About Fayette County news. (Fayetteville, GA) 2009-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 1, 2023)
Wednesday, February 1,2023 Fayette County News B3 Local Students Make Annual ‘Close Up’Trip to D.C. A lucky group of local students from Starr’s Mill and McIntosh schools got an in-depth look at how government operates at the annual “Close Up” gathering in Washington, D.C. Close Up is a week-long experience in Washington, D.C. which provides stu dents with an opportunity to better understand their responsibilities as a citizen participating in the demo cratic process, helping stu dents understand the importance of being ac tively involved in local, state, national, and inter national issues. Before students started the Close Up program, they visited the National Gallery of Art, Library of Congress, National Amer ican History Museum, Natural History Museum, African-American History Museum, and went to the top of the Washington Monument. On the actual Close Up program, they participated in multiple workshops, such as Political Values, Domestic Issues Debate, and Mock Congress. Stu dents also engaged in "on site" studies of monuments (Jefferson, FDR, MLK, Lincoln, WWII, Korean, Vietnam, Eisenhower), Arlington National Cemetery, the National Archives, out door White House study, D.C. neighborhood studies, and several other Smithsonian Museums. Students also attended a theater event after Capi tol Hill Day. On Capitol Hill Day, students met with the legislative staff from the offices of Sen. Raphael Warnock, Sen. Jon Ossoff, and Rep. Drew Ferguson. They visited the out side of the Supreme Court and learned about the Su preme Court process and history of the building. Students also got a tour of the Capitol, including Statue Hall, the old Su preme Court room, and Rotunda. They wrapped up their trip by visiting the Capitol one more time, using Senate Gallery passes provided by Sen. Warnock to visit the Sen ate chamber of Congress. Starr's Mill students met with alumnae Brenna Elliot who works for House Majority Leader Steve Scalise and provided a "real world" connection of how a Starr's Mill stu dent could get involved in government and politics. Starr’s Mill first made the trek in 2001 and has sent a group of Panthers every year since, except 2020, with more than 1,500 students attending throughout the years. McIntosh High sent a delegation of 39 students and three teacher-chap erones. The Chiefs have participated in the pro gram for more than 20 years. Flat Rock Chorus Performs at State Conference The Flat Rock Middle School Singers performed at the 2023 Georgia Music Edu cators Association In-Service Conference on Thursday, Jan. 23 in Athens. The Flat Rock Singers group is comprised of sev enth- and eighth-grade chorus students at Flat Rock Middle School in Tyrone, under the direction of Ladell Fortune. The group is one of just four middle school choirs selected to perform at the GMEA In-Service Confer ence, and this was the first time the group has received an invitation to perform at the state level. The GMEA is the profes sional music organization for music educators in Georgia. Each year, in preparation for the In-Service Conference, the finest musical ensembles in the state are invited to apply to be selected as a fea tured performing ensemble. To be considered, the ap plying ensemble must have an impressive comprehen sive record of musical success within their program. Groups that are selected to perform are presented to the distin guished audience of musical educators as some of the fi nest performing ensembles in Georgia. Performing ensembles perform a 30-minute concert showcasing their talent by presenting a diverse and challenging repertoire of music. The Flat Rock Middle School Singers presented a GMEA preview concert on Jan. 20 in Sandy Creek High’s Patriot Auditorium. During the concert, the Flat Rock Singers received two proclamations, one from the Fayette County Board of Commissioners and the other from the State of Georgia. The proclamations were pre sented by County Commis sioner Charles Rousseau and Sen. Valencia Seay. The Flat Rock Singers presented their GMEA per formance on Thursday, Jan. 26, at First Baptist Church in Athens. McIntosh students [ wKj \ di He 'w jji [1 .. JP ' I 1 iO !■ 1 ' A ‘ijM Starr's Mill students Flat Rock Middle School Singers Crabapple Lane Pre-K Has 'Doggone Good' 101st Day It was a “doggone fun time” at Crabap ple Lane Elementary as pre-Kstudents cele brated the 101st day of school with Dalma tian-themed activities last week. Students made hats and collars to look like the spotted pups and crafted their own pup pets. They also placed 101 black dots on a Dalmatian puppy and put 101 stickers on a grid to get a better glimpse of just how large the number 101 truly is in physical form.
