Knights News - First Semester 2023-2024

First Semester, 2023-2024

KNIGHTS NEWS HONOR CODE PLEDGE: I recognize that attending LNC is a privilege, and as a member of this community, I pledge to uphold and promote the pillars of honesty, integrity, respect and responsibility as outlined in the LNC Honor Code

SUPERINTENDENT SPEAKS Click on the image to watch Superintendent Stein highlight the many special achievements and positive news so far this year at LNC:

DON’T MISS THIS!

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We are proud to share that LNC

An "A" grade from the NC Department of Public Instruction, placing LNC in the top 6% of all public schools for the 2022-2023 school year.

US News & World Reports named LNC high school, middle school and elementary schools as "best" schools in the state and nation (HS) LNC HIGH SCHOOL: #21 (out of 705) Best North Carolina High School (top .2%) #137 (out of 3,097) Best National Charter School High School

LNC MIDDLE SCHOOL: #18 (out of 2,720) Best North Carolina Middle School (top 1%) #7 (out of 178) Best North Carolina Charter Middle School

LNC ELEMENTARY SCHOOL: #7 (out of 2,135) Best North Carolina Elementary School (top .3%) #2 (out of 184) Best North Carolina Charter Elementary School

RECOGNITIONS received the following recognitions:

In the first quarter of the school year, your PTO’s efforts created over $115,000 in initiatives to support teachers, students and the overall LNC community. Proceeds from the PTO Lunch Program are responsible for approximately 80% of the PTO’s available resources each year.

Here are some stats:

The PTO wil l serve up to 180 da ys of lunches at each campus this year with over 1, 910 volunteer s hifts

hes were 120,000+ lunc 2-2023, served in 202 ilies with 1,200 fam . Last participating qualed year’s sales e $657,567

Check out our newsletter for more on how you can support your child’s teachers, including shopping at Office Depot, Publix, Harris Teeter, Lowes Foods and scanning Box Tops for Education!

If every LNC family who benefits from the lunch program committed to serving 1-2 lunches (at any campus) each year, we would exceed our lunch volunteer needs. It is easy to do and its fun to work with other parents. Sign up to serve lunches (and see other volunteer opportunities) at

https://www.lncharter.org/Page/144

PTO GRATITUDE OVERFLOWING FOR GIFT OF THE SEASON A huge shoutout to our incredible LNC community for making the PTO's Staff Gift of the Season campaign truly magical! Thanks to your generosity, every LNC staff member received a beautifully decorated gift and gift card this holiday season.

A special appreciation goes out to our outstanding Gifting Committee for their tireless efforts in ensuring a beautiful delivery and heartfelt show of our LNC community's gratitude.

PTO STAFF LUNCHES Thank you to our parents for supporting the PTO in providing lunch for staff. They are a real treat for the staff, who appreciate enjoying the yummy food and interacting with each other in a relaxed venue.

FRIDAY TREAT CARTS

The New Staff Sweet Spot!

Guess what's become the staff's latest obsession? Our Friday Treat Carts, a brand new initiative by the PTO! Providing our dedicated staff with a fun Friday snack and beverage, this initiative has been met with great enthusiasm. A special shoutout to our enthusiastic volunteers who are turning ordinary Fridays into extraordinary FriYAYs!

PTO COOKIE WALK

The PTO’s annual Cookie Walk on December 8 was much loved by our LNC staff! Thanks to the incredible efforts of school parents across all three campuses, we baked a whopping 360 dozen cookies!

This outpouring of deliciousness showcased the strength of our LNC community and the immense appreciation we have for our outstanding staff. A huge thank you to all the bakers for your sweet contributions that made this Cookie Walk the absolute best yet!

LNC teachers, staff and administration send a sincere

to our parents and PTO for their generous contributions to the PTO Staff Holiday Gifting Program. We are very appreciative of your support and thoughtfulness now and throughout the school year.

We wish all of our families a happy holiday season and a pleasant winter break!

Congratulations to the student-athletes who earned All Conference honors for their participation in fall sports!

