1st quarter nccs newsletter, 2013

7/29/2019 1st Quarter NCCS Newsletter, 2013

1/10

Dr. David Stegall, Superintendent

Well, the year is off and running! I am soimpressed with the wonderful start thateach school has had. You have once againlaid the foundation for an amazing year.Please remember to stay focused on theimportant things as you becomeincreasingly busy during the start of aschool year. I have the utmost confidencein the ability of each of you to accomplishgreat things and to help change the livesand legacies of the students you work with.Id like to include an excerpt from theopening meeting that I shared with you:

I've heard people nostalgically describe theGood Old Days. One of my favoritequotes comes from the wise televisionshow, The Office, when Andy Bernardshared, I wish there was a way to knowthat you're in The Good Old Days beforeyou've actually left them..

As you look towards to this year, Iwant you to know something: Youwere made for a purpose. Yourunique life path has brought you tothis date in this room.

Have Passion!

Enjoy the little things in life, for oneday youll look back and realize theywere the BIG things.

Have Fun.

Two word phrases that we shouldnever say, I cant I quit or Whatdoes this button do? Thats actually5 words.

Teamwork isnt just for sports.

Serve others.

Be so happy that when others look atyou, they become happy, too.

Show compassion.

Everyone needs that colleague that

they can call and say, You want tohear something GROSS? Be thatfriend.

In the end, everything will be ok. Ifthings are not OK, then its not theend.

Work on your weaknesses until theybecome strengths. Work onyour strengths until theybecome second nature.

Do more of what makes youremarkable.

Schools are just brick, block, mortarand materials. YOU make thebuildings come alive.

Give a hug.

Do something today that your futureself will thank you for.

If we each have a choice of beinggood enough or awesome, dare tobe awesome.

Show compassion.

Dont wait for inspiration, be theinspiration!

Be a servant leader to the students wehave the privilege to serve.

Learn to let things you cannot controlGO!

YOU were made to be awesome!

Who knows if the next President,CEO, Pastor, Physician, Inventor or greatleader is in your classroom or building thisyear? Lets make this year one of those years that we look back on many yearsfrom now and describe as The GoodOld Days.

Dr. David Stegall, Superintendent

Congratulations!NCCS Teacher of

the Year, Mr.

Michael Townsley!

NCCS Principal of

the Year, Mr. Kevin

Campbell!

NCCS First Year

Teachers of the

Year, Mrs. Caroline

Crouse and Mrs.

Candace Styers!

Teachers of the

Year

~N-CHS:

Jessica Luby

~N-

CMS: Keith Recker

~Discovery School:

LouAnn Walker

~Conover School:

Michael Townsley

~Shuford

Elementary: Chee

Yang

~North Newton:

Jonathan Tharpe

~South Newton:

Leah Hayes


2/10

Elementary Updates:

Mrs. Tammy Brown, Director

Read to Achieve Act Basics:The goal of the State is to ensurethat every student read at or abovegrade level by the end of third

grade and continue to progress inreading proficiency so that he orshe can read, comprehend,integrate, and apply complex textwhen needed.Read to Achieve Summer Campwill last 6-8 weeks this comingsummer!

ESL Updates:

Mrs. Tammy Brown, Director

The 2012-13 AMAO ESL DATARESULTS ARE INThe state goalwas 57.1%, to be considered makingprogress. We had 65.4% of studentswho made progress, and excited 77

students! We met our AMAOgoals! Exciting News!Middle School Madness:

Ms. Heather Mullins,

Chief Academic Officer

We have new faces at Newton-

Conover Middle School this

year. Kim Kaylor is our new

principal! Check out this WBTV

story on the first day of school at

NCMS -http://bit.ly/18hMJUC.

SUMMER INSTITITE 2013!Eighteen NCCS teachers, administrators,and central office staff attended the 2013NCDPI Summer Institute in Greensborothis summer. Teachers attendedsessions aimed to improve the qualityof instruction in their content areas,

data literacy, teaching strategies,21st century skills, and a varietyof other statewide initiatives.If you are interested in learningmore about this conference,visit the NCDPI Summer Institutewebsite:http://si2013.ncdpi.wikispaces.net/.

Flu Shots will beoffered to all insuredemployees and their

dependents onSeptember 30, 2013from 1:30 to 5 pm in theNCCS Gallery. You musthave your healthinsurance card withyou.

Wellington Benefitswill be presenting the2014 SupplementalHealth Insurance

Benefits for thecalendar year 2014 theweeks of October 14and 21. The week ofOctober 14 will be theschool group meetings,and the week of October21 will be the individualmeetings with a Welling-

ton Representative.

