“Every individual matters. Every individual has a role to play. Every individual makes a difference.”

Jane Goodall

Dear FA Families,

To the headline, this is APOGEE APPRECIATION WEEK, and, truth be told, the Apogee program is perhaps the single most important support program at Frederica Academy and an easy way for Georgia taxpayers who value Frederica Academy to contribute to the school’s success since it is a dollar-for-dollar tax credit opportunity. Participants receive their entire donation back when they file their Georgia income taxes for that qualifying year.

I hope that every parent with a child at FA expects our school to provide the experiential foundation for your child to be able to construct a productive and fulfilling life when they eventually become adults. To be able to do that in today’s world that means acquiring a whole host of skills and attitudes. Clearly one has to secure and master a core knowledge in a variety of disciplines, learn to think creatively, and cultivate a strong work ethic and a passion for something that really matters to them and seems important enough to apply their very best efforts all of the time. But if your child succeeds in all of those areas, it still will not be enough to provide a platform for success in the modern world. For them to succeed in the world of work and in life in general, they are going to have to connect with elements of a very diverse population and interrelate with sensitivity, empathy, and respect for their work colleagues, neighbors, and friends.

Our school’s participation in the Apogee program plays a monumental role in our ability to finance need-based financial aid to our families. This year the program contributed over $1 million into the school’s annual budget, which equates to almost 15% of that budget. The diversity that this program provides allows for a much broader swath of the population to attend FA; and, in doing so, gives our students access to interacting with a student body with the same core values articulated in our mission, but with a much wider array of backgrounds and ways of thinking and living. In this fast-changing and increasingly competitive world that our kids are going to move into, being able to work with and interact with people of varying backgrounds, cultures, and perspectives is going to be a prerequisite for securing the types of jobs and relationships that our students will want and deserve. Getting them immersed in that population now in these formative years is critical.

The mechanics of the Apogee program are quite simple. Interested donors can click here to enroll online; it only takes about a minute to sign up. The deadline is December 15. In early-to-mid January, you will receive a notification from Apogee and the Georgia Department of Revenue confirming your enrollment. Once notified, you have sixty days to make your payment. Since you are enrolling for the 2023 program, you will receive your dollar-for-dollar credit when you file your 2023 Georgia taxes in 2024. Please click here to watch a video that outlines how the program works and here to access more Apogee information via the school’s website. Brad Hutcherson is also a great resource in the Advancement Office should you have questions.

Repeat and new donors should be aware that this year’s program is “bigger and better” than ever. Georgia officials enhanced the program earlier this year by increasing the statewide cap for the program’s funding; they also increased the participation amounts allowed for all donor categories. They have truly made it BIGGER and BETTER for both donors and participating schools.

Thank you for considering participation in this program. For my wife Suzan and me, this has proven to be one of those rare win/win propositions, and we are proud to be Apogee participants. I hope that it strikes you as something worth doing too.

Respectfully,

Scott L. Hutchinson

Head of School

This Week

Apogee Appreciation Week

This Week

Sixth Grade

Golden Isles Youth Orchestra (GIYO)

STRING-On! Program

Monday @ 10:00 AM

Upper School Assembly

Monday (2:30 PM – 4:00 PM)

FA Booster Club

Spirit Wear Sale

Gym

Monday Afternoon

MS Soccer @ Home

vs. Jane Macon

Girls @ 3:30 PM

Boys @ 4:30 PM

Monday @ 3:30 PM

National Spanish Honor Society

Induction REHEARSAL

Shuman Conference Room

Tuesday @ 7:30 AM

US Student Council Meeting

College Counseling Center

Tuesday Morning

Yearbook Club Leadership Photos

Tuesday @ 1:05 PM

US Health + Wellness Club Meeting

FA Pavilion

Tuesday @ 4:00 PM

National Spanish Honor Society

Induction Ceremony

Shuman Conference Room

Tuesday @ 5:00 PM

RSM Wiffle Ball Classic

FA Baseball Field

FA Families Invited

Tuesday Evening

RSM Private Dinner

FA Pavilion

By Invitation

Tuesday @ 6:00 PM

Glynn County

Teacher of the Year Banquet

College of Coastal Georgia

Congrats, Becky Triplett!

