You may have noticed a “Michigan Blood Bus” located in our high school parking lot last Thursday. This was our second blood drive of the year, and here are the results!

Collection Goal: 25 Units

31 People signed in

25 Units of blood donated

12 First time donors

75 Lives potentially saved! 

Our students and staff have giving hearts and want to help their community!!!! Congrats to you all. We are so proud of our Chargers. Yet again we have stepped up to the challenge!

(our next donation day will be in the fall…we’d love to get more parents involved next year too!)

Kyle Bohl

Director of Student Services

 Spring Parent/Superintendent Town Hall Meeting

(originally scheduled for April 23)

Has been rescheduled to Thursday, April 19, 2012

7-8 PM

This is also Family Night at CTA!

Hope to see you all there!

CTA Middle School

Student Name Grade

Allen, Lillian 07

Armstrong, Dawson 06

Beck, Brandon 07

Bouma, Jarod 07

Bouma, Richard 07

Caldwell, Anna 06

Davison, Joshua 08

Foster, Lyndsey 07

Grabinski, William 06

Heukels, Destiny 08

Hofstra, James 06

Howard, Austin 06

Keech, Kaleigh 08

Knott, Ryan 07

Konrad, Arabelle 07

Korody, Michael 06

Kyser, Jordan 08

Lange, Emily 07

Lehman, Ethan 07

Lopez, Demetri 08

Maxim, Lucas 07

Miner, Leslie 06

Plowman, Joseph 08

Schultz, Jesse 08

Shelagowski, Autumn 07

VanEnk, Annalise 08

Watson, Autumn 06

CTA High School

Student Name Grade

Allington, William 12

Armstrong, Austin 11

Beck, Alicia 10

Black, Dominic 10

Bross, Paula 12

Bulatnikova, Darya 10

Burgess, Traci 11

Chilcote, Cole 12

Coffman, Chelsea 12

Colburn, Lydia 10

Colburn, Naomi 11

Couturier, Esther 11

Fahling, Adam 11

George, Dani 10

George, Jonathan H 09

Holmberg, Matthew 12

Hoops, Jonathan 09

Howard, Abby 09

Hubbard, Esther 11

Hubbard, Hannah 09

Huizinga, Maria 11

Ingersoll, Skyler 11

Johnson, Travis 11

Knott, Stephen 10

Marek, Caitlin 11

Mead, Justin 10

Munger, Erin 10

Nutt, Aaron 10

Patchett, Sage 11

Phillips, Nathan 12

Slagter, Chelsea 10

Smith, Michaela 10

Solomon, Margaret 12

Spoelhof, Ashley 12

Taber, Hope 12

Temple, Lauren 11

Temple, Rachelle 09

Tomandl, Benett 09

Tomandl, Mikayla 10

Tow, Jacob 12

Tow, Kathryn 10

VanEnk, Grace 11

White, Zachary 12

Whitlatch, Robert 12

Winters, Andre 11

Winters, Derek 09

Wortz, Jeremiah 11

Wortz, Olivia 09

Yarrington, Dylan 09

On Thursday, February 16, 2012 Cedar Trails Elementary initiated a canned food drive to benefit the North Kent Community Center.  Cedar Trails was able to collect a tremendous amount of canned foods for the cause. With the help of the student athletes participating in the Red Hawk Kids Club program, the cans were collected, loaded, and ready to be delivered. The boys basketball team took part in the effort and delivered them to the North Kent Community Center.  Working together, the students were able to benefit a great cause and help our community.  What an awesome display of kindness and caring by our Cedar Trails students and our High School athletes!

NEED ASSISTANCE?

Are you struggling to make ends meet?  Do you wish you could find more resources but aren’t sure if you qualify?  Have you already been denied financial assistance from a program and think you’re out of luck?  Good news, you can stop in at Red Hawk Elementary on Monday and Wednesday evenings from 5-8pm to see if you are eligible for any assistance.  You can apply for: food assistance, state emergency relief (energy and non-energy assistance), cash assistance, medical assistance, and child care.  If you have already been denied, but your situation has changed, you can re-apply. No appointment is necessary, but you can set one up by calling United Way at (616) 459-2255.  Staff will be available to assist you. You can also apply online at: www.michigan.gov/mibridges

Free Income Tax Preparation

KSSN has partnered with United Way and the Kent County Tax Coalition to provided free income tax preparation for the 2012 tax season.  Tax preparers will be available on Mondays from 4:00 – 7:00 beginning Feb. 6th through March 26th by appointment only.  To schedule an appointment you must call United Way’s 2-1-1 helpline or (616) 459-2255.  Please do not call the school to make your appointment.

VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITES

Schools of Hope – Become a volunteer reading tutor today! Volunteer with Schools of Hope in-school reading program. You can make a huge difference in the life of child; all you have to do is give 30 minutes of one-on-one tutoring every week to improve reading skills of first through third graders. One two-hour training session is required, all materials are provided. For more information please contact Caroline Geist at cgeist@hwmuw.org or call at 696-7330 ext. 6298.

En-gedi - an after school youth center designed for students in 6th- 12th grades.  It is housed in Red Hawk Elementary.  Volunteers are needed on a weekly basis during the hours of 2:30 – 5:00.  For more information call Craig Owens at 667-7773.

What grade would you give the Cedar Springs School District?

If you could change one thing, what would that be?

With all of the issues facing public education these days, it’s important that we hear from all of our community.  Active parents regularly meet with teachers and district administrators to provide their input, but not everyone has the opportunity to attend a board meeting or join the PTA for their building.

That’s why we’re inviting you to express your opinion on the questions above and others in a survey by going to http://bit.ly/zkM37N.

