Common Core Standards to Prepare Students for College & Workforce

The Common Core State Standards Initiative is a state-led effort coordinated by the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices (NGA Center) and the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO). The standards were developed in collaboration with teachers, school administrators, and experts, to provide a clear and consistent framework to prepare our children for college and the workforce. Kentucky students will be assessed on the new standards beginning the 2011-2012 school year.

District to Convert Email System May 21st

On May 21, 2010 all Kentucky school districts will migrate from Microsoft Exchange email to Microsoft's Live@edu email. This email system will provide much more data storage capacity and will allow for use of collobarative instructional tools. Staff and students should begin preparing for this implementation asap. All email will be deleted from the system on May 21st. Users who wish to save email, calendar, or contacts must backup data prior to the conversion date. To watch tutorial videos and for more information, access the district's email conversion page.

State Assessments Begins Week of May 3rd for JCPS Students

The Kentucky Core Content Test will be administered May 3 - May 14, 2010. Students in grades 3-8 and grades 10-11 will be assessed in reading, math, science, social studies, and writing. Jackson County students in grades 3-7 will be taking the state required Iowa Tests of Basic Skills May 17th through  May 21st in reading and math as well as the optional assessments in language, social studies, science and sources of information. Parents may contact the school counselor for a specific assessment schedule or access the District Assessment Page for a 2010 Parent Assessment Newsletter.

Author "Skypes" JCHS Students

Jackson County High School students, who read the science fiction book, Unwind, were given a special treat this week when they participated in a live videoconference via Skype with the book's author, Mr. Neal Shusterman. Mr. Shusterman, a successful novelist, screenwriter, and television writer has written scripts for Disney and Universal Studios. The author skyped JCHS students from his backyard in sunny southern California. Students and staff were given the opportunity to question the author about his writing experiences, upcoming books, and movie deals. Videoconferencing as an instructional tool is being used by numerous teachers throughout the district to bring guest speakers from all over t...

Spelling Bee Winners Announced

Students in grades 3-8 recently competed in their school's spelling bee. School winners then competed in the district spelling bee held Monday, February 8th. The district spelling bee winner was Logan Edwards, a fourth grader at McKee Elementary. Logan will represent Jackson County at the state spelling bee in Louisville. Congratulations to all winners! School winners pictured from left to right: Warren Engell, a sixth grader from Annville Christian Academy; Ben Young, an eighth grader from Jackson County Middle School and District Runner-up; Logan Edwards, District Winner; Ace Jones, a fifth grader from Tyner Elementary; and Sara Williams, a fourth grader from Sand Gap Elementary.