend an upcoming Board meeting.
The Milford Project & Sixth Grade Science
I love live theatre! … and who doesn’t love science?! Imagine my delight when science teacher Kevin Pease stopped by my office one day to introduce Scott Ripley. Mr. Ripley is an Associate Professor at UNC-CH who is currently directing the East Coast premiere of a new musical entitled The Milford Project, written by Kevin Oeser and Nick Martin. The play is being presented February 23-27 by The Lab! Theatre, UNC’s oldest and most active student theatre group.
Legacy Art & Pizza
Woods Artist-in-Residence Lyman Edwards is leading tenth-grade art students, with support from art students throughout the school, in the creation and construction of a mobile adobe wood-fired pizza oven. This outstanding legacy art project is jointly funded through the Woods PTSA and a designated gift to the WCS Foundation. To get all the latest details, follow Mr. Edwards' blog[http://www.lymanedwardsceramics.wordpress.com]. What an amazing project and adventure this has been for our art department! Thank you, one and all - Mr. Edwards, Mr. Durham, Ms. Kozlowski, tenth-grade art students, all art students who made a contribution, and especially the PTSA and the Foundation for financial support.
Traditions
Even though our school is only fourteen years old we have developed several annual events that we cherish and anticipate. In the past week we have celebrated two traditions and next week we launch a brand new one.
A Day in Sixth Grade
Tuesday, 9/27/2011 - I spent the day with the sixth grade today. What a terrific group of forty young people – smart, lively, engaged, enthusiastic! We enjoyed classes with Mr. Durham (art), Mr. Matthews (Health/PE), Mr. Nelson (social studies), Mr. Pease (science), and Ms. Vaughan (music). I hope to return tomorrow for classes with Ms. Barnes (mathematics), Ms. Bruce (Spanish), Ms. Hughes (mathematics), Mr. Jester (English) and Ms. Little (French). It was an amazing day in sixth grade.
Woods Rocks!
Our 2011-2012 school year is off to a great start! With over 500 enthusiastic scholars, 67 faculty and staff, and over 370 families embarking together on a new year of learning, sharing, working, and playing, there have been lots of smiles and buoyant good cheer at Woods this past week. Our school board gathered in The Glade last Thursday night to kick off the year, following a Board Retreat on August 20th conducted by Executive Services Corps of the Triangle.