Columbia Elementary School has a blast celebrating 20th birthday

MADISON – Students, teachers and administrators are ‘rocking the school’ to observe the 20th birthday of Columbia Elementary School, 667 Balch Road.

Opening in 2004, Columbia is one of seven elementary schools in Madison City Schools or MCS. The school’s name honors the community’s ties to the space industry and the memory of the Columbia Crew STS107, who died on Feb. 1, 2003.

Kindergartners through fifth-graders attend Columbia with current enrollment of 694 students. “We have 58 certified teachers and 48 support staff members,” Principal Miranda Bolden said.

Bolden, Assistant Principal Kimberly Massey and Madison Aspiring Assistant Principal or MAAP Kara Lawrence lead the school. “Your Astro administrators think Columbia Elementary rocks every day,” Bolden said to students.

“Our theme this year is ‘Celebrating 20 years of Excellence, Achievement and Family,” Bolden said. “We also are planning an event for former teachers, administrators and district staff to come together to honor the work of past, present and future members who have diligently striven to maintain that level of excellence in all areas for our Columbia Astros.”

“Our administration, faculty, staff, parents and superintendent and board of education all work together to achieve this goal,” Bolden said.

To observe the school’s birthday, teachers aligned all lessons and activities with a birthday celebration theme. “We also did a ‘throwback’ to the year 2004 when Columbia Elementary was opened,” Bolden said. “Examples include writing lessons on writing letters to individuals across the campus titled, ‘You are a GIFT to me because . . .’; tiered birthday cakes of multiplication arrays; glow parties; and much more.”

“We had a schoolwide theme of ‘Party Like it is 2004.’ Each grade level added their own flare to the celebration, but we all focused on celebrating what a wonderful school we have!” Bolden said.

For the celebratory atmosphere, Bolden, Massey and Lawrence wore costumes representative of ‘throwing a birthday party.’ Bolden wore an inflatable costume of a clown doing a handstand. Massey was a pinata, covered in wildly colored bows. Lawrence masqueraded as a slice of birthday cake.

During Columbia’s history, the school has had capable administrators:

• Principals — Dennis James, Nelson Brown, Mark McCrory, Jamie Hill and Miranda Bolden.

• Assistant principals – Dr. Julie Finley, Dionne Washington, Nelson Brown, Brett Chapman, Brian Givens, Laura Minor and Kimberly Massey.

• MAAPs — Lisa Grice, Kimberly Massey, Jessica Pinegar, Kelcie Thomas and Kara Lawrence.

For more information, visit ces.madisoncity. k12.al.us.