District News

Working Lands Trust, a leading 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to protecting our working farms and forests, is joining forces with Bladen County FFA to launch an initiative aimed at conserving vital agricultural lands and rural communities. In support of this endeavor, the organizations will host Farm Revival 2023, a family-friendly evening filled with food, friends, prizes, and fellowship. This cornerstone community event will generate much-needed funds for Working Lands Trust's mission to safeguard our agricultural heritage while also benefiting the Bladen County FFA.

North Carolina, who’s number one economic industry is agriculture, faces a looming threat as it stands to lose approximately 20% of its 8 million acres of farmland to development by 2040. Currently, the state ranks second in the nation for agricultural land loss, surpassed only by Texas. Recognizing the urgency of the situation, Working Lands Trust and Bladen County FFA are stepping up to protect and revitalize our farming legacy.

Mikey Fulk, Executive Director of Working Lands Trust, expressed the significance of this collaborative effort, stating, "Our mission is to safeguard our working farms and forests, preserving our agricultural heritage for future generations. Farm Revival 2023 is an opportunity for communities to come together, supporting both our cause and the Bladen County FFA in nurturing the next generation of farmers. Together, we can make a lasting impact."

Reva Orr, West Bladen FFA Advisor, emphasized the importance of community support, saying, "Events like Farm Revival 2023 provide a platform for us to not only raise funds but also build relationships within the Bladen County agricultural community. These funds will empower our FFA chapters to participate in
essential Career Development Events (CDEs) and Supervised Agricultural Experiences (SAE), equipping
our students with the skills they need for a successful future in agriculture."

Dr. Jason Atkinson, Bladen County Superintendent, expressed his enthusiasm for the partnership, stating, "We are proud to support this joint initiative between Working Lands Trust and Bladen County FFA. By investing in our agricultural youth and preserving our working lands, we are ensuring the prosperity of our rural communities for years to come."

Farm Revival 2023 will take place on October 14, 2023 at Cape Fear Winery and Vineyards. Attendees can
look forward to an evening of delicious food, exciting raffle and auction prizes, engaging conversations, and
inspiring stories that highlight the importance of preserving our agricultural heritage. All proceeds from the
event will directly benefit Working Lands Trust's conservation efforts and the Bladen County FFA's vital
programs.

For more information about Farm Revival 2023 or to inquire about sponsorship opportunities, please
contact Reva Orr, West Bladen FFA Advisor, at 910-885-2505 or rjorr@bladen.k12.nc.us.

About Working Lands Trust:
Working Lands Trust is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to protecting and preserving working
farms and forests. By collaborating with communities, landowners, and partners, Working Lands Trust
strives to safeguard our agricultural heritage for future generations.

About Bladen County FFA:
Bladen County FFA aims to promote premier leadership, personal growth, and career success for its
members through agricultural education.

"Love makes your soul crawl out of its hiding place."  Zora Neale Hurston.  According to a coworker, “Mrs. Bridgette White realizes that all people deserve to "be loved on".  Because of this, she has a knack for making our CTE teachers, CTE students, and her co-workers come out of their shell and become more confident in themselves.”

Mrs. Bridgette White was chosen as the 2022-2023 Regional CTE (Career and Technical Education) Curriculum and Instructional Management (CIMC) of the Year for the Sandhills Region.  Part of Mrs. White’s job duties include:

• CTE Curriculum Management

• CTE Instructional Support

• CTE Data Validation

“The Curriculum and Instructional Management Coordinator (CIMC) provides support to CTE teachers and support staff within the local public school unit to implement instructional processes and improve student outcomes to ensure the success of students in a high skill, high wage, or high demand global economy.”

Mrs. White graduated from East Bladen High School and has her Bachelor's Degree in Business Administration, and her Master’s Degree in Business Education.  She taught CTE Business at Tar Heel Middle School and served as CTE Special Populations Coordinator at East Bladen High School.

Pictured Left to Right: Trey Michael, State CTE Director; Bridgette White, Bladen County Schools CIMC; Suzanne Lujan, Sandhills Region CTE Coordinator.

Bladen County students joined students across the state with overall gains during the 2022-2023 school year. 

State test results from the 2022-2023 school year presented to the State Board of Education reveal that students in Bladen County continue to recover from learning loss due to the Covid pandemic.

“We are incredibly proud of the growth our students have made,” said BCS Director of Accountability and Title 1, Brendan McCarthy. Overall, 75% of Bladen County schools met or exceeded growth. 

The following schools met growth:

• Bladen Lakes Primary School

• Elizabethtown Primary School

• Elizabethtown Middle School
   

The following schools exceeded growth:

• Bladenboro Primary School

• Dublin Primary School

• Bladenboro Middle School

• Bladen Early College High School

• East Bladen High School

• West Bladen High School
   

“While the state’s current accountability model leaves much room for improvement, I’m grateful the efforts of our students, teachers, staff, and administrators are beginning to be reflected in the data,” said BCS Superintendent Dr. Jason Atkinson.