Women’s Cross Country: Lily Yampolsky, Mikayla Freeland, Caroline Peterson Men’s Cross Country: Cooper Wozniak, Javon Taylor

Women’s Tennis: Luci Falls, Eleina Moon, Anslee Falls, Moriah Harris, Aileen Huynh, Kate Champion SPC Player of the Year: Luci Falls

Women’s Golf: Caitlyn Frisch, Ava Palmer, Taylor Palmer Men’s Soccer: Jayce Ferris, Jackson Carr Volleyball: Joy Atwell, Danielle Lewis, Sarah Turner

Congrats to Knights Athletics on repeating as the 2022-23 Wells Fargo Conference Cup award winners for the South Piedmont 3A conference. The award is based on regular season performances and recognizes the best performances for the combined HS teams in the conference.

ATHLETICS! The Women's Tennis team capped off their amazing 24-0 season by winning the 3A NCHSAA State Championship!

Congratulations to Aishwarya Arulrakasam, Ava Bender, Kate Champion, Ava Chiu, Anslee Falls, Luci Falls, Moriah Harris, Aileen Huynh, Karalyn King, Eleina Moon, Yaashvi Nagori, Tanvi Prabhu, Silvy Schild, Geethika Venkatamaran, Ella Walters, Avery Wells and coaches Kim Schild and Jackson Plyer

A huge shout out to the 150+ families who have already completed their Serve10 hours we appreciate your support of LNC! Check out our Serve10 page for links to volunteer opportunities, including serving lunches, assisting in the classroom and at athletic events.

Chris and Nikki Lowe Michael and Erin Meyer Lee and Theresa Webb Gregory and Kim Schild Kyle and Marybeth Swanzy Kevin and Amanda Hamlin Ryan and Stacy Minges Patrick and Alexandra McConnell Alexander and Patricia Farmartino Quang and Bao Tran Magnus and Joana Sampson David and Rebecca Cooper James and Megan Dickinson Patrick and Rebecca Kay Justin and Stephanie Wright Nick and Danielle Gozelski Mike and Brooke Modlin Erick Vogel and Jeanne Han Christopher and Ariel VonCannon Patrick and Christine Casey Mark and Erica Robinson Marc and Amanda Zeaser Buzz and Farrah Wilkie Matteo and Emily DiMichele Brandon and Monica Blasi Steve and Ashley Davidson Robert and Ivonne Reed

John and Shandi Gray Randall and Melissa Marin David and Ellen Teyssier Kevin and Lauren Craig Aaron and Rachelle Myers Matthew and Tara Oliver Scott and Ann Ballew Chad and Amber Billick Stuart and Odelta Clontz Kimberly Ellington Scott and Gretchen Macfee Mark and Jacquelyn Woody Michael and Jenna Anderson Richard Thang and Za Tial Chris and Michelle Chandler Eric and Cameron Gardner Peter and Jessica Brown Ryan and Kara Hines Justin and Ashley Winge Brett and Jill Alkins Ronnie and Yvonne Harrington Duane and Colleen Lawson Zachary and Julie Strowd Brendyn and Kori Sullivan Cory and Magdalena Wilkinson Heith and Julie Freeland John and Amanda Houghton Giridhar Achanta and Sri Vurrinkala Melinda Mouton Stephen Begley Charles and Nina Bolliger

VOLUNTEERS! Shaun and Meagan Reiff Austin and Beverly Schroth Matthew and Adrienne Sulkey Steve and Barbie Brooks Michael and Meredyth Holdenrid Mohanraj Kolandhavel and Shalini Perivasamy Hillary Silva Michael and Amy Wheeler Andrew and Kristina Colantonio Thomas and Cassie Ditchfield Ruben and Yvonne Enriquez Adam and Lauren Filipponi Wes Newsome and Anne Richardson Gaurav Patrikar and Anuradha Urhekar Shannon and Elizabeth Seymour Dustin and Talissa Vo Abhijit and Shraddha Apte Viset and Dora Eang Casey and Ciji Fisher Dave and Marianne Haywood Gaurav Makhija and Divya Arora Brian and Christine McDonough Spencer and Victoria Pierce Luke and Emily Santillo Thomas and Starlet Scott Aidan and Hana Charlery Rod Davis and Aleshia Berens Darren and Kendall Giglio Matt and Kieran Hale Yongmin and Anna Jung

