20 minute read
Academics
Each spring, the Jackson Exchange Club convenes a committee to select a high school student who has demonstrated academic excellence and service to the Jackson community. This student is selected from a group of special students, each of whom was honored as the club’s Student of the Month throughout the school year. Stephanie Nnaji was named the Exchange Club Student of the Year for 2022.
Mae Howell and Blair Driver awarded Judy Renshaw Leadership Jackson Alumni Association Scholarships
Two students from USJ’s Class of 2022 were awarded the Judy Renshaw Leadership Jackson Alumni Association Scholarship in the spring. Mae Howell and Blair Driver were both presented with generous scholarships and will use these funds towards their college education at Auburn University and the University of Georgia, respectively. Both students were a part of the 2020-21 Leadership University program through the Jackson Chamber.
Leadership University is a program for high school juniors in Madison County. The program prepares students for involvement in the community and helps to hone leadership skills for 40 high school students each year. Through interactive programming, Leadership University teaches about all aspects of our community, as well as prepares participants to be leaders in their schools and community, equipping them with skills and information to be successful. Because of the generosity of affiliate sponsors, participants’ only cost is “paying it forward” through community service each month of the program to assigned social service agencies. A key skill of Leadership University is learning to be a servant leader and making a positive difference in the lives of others, as well as one’s community.
Two Bruins Attend Summer Governor’s Schools
The Tennessee Governor’s Schools provide 11 challenging and high-intensity programs for rising 11th- and 12th-grade students nominated by high school faculty. Each school offers a unique learning environment for students interested in the arts, humanities, agricultural science, STEM programs, advanced mathematics, physics, leadership, international studies, Tennessee history, or potential teaching careers. This summer, Reed Sullivan attended the Governor’s School for the School of Emerging Technology. Lacie Atkinson attended the Governor’s School for the Visual Arts.
USJ Students Excel in TMTA Math Competition at Freed-Hardeman University
A total of 26 students participated in the April 2022 Tennessee Mathematics Teachers’ Association (TMTA) Math Competition at Freed-Hardeman University. Our students represented USJ well, and we are so proud of their performance! Below is a list of students who placed in each category:
9th Grade Honors Algebra I: 1st Place Team 1st place: Harry Morris 3rd place: Vaidehi Prasad 9th place: Catherine Bell 10th place: Nicholas Donelli
9th Grade Honors Algebra II: 2nd Place Team 3rd place: Max Roe 4th place: Max Kilburn 5th place: Jane Claire Ragon 7th place: Lidiah Mahalati 10th Grade Honors Geometry: 3rd Place Team 5th place: Chester Evans 7th place: Corinne Sullivan
11th Grade Honors Precalculus: 1st Place Team 1st place: Cassidy Bruno 2nd place: Ijeoma Oleru 3rd place: Zainab Baba 6th place: Madeline Miller 9th place: Lilly Kate Varino 12th Grade AP Calculus: 1st Place Team 1st place: John Dougan 2nd place: Blair Driver 3rd place: James Mitchell (tie) 3rd place: Stephanie Nnaji (tie) 5th place: Mmesoma Nwokolo 6th place: Sadie Hanna
USJ Students Selected to Attend American Legion Boys and Girls State Program
Tennessee Boys and Girls State develops young leaders by providing leadership education on state, local, and county government. Selections for the summer 2022 Boys State program were Paul Jones, Ty O’Neal, John Carr Ryan, and Reed Sullivan. Mimi Campbell, Madeline Miller, Sanchita Jintukar, and Ashlynn Isbell were chosen to attend Girls State.
A Look at the National French Honor Society
USJ’s National French Honor Society chapter was started in March 1995 by Don Newman, the Middle School and Upper School french teacher. This was also the first year for the French Club. Each year, around the third quarter, new students are inducted into the National French Honor Society and will wear cords at graduation. Students who are inducted must have high academic achievements within the French department. The French Honor Society and French Club have a meaningful tradition of joining together to write Christmas cards to the elderly in local retirement homes during the holidays.
The Kindergarten Bridging Ceremony is a beloved spring tradition at USJ. The ceremony symbolizes the bridge from kindergarten to first grade. In years past, bridging meant moving from one building to another, but now the transition is from one end of the hall to the “big” kids’ hall. Traditionally, the students wear an “I Love USJ” t-shirt, as well as a red USJ hat. Each member of the kindergarten class signs their names on the back of the shirts before the ceremony. The students sing two songs, one about “moving on up” and another song about “summer break.” After their performance, each student is presented with a diploma before walking over the bridge for a first-grade teacher to put their USJ hat on their head. After this spring’s ceremony, the USJ Class of 2034 celebrated with a special bridging party. Teacher Hailey Eldridge said, “Our bridging ceremony is just one more event that makes our school so special!”
