Transportation
Coweta schools to activate GPS tracking for buses
Testing
Orientation
Ruth Hill celebrates testing gains
Coweta Schools to hold orientation Aug. 3
By REBECCA LEFTWICH becky@newnan.com
Catching a school bus in the morning is about to become a little easier, thanks to GPS tracking technology. The Coweta County School System’s transportation department has created an online tool that will give parents continuously updated information about timing and delays of buses on morning routes. “It’s just for mornings right now, because we feel like that’s the most critical need, said Dean Jackson, the school system’s public information officer. “We anticipate expanding that to the afternoon at some later time.” Parents can visit the Coweta County School System’s website, www.cowetaschools.net , for a clickable link, then choose elementary, middle or high school and select a route. From there, they will be able to see if a bus is on time or delayed, whether a substitute has been dispatched, and any other information available, Jackson said. School starts Friday, Aug. 4 for the 22,000-plus students in the Coweta County School System, and officials also are urging drivers to take extra time and care around buses and students. “It always takes the first day or two for everyone to get used to school traffic,” said Judy Gresham, transportation manager for Coweta schools. “We ask that everyone keep in mind that buses will be on the road again, making stops in the morning and dropping students off in the
Last January, Ruth Hill Elementary School was classified as “chronically failing” by the state of Georgia after three consecutive years of scoring less than 60 on the soon-to-be-revamped College and Career Ready Performance Index. The local community – and supporters from beyond Coweta County – have rallied around the Newnan school, which is in the midst of a long-term improvement plan. The school system has provided extra resources for the teachers, students and families at the school. And based on the results of Ruth Hill’s Georgia Milestones tests, Principal Aaron Corley has some homework for Governor Nathan Deal. “Looks like the governor will have to spend some time finding new adjectives to describe Ruth Hill Elementary,” Corley said at a recent “pep rally” celebrating student success. Ruth Hill Elementary students made gains in every area covered by Milestones. Achievement highlights included: • Reading grew 20 percent from last school year, and Ruth Hill made the most gains of any school in the school system. Third-graders outperformed 14 of 19 schools in the system in reading and grew by almost 30 percentage points from last year. Students in fourth and fifth grades grew by 15 percent over last school year. • In math, third-grade scores improved 26 percent and fifth-grade scores improved 42 percent over last year. Third-graders outperformed 15 other schools in the system, putting Ruth Hill in the top five schools in the system. Scores were 13 points higher than the system average. Ruth Hill’s fifth-graders outperformed
TRANSPORTATION • 2A
TESTING • 2A
By REBECCA LEFTWICH becky@newnan.com
Parents and students will have the opportunity to visit schools and meet teachers on Thursday, Aug. 3, the day before the start of the Coweta County School System’s 2017-18 school year. School orientation will be held at separate times for Coweta’s middle, elementary and high schools.
The schedule is: Middle schools: 10 a.m. to noon Elementary schools: Noon to 2 p.m. High schools: 2-4 p.m. Orientation provides parents and students an opportunity to find their classrooms and meet their teachers before school starts on Friday, Aug. 4. Teachers will not be available for formal conferences during orientation. While many schools will hold additional back-to-school functions, all schools will hold student orientation at the indicated times Aug. 3. Links to individual school websites are available at www.cowetaschools.net . Representatives from the school system’s transportation department will be available at all schools during orientation and on the first day of school to provide information about bus schedules. School bus routes for the new school year also will be posted on the school system’s website before the start of school.
ORIENTATION • 2A