• Three Hispanic high school seniors in Georgia earned the Colgate-Palmolive Haz La U Community Service award, with a $1,500 grant to help them become the first in their families to go to college. Winners were:
Esteban Chittester, (gold award) a native of Colombia who attends University School of Nashville and plans to attend Brown University. He said, "A career in medicine would benefit my community in that I would strive to provide affordable health care that served all people.
Emanuel Aragon Cruz, (silver award) a Mexican-American student at Lee County High School who plans to attend North Carolina State University. He said, "When I speak to my peers, I hope they will find the motivation to start helping themselves become better, and then share their experiences like I did. This ripple effect can engage an entire cultural change rapidly if we all try our hardest."
Antonio Rojas-Rodriguez, (bronze award) a Mexican-American student at Stratford High School who plans to attend the University of South Carolina. He said, "I believe that for me to be able to make an even greater impact and bring even greater change to my community, I need a higher education."
• The Doris and Alex Weber Jewish Community High School has announced a $1 million dollar gift from The Barbara and Sanford H. Orkin Family Foundation to establish and endow The Joseph Soriano Scholarship. It honors 2004 Weber alumnus Joseph Soriano, died in a tragic accident in September 2012. Students entering Weber in fall 2015 may apply for the scholarship. The foundation represents Joseph's maternal grandparents, Sanford and Barbara Orkin; his parents, Sherri and Morris Soriano;and several other family members. The scholarship will provide up to four years of need-based support for a Weber student who demonstrates excellence in athleticism, strength in academics and commitment to community.
• Justin Bridges, a student in Kings Chapel Elementary School in Perry, Ga., was the state's winner of the National Bonnie Plants Cabbage Program. Justin grew a 22.6-pound cabbage and was randomly selected by the Georgia Agriculture Department. He will receive a $1,000 saving bond toward his education from Bonnie Plants. This year, more than 1.5 million third-graders in 48 states tried to grow such colossal cabbages in Bonnie Plants' program.
• Fayette County teachers and students in all areas of the fine arts will have an opportunity to work directly with professionals from the Woodruff Arts Center thanks to a three-year grant donated by a local sponsor. The Woodruff Arts Center will work with its four partners, Alliance Theatre, Arts for Learning, Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, and High Museum of Art, to create arts-infused educational experiences in the school system and at the Woodruff Arts Center. The first program under the grant was a professional learning day for all fine arts teachers in the county. Instructors from the Woodruff's partners led teachers at the LaFayette Educational Center in creative and interactive workshops on drama/dance, band, chorus, orchestra, elementary general chorus, and visual arts.
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