Last year, legislators cut school funding back to 2005-06 levels and required all employees to pay a portion of their health care.  They lifted the cap on charter schools and are now considering creating an unlimited number of “cyber academies” that would allow students to earn a diploma online, and many more education reforms.

Amid all of these changes, we at Cedar Springs Public Schools are doing all we can to provide the best possible education for your children.  We’ve made some adjustments, but not without working diligently to maintain programming for our students.

We want to know what you think about the challenges facing our schools, and what you consider essential for our students to receive a good education.

We look forward to hearing from you.

On Thursday, February 9, Creative Technologies Academy (CTA) had their first Daddy/Daughter Dance. Students in grades K-6 were allowed to bring that special male in their lives for a night of dancing, refreshments, crafts, and fun. The event was a huge success. Everyone had an amazing time, and both students and adults were dancing most of the night.

“I was so excited to see everyone having such a great time; I don’t think it could have gone any better,” stated Miss Burton, fourth grade teacher at Creative Technologies Academy.

As a K-12 school, CTA was able to have the high school students volunteer to dress up, open doors, and help with the crafts. One high school student even commented that it was better than prom. Maggie Solomon, a senior at CTA, spent over 45 hours painting a 35-foot fairy tale mural that covered an entire wall. “This has to be a new tradition,” stated the School Leader, Dan George. CTA is very excited and hopeful that this dance will continue for years to come.

Local blues artist Jimmie Stagger and retired educator and musician David “Dr. Hamfat” Marin made a return trip to CTA on Friday, February 10 and once again “wowwed” our students with two assemblies, one for grades K-5 and one for grades 6-12.  “The wealth of historical knowledge of these gentlemen, combined with their love of the blues and expert musical performance, make this our most popular assembly of the year,” said School Leader Dan George.  “It also fits in with our classroom emphases this month on contributions made to America by African Americans.”

Marin and Stagger offer the program free of charge to area schools and their love for what they do is apparent to the students they teach.  They get all the students involved by singing and clapping to songs from blues artists including Brownie McGhee, Lead Belly, Charlie Patton, and B.B. King. Their slideshow includes historical photographs and biographical information on each artist.  The duo play a variety of instruments ranging from a homemade “Diddley Bow” and a cigar box guitar to a harmonica, a guitar made of steel, and a traditional 12 string guitar. CTA teachers received information in advance with lesson plans for art, creative writing, and history.

“Our kids love listening and participating with Mr. Stagger and Mr. Marin,” said Kyle Bohl, CTA Director of Student Services.  “We want them to come back as often as possible.”

CTA Middle School

Name     Grade      GPA

Allen, Lillian 07 3.00

Armstrong, Dawson 06 4.00

Beck, Brandon 07 3.78

Bouma, Jarod 07 3.84

Bouma, Richard 07 3.00

Caldwell, Anna 06 3.84

Davison, Joshua 08 3.75

Foster, Lyndsey 07 4.00

Grabinski, William 06 3.59

Heukels, Destiny 08 3.08

Hofstra, James 06 4.00

Howard, Austin 06 4.00

Keech, Kaleigh 08 3.17

Knott, Ryan 07 3.33

Konrad, Arabelle 07 4.00

Korody, Michael 06 3.44

Kyser, Jordan 08 3.33

Kyser, June 07 3.11

Lange, Emily 07 3.00

Lehman, Ethan 07 4.00

Miner, Leslie 06 3.75

Rogers, William 06 3.17

Salmon, Dennis 07 3.00

Schullo, Brittany 06 3.25

Schultz, Jesse 08 3.33

Shelagowski, Autumn 07 4.00

Stahle, Jared 08 3.00

Thebo, Tayler 06 3.33

VanEnk, Annalise 08 3.75

Watson, Autumn 06 3.33

CTA High School

Name     Grade      GPA

Armstrong, Austin 11 4.09

Batey, Monica 10 3.00

Beck, Alicia 10 4.00

Biddlecome, Kandice 12 3.15

Bricker, Brianna 09 3.52

Bulatnikova, Darya 10 4.00

Burgess, Traci 11 3.33

Chilcote, Cole 12 3.45

Coffman, Chelsea 12 3.38

Colburn, Lydia 10 3.89

Colburn, Naomi 11 3.85

Couturier, Esther 11 3.47

George, Dani 10 4.09

George, Jonathan H 09 3.95

Holmberg, Matthew 12 3.00

Hoops, Jonathan 09 3.76

Howard, Emily 12 3.13

Hubbard, Esther 11 4.09

Hubbard, Hannah 09 3.86

Huizinga, Maria 11 3.42

Ingersoll, Skyler 11 3.92

Johnson, Travis 11 3.70

Kibitz, Cassie 10 3.00

Knott, Stephen 10 3.53

Marek, Ashley 11 3.09

Marek, Caitlin 11 3.45

Mead, Justin 10 3.64

Munger, Erin 10 4.00

Nutt, Aaron 10 3.82

Patchett, Sage 11 3.76

Schaner, Amber 10 3.82

Schutter, Jacob 10 3.03

Smith, Michaela 10 3.58

Solomon, Margaret 12 3.61

Spoelhof, Ashley 12 3.61

Taber, Hope 12 3.03

Temple, Rachelle 09 3.43

Tomandl, Benett 09 3.82

Tomandl, Mikayla 10 4.03

Tow, Jacob 12 3.92

Tow, Kathryn 10 4.08

Uplinger, Amber 10 3.13

VanEnk, Grace 11 4.03

White, Zachary 12 3.15

Whitlatch, Robert 12 3.78

Whitney, Cecelia 10 3.45

Winters, Andre 11 4.09

Winters, Derek 09 3.33

Wortz, Jeremiah 11 3.64

Wortz, Olivia 09 3.13

Yarrington, Dylan 09 3.56