BOE Recognizes Students, Staff

The Cabarrus County Board of Education recognized students and staff at its May Business Meeting on Monday, May 14th.The Board presented Impact Through Education Awards to students and staff at Patriots Elementary School and Northwest Cabarrus High School.

The Impact Through Education Awards honor individuals who exemplify the qualities of initiative, hard work and respect for others. Impact Award honorees were joined by family and members of their school's administrative team as they received their awards.

Impact Award honorees at the May Board of Education meeting were:

Patriots Elementary School
  Students - Alexa Federico & Zachary Bingler
  Staff - Brenda Eason & Janet Cragan

Northwest Cabarrus High School
  Students - Sarah Ensley & William England
  Staff - Kasey Dellisanti & Larry Bland

Superintendent Barry Shepherd presented the Cabarrus County Schools Hilbish Ford Teacher of the Month. Each month, Hilbish Ford honors a CCS teacher for his or her outstanding work in the classroom. Teachers are nominated by parents, students or coworkers. Hilbish presents the teacher with a trophy and a cash prize. TheMay winner, Melissa Brantley, teaches at W.M. Irvin Elementary School.

The Northwest Cabarrus High School Air Force JROTC unit presented the colors as the meeting was called to order.

The Northwest Cabarrus cadets in attendance were:

Cadet Lieutenant Colonel Anthony Orefice
Cadet Major Scott Brophy
Cadet Major Jeremy Wiltshire
Cadet Technical Sergeant Fahd Farooq

Lt. Col. (Ret.) Calvin Martin and Senior MSgt. Corinne Smith are the instructors for the Northwest Cabarrus Air Force JROTC.

The Board recognized school level Teachers of the Year, as well as those selected as finalists in the district Teacher of the Year competition. Audience members were introduced to Mariko Weinhardt, who was selected as the 2012-1023 Teacher of the Year for Cabarrus County Schools.

The Board also continued its End-of-Year Recognitions. Congratulations to the following CCS students and staff members:

Ten CCS students were selected to attend Governor's School, the oldest statewide summer residential program for academically able high school students in the nation. They are:

Casey Aldridge, Concord High School
Ashley Buige, Concord High School
Bradley Burden, Jay M. Robinson High School
Whitney Hurtado, Mount Pleasant High School
Adam Kunesh, Jay M. Robinson High School
Michelle Mills, Concord High School
Sally Moore, Concord High School
Grant O'Brien, Concord High School
Taylor Rothermel, Cox Mill High School
Lauren Sollenberger, Jay M. Robinson High School

The Concord Middle School Student Council was recognized for its distinction as a National Council of Excellence by the National Association of Student Councils. Additionally, the council is one of 16 middle level councils to receive the esteemed honor of being named a National Gold Council of Excellence Award by the association. The award is given for councils that have an exemplary record of leadership, service and activities that improve the school and the community.

Members of the council's executive board attended the meeting, along with their advisors. They are:

Makayla Byers
Fisher Fullerton
Ben McGuire
Faith Martin
Brandon Moore
Claire Sumner

Advisors to the council are Cameron Kingshill, Jessica Mitchell & Craig Waskiewicz. Additionally, Faith Martin, executive board member, was inducted into the North Carolina Association of Student Councils Hall of Fame.

Two students from Winecoff Elementary School were recognized for their artistic talents. They are:

Ananda Laub
Justin Hartsell

Art teacher Aimee Mills also attended the meeting.

Ananda's piece "The Lovely Turtle," was selected to be featured in the North Carolina General Assembly's Youth Art Exhibition. The inspiration for her piece came from a lesson her class studied about the native Kuna people of Panama. Her work is one of 14 pieces from students across the state that will be on display in the north lobby of the state Legislative Building in Raleigh. Ananda and the other students whose artwork was selected will be honored at a reception this month at the House of Representatives.

Justin is the national winner of the Young Masters Art Competition for students in grades K-2. His piece was inspired by the work of famed American landscape artist Georgia O'Keefe, who is known for her large close-up paintings of flowers. Justin's untitled piece featured orange and yellow flowers set against a violet-colored background.

Young Masters is a national franchise that showcases children's artwork through keepsakes. His prize package included a $500 for the school's art program.

Finally, students who placed first in the Skills USA state level competitions also were recognized by the board. They are:

Jordan Hartsell, Central Cabarrus High School - Post-Secondary Masonry Division
Jacob Whitely, Concord High School - Firefighting Competition
Bridget Sumeracki, Jay M. Robinson High School - Aviation Maintenance Technology
Brandon Yates, Jay M. Robinson High School -- Motorcycle Service Technology
Colby Holder, Northwest Cabarrus High School - Auto I

End-of-Year Recognitions will conclude at the June Board of Education meeting, which is scheduled for Monday, June 18th at 6 p.m. at the Education Center.

Recordings of the Cabarrus County Board of Education Business Meeting will be available for viewing on the Cabarrus County Government Channel 22 on Wednesdays at 7:30 p.m. and also on-demand via the Cabarrus County Government YouTube channel.