From STAFF REPORTS
Three area high school seniors have been recognized this week for their outstanding academic achievements in Crisp and Wilcox counties.
This year’s STAR students include Crisp County High School senior Shannon Clark, Crisp Academy senior Whitney Rawlins and Wicox County High senior Phillip Bloodworth. Dooly County’s STAR student was recognized several weeks ago.
Each STAR student chooses a teacher who has had a significant impact on his or her education or life. Clark selected mathematics teacher Angie Walden Bellm as her STAR teacher. Rawlins named Crisp Academy science teacher Patty Childers as her STAR teacher.Bloodworth chose his science teacher, Diane Owens.
Bloodworth, son of Lloyd and Angie Bloodworth, was recognized by the Rochelle Lions Club Monday night at a banquet held in his honor at the Community Center in Rochelle.
He plans to attend Georgia Southern in the fall, and is looking toward a career in the medical profession. He says he chose Owens as his STAR teacher because she inspired his interest in pursuing a medical career.
The Lion’s Club also awarded Bloodworth with the Ernest J. Barker Memorial Scholarship for $1,000.
Crisp honorees were recognized during a luncheon Tuesday. The daughter of Margie Clark, Miss Clark serves as Beta Club co-president and is an All-American scholar. She plans to attend Valdosta State University as part of the Honors Program where she will major in biology.
She was also named the system-wide winner for Crisp County and will proceed to the district level.
Rawlins, an avid softball player and long time member of the Beta Club, plans on entering the pre-med program at Mercer University beginning in the fall.
The Student Teacher Achievement Recognition (STAR) program, now in its 51st year, is sponsored statewide by the Professional Association of Georgia Educators (PAGE) Foundation, the Georgia Chamber of Commerce and the Georgia Department of Education.
To obtain STAR nomination, high school seniors must have the highest score on one test date on the three-part SAT and be in the top 10% or top 10 students of their class.
STAR begins each year in participating high schools throughout Georgia when the STAR student is named and chooses a STAR teacher to share in this recognition.
Students and teachers are honored by their schools and receive special recognition in their communities from more than 165 statewide civic organizations and businesses that serve as local sponsors for the program.
The Rochelle and Cordele Lions Clubs and the Cordele/Crisp Chamber of Commerce were the sponsoring organizations in their respective counties.
