• John Kopicki

    Greetings!

    The month of January certainly has presented its share of challenges – from winter weather causing us to adjust the academic calendar to staffing issues as we deal with significant numbers of teachers and staff absences due to COVID-19 and quarantines. To help alleviate some of the burden schools are feeling due to the staffing issues, my leadership team created District Office Instructional Support Teams, which provide classroom instruction and support for our teachers when schools have unmet substitute needs.

    We appreciate and value our teachers and all of our employees. Their commitment and dedication to CCS students are unmatched. Throughout the pandemic, they have continued to meet every challenge and to always do what is best for our students. I commend our employees for their efforts. We are all focused on helping our students achieve success. It’s that spirit of collaboration and cooperation in support of our district’s mission to empower students to build their futures that is the hallmark of Cabarrus County Schools.

    January is School Board Appreciation Month in North Carolina. Cabarrus County Schools is grateful to our Board of Education members for their service to our students and our system. Our school board members are active and involved citizens. They play a crucial role in our schools and our communities. They voluntarily tackle the enormous job of governing our school district, and their thoughtful and compassionate actions and decisions affect our children’s lives. CCS is fortunate to have such a dedicated group of individuals supporting our schools, students, and staff. Speaking of the Board of Education, the members and I are coordinating a date to meet in February for an Annual Planning Session. As soon as we have a date finalized, we will share it with you. Some of the topics to be discussed include the district’s strategic plan, results from our recent School Quality Survey, and population growth.

    Congratulations are in order for the top-speller in our district – Vishruth Veerapaneni, a sixth-grade student at Cabarrus Virtual Academy. He will represent CCS in the Carolina Panthers Regional Spelling Bee in March. We wish him lots of luck!

    As a reminder, masks are required in all CCS schools and buildings through Jan. 24th. You can find additional information about the requirement here.

    Thank you for your continued cooperation and support as we work to keep our students in school for in-person learning.

     
    Stay well,
     
    John
    John Kopicki, Ed.D.
    Superintendent
  • John KopickiGreetings,
     
    Earlier this month, we launched a School Quality Survey to measure school learning environments and organization. The anonymous survey will be administered, and data collected and analyzed by a national firm, K12 Insight. Parents who have email addresses on file received an email with a link to the survey. You may also access the survey here: Parent Survey. Your feedback is important to us and is a critical step in helping us to continue providing the best educational experience for all students.
     
    Congratulations to Cabarrus County Schools Teacher of the Year Ashtyn Berry, who been selected as the 2022 Southwest Region Teacher of the Year. She will now participate in the state selection process with other regional winners. The North Carolina Teacher of the Year will be named in the spring. Congratulations also are in order for Mary Beth Earp, our 2021 Cabarrus County Schools Teacher Assistant of the Year.
     
    We announced the winners of our 11th Annual Holiday eCard Contest during the Dec. 13th Board of Education meeting. Congratulations to these talented artists:
     
    • Traditional Design Category
      • Noah Highsmith - Weddington Hills Elementary
      • Jenny Khrih Za Len Mawi - Hickory Ridge Middle
      • Ava Rackoff - Concord High
     
    • Digital Design Category
      • Kayla Elsishans - Cox Mill Elementary
      • Lily Chapman - Hickory Ridge Middle
      • Alexia Moon - Concord High
    Program Choice applications close today, Dec. 17th. You can learn more about CCS Program Choice by selecting the Program Choice icon located in the Find it Fast section of our district website or by visiting https://www.cabarrus.k12.nc.us/programchoice.
    In just a few hours, students will begin their Winter Break. I hope you have a safe, happy, and restful break. We look forward to welcoming everyone back when classes resume on Jan. 4th. Happy Holidays!
     
    Stay well,
     
    John
    John Kopicki, Ed.D.
    Superintendent