Shelby County Schools

Congratulations to Olivia Carroll, a teacher from Helena Middle School, for receiving The ABCs of Computer Science K-12 grant. This $500 grant is made possible through the publication of the book, The ABCs of Computer Science, and a partnership with the Shelby County Education Foundation. The grant is designed to increase the integration of Computer Science in the K-12 learning space. Olivia plans to purchase Dash and Dot robots to implement into her classroom instruction. Congratulations again!

Congratulations to our High School Teachers of the Year!

Calera High School recently celebrated the completion of a new Medical Diagnostics learning lab that will provide real-world learning and mimics a diagnostic healthcare facility. The program is a three-course pathway that provides opportunities for students' career exploration and exposes them to a variety of healthcare fields. This pathway culminates with an internship during their senior year with clinical rotations. Students will have an opportunity to take credentials that will better prepare them for a healthcare career.

Congratulations to our Middle School Teachers of the Year!

Congratulations to our Elementary School Teachers of the Year!

Winners of the Digital Citizenship Poster Contest were honored by the Shelby County Board of Education on November 16. The contest was sponsored by Shelby County Schools EdTech Department as part of Digital Citizenship Week October 16-20. As part of that celebration, students were invited to design a digital poster about "What Makes A Good Citizen?". The K-2 winners were Pam Clay's entire class who worked in collaboration to design a poster. Mrs. Clay's class was not in attendance at the board meeting but will be getting a visit soon from Dr. Lewis Brooks and the EdTech team to celebrate their winning poster. Eli Miller from Chelsea Park Elementary was the winner for grades 3-5. Isabella Stevens from Helena Middle was the winner for grades 6-8 and Kaitlyn Banks from Calera High was the winner for grades 9-12.

The Shelby County Board of Education held yearly elections for officers at the November 16 meeting. Congratulations to David Bobo, who was re-elected to serve as Board President, and Jimmy Bice, who was elected to serve as Vice-President.

Congratulations to Shelby County students who were honored as Character In Action Award winners for the 2023-2024 school year. The award ceremony was held on November 17 at the American Village. These students have been selected by teachers, counselors, and administrators for displaying respect, courage, responsibility, friendship, and kindness toward others. The award also honors the parents and caregivers who have raised these students and who continue to work hard to support their success. The Character in Action Award program is a joint partnership among local school systems, the Shelby County District Attorney’s Office, District Court Judge Erin Wellborn, and the Children’s Policy Council. Pelham’s American Legion Post 555 also awards the American Legion Achievement Award to the students. Students honored were: Adalynn Winterbottom, Calera Elementary; Martin Moreno, Calera Intermediate; Laila Wilson, Calera Middle; Kayla Banks, Calera High; Peyton Davis, Career Technical Educational Center; Han Doan, Chelsea Park Elementary; Laney Marshall, Chelsea Middle; John-Edward “Riku” Gallagher, Chelsea High; Josie Payne, Columbiana Middle; Gunner Smith, Elvin Hill Elementary; Bailey-Drew Joseph, Forest Oaks Elementary; Charlotte Festavan, Helena Elementary; Coleman Burkhalter, Helena Intermediate; Brewer Jones, Helena Middle; Mackenzie Meyers, Helena High, Isla Clay Melton, Inverness Elementary; Rashad Hunt, Linda Nolen Learning Center; Kolin Brantley-Anfield, Montevallo Elementary; Atticus Plott, Montevallo Middle; Jordan Gaines, Montevallo High School; Aaron Ramirez-Olvera, Mt Laurel Elementary; McKenzie Ray, Oak Mountain Elementary; Christian Lewis, Oak Mountain Intermediate; Jillian Linda, Oak Mountain Middle; Bebe Moore, Oak Mountain High; Emily Vansant, Shelby Elementary; Sarah Elizabeth Shelton, Shelby County High; Amber Isbell, Success; Gabriel Bristow, Vincent Elementary; Sophie Fields, Vincent Middle; Chloe Abrams, Vincent High; and Julie Portillo Vizueth, Wilsonville Elementary.

Congratulations to April Tolbert who was honored with the Alabama School Counseling Association Administrator/Supervisor of the Year award. The award was presented at the awards luncheon at the Alabama School Counseling Association Annual Conference in Birmingham.

Congratulations to April Tolbert who was honored with the Alabama School Counseling Association Administrator/Supervisor of the Year award. The award was presented at the awards luncheon at the Alabama School Counseling Association Annual Conference in Birmingham.

