Peeples Elementary opened its
doors in August of 1998 in the refurbished building that
originally housed Fayette County High School. During a
weekend in September of that year, our parents helped us
make the move to our brand new, beautiful building.
Since 1998, our enrollment has more than doubled. We
started the year in 1998 with 401 students, and at the
end of the 2005-06 school year, we had 830
students. We have a staff of 102, which includes
administrators, teachers, secretaries,
paraprofessionals, cafeteria workers, custodians, and
other support personnel.
We are located in picturesque
south Fayette County, Georgia, on the campus with Rising
Starr Middle School and Starr’s Mill High School. Our
school is named for the Peeples family who owned the
land now occupied by the three schools. Peeples
Elementary is home of the Rockets – where Rockets Rule!
– and our school colors are blue, green, and gold. Our
school motto is: Effort, Enthusiasm, Encouragement =
EXCELLENCE.
Our students are our “reason
for being.” We have a variety of programs for our
students, and we try to make every decision within the
school based on what is “best for kids.” Meeting
individual needs is a focus through our differentiation
of instruction and our philosophy of inclusion, and we
work hard to provide students with what they need
intellectually, physically, emotionally, and
behaviorally. Our students have traditionally done well
on state and national assessments, and our scores are
usually one of the three highest in our county. We have
high expectations for our students and our students meet
or exceed our expectations. Fortunately, our students
come to school ready to learn, and their parents have
communicated to them the value and importance of
education.
Our exemplary school has an
outstanding staff. The faculty and staff at Peeples
Elementary are highly trained, highly motivated, and
enthusiastic professionals who seek to provide
meaningful learning opportunities for their students
each and every day. Fifty seven percent of our teachers
have Master’s or Specialist’s degrees, and many teachers
are qualified to teach a variety of subjects, grade
levels, or special programs. Four teachers selected as
Teacher of the Year (TOTY) at Peeples have gone on to
become finalists in the county. One of our teachers was
selected as the county TOTY in 2002, and other staff
members have received various awards and honors over the
years. Our staff members continually participate in
professional development, and are committed to improving
student learning. They spend long hours planning
instruction to meet the needs of all of their students,
and they give 100% effort each day at school.
Parental and community support
for Peeples is overwhelming. Parents feel welcomed in
our building, and many volunteer in the classrooms,
media center, art room, and work area on a regular
basis. Parents often visit their children for lunch,
classroom activities, and our variety of school-wide
activities such as Dads and Doughnuts, Moms and Muffins,
Grandparents and Goodies, Open House, holiday lunch
feasts, curriculum events, concerts, the Spring Fling and our student
talent show. Our families generously support our school
fundraisers and our charity fundraising efforts. Our
school has raised the most money for our Fayette County
Power Parade (supporting the Friday and Johnson homes)
for the past seven years, and we also earned the most
money for the American Cancer Society’s Walk for Life in
2004. Our exceptional support from the parents and the
community is evident as they devote their time, effort,
money, and other resources to our school and our
school’s civic concerns.
We have everything going for us
here at Peeples Elementary – eager and bright students,
a committed and talented staff, supportive parents and
a fine facility. The challenge is to continue to
reflect, analyze, visualize and “dream” of ways to make
Peeples better and better. We must continue to examine
our students’ needs, our instruction, our curriculum
and our programs to ensure that all students attain
their highest potential. We will accomplish this at
Peeples Elementary where “Rockets Rule” and Effort,
Enthusiasm, Encouragement = EXCELLENCE.