Tammy Howard, senior director of accountability and testing for the N.C. Department of Public Instruction shared, “As we look at the data, the school performance grades and other information from the 2022-23 school year, it’s very important to note that while it’s informative, it is limited, and it is discouraged to make comparisons to 2018-19, which is prior to the pandemic.” She said 2018-19 is provided as a reference point only, not for the purpose of drawing linear comparisons.

The A-F school performance grades that schools received for 2021-22 and in 2022-23 were affected by the formula used to determine those grades because student performance on the state tests far outweighs the credit schools earn for the progress students make on the same tests from one year to the next. Eighty percent of the grade is for the percentage of tests earning a score of at least grade-level proficient; 20 percent is for growth, measured by a statistical model that compares each student’s predicted test score, based on past performance, against his or her actual result.

Even as most schools achieved at least expected growth, the A-F performance grades of many schools were depressed by lower-than-usual percentages of students earning a score of grade-level proficient. With the weighting of 80 percent on the test scores and other achievement data, the school performance grades have shifted downward, consistent with the impact of the pandemic on test scores. For the 2022-23 school year, the percentage of schools with a grade of D or F decreased to 35.4% from 42.3% in 2021-22 but remained higher than the 21.8% in 2018-19.

McCarthy, echoes Atkinson and Howard regarding the current accountability model, “as we celebrate the achievements of our students, staff and schools, its critical to acknowledge that, the 80/20 model is not an accurate representation of the learning that happens daily in our schools.”  

For the 22-23 school year, the overall growth achieved by Bladen County Schools was tremendous—Elizabethtown Middle School saw a 22.9% increase in growth and an 8.3% increase in achievement [test scores] leaving the school just 4 points shy of moving from an F to a D. However, if the state’s accountability model was 70/30 or 50/50, Elizabethtown Middle School would have an improved performance grade with wide margins.
 

As the 2023-2024 school year gets underway, Bladen County Schools will continue to advocate for accountability reform while maintaining its focus on school improvement and strengthening partnerships with school families and communities to collaboratively support student growth.

 

NC DPI Press Release

 

UNC Health will partner with Bladen County Schools to expand much-needed behavioral health care for children in the rural county. The pilot project is supported by funding from the Duke Endowment.

The school-based treatment model will add therapists and open virtual care centers in all Bladen County schools. If potential needs are identified, parents can opt to have their children evaluated and treated in the schools. The virtual care centers will allow telehealth visits with UNC child and adolescent psychiatrists if needed. The project is expected to begin later in the Fall semester and treat hundreds of children a year for issues such as depression, anxiety, and more.

“Youth across our state are currently experiencing a behavioral health crisis, and a lack of resources in rural areas is compounding the challenges,” said Dr. Mike Steiner, Pediatrician in Chief at UNC Children’s. “We are optimistic that this project presents a terrific opportunity to turn the tide and improve treatment for behavioral health conditions. We believe this model can be sustainable and spread to other school districts in North Carolina and beyond.”

Bladen County is rural and diverse, with no registered child and adolescent psychiatrists, adolescent medicine specialists or developmental/behavioral specialists. A majority of children are currently going outside of the county for primary and specialty care.

“We are pleased to work with UNC Health on this project, which will improve the care available for our school-aged children,” said Dr. Jason Atkinson, Superintendent, Bladen County School District. “By addressing behavioral health issues in an innovative way, we will decrease school absenteeism and improve school performance.”

Community Care of Lower Cape Fear (CCLCF) will also play an important role in the care provided. They will provide pharmacy expertise and management, and also supply a community health worker who will partner with social workers in the school to help families connect to community supports.  CCLCF is an independent non-profit that has been improving health in southeastern North Carolina for more than 20 years.

“This partnership is a unique chance to expand the care and treatment of kids across Bladen County,” said Megan Rose, Deputy Director and Network Pharmacist with Community Care of Lower Cape Fear.

UNC Health is helping lead other efforts across the state to improve school-based behavioral health care. Other examples include:

·       IMPACTT-NC: IMProving Adolescent and Child Health Through Telepsychiatry in NC

·       CATCH-Johnston: Community Access for Teen and Child behavioral Health in Johnston County

·       Part of the Carolina School-Based Telehealth Learning Collaborative

The NCDMV- Bladen County Customer Contact Center held its 6th Annual Back to School Supply Drive from July 24, 2023– August 4, 2023.

The total items collected among the call center were over 4,000 back-to-school supplies.

Over the years, the Bladen County Customer Contact Center has collected on average 12 boxes (copy paper size) of supplies each year. Items collected for the supply drive were spiral notebooks, composition books, pens, pencils, pencil boxes, crayons, colored pencils, markers, erasers, pocket folders, tissue boxes, hand sanitizers, sanitizing wipes, and backpacks.  In 2019, 2020, 2021, and 2022 school supplies were also donated to the Bladen County Board of Education to ensure students and teachers have what they need for an excellent academic school year. 

Following this year's drive, 39 boxes of back-to-school supplies were delivered to the Bladen County Board of Education.

