E-Blast in five

Volume Twenty-Five: Winter, 2015

State Supt. Spearman is Guest Speaker at theAnnual State of the Schools Luncheon

Orangeburg Consolidated School District Five (OCSD5) Interim Superintendent Dr. Jesse Washington delivered the 2015 State of the Schools address to approximately 350 community leaders, educators, and stakeholders on October 20, 2015. The special guest speaker for the event was State Superintendent of Education Molly Spearman. Many district students participated in the State of the Schools pro-gram and they kept the event lively and entertaining. Brittany Bloome, a senior at North Middle/High School, and Jake Bookard, a senior at Bethune-Bowman K-12 Campus, served as the Mistress and Master of Ceremonies for the program. They were joined by Cornelius Walker, a senior at Orangeburg-Wilkinson High School, who provided the in-troductions for State Superintendent Spearman and Dr. Washington. Together, the trio entertained the audience with a combination of humor and engaging conversation. Musical entertainment was provided by the outstanding members of the Robert E. Howard Middle School Chorus directed by Shanjaleta Gardner and the Orangeburg-Wilkinson High School Jazz Ensemble directed by Michael McClain. Student ushers Kenneth Gilmore, Emoni Chaplin, Robert Gordon, Austin Gleaton, Dareeka Neals, and Reginald Seaberry greeted and assisted guests as they arrived. (continued on page 2)

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Thirty-eight students from Orangeburg Consolidated School District Five (OCSD5) achieved perfect scores on one or more subject areas of the state-mandated End of Course Examination Program (EOCEP). The students were honored at the OCSD5 Board of Trustees Meeting on October 20, 2015 at Bethune-Bowman Middle/High School. Each stu-dent was individually recognized and received a trophy from Interim Superintendent Dr. Jesse Washington and the mem-bers of the Board of Trustees. The students who attained perfect scores on the Fall 2014 EOCEP are: Cory Crozier, 12th grade at Bethune-Bow-man Middle/High School (Biology); and Crystyle Clark, 11th grade at the High School for Health Professions (Biology). The students who attained perfect scores on the Spring

2015 EOCEP are: Taivon Hardy, 9th grade at Orangeburg-Wilkinson High School (Algebra I); Monank Patel, 11th grade at Orangeburg-Wilkinson High School (Algebra I); Yasmire Evans, 8th grade at W.J. Clark Middle School (Algebra I); Destinee Farmer, 8th grade at W.J. Clark Middle School (Algebra I); Lani McGuire, 8th grade at W.J. Clark Middle School (Algebra I); Khushbu Patel, 8th grade at W.J. Clark Middle School (Algebra I); Lilly Pedapolu, 8th grade at W.J. Clark Middle School (Algebra I); Alyssa Ashline, 8th grade at North Middle/High School (Algebra I); Armond Whitehead, 9th grade at the High School for Health Professions (Alge-bra I); De’Ashia McPherson-Holder, 10th grade at the High School for Health Professions (Algebra I); Jordan Archie, 10th grade at Orangeburg-Wilkinson High School (Biology); Key-

ThirTy-EighT OCSD5 STuDEnTS Earn PErfECT SCOrES On STaTE TESTS

The first speaker on the pro-gram was Mary Ulmer, Chair of the OCSD5 Board of Trustees, who greeted the audience with welcoming remarks on behalf of the Board. She was followed by Autumn Coulter, the 2015-2016 District Teacher of the Year, who gave recognition to the Principals and the individ-ual Teachers of the Year from each of the district’s schools. Reverend Michael C. Butler, Mayor of the City of Orangeburg and School-to-Work Coordinator for OCSD5, gave the blessing prior to lunch being served. Following the meal, Dr. Stephen Peters, Principal at Orangeburg-Wilkinson High School, made a special an-nouncement. He revealed that Swan Films, a British film-making company, has been at the campus shooting a three-part documentary series for the BBC that will highlight a year in the life of the school and its students. Filming is underway and will continue through the end of the school year culmi-nating in graduation. The guest speaker for the program was State Superinten-dent of Education Molly Spearman. Spearman spoke to the audience about one of her priorities, the “Profile of the 21st Century Graduate”. In her remarks, Spearman indicated that her vision of college and career readiness is not just limited to knowledge of language arts and math, but also in-cludes critical thinking and problem solving skills along with life and career skills such as integrity and work ethic. Spear-man stated that South Carolina is now writing a new educa-tion accountability system that will measure student success from multiple measures. “For too long we’ve been so wor-ried about how you score on one high-stakes test and that’s how we judge schools and communities. We’re going to change that,” said Spearman to enthusiastic applause from the audience. Dr. Jesse Washington, Interim Superintendent for OCSD5, highlighted many of the district’s successes from the previous year along with a look ahead to the future. Dr. Washington began his remarks by noting the success of the “Mohawk Mania” extended-year program at the Bethune-Bowman K-12 School; the implementation of the “Early College” program at North Middle/High School where the incoming ninth grade class will be the first to have an op-portunity to graduate with both a high school diploma and a two-year college Associate’s Degree; and the status of the Digital Learning Initiative whereby students are receiving Wi-Fi compatible iPad devices that will facilitate new opportuni-ties for student learning. Dr. Washington also gave a report titled “OCSD5 by the Numbers” where he gave the audience a number, and then followed it up with a district highlight. Among the items

