#9 Early Enrichment Center: Last summer, DCS opened its brand new Early Enrichment Center for infants 3 to 23 months. Our dedicated and caring staff provides a safe and nurturing environment for the littlest Crusaders on campus.

#10 Dual Campuses: The Master’s Academy, our sister school in Broward County, inspires faith and learning for students in grades 2K-8. Visit them online at www.themastersacademy.org

With renewed determination and a new sense of purpose, we are pressing forward toward the future, believing that our latter years will be greater than the former.

“Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.” (Isaiah 43:19)

God is taking DCS in a new direction. True leadership is synonymous with serving, and DCS is more determined than ever to serve our community, our families and our students.

#1 New Leadership: The 2014-2015 school year will begin under the guidance of newly appointed leaders, Mrs. Susan Alexander and Dr. Monique Cummings.

#2 Spiritual Emphasis: Christian education sets us apart from other schools. Our students receive a biblically integrated curriculum that will prepare them for life beyond their college years.

#3 Academic Excellence: In an effort to provide a quality education, DCS is continuously researching and previewing new curriculum that will offer a variety of core subjects and enrichment classes.

#4 Innovative Technology: Through the use of interactive whiteboards, tablets and student response systems, teachers can create a learning environment that is engaging and exciting.

#5 Qualified Faculty & Staff: Our highly skilled educators are committed to the personal development of each individual student. All of our faculty, K-12

th grade,

have earned a bachelor’s degree or higher and are FACCS certified.

#6 Renovated Facilities: All summer long, we have been hard at work installing new flooring in several classrooms, adding to last year’s renovations which include the Choir and Band room, Crusader Café, Picerno gymnasium, and the newly constructed David Stephen Rodriguez weight room.

#7 Fine Arts Achievements: From 1st

place trophies to Superior ratings, the DCS Fine Arts Department had a tremendous year. Our Band and Choir students were recognized for their incredible talent at various District and State competitions.

#8 All-star Athletics: The Crusader Athletic Program is looking forward to another exciting year. We offer a wide range of sports including football, cross country, cheerleading and soccer.

Welcome, Susan Alexander Elementary Principal

Welcome to Dade Christian School for the 2014-2015 school year. My name is Susan Alexander and I have the opportunity this year to serve you and your family as the Elementary Principal. There are many verses in the Bible that provide wonderful examples applicable to our 21st century lives. There are words of hope, love, grace, mercy, forgiveness, encouragement, direction, and wisdom to name just a few. I especially love the truth found in Matthew 19:26 that states, “With men it is impossible but with God all things are possible.” I can attest to the fact that I have seen God do the impossible over and over again. I had the privilege of being raised in a Christian home by parents who loved the Lord and who whole-heartedly and sacrificially loved each other. I grew up surrounded by three brothers and let me tell you, three brothers can really prepare a girl for life (those stories for a later date). I know God has a sense of humor because two of those brothers are pastors today. I understood my need for salvation and accepted the Lord as my personal Savior at the age of eight. I have found God to be a gracious, loving and just God, who forgives sins, loves unconditionally and provides second chances. I can not imagine going through life without a relationship with Him through prayer and studying His word. I have fond memories from my teen age years of attending youth activities on the campus of New Testament Baptist Church. Yes, I am part of the small but proud population of native Floridians born in Miami, and raised in South Florida with a few side stops in Chattanooga and Chicago. My husband Jeff is my confidant and best friend and together we have raised four amazing adult children and have been blessed with three precious grandchildren. We experienced the journey of Christian education with all four of our children and it warms our hearts to know that our grandchildren are reaping the benefits of Christian education.

