CALENDAR OF EVENTS    

ALL-SCHOOL NEWS

From everyone at DDS, we wish our families a fun and safe Spring Break next week. Classes resume March 21 with a week chock-full of events and activities. See you then!

Just Think:

• 76% of seniors are enrolled in an AP class and the average load of AP classes per graduate is 2.2.
  
  
• DDS families donated 932 books for the Levine Children’s Hospital during the Book Fair.
  
  
  

Battle of the Books Wins District Championship, Advance to Regionals
Our Elementary Battle of the Books Team (grades 3-5) defeated Cannon, Providence Day, Salisbury Academy and Thomas Jefferson Classical Academy, in the district championship Wednesday to advance to the Regional Competition in April. The Patriot team answered more than 95 percent of the questions correctly, missing only two questions in three hours.

“Their performance was spectacular,” said coach MS Teacher Margaret Fischer. To prepare, students read twelve novels and practiced weekly with Mrs. Fischer and former teacher Kelly Grothe.

Here are your Patriot winners: Brittney Bliss ‘18, Mark Breunig ‘20, Kara Bringewatt ‘18, Christina Catlett ‘18, Katie Cusick ‘20, Mary Logan Grier ‘18, Emma Lindquist ‘20, Katie Noe ‘18, Adam Ratcliff ‘20, Maisie Rees ‘18, Emma Reid ‘18, Nicholas Rogers ‘19, Mitchell Skolaris ‘19, Caroline Spiggle ‘19, Sean Ward ‘20 and John Woods ‘18.

“You can tell that our curriculum which demands these kids have great presentation skills and an arts and theatre background gave them the poise and confidence to carry themselves with grace under pressure,” said parent Kelly Spiggle. “That integrated learning really prepares them for real world experiences.”

MS Battle of the Books Finishes Strong
Our MS Battle of the Books team (grades 6-8) ended their season with a strong performance against Mount Mourne IB School this week, winning one round 22-6. The team members were: Alyssa Cureton ’16, Annie Echols ’17, Emma Garcia ’17, Lucas James ’16, James Morris ’15, Julia Morris ’17, James Rees ’15 and Sarah Slay ’17. Said their coach, French Teacher Audrey Pomeroy, “I am especially proud of how our team read 27 challenging books and dedicated extra time before and after school to master the details. They did a wonderful job of developing their teamwork skills and showed great self-confidence and maturity in competition.” A special thanks goes to “official” team parent Gail Morris for her support and help with the team.

MS Odyssey of the Mind Rocks
Our MS (grades 5-7) Odyssey of the Mind team placed 5th overall and 3rd in the spontaneous competition out of 16 private and public schools at their regional competition at Wingate University last Saturday. At the tournament, the team presented their creative solution to the long-term problem, called “Le Tour Guide,” and also participated in the spontaneous competition where they were given a problem to solve within four minutes. Coached by Science Teacher Vicki Carbone and Kindergarten Teacher Katherine Noble, the team was Christina Catlett ’18, Annie Echols ’17, Worth Honeycutt ‘16, Teagan James ‘17, Julia Morris ‘17, Sarah Slay ‘17, and Avery Sommer ‘17. Congrats to our creative problem solvers.

Congratulations, National Honor Society Inductees
On Wednesday, the newest members of the Davidson Day School National Honor Society were inducted in a special ceremony led by College Counselor Stacy Allen and attended by the US student body. The Juniors selected must have a GPA of 3.5 or higher and demonstrate the four qualities held in high esteem by the Society, which are scholarship, service, leadership and character. Each honorees was introduced by a faculty member who highlighted the unique qualities each student brings to our School. Please click on each name for the remarks: English Teacher Jen Shiley for Dorian Albritton; Dean of Students and Boys Basketball Head Coach Ron Johnson for Richard Brown; Charles Coddington, Head of the Upper Middle School and US History Teacher, for Tommy Bruce; Science Teacher Chad Metzler for Charlie Colley; French Teacher Audrey Pomeroy for Ryan Layman; and Science Teacher Julie Brown for Caroline Sumner. The new inductees recited the NHS pledge with the Senior members inducted last year: Jenny Falcone, Katy Leonard, Tyler Parrott, and Dax Triplett. Thank you, new Society members, for making our School proud and for all that you contribute.