Second Graders Experience a Taste of Celebrity Life with Writing & Book Awards Ceremony
Originating with an end-of-unit writing celebration, second graders held their writing and book awards ceremony in May.
“We came up with the idea of having a ceremony to involve parents and allow the students to share their writing,” said Lisa Marley. “This fun occasion is just another example of how blessed we teachers and students are to have the help and support of our USJ parents.”
Prior to the ceremony, the students wrote opinion pieces about their favorite books. They then “nominated” their books for awards of their own invention, such as the “Silliest Book Award” or “Funniest Book Ever Award.” In their writing pieces, they listed reasons why their picks should win the award.
The students, dressed in party attire, walked down the hallway on a red carpet while the paparazzi (their parents) took photos and cheered. The ceremony then began in the cafetorium, which was decorated with stars, velvet ropes, and other Hollywood-like details. Faculty member Erica Davidson was the announcer. The students were called to the stage to present their books and awards.
After the ceremony, the students enjoyed an “after party” with special treats and different photo booths. Room moms and parents did the decorating and provided the party foods.
Traditional Eighth Grade Field Trip to Washington, DC and New York City Resumes
Approximately 50 students and adults were enthusiastic participants on the 2022 eighth-grade trip to Washington, DC and New York City. USJ students have not traveled since 2019 due to the pandemic.
“We literally hit the ground running with excitement when the plane landed in DC!” said Shay Young.
While there, the group experienced everything the National Mall had to offer as far as monuments and toured many museums as well, including three Smithsonians. The group had a private tour of the U.S. Capitol arranged by USJ alumna and former U.S Senate staffer, Abby Atkins (‘15). This was the second time a group from USJ was able to have a private tour. They continued the USJ tradition of participating in the Wreath Laying Ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery. Four students were chosen by eighth-grade teachers to participate, based on essays they had written: Caroline Alea, Lorelei Ballentine, Caroline White, and Tyler Wright. The tour of Mount Vernon was also a favorite, as always.
While many USJ traditions continued, there were several firsts on the trip. The group visited the newer African-American History Museum. Students enjoyed more food trucks for lunch due to an increase in their number since the pandemic. This gave the group many different ethnic dining options to experience. Another first: the group’s National Cathedral tour was canceled due to the funeral arrangements for Madeleine Albright, first woman to serve as the 64th United States Secretary of State. Whatever they did not get to do surely only increased their desire to return one day!
The group moved on to New York City, where they stayed in Times Square. They took a ferry boat ride to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island, saw the Empire State Building at night, and watched the Broadway musical Wicked from the main floor. Students also took a walking tour through Central Park, took the subway to Chinatown and Little Italy for shopping and lunch, and walked over the Brooklyn Bridge. Many memories were made in two of the United States’ most prominent cities!
Fifth Graders Explore Tennessee History with Memphis Study Tour
The annual fifth-grade trip to Memphis served once again to enhance the study of Tennessee History Content Standards. Students visited a number of sites with various focuses of studies. “Our students enjoy this trip each year, and it’s a privilege to show them how much of our state’s history and culture is found so close to home,” said Tina Anderson. Highlights included:
• Chucalissa Archaeological Museum for the study of early
Tennesseans/Mississippian culture • National Civil Rights Museum for the study of the Civil Rights
Movement including Brown v. Board of Education, sit-ins, Martin
Luther King, Jr., Rosa Parks, and Freedom Riders • Graceland for the study of Elvis Presley and his role in music history • Sun Records for the continued study of Elvis Presley, the history of
American music, and the role that Tennesseeans play in music history • STAX Museum of American Soul Music for the role that Tennessee played in American Soul Music
Fourth Graders Travel East for Battle of Franklin Study Tour
USJ fourth graders traveled to Middle Tennessee on May 5 to visit the site of the Battle of Franklin, the Carter House, and Belle Meade Plantation. The excursion was the culmination of their social studies unit on the Civil War and their language arts unit on historical fiction.
“The field trip brought history to life for our students,” said faculty member Wenesday Ketron. The students sat in a basement where an entire family hid while the battle took place on the family’s land above them. They walked into a building and saw the sunlight shine through hundreds of bullet holes. They even saw blood stains where a surgeon worked for hours and hours trying to help wounded soldiers.
