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DECHS Digest Volume 1, Issue 2
Where excellence is the norm!
October 2013
Fall is definitely in the air, and October has been filled with spirit Fridays and college door decorating. Students are
working hard in their high school and college courses, and we will soon celebrate students who were on the honor roll
for the first nine weeks. Please continue to support your students at home. Ask questions about what is going on in
their classes – both high school and college. Your support is critical to their success. As a staff, we are continuing to
seek ways to involve and engage parents in our school. If you have ideas or would like to volunteer, please let us know. We would be delighted to have you visit us at
DECHS! Please feel free to contact me at [email protected] or at (910) 296-1136.
Nicole Murray Lead Teacher/Admininstrator
Murray’s Message 10/31 – JSCC Fall Festival
11/4 – School Improvement Team
Meeting, 3:30 p.m.
11/5 – Progress Reports
11/6 – Early Release for Students
11/11 – Veteran’s Day Holiday
11/15 – Picture Make-Up Day
11/26 – Progress Reports
11/27 – Early Release for Students
11/28-29 – Thanksgiving Holidays
Important Dates
Students of the Month
September – Jocelyn Hunt
September Rotary – Morgan Whitman
October Rotary – Anikkia Williams
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“Vivamus porta est sed est.”
Mrs. Ericka Fountain – Math I & II [email protected]
Mrs. Katelyn Ready – Math III & IV [email protected]
Math I & II In Math 2 we have just completed a unit on geometric transformations. The name of the unit is "Can you make Shrek dance?" In class
we watched clips from the making of Shrek so the students could see how animation is
created using geometric transformations. The unit project is for the students to create a Shrek character using rectangles and circles and use transformations to make Shrek "dance" on the page. We have also made spiders from circles and line-line transformations that are displayed in the hallway. Our next unit is on Trigonometry and the students will build an inclinometer and
measure the height of buildings, trees and flagpoles around JSCC campus.
Image courtesy of www.basd.net
Math III Last week in Integrated Math III, we learned how to factor polynomials, set polynomials equal to zero, how to write polynomials in
standard form, how to find the maximum and minimum points, and how to divide using synthetic and long division. We have also
talked about profit, revenue and expenses, for businesses. We completed a scavenger hunt
by dividing polynomials. Written by Sergio Madera, Grade 10
Science Department Mrs. Hannah Padilla – Engineering the Future
[email protected] Ms. Anne Pittman – Biology, APES
Image courtesy of sunyrockland.edu
Biology The tenth graders in Biology have been studying
diabetes, mitosis, meiosis, and lastly, genetics. They have done labs in which they have made
“Reebops” which is part of a lesson on “Genetics”. They have also been learning about how diabetes
ties in with the topics they are studying. Students even had the great pleasure to have Mrs. Vickie Reed, our bookkeeper, to come and teach the nutrition lesson to them. Also, Ms. Pittman did an
externship at Vidant Duplin Hospital over the summer as part of the Kenan Fellows Program. Her project is to create lessons that connect diabetes
to the NC Biology curriculum. In addition to learning about diabetes in class, each student
interviewed someone with diabetes in the community. They are now actively working on the
diabetes project for Biology class this semester which includes research and presentations in class
as well as at an elementary school, creating an educational product (game, app, video, etc.), and creating a tri-fold display to be exhibited in
the community.
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AP Environmental Science APES students gathered around a lab station to
view adsorption of purple “Kool-Aid” by different soil types, watching as cations strip the color from
the accumulated water. Sounds incredibly fun right? October was an exciting time for
environmental science. Different kinds of agriculture practices, the science behind
groundwater and runoff, and an in-depth look at plate tectonic movement were analyzed by
students to gain the knowledge about how we all interact in this closed system we call Earth. The
major discussion in class is about sustainability, “a means of configuring civilization and human activity so that society, its members and its
economies are able to meet their needs and express their greatest potential in the present, while
preserving biodiversity and natural ecosystems, planning and acting for the ability to maintain these ideals for future generations” (Friedland,
Relyea and Courard-Hauri, 2012). What if DECHS becomes the first majorly sustainable school in
Duplin County? Every classroom could grow their own produce, or herbs, to have an exciting “zest” added to their dreary lunch. It is safe to say we all need to learn how to treat the environment with more care. This class is just opening the door; it is
our job to take the steps into this new world. Written by Cole Smith, Grade 12
Engineering the Future Over the past few weeks, we’ve been studying motion in Engineering the Future. We ended the unit by building cars from mousetraps. Here are
some accounts from students!
It was exciting doing this project, even though I burned myself with the hot glue a couple of times. And, I snapped my fingers in the mousetrap. I went through a lot of things trying to get this car to work because my first attempt didn’t roll at all. So I had to take everything off the mousetrap and rethink
the design for my car. -Alejandra Zambrano
Testing our mousetrap cars was very exciting. Seeing the other designs was very interesting. My car went approximately 3.5 meters. I was slightly
disappointed with this outcome because at home, my car went about 18ft, or a little over 5 meters. I feel that my car would have gone farther if the
design was different. However, this project tested our imagination and creativity. I really enjoyed this project and think that it made us think “outside the box,” which was very interesting. -Michaela Sandlin
I enjoyed this project a lot. Just the thought of making something move by the power of a mousetrap makes me feel a great sense of
accomplishment. The test was my most favorite part because my car exceeded the five meters
that were required. However, building the car was a whole other story. Building was filled with hours of frustration. But in the end, my car satisfied me and I felt so successful. I would love to do something like
this again. -Tanner Williams
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Image courtesy of www.spu.edu
English II English 2 is completing their unit on Asian
literature very soon. They are currently working on analyzing Asian poetry. Students will be
moving into their unit on Africa and Middle East where they will explore topics such as satire,
Nigerian literature, and ancient texts.