Growing Scientists With Our Hydroponic Garden
As part of DDS’ ongoing commitment to innovative, real-world learning, a hydroponic garden structure was installed this week in Science Teacher Kristin Metzler’s classroom, which we believe to be the first of its kind in the Charlotte region. The garden will be used by students in science classes of all ages at the school, who will study biology by planting and harvesting 288 plants, including lettuce, herbs, strawberries and carrots, in the 8 ft. by 6 ft. by 6 ft. structure. The nutritious fare they produce will be shared with classrooms and the concession stand each week and a portion will be donated to the Ada Jenkins Center. Parents will also be able to “pick their own” with their children at harvest time. Stay tuned for more details as the plants mature.

School Pictures Are Right After Spring Break
Spring pictures will be taken Tuesday, March 22-Thursday, March 24 for all students. St. John Photography will shoot the photos outdoors in black and white. Please click here for the schedule. Please contact Amanda Priewe with any questions.

Screening of “Race to Nowhere” Next Month
Come see the groundbreaking documentary “Race to Nowhere,” which has been termed “a call to mobilize families, educators, and policy makers to challenge current assumptions on how to best prepare the youth of America to become healthy, bright, contributing and leading citizens.” DDS will screen the movie on Monday, April 4 at 7 p.m. in the Theatre. Tickets are $10 in advance and $15 at the door. Details: College Counselor Stacy Allen.

DDS Adopts Davidson-Concord Road
DDS has proudly adopted a 2.4 mile stretch of Davidson-Concord Road between from N.C. 73 to the town limits as part of the N.C. Department of Transportation’s Adopt-a-Highway program. Last weekend was the first clean-up. An intrepid group—Dorian Albritton ‘12, Jimmy Bonds ‘11, Omar Caldwell ‘11, Adam Cosgrove ‘15, Jason Eddie 12, Aysia Johnson ‘16, Jessica Kingma ‘14, Caleb Mercer ‘14, Gabe Mercer ‘11, James Rees ‘15, Jacob Robinson ‘15, Sebastian Soria ‘14, Bernard Sullivan ‘11, Melissa Zammitti ’17 and faculty chaperones—collected eight bags of trash and two bags of recyclables. Stay tuned: another clean-up by 7th and 8th graders is in the works.

Harrison Nichols Day is March 22
On Tuesday, March 22, the School will celebrate our 4th Annual Harrison Nichols Day in honor of Michael Harrison Nichols, a beloved student and friend here who was diagnosed in 2002 with Stage IV Neuroblastoma. For six years, he received more than 35 cycles of chemotherapy, four surgeries, and radiation to his spine, brain and liver; participated in five clinical trials; and received a peripheral stem cell rescue. Harrison bravely faced each day with courage and grace and lived life fearlessly, never giving in to a bad day and remaining committed to being a part of Davidson Day School.  When he was too ill to come to school, Harrison would participate with his friends and teachers via a webcam in the classrooms. Still, Harrison's disease would not relent and on Feb. 17, 2008, at eight years old, Harrison's battle with Neuroblastoma ended. 

Davidson Day School honors Harrison each year near his birthday with a special day and special events, such as a Dress Down Day (students must wear green and bring $1 for the Harrison Nichols Foundation), sunflower art projects in Harrison’s honor, and the presentation of the Harrison Nichols Award to a Middle School student who represents the courage, perseverance and grace that Harrison modeled for us all.  For more information on this event, please email Carrie Lott.