Middle School Launches Innovative STEM Lab Class
This year, the Middle School launched its new STEM Program. STEM, which stands for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, is a course that allows students to work through the design process with hands-on, realistic projects. STEM class provides students with opportunities for teamwork and collaboration while teaching critical thinking, innovation, and leadership.
The beauty of STEM is that it offers students a safe place to try, fail, and try again. Students learn and practice leadership skills, embrace the design process, and tackle challenges, all while gaining confidence and learning skills applicable to the changing world in which we live.
“At USJ, we are working to grow tomorrow’s leaders, and STEM offers an ideal opportunity for students to explore, learn, and grow,” said Margaret Livingston, Middle School Director.
Thus far, students have built roller coasters, learned coding, built robots, coded robots, and more. There is nothing but potential with the new STEM program! Billy Hight teaches sixth graders, and Erica Davidson teaches seventh- and eighth-graders.
In the new STEM lab, students are learning how to create and design logos and websites using Google Suites, as well as basic computer skills such as typing, spreadsheets, and PowerPoint. They will expand their knowledge of coding and robotics utilizing lego robots and will use the coding section to create activities for their robots to perform. They are also learning to use Tinkercad with brand-new 3D printers and CNC machines. Keep an eye out for upcoming STEM projects!
6th Grade Team Building Day at Pinecrest Camp
The sixth grade practiced team building during their field trip to Pinecrest Camp earlier this spring. Students worked together to overcome obstacles, improve social skills, and celebrate personal and group achievements. This field trip was a wonderful opportunity for sixth grade students to bond with their classmates as they cheer each other on.
Last year was the inaugural year, with the hopes that it would become a fall tradition as students transition from Lower to Middle School.
Middle School Field Day
Field Day at USJ is an ever-growing event for the Middle School. The day features competitions in corn hole, obstacle courses, crab races, soccer goal challenges, wheelbarrow races, water balloon toss, egg toss, fourperson relay, and many more. Students enjoy an ice cream truck and/or snow cone truck at the event in addition to concessions run by the Parents Club. Last year was the first year to have live video on the jumbotron, meaning that spectators in the stands have an up-close view of the field. The day concludes with an ultimate tug of war competition.
“This event is an all-hands-on-deck event,” said Coach Bryce King. “Field Day has gotten bigger and better every year. When we announce sign-up day, our students are so excited. They can’t wait to wear those red (8th grade), white (6th grade), and blue (7th grade) shirts and compete against each grade. This event wouldn’t be what it is without everyone’s support and help!”
End of Year Celebrations
We know how to celebrate the end of the school year right! The Cubs were pirates, our seventh graders became Greek Olympians, and first graders enjoyed farm and pet day. Other classes held field day competitions, and while the fifth graders stole the show with their parade, Bruins of every grade level kicked off the summer in style!
Sixth & Seventh Middle School Awards a Cause for Celebration
The sixth- and seventh-grade awards are a longstanding USJ Middle School tradition and are an opportunity to showcase the accomplishments of many hardworking students. Awards vary from academics, arts, choir, physical education, strength and conditioning, and more. These occur annually in May at the end of each school year.
Eighth Grade Awards Serve as a Rite of Passage to Upper School
Each year, the eighth grade has a graduation ceremony. Students walk across the stage to accept their certificates of completion for the eighth grade and view a slideshow of pictures. The ukulele students, who learn to play in their spring music class, showcase their talents. “Awards are important because we want to celebrate our students and their hard work and diligence throughout the year,” said Margaret Livingston, Middle School Director.
Middle School Science Bowl Tradition Continues
The Science National Honor Society started the Middle School Science Bowl about ten years ago, based on the experience that Upper School students had attending the UT Martin Science Bowl each year. Back then, students would meet at 7:30 a.m. on a cold November Saturday and travel to Martin to take a test, see demonstrations, and participate in a Bowl Round. Most years USJ had a full bus. With such interest, USJ faculty decided to provide Middle School students with their own preview of the competition. Unfortunately, the professor who ran the event at UT Martin has since retired, and the Science Bowl was retired with him. USJ teachers have great memories of competing with schools from all over West Tennessee at UT Martin, winning first place twice and placing for several years.
While the Bowl is no longer an option for Upper School students, our Middle School Science
Bowl continues. At present, the bowl is held in the spring, with the top 16 science students in the eighth grade as selected by their science teacher competing. They are divided into four teams and assigned a coach from the Science National Honor Society to guide and encourage them.
