District Awards

District Awards

• King's May Citizens of the Month were: Cheyenne Burkett and Caleb Garchar (room 3), Mark Earl (room 4), Sydney Zulich (room 5), Madison Miller (room 6), Sydney Moshier (room 7), Carletta Mobley-Williams and Ashley Strub (room 101), Martin Whitley (room 103), Quinn Toth-Cseplo (room 106), Bria Hatcher (room 107), Lauryn Dies (room 108), RaJanae' Brown-Fryerson (room 201), Lauren Spring (room 202), Matthew Pittman (room 203), Alexandra Wainwright (room 204), Hannah Petras (room 205), Shane Scott (room 207) and Kevante White (room 208)
• The following Akron Early College High School students made the Dean's List for the spring semester: Aries Brown, Beau Brown, Olin Clay, Heather Fikes, Delshawn Kirksey, Maya Mendoza, Hoang Nguyen, Markayla Powers, Candace Thomas and Uy Tu. As juniors move to full-time status, they have the opportunity to make the Dean's list.
• Forty-one Bettes students passed all parts of their OATs last spring. They were awarded "I passed my OATS!" T-shirts and "OATmeal" packages.
• Garfield student Bobbi Brown was presented with a Minorities in Technology Award by Mayor Don Plusquellic.
• Ellet students Richard Hickman, Joseph Nicolino and David Tell received Best Buy gift cards for submitting the winning PSA on how to get and keep good credit.
• North Akron Chamber of Commerce sponsored the 18th annual career education TOPS Awards program at North, where 216 students were honored. Congratulations were offered by NACC treasurer Leonard Falcone, Superintendent David W. James and Board president James Hardy.
• The following personnel presented at the APS Literacy Colloquium, held at the Ott Staff Development Center: Mary McGraw and Rilinda Rodgers-Knott, Helen Arnold CLC; Cynthia Hina, Barrett; Sandra Forejt and Levonia Swails, Crouse CLC; Brenda Costarella and Betty Zager, East; Aryiro Spithas-Miner, Findley; Margaret Oliver, Leggett; Saundra Kolar, Litchfield; Laura Valendza, Miller South; Charles Burger, Emily Parker and Niculove Vintila, North; Tamara Casalinova, Perkins; Ann Chapman, Kathy Guarino and Amy Rudd, Rankin; Bernadette Boddie and David Skelton, Seiberling; Judith Gray (data/pyramid coach), Sharon Hall (TAG coordinator), Aimee Kirsch (pyramid coach), Keith Leichty (instructional technology specialist), Debra Oddo (PBS coach) and Paula Shafer (world languages/ESL learning specialist). The conference-style professional development event highlighted the district's literacy efforts.
• The following APS students were named Outstanding High School Science/Math Students at the Akron Council of Engineering and Scientific Societies annual honors banquet: Buchtel – Johnathon Coleman and Cherie McNeil; East – Jacob Carmichael and Paige Headley; Ellet – William Boling and Cara DeAngelis; Firestone – Stephen Campbell and Allison Latham; Garfield – Alyssa Sayre and Neal Woods; Kenmore – Merri Fasick and LaMonte Graves; and North – Duaa Almahd and Ivory Bush.
• Glover CLC student Alexandria Wallace is the 2010 winner of the Akron Urban League's MLK Essay Contest. She will be recognized at the Urban League's annual breakfast.
• The following APS schools were "winners" in the United Way drive: Forest Hill CLC – highest percentage collected over goal = 106.82%; and Resnik CLC – highest dollar increase from 2008 = $445 in 2008 to $1,275 in 2009. Staff from these two schools will receive a pancake, sausage and bacon breakfast, cooked and served by Superintendent David W. James.
• The following Stewart students were selected to participate in African drumming during the Gospel Meets Symphony intermission: Donald Azeriette, Camron Bowden, Daeshon Coppinger and Demetrius Herring.
• The following schools and students were winners in the Akron Public Schools first bridge competition coordinated by the science department (learning specialist Katrina Halasa): first place – Firestone (Jenna Baker, Elizabeth Gegick and Kevin Meisner); second place – Firestone (Anthony Craiu and Claire Lentz); third place – North (Samuel Moore and Pathana Xaysouvanh); fourth place – Ellet (Trisha Carpenter, Victoria Pfautz and Jelena Topalovic); fifth place – Firestone (Anne Noel and Gretchen Von Koenig); sixth place – Firestone (Casey Engelhart and Nicholas Hafner); seventh place – Firestone (Marvin Cook, Shayla Gibbs and Luke Williams); eighth place – East (Jacob Carmichael and Mark Walter); ninth place – Firestone (Samantha Clarke, Alexandra Gaston and Nathaniel Shaffer); and tenth place – Firestone (Andrew Knops, Joshua Palan and Matthew Rivoire). These winners will advance to University of Akron competition. In addition, the following entries were judged on aesthetics by Justin Rufener of Palmer Engineering Company: first place – Firestone (Clarke, Gaston and Shaffer); second place – Firestone (Bryan Bates, Kaitlinn Brewer and Abigail Freitag); third place – Kenmore (Tyler Liggett and Joseph Marchand); and fourth place – Ellet (Justen Bischoff, Luis Magalhaes and Timothy Mills). Science teachers involved in the project were: Stephen Kemp, Buchtel; Linda Olson, East; Stephen Gambaccini, Ellet; Christine Milcetich, Firestone; Karen DeLaCroix, Garfield; Cynthia Johnson, Kenmore; and William Alkire, North. Career education teachers who were involved included: Daniel Spak, Firestone; Steven Carter, Garfield; and David Blankenship, Garfield/Kenmore.