As part of God’s divine plan, there were individuals who saw early on in my life that I was knitted together to be an educator and therefore encouraged me to study elementary education. I have an undergraduate degree in Elementary Education and a Master’s degree in Teaching and Learning K-12 with a specialization in curriculum. I have had the opportunity while filling the role as principal to learn from some of the best in the field. However, my greatest learning has come from my own four children and the hundreds of children who have walked through my classroom or office over the years. I am a firm believer in a school culture that demonstrates respect in actions and in words. Since God created us differently, I believe it is important that we use all of the resources available to us to meet the individual needs of the students. I love to challenge and inspire both the students and the teachers toward excellence. I believe in standards that produce well-balanced students who are prepared to excel in the areas they are gifted in so that they can positively contribute to society and lead the life God has divinely planned for them. In order to accomplish that goal, there will be an emphasis on engaging teaching, a loving classroom environment and co-laboring with parents. I believe our children, just like us, are a work in progress and the Lord isn’t finished yet. I welcome the opportunity to co-labor with you this year in the spiritual and academic education of the children God has entrusted to us. I excitedly anticipate great things from the Lord for this school year. I humbly request your prayer for our children, teachers and leadership team. Please do not hesitate to introduce yourself and your children to me. I look forward to meeting you.

In His Service and yours,

Susan Alexander

Dr. Monique N. Igbinoba-Cummings

Secondary Assistant Principal

Dr. Monique Cummings grew up in a Christian home. She accepted Christ as her personal Savior

and was baptized at the age of twelve. She was active in both the youth choir and usher ministries.

In August of 1994, Dr. Cummings recommitted her life to Christ at New Life of Carol City. She was

an active member of the church dedicating her time to working with youth through the Saturday

Night Live ministry. In addition to her youth work, Dr. Cummings became an active participant in

the Women on Mission group where she has served faithfully and was commissioned the Women’s Ministry coordinator in

2014. With the assistance of her husband, Rev. Erik D. Cummings, she launched the Kingdom Kids ministry which serves

children in grades 1-6. Currently, Dr. Cummings serves as the college and career Sunday school teacher sharing her

testimony and providing Christian guidance to young women aged 18-29.

A native of Miami, Florida, Dr. Cummings graduated from American Senior High School/School for Advanced Studies in

1990. She attended Howard University in Washington, DC and graduated in 1992, at the age of nineteen, with her Bachelor

of Arts in Elementary Education. She also earned a Master of Education degree in Educational Administration and Policy

from Howard University in 1997. She completed her post graduate education at Lynn University in 2001 where she earned

a Doctor of Philosophy degree in Educational Leadership with a Global Perspective. Her doctoral studies concluded with the

publication of her dissertation entitled, “An Investigation of the Religious Beliefs of Middle School and High School Students

Currently Attending a Christian School.”

Dr. Cummings began her career in education as a Chapter I teacher with Miami-Dade County Public Schools at North

Glade Elementary School in Miami, Florida, in 1992. She was named Most Innovative Teacher of the Year in 1993. She was

a Language Arts teacher at Ben Sheppard Annex Elementary from 1994-1996. Dr. Cummings closed out her career with

Miami-Dade County Public Schools in 2002 as a teacher of the gifted. In 2003, she became a supervisor of instruction with

Florida Memorial University where she provided instruction and assessment of student teacher interns and pre-service

interns. This appointment allowed her to fuel her passion of helping to develop quality educators.

Dr. Cummings began her career in educational administration in 2006 at New Life Baptist School where she served as the

school administrator providing direct supervision, support, and training to educational professionals. In 2011, she was

afforded the opportunity to join the Dade Christian School family as an English teacher. This move allowed her to be close

to her two young children, Reaiah and Erik II, who began attending DCS in the fall of 2011. As a dedicated English teacher

for three years and advisor group mentor, Dr. Cummings sought to earn the respect of her fellow colleagues by living a life

that reflected Christ. She made the commitment to serve and support the students of Dade Christian School by serving as

a lighthouse shining for Christ.