Items collected were the highest when compared to prior years as the smallest donations will make the biggest difference this school year.

Tomorrow, Thursday, August 24 is Open House for our traditional schools. 

We are excited to announce that returning student registration is now online. This means, completing your student's beginning of the year paperwork just got easier!

Parents and guardians, please bring a photo ID to open house, to receive the unique code needed to complete the registration process.

We look forward to seeing our students and their families tomorrow, Thursday, August 24 for Open House!

 

Bladen County Schools Device Deployment Schedule 

BECHS

Freshman - August 10 - 6:00-8:00 PM
Upperclassman - August 14 - 9 AM - 2:00 PM

EBHS and WBHS

August 22 - 2:00 PM - 7:00 PM 
August 24 - 2:00 PM - 7:00 PM

Students at Dublin Primary School (DPS) will have plenty to read over their summer break thanks to Book Harvest, an organization based in Durham, NC.

Susie Holland, a retired school librarian and former Dublin Primary School classroom teacher, was instrumental in making this program possible. Knowing first-hand how critical reading is to a student’s education, Holland applied for a $500 grant with Book Harvest to support the Books on Break Program at DPS. Holland was thrilled when her grant application was approved, but then much to her surprise, Book Harvest decided to fund the entire program for DPS—every student at the school would get to choose ten books to take home and keep.

For Holland, the experience brought back a flood of memories as she saw the joy on the students faces as they carefully selected what books they would take home. Marc Edge, Principal at DPS, couldn’t agree more, “a highlight of this experience was the opportunity our students had to choose books that interest them. If students have access to books they truly want to read, we can continue to improve their reading skills and inspire them to be readers for life!”

Book Harvest set up at the school for two days, with hundreds of books available for students to choose from—spanning all reading levels and covering a variety interests.

Ann Brown, Chief Officer of Operations and Administrative Services for Bladen County Schools was among 37 leaders from across the state to graduate from the seventh cohort of the North Carolina School Superintendents' Association (NCSSA) Aspiring Superintendents Program. 

“The program is designed to support the growth, expansion and enhancement of school and district leaders in the leadership positions they currently occupy while providing high-quality professional development to increase their knowledge base about the skills and dispositions needed by future superintendents,” said Jack Hoke, Executive Director of the North Carolina School Superintendents' Association.

The North Carolina Aspiring Superintendents’ Program is a customized leadership development program targeting selected district leaders who have demonstrated outstanding success in their administrative roles and who aspire to the superintendency in North Carolina. Offered through the North Carolina School Superintendents’ Association and the North Carolina Alliance for School Leadership Development, the Aspiring Superintendents’ Program seeks to prepare future superintendents by enhancing their technical skills, including skills for “surviving” in the superintendency, along contemporary personal leadership and development skills. In addition to multiple face-to-face leadership development sessions, an Executive Coaching component is embedded in the program.

Hoke said of Brown, “Ms. Brown developed a strong network of school and district leaders to consult with, and she contributed to the discussions on emerging issues and innovative practices occurring within Bladen County Schools.”

When asked about her experience, Brown shared she was grateful for the opportunity. “Jack [Hoke] and the sessions he facilitated provided an immeasurable wealth of knowledge that will not only be essential as I advance in my career but will [perhaps more importantly] allow me to be more effective in my current capacity and better serve Bladen County Schools. The opportunity to engage in lively discussions with my cohort and superintendents from around the state provided an in-depth look at the issues superintendents and school districts are currently facing and response options,” Brown elaborated. “Completing the program as a cohort allowed me to foster a network of colleagues I know I can reach out to at any time.”

For more information about the North Carolina School Superintendents’ Association visit https://www.ncssa.net/. 

Friends and family gathered on Friday, June 2, 2023, to celebrate the graduates from Bladen Early College High School.

Their ceremony was full of pomp and circumstance—beginning with the ceremonial processional and thoughtful invocation led by graduating senior, Trinity Bedsole. The evening included several speakers—Salutatorian Jessica Garcia-Bastida, Superintendent Dr. Jason Atkinson, Mr. Christopher Carroll, who previously taught at Bladen Early College High School, and Valedictorian Daniel Arellano. Early College Principal Mrs. Haley Cheshire presented the diplomas and led the class in the “turning of the tassels”.

Congratulations to the graduating class from Bladen Early College—

Noe Albarran

Daniel Arellano

Haleigh Atkinson

Jamae Atkinson

Bradan Austin

Trinity Bedsole

Raegan Blackmon

Keana Dowless

Christopher Drew

Joah Feight

Noah Feight

Jessica Garcia-Bastida

Stacey Gomez

Abbygail Gonzalez

Elijah Goree

Ricardo Gutierrez

Arnterio Hooper

Brandon Hunt

Kylen Kraus

Ayana Lacewell

Romalda Ordaz

Luz Ramos

Landyn Richards

Zikazha Riggins

Adriana Spencer

Jacob Stewart

Stephanie Vasquez-Murillo

Tra’Nasia Washington