Tuesday @ 6:30 PM

Varsity Girls Basketball

@ Covenant School

Wednesday-Friday

9:00 AM - 4:00 PM

FA Book Fair

Shuman Conference Room

Wednesday @ 7:30 AM

FA Parent Association

Uniform Sale

Been Library Breezeway

Wednesday @ 8:30 AM

Kindergarten Thanksgiving Program

DRESS REHEARSAL

Hamilton Hall

Wednesday @ 10:00 AM

US Advisory

Wednesday Afternoon

MS + Varsity Swim Meet

Tiftarea (Tifton)

Wednesday @ 2:25 PM

Upper School “Clue” Preview

Hamilton Hall

Wednesday Afternoon

MS Soccer @ Glynn Middle

Girls @ 3:30 PM

Boys @ 4:30 PM

Wednesday @ 4:00 PM

Department Meetings

Wednesday Evening

Progress 2 Reports Posted

Thursday-Sunday

RSM Classic

Sea Island Lodge

Thursday @ 8:30 AM

Kindergarten Thanksgiving Program

Post-Program Reception

Hamilton Hall

Thursday @ 3:30 PM

US World Language + Culture Club

Ireland

Mrs. Gallagher’s Classroom

Thursday @ 7:00 PM

MS + US “Clue” Performance

Hamilton Hall

Friday

School-Wide Spirit Day

Good Luck, Gridiron Knights!

Friday @ 8:10 AM

Lower School Morning Meeting

GIYO STRING-On! Performance

Hamilton Hall

Friday @ 11:00 AM

First Grade Thanksgiving Feast

Epworth

Friday Afternoon

Middle School Swim Meet

Savannah

Friday @ 7:00 PM

MS + US “Clue” Performance

Hamilton Hall

Friday @ 7:30 PM

Varsity Football

@ Deerfield-Windsor (Albany)

GIAA AAA State Playoffs (Second Round)

Players Dismiss @ 1:30 PM

Cheerleaders Dismiss @ 2:30 PM

Saturday @ 8:30 AM

PreACT Make-Up Exam

Corn Hall

Saturday

Varsity Swim Meet

Camden County

Please remember to reinforce that your child's Chromebook needs to be plugged in at least once or twice a week; this is especially important over long weekends. A full charge literally takes less than an hour. Inevitably upon returning from a long weekend or holiday, we are inundated with dead Chromebooks in the classroom. This is a huge disruption in the classroom and it usually depletes our Chromebook loaner cart. These loaners are available for students to use when their Chromebooks are being repaired. Thank you in advance for your helping us to reinforce this at home.

The Knights Table hopes you have Tuesday, November 22, on your calendar. FA parents, grandparents, and special family friends are invited to join your student(s) for a Thanksgiving lunch with all the fixings served by the Knights Table staff. Guests meals are $6 each and will be billed to family accounts.

Please click here to let us know that you are planning to attend and provide the following details:

1. Your name;
2. Number of non-students who will be dining; and the
3. Name(s) and grade(s) of your students you want to join you.

For Lower School, siblings will be able to eat together, and the lunch will be organized by the alphabet. If your child's last name begins with A-K, lunch is served at 11:00-11:30 a.m. and L-Z will be served at 11:30 a.m.-noon.  

Middle and Upper School students are welcome to invite special guests as well as long as they are relatives or close family friends. Students from other schools are not included in the invitation unless they are siblings or they are invited guests of the Admission Office. Middle School lunch begins at 12:10 p.m. and Upper School lunch begins at 1:00 p.m.

Once you let us know that you are coming, you will receive a more detailed email telling you what to do and expect that day.

Heather Day is finalizing plans for the 2023 edition of FA Summer Programs. Registration for FA families will open on Sunday, January 15, 2023. The first week starts on May 30, and camps will run through August 4. Camps will not be offered July 3-7.

FA faculty, coaches, parents, grandparents, alumni, and other friends of the school who are interested in leading a camp should contact Mrs. Day. She will be eager to hear who will be leading and assisting with the camp, the theme or title of the camp, preliminary details; and desired dates and times.

Mrs. Day is also looking for adult and student (college and high school) counselors to assist with Camp Knights (half and full day general camp activities) and other programs as needed.

Please click here to access the 2022 Summer Programs catalog for additional context and background information.

Holiday Greenery and Poinsettia Sale - Contest Winners

Thank you to everyone who ordered holiday greenery and poinsettias. To encourage participation among all FA families and faculty, the Parent Association issued a new challenge this year! No matter the size of the order - every family or faculty member who purchased an item(s) was entered to win a gift card for their division. And the winners are…

• Lower school winner: Maret Bryan ($25 gift card to Target)
• Middle school winner: Lola Byrd ($25 gift card to Starbucks)
• Upper school winner: Phillip Fairman ($25 gift card to Starbucks)
• Faculty winner: Dottie Barrow ($50 Visa gift card)

Congratulations, and thank you again to all who participated in the Parent Association’s largest annual fundraiser!

