Dear FA Families,

There are more than a few ”thank you’s” to be doled out within this community for any and all of the successes that we, as a school, have experienced this school year. Today this email focuses on two organizations … The Parent Association and the Booster Club … each having been instrumental in supporting teachers, coaches, programs, and the overall morale of the school. These two groups, comprised of dozens of parent volunteers and led by exceptionally capable and committed Presidents Martha Eckert and Elizabeth Brunson, have spearheaded efforts throughout the year to coordinate and bolster a wide variety of programs and projects essential to our school. We pay special tribute today, and all year long, to the work that these two organizations have done this year.

The Parent Association is led by Martha, Meredith Flagstad, Megan Helms, and Erika Speight and bolstered by a dynamic team of grade representatives (Kimbrough Haverstock, Zareen Kobaisy, Valerie Dunn, Kim Johnson, Amanda Byrd, Katie Widener, Brooke Walker, Leigh Ann Barker, Susan Dunn, Marnee Byrd, Julie Najawicz, Margot McMinn, Barry Kaminer, and Kristen Moore). To all those parent volunteers who provided an especially festive week for faculty and staff this past week for Teacher Appreciation Week and who have been selflessly volunteering all year long … thank you.

To Elizabeth and her Booster Club Executive Committee of Walt Perez, Zack Veal, Alisha Seymour, and Ron Harrison and her Booster Club Board of Paula Baker, Detra Brock, Caroline Champion, Erin Dyer, Mark Fritchman, John McKeown, Ed Reilly, Meredith Reilly, Jenny Thompson, and Catherine Veal … thank you. Last week's PPE night was a great example of your dedication and collaborative spirit as you teamed with the Athletic Department, Nurse Pope, and our strategic partners at Southeast Georgia Health System to prepare our Middle and Upper School student-athletes for the 2021-2022 school year.

Coastal Symphony of Georgia Concert

Sea Island Green

Ticket Holders Only

Derby Day Online Auction Ends

Middle School Carpe Vitam

AP US Government Exam

Upper School Advisory

MS Faculty Meeting

Hamilton Hall

GISA AAA State Baseball Tournament

First Round Doubleheader @ Pinewood

Click here for bracket.

Dismissal @ 12:00 PM

Depart @ 12:30 PM

Admission: $10 (Adults); $8 (Students)

GISA AAA Girls State Soccer Tournament

First Round

FA @ Home vs. Gatewood

Click here for bracket.

Admission: $10 (Adults); $8 (Students)

GISA AAA Boys State Soccer Tournament

First Round

FA @ Home vs. The Cottage School

Click here for bracket.

Admission: $10 (Adults); $8 (Students)

AP Calculus AB/BC Exams

Second Grade Moms Breakfast

Sea Island Green Tent

Middle School Assembly

Department Chair Meeting

Tennis Team Departs to Macon

GISA AAA State Tennis Team Tournament

GISA AAA State Tennis Team Tournament

John Drew Smith Tennis Center

Macon

Click here for bracket.

AP English Literature Exam

AP Physics Exam

AP US History Exam

US Student Council Meeting

MS Post Carpe Vitam Student Holiday

AP Chemistry Exam

Lower School Morning Meeting

Soccer/Football Bleachers + Field

Mr. Roberts' Class

PK Mother's Day Tea

Athletic Tent

Class of 2021 Group Graduation Photo

Gowns - No Caps

Under the Oak (Corn Hall)

Senior Meeting

Gymnasium

Senior Lunch

La Plancha Taco Stand

Athletic Tent

Senior Baccalaureate Video Recordings

Outside of Benefield Hall

Second Round

(If FA beats Pinewood in First Round)

@ Winner of Creekside Christian vs. Southland

GISA AAA State Soccer Tournaments

Second Round

(If FA Girls and/or Boys win on Monday)

SAT Exam @ GA

James chose Mrs. Walbridge to be this year's STAR Teacher.

Last Thursday, Frederica Academy received a notification that Sarah Sarzier is one of only 323 graduating seniors from across Georgia to be recognized as a 2021 Georgia Scholar. Congratulations, Sarah!

Graduating seniors, it is time to think back on the volunteer opportunities you've taken advantage of in high school. Please fill out the Class of 2021 Service Cord Application. The online application is due Thursday, May 6. This is a firm deadline; no exceptions.

The Middle School Student Council is sponsoring a Powder Puff football game during the last period (11:35 a.m. on Friday, May 14. Middle School will dismiss at 12:15 p.m. that day.

St. Simons Presbyterian Church has kindly agreed to let FA use its sanctuary for our Closing Ceremonies on Wednesday, May 26.