State of the Schools (continued from pg. 1)

presented were:0 - The district approved an operating budget for 2015-

2016 with a ZERO increase in taxes.1 - In collaboration with the Orangeburg County Sheriff’s

Office, the “Junior Advocates” program was created that trains and certifies high school students to assist the pro-fessional members of the Victim’s Services Office in pro-viding support to young victims of crime. The program is the first ONE of its kind in the nation.

2 - TWO students from Orangeburg-Wilkinson High School, Martin Aduma and David Quick Jr., were named Gates Millennium Scholars. Last year, only eleven students from South Carolina were selected as Gates Scholars and Orangeburg-Wilkinson High School was the only school in the State with more than one.

6 - The OCSD5 Athletic Hall of Fame inducted SIX mem-bers into its inaugural class including former NFL player Alex Barron, former NFL player Dwayne Harper, current NFL player Tim Jennings, retired basketball coach Artie Knight, the late basketball coach Edward Pellman, and retired coach and Principal Dr. Geb Runager.

8 - OCSD5 became one of just EIGHT school districts in South Carolina to partner with the South Carolina Gov-ernor’s School for Science and Mathematics in a new virtual engineering program called ACCELERATE where high school students can earn up to 32 college credits toward an engineering degree.

58 - FIFTY-EIGHT students attained perfect scores on State examinations last year including the Palmetto Assess-ment of State Standards (PASS), the High School Assess-ment Program (HSAP), or the End of Course Examination Program (EOCEP).

72 - The graduation rate for students in OCSD5 increased from sixty-five percent to SEVENTY-TWO percent over the past five years.

14,000,000 - The dollar value of scholarship awards of-fered to OCSD5 graduates in 2015 exceeded FOUR-TEEN MILLION dollars, the highest single year total ever for our district.

(continued on page 15)

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E-Blast Each month, we will be presenting profiles of the Teachers of the Year from our schools. This month we will introduce Mary Pent, a first grade teacher from Dover Elementary School, and a finalist for the selection of OCSD5 District Teacher of the Year Like many of her peers in the teaching profession, Mary Pent can trace her interest in teaching back to a specific experience as a young person. She recalled, “My first teaching experiences were coaching a neighborhood swim team and instructing swim lessons during high school; this love of teaching swimming les-sons led me to pursue a degree in education.” With that motivation, Pent went on to earn a Bachelor of Science Degree with a major in Elementary Education from the University of Wisconsin and an Interdisciplinary Master of Arts Degree with a major in Science Education from the University of South Carolina. She began her teaching career in OCSD5 as a 3rd grade teacher at Dover Elementary School in 2002. She moved to Sheridan Elementary School the following year where she taught Kindergarten, 3rd grade, and 4th grade for the next ten years. In 2012 she moved back to Dover Elementary School where she taught Kindergarten before taking a 1st grade class this year. Among her accomplishments are being a team leader and implementing a summer reading and writing program at Dover. She has also provided district-wide professional develop-ment for Kindergarten teachers on the topics of using manipula-tives and learning centers in the kindergarten class and integrat-ing sight word knowledge in daily lessons. Showing great initiative, Pent has been able to expand her influence in the North community beyond the boundaries of the school and has developed partnerships and collaborations with many outside agencies and individuals. Among these are: (1) working with the North Police and Fire Departments to conduct educational Fire Safety Week programs; (2) collaborating with the North Public Library to expose kindergarten students to lit-eracy programs; (3) coordinating with a local farmer to create a “hands on” connection of kindergarten math and science to