Tee It Up For DDS
There is no better way to spend a spring day in the Carolinas than on the golf course. Play the links and get to know our School community better at the Ninth Annual Tee It Up for Davidson Day School Golf Tournament. This fundraiser will take place on April 11th at the River Run Country Club in Davidson and includes lunch, beverages, 18 holes of golf, golfer gifts and dinner at the club. Various sponsorship opportunities offer an amazing value and options to suit the advertising needs and budget of any business. Entertain clients, close a deal, reward staff and contribute to the growth of DDS by having your company sponsor this exciting event. Special thanks to Sabi Asian Bistro, Galway Hooker Pub and Alston & Bird, LLC who have already signed up to support our school as Ace Sponsors. For details on sponsorships and to register for individual play, please click here. For more information, please contact Megan Lynch at MeganML65@aol.com or 704-231-9797.

6th Grader Creates Logo for Ada Jenkins
This trimester, the 15 students in MS Art Club created beautiful logo designs centered on the concept of gaining knowledge  for LEARN Works, a new afterschool tutoring program at the Ada Jenkins Center. Three designs were identified as top favorites: Ciara Carbone ’17, Sara Grace Langley ’18 and Paxon McGee ’18. Carbone’s design was selected as winner. She will now adapt her design so that it may be used on the center’s letterhead and Web site, and for a large scale piece of artwork at the Ada Jenkins Center. Please see the designs in this week’s Photo Gallery.

MS Student Donates Book to TK
After a visit to the Book Fair, Claire Oosterhouse ‘16 donated Silverlicious to the TK class. Claire visits the class each week as part of our MS-ECH Buddy Program where MS students mentor, help and read to ECH students.  Silverlicious is the latest in an exciting series that the TK students couldn’t wait to read. The TK teachers appreciated Claire’s thoughtfulness and the students enjoyed hearing her read their new book to them.

Beat the Traffic to Win a Front Row Spot at DDS
If you spend a lot of time on campus you know that finding a close place to park is not always easy.  But there is a solution for one lucky family. Starting Monday, March 28 DDS families can bid online for a premium DDS Auction Bidder parking space in front of the school. Only one spot will be available. The bidding will begin at $750 and increase in $100 increments. Bidders will have just one week to take advantage of this great opportunity. At 5 p.m. on Monday, April 4 the highest bidder will win the auction and the coveted parking space. As an added bonus, the auction winner won’t have to wait until next year to begin taking advantage of their new spot. They will be able to start parking in the space immediately. (If the winner already holds a parking spot, the winner can give that spot to a friend for the remainder of the school year, or work with the school to find another use for that space; we’ve got a few great ideas already.) Dads – this would be a great gift for your wife and kids. Keep a lookout for an e-mail with a link to the auction; or if you want to be sure you won’t miss the notification, please send your e-mail address to Kristen Winterberg. All proceeds from this Auction will support our School’s Annual Fund. Thank you in advance for your support of our School.

Learn to Play Ball with Coach Johnson
This year’s Southern Stars Basketball Camp for boys in rising grades 4th-8th will take place at Davidson Day School June 13-17. Now in its 18th year of operation, Southern Stars has long been an effective training ground for young, eager players looking to improve their skills. Southern Stars is under the direction of Ron Johnson, our Head Boys Basketball Coach, who has more than 20 years of combined high school and college coaching experience. He’s won High School state championships in Florida and North Carolina and in just two years at Davidson Day has quickly developed the Patriot's program into a state title contender in Boys Basketball. Please click here for details and to register or contact Coach Johnson at rjohnson@davidsonday.org or 704-886-7340 for more information. Group/Family discounts are available.

Bottle Caps Are Back
It’s bottle cap collection time again, now through April 15.  Please bring your rinsed and counted caps to your child’s teacher or advisor. We accept caps that are rigid plastic (sometimes noted with a 5 recycling code). This includes caps from shampoo, water, soda, milk and other beverage bottles; pharmaceutical lids; flip-top caps on tubes and food product bottles (such as ketchup and mayonnaise); laundry detergents; and some jar lids, such as peanut butter. The top three class winners will get a popsicle party.