Each ceremony will be limited to the students and their families for the following grade levels:

Additional details regarding each ceremony will soon be shared with these parents.

Applications are due by May 14.

Carter Jules and Parker Schoenauer, both juniors at Frederica Academy, were recently awarded an all-expense-paid trip to Washington, D.C., for a week-long seminar next summer. They won the Colonial Dames Essay Contest based on the topic, “The Electoral College was established in the U.S. Constitution as the election process for the President and Vice President. Support retaining the Electoral College, or propose and support another system to operate in its place.” Carter and Parker are following in the footsteps of Sara Seckinger '19, Ryan McHugh '19, Constance Sullivan '18 and Christian Sullivan '16 for earning this distinguished honor.

These students will have the opportunity to meet US Senators and Representatives, attend committee hearings, listen to guest speakers on the branches of government, work in model committees with other delegates, and enjoy Washington’s top historical and educational exhibits. The National Society of Colonial Dames, corporate societies, endowments, and individual Dame members contribute funds, approximately $1,600 per winner for the project and trip. 

Rebekah Brooks and Sarah Sarzier were honored for their exceptional writing skills at a dinner last week.

James Cruikshank will receive a $3,000 scholarship from the Saint Simons Island Rotary Club this week. Congratulations, James!

Upper School students elected their Student Council officers and grade representatives for the 2021-2022 school year. Incoming freshmen will elect their representatives at the beginning of the school year. Congratulations to the following student leaders:

Upper School students elected their Honor Council officers and grade representatives for the 2021-2022 school year. Incoming freshmen will elect their representatives at the beginning of the school year. Congratulations to the following student leaders:

Kevin and Britney Bongang, the 2020-2021 Ellen E. Fleming Visiting Artists, returned to campus last week to celebrate the installation of the five fabulous art panels they helped create in collaboration with FA students from across all three divisions.

They were hosted by members of the FA Fine Arts Department and joined by members of the Ellen E. Fleming Visiting Artist Committee and a delegation of student artists who helped with the paintings.

Please visit the outdoor gallery wall, which is located on the northern exterior side of the Been Library near the entrance of the Terry Thomas Playground.

The FA Health and Wellness Club hosted an American Red Cross Blood Drive on Friday, April 30. The need for blood is critical right now. Throughout the past few months, students met with the district blood program coordinator for the American Red Cross to determine how to have the most successful blood drive possible.

The student blood drive leader team set the goal as thirty units of donated blood. This alone would be a record set at FA for blood donations. The students educated, held sign-up sessions, and helped RAPIDPASS donors. Over forty Health and Wellness Club members volunteered to make the drive successful, and we are so proud of their commitment to serving our community and the health and well-being of others! One donation can save three lives.

Our total number of donations was thirty-four, which exceeded our goal! Because of meeting our goal, one senior student who donated will be awarded a $250 Red Cross scholarship. This drawing will take place next week! Everyone who donated will receive a ten dollar Amazon gift card.

A special thanks to our hard-working student blood drive leaders - Zoe Linert, Chandler Sitz, Cammie Pope, Josie Brock, and Helen Arline. We are grateful to Greta Johnston for meeting with the Red Cross while many of us were out with Covid! Thomas Veal and Zoe Linert secured a donation of seventy-five gourmet doughnuts from Dulce Dough and this was very popular with the donors and volunteers! Thanks to Joshua Manning and Zoe Linert for staying the course of the entire drive and working so hard to help those who were shaky after donating. Last, but certainly not least, thanks to all of the donors! Even if you were unable to give this time, we appreciate your willingness to try to make a blood donation! Not only did we have a record number of total donors, but we also had a record number of first-time donors!

Congratulations to our students! Once again, you set the bar very high. We are so happy to be your Faculty Advisors!

Nurse Pope and Mr. Riggs

Congratulations to seventh graders Amelia McGlaughlin and Elizabeth Temple (pictured above in the foreground holding their award folders), grand prize winners of the 2021 Eugenia Price-Joyce Blackburn Young Playwrights' Award. On Wednesday April 28, their play, "A Game of Witches and Rubies," was performed by Brunswick High School Theater students at the historic Ritz Theatre. After the production, the students received their certificates and split the $500 cash prize. Brava, playwrights!

Over the last month, Middle School Spanish students have been reading Pobre Ana by Blaine Ray aloud in class. Pobre Ana is about a girl who is unhappy with her life in America. She only wants money, new clothes, and a new car. After a summer in Mexico, Ana learns to appreciate what she has and focus on friends and family rather than materialistic items. She makes a lot of friends and practices her Spanish before returning back to the states. Once back home Ana is a new person with a better understanding of herself. As their final demonstration for this unit, the students created a body biography showing Ana's character development throughout the book. The groups were required to use direct and indirect quotes and symbols, cite their sources, and use imagery to show Ana's change. Students worked really hard in class to make these awesome pieces of work! 