OCSD5 TEACHER OF THE YEAR PROFILESMary Pent – Dover eLeMentary SCHooL

Winter, 2015

Please Be Safeand

Enjoy The HolidaysDecember 21, 2015

thruJanuary 1, 2016

careers in agriculture; (4) through affiliations with the Clemson Extension Service, developed life cycle lessons with incubated chicks and tadpoles; and (5) recruited volunteer adult reading partners to read to individu-al students each week. Pent also regularly participates in community engagement programs at Dover like Trunk-or-Treat, Muffins for Moms, Family Movie Night, and Donuts for Dads. In describing her beliefs about teaching, Pent said “I know that all students are individuals who learn in different ways. I use my student data to drive my planning and instruction. My instruction is differentiated to meet the needs of all students through the use of best practices, instructional strategies and implementation of the lesson cycle.” Pent explained with an example, “I use integrated learning experiences with teach-ing; students need to see, touch, listen to, read about, speak about, work with, sing, dance, illustrate, and write about the topics we are studying. For example, in the Fall we have read about pumpkins and learned songs about pumpkins. We mea-sured their girth. Next we experimented to see if pumpkins sink or float. We used our senses to describe and write about the physical properties of the pumpkin. We estimated the number of seeds, and then counted the actual; estimated the number of lines on them, counted the actual; and noted the correlation between the number of lines and the number of seeds. We carved the pumpkin to examine the insides and then tasted the roasted seeds. The class studied and illustrated the life cycle of the pumpkin plant. Finally, the culminating activity was a trip to a pumpkin farm.” “It is a true honor to follow a true leader like Mrs. Pent at Dover Elementary School,” said Dover Principal Matt Schilit. He continued, “She exemplifies all the qualities you look for in a classroom teacher. These qualities include being motivated, caring, data driven, and student centered. Mrs. Pent is the ulti-mate team player.” District Instructional Coach Nicholas Boatwright added, “She, along with her colleagues at Dover, have changed the way the literacy is being practiced. One example that comes to mind is the way she hand selects books for her students to read each day based on their reading preferences and abilities. The relationship she builds through really knowing her students has impacted them greatly. All 32 of her kindergarten students were reading independently halfway through the year!” Congratulations to Mary Pent, one of our OCSD5 District Teacher of the Year finalists!

On Monday, November 16, 2015, BBES Science students worked as teams in order to figure out how to get two light bulbs to turn on with the materials on hand. Students applied basic closed and open circuit principles in order to manipulate the wires, power supply, and lights in order to create a working cir-cuit. Students were excited when they succeeded at making both lights turn on. Great job BBES science students!4

TOM’s Shoes has sponsored Bethune-Bowman Elem. again with a free pair of shoes for the students to wear. TOM’s Shoes has been a regular donor for BBES and the students are very grateful! TOMS is a one for one giving company where for every pair of shoes sold, one pair is donated to a child in need. TOMS began their partnership with Save the Children in El Salvador in 2011. Today, TOMS partners with Save the Children in over six countries. In the United States, sports shoes are dis-tributed through Save the Children’s Healthy Choic-es program in five states.

Recently, Bethune-Bowman Elem. students, who earned the Principal’s List award by getting all A’s on their report card, were treated to lunch at Fatz restau-rant in Orangeburg. Great job students and keep up the good work!

BBES Science Students Work as Teams To

Turn On Lights!

“TOMS” Program Benefit BBES Students

E-Blast in five Winter, 2015BEThunE-BOwman ElEmEnTary ~ “BullETin”

AArrggh…. Here at Dover we are teaching like pirates. In our book, P is for Pirate by Dave Burgess and Shelley Burgess we learn a great many things about how to im-prove our teaching. I is for Iceberg. Teaching is on the tip of what we do here at Dover. There are so many things that go on “below the surface” to help enhance our students’ education. We like to recognize people and students that are going above and beyond the expectation. One of those people is Mr. Frazier, one of our custodians. Mr. Frazier is here daily. He can be counted on to do not only his job, but the jobs of others if they need help. He greets everyone with a smile and always has a kind word. Thank you Mr. Frazier.

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E-BlastWinter, 2015Details From DoVer elementary

Mr. Frazier

We have also been working to raise money for our many school wide events that are free to stu-dents. One recent fundraiser was “Kiss the Pig”. Students brought in money for their teacher or princi-pal. The person that received the most money in their name was able to kiss the pig at our annual Trunk or Treat. This year, Mr. Schilit received this honor. I was told that he went above and beyond by kissing that little darling not once, but twice. Thank you, Mr. Schilit, for doing this for our kids.

Finally, in honor of American Education Week, we had “Dress like a teacher or principal” day. We had a building full of little educa-

tor and educational leaders.

The students were so excited as they walked in the building and announced, “I’m Mrs. Jeffcoat” and “Look, I am just like Coach Jameson”. We even had several little prin-cipals that are ready to take on the world, or at least Dover El-ementary. We are having a great year at Dover!

E-Blast Winter, 2015in five Brookdale Elementary hosted Fam-ily Literacy Night in November. The theme for the evening was “A Time for Thanks”. The evening was packed full of fun, educational, informative ac-tivities that the students and parents enjoyed. A select group of students did a performance to the song “Got-ta Keep Reading” that was a crowd pleaser. Our very own Mr. Elijah Corley, teacher assistant, treated the audience to an excerpt from Dr. Mar-tin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech. Participants then broke out into groups, which consisted of five groups where they participated in

different activities such as games, a writing activity, snacks, useful websites and a read aloud “I Know an Old Lady

Who Swallowed a Pie” by Mr. K. Lusk, third grade teacher. Mrs. Irick, a librarian from the Orangeburg County Library, was also on hand to inform parents on the process of getting their child/children a library card. To close out an awesome evening of learning, Brookdale’s PTO gave away door prizes which consisted of cash prizes and a flat screen television.