• The STEM School held an awards ceremony for the second grading period. More than 150 awards were presented to fifth- and sixth-graders for straight A's, Honor Roll, Merit Roll, perfect attendance and improved GPA. Newly appointed ambassadors who participated in a presentation of learning were also recognized. A full list of awardees is posted on the display board outside the school's main office. The honored students received gift certificates for Friendly's Restaurant and Midway Bowling and a University of Akron engineering department backpack.
• The following North marketing students earned awards in individual DECA competition: first place – Desere' Childers (quick serve), Rebekah Huber (marketing management) and Kassie Siegenthaler (food); second place – Joseph Mong (business services); third place – Gina Doolittle (hotel management), Katherine Massey (auto), Jomar Morales (retail), and Socorro Morgan (sports); fourth place – Khoa Nguyen (restaurant management); and fifth place – Martin Butts (hotel management), Brian Coman (auto) and Morgan (quick serve). Team event winners were: first place – Megan Kane and Sierra Nowak (travel and tourism); and third place – Joseph Murdocco and Michael Oesterle (business law) and Alexandria Stopka and Jesse Unk (hospitality). Many of these students will compete at the state level in Columbus.
• Garfield competed in its second annual poetry slam. More than 40 students vied for the chance to represent the school in the State Poetry Out Loud tournament. Winners were: freshman – Sydney Tarver (teacher Katherine Daniels); sophomore – Sara Sekulic (teacher Daniel Camburn); junior – Cherrelle Hill (teacher Julie Rodgers); and senior – Chane'l Patterson (teacher Jeffrey Davis). Patterson was the overall champion.
• Litchfield seventh-grader Leo Spinos placed first in the school's first Geography Bee, sponsored by National Geographic Magazine. Leo also qualified for state-level competition. Litchfield's competition was supervised by teacher Elizabeth Bocian.
• The fifth annual Black History Academic Challenge held at Stewart resulted in the following awards: Crouse – first place for grades 4-5 and third place for grade 3; Essex – first place for grade 3 and third place for grades 4-5; Findley – second place for grades 4-5; and Stewart – second place for grade 3.
• Keep Akron Beautiful's Arbor Day contest challenged fourth-graders to create a slogan expressing why planting one tree at a time is important in fighting the impact of climate change. The winners were: first place – Joanne Yarnall's class at Leggett ("Plant a tree and make the world a cooler place."); second place – Catherine Foote's class at Rimer CLC ("One tree, one earth, one hope for all."); and third place – Linda Underwood's class at Betty Jane CLC ("One tree at a time to make our environment shine!). These schools will receive donated trees to be planted on the school grounds. As the winning school, Leggett will hold a ceremony at 10 a.m. on Friday, April 30, attended by Mayor Plusquellic or his representative. KAB and the City of Akron's service department selected 2,500 Red Bud seedlings, one for every public, charter and private school fourth-grader to commemorate Arbor Day. These seedlings will be delivered on Thursday, April 29.
• The City of Akron named Innes CLC student James Duckworth an outstanding volunteer among 12-to-13-year-olds. Innes CLC will receive $150 for his help with the school's paperwork and counseling schedules.
• The following students are 2010 H. Peter Burg Scholarship winners: Buchtel – Terrean Bryant and Andrea Smith; East – Camari Lewis and Marquise Wallace; Ellet – Raymond Davis and Cara DeAngelis; Firestone – Anika Gupta and Marissa Hirsch; Garfield – Alexandra Adniskey and Michael Tudor; Kenmore – Sabrina Cable and Jamie Patterson; and North – Socorro Morgan and Symphonie Mosley.
• Kenmore Army JROTC cadets Dylan Adkins (freshman), Cody Rogers (sophomore), Zandra Solomon (junior) and Derrick Montgomery (senior) received the Superior Cadet Award during the annual JROTC awards ceremony. The award is given annually to one cadet from each class. Cadet Taylor Dunkley (freshman) earned the Daughters of American Revolution Award.
• Hatton and Windemere were honored as being the top two schools in the district in First in Math, a Web-based math program that supplements classroom and at-home work.
• Barber CLC students Cameron Carrington, Elicia Enriques, Amanda Sabo, Gabrielle Vang, Tyree Williams and Quantae Wright were winners in a poetry contest held in the library and organized by LRC technician Pamela Laatsch. Winners of the bookmark contest were Ariyuana Lewis, Sabo and Nia Wemmer.
• North won the 2010 Seat Belt Challenge (Click It or Ticket) and earned an Emidio's pizza party. The Seat Belt Challenge increases awareness about seat belt usage among high school students. Other participating high schools included Ellet, Firestone, Garfield and Kenmore.