Alton C. Crews Middle School is a middle school in the Brookwood Cluster of Gwinnett County, Georgia. Dr. Gene Taylor is the school principal. Gwinnett County is a county located in the U.S. state of Georgia. ...

Founded in 1996, Alton C. Crews has a motto "Building a Tradition of Excellence". Their mascot is the bronco, matching Brookwood High School and Brookwood Elementary School's mascot. The school is named after Dr. Alton C. Crews (1924-1996), a 13-year former superintendent of Gwinnett County Public Schools (1977-1989).^[1] A motto (from Italian) is a phrase or a short list of words meant formally to describe the general motivation or intention of an entity, social group, or organization. ... Brookwood High School is a public high school for students in Grades 9-12. ...

With student population rising every year, the addition of trailers has been constant. A new portion of school was currently under construction starting from December 18, 2006 and is expected to be completed in 2007/2008. There will be a total of 14 classrooms- 10 regular education classrooms and 4 for resource. New renovations, as well as a new computer lab will be added in (tentatively) August, 2007. As of 2005 the school had more than 1,000 students.

In 2002 or 2003, after a tour of the technology laboratory at the school, the education minister for Curaçao invited Janet Blanchette, a Crews teacher, to visit that country and help train their teachers, since that country's school system was in the middle of a technology upgrade.^[2] For other uses, see Curaçao (disambiguation). ...

Awards and recognition

Most recent recognition

In the 2005-2006 school year, Crews "outperformed every middle school in the Gwinnett County Public Schools system in 14 of the 15 areas measured in the state's Criterion-Referenced Competency Tests," and the school was the only one in the district to achieve a 100 percent passing rate. On the math subtest, the school achieved a 99 percent passing rate. according to the "Accountability Report" published by the school system.^[3] Gwinnett County Public Schools is a school district operating in Gwinnett County, Georgia, USA. There are 106 schools in this district, at least eighteen of which are high schools, and the district was responsible for approximately 142,000 K12 students in 2005/6. ...

According to the school district, Crews' good test scores are "directly related to the culture of collaboration and professional learning among Crews Middle teachers." The 2006-2007 "Accountability Report" described the collaboration:^[3]

"Teachers met weekly to examine common assessments, review instructional strengths and students' needs, and discuss and implement research-based instructional strategies. Professional learning emphasized the application of researched-based instructional strategies. These weekly meetings have proven beneficial."

Intel Schools of Distinction Award

In August 2006, the school won one of 16 "Intel and Scholastic Schools of Distinction Awards" recognized across the United States. The annual awards program honors schools for "implementing innovative and replicable programs that support positive educational outcomes and impact student achievement". Crews won its award for professional development.^[4] According to the awards Web site, "Through leadership training, peer coaching, and mentoring opportunities, Alton C. Crews Middle School in Lawrenceville, GA, makes professional development a top priority. Everyone participates in the voluntary program, and creates a culture of collaboration."^[5] The Intel® Schools of Distinction Awards is a national education awards program sponsored by the Intel Corporation that recognizes K-12 schools in the United States that have demonstrated excellence in implementing innovative, replicable programs supporting positive educational outcomes in the areas of math and science achievement based on the...

Along with $10,000 in award money, the school received $250,000 in "instructional prizes".^[3] The school used the money to buy "SmartBoards" which are "marker boards" something like a traditional chalk board, but which interact with computers, giving teachers the ability "to save what is written on the board or project images from a computer file"; and "Student Response Systems", which "allow students to enter their answers to questions into a handheld controller that sends the answer to a computer," according to The Gwinnett Daily Post. With the Student Response Systems, kids punch in answers in Algebra quizzes, allowing the teacher to see instantly how well they understand a concept. Intel gave the school three SmartBoards, and the school bought 10 more with the $10,000 award money.^[6]

Georgia "Pay for Performance" award

In January 2004, the school was one of 68 across the state which received award grants from the Georgia Department of Education in return for meeting achievement goals and effectively collaborating as a faculty. The school was awarded $130,456 for performance in the 2002-2003 school year.^[7]

Academic programs

In 2005, the school began offering Latin language classes, and out of 445 students in the eighth grade, 104 elected to take the course.^[8]. Latin is still offered at the school.^[9]

At Crews, "Connections" classes (sometimes called specials in other schools) are extra classes which still make up part of a student's academic grade. Three Connections classes are electives, and they are all musical connections which are Band, Orchestra, and Chorus.

"Probe" classes are advanced courses in certain subjects: language arts, math, social studies, and science.

In "inclusion classes," for one period a day, a special education teacher and the regular education teacher "team teach" the same class, in order for special education students (as well as the regular students) to get more attention. Inclusion classes are taught in social studies, math, language arts, and mainly science (since special education teachers, who can teach the other three primary subjects on their own, cannot teach science in each grade level). There are no inclusion connections classes.

Music programs

Chorus

Chorus began at Crews in 1997, but due to budget cuts, chorus was lifted from the Connections program. In 2005, a new chorus teacher at Crews brought the program back. They have been very successful, such as the 6th grade chorus performing in combination with the 6th grade band and orchestra, and presenting a 10th anniversary concert on May 1st, 2007 for Crews` 10th Anniversary Dedication. They have won numerous awards from GMEA for superior ratings. Many of the students go on to sing with the award winning Brookwood High School Choruses!! Many singers also participate in community choirs such as The Atlanta Youth Choir and Gwinnett Young Singers and their church choirs.

Band

The band has been in existence for 10 years. Memorable moments include pieing the band director and the school principal in the face at the annual Rock-A-Thon (an annual fundraiser) and the Lock-In; and performing at UGA, the award winning Bronco Marching Band. Many of the students continue taking band after the 6th grade connections orientation, either by going on to orchestra, or continuing in the regular connections spiral. Many of the band students go on to march in the Brookwood High School Bronco Marching Band and Concert Bands, and Honors Orchestra (band and string students combined).

Orchestra

The Orchestra has won numerous awards, performing at UGA, GMEA festivals, and the Governor's Mansion! They also have lots of fun during the year, such as the lock-in and memorable music days during class! Many of the students go on to play with the award winning Brookwood High School Orchestras, and Honors Orchestra (band and strings students combined)

Musical theatre

A musical is put on every year at Crews, usually around March to May.

• 2004 - "The Music Man, jr."
• 2005 - "Once On This Island, jr."
• 2006 - "Schoolhouse Rock Live!"
• 2007 - "Broncos on Broadway: 100 Years of Broadway"

2004's "The Music Man, jr." was unique among others because a fourth grader who didn't go to Crews played Winthrop, the little boy with a lisp. Winthrop Paroo is the name of a character in The Music Man. ...

2007 is a unique year because the play has been changed three times. The original play was going to be Into the Woods. They also considered doing High School Musical late in the 05-06 schoolyear, however, this didn't go far. It is now confirmed to be a musical revue based on 100 Years of Broadway, called Broncos on Broadway. Into the Woods is an award-winning musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by James Lapine. ... High School Musical is a made-for-TV musical. ...

Crews News

Since 2005, Crews Middle School's announcements are made on air. The Crews News is the news show shown every morning. Since the host of "Ask Kimmy" graduated from Crews, it is unknown if she will be replaced or the show will be scratched altogether. It is also unknown if "Entertainment With Elliott", "Ms. Askew's Awesome Book Talks", or "The Weekend Weather", though "Entertainment" and "Weather" are likely to return.

References

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External links

• Official site
• Information on the school from the Georgia Department of Education
• State "Report Card" for the school, 2005-2006 school year