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December 23, 2015
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Sweets and Snacks to Celebrate Impress guests with dishes made for entertaining
FAMILY FEATURES
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azzle guests this holiday season with delicious dishes that only taste like you spent hours in the kitchen. These recipes, created in partnership with lifestyle and cooking expert Sandra Lee, show how using high-quality, like scratch ingredients such as Bob Evans’ refrigerated side dishes lets you create perfectly prepared holiday recipes in minutes. Find more recipes ideal for sharing and gifting this holiday season through Farm Fresh Ideas, an online club featuring recipes and tips, at www. bobevans.com/recipes.
INSIDnEacks
Sandra Lee
and S Sweets e recipes brat to Cele 4 ➤
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Bacon Wrapped White Cheddar Jalapeno Poppers
Sweet Potato Cookies
Rep. Lynn Smith talks with students at NHS Civics Day
PHOTO BY CELIA SHORTT
The Arnall Middle School Band has been presented with a 2015 Exemplary Performance Award by the Georgia Music Educator’s Association (GMEA), recognizing the program as the top middle school band program in Georgia. The AMS band students who participated in this year’s district honor band, first row from left, Gyeongtae Moon, Tucker Jones, Caleb Nguyen, Sarah McCullough, Kaela Holland. Second row, from left, Maria Aguilar, Allison Vessell, Laura Denton, Paul Park. Third row, from left, Samuel Pfliger, Rebecca Helfers, Julia Hauser, Allie Byrd, Andrew Gaillard, and Jeffrey Sangster. Not pictured: Madison Hinton and Michael Roth.
Arnall Middle School Band
receives state exemplary performance award The Arnall Middle School Band was recently presented with a 2015 Exemplary Performance Award by the Georgia Music Educator’s Association (GMEA), recognizing the middle school band program with GMEA’s highest statewide honor. GMEA grants the prestigious Exemplary Performance Award to only one middle school band each year, among roughly 500 middle school band programs in Georgia. The award was presented by GMEA Sixth District Chairman Matthew Price, during the band's Christmas concert, held at the Centre for Performing and Visual Arts on Dec 7. Price presented the award to AMS band director Gena Wayne onstage. This marks the second time in
2015 that an Arnall music program was recognized with GMEA’s top award. In October, the AMS Chorus – under the leadership of Arnall chorus director Robin White - also received GMEA’s Exemplary Performance Award, distinguishing it as the top 2015 middle school choral program in the state. “That is not something that’s usually accomplished by schools,” said AMS Principal Jan Franks. “Arnall is very proud of our choral and band programs. These accomplishments speak to the excellence of the programs at Arnall, the talent and hard work of the students and directors, and of the strong support of our parents.” To be considered for a GMEA Exemplary Performance Award,
schools must have a significant number of band students participate in all sanctioned GMEA events, including district honor band, all-state band, large group performance evaluation, and solo and ensemble. Schools must also score excellent and superior ratings for all adjudicated events. The band program at AMS, under Wayne’s direction, had a successful 2014-2015 school year. The Arnall Band had 25 students audition for the district honor band and Georgia All-State Band. Seventeen Arnall students earned seats in district honor band, which performed in early February, and three students earned a seat in Georgia All-State Band and performed under the direction of composer Samuel Hazo.
Georgia State Representative Lynn Smith speaks with ninth grade civics students at Newnan High School’s Civics Day on Wednesday.
By CELIA SHORTT celia@newnan.com
Georgia State Representative Lynn Smith and other city, county, and state officials spoke with ninth graders at Newnan High School recently for the school’s Civics Day. On hiatus since the 1990s, Civics Day brings these officials to the school and gives all ninth grade civics students the chance to learn more about local government, the community, and to see real world applications of what they learn in class. “I think it’s a great opportunity to interact with our future leaders,” Smith said of the day. The students were divided into groups and different speakers rotated throughout them, including Smith, Georgia Sen. Mike Crane, Coweta County Magistrate Court Judge Robert Stokely, Coweta County State Court judges John Herbert Cranford and Seay VanPatten Poulakas, Coweta County Superintendent of Elections Jane Scoggins, Newnan City Council member Rhodes Shell, Coweta County School Board Member Frank
Farmer, Coweta County Commissioner Bob Blackburn, and Newnan Mayor Keith Brady. Students were able to ask them questions and hear about why they went into office and what their jobs are like. “I was impressed with the questions the students asked, and I enjoyed interacting with them,” Smith said. For Smith, it was also a chance to return home, as she taught at Newnan High School during the time of the Vietnam War. The school system was segregated at the time, so she also taught classes at Central High School. “We hope that the groups that go through this program will become more interested in local government and community issues so that they will become contributors to our community (or any community that they end up in after high school) and society in general,” said NHS History Department Chair Stephen Quesinberry of Civics Day. “We hope that the
CIVICS DAY, page 4