RJR's students and community were recently treated to an especially
exciting and memorable experience. For three days, Mark Wood and
Laura Kaye visited on campus, participated in classes and rehearsed with
student singers and musicians. Their stay at RJR culminated on the evening
of March 25th with "Electrify Your Strings"--a fun festival and thrilling
orchestral rock and roll show in Reynolds Auditorium. More than 1,200
onlookers came out for a celebratory night of entertainment and incredible
music . . . electrifying, indeed!
We'd like to offer a big round of applause to Arts Magnet Director Karen
Morris and Arts Magnet Committee Chair Aparna Patel who spearheaded this event. They worked behind the scenes for many weeks, from planning to production and every step in between, and their efforts paid off with tremendous success. Thanks also to Michelle Caldwell who coordinated planning for the evening itself.
Arts Magnet Committee members gave their time and talent to help bring “Electrify Your Strings” to RJR's stage. They promoted the event, sold ads for the playbill, sold raffle and admission tickets and spent hours setting up. They transported, displayed and dispensed merchandise and food, cleaned up, worked the box office, helped with rehearsals and hospitality during the week, assisted Mark Wood and Laura Kaye, and much more! Thank you Maike Copeland, Sharon Fogarty, Anne Garvey, Crystal Joyce, Meredith Kress, Karen Lordeman-Rowdy, Karen O'Brienand Jenny Surmons! Thanks also to Jeanne Brooker, Lisa Carter, Melissa Cleland, Lynn Gwyn, Sandy Irvin, Lisa Rowell and Kathryn Spanos for helping the night of the event.
We appreciate the many students who participated as well, including 135 performers from RJR's band, orchestra and a cappella groups, and DeAndreea Beckam, Mikel Bennett, Nasyr Bey, Cameron Brown, Jazmine Calvin, Ronald Christmas, Donnie Dawson, Breana Douthit, Jonathan Grice, Elias Hicks, JJ Hoots, Ayanna Hoper, Demondre Johnson, Demondrea Johnson, Elijah Pone, Anna Richardson, Will Rogers, Deven Scales, Chante Taylor, Demesia Whiteand Shime Wilson.
We are also grateful for food donations from Camel City Grill and Thruway Chick-fil-A, and beverages provided by RGC and GC service clubs.
Audiences were similarly enchanted by our student production of "Chicago," which received rave reviews for its three performances in March! Many thanks to the following Arts Magnet Committee members who worked the box office during these shows: Sharon Fogarty, Anne Garvey, Crystal Joyce, Meredith Kress, Karen Lordeman-Rowdy, Aparna Patel and Jenny Surmons.
Finally, the Hospitality Committee treated our very deserving teachers and staff to an abundance of "March Madness" snacks before Spring Break. There were goodies galore thanks to the generosity of: Margaret Bessette, Abigail Blake, Donna Carr, Lisa Carter, Laura Dean, Anna Fadel, Beth Gunter, Rick Harkey, Jill Halverson, Wendy Hodge, Crystal Joyce, Athena Karahalios, Shannon Meinberg, Karen O'Brien, Merritt Orr, Gayle Parker, Renet Parris, Portia Propst, Lisa Rowell, Kate Ruley, Jean Anne Semke, Joy Troxell, Robin Welch, Marlena Westcott, Lee Anne West, Mary Blake Whiteand Melissa Workman.
National Scholastic Art and Writing Award Winners
We are pleased to announce that R.J. Reynolds students Christina Woodard and Dago Dimas earned national recognition in the 2014 Scholastic Art & Writing Awards. These students have been identified by panels of creative professionals as the most talented young artists in the nation! This year, almost 255,000 works of art and writing were submitted. Only the top 1% were recognized at the national level.
Christina and Dago have been invited to attend a national ceremony at the world-famous Carnegie Hall in NYC on Friday, June 6. The national ceremony at Carnegie Hall will be webcast live at 6:00 p.m.
These gold medalist winners are students of Amy Cruz and Phil Benenati. Congratulations to all!
ForsythCounty Hosting 2014 NC PTA Conference
ForsythCounty is hosting the NC PTA Educational and Leadership Conference on May 30-31 at ForsythTechnicalCommunity College. All parents are invited and must register online at NCPTA.org if you plan to attend. Early registration is currently underway.Please join Dr. Emory and local schools as we host this event in May.
Key Club Follies
Come see a showcase of some of the finest dancers, singers and musicians at the R.J. Reynolds Annual Key Club Follies Talent Show on April11at 7:00 p.m. Admission is $5 and children under 12 can enter for free. The money goes to support the Key Club and both local and global charities.
Senior Parents: Please Complete WSFCS Survey
The WSFCS System is conducting a surveyof 5th, 8th and 12th grade parents to assist in their evaluation of programs and services. Parents input their child's grade and school, then answer a few short questions related to bullying, safety, administrator availability andclassroom curriculum. The survey takes less than five minutes to complete and provides an open-ended question at the end for comments. Please take a moment to complete the survey at:
Students of the Week
Congratulations to RJR Students of the Week Itzel Rodriguez and Francisco Paredes Saldivar. They were nominated by Mr. Small for going above and beyond in contributing to a positive school and community culture. Thanks for making RJR great, Itzel and Francisco!