Congratulations to Oak Mountain High School which was named to the 2023 AP Honor Roll! The AP School Honor Roll recognizes schools whose AP programs are delivering results and broadening access for students. Schools can earn the Honor Roll recognition annually based on their ability to increase their school’s college-going culture, provide opportunities for students to earn college credit, and maximize college readiness. The AP School Honor Roll offers four levels of distinction: Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Platinum. Oak Mountain High is a Gold member of the Honor Roll. Oak Mountain had 67 percent of seniors who took at least one AP exam during high school, 40 percent of seniors scoring a three or higher on at least one AP exam, and 16 percent of seniors who took five or more AP exams!

Congratulations to Helena High School which was named to the 2023 AP School Honor Roll, which recognizes schools whose Advanced Placement programs are delivering results and broadening access for students. Schools can earn the Honor Roll recognition annually based on their ability to increase their school’s college-going culture, provide opportunities for students to earn college credit, and maximize college readiness. The AP School Honor Roll offers four levels of distinction: Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Platinum. Helena High is a Silver member of the Honor Roll. Helena had 62 percent of seniors who took at least one AP exam during high school, 34 percent of seniors scoring a three or higher on at least one AP exam, and 10 percent of seniors who took five or more AP exams. Helena High was also recognized with the AP Access Award for ensuring AP coursework is equally available to students no matter their backgrounds.

Congratulations to Chelsea High School which was named to the 2023 AP School Honor Roll! The AP School Honor Roll recognizes schools whose Advanced Placement programs are delivering results and broadening access for students. Schools can earn the Honor Roll recognition annually based on their ability to increase their school’s college-going culture, provide opportunities for students to earn college credit, and maximize college readiness. The AP School Honor Roll offers four levels of distinction: Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Platinum. Chelsea High School is a Bronze member of the Honor Roll. Chelsea had 48 percent of seniors who took at least one AP exam during high school, 29 percent of seniors scoring a three or higher on at least one AP exam, and 16 percent of seniors who took five or more AP exams. Chelsea was also recognized with the AP Access Award for ensuring AP coursework is equally available to students no matter their backgrounds.

Several Shelby County Schools' district leaders participated in the Out of the Darkness Walk on Sunday, Nov. 5 at Veterans Park to raise awareness and funding for suicide prevention. The district also had a booth to highlight student artwork submitted as part of the district's Art of Kindness contest. Art of Kindness was a collaboration between Shelby County Schools and NAMI Shelby County with the goal of educating students and community members about the power of kindness and connection as powerful protective factors against depression and suicide. Research has shown that kindness is an antidote to isolation and helps create a sense of belonging. Kindness also increases self-esteem, empathy, and compassion.

Let's show some love for these rock-star principals of our Centralized Schools for #PrincipalAppreciationMonth! Thank You, Daniel Richards, David Butts, and Todd Crenshaw for the dedication and service you give your students and staff every day!

This dream team of administrators is making a difference in the lives of students and staff in the Columbiana school zone! Thank You to Courtney Madison, Staci Aderholt, Melody Bryne, Dustin Smith, and Kyle Dudley for being amazing leaders! #PrincipalAppreciationMonth

We are starting the week off with another big Thank You to our principals from the Oak Mountain school zone to honor them for #PrincipalAppreciationMonth. Brooke Dunham, Jan Curtis, Tina Neighbors, Laura Junkin, Sandy Evers, and Andrew Gunn are an exceptional group of leaders!

A tremendous Thank You to our principals from the Helena school zone! Genet Holcomb, Sasha Baker, Matthew Epps, and Ashley Bahr lead with love every day! Happy #PrincipalAppreciationMonth to this amazing group of leaders.

We continue to recognize October as #PrincipalAppreciationMonth by honoring this amazing team of leaders from the Montevallo school zone. Wendy Cespedes, Jenise Hampton, and Steve Bromley are making a difference in the lives of their students and in the Montevallo community.

The American Association of School Librarians hosted its national conference in Tampa on October 18-22. The event featured a collection of workshops led by popular authors and illustrators, innovative school leaders, and professional librarians. Superintendent Lewis Brooks was one of five school administrators selected to serve on the AASL School Leader Collaborative and presented two sessions at the conference on leadership and professional responsibility. Oak Mountain Middle School Library Media Specialist, Whitney Howton and Kelci McCaleb also led a workshop on modernizing the library space through the gentrification of non-fiction books.