Brookdale celebrated Veterans Day with a program on November 11, 2015. Two great speakers, Master Sergeant Brent Garrett of the United States Army and Ms. Kimberlei Davis of the United States Army shared their experiences in the armed services and what Veterans Day means to them. We also had Sydney Murdaugh, 2015-2016 Miss Orangeburg-Wilkinson High School render a beautiful rendition of The Star Spangled Banner for our faculty, staff, students, parents and special guests. Several classes ranging from kinder-garten to 4th grade performed musical and written tributes to the veterans of our country. Two students, Heyward Jean and Chenia Robinson expressed

“What Veterans Day Means to Me.” The pro-gram was an absolute suc-cess in express-ing Brookdale E l e m e n t a r y School’s appre-ciation for the veterans of not only Orange-burg County and South Carolina, but for all the vet-erans across the world.

Brookdale Students Celebrate Veterans

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Brookdale Elementary’s Beaming newsLiteracy Night at Brookdale

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E-Blast

Orangeburg Consolidated School District Five’s English for Speakers of Other Lan-guages Program welcomed parents, students, staff and faculty to a celebration of dis-trict diversity recently. ESOL is a core instructional program that assists students who have been identified as English language learners from Pre-K through 12th grades. Family Night included performances, food, songs and music. The event provided an opportunity for ESOL teachers to discuss their goals with students, parents and staff. “It is my hope that the ESOL Academy will help our school learn additional strate-gies for teachers to effectively engage academy participants in the teaching and learn-ing process,” said Hayward Jean, Mellichamp Elementary School principal. “My goal is to help our English language learners to become academically and linguistically proficient,” Deena Fogle, Mellichamp Elementary ESOL teacher, said. “I have experienced many encouraging situations where former students have shown at least a year or more of progress in one school year. I am very proud of all of my students’ hard work and achieve-ments,” she added.

Brookdale hosted a family night recently and it was jammed packed with exciting, in-novative, and creative activities! Parents, stu-dents, faculty, and staff joined together to learn

mElliChamP CElEBraTES DivErSiTy aT ESOl family nighT

Winter, 2015

Jahmeius Davis, a second grade student at Brookdale Elementary won first place in the Junior Art Division at the Orangeburg County Fair. Jahmeius won for a colored pencil composition entitled “Bowl of Fruit”. Jahmeius is currently in the second grade but he completed the work while he was in the first grade. Congratulations to Jahmeius Davis.

More News From Brookdale. . .

more information about STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math). LaToya Glen facilitated a tech-nology session. Parents and students had the op-portunity to create a web game. Dr. Derrick James, OCSD5 Instructional Coach facilitated a Germs ac-tivity. Parents, students, and teachers participated in the activity to show how germs spread. Participants later broke into grade level sessions conducted by the teachers. K4 – 2nd Grade parents and students were engaged in a “Sink or Float” activity. 3rd – 5th Grade parents and students designed Series Circuits and discuss the Scientific Process. Later, students re-ceived FREE Science Display Boards and labels for upcoming Science Projects. To end the night, Brook-dale’s PTO gave away four door prizes, cash money and a Wii Game System.

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Mrs. Oxner organized Mellichamp Elementary’s canned food drive. When the parents, students, and staff brought their dona-tions, Principal Hayward Jean approved a special art project to be made with the food. Ms. Hudson designed and built our turkey sculpture while Mrs. Journey and Ms. Britton worked with students from 2nd-5th grade to add the details designed by Ms. Hudson. The Thanksgiving turkey was a big hit with our Mellichamp family! The picture above includes our turkey sculpture!

“MEMOriES” From MellichampE-Blast in five Winter, 2015

Ambassadors for Teach for America and Mellichamp El-ementary School recently hosted an INTech technology day camp for middle school girls. INTech, founded by Khalia Braswell, is an organization that focuses on inspiring young girls to become innovative in the technology fields. In addition to working on coding, web design, and HTML development, the camp also allowed the girls to lis-ten to a panel of female technology scholars. The panelists, all employees of the Red Ventures Company in Charlotte, shared that only 20% of workers in the tech field are wom-en. Mellichamp Elementary School Principal Hayward Jean said the camp’s goals align with his school’s vision, “The Mellichamp vision is to cause all students to develop an entrepreneurial mindset about their education. INTech instills an entrepreneurial spirit inside of each young lady,” he said. “The experience today is electrifying and empowering for our students and has inspired me to go deeper in giving all my students access to opportunities that will broaden their educational experiences,” Jean added. Raven Smith, a 5th grade Mellichamp student and an aspiring game and website developer, said she learned that, “girls can do what boys can do and that I can go to a place with a whole bunch of males and work with them.” To find out more information about the INTech camp, visit http://intechcamp.co/.