Greenery Sale - Important Pick-Up/Delivery Information

We anticipate delivery to be the Monday after Thanksgiving. We will send out more details once we receive them from the vendor, but please plan on picking up your order the week of November 28. Click here to volunteer to help.

Parent Association Volunteer Needs 

The Parent Association needs your help this holiday season! We have several upcoming volunteer opportunities. Options range from an hour of your time to making Christmas cookies. We encourage everyone to choose one slot. A small amount of your time will be so helpful for all of our festive FA happenings!

Monday, November, 21

Holiday Card Stuffing 

8:15 AM

Shuman Conference Room, Been Library

All hands on deck! Please join the FA Parent Association and other parent volunteers on Monday, November 21, when they gather to mobilize this year's Holiday Card Stuffing operation. We have over 1,800 envelopes to stuff, seal and stamp! Click here to sign up.

Tuesday-Friday, November 29 - December 2

Greenery Sale Pick Up and Delivery Volunteers

KiX Building

The Parent Association is in need of volunteers to help with Poinsettia and greenery pick-up and deliveries. Please click here to sign-up for a shift.

Thursday, December 1

Jingle Bell Celebration + Christmas Tree Lighting,

FA Campus

We need cookies! Please sign up to contribute cookies to our annual Jingle Bell Celebration. Volunteers are requested to bring two dozen cookies. Cookies can be dropped off with Michelle Clifton in the Front Office of the Administration Building or, weather permitting, at a designated table in the East Campus Parking Lot near the entrance to the Pavilion on December 1 before 3:30 p.m. Cookies must be NUT FREE. Sign up here.

PGA TOUR players and PGA TOUR Wives Association members, along with local elementary school students, battle on the Frederica Academy Baseball Field while raising money for charity in this year's RSM Wiffle Ball Classic. The action starts on Tuesday at 5:00 p.m. Admission is free for FA families.

This year's event will include special appearances by two Major League Baseball players (Jackie Bradley, Jr. and Cole Irvin) and five members of the Savannah Bananas organization (Kyle Luigs, pitcher; Bill LeRoy, catcher; Maceo Harrison, First Base Coach; Split, Mascot; and Shark, DJ/PA Announcer).

Wednesday, November 16

FA Parent Association

Recycled Uniform Sale

7:30 - 9:00 AM

Been Library Breezeway 

Do you need to restock on uniforms or size up? We will be having a sale this week. As always, we collect gently used uniforms to resell all year. This time of year we always need cooler weather gear so if your child has outgrown fleeces and long sleeved FA items, please consider donating them to the Recycled Uniform Closet. The collection bin is located outside Happy Hall.

Wednesday-Friday, November 16-18

FA Book Fair 

9:00 AM - 4:00 PM

Shuman Conference Room

Been Library

Parent Volunteers are needed to help staff our school Book Fair. 

Click HERE to Livestream

Game Radio Broadcast

Are you excited about Christmas and the upcoming holiday season? If so, please join the FA Parent Association and other parent volunteers on Monday, November 21, when they gather to mobilize this year's Holiday Card Stuffing operation. The winners of this year's Lower School Christmas Card art contest will be announced at Morning Meeting on Friday, November 18.

Dear FA Community,

The Middle School Student Council is partnering with Safe Harbor, a local non-profit, to lead the Middle School in a service learning project this Holiday season. Safe Harbor's mission is to provide services that promote security and stability for at-risk families, children, and individuals.

Each Middle School advisory group will be assigned two local youths who have holiday wish lists. The Middle School will conduct a cash donation drive for the entire FA community. The money raised will be distributed equally among the advisory groups. Students will then take a field trip during school to shop for their newly adopted friends. The Seventh and Eighth Grades will go to Target on Monday, December 5, during their Directed Study class, while the Fifth and Sixth Grades will go to Target on Tuesday, December 6, during their elective class.

The donation drive will start on Monday, November 14. We will have donation boxes set up in both Benefield and Fleming Halls. Any amount you feel comfortable giving will be incredibly helpful and will go a long way towards helping local students.

Our hope is that our students learn to empathize with those who are less fortunate and that they learn that their collective efforts can make a huge difference in our community.

Trey House and Rachael Lee

MS Student Council Co-Sponsors

The FA Health and Wellness Club will be adopting a family again for Christmas this year! The family that we have adopted has a nine-year-old boy, a precious seven-year-old boy with a few serious health issues, and their very hard-working mother. Here are our plans:

Sunday afternoon, November 27, we will decorate the family's house for Christmas! 

