Benefield Elementary School and the Gwinnett School of Mathematics, Science, and Technology are finalists for the 2013 Georgia STEM Education Awards, according to the Technology Association of Georgia. The two Gwinnett County schools were selected from more than 170 applicants, according to the TAG Education Collaborative.
The high school was recognized for the work ninth grade students did on a STEM Day instructional activity with fourth grade students at Benefield, which was a finalist in the “Best Georgia STEM Day Activity” category. Winners will be honored at the second annual Georgia STEM Education Awards event Sept. 27th at the Savannah International Trade and Convention Center.
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Rhonda Lokey of Campbell Middle School has been named Teacher of the Year in Cobb County. The sixth grade humanities teacher often dresses as a flight attendant to prepare new students for social studies and to help them understand events such as the Russian Revolution.
Lokey has been selected as the local school teacher of the year by peers at Campbell and three other Cobb middle schools. Her rise to districtwide recognition makes her eligible to represent Cobb in the 2015 Georgia Teacher of the Year contest conducted by the Georgia Department of Education.
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Jolly Elementary School in Clarkston will get a new reading corner with additional library books thanks to FedEx and The Heart of America Foundation.
FedEx volunteers are doing the work and will give two books to each student at the DeKalb County school at a ribbon cutting Sept. 13. The halls of Jolly are filled with foreign languages, owing to the diverse population of student immigrants. Many speak Somali, Nepali, Arabic and other tongues.
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Air Force Junior ROTC Cadets Michael Chamness, Yusemi Mondragon and Christopher Thomas attended the Federal Service Language Academy on the University of North Georgia campus in Dahlonega this summer.
The students from Sequoyah High School in Cherokee County spent three weeks immersed in foreign languages and cultures — two studied Chinese and one Russian — at the academy, which was hosted by the university and the Georgia Department of Education.
The courses help students prepare for language and international affairs classes in college and can open the door to careers with the federal government. FBI, U.S. State Department, Central Intelligence Agency, Office of Homeland Security or as an officer in the U.S. Armed Forces.
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