Apple Intern Brings Technology Camp to Mellichamp

Recently, the Whittaker Elementary School “Just Say No” Drill Team was able to help the Claflin University Alumni celebrate their annual Homecoming pa-rade. Claflin University was founded in 1869 and is one of the top Histori-cally Black Colleges and Universities in the nation. The university’s president is Henry N. Tisdale. The homecom-ing festivities included concerts, work-shops, forums, tailgating, among other fun eventful activities. The “Just Say No” Drill Team, under the direction of Sergeant James Smith, participates in the Claflin Homecoming parade every year. The Whittaker Wildcats are led by our wonderful principal, Dr. Casandra Jenkins. The drill team promotes disci-pline and staying drug free. Written by: Audrey Patterson, Lead Advisor for the “Just Say No” Drill Team

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“Just Say No” Drill Team Join in Claflin’s Homecoming Parade

Winter, 2015 E-BlastUpdATES FrOM WhITTAkEr ELEMEnTAry

Red Ribbon Week activities culminated with College Day Door Decorations at Whittaker. Creativity and school pride were evident in the displays completed by teachers. Students were exposed to information about each college or univer-sity. Each teacher submitted a question to be included in a scavenger hunt. The students and teachers enjoyed searching for the answers to the scavenger hunt. Mrs. Andrea Shuler, fourth grade teacher, won first place in the door deco-ration contest. Mrs. Trese Reed’s and Ms. Amanda Dinkins’, both PreK teachers, won second and third place respectively. We continue to ignite the fire in our quest to encourage students to prepare themselves NOW for college and careers!

MOrE WhITTAkEr nEWS. . .

Gabby GreenleavesVisits Whittaker If there is anything you need to know about trees, ask Gabby Greenleaves! Mrs. Diane Curlee, Education Coordinator for Orange-

burg County Conservation District, aka “Gabby”, capti-vated our PreK and Kindergarten students with facts about trees, the products they provide, and their importance to the ecosystem. This presentation followed the book study with PreK and K on, “The Giving Tree” by Shel Silverstein.

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E-Blast Winter, 2015“ThE SCOOp” @ ShErIdAn ELEMEnTAry

Sheridan Superstar third graders are doing great things to represent Sheridan. For starters, they are reading books at and above their reading levels. Most of the superstar third graders are on the ball reaching their AR goals along with reading comprehension and meeting their academic goal as well. Keep it up superstars, we are shining!

rotary Club of Orangeburg (Morning) Donates Dictionaries to Sheridan Third Graders

Our first graders at Sheridan are now using Mastery Connect and the MC Student App on the ipads to assess the standards weekly. The students love it. The teachers are raving about how easy it is to go paperless!

Members of the Rotary Club of Orangeburg (Morning) visited Sheridan Elementary recently to donate dictionaries to our third graders. They demonstrated how to use it successfully in class. At the end of the year, the dictionaries will go home with the students.

Congratulations to Mrs. Aiken’s art students for en-tering the Children’s Sabbath Poster Contest sponsored by the Trinity United Methodist Church in Orangeburg. This year’s themes were “When I Need Help, Who Do I Turn To,” “A Good Education,” “Good Health Care,” and “A Safe Environment.” Madison Self, (6th grade, 2nd from left) won 3rd place in the poster contest. She received a ribbon, cer-tificate, and a $25.00 gift card. Rebecca Durant (6th grade, 1st from left), Jakira Scott (8th grade, 3rd from

left), and D’ Anasia Whaley (6th grade, 4th from left) also partici-pated in the contest. They each received a ribbon, a certificate, and a $10.00 gift card.

nOrTh miDDlE/high arT STuDEnTS PlaCE in POSTEr COnTEST

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E-Blast Winter, 2015newS From North Middle/High School

The North Middle/High School Girls Volleyball team recently won the Region IV-A Championship. The majority of the girls have played together since the seventh grade. They finished the season with an 11-1 region record. Shonte Felder and Kristall Strobert were named All Region. D’Asia Houser, captain of the volleyball team, was also named All Region, Region IV-A MVP, and All State. Coach Horace Bookman was named Region IV-A Coach of the Year.

THE NOrTH MiDDLE/HiGH LaDy EaGLESarE rEGiON iV-a CHaMPS

E-Blast in five Winter, 2015BEThunE-BOwman miDDlE/high hEaDlinES

Blood Drive at Bethune-Bowman a success

Special Thanks to Special Staff

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The Student Council of Bethune- Bowman High School sponsored a blood drive in November. The blood drive was opened to all faculty, staff and students. The students rallied to the call by donating the most blood. According to the Richard Miller, TRMC Blood Assurance Coordina-tor, giving blood during this time of year is vital and the students, faculty and staff rallied to the call donating a total of 21 pints. It’s was a GREAT day, like any oth-er day, to be a MOHAWK…….