Andrew and Ashley Palladino Mark and Stacey Sedgwick Johnny Varghese and Lenita Cleetus Sebastian Zuluaga and Patricia Martinez Jason and Crissy Amaguana Chris and Kelley Carlson Kenji Livingston Daniel and Kathryn Lombardo Jerren and Cynthia Rogers Abhishek Salunkhe and Ashwini Wathare David Sniffin and Amrita Patel Tom and Tia Stinson Kevin and Kayt Szulwach Bruce and Kimberly Warren Emilio and Sonia Waters Josh and Tara Bunting Ben Chen and Amy Zhu Harley Conrad and Nicole Novak Nicholas and Dalissia Grothe Gurunath Halyal and Sneha Shirguppi Shane and Lauran Harmon Lakshmipathy Julapalli and Krishnaveni Atmakuru Bhaskar Kachibhotla and Ragha Panchagnula

Scott and Christine Davis Calvin and Jalisia Davis Keith Freeman and Kirsten Gabbert Rodney and Diahann Holder Richard and Tomomi King Michael and Kimberly Knutsen Taswell and Jamila Lindsay Hardik and Shreya Mehta Timothy and Lesley Pacitto Matthew and Rochelle Pilz Saurabh and Danielle Sain Kendrick and Tiara Swords Sukumar Kamalasadan and Manya Warrier

Kurt and Elizabeth Kroger Shailesh and Shraddha Kulkarni Ponmaran Thiruvasagam and Nithya Dhandapani Rajeevulla Mohammed and Mubeena Shaik Mac and Alison Smith Phillip and Ginger Spitler David and Rachel Terbilcox Brian and Janelle Upton Sivadol Vongmongkol and Mei Xie Ilya and Kinga Alisheyev Aravind Rajasekaran and Anusha Aravind Ashley Cross David and Elizabeth Goins Jorge and Amanda Gonzalez Joseph and Jennifer Hager Daniel Heider and Michelle Beasley Ravi Jiyyana and Archana Gadwal Anton and Thao Kraly Chris and Karin Lamperski Michael and Melissa Lemnah Chip and Natalie Lloyd William and Heidy Markwell Carl and Jennifer Niemeyer Edwin and Laurin Nipper Grishkumar and Avni Pambhar Jeffrey and Shauna Rodgers Felix and Mariel Sicard David and Christin Stallard Vernecia Shelton

MEET THE NEW STAFF! We are happy to introduce staff members who joined LNC or assumed a new role in 2023-2024:

Back row: Larissa Arvelo (ES), Amy Ragone (MS), Katelyn Maynard (ES), Cindy Tilley (ES), Matthew Montroy (HS) Front row: Tiffany Green (MS), Ana Jimenez (ES), Kayla Perez (ES)

Left to right: Linda Arrieta (MS), Isaiah Cornelius (MS), Sharon Albury (MS), Chad Brackett (HS) Kim Dodson (ES) Not pictured: Ray Leach (HS) and Jesse Donaldson (Facilities)

Clubs at LNC are intended to promote leadership, friendships and new experiences for our students. A wide variety of clubs are offered to challenge students‘ minds, strengthen their bodies and expand their points of view.

LNC also offers clubs for parents including All Pro Dad at the MS and Knights Dads at the ES.

The ES offers Club Days throughout the school year. The next ES Club Days are planned for January 25, February 23 and March 28.

CLUBS MS club meeting information is distributed to students through MS Student News on Schoology and on the MS website.

HS club information is posted to HS Student News on Schoology and on the HS website.

The entire LNC community lived our motto of “Together we learn, lead and serve” on October 10, 2023 when students, parents and staff celebrated Serve and Play Day. It was a total community effort.

SERVES

Parents provided the funding to purchase the mulch, bushes and trees. Adult volunteers assisted students in planting trees, shrubs and flowers, replacing mulch and painting decorative stones.

AND Students had an chance to play games on the fields and enjoy the inflatables afterward to celebrate their hard work!

PLAYS!

Watch our fun video of the day:

Together we learn, lead and serve

KNIGHTS

The Knights of Honor program recognizes high school pillars of the LNC Honor Code: Honesty, Inte Congratulations to the follo

OF HONOR

students who demonstrate one of the four grity, Respect and Responsibility. owing students:

Middle school Knights of Honor are displaying good character, exceptio and performing ac Congratulations to the M

selected by their teachers for onal effort, a positive attitude cts of service.

MS Knights of Honor:

Elementary school Knights of Honor were nominated by a teacher for showing exceptional effort, good character, acts of service, leadership attributes, and/or a positive attitude. Congratulations to the elementary school Knights of Honor!