“The great thing about the way our Middle School competition is set up is that Upper School students still get to be involved in a science bowl,” said Department Chair Jane Ramer.
The bowl takes place in the library, with Science National Honor Society members running the event. Two teams compete with buzzers to answer toss-up questions and category questions for the areas of earth science, life science, and physical science- the science courses taught in Middle School. Once the winner of the first round is decided, the other two teams compete, with the two winning teams playing one another for the championship. Over the years, awards have included ribbons, certificates, T-shirts, gift cards, and candy. No matter the prize, the students never forget that the knowledge they gained through their science courses helped them achieve a goal and gain respect from their peers and upperclassmen alike.
Jr. K Fairytale Parade is Learning Made Fun
Each year, the Jr. Kindergarten classrooms at USJ are decorated with knights, damsels, dragons, princesses, the gingerbread man, a giant, bears, pigs, and beanstalks because the four Jr. K teachers realize the value of fairy tales in the curriculum. They incorporate a different fairy tale each week as they teach the letters of the alphabet. For instance, one week they focus on Little Red Riding Hood as they introduce the letter /Ll/ and the color word red. Teachers also share the moral of each fairy tale, meaning these classic tales are beneficial in teaching children how to deal with conflicts and other lessons. They use Little Red Riding Hood, for example, to discuss “stranger danger.” Fairy tales are important for teaching hero/villain characters, setting, plot, and story elements, as well as the difference between fiction and nonfiction. Fairy tales also teach critical thinking skills. The Fairy Tale Parade is a celebration at the end of the school year in May, where everyone in Jr. K dresses in their favorite fairy tale character. The students and faculty proudly parade through the school representing a variety of fairy tale characters that they enjoyed reading about during the year.
Jr. K Continues Tradition of Q & U Wedding
The Jr. K students celebrated the union of Q and U in a wedding ceremony. Since Q and U are found together in words, the ceremony was a fun way for the students to remember their sound “qu.” Students dressed in wedding attire and participated in a wedding ceremony at the pond where “Judge” Elizabeth Atkins officiated. The Jr. K teachers were the wedding planners ready for the big day. Students enjoyed a wedding reception with fancy cakes and punch. Each student brought a wedding gift for the couple that was something started “qu.” Quilts, quartz, quart jar, a quiz, quicksand book, quarterback figurine, quail, and queens were some of the quality presents that were unwrapped during the day. We closed the day of celebration with wedding bubbles. It was quite a day in Jr. K!
The USJ Class of 2024 hosted a Daddy Daughter Dance to benefit a local nonprofit. Students started planning in early February and hosted the dance on March 26. The theme was Alice in Wonderland, so the students had a lot of fun with decorations and costumes!
“It was really important for us to make this a magical experience for the girls and dads that came to the dance, so we went above and beyond with creating detailed paintings of flowers/elements of the movie (made by artists in our grade) and having the Alice in Wonderland characters (people in our grade) walk around to interact and take pictures with the little girls,” said Eady Davenport. “We set up games, including ‘flamingo ring toss’ and ’card corn hole’, had a coloring station, and had a photo booth where girls and dads could take some silly pictures to remember the event.”
Many local businesses and families in Jackson donated items to make gift baskets for the gift table raffle, and every girl got two tickets to put towards the item of their choice, but they could purchase more. This event brought the Class of 2024 together because of all the planning and preparation; students worked on decorations during their study hall and after school.
On May 11, the Class of 2024 officers (Eady Davenport, Kenley Hines, Brilee Davis, Miles Johnson, and Mary Payton Redden) went to the Scarlet Rope Project’s construction site to donate the $4,000 that was made from the dance.
“This was a very successful event because we didn’t just do it for the USJ community,” said Eady. “While it was a record year for numbers of those attending, and we gave every dad and daughter that came a fun memory, we were also able to help our Jackson community outside of USJ. I think that a school event is truly successful when you can positively influence the school and the community through that event.”
Teddy Bear Tea Party
The Teddy Bear Tea is a fairly new and very fun activity for Jr. Cubs.
Teacher Shannon Scarbrough said, “we came up with the idea two years ago when we were studying the letter ‘T,’ Teddy Bear immediately came to mind and then we thought a ‘fancy’ event would be fun. That’s when we decided the ‘Teddy Bear Tea’ would be perfect!”
Students dress up in their “fancy” clothes and bring their favorite teddy bear to school. Jr. Cubs teachers host the event with a fancy table setting and fun snacks for the kids to enjoy. Students drink apple juice out of fancy cups instead of tea, and they love feeling so fancy.