Spanish Honor Society
Students who are eligible for Spanish National Honor Society (overall GPA of 3.0 or higher and no lower than a B in Spanish 1,2 and 3) can self-nominate by bringing a transcript to Ms. Sims in Room 317 by April 17th.
Demon Shop
Spring sports are in full swing!Make sure your athlete is covered in Demon wear for those chilly late afternoon practices. Reynolds hoodie sweat shirts are $25; sweat pants are $20; long-sleeve T-shirts are $15; and short-sleeve T-shirts cost $12. Check out all Reynolds logo apparel and accessories like car decals and magnets, coolers and golf umbrellas at the Demon Shop located in the school cafeteria. Shop hours are 12:00-2:00 p.m., Wednesdays and Fridays.
Donate to RJR’s Prom Dress Sale
The Prom will be held on Saturday, May 10 at the MiltonRhodesArtsCenter! The RJR Prom Committee will be having a Prom Dress Sale on Sunday, April 13 in the RJR cafeteria from 2 to 5 p.m. Dresses will be sold for $10 each. We will also accept accessories (purses, head pieces, costume jewelry and formal wraps). These will also be sold inexpensively on April 20. All proceeds will go to the RJR ArtsEndowment Fund. There will be a box in the main office for your donations beginning Monday, March 17. The deadline to donate is Friday, April 11. Contact Emily Satterfield or Mary Bergstone if you have any questions.
Volunteers Needed to Monitor ACT
Calling all RJR parents and family/friends over the age of 18to help monitor halls during the administration of the ACT to all 11th grade students on Tuesday, April 15th from 8:55 a.m. to 1 p.m. If you can volunteer, please sign up using this link:
All volunteers must be registeredat WSFCSdata base by going to Your help is GREATLY appreciated! Questions? Email PTSA Proctor Chair, Jeanne Brooker at or 721-1080.
Thanks to our Legacy Corporate Sponsors!
R.J. Reynolds is extremely grateful for the generous donations these corporate sponsors gave to this year’s Legacy Campaign. Please show them your support and thank them for supporting RJR!
PTSA Scholarships for Seniors
The PTSA awards four $500 collegescholarships -- two "First Generation" and two "Tradition of Excellence" scholarships each year. Applications must be submitted to Student Services by April 15thand can be foundon the Student Services website at addition, forms are available in Student Services.
Senior Exam Exemptions Policy
The final exam exemption policy for WSFCS high school seniors has changed in recent years. For your convenience, an updated copy of the current WSFCS Senior Exemption policy can be found on the RJR websiteat: Exam Exemptions for Seniors.
Looking for a Summer Job?
Sean Hamacher is a graduate of Bishop McGuiness and a current student at UNC-Charlotte. He is currently in a program called “Student Painters” where he runshis own exterior house painting business. The point of the program is to give college students the opportunity to run their own business and they then hire other hard-working students to help them gain work experience and earn money for tuition and other school costs. If you are interested in this program, contact Sean.
Sean Hamacher
Branch Manager
Student Painters
(336)-480-7755
This Week’s Schedule
April 14Tennis vs. North Davidson, 4:30
JV/V Soccer vs. Reagan, 5:30/7:30
V G/B Lacrosse vs. Bishop, 5:30/7:30
April 15JV/V Baseball vs. North Davidson, 4:30/7:00
Softball vs. Parkland, 5:00
JV Girls Lacrosse at North Davidson, 5:30
V Soccer vs. North Forsyth, 6:00
April 16Tennis vs. West Forsyth, 4:30
JV/V Boys Lacrosse at Reagan, 5:30/7:30
April 17JV/V Baseball at North Davidson, 4:30/7:00
Track at West Forsyth, 4:45
Softball vs. MountTabor, 5:00
JV/V Soccer at East Forsyth, 5:30/7:00
JV/V Boys Lacrosse at DavieCounty, 5:30/7:30
Dancing Boots
There will be an interest meeting for Dancing Boots on Tuesday, April 15 in the dance room starting at 3:45. If you are interested in trying out for chief or choreographer, you should be in attendance. Information about tryouts and important dates will be discussed at this meeting. The meeting should be over by 4:30.
Save The Date
R.J.ReynoldsHigh School All-Sports Celebration
Monday, May 12 at 6:30 p.m.
Reynolds Auditorium
Be Sure to follow us on Twitter
@RJRAthletics- The Official Twitter of the Athletic Department
@RJRdemonsxc—Cross Country
@RJRvolleyball—Volleyball team communication and updates
@RJRwsoccer—Girls Soccer
@RJRDemonsSoccer- Boys Soccer
@RJRBaseball- The Demon Baseball Program
@RJR_Lacrosse- Boys Lacrosse Team
@RJRGirlsLax- Girls Lacrosse Team
@RJRtennis- Boys Tennis Team
@RJRDemonsFB- Football Team
@ReynoldsRowdies- The Student Fan Club
@RJRCollege- The Student Services Office
@RJRArts—Schoolwide maintained by Mrs. Morris
@MadameMatisko—updates on French homework
@RJRFrenchClub—updates on French club
@mrswileyrjr—Mrs. Wiley (English teacher)—classroom updates
@RJRbands—Mr. James and band updates
@Sramorrisey—Mrs. Morrisey (Spanish teacher)
@RJRArtSociety—Art Society as well as info on contests and events open to all students
@RJRpinewhispers—student newspaper
@RJRyearbook –yearbook
@RJR_GC- Girls Council