In Focus @ GWA

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Email: info@gwa.com
Website: www.gwa.com
Phone: (678) 635-3800
Facebook: facebook.com/GeorgeWaltonAcademy/
Twitter: @georgewalton

• Summer Camps: May 31 - July 28
• Campus Closed: July 4 - 8
• Fall Sports Picture Days: July 28, August 1 & 2

Congratulations to the 79 Class of 2022 graduates and to Noah Hicks - the recipient of the 2022 Hearn Medallion! Best wishes to our grads as they head to college and pursue their dreams!

DVD’s and digital videos of baccalaureate and graduation (all grades) are available for purchase through South River Sound at http://www.southriversound.com/gwa_catalog.html

Our fifth-grade graduates know how to make an entrance! They danced into the Nicholson Center wearing handcrafted grad hats that fit their personalities. This is one of the fun traditions that the fifth-grade teachers, Mrs. Hutter, Mrs. Gunnin and Mrs. Lovett, enjoy carrying on as the fifth graders finish up their time in lower school.

Congrats to our youngest (and most adorable!) Bulldog graduates on their kindergarten graduation!

• Lower School Summer Work *this link has been updated with a new list*
• Lower School Supply Lists & Order Forms (pre-pack order deadline is June 9)

• Sixth Grade Summer Work & Supply Lists
• Seventh Grade Summer Work & Supply Lists
• Eighth Grade Summer Work & Supply Lists

• High School Summer Work
• High School Supply Lists

GWA is offering juniors and seniors an exciting Winter Term opportunities for January 2023. This trip has a STEM focus and will take students around England to see extraordinary sites related to math, technology, and science as they learn firsthand about some of the most important inventions and innovations of humankind. Please contact Suzy Quinlan or Kellie Watts for complete details.

There were so many famous people in the fifth-grade hall last week! GWA fifth graders participated in the annual Wax Museum project in which each student selected and researched the life of a famous figure in history, completed an essay, and then “became” that person. They presented their subject’s life story to parents, students, and teachers who enjoyed a day at the museum!

To help prepare our fifth graders for middle school next year, our current sixth-grade ambassadors spent time creating a presentation for them about the things that they thought were important to know for next year. The sixth graders were excited for the opportunity to share what they learned since starting middle school with the upcoming sixth graders and answered questions about homework, technology, and extracurriculars. The sixth graders took the fifth graders on a tour of the areas they will need to know for next year. Since this experience was completely student-led, it not only helped to prepare our future middle schoolers, but also gave our current sixth graders valuable leadership opportunities. We look forward to the wonderful things that will come from these Bulldogs in the future!

Six of our sixth-grade beginning band students, members of the Jr. Bulldog Band, participated in this year's District 14 First-Year Honor Band. They spent about four hours, working with two conductors and other honor band students from northeastern Georgia, to put together a concert and then performed it for a huge crowd in the East Hall High School Performing Arts Center. The students who attended this year were: Peyton Hughes, Jaxi Hicks, Cheyanne Romer, Peyton Murphy, Olivia Page, and Nolan Gray. We are super proud of young band students and of their great accomplishments!

EF (Education First) High School Exchange Year is a non-profit organization that brings volunteer host families and students from 15 different countries together for a school year. EF was established in 1979 when the U.S. wanted to increase the diplomacy and global awareness between the United States and other countries of the world. They wanted a way for other people around the world to think more favorably of the U.S., make the world a little smaller, and a way to appreciate the various cultures. EF is regulated by the Department of State and is the largest exchange program in the U.S. Over the 40+ years, EF has brought more than 100,000 exchange students to host families around the nation. We currently have three exchange students (Lisa from Japan, Alice from Italy, and Ben from Germany) attending GWA this year. They love the school, their host families, the new friends they have made, and being a part of the community. READ MORE...

Please see the individual profiles of three EF students wishing to stay with a host family for the entire school year and hopefully, attend GWA. They are all girls and come from Japan, Spain, and Norway. These students would be a great fit for our school and a great fit for a potential host family as well. Click HERE to read their profiles.

