Foundation Awards Money for Education

The Fayette County Education Foundation has awarded over $9,000 this year in grants and scholarships to educators in the Fayette County Public School System.

More than $7,800 was given to 17 teachers at all school levels throughout the county to implement innovative learning programs in their classrooms, grade levels, and in some cases, the entire school. Awards are given to unique programs that are in addition to what is already being funded by the school system. Because these are supplemental programs, many would never come to fruition without monetary assistance from the Fayette County Education Foundation.

Three employees studying to become teachers received $500 scholarships to help offset their college expenses. The scholarships were awarded to the following paraprofessionals: Laurie Cannata, Braelinn Elementary; Autria Hairston, Fayetteville Intermediate; and Patricia Sanders, Oak Grove Elementary. Scholarship recipients must be employed as paraprofessionals in the school system and enrolled in an accredited teaching program through a college or university.

Counting this year’s grants and scholarships, the Fayette County Education Foundation has given nearly $190,000 to educators since its first awards in 2002. Funding would not be possible without the generous support of the business community, Fayette County Public School System employees and local individuals.

The foundation is a cooperative effort between the Fayette County Chamber of Commerce and the Fayette County Public School System. Anyone interested in becoming a supporter of the Fayette County Education Foundation can contact Melinda Berry-Dreisbach at the Fayette County Board of Education, 770-460-3535.

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Semifinalists in National Achievement Scholarship Program More than Triple in Fayette County

The number of Fayette County semifinalists in the 2011 National Achievement Scholarship Program has increased 150 percent over last year. A total of seven students have been named to the list compared to two in 2010.

Onyekwere Eke and Linsey Jackson, both of Fayette County High; Seyi Amosu and Elana Burton, both of Starr’s Mill High; Kevone Hospedales, Whitewater High; and Camara Carter and Alaisha Wellons, both of Sandy Creek High, were selected from more than 160,000 students from all parts of the U.S. who requested consideration in the program when they took the 2009 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT) as high school juniors.

These students are among the 1,600 Black American high school seniors nationwide who were selected as semifinalists in the 47th annual scholarship program.

To advance to the finalist level, semifinalists must present a record of high academic performance throughout high school, be endorsed and recommended by the school principal, earn SAT scores that confirm the PSAT/NMSQT performance, and write an essay. The semifinalist and a school official must also complete a scholarship application in which they provide information about the student’s participation in school, and community activities, demonstrated leadership abilities and educational goals.

Approximately 1,300 semifinalists are expected to advance to the finalist level in the 2011 program. Every finalist will compete for one of 700 one-time National Achievement $2,500 scholarships as well as 100 Achievement Scholarship awards underwritten by corporate and business sponsors for those who meet criteria set by the grantor.

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Three Fayette County Students Earn College-Sponsored National Merit Scholarships

Georgia Tech, the University of Southern California and Wheaton College have awarded National Merit Scholarships to three students who will begin studying at their institutions in the fall.

Patrick Loeffler, Whitewater High, has received a scholarship from Georgia Tech where he will major in medicine; Christopher Hrvoj, McIntosh High, received a University of Southern California scholarship, he plans to major in neuroscience; and Lauren Anderson, McIntosh High, is the recipient of a scholarship from Wheaton College, a Christian liberal arts college near Chicago, where she will major in international relations.

The college-sponsored scholarships provide between $500 and $2,000 annually for up to four years of undergraduate study at the institution financing the scholarship. These three students are among 2,800 graduating seniors nationwide who were awarded scholarships in the first announcement of winners. Another group of winners will be announced in July, bringing the total number of college-sponsored scholarship recipients to over 4,900.

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Fayette County Students Receive $2,500 Merit Scholarships

Graduating seniors at Fayette County High and McIntosh High are among the 2,500 students nationwide receiving National Merit Scholarships.