The entire Bethune-Bowman commu-nity would like to give a special thank you and recognition to our amazing cafeteria staff for putting on another fantastic holiday meal for all students, staff, and family on

Thursday, November 19, 2015 in the Bethune-Bowman cafeteria. The lunch menu included baked turkey, with giblet gravy, cornbread dressing, seasoned green beans, sweet potato

soufflé, cranberry sauce ambrosia, and a whole wheat roll.

Students and teachers have been utilizing technology in order to make the assessment process much more ef-ficient. With Mastery Connect, students can immediately receive feedback on their performance and teachers can instantly analyze data in order to monitor and adjust in-struction. This makes the intervention process of student learning much more personalized so that the teacher can know how to modify teaching strategies to maximize stu-dent achievement. What used to take an entire planning period to grade an assessment in order to give students feedback the next day now happens instantly. Teachers at BBMHS have been utilizing Mastery Connect to give each student every opportunity to succeed.

Students & Teachers Utilize Technology

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The High School for Health Professions (HSHP) would like to say congratulations to 11th grade students Madison Irick and Merilyn Palmer for being selected into the Medi-cal University of South Carolina (MUSC) Student Men-tors for Minorities in Medicine Program (SM3). The SM3 induction ceremony was held on Sunday, October 25, 2015 in the Strom Thurmond Gazes Auditorium on the MUSC campus. The SM3 program is an umbrella pipe-line program at MUSC, which engages under-represented in medicine males and females in a mentoring process both academically and professionally. This program is de-signed to prepare both the student and their supporting staff for their future career in medicine. The SM3 program consist of a series of monthly large group sessions and individual one-on-one sessions with an assigned College of Medicine (COM) minority student mentors.

The High School for Health Pro-fessions has been fortunate to have four students selected into this competitive program in the past two years. The 2014 HSHP SM3 inductees were Devashri Singh (Class of 2016 Valedictorian) and (Class Viveke Rai of 2015 Valedictorian). Viveke Rai graduated high school in three years and is currently attending Col-lege of Charleston on scholarship. This year’s inductees Madison Irick and Merilyn Palmer are currently the vale-dictorian and salutatorian of their class (Class of 2017). HSHP is proud to see these two young ladies following the motto of this school year’s theme, “ The journey to success begins with a dream!”

hShp Students named in SM3 program at MUSC

hShp hosts CollegeApplication day

E-BlastWinter, 2015

The High School for Health Pro-fessions chapter of the Future Busi-ness Leaders of America (FBLA) sponsored the school’s Spirit Week in October. Students, faculty and staff participated in the school’s weeklong activities. During Spirit Week, the school participated in a Penny War be-tween the grade levels. The money collected from the Penny War will be donated to a social agency that assists those affected by the floods in South Carolina. The students raised $342 for the Penny War! Congratulations to the Class of 2018, who won the Penny War and were the Spirit Week winners!

On November 20, 2015, HSHP hosted its first College Application Day. The school welcomed 14 universities and colleges. Every member of the Senior Class applied to at least two universities/colleges. It was an informative and exciting day as the Seniors learned about college life from current college students and enjoyed a luncheon with a motivating speech from our very own, Mr. Rahn Scott.

hShP STuDEnTS raiSE funDS fOr flOOD rEliEf

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Winter, 2015

What is an Environmen-tal Specialist? One who spe-cializes in the cleanliness, sanitation, safety, security, and custodial operations of school buildings in Or-angeburg Consolidated School District Five. The Environmental Specialists have the unenviable task of ensuring the safety and cleanliness of our schools. The majority of this task is done during the time that most district employees are home. Our Environmental Specialists take pride in preparing our school each night for students, faculty, parents, and the community. We would like to recognize the staff from Orangeburg-Wilkin-son High School. Under the leadership of Building Supervi-sor, Reginald Lee, this group multi tasked since the summer to clean and wax floors, setup and clean for home going services, prepare for the district’s Back to School Bash and

E-BlastEnvironmental Specialists *Spotlight*

O p e n -ing Ceremony. Mr. Lee says about his crew, “They are hardworking and dependable. They are asked to go beyond their normal job responsibilities many times to prepare for activities.” Congratulations goes out to the Environmental Specialists from Orangeburg-Wilkinson High School for dedicated performance. “Thanks for all you do for the students and staff of Orangeburg Five!!”