Freshman Seminar Freshman Seminar is studying the importance of global education. Currently, they are digging
deep into a country and determining whether or not that country's government, education, and economic systems are sustainable. Students will also be conducting a mock UN council in which they have representatives of countries. We will
also be moving into college and career exploration soon.
English IV
Students in Ms. Hardison's Honors English IV class have been working exceptionally hard! Ms.
Hardison is pleased to report that every single student in English IV earned at least one "A" on
their weekly grammar quizzes for over an 8 week period. In addition to grammar, students have studied Lorraine Hansberry's play, A Raisin in the Sun; Kate Chopin's short story, "Desiree's Baby;" Mary Shelley's Gothic novel, Frankenstein; and
various examples of multicultural literature. Please continue to encourage students to keep
up the great work!
Ms. Brittani Mallard – English II, Seminar [email protected]
Ms. Monet Hardison – English IV, Seminar [email protected]
Mr. Christopher Blake – Civics, US History [email protected]
Civics Civics and Economics is going very well. We
looked at two different renditions of the story of The Three Little Pigs to study bias - particularly media
bias. I would not have expected have read a fairy tale in Civics, but it related perfectly to our lesson.
Other than that, Mr. Blake tries to keep it entertaining. If we aren’t reading something or
working on interesting projects, we are watching videos or listening to him talk about examples. A couple of his examples come from personal life,
and it makes what we’re learning about a bit more realistic. I can even relate just a bit to his examples,
which pushes my learning further. Written by Matthew Morgan, Grade 11
Image courtesy of www.gorhamschools.org
YEARBOOK We have lowered the price of our yearbook to
$35.00!! We will be offering an early bird special – if you purchase your book before January 1st the price will be $30.00. We are excited to be able
offer online sales this year, as well as an installment option. Please help to show your support of your student and their life at Duplin Early College High
School with a personal ad in the 2013-14 Yearbook. If your son or daughter is graduating,
you have an option to buy a “Graduate Ad” in this year’s yearbook. However, if your son or daughter
is not graduating, you are still able to place a special message to your child in the ad section. Ads are available in a variety of sizes and prices.
Be on the lookout for more information about ads soon. Books and Ads are easy to order, too: • Buy online at yearbookforever.com and
enter Duplin Early College HS. • Send email requests to
[email protected] • Bring/send photos and text with this order
form and payment to the front office or room 102.
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Mrs. Katie Kremer, Counselor [email protected]
October has been a busy month in the counseling center. Sophomores took both the ACT Plan and the PSAT. These tests project student scores for the ACT and SAT which are required for admission to 4 year colleges and universities. As part of the buildup to this testing, I talked to the students about what to expect on these tests and what useful data the scores provide. This truly starts our serious conversations about college as I meet with each sophomore individually once scores come back in December. These meetings focus on how well their dream schools match up with where they are currently testing and how we can bridge any existing gap between where they are and where they want to be.
Also, tentative schedules for the spring semester are completed. If you did not get a chance to meet with us regarding schedules and degree progress, it is not too late! All upperclassmen parents should take advantage of the opportunity to meet with our college liaison at least once a year to view their student’s progress toward his/her degree.
College Application Week is November 12-15. We will have special events at school to promote college awareness and encourage graduating students to fill out applications to at least one of the schools that have waived their application fees. That’s right – many schools’ applications are FREE that week only!
Finally, if you would like to volunteer to come in and speak to a small group of students about your career or college, please call or email me, and we will make it happen.
Resources:
CFNC.org – apply for colleges and scholarships
Fastweb.com – search for scholarships
sat.collegeboard.org – register for the SAT
www.actstudent.org - register for the ACT
Upcoming Events:
Nov. 2 – SAT Test date
Nov. 12-15 – College Application Week
Dec. 7 – SAT Test date
Dec. 14 - ACT Test date
Student Spotlight
DECHS Senior Jacob Sanchez was recently in the JSCC spotlight. In a classroom of 21, Sanchez, at the age of
18, is the youngest student in the JSCC Electrical/Electronics Program taught by instructor Dennis
Sutton. “I’m a visual learner, a hands-on learner” said Sanchez, “and this type of course works well for me.”
Sanchez manages his time well, balancing a busy course schedule with a busy work schedule as well, working
part-time in web media.
“As his college advisor, I’m very proud of him and his
accomplishments. I know he will have great things in his future,” commented JSCC Early College Liaison Kim
Holmes.
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HEARDs COLLEGE CHALLENGE During the month of October, HEARDs focused on college adoptions and decorated classroom doors to
reflect their favorite schools. The competition was fierce, and creativity abounded in the building. Mavericks are definitely COLLEGE BOUND!
CONGRATULATIONS to Mrs. Ready’s HEARD for their winning representation of East Carolina University!
NC State and UNC-Chapel Hill tied for 2nd place.
Western Carolina University came in 3rd place.
Thanks to all the HEARDs for participating and giving DECHS a real college atmosphere.