Jennie K. Lee (Fayette) and William S. Kearney (McIntosh) will both receive a $2,500 Merit Scholarship to help offset college expenses. Jennie plans to major in medicine/public health; William is planning a career in academic anthropology. Both Jennie and William are valedictorians at their respective schools.

National Merit Scholarship winners in each state are judged to have the strongest combination of accomplishments, skills and potential for success in rigorous college studies. A committee of college admissions officers and high school counselors selected the winners.

Applicants were evaluated on their academic record, including difficulty of subjects studied and grades earned; scores from two standardized tests; contributions and leadership in school and community activities; an essay describing interests and goals and the recommendation written by a high school official.

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Local Fayette County High Student Among Select Group Named Coca-Cola Scholar

A Fayette County High School student, class of 2009, is one of only 250 in the United States named a Coca-Cola Regional Scholar.

Cecelia Ogechi Oparah has been awarded a $10,000 four-year scholarship ($2,500 per year) to attend any accredited U.S. college or university. Coca-Cola awards 200 regional scholarships each year; Cecelia is one of only 12 graduating high school seniors from Georgia receiving the scholarship.

Regional winners from throughout the nation were recognized last month in Atlanta during Coca-Cola Scholars Weekend with a banquet held in their honor. Students also participated in seminars, a community service project and visited the Martin Luther King, Jr. Center and the World of Coca-Cola.

The Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation is one of the most recognized and respected corporate-sponsored scholarships in the U.S. This marks the foundation’s 21st consecutive year of scholarship awards. Including the 2009 class, the foundation has provided 4,276 scholars with more than $38 million in scholarships.

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Whitewater Student Named Gates Millennium Scholar

A 2009 Fayette County graduating high school senior is one out of 1,000 in the nation to receive a Gates Millennium Scholarship.

Jonaé Felton, Whitewater High, is among 64 high school seniors from Georgia and the only one from Fayette to be named to the 10th anniversary class of the nation’s largest and most successful minority scholarship program. The program is funded by a grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

As a Millennium Scholar, Jonaé will receive a full four-year scholarship to attend Tuskegee University. The total scholarship is worth approximately $200,000.

The application process for the scholarship is extremely involved, over 20 pages long, requiring students to write about their leadership experience, community contributions, personal characteristics, and long and short-term goals. Students must have a minimum 3.3 GPA and demonstrated leadership abilities through participation in community service, extracurricular or other activities to be eligible to apply. Independent readers evaluate nominees’ applications according to three primary criteria: academic achievement, community service and leadership potential.

In addition to being named a Millennium Scholar, Jonaé is also an honor graduate and will graduate in the top five percent of her class.

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Fayette County High Students Earn National Achievement Scholarships

Two Fayette County High School students are among 700 nationwide receiving National Achievement Scholarships through the 2009 National Achievement Scholarship Program, a competition for African American high school students.

Cecelia O. Oparah and Ehizele M. Osehobo are each the recipients of a $2,500, single payment scholarship, which can be used for undergraduate study at any regionally accredited U.S. college or university. Cecelia is planning to major in business/mass communications; Ehizele is looking at majoring in medicine.

More than 150,000 students entered the 2009 National Achievement Program by requesting consideration when they took the 2007 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT) as high school juniors. In September 2008, approximately 1,600 of the highest scorers were named semifinalists on a regional basis. To continue in the competition, semifinalists had to fulfill requirements for finalist standing, which included having a record of consistently high academic performance, being endorsed and recommended by an official of their high school, earning SAT scores that confirm the PSAT/NMSQT performance and submitting an essay about personal interests, attainments and goals.

Approximately 1,300 semifinalists advanced to the finalist level. Achievement Scholar awardees are the finalist candidates judged to have the strongest record of accomplishments and greatest potential for college academic success.

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Fayette County Students Named Semifinalists in National Achievement Scholarship Program

FL Note: Kudos to Fayette County High and Sandy Creek High Schools for these students' excellent achievements!