Sunday, December 4, a group will take older son to Pinball Palace or Brunswick Adventures for a fun afternoon, another group will be with Nurse Pope and the younger son for some fun activities with him, and the mom will be pampered with a “mani/pedi!”

The seven year old has a condition called Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome. This is a severe form of epilepsy, which causes multiple types of seizures daily, sometimes up to one hundred a day. Because of the severity of this condition, his bedroom has to be properly set up to prevent injuries from falls. This is an ongoing process as he grows. His floor and windowsills must be padded and he has to have all shelves up extremely high. We have been in contact with his mother and are planning a day to work around the house to update anything that she might need done.

Last year, individual families sponsored a child in the family we selected and bought the gifts for that child. We are hoping to have a great response again this year! Here are the wish lists!

Nine-Year-Old Boy: shirts - size 10; pants - size 8; socks - size 8-9.5; pajamas - size 8-10; and jacket - size 10. Wish List: a lemon slicer; a chess set (a few of our members have volunteered to give him chess lessons); anything MindCraft; loves football and the Georgia Bulldogs; electric toothbrush; and anything Treasure X.

Seven-Year-Old Boy: shirts - size 8; pants - size 7; socks - size 8-9.5; pajamas - size 8; and jacket - size 8. Please note that he needs a special type of shoes to accommodate leg braces. The price of these shoes run about fifty dollars. Nurse Pope has more information. Wish List: He loves the Wiggles; soft toys - anything multisensory; touch and feel books; small musical instruments - he loves music; and Aveeno Daily Wash and Shampoo.

Mom: only request is an electronic deadbolt with push code for the front door.

Family Wish List: an artificial Christmas tree; Christmas decorations; Publix gift card; big, fluffy towels; and Chick-fil-A gift card.

The FA Health and Wellness Club now has its own Venmo account! If you would like to donate money for this worthwhile holiday project, it is so very easy!  

Venmo: @knights_wellness

For questions, please contact Nurse Pope or Mr. Riggs.

Eliana McMahon

FA Health and Wellness Club Secretary

Briley Johnson

FA Health and Wellness Treasurer

To help Third Grade students understand prepositional phrases, they created paper airplanes and launched them in their classroom to observe where they landed. They finished the sentence, “The white paper airplane landed quickly…” with the phrases made from their observations. It was a great way to understand how prepositional phrases can connect words in a sentence! 

November 21 (8:15 AM - 10:15 AM)

FA Parent Association

FA Holiday Card Stuffing

Shuman Conference Room

Click HERE to Volunteer

November 21

Third Grade Field Trip

Mighty 8th Museum

Savannah

November 22 (Lunch Periods)

FA Thanksgiving Lunch

FA Special Friends Invited

November 23

FA Young Alumni Council Meeting

November 23-25

FA Thanksgiving Break

December 1

FA Jingle Bell Celebration

December 3

SAT Exam

December 5-6

MS Soccer Playoffs

Glynn County Stadium

December 5 @ 4:00 PM

MS + US Christmas Caroling

Marsh's Edge

December 6 @ 7:00 PM

MS + US "Light the Night"

Magnolia Manor

December 7 @ 8:30 AM

PK Holiday Program

DRESS REHEARSAL

Hamilton Hall

December 8 @ 8:30 AM

PK Holiday Program

Hamilton Hall

December 8

MS Soccer Championship Games

Glynn County Stadium

Girls @ 5:00 PM

Boys @ 6:00 PM

December 8, 9, 12

MS + US Exam Review Days

December 9

First Grade Jekyll Island Field Trip

December 9 @ 7:00 PM

FA Benefield Society Party

Shiver Residence

Annual Fund Benefield Society Donors

December 10

ACT Exam

December 13

MS + US Science Exams

December 14

MS + US Math Exams

December 14 @ 10:00 AM

Third + Fourth Grade Field Trip

Ritz Theatre (Downtown Brunswick)

December 14 @ Noon

Department Chair Meeting

December 15

MS + US Language Exams

December 15 @ 10:00 AM

Lower School Giving Tree Ceremony

Hamilton Hall

December 15 @ Noon

School-Wide Early Dismissal

December 16

Student Christmas Break Begins

Teacher/Staff Work Day

December 19-22

10:00 AM - 2:00 PM

FA Front Office Open

December 23-27

FA Campus Closed

December 28

Semester 1 Grades Posted

December 28-30

10:00 AM - 2:00 PM

FA Front Office Open

January 2

FA Campus Closed

January 3

Teacher/Staff Work Day

January 4

Second Semester Starts