Congratulations to Maretta Linder on being named the OCSD5 Employee of the Month for November 2015. Mr. Linder is the executive secretary to the superinten-dent. She was nominated by Cindy Kassian who stated: “I am proud to nominate Maretta Linder for the Em-ployee of the Month. I have had the privilege of work-ing with Maretta for over the past few years and I can vouch for her determination, hard work and effective-ness. She is very attentive to the details of her job. She never hesitates taking on any challenge or difficult task. She has always maintained a positive and friendly at-titude towards everyone. She is also able to work under pressure and manages to solve stressful situations or upset parents. She is a lovable person to have around and is a pleasure to work with. You can ask her for help with any project and she is more than willing to do whatever is needed. She is a deserving candidate for the Employee of the Month award.” As the OCSD5 Employee of the Month, Ms. Linder received a $100 gift card, a certificate from the Superintendent naming her as the November 2015

Employee of the Month, and recognition on the OCSD5 website and the monthly E-Blast newsletter.

OCSd5 EMpLOyEE OF ThE MOnThnOVEMBEr 2015

Winter, 2015

1.6 - The dropout rate for stu-dents in OCSD5 decreased from 7.4 percent to 1.6 PERCENT over the past five years, a full percent-age point better than the State average. The annual “Reach Out for Dropouts Walk” was recognized as one of the successful strat-egies for the turnaround in this statistic.

The audience was shown a news video of the 2015 “Reach Out for Dropouts Walk” that was produced by WIS TV reporter Billie Jean Shaw. This year, following the efforts of more than 100 volunteers on a Saturday morning in August, eight students returned to school to re-enroll and make a commitment to obtain their diplomas. During his remarks, Dr. Washington asked a number of students who made a deci-sion to return to school and earn their diplomas to stand and be recognized for their courage. These students received the loudest ovation of the day. Finally, twenty-three teachers were recognized as recipients of Irene Myers Grants (above photo) of up to $500 through the OCSD5 Education Foundation. These grants will fund unique educational experiences for students. (The Irene Myers Grant program will be the subject of a future E-Blast story.) Dr. Washington concluded with this thought, “This year is one of great promise and I am fully committed to working with our parents, School Board members, teachers, and staff to keep all of us focused on what is truly most important – our students and their achievement. OCSD5 recognized the following sponsors who made the State of the Schools event possible: Childs & Halligan Law Firm, Cox Industries, Orangeburg County Council, the Regional Medical Center, and TeachTown Incorporated. Thank you for your support of public education and OCSD5.

State of the Schools (continued from pg. 2)

Perfect Scores (continued from pg. 1)

E-Blast Winter, 2015

awna Campbell, 10th grade at Orangeburg-Wilkinson High School (Biology); Cameron Davis, 10th grade at Orange-burg-Wilkinson High School (Biology); Jamieon Jamison-Gilmore, 10th grade at Orangeburg-Wilkinson High School (Biology); Tashawry Johnson, 10th grade at Orangeburg-Wilkinson High School (Biology); Jeffrey Jones, 10th grade at Orangeburg-Wilkinson High School (Biology); Dion Pepper, 10th grade at Orangeburg-Wilkinson High School (Biology); Carlos Solano-Diaz, 10th grade at Orangeburg-Wilkinson High School (Biology); Janaysia Thomas, 10th grade at Or-angeburg-Wilkinson High School (Biology); Daylon Thurman, 10th grade at Orangeburg-Wilkinson High School (Biology); Tiasia Vogt, 10th grade at Orangeburg-Wilkinson High School (Biology); Li You, 10th grade at Orangeburg-Wilkin-son High School (Biology); Dabriel Zimmerman, 10th grade at Orangeburg-Wilkinson High School (Biology); Monank Patel, 11th grade at Orangeburg-Wilkinson High School (Bi-ology); Ivyuan Williams, 8th grade at Bethune-Bowman Mid-dle/High School (English 1); Jadon Rickenbacker-Maki, 9th grade at Orangeburg-Wilkinson High School (English 1); Wil-

liam Ancrum, 8th grade at W.J. Clark Middle School (English 1); Kinaisha Beard, 8th grade at W.J. Clark Middle School (English 1); Kevionna Brown, 8th grade at W.J. Clark Middle School (English 1); Amaya Calloway, 8th grade at W.J. Clark Middle School (English 1); Yasmire Evans, 8th grade at W.J. Clark Middle School (English 1); Destinee Farmer, 8th grade at W.J. Clark Middle School (English 1); Brianna Gray, 8th grade at W.J. Clark Middle School (English 1); Lillian James, 8th grade at W.J. Clark Middle School (English 1); Khushbu Patel, 8th grade at W.J. Clark Middle School (English 1); Maia Pelzer, 8th grade at W.J. Clark Middle School (English 1); Megan Swain, 8th grade at North Middle/High School (English 1); Jacob Bryan, 9th grade at North Middle/High School (English 1); Armond Whitehead, 9th grade at the High School for Health Professions (English 1); Jalena Jones, 11th grade at Orangeburg-Wilkinson High School (U.S. History); and Angela Robinson, 11th grade at Orangeburg-Wilkinson High School (U.S. History). Congratulations to all of these hard-working students (and their teachers) for achieving perfect scores on the South Carolina End of Course Examination Program (EOCEP) test this year. 15

