Teacher Thomas Underhill hands Congressman Mel Watt an official 5th Grade D.C. trip t-shirt from Davidson Elementary. (Photo by Kerry Dennis)

Spring is in the air!  Our clocks have “sprung” forward, giving us longer evenings of light so next weekend we can really say goodbye to Winter and welcome Spring.  Hooray!  Seeing the grass begin to grow, daffodils bloom and forsythia burst into color are welcome signs for all.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day tomorrow.  Don’t forget to wear at least a touch of green to avoid a friendly pinch from a friend or neighbor.  For today Around Davidson checks on a “Puzzling Situation” in town, a birthday at The Pines, a noted speaker for a Wellness Group, and the annual Fifth Grade trip to Washington, D.C.  In addition there is a Noteworthy Note with special greetings. Read the full story

Our school notes this week include the dates for upcoming flu clinics at local public schools, and also news of Ben Wyatt of Woodlawn’s winning poster in a local Lions Club contest and Michael Sanders of Cannon’s successful golf season in U.S. Kids Golf.  We also have a calendar of upcoming events, including North Meck’s 3rd annual Chili Cook-off, set for Thursday afternoon. Read the full story

There’s nothing amateur about the kids in School Notes this week – in fact, they seem poised to make national headlines as old pros.  We bring you news of a Davidson Elementary fifth-grader-turned-national-reporter, Julia Desmond, who has just joined the Scholastic Kids Press Corps; and also Davidson Day second grade speed racer Caleb Tate who is burning up go-kart tracks across the country.

All that, plus the background on the Davidson College senior, Billy Powers, who is behind Sunday’s charity concert to benefit children with special needs, and a calendar of upcoming school events. Read the full story

Three students at Davidson Elementary - (from left:) Mayella Strodel, Kylie Skovira and Merritt Strodel - had a good idea that turned into a wildly successful book drive.

The good ideas of our local kids provide the focus of this week’s School Notes.  At Davidson Elementary, a surplus of books on the shelves led three readers to launch a book drive that surprised everyone by collecting over 5,000 volumes. Meanwhile, at Woodlawn School, friends Scott Murr and Darius Knott have paired up to organize a charity golf tournament that will result in scholarships for kids to attend the popular Davidson College lake campus summer camps.  The scholarships will be given in the name of Scott’s father, G. Michael Murr, who died of cancer when Scott was five and who loved boating on the lake.

Also in the news this week is a “Midnight Madness” hoops night being hosted by Davidson Day, and a full calendar of upcoming school events, including the Nov. 15 charity concert at Davidson College that will benefit PTA-Too, a program for special needs children at Davidson Elementary. Read the full story

The fun run on the Cannon track was part of Saturday's school celebration. (Photo courtesy Cannon School)

Cannon celebrated its 40th anniversary Saturday with a day-long carnival. Check below to see who from Davidson proved a winner at eating cake.

Also in school news this week, we have reports on an upcoming meet-and-greet with the principal for the new Bailey Road high school, a festival planned for Woodlawn Friday, fund-raising results for Davidson Elementary, and sports scores. Read the full story

Terry Hall

She finds lots of parent involvement

It’s not that Terry Hall has never experienced parental involvement – in fact she just spent two years opening a new school near Atlanta where parents were excited and committed. It’s more that Davidson Elementary is a school with, well, an unusually high level of parent interest.

“I’m getting about 60 e-mails per day,” noted Ms. Hall, who began her new job as the school’s principal on July 1. “I’ve actually had days where I’ve set aside time from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. just to meet with parents. The parent involvement here is more than I’ve ever seen before.” Read the full story

Bill Strong has lots of books to read and carpentry projects to work on...but he'd rather be teaching this fall.

It’s been a long and anxious summer for teachers in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools.  The need to cut $100 million to deal with the state budget crisis has cost the public school district money for things like field trips and supplies, forced delays in building plans, and jeopardized funding for middle school athletics.  More reductions may be on the way.

Teachers and staff are bearing the brunt of cuts. The Charlotte Observer reported in July that of the 1,175 people who lost their jobs in the school district due to budget reductions, almost 57 percent were teachers.

For schools serving Davidson, these reductions have resulted in lay-off notices for at least 17, transfers for several assistant principals and a tense time of waiting to see whether a job will be available when school opens Aug. 25.

Read on for more about whose jobs were cut, who is transferring where, and how cuts are being managed by the four local CMS schools: Davidson Elementary, Davidson IB Middle, Bailey Middle and North Mecklenburg High. Read the full story

Davidson Elementary Assistant Principal Charles Copeland (at left), parent Shannon Miller and Davidson Mayor John Woods cut through greenery to officially open the school's new Learning Bridge.

Davidson Elementary School celebrated the last week of the school year with a grand opening of the school’s new “Learning Bridge,” a wooden structure designed to encourage ecological studies.

Students gathered Monday morning to celebrate the new bridge, watch the official ribbon cutting and learn about the school’s Eco Trail, a path through the woods that curls behind the school building.

“I would like for you and others around you to enter your own made-up world as you walk through this trail,” wrote 5th grader Peyton Terry in remarks read at Monday’s ceremony. “Express your imagination and let it carry you through.” Read the full story