Five reasons why your gift to the Annual Loyalty Fund is vital:

1. It allows students to go on field trips by fueling up the buses.
2. It helps our athletes be more competitive by maintaining fields and courts.
3. Art students have more creative outlets when teachers can purchase needed materials.
4. Young scholars have access to research materials through digital subscriptions available to them.
5. Teachers are strengthened through professional development opportunities.

We are five weeks away from concluding our 2021-2022 Annual Loyalty Fund. If you have made your gift, thank you! If you have not, we hope you will support our students with your tax-deductible gift! To give online, click HERE.

The Walton County Health Care Foundation awarded GWA a grant to supply exercise equipment to our new Human Performance Program. GWA was able to purchase two rowing machines and two stationary air bikes and we have a vertical jump measuring device on order. This equipment had an immediate impact on our students. Coach Holly Atkinson explained some of the benefits, saying, “This equipment gives us the flexibility to meet our students' needs. Students with balance and coordination issues can safely use the rowing equipment for warm-ups, training, and improving cardiovascular fitness. We have students who have used the air bikes to return to play and maintain their cardiovascular endurance while recovering from lower-body injuries.” Because of the funding from The Walton County Health Care Foundation, GWA students are able to have a better physical education experience and develop long-term health and wellness.

GWA activities don’t stop when the school year ends! Our camps begin May 31 and run through July 25. The sign-up deadline for next week's camps is tomorrow. Check out the exciting camp offerings for Summer 2022!

Click HERE for complete details and registration. Please contact Ashley Kirkpatrick with any questions.

• 3D Design with Mr. Gasaway
• Basketball Skills Camp with Coach Lamonique and Coach Grace
• Basketball w/ Coach Reynolds
• Build the Future (3D city software) with Mr. Gasaway
• Christmas in July Camp with Mrs. Scott
• Cooking Camp with Mrs. Gervais
• Craft Camp with Mrs. Scott
• Crochet Camp with Mrs. Feinstein
• Dot and Dash Robots with Mr. Gasaway
• Draw, Paint, Create Art Hosted by The Sketch Pad
• English SAT Prep Rising 11th – 12th grades
• English SAT Prep Rising 9th – 10th grades
• Flight 2050 (Learn about aviation) with Mr. Gasaway
• Girl’s Youth Basketball with Coach Hines
• LEGO Camp with Mrs. Power
• Melty Bead Camp with Mrs. Scott
• Minecraft and Video Game Camp with Mrs. Bellah
• Mission to Mars with Mr. Gasaway
• New London Driving classes
• Outdoor Sports Camp with Ms. Shupe
• Princess Camp with Mrs. Bellah
• Reader’s Theater with Ms. Shupe
• Soccer Camp with GWA Soccer Coaches and Players
• Stay and Play with Ms. May (Offered all weeks camp is offered)
• SUMO Robot Camp with Mr. Gasaway
• Tennis Camp with Coach Chiara
• Theater Basics Camp with Ms. Gerhardt
• Wrestling Camp with Coach Sperin
• Youth Football Camp with Coach Beer
• Youth Cheer Camp

Congratulations to our proud GWA alumni and their new graduates! Pictured (left to right):

Amy Sorrells Kirby, Garret Kirby, Doug Bowick, Will Bowick, Sarah Blackstone, Ashley Carter Blackstone, Caroline Conner, Tripp Conner, Bill Jesel, Avery Jesel, Kelly McFarland Jesel, Camille Malcom, Mike Malcom, Michael Geoffroy, Mac Geoffroy, and Tara McFarland Geoffroy.

The deadline to sign up to take advantage of all opportunities is Friday, June 3. Thank you to all the GWA community businesses and organizations who have signed up already. Your partnership is a direct investment into the next generation and the lives of each of our Bulldog students.

Haven't signed up? Click HERE to view this year's Corporate Partner Brochure and visit www.gwapartners.com to get signed up! Please don't hesitate to contact Mike Elmankabady if you have any questions.