Six local students are among the 1,600 semifinalists nationwide vying for scholarships in the 2009 National Achievement Scholarship Program, a competition for African American high school students.

Chayna Johnson and Cecelia Oparah of Fayette County High and Jennifer Black, Ayrton Bryan, Kafi Hemphill and David Johnson of Sandy Creek High were selected as semifinalists from more than 150,000 students from all parts of the U.S. who requested consideration in the program when they took the 2007 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT) as high school juniors.

To advance to the finalist level, semifinalists must present a record of high academic performance throughout high school, be endorsed and recommended by the school principal, earn SAT scores that confirm the PSAT/NMSQT performance and write a self-descriptive essay. The semifinalist and a school official must also complete a scholarship application in which they provide information about the student’s participation in school and community activities, demonstrated leadership abilities and educational goals.

Approximately 1,300 semifinalists are expected to fulfill additional requirements and advance to the finalist level in the 2009 competition where participants will compete for 800 achievement scholarship awards worth some $2.6 million for college undergraduate study.

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University of Georgia Awards 2008 Charter Scholarships

FL Note: Congratulations to the following Fayette County students as recipients of this scholarship. Way to go!

Emily Breault, Fayetteville, Starr’s Mill High School, Russell Breault
Hannah Calamoneri , Peachtree City , McIntosh High School, Charlie & Kimberly Calamoneri
Marlene Davis, Peachtree City, Starr’s Mill High School, Jeffery & Leisa Davis
Michael Harris, Fayetteville, Starr’s Mill High School, Mr. & Mrs. David Loyd Harris
Zachary Johnson, Peachtree City, McIntosh High School, Vicki Johnson
Alan Liow, Peachtree City , McIntosh High School, Jye-Fu Liow
Nadine Ngu, Fayetteville, Lovejoy High School, Eunice Ngu & Marcos Elliott
Meghan O’Donnell, Peachtree City, Starr’s Mill High School, William O’Donnell
Ariella Perry, Peachtree City, Starr’s Mill High School, Parham Perry
Ai Taniguchi, Peachtree City, McIntosh High School, Hiroshi & Yoko Taniguchi
Julie Thompson, Peachtree City, Starr’s Mill High School, Richard & Dorrie Thompson
Amy Wallace, Fayetteville, Whitewater High School, Mr. & Mrs. Jeff & Terry Wallace

The 2008 freshman class at the University of Georgia will include 331 undergraduates who have been awarded Charter Scholarships by the Office of Undergraduate Admissions.

The Charter Scholarship, named to reflect the university’s distinction as the nation’s first state-chartered public university, recognizes first-year students with stellar academic records, leadership and community involvement and a respect for and commitment toward intellectual, social and cultural diversity. The Charter Scholarship is funded by the University of Georgia Foundation.

In-state students receive $1,000 per year in addition to the HOPE Scholarship. Out-of-state recipients are given non-resident tuition waivers with their $1,000 annual scholarships. Usually the top five percent of entering first-year students are named Charter Scholars.

This year’s Charter Scholars had an average SAT score of 1394. Their average high school GPA exceeded 4.0.

Students can renew the scholarship for up to three more years if they meet certain academic standards.

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Five Graduates Named Byrd Scholars

A graduating senior from each of Fayette’s high schools has been selected to receive the nation’s only federally funded scholarship.

Amy Evans, Fayette County High; Courtney Simmonds, McIntosh High; Jaimie Little, Sandy Creek High; Kevin Harrell, Starr’s Mill High and Alyson Pigford, Whitewater High has been selected as 2008 Robert C. Byrd Honors Scholars.

The Byrd scholarship program is the only federally funded merit based scholarship program for college undergraduates. The program's purpose is to recognize outstanding academic achievement among high school seniors who show promise of continued excellence in postsecondary education.

Byrd Scholars receive a $1,500 yearly stipend, for a maximum of $6,000 over four years, to pay for college expenses.