GUILFORD COUNTY SCHOOLS – A PROUD STATE AND NATIONAL LEADER:DISTRICT HONORS:• A Say Yes to Education Community

• National District of Character

• NorthCarolinaDistrict of Character

• Profiles in Courage AwardfromtheCounciloftheGreatCitySchools

• 2013,2014,2015and2016United Way Spirit of North Carolina Award

• Duringthepastsixyears,state championships infootball,basketball,men’sandwomen’sindoorandoutdoortrack,tennis,golf,wrestling,lacrosseandswimming

STANDOUT SCHOOLS:• In2016,GCS’graduationratereachedanall-time high of 89.4%

• Eleven high schools achieved 100% graduation rates.Anadditional11schools,includingseventraditionalhighschools,hadgraduationratesabove90%

• 14highschoolsonthe2016WashingtonPost’sAmerica’s Most Challenging High Schoolslist.GCSschoolsalsotook3ofthetop10spotsinthestate;TheEarlyCollegeatGuilfordmadethepaper’sPublicEiltelist.

• Threehighschoolsamongthetop10inthestateontheU.S.NewsandWorldReport2016Best High Schoolslistand12schoolsrecognizedoverall

• TheEarlyCollegeatGuilfordwasnamedthebest high school in North CarolinabyNiche,aresearchcompany.NineotherGCSschoolsmadethetop100.

• 10 State Schools of Charactersince2014andoneNational School of Character

• Thestate’sfirstAdvanced Placement Capstone program

• Oneschoolnamed2015 Magnet School of ExcellencebyMagnetSchoolsofAmerica

• TwoschoolsnamedTitle I Reward SchoolsbythestateBoardofEducation

TOP EDUCATORS:• NorthCarolinaTeacher of the Year in2013andPrincipal of the Year

in2012

• 782NationalBoardCertifiedTeachers–rankingninth in the country

• OneeducatorwhowasnamedaGlobalLearningFellowandwhoreceivedtheNEA Foundation Award for Teaching Excellence

• Oneofonly11districtsnationallytopartnerwith100Kin10,acommitmenttopreparingandlicensing150STEMteachersby2020.

SUPERIOR STUDENTS:• 16semi-finalistsforthe2015-16National Merit Scholarship;atleast

twowinners

• 29studentsselectedfor2016Governor’s School of North Carolina,thenation’soldeststatewidesummerresidentialprogramforacademicallygiftedstudents

• Sixstudent-athletestoreceivedtheHeart of a Champion awardin2016

• MembersoftheClassof2016receivedtheMorehead-Cain scholarship, Duke Trinity Scholarship, Parks Scholarship and Gates-Millennium Scholarship.

GET IN TOUCH: TEL (336) 370-8100 x WWW.GCSNC.COM

GCS AND PROUD

Guilford County Schools is proud of each of our nearly 72,000 K-12 students and 10,200 employees.TheirhardworkanddedicationtoeducationalexcellencehavepropelledGCStothetop,leadingtostateandnationalrecognitioninacademics,charactereducation,athleticsandmore.

#SOARTO GREATNESS

Weareproudofourstaff,students,familiesandcommunity.Fromthefirstdayofpre-kindergartenthroughgraduationday,wearefocusedonourmission:Guilford County students will graduate as responsible citizens prepared to succeed in higher education, or in the career of their choice.

PERSONALIZING LEARNINGGCS is a national leader in personalizing programs to meet the needs of our diverse student body:

ADVANCED ACADEMICS GCS students are achieving educational excellence. Each is prepared to succeed in a globally competitive world, benefiting from a district that offers challenging and exciting programs and courses:

CHARACTER AND SERVICE GCS knows today’s young people must be citizens of the world, as well as leaders in their own community. We focus on educating the whole child, linking learning with meaningful action.

• 46 magnet and choice schools with 54 programs

Students can study Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM), aviation, Spanish immersion, health sciences, Montessori and more

• 187 Career and Technical Education (CTE) courses in 50 schools

CTE programs include culinary arts, business, nursing, computers and automotive technology, among others

• Two nationally recognized visual and performing-arts high schools

• Nationally recognized programs for students with autism, developmental, physical or intellectual disabilities, and other needs

• More challenging courses for academically gifted students and a separate school for very advanced learners

• 30 different Advanced Placement (AP) courses offered districtwide

• Challenging International Baccalaureate (IB) programs at four GCS high schools

• Graduates from the class of 2016 passed a total of 6,869 AP and IB exams; and earned a B or better in 1,846 qualifying college courses.

• 35.5 percent of the Class of 2016 passed at least one AP/IB exam or college course while in high school

• In 2016, 203 graduates passed at least 10 AP or IB exams and/or qualifying college courses

• In the past five years, students have completed more than 1.4 million service-learning hours, or more than $31 million in economic impact

• GCS was named a 2013 National District of Character and the 2013 North Carolina District of Character

• All 127 schools focus on a monthly character trait, from courage to perseverance to self-respect

• Since 2012, more than 60 GCS programs have been recognized as Promising Practice recipients

• In 2016, three State Schools of Character and one National School of Character were named from GCS, totaling 10 State Schools of Character and seven National Schools of Character since 2014.

GCS STUDENTS ARE…Performing at Carnegie Hall, Disney World and the Vatican

Earning more than $160 million in college scholarships in 2016

Presenting at the 2015 National Service Learning Conference in Washington, D.C.

Winning state championships for real-world design and engineering

Reading more than 10 million minutes every month, and collecting books to help other students do the same

Building energy-efficient electric cars and competing in the Shell Eco-Marathon

Having their artwork displayed in the halls of Congress

Qualifying to compete for the International Science Olympiad

Taking virtual classes in middle school to accelerate their math skills

…GCS AND PROUD.

• POINT OF PRIDE: A $35.2 million federal grant puts tablet computers in the hands of nearly 19,000 middle school students and staff. The PACE project allows students to personalize learning.

• POINT OF PRIDE: In 2016, 778 graduates qualified for Cool To Be Smart, a celebration of students passing a combination of at least five AP or IB exams or five qualifying college courses with a B or above while in high school

• POINT OF PRIDE: In 2016, more than 1,400 graduates qualified for Cool to Serve, a celebration of students who record at least 100 hours of service learning.

March 2017

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