January is decision time for students wanting to apply to a magnet school program for the 2008-09 school year. Charlotte Mecklenburg Schools will have a magnet school fair Thursday night in Cornelius, while Davidson International Baccalaureate Middle School will have three open houses in the coming weeks, including one Thursday. Read the full story

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools students begin their winter break when the final bell rings Friday afternoon. In the lead-up to that happy event, local schools have been holding concerts, gathering honors and recognizing staff achievements. Students have also been collecting food, which apparently can be fun (photo). Read on for news from Davidson IB, Bailey Middle and Davidson Elementary.

Eli Stutzman (lying in the cans), Avery McGuirt and Jerry Chi helped with Davidson IB Middle School’s November food drive. Read the full story

Police escorted a visitor out of Davidson Elementary School Thursday after a computer ID system identified him as a registered sex offender. It was the first incident of its kind since the system was installed last year, Principal Celeste Ellis said Thursday afternoon. Read the full story

Despite the cold weather, 359 kids and their families walked to Davidson Elementary School this morning in the latest in a series of Walking Wednesdays. The events are sponsored by the Davidson Walks committee, to encourage walking and biking to school in Davidson. Read the full story

What would make our town a better place to walk and bike? The Davidson Walks Committee is seeking residents’ input as it compiles a list of infrastructure projects that would make walking and biking in Davidson safer and more convenient. Read the full story

Cannon School, a private school for grades K-12 in Concord, has listed student achievements this fall that included awards to Davidson residents both in academics and the arts. Read the full story

North Mecklenburg voters came out strongly in support of keeping the county’s 1/2-cent sales tax for transit and in favor of the $516 million in school bonds, signaling support for efforts to deal with growth in the region. The school bond vote will have an immediate effect on North Meck, providing a new high school in Cornelius and renovations at Davidson IB Middle School. And transit supporters say the transit vote bodes well for the north commuter rail project.

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A case of MRSA, a type of staph infection that is resistant to treatment, has been reported in a Davidson Elementary School student. Principal Celeste Ellis alerted parents in a telephone message late Friday afternoon. Ms. Ellis said the school has followed procedures for infectious diseases, including disinfecting areas that may have been contaminated.

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