PARENT COUNCIL

Scholastic Book Fair 2011
It was another great year for the Book Fair ...we raised $16,181, half of which goes to our School to purchase books and other learning tools for our classrooms. We couldn’t have done it without our wonderful volunteers. Thank you to the following people who dedicated their time and energy to help make this event happen:

Special thanks to the Nemechek Family for their donation and reading of their book “Racin Buddies” … Gail Miller for her devotion to the book drive for the Levine Children's Hospital, which collected 932 books for this wonderful organization … US Art Teacher Mike Thomas and his art class for helping design the posters and to LS Teachers Tom Whaley and Sean Davis who played the DDS Superhero during Carpool. As always, we appreciate the constant support and involvement of LS Head Mike Cerkovnik and his love for reading and good books that inspire us all.

Grandparents & Special Friends Day 2011
We hope that everyone enjoyed Grandparents and Special Friends Day last Friday - it was certainly an exciting day for our special guests as well as the Toddler-4th grade students. 

We extend a sincere thank you to Mrs. Carolyn Yates, grandmother to six DDS students, for donating the refreshments and flowers.  We would also like to thank all of the parents who donated their time, drinks and other supplies to help make the day so special.  We could not have done it without you and your support.  Special thanks to the following parents:

ATHLETICS

Baseball Defeats Three-Time State Champion
The Patriots rallied last weekend to defeat three-time defending 1A state champion Lawrence Academy, 14-12.  Trailing 12-4 heading to the bottom of the fifth inning, DDS scored four runs in the bottom of the fifth to close to 12-8.  After holding Lawrence Academy scoreless in the top of the 6th inning, DDS rallied for six runs in the bottom of the sixth – with all six runs coming with two outs. With one man on base and two outs, Lamar Briggs ’14 singled on a two strike pitch and Will Reid ’14 walked on a 3-2 pitch to load the bases. Will Grier ’14 singled in two runs. Adam Sapp ’13 singled with two strikes to load the bases again. Then, on a two strike pitch, first baseman Richard Brown ’12 hit an opposite field grandslam homerun to give Davidson Day its first lead of the game. Lawrence Academy tried to rally in the top of the seventh.  After a lead-off walk, Mark Fields ’15 made a spectacular running catch in deep left center field to preserve the lead.  After that catch, pitcher Grier struck out the last two batters to end the game, pitching two scoreless innings of relief. 

Said Head Coach Kevin Bringewatt, “More important than winning the game, I am especially proud that our young team kept its poise and continued to battle after falling so far behind.  This game hopefully will be a major step toward our goal of making the state tournament as a first year program.” DDS Baseball is now 3-0.

Girls Soccer on a Roll
Girls Varsity Soccer was the runner-up in last weekend’s The Gazette Girls Soccer Cup Championship, falling to Ashbrook. The second game of the tournament was a 11-0 shut-out for DDS, with Brianna Wills ’11, scoring seven goals against Kings Mountain.

Winter Sports Honors
Basketball players Bernard Sullivan ’11 and Rashun Davis ’12 have been named first-team All-Southern Piedmont Athletic Association. Dorian Albritton ’12 was named to the second team. Sullivan, a forward committed to Clemson, was also named to the 1A all-state boys' basketball team,

This Week’s Contributing Photographers: Paul Cotter, US Photography Teacher; Chris McKay, 12th Grader and Photography Intern; Ann-Marie Harp, Eaglets Teacher; Donna Brown, DDS Parent; Paul Goyette, DDS Parent; Tiffani Thomas, MS Art Teacher; Kathryn Thier, Marketing Director; Carrie Lott, Special Events Coordinator; Laura Mueller Woods, DDS Parent, www.lauramuellerphotography.com.