October: Hamza Boysan, Stanton Fisher, Hudson Hale, Caroline Meyer, Tvishi Kanamatha Reddy, Sadie Schroth, Grady Seachman

November: Briana Krasteva, Nora Maimoun, Akshara Nayak, Macie Parks, Molly Patterson, Giovanny Rivas

December: Jakai Bedford, Walker Graham, Sarah Khanal, Sofia Konev, Ayaansha Lalla, Kristen Madden, Mahant Patrikar, Connor Ragone, Bailey Robinson, Grant Santillo, Avanthika Srinivas, Andrew Tran. Not pictured, June Newsome

NEWS OF NOTE

Congratulations to the HS Knights of Knowledge academic competition team for taking home first place at the Academic WorldQuest competition hosted by the World Affairs Council of Charlotte.

The team will go on to compete at the national Academic WorldQuest challenge in Washington, D.C. in April.

Congratulations to Coach Bates and the winning team members: Josh Gandy Evan Healey Drew Kosofsky Kabir Sangha

STUDENT SUCCESSES Congratulations to the LNC Math Team for their victory at the Charlotte TriMathalon. The team was led by Lucas Li, Siddharth Senthil, Shivank Chintalpati & Athul Warrier. Kudos to Lucas for being the overall individual winner at the Charlotte Tri-Mathalon.

Lucas Li, was also recognized for being a member of the US Math Team at the Bulgarian International Mathematics Competition (BIMC) where he earned a gold medal for his outstanding individual performance

Congratulations to Chelsea Dockery, Haze Dodson, Siddharth Senthil, Camie Tyson and Athul Warrier and Coach Queen for bringing home the grand prize from the Carolina Panthers, Honeywell, and Digi-Bridge’s Futureshaper Sustainability Challenge.

Project judges included Panthers players Ikem Ekwonu and Bryce Young.

The students won $2,500 for our school and an on-field experience for their innovative Purrfect Peanut Pack / Purrfect Peanut Provider prototype.

View the great news report and video of the team‘s win!

Their Purrfect Peanut Pack is an innovative way to reduce pollution and promote sustainability using biomass. People discard peanut shells on the stadium floor causing an unattractive and potentially unsafe environment for those with peanut allergies.

They plan to enhance the game day experience by decreasing peanuts on the floor. The peanuts will be converted to biomass to promote sustainability using The Purrfect Peanut Provider (their vending machine).

Ms. McKay's 3rd grade homeroom class won the Fall North Carolina Prodigy 3rd Grade Math Competition by outscoring schools from Wilmington, Greensboro, Lexington, Jamestown & Denver. As a class, they accurately answered an impressive 4,753 math questions throughout the competition!

Three LNC students led the individual student leaderboard and earned top titles: Caiden Borkowski was the first place student with 540 individual points! Sumedh Yelubandi placed 2nd in the state and Breckin Reiff placed 3rd.

Congratulations to these students; we are very proud of their accomplishments!

OHANA (Officers Helping Adolescents Navigate Anything) GRADUATION Fifth graders celebrated the conclusion of their OHANA classes with graduation on Friday, December 15.

As the name suggests, this program, led by SRO Ron Bonnono, prepares students to handle the challenges they will likely face in the upcoming years. The program helps students develop good decision-making skills, understand the differences between facts and opinions and learn how to take responsibility for their actions in a healthy manner.

NEWS OF NOTE MS French teacher Ms. Trudy Marinier was selected as the American Association of Teachers 2022-2023 French Teacher of the Year. She received her award at their recent conference and is pictured with NC-AATF president Lisa Bartel. Congratulations, Ms. Marnier!

Congratulations to the students on the LNC Honor Roll for the first quarter, 2023-2024!

SIBLING APPLICATIONS FOR LNC LOTTERY The LNC lottery for the 2024-2025 school year is now open. If you have a sibling of a currently enrolled student who wishes to attend LNC next school year, please submit an application for them. When you are completing the application, please make sure you mark that they are a sibling of a currently enrolled student.

The deadline to apply is 11:59pm on Wednesday, January 31, 2024 and the lottery drawing will take place on February 15, 2024.

Applicants will be emailed a link to view the lottery live.

PTO LNC FAMILY DIRECTORY You can use the LNC Family Directory to find out who is in your neighborhood, who is involved in the same activities as your student, and organize play dates, birthday parties, carpool and more. Create an account and provide as much information as you‘d like in the secure directory.

WINTER BREAK for students is December 21, 2023 through January 3, 2024. We will see all of our families back in school on Thursday, January 4, 2024.