Most recently, Dr. Cummings was selected to serve as the high school Assistant Principal at Dade Christian School. This

new position will allow her to renew her commitment to the students, parents, and staff of DCS. Her service stands on a

foundation of over twenty years of professional education experience. Dr. Cummings is excited about the opportunity to

engage, serve, and challenge both the students and faculty of DCS. Her goal is to pray, walk, and serve the families of

Dade Christian School.

GET TO KNOW…

DCS Athletes Make It to

Junior Olympic Games

Miranda Medina &

Nadya Plana

Abies

Mrs. Miranda Medina and Mrs. Nadya Plana are passionate about what they do and it shows. These wonderful ladies love and nurture the babies in our Early Enrichment program. When asked what their favorite aspect of working in the nursery is, both agreed experiencing many of the babies’ “firsts” is at the top of the list. Mrs. Medina earned her A.S. in early childhood education and is working toward completing her bachelor’s degree. She has 9 years of experience working with infants and toddlers, and absolutely loves what she does. Mrs. Medina and her husband Danny are members of NTBC and their daughters Leila, 7th grade, and Alysha, 9th grade, attend DCS. Mrs. Plana earned her B.A. in elementary education/deaf education and is working toward completing her master’s degree in educational leadership. She has 8 years of experience working in a school environment. Mrs. Plana married her high school sweetheart and together they have two beautiful children who attend DCS: Nate, 1st grade, and Daniella, 2K.

After a stellar performance at the AAU Club Championship, Dade Christian School’s very own track stars Cha’iel Johnson, 4th grade, Paris Baker, 5th grade, and Asia McMillon, 9th grade, are headed to the Junior Olympic Games in Des Moines, Iowa. On July 8-13, the girls participated in various events at Disney’s ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex. Asia McMillon (right) in the 14-year-old division placed 9th overall out of 40 in the 200 hurdles after taking up the event only 2 ½ months ago.

Paris Baker (near left) took 1st in the 400 with a #1 national ranking time of 1:02.42, as well as 2nd in the 200 and 3rd in the 100. Cha'iel Johnson (far left) won the 400 with a #2 rank in the nation with a time of 1:04.87 and 2nd in the 200. These girls are incredible athletes whose achievements are only possible because of their hard work and dedication. Coach Doreen Mercer, an Alabama A&M Hall of Famer, is extremely proud of their individual performances. Join us in cheering on Cha’iel, Paris and Asia as they compete at the Junior Olympic Games!

Dade Christian School

SCHOOL CALENDAR 2014-2015

AUGUST 7 Secondary Parent Orientation 7:00 pm 8-10 Senior Camp 11 7th Grade Orientation 8:00 am DCS New Family Orientation 9:00-10:00 am Freshman Orientation 10:00-11:00 am Get Acquainted Day Elementary 9:00-11:30 am & 12:00-3:00 pm Get Acquainted Day Secondary 10:30-11:30 am & 12:00-3:00 pm 13 First Day of School – Dismissal at 1:30 pm 21 Elementary Parent Orientation 7:00 pm

SEPTEMBER 1 Labor Day – No School 26 Early Dismissal – 12:30 pm

OCTOBER 22 Early Dismissal – 12:30 pm End Marking Period 1 (50 days) 23-24 Student Holiday

NOVEMBER 3-7 Homecoming Week 7 Homecoming Game 7:30 pm 11 Veteran’s Day Holiday – No School 26-28 Thanksgiving Holidays – No School

DECEMBER 19 Early Dismissal – 12:30 pm 22-Jan 2 Christmas Holidays – No School

JANUARY 16 Early Dismissal – 12:30 pm End of Marking Period 2 (46 days) 19 MLK Jr. Day – No School

FEBRUARY 16 Presidents’ Day – No School

MARCH 2 Student Holiday – Teacher Inservice 20 End of Marking Period 3 (42 days) 23-27 Spring Break – No School