E-Blast

July 3 ..............Independence Day Holiday ObservedAug. 10 ............New Employee OrientationAug. 10-14 ........Staff Development/Teacher WorkdaysAug. 17 ............First Day for StudentsSept. 7.............Labor Day (Holiday)Sept. 16 ...........Interim Reports IssuedOct. 19 ............1st Nine Weeks Ends (45th Day)Oct. 23 ............Parent/Teacher Conference

Report Cards IssuedNov. 19 ............Interim Reports IssuedNov. 25-27 ........Thanksgiving HolidaysDec. 21-Jan. 1 ...Winter Break (Holidays)Jan. 4..............School Opens/Return from Winter BreakJan. 8..............First Term Ends (90th Day)Jan. 11-12 ........Staff Development/Teacher WorkdaysJan. 18 ............Martin Luther King Jr. Day (Holiday)Jan. 19 ............Report Cards IssuedFeb. 15 ............President’s Day (Holiday) or SW1Feb. 16 ............Interim Reports IssuedMar. 17 ............3rd Nine Weeks Ends (135th Day)Mar. 24 ............Parent/Teacher Conference or SW2

Report Cards IssuedMar. 25-Apr. 1 ....Spring BreakApril ...............ACT/Work Keys Testing - TBAApril 27............Interim Reports IssuedMay ................PASS, PASS Field Tests, Make-ups - TBAMAY 28.............GRADUATIONMay 30.............2nd Term Ends (180th Day)

Report Cards IssuedMay 31.............Staff Development/Teacher Workday SW3

School Days No School for StudentsNo School for Students End of Quarterand Employee HolidayFirst & Last Day of School Severe Weather Make-up Days

(SW1-SW3)Parent/Teacher ConferencesSchools dismiss early on Tuesday afternoons for teacher planning.

See www.ocsd5.net for details.

Beginning and Ending Dates for Employee Groups190 Aug. 10, 2015 - May 31, 2016 (Report to work on days students attend)200 Aug. 3, 2015 - June 7, 2016 (May be altered by Principal/Supervisor)210 July 27, 2015 - June 14, 2016 (May be altered by Principal/Supervisor)220 July 20, 2015 - June 21, 2016 (May be altered by Principal/Supervisor)230 July 13, 2015 - June 28, 2016 (May be altered by Principal/Supervisor)240 All Year

OCSD5 2015-2016 CALENDAR SUN MON TUES WED THURS FRI SAT

JULY 2015SUN MON TUES WED THURS FRI SAT

JANUARY 2016

SUN MON TUES WED THURS FRI SATFEBRUARY 2016

SUN MON TUES WED THURS FRI SATMARCH 2016

SUN MON TUES WED THURS FRI SATAPRIL 2016

SUN MON TUES WED THURS FRI SATMAY 2016

SUN MON TUES WED THURS FRI SATJUNE 2016

SUN MON TUES WED THURS FRI SATAUGUST 2015

SUN MON TUES WED THURS FRI SATSEPTEMBER 2015

SUN MON TUES WED THURS FRI SATOCTOBER 2015

SUN MON TUES WED THURS FRI SATNOVEMBER 2015

SUN MON TUES WED THURS FRI SATDECEMBER 2015

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1 23 4 5 6 7 8 910 11 12 13 14 15 1617 18 19 20 21 22 2324 25 26 27 28 29 3031

1 2 3 4 5 67 8 9 10 11 12 1314 15 16 17 18 19 2021 22 23 24 25 26 2728 29

1 2 3 4 56 7 8 9 10 11 1213 14 15 16 17 18 1920 21 22 23 24 25 2627 28 29 30 31

1 23 4 5 6 7 8 910 11 12 13 14 15 1617 18 19 20 21 22 2324 25 26 27 28 29 30

1 2 3 4 5 6 78 9 10 11 12 13 1415 16 17 18 19 20 2122 23 24 25 26 27 2829 30 31

12 3 4 5 6 7 89 10 11 12 13 14 1516 17 18 19 20 21 2223 24 25 26 27 28 2930 31

1 2 3 4 56 7 8 9 10 11 1213 14 15 16 17 18 1920 21 22 23 24 25 2627 28 29 30

1 2 34 5 6 7 8 9 1011 12 13 14 15 16 1718 19 20 21 22 23 2425 26 27 28 29 30 31

1 2 3 4 5 6 78 9 10 11 12 13 1415 16 17 18 19 20 2122 23 24 25 26 27 2829 30

1 2 3 4 56 7 8 9 10 11 1213 14 15 16 17 18 1920 21 22 23 24 25 2627 28 29 30 31

5ORAN

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ORTH

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