Digital Days, ourdistricts day ofinstructionaltechnology staffdevelopment, will takeplace on October 7,2013 at NCMS.Teachers will berequired to select twoDigital Days classes toattend.

HIGH SCHOOL UPDATES: Mr. Bill Long,

Director of High School Curriculum, CTE, and Student Services

Both high schools have had smooth openings, withminor scheduling updates taking place daily. At both NCHSand Discovery School, there will be a great emphasis thisyear on fostering a focused approach to teaching classeswith inquiry-based learning using 21st Century Skills. Astrong focus of both high school programs will also be toimprove student scores on the ACT and PLAN tests that aregiven on a regular basis.
http://bit.ly/18hMJUChttp://bit.ly/18hMJUChttp://bit.ly/18hMJUChttp://si2013.ncdpi.wikispaces.net/http://si2013.ncdpi.wikispaces.net/http://si2013.ncdpi.wikispaces.net/http://bit.ly/18hMJUC


3/10

Finance News: Carmen Houston, Director

Our Finance Department was recognized at the NCDPI FBS

Conference in July for receiving both the Government

Finance Office Association Certificate of Achievement for

Excellence in Financial Reporting and Association of School

Business Officials Certificate of Excellence in Financial

Reporting for 2010-2011. The Finance Department wasrecently notified that they will be recipients of these two

awards again for 2011-2012.

The General Assembly approved 5 Bonus Leave days for all

permanent employees in leave earning status. These days

will expire on June 30, 2014.United Waywill be kickingoff in the month ofSeptember! Again,we will have Newton-Conover Partners of$100 or more toreceive a free

celebration dinner.Benny Yount hasagain provided acar to be given away.Many other prizesand incentives areavailable and will bediscussed by the sitecoordinators. Again,you may choose touse eight payrolldeductions. Look for this

presentation to roll out thismonth!

EC Updates! Dr. Betsy Rosenbalm, Director

Congratulations and best wishes to Mrs.Michele Jordan on her retirement after 30+years of service to special needs students!

Our new Pre-K Village is up and running atthe South Newton/Thornton Building! Ourthree Pre-K classes have joined forces to giveour youngest students a firm foundationthrough support and collaboration!

Disability Awareness Month will take placein October. NCCS will be hosting an ART

SHOW to showcase the amazing gifts andtalents of the Exceptional Children across ourdistrict!

Operational Notes: Dr. Aron Gabriel, Assistant Superintendent

We are continuing to finish up outstanding construction items

at the middle school.

Hats off to Mrs. Robin Rudisill, our Director of Maintenance,

and her hard-working crew. This summer involved multiple

whole school moves, work on our newly built N-CMS,ongoing work at the new North Newton Elementary, and the

normal preparations for our kids return to school. We

appreciate the long hours, skill, and dedication of these

important behind-the-scenes folks!!!


4/10


5/10

New Central Office Staff in NCCS

Superintendent, Dr. David Stegall

Dr. David Stegall is the new N-CCS Superintendent. Prior to holding his

current position, Dr. Stegall served as the Associate Superintendent of

Curriculum for Newton-Conover City Schools, a position he was appointed to

in 2009. He also worked for over two years as the Director of Curriculum,

Academically Gifted and English as a Second Language Programs. Thus, he

clearly has a strong background in curriculum and instruction. Dr. Stegall

also has roughly seven years of experience as a principal in the Iredell-

Statesville Schools. Finally, he taught elementary school for several years in

both the Iredell-Statesville and Rowan-Salisbury School Systems.

Dr. Stegall received his bachelors degree in elementary education from the

University of North Carolina at Charlotte and went on to obtain a masters

degree in education administration from Gardner-Webb University. Within

the past seven years, Dr. Stegall has received both his education specialistdegree and doctorate in educational leadership from Appalachian State

University. Dr. Stegall is a published scholar and was recognized as a finalist

for the Outstanding Dissertation Award in his doctorate program. In 2012,

Dr. Stegall was named the Outstanding Young Educator of the Year by the

North Carolina Association of Supervision and Curriculum

Development, and he has been nominated for the

national award. During his six years in Newton-

Conover City Schools, Dr. Stegall has been

instrumental in raising student achievement and

closing achievement gaps, providing direct

oversight of district directors and principals. He

started and led many initiatives and programsdesigned to improve curriculum and instructional

practices.

He is known as a passionate, visionary and visible leader who can build

consensus and who always puts the students first. He leads by example and

sets high goals for the staff and students. Dr. Stegall looks forward to the

opportunity to lead N-CCS, and he is thrilled that he and his family can

continue to be part of the Newton-Conover community. Dr. Stegall has been

married to his wife Manda for 16 years. They have two children, Owen, 13,

and Ava, 9.