APRIL 3 Good Friday – No School 13-17 Stanford Achievement Testing

MAY 4-15 AP Exams 15-19 Senior Exams 19 5K Graduation 7:00 pm (Last Day for 5K Students) 20 Senior Trip (May 20-26) Sixth Grade Graduation 7:00 pm (Last Day for sixth grade students) 22-28 Secondary Final Exams 25 Memorial Day – No School 28 End of Marking Period 4 (42 days) Last Day of School – Dismissal at 12:30 pm 29 Senior Graduation 7:00 pm

JUNE 1 Summer Camp Begins 8 Summer School Begins

The value of integrating technology into the classroom is immeasurable. It’s engaging, interactive, encourages collaboration among students and prepares them for a world that is becoming increasingly more tech-dependent. Over the course of the summer, the IT Department performed an across the board installation for teachers and students of Microsoft’s new operating system Windows 8.1. Our teachers have been receiving in-depth training courses in which they learn to effectively use the new technology systems in their classrooms.

Another exciting addition is that of the mobile tablet stations for the elementary school. Students from 2K-6th grade will now have shared access to 60 HP ElitePad 1000 tablets. All 7th through 9th grade students will receive their own ElitePad 1000, as well. 10th through 12th grade students will continue using iPads.

DCS has also added four new classroom sets of Promethean ActiVotes, a student response system that enables teachers to poll students at any time during class to assess progress and, based on responses, tailor lessons to specific student needs.

QUESTIONS? JUST ASK! // LET’S GET SOCIAL. Check us out online // Follow us on Twitter & Facebook

4:12 is a meeting

place to worship

God and connect

with others. Our

focus is to expose

students to the

Gospel, inspire

them to grow, and

send them out to

make a difference in

the world for Jesus.

WEDNESDAY NIGHTS

7th-12th Grade // 7-8:30 pm

Join us every Wednesday in

the Youth Building for an

amazing time of worship

and a life changing message.

SUNDAY SCHOOL

Youth Building // 9:45 am

Each week we dive deeper

into God’s Word and learn to

apply His principles during

our small group discussions.

CONNECT NIGHTS

Whenever // Wherever

One of our favorite things

to do is connect with our

students. Whether it’s a

planned serving opportunity

or an impromptu get-

together, our main goal is to

build lasting relationships.

NTBC Children’s Ministry Summer 2014

Word of Life strives to teach our campers to know Christ as their personal Savior by challenging them to accept God’s free gift, to grow in their knowledge of God’s Word and to show their faith to others by challenging them to be God’s representatives.

This year’s Vacation Bible School theme was Agency D3. In this one-week adventure 145 kids went home with an understanding of learning to Discover, Decide, and Defend their faith. The Lord was well pleased as 12 children trusted Christ as their personal Savior. Our AWANA program begins Wednesday, August 20, for children ages 3 years old to 6th grade. We meet every Wednesday from 6:45 – 8:15 pm during the school year.

4K Classroom

Secondary Classroom

We have been busy in the library preparing for the kickoff of Dade Christian’s Accelerated Reader program this fall. Mrs. Jones, with the help of high school students Frankie Lafontant and Ana Kato as well as volunteer Mrs. Diane Kushi, tackled the job of labeling over fifteen hundred library books with Accelerated Reader identification and information stickers. These labels will be essential in assisting the students in identifying books that are best suited to them.

In instituting the Accelerated Reader plan, Dade Christian is placing reading and literacy central to our elementary school program. Accelerated Reader is the world’s most widely used software program for motivating and challenging students to expand their minds through reading. The program has proven itself as a valuable tool for increasing students’ reading comprehension as well as elevating their overall reading levels and abilities. We are excited to watch all of our children flourish under this program! Stay tuned for more exciting information coming this fall.

In a continued effort to upgrade our facilities,

the maintenance department has been hard

at work installing new flooring throughout

the DCS and TMA campuses. Previously,

they had completed major

renovations, including the

Picerno gymnasium, Choir

and Band rooms, and a

secondary classroom

equipped with state of the

art technology.