James F. Byrnes Freshman Academy

100 Rowe Street, Duncan, SC

District Five Schools: Every Child - Every Day!

I am very pleased to welcome you all to the James F. Byrnes Freshman Academy. I am Todd Hardy, Principal of this fine school. Our mission is to provide the fundamental steps for successful transition into high school and encourage life-long learning by maximizing student potential through a variety of educational opportunities to meet the needs of all students presented in a culturally positive, emotionally safe, and physically secure environment. Since the formation of our school in 2005, we have seen tremendous success. Our End of Course test scores have been above state average in all three areas that we test, which are Algebra 1, English 1, and Physical Science. We have shown gains in student attendance, the number of first time 9th graders who are promoted to the 10th grade has risen, and we have had no dropouts for two consecutive years.

We are eager to continue our success in the 08-09 school year. We are piloting gender specific classes in the area of Algebra 1 this year. These classes were filled on a sign in basis, in order to offer our parents a choice in how we serve your children. Our goal in offering this option is to help improve student achievement and improve student discipline.

I would like to invite our parents and community to take part in helping our school be the best that it can be. Thank you all for support. GO REBELS!!!!

November/December 2007

    As the holiday season is fast approaching, so is the end of the semester. I would like to share some important dates with you in order to help our students finish strong. We are offering Saturday morning recapture for those students who are in danger of not receiving credit for classes due to attendance issues. These recapture dates are December 8 and 15, 2007.

    Our end of course tests for Algebra 1, English 1, and Physical Science are scheduled for December 17-19 and will count as 20% of the student’s final grade in that class.

    We have scheduled our Open House for the second semester for January 10 from 6:30-7:30P.M. This will be your opportunity to meet your child’s teachers for the second semester. Also, be reminded that January 11, 2008 is a half day for students because it marks the change in semesters. Please keep these dates in mind. I would like to wish each of you a safe and happy holiday season.

Sincerely,
Todd E. Hardy Sr., Principal

As we approach the end of the first 45 days of school, there are several items that I would like to remind our students and parents about. We are on a 4x4 block schedule, which means that the end of our first quarter is the midway point for our first semester classes. This means that our students have 1 more quarter to make sure that their grades are where they need to be.
I would also like to remind you of our attendance policy. In accordance with Section 59-65-10, our students are not permitted to miss more than 5 school days from a semester long class. We are off to a great start and want to continue to push our students toward success. With your support I feel that we can help our students achieve their goals.

Todd E. Hardy, Sr.
Principal

I would like to say thank you to the entire District Five community for your support and encouragement. We have had a great start to our school year! Our students have done a tremendous job in adjusting to life at the Academy. As I walk through the halls and into the classrooms I see a great deal of excitement. As I talk with each member of the Freshman Academy family I see the enthusiasm about the teaching and learning process. I am looking forward to an outstanding year and to many major accomplishments from both our students and our faculty.

It is with great excitement and enthusiasm that I welcome each of you to the James F. Byrnes Freshman Academy! Our primary focus at the Academy is to ease the transition from middle school to high school, while raising student achievement. Our students will enjoy the benefits of interdisciplinary teaming, small communities of learning, and curriculum focused on addressing the needs of freshman students. We look forward to serving your educational needs for the 2007-2008 school year. If you have any questions, please feel free to call us at (864) 949-2320.