Principal for a day at Beaver Ridge Elementary
Vote for Keith Shewbert
Norcross City Council - Runoff
December 5th, 2006
“Thoughtful Progress Together”
v Smart Spending
v Secure Neighborhoods
v Community Involvement
Comment on the future of Norcross on my blog at
www.Norcross2020.com Back to School as Principal for a day at Beaver Ridge Elementary
Forget Dolly, if cloning is possible, I want several copies of Esther Adames-Jimenez. Ms Adames is the Harvard educated principal of Beaver Ridge Elementary where I was invited to take part in the GCPS “Principal for a day” program. When she took over Beaver Ridge three years ago the school was one of the worst of the worst. As a 90/90 (90 percent minority, 90 percent free and reduced price lunch) school, little was expected of a school that supplies one third of Summerour Middle’s students. Ms. Adames has turned the school completely around. Not only did they make AYP (Adequate Yearly Progress) this year, the school is in the upper half of all elementary schools in the county and gaining on top schools like Simpson. She demands results and expects every child, regardless of background, to perform at a high level. She has instilled a passion for learning in her students, a passion for high performance in her staff, and has developed a large and active parent teacher organization. Beaver Ridge has added reading and writing programs so that each student experiences six reading sessions per day. The children recite their mission, vision, motto, and pledge of allegiance every morning during televised announcements. The school is spotless, quiet, and wherever you turn children are focused on becoming life long learners. As Esther told me during our day together, she will do anything for the children. Any request from staff that is for the children will be met if at all possible.
If you have a chance, make an appointment to visit this incredible school. It will prove to you that the challenges of educating in a diverse community can be overcome. With educators like Ms. Adames, Dr. Pugh at Summerour, and Dr. Watkins at Norcross Elementary I am optimistic that the Norcross cluster will regain its former level of academic achievement. To this end city leaders must embrace education and advocate for our share of county support. No other single improvement will have a larger impact on the Norcross community.
While on the subject of education I wanted to personally thank all those who signed up to mentor at Summerour, and teach Junior Achievement at Norcross Elementary. Your commitment to these children and the community will pay great dividends, and if you are like me you will get more back from the experience then you give.
Finally thanks to all of you who came out to vote Nov. 7th. Please mark your calendar to vote in the runoff on Dec. 5th. Remember that together we can accomplish great things for our community.
Regards,
Keith Shewbert
(678) 429-6039
keithshewbert@gmail.com
Champions, Teamwork and Big City Crime
www.Norcross2020.comVote for Keith Shewbert
Norcross City Council
Runoff – December 5th, 2006
“Thoughtful Progress Together”
v Smart Spending
v Secure Neighborhoods
v Community Involvement
Champions, Teamwork and Big City Crime
Congratulation to the Norcross Blue Devils on their Region 7-AAAAA Championship. I am sure if you asked Coach Maloof he would tell you that success in football is built on teamwork. As in football our local government must work as a team to deliver services and build the community we envision. From my upbringing as an Air Force brat, to my work in restaurant and global IT management I have learned the necessity of teamwork. Strong opinions and creative ideas are valuable in the search for solutions, but good team players don’t let their egos get attached to their ideas. They look for opportunities to support their colleagues. No single person has all the answers. Once a course of action is decided team players give it their all. Let’s all try to work more collaboratively in the future to improve Norcross.
Big City Crime
Many people are concerned following a series of articles in the AJC about crime in the Southwest Gwinnett area. As Norcross’s representative on the Gwinnett Village CID board I have been involved for the last year in a search for solutions to our security challenges. The CID commissioned the study by Crimefighters, LLC. Chief Stidd, several local leaders and I were interviewed for the study. The results do show high crime in the Village area; however, unreported by the AJC was the tremendous difference in crime levels between unincorporated and city areas. Whereas the murder rate in the unincorporated area in 2005 was up 160% there were zero murders in the city limits. The bottom line is that we live in a safe city surrounded by a challenging environment. We need to thank our police department for the tremendous job they are doing to keep crime out of our city. My opponent feels that the police department needs to be micro managed by the council; picking and choosing what they feel are effective police programs. I believe we should leave these decisions to the Chief and his staff. If the Chief feels that SWAT training and other programs build capability, moral, and help him retain qualified Officers then I support him.
I have asked Richard Sawyer of Crimefighters to pull together the data comparing the city crime rate to the unincorporated Village crime rate. When I get these stats I will pass them on.
I would like to propose a program to help more of our police and firefighters find homes in the city limits. The Hometown COPS program would be a private initiative that looks to connect officers with residential opportunities. If you are a realtor, real estate investor, or mortgage specialist who would like to help, please contact me.
Run, Run, Run-off
Thanks to the Norcross residents who came out to vote Tuesday. Your record turnout shows that the community is engaged and that its voice will be heard. I hope to talk to as many of you as possible over the next three weeks. Let me know your opinions and thoughts. So circle Dec, 5th on your calendar and come out for the run-off.
Please feel free to contact me by email at
keithshewbert@gmail.com or by phone at (678) 429-6039.
Regards,
Keith Shewbert