Assistant Superintendent, Dr. Aron Gabriel

Dr. Gabriel is Newton-Conovers new Assistant Superintendent. He is

currently in his 18th year of public education service. He has been a high

school English teacher, basketball coach, assistant principal, principal, and

now assistant superintendent. Dr. Gabriel came to N-CCS after serving for 9

years in various administrative roles in the Iredell-Statesville Schools. Most

recently, Dr. Gabriel served as principal of South Iredell High School. He isthrilled to be in N-CCS and so are the other members of his team.........his

family! Aron has been married to Mandy for 12 years and they are the proud

parents of 2 boys: Trysten (age 6) and Layton (age 2).


6/10

Chief Academic Officer, Ms. Heather Mullins

Heather Mullins is Newton-Conovers new Chief Academic Officer. Ms.

Mullins was a North Carolina Teaching Fellow who attended Western

Carolina University. She taught English for 12 years in both Wilkes County

Schools and Hickory City Schools. She achieved her National BoardCertification in 2002. Ms. Mullins has a master's degree in Special Education

- AIG from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. She has served as

an Instructional Coach and a Curriculum Specialist at the central office level.

She also worked as an adjunct professor at Lenoir-Rhyne University. Ms.

Mullins most recently served the Northwest Region of our state as the North

Carolina Department of Public Instruction Professional Development

Consultant. Currently, Ms. Mullins is pursuing her doctorate in Educational

Leadership from Western Carolina University. In her free time, she loves

cooking and spending time on Lake Hickory with family and

friends. Jackson, her son, is an avid sports fan, so Ms. Mullins enjoys

attending local and professional sporting events with her son.

Director of Exceptional Children & CommunicationServices, Dr. Betsy Rosenbalm

Dr. Betsy Rosenbalm is the newly appointed Director of Exceptional Children

and Communication Services for Newton-Conover City Schools. She is a

native of Statesville, NC where she lives with her husband, Andy, and her 4

year old daughter, Cora, who was adopted from China in 2011. Betsy and her

husband are eagerly awaiting the homecoming of their 2 year old second

daughter, Charlotte, who is currently living in an orphanage in Haiti. Betsy

has been an elementary teacher, a reading specialist, an instructional coach,

an Assistant Principal, and more recently, a Principal for the past 4 years at

Conover School. Recently, she was awarded the honor of being the Newton-

Conover City Schools Principal of the Year, as well as the Region 7 Principal

of the Year for 2012-2013. Dr. Rosenbalm was a North Carolina Teaching

Fellow in her undergraduate program. She received her Bachelors of Science

in Elementary Education, her Masters of Arts in Reading Education, and her

add-on licensure in School Administration from Appalachian State

University. She received her National Boards Certification in

Reading/Language Arts in Early/Middle Childhood, and her Doctorate degree

in Curriculum and Instruction from Gardner-Webb University. She enjoys

singing in her church choir, leading in her teaching sorority, Alpha Delta

Kappa, and serving in the newly chartered Catawba County Civitans Club.


7/10

New Building Level Administrators in NCCS

Principal of Shuford Elementary,

Mr. Patrick Nelson

Mr. Patrick Nelson is the newly appointed principal of

Shuford Elementary. He graduated from Mars Hill College

with an undergraduate degree in Elementary Education and

a Master's Degree in School Administration from Gardner-

Webb University. He is a native of Caldwell County where

he taught grades 3-5 before coming to Newton-Conover in

2005 as Assistant Principal of NCMS and ShufordElementary before being promoted to a Principal. He

recently completed a two year term at N-CMS before his

move back to Shuford Elementary. Mr. Nelson currently

resides in Iredell County with his two dogs, Conrad and

Mia.

Director of Elementary and ESL Services,

Mrs. Tammy Brown

Mrs. Brown is the new Director of Elementary Services for N-CCS. She

attended Appalachian State University to receive her undergraduate and

graduate degrees. She has been in education for 17 years and taughtelementary school for 9 years at Thornton Elementary School. Then, she

became an administrator and served as an Assistant Principal for Thornton

and South Newton Elementary Schools. After this, she became the Principal

of Thornton Elementary School. She remained as the Principal for 6

years. She has been married to Kevin Brown for 17 years. They have two

lovely sons, Carson, 11, and Connor 7. She has two dogs, Patches (a chow)

and Cheyanne ( a Alaskan Husky). She loves to spend time with her family!

