As a part of the School Improvement Grant for Groves High School, all new and returning students of Groves High School began classes on Monday, August 8, 2011. All returning students were required to be in class, in uniform and on time for the starting bell time of 7:30am.
The first day of the 2011-2012 school year was off to “great start” says Dr. Ellis Duncan, Principal of Groves High School. Dr. Duncan began his tenure in the Savannah-Chatham County Schools back in January 2011. He is a former member of the Dekalb County School System.
Dr. Duncan stated the main focus at Groves High is to raise student achievement and passing AYP at the end of the school year. “Today was a good day, we have high enrollment and the students showed up in high numbers ready for the school day,” said Duncan. “The school is 100% staffed with 51% of the teachers being new to the school.”
Duncan participated in a training program this summer along with the teachers that concentrated on professional learning for the instructors including standard based instructions. Basically each class is focused on the state standards.
Candicee Childs, an 11th grade student at Groves, said she could definitely tell a difference in the atmosphere. She sees teachers and students willing to accept the changes for the better. She also stated she hopes to see a change of attitude and the public perception of the school. “It’s not as bad as everyone thinks,” she stated.
Elizabeth Brower, a senior at Groves has been a student there since her freshman year. She can easily see that the teachers are trying to have a better understanding of the new process.
Christian McKinnon, also a senior at Groves was excited about his first day. “I saw a lot of new faces with smiles.” He thinks that the changes have produced a much calmer learning environment.
Besides Duncan, the school’s administrators include Dr. Michele Hartzell, Tim Cox and Julian Childers.
The associated bus schedule for Groves High School is now available and posted online for parents. We look forward to making the 2011-2012 school year a great success.
All other Savannah- Chatham Schools will begin classes on Monday, August 22nd, 2011.