Eighth Grade students unlocked clues to help James Madison convince Congress to declare war last week!

Congratulations to FA Third Grade Ellie McRae! She was a Grand Prize winner in a state-wide art contest sponsored by the Georgia Burton 4-H Center on Tybee Island.

A panel of judges selected artwork from six Third Grade students to enter into the competition. In addition to Ellie, the artists included Blake Carter, Beau Dart, Louise Evans, CeCe Green, and Miles Rentz. Click HERE to see their outstanding artwork. In addition to their artwork, each contestant submitted a short video outlining the importance of protecting Diamondback Terrapins.

In its continued effort to provide an engaging science education program, the Burton 4-H Center on Tybee Island sponsors a Student Journal Art Contest each year. The contest is open to students in grades K-12. Our students competed in the category for Grades 3-5. The theme of this year’s art contest was Safety for Diamondback Terrapins, which are a species of turtle that inhabit the salt and brackish water marshes.

Fourth Grade students and their teachers and parent volunteers enjoyed visiting the World War II Home Front Museum on Friday. The visit to this wonderful museum at the Old Coast Guard Station was a wonderful way to wrap up this year's Fourth Grade local history field trip program. The students learned about Glynn County's involvement in the war effort during WWII, plus they got the opportunity to practice plane spotting, Liberty ship building and purchasing groceries with ration card points. This experience dovetailed beautifully with their curriculum exploring many facets of the Revolutionary War. One interesting fact we learned was that 18 out of 99 Liberty ships built in Brunswick were named after black servicemen. 

The Second Grade has been learning about the Digestive System in its current reading Module. Students have been learning about the organs involved in digestion, the path that food travels through in our body during digestion, and the importance of having good nutrients in our food. Students cut out a life-size outline of their body and placed some of the digestive system organs onto the outline. A very special thank you to Cammie Pope, Holly Lewis, and Grant Offner who are students in the Health and Wellness Club who helped trace the Second Grade students.

Lower School's first-ever after-school Kayak Club is a huge hit with its adventure-seeking participants.

In a related development, FA Summer Programs is excited to announce that it is offering a second Kayak and Fishing Summer Camp. It is for campers in Grades 3-8 and will be offered July 19-22 (Monday-Thursday) between 9:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. Click HERE to register.

Frederica Academy's teachers and staff were very grateful for everything the Parent Association and its parent leaders and volunteers did throughout last week to celebrate Teacher Appreciation Week!

AP World History Exam

Senior Exams

AP Spanish Exam

Senior Exams

AP English Language Exam

Senior Exams

Graduation Practice

Sea Island Green

Class of 2021

Baccalaureate Ceremony

Community Church (St. Simons Campus)

2700 Frederica Road

By Invitation Only (Limited Seating)

AP Biology Exam

Lower School Morning Meeting

Soccer/Football Bleachers + Field

Mrs. Squire's Class

MS Student Council

Powder Puff Game

US Student Dismissal

MS Student Dismissal

May Day Ceremony

Sea Island Green

May Court (10 Representatives + Escorts in Grades 6-12)

May Pole Program (Grades 4+5)

Music Program (Grade 3)

GISA AAA State Soccer Semi-Finals

Mercer University

GISA AAA State Baseball Tournament

Semi-Finals

Class of 2021

Graduation Ceremony

Sea Island Green

By Invitation Only (Limited Seating)

Livestream Available

GISA AAA State Soccer Finals

Mercer University

AP Comparative Government Exam

AP Computer Science Principles Exam

AP Statistics Exam

MS + US Exam Reviews

AP Computer Science Exam

Second Grade Beach Trip

MS + US History Exams

Early Dismissal

GISA AAA State Baseball Tournament

Championship Series

Mercer University

MS + US Math Exams

Early Dismissal

Last Day of Lower School (PK-Third Grade)

MS + US English Exams

Early Dismissal

MS + US Make-Up Exam Day

Fourth Grade Closing Ceremony

@ St. Simons Presbyterian Church

Fifth Grade Closing Ceremony

@ St. Simons Presbyterian Church

Eighth Grade Closing Ceremony

@ St. Simons Presbyterian Church

Teacher Post Planning

FA Summer Programs is excited to announce that it is offering a second Kayak and Fishing Summer Camp. It is for campers in Grades 3-8 and will be offered July 19-22 (Monday-Thursday) between 9:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m.