Make-Up Days
Mark your calendar! Greater Clark County Schools will be in session on Monday, March 20th and Tuesday, March 21st to make-up the school closures that occurred on Monday, January 9th and Wednesday, March 1st.
GCCS Designated as Ford Next Generation Learning (NGL) Community
Greater Clark County Schools has officially been named a Ford Next Generation Learning (NGL) community! The prestigious honor follows creation of the Academies of Greater Clark which are now part of the nationwide Ford NGL network supported by Ford Motor Company Fund, the philanthropic arm of Ford Motor Company. Ford NGL is transforming public high schools into career themed academies to better prepare students for college and professional success in today’s competitive global economy.
Districts in the Ford NGL network have been shown to increase student achievement and engagement at both the high school and postsecondary levels. Ford NGL helps develop more robust ties between local educators and employers, generating a stronger talent-development pipeline for local high-demand sectors and overall community prosperity.
Students attending the Academies of Greater Clark will learn academics through the lens of a potential career, such as engineering, healthcare, technology or marketing. They can participate in internships, job shadows, and career exploration activities, connecting their studies to success in the real-life workplace and improving academic performance and readiness for college and careers.
“Becoming a member of the Ford NGL network is a prestigious accomplishment resulting from a tremendous commitment on behalf of our staff and business partners to improve student achievement and post-secondary acceptance,” said Greater Clark Superintendent Andrew Melin. “Greater Clark’s involvement with Ford NGL will benefit our students and our community for years to come.”
Ford NGL is nationally recognized for its unique approach to learning that better prepares high school students for career success. Through the Ford NGL process, districts and their communities become partners and align their resources to improve student outcomes and support the country’s workforce and economic development needs. To be designated a Ford NGL community, 80 regional educators, community leaders and business representatives developed a three-year master plan to increase the number of students learning in career academies, while reaching out to Southern Indiana through affiliations with senior business, education and civic leaders.
One Southern Indiana, the chamber of commerce and economic development organization for Clark and Floyd counties, is acting as the Community Convening Organization and will serve as a neutral organization that will advocate for the shared community vision and shared accountability, provide viable and visible leadership within the community, support successful inter-agency collaboration and focus on business development.
“One Southern Indiana is proud to be a partner in this transformative Ford Next Generation Learning program. Regional growth will succeed only if we address our growing need for people to fill the needs of our employers, now and in the future,” said Wendy Dant Chesser, president and CEO of 1si, the chamber of commerce and lead economic development organization for Southern Indiana. “1si has agreed to be the Community Convening Organization for the transition to Ford NGL academies and we will continue to partner with all regional school systems, including Greater Clark County Schools, to ensure we are acting as a region to address labor shortages.”
Ford NGL communities have demonstrated success through higher graduation rates, lower dropout rates, increased academic achievement, and industry certifications earned in high school.
“Ford NGL research has proven that community ownership and accountability is just as important to educating our children as good study habits and hard work,” said Cheryl Carrier, executive director, Ford Next Generation Learning. “The Ford NGL partnership gives students and teachers a competitive edge that not only improves their chances for future success, but will benefit the community as a whole for years to come.”
In 2016, Ford Motor Company Fund invested $18 million in innovative education initiatives and scholarships around the world that strengthen communities and improve people’s lives.
Check out media coverage of the GCCS Ford NGL Designation
- Business First - "It's Official: Greater Clark County Schools is now a Ford Next Generation Learning Community
- WHAS 11- "Greater Clark County Schools students get ready for the workplace"
- WLKY - "Ford names Greater Clark Co. Next Generation Learning Community"
- News and Tribune - "GCCS to switch to academy model: Curriculum will focus more on career-oriented education"
New Washington H.S. Boys Basketball Semi-State Information
The New Washington High School (20-9) boys basketball team will play Tindley High School (22-5) in the IHSAA Class A Semi-State in Richmond, Indiana at the Tiernan Center this Saturday. Game time is set for 4pm ET, doors open at 3pm. Tickets will be available for purchase at the door. Good luck to our Mustangs!
JHS Senior Honored as Finalist for Indiana Journalist of the Year
Jeffersonville High School senior Phillip Steinmetz was named a finalist for the Indiana Journalist of the Year competition last week. He was honored on Tuesday, March 14 at the Indiana State Capitol in Indianapolis, along with six other finalists, during the IHSPA Spring Convention.
The honor marks the second state finalist for the Jeffersonville High School journalism department in the past three years. Nick Fuchs, a 2015 graduate who is studying communications and journalism at IUPUI, was named a finalist in 2015.
While Phillip did not bring home the overall state honor, which was won by North Central’s Adam McGoff, Steinmetz was awarded first place in the Indiana Sports Reporting Competition. Additionally, the senior was named as the "large school” recipient for the Hoosier State Press Association Foundation Scholarship, a $1,500 scholarship.
“I am so incredibly proud of Phillip because of the effort he has put into bringing accurate, well-balanced news to the students and staff of Jeffersonville High School,” publications advisor Wes Scott said. “The initiative and leadership he has displayed makes him a model student for any organization around Greater Clark County Schools. I am confident that he will leave JHS and make a positive impact on this world using the written word.”
Steinmetz has been a man of many hats during his four-year career at JHS, producing quality work for the Hyphen Newspaper, the Topic Yearbook and WJHI, the student-run radio and television program. In newspaper, Steinmetz has been a Sports Editor and Editor-in-chief during his three years on staff, as well as creating and maintaining the paper’s website and social media sites. As a sportscaster on 98.5WJHI, Phillip called play-by-play for games, hosted a weekly coaching show and worked events outside of the school. In yearbook, Steinmetz took over an Editor role as a senior, and became the class’ go-to photographer for sports and school events.
Outside of school, Steinmetz worked for Vavel.com , an online sports writing website. Additionally, he has been published in numerous magazines and websites from a variety of outlets. Steinmetz will be attending Indiana University-Bloomington and plans on majoring in journalism.
GCCS to Implement SafeMail
SchoolMessenger is our trusted platform for parent and community communication and engagement. In an effort to increase our level of monitoring of student emails and Google programs, Greater Clark County Schools will be utilizing a new feature from SchoolMessenger. SchoolMessenger’s SafeMail’s Human Monitoring System (HMS) flags and reports student emergencies per school, including issues like suicide, sexuality, violence, interpersonal conflict, and more. SchoolMessenger’s highly-trained team reviews flagged content sent by students and alerts our school staff when troubling issues arise. Parents can then be notified by school staff when concerns are reported. This tool will increase our abilities to proactively deal with potential threats to student safety. The new monitoring program will begin Monday, April 3rd. If you have questions, please contact your child's school.
Retirement Planning Seminar
