Dragons Roar: 'We're Number One!'

  • dragons

    You wouldn't expect anything less from a Creative Arts & Science school celebrating its designation as the nation's top magnet school.

    And on Friday, May 13, Douglas Magnet Elementary School students, teachers, staff and parents delivered.

    They celebrated with singing, chanting and dancing. And, being the creative school that they are ... they painted.

    hallway Best in the Nation among all grade levels

    Douglas was named the best in the nation among all grade levels by the Magnet Schools of America at the organization's annual conference in Miami on May 6. Wiley Magnet Elementary was named best in the elementary grade level nationally.

    Douglas received the Ronald P. Simpson Distinguished Merit Award, named for a pioneer in magnet programs. This is the highest honor bestowed by the MSA. The school received a $5,000 award for this recognition. This same award was given to Combs Elementary in 2014.

    One week later, the Douglas students, faculty, staff and parents held a schoolwide celebration. It included two assemblies (the gym is too small to hold all 700 students plus dozens of teachers and visitors at once).

    Principal Derek Burns congratulated all in attendance for their dedication to excellence, resulting in landing the Number One spot among 3,400 magnet schools across the United States.

    Between assemblies, students and staff spilled into hallways and classrooms to paint ceiling tiles. A total of 300 will be installed across the school.

    Pride among students, staff, parents and extended community

    Anthony Wiencek is a parent of a kindergartner and second-grader at Douglas and lives in the neighborhood close enough where he can walk his children to school. Wiencek said he is proud of the school's improvement over the last several years, and of this most recent accomplishment.

    When asked what makes the school so great, Wiencek responded, "The high energy, the teachers want to be here, the students want to come to school and it's a great community. We have great teachers, great supervision and just great energy all the way around."

    Principal Burns said that the entire community has contributed to the school's success. From students to teachers to staff, to parents and community supporters.

    "It's so exciting for me to see the community get this award," said Burns."That brings me more joy than anything. Being the principal of a school that can provide the type of education we're giving these kids, and then be recognized for what we're doing, it's just an amazing feeling."

     Look in on the celebration below!

     


  • About Douglas Magnet

    Douglas Elementary is a Creative Arts and Science Magnet School.  This means that the arts and sciences are woven into the fabric of instruction.  The Douglas faculty and staff believe that all children are smart in many different ways and should be exposed to a variety of integrated activities and ways of learning.  So instead of electives, the school weaves together the arts, science and other state-mandated curriculum to create unique, interdisciplinary learning experiences for all students.

    Students also receive weekly instruction in creative movement, drama, visual arts, music, science and PE provided by instructors certified in these areas. These specialists and the classroom teachers regularly plan together to integrate the arts and science curricula with the skills and concepts being taught in each classroom.  

    This approach creates a rich, connected learning environment for Douglas students. Students are actively engaged, teachers are enjoying teaching, and there’s a "hum" throughout the building. 

    Douglas is part of the A+ Schools Program at the North Carolina Arts Council. A+ Schools integrate the arts into all subjects, and students are exposed to all of the art forms (drama, dance, music, visual arts and creative writing). 

    The A+ Schools Program is a whole-school reform model that views the arts as fundamental to teaching and learning in all subjects. A+ Schools combine interdisciplinary teaching and daily arts instruction, offering children opportunities to develop creative, innovative ways of thinking, learning and showing what they know.  In A+ Schools, teaching the state’s mandated curriculum involves a collaborative, many-disciplined approach, with the arts continuously woven into every aspect of a child’s learning.