Director of Technology and Accountability Services,

Mrs. Cindy Geddes

Cindy Geddes is the new Director of Accountability and Technology Servicesfor N-CCS. She served last year as the district's Instructional Technology/

Staff Development Coordinator. Prior to that, she taught at Shuford

Elementary for thirteen years and is Nationally Board Certified. She recently

co-authored the article, Growing Technology Leaders in an international

technology journal,Learning and Leading with Technology. She presented on

Newton-Conover's Instructional Technology plan and implementation this

past year at the NCASCD (North Carolina Association for Supervision and

Curriculum Development) Conference and NCTIES (North Carolina

Technology In Education Society) Conference. Mrs. Geddes is also a co-

founder and moderator of the #NCed twitter chat. She lives in Newton with

her husband, Leonard, and her two children, Cassidy and Brandon.


8/10

Principal of Newton-Conover Middle School,

Ms. Kim Kaylor

Ms. Kim Kaylor is the newly appointed principal of

Newton-Conover Middle School. Teaching has always been

her love! She taught for 21 years in Iredell and CatawbaCounty, and her love of history led her to be selected as the

DAR Catawba County Teacher of the Year. She completed

her MSA through Appalachian State University in 2010 and

served as the AP for N-CHS for three years. She feels it all

privilege and glory to serve as the Principal of N-

CMS. She is a single mom to three boys, and they are all

college educated. Her middle son will soon be getting

married in December.

Principal of Conover School,

Mrs. Phyllis Pegram

Mrs. Phyllis Pegram is the newly appointed principal of

Conover School. She served as principal at Shuford

Elementary in the 2012-13 school year and prior to that, she

was the principal at East Iredell Elementary in Statesville

for five years. In Statesville, she taught 4th grade and 2nd

grade before going into administration. While serving as an

administrator, she had experience with special education

students and had six self-contained exceptional children

classrooms. She has a BA in Elementary Education from

Catawba College, a Masters in Educational Leadership

from Gardner Webb, and she is currently working on her

Doctorate in Educational Leadership from Gardner Webb.She is married to Roy Pegram and has two sons, Derek and

Brandon, and three grandchildren which she loves spoiling

every chance she gets.

Principal of North Newton Elementary,

Mr. Shane Whitener

Mr. Shane Whitener is the newly appointed principal of

North Newton Elementary. He received his undergraduate

and graduate degrees from Appalachian State

University. He taught math for 7 years at NCHS, served as

Assistant Principal for 5 years, served as Principal at

Shuford Elem. for 1 year, served as Math CurriculumSpecialist for 1 year and is currently serving as Principal at

North Newton Elementary. He has two beautiful kids who

are in Kindergarten at North Newton Elem.


9/10

Assistant Principal of Conover School,

Mrs. Priscilla Palmisano

Mrs. Priscilla Palmisano is the newly appointed assistant

principal of Conover School. She was born and raised in

Pennsylvania. She received a B.A. in Social StudiesEducation from the University of Charleston in West

Virginia. She received a Masters of Education in Special

Education from California University of PA and a School

Administration add-on licensure from Gardner-Webb

University. Her husband is Michael and her daughter is

Josephine, and they reside in Statesville. She is very happy

to continue serving the staff, students, and families of

Conover School.

Assistant Principal of Newton-Conover High

School, Mr. Billy Cannon

Mr. Billy Cannon is a newly appointed Assistant Principal

at N-CHS. He is a 2002 graduate of Newton-Conover High

School. He graduated from Lenoir-Rhyne in 2007 where he

received a degree in elementary education and shortly after

began working for NCCS. Since 2007, he has earned a

Masters degree in Middle Grades Education as well as

School Administration. He is married to Kelly Cannon and

they have a 6 year old and twin two year olds, all boys. He

loves being outdoors and working in his garden. He is an

avid Washington Redskins fan as well as a Tarheels fan. He

is excited to be working at NCHS and with the wonderful

staff.

Assistant Principal of Newton-Conover High

School, Ms. Jessica Luby

Ms. Jessica Luby is a newly appointed Assistant Principal

of N-CHS. She originated from Missouri, and earned a

Bachelors of Science degree in Biology from Lincoln

University, 9-12 Science Teaching License from East

Carolina University and will finish earning herMasters

degree in School Administration from Appalachian State

University in 2014. Ms. Luby has served as a N-CHSscience teacher on the following committees/teams: School

Improvement Team, Technology Team, MTAC, SWAT,

Key Club Adviser and Calendar Committee. Ms. Luby

received the following honors in her career: Beginning

Teacher of the Year, Teacher of the Year, Wells Fargo

Teacher of the Year, Lillian Jones Scholarship recipient,

LES Scholarship recipient, Google Gravity Games 2nd Place

Winner, iPad Pilot Teacher, and Fulbright Scholar

(Germany). Ms. Luby is eager to serve the NCHS family!


10/10

1st quarter nccs newsletter, 2013

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