Good News, March 2022
The following students were chosen as the “Do the Right Thing” award winners for March: Stella Taylor, W.A. Bess Elementary; Judy Serrano, W.B. Beam Intermediate; Kaydence Crews, Mount Holly Middle; and Andre Gaddy, Gaston Early College of Medical Sciences.
Bridgette Best of Pleasant Ridge Elementary and Anarah Henderson of Southwest Middle School were selected for the first cohort of the Assistant Principal (AP) Accelerator Leadership Program, which is a partnership of the N.C. Principals and Assistant Principals’ Association (NCPAPA), the Belk Foundation, and the N.C. Department of Public Instruction (NCDPI). The statewide leadership initiative is designed to fast track promising assistant principals for principal positions.
The Belmont Middle School boys’ team and the Holbrook Middle School girls’ team won the county basketball championships.
The five finalists for Gaston County Schools New Teacher of the Year 2022-2023 are Janet Smith, W.A. Bess Elementary; Dharma Falls, North Belmont Elementary; Kaela Lipscomb, Grier Middle; Jamea Marlowe, Woodhill Elementary; and Ryan Magill, Cramerton Middle. The winner will be announced in May.
The five finalists for Gaston County Schools Teacher Assistant of the Year 2022-2023 are Catina Ford, Tryon Elementary; Brandy Guiton, Lowell Elementary; Penny Mantecon, Sherwood Elementary; Andea Moore, Sadler Elementary, and Crystal Wray, H.H. Beam Elementary. The winner will be announced in May.
Shree Wise of Highland School of Technology was named the Gaston County School Nurse of the Year, and Morgan Millen of Beam Elementary and Chapel Grove Elementary was named the Gaston County School Social Worker of the Year.
Mount Holly Middle School was among four schools that participated in the “Polar Plunge” event and raised $2,962.27 for the Special Olympics of Gaston County. Stuart W. Cramer High School raised $1,499, Webb Street School raised $1,471, and Ashbrook High School raised $734. The top fundraising coach was Cody Coleman of Webb Street School.
The Battle of the Books winners were Belmont Middle, first place; Gaston County Virtual Academy, second place; and Holbrook Middle, third place.
Cramerton Middle School captured first place in the Math Elite competition. Belmont Middle placed second and Southwest Middle took third place.
The East Division winners in the Math Masters competition were Hawks Nest STEAM Academy, first place; Belmont Central Elementary, second place; W.A. Bess Elementary, third place; and New Hope Elementary, fourth place. The West Division winners were Gardner Park Elementary, first place; Chapel Grove Elementary, second place; Sadler Elementary, third place; and North Belmont Elementary, fourth place.
Students, teachers, and staff in Gaston County Schools observed “Read Across America Day” on Wednesday, March 2 with a variety of special activities. The event coincided with Dr. Seuss’ birthday.
Five students won awards in the Gaston County Senior Art Show: Kayla Becraft, Bessemer City High School; Katie Bauer, Forestview High School; and Nia Webber, Mackenzie Salley, and Isabella Ray, North Gaston High School.
The following high school students were named to the N.C. Basketball Coaches Association’s District 10 All-Hoops Team: Randall Pettus, Bessemer City; Will Kelly, Stuart W. Cramer; Janiya Adams, Bessemer City; and Kenette Bess, Ashbrook.
Ashbrook High School teacher Anna Guzauskas received a $500 grant from Dominion Energy.
W.B. Beam Intermediate School welcomed community leaders to read books to students in celebration of Read Across America Week. Students also received pencils and snacks for meeting their iReady reading goals and dressed up as their favorite Dr. Seuss characters. Media specialist Kim Beam coordinated the activities.
Belmont Central Elementary and Gaston County Virtual Academy fifth graders participated in a career awareness program sponsored by the Gaston County Schools Career and Technical Education Department. The students were taught how to take temperatures and blood pressure readings, check a pulse, and perform CPR properly. In addition, students learned how to strip wire and join them together with wire nuts, thus seeing electrical circuits in action.
Bessemer City High School junior Randall Pettus was named the player of the year for the Southern Piedmont 1A/2A Conference, and men’s basketball coach Danny McDowell was named the conference coach of the year.
Bessemer City High School junior Janiya Adams broke her own scoring record and the county record for the most points scored in a single basketball game with 55 points.
The following players were named to the Southern Piedmont 1A/2A all-conference team: Keyshawn Adams, Bessemer City; Nazari Smarr, Bessemer City; Carson Kelly, Cherryville; Landon Hahn, Cherryville; Trenton Sherrill, East Gaston; and McCaskill Rivers, East Gaston.
Costner Elementary collected and donated more than 500 toys to the Levine Children’s Hospital.
Stuart. W. Cramer High School senior Cooper Mitchum earned the Emergency Medical Responder certification, which is offered through the North Carolina Office of EMT.
East Gaston High School senior Hannah Mullis qualified for the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair in Atlanta.
East Gaston High School teacher Michael Beech was featured on “Clic on Air,” an international radio program hosted by professors from the Universidad La Gran Colombia in Bogotá, Colombia.
East Gaston High School senior Aaron Hollar was selected for the N.C. Bandmasters Association’s all-state honor band.
The following Gardner Park Elementary students were winners in the “Art for Heart” poster contest that was sponsored by the Heart Society of Gaston County: Evanllelyn Meza Agudelo, first place, fourth grade; Angelic Wonsley, first place, fifth grade; Christian Holmes, second place, fourth grade; Sarah Pugh, third place, fourth grade; and George Alvarado, third place, fifth grade.
Highland School of Technology senior Wehazit Mussie is the recipient of the prestigious University of North Carolina Morehead-Cain Scholarship.
Hunter Huss High School senior Gio Bernal was named a finalist for the Bronko Nagurski High School Student Athlete of the Year Award.
Hunter Huss High School senior Malachi Coleman signed a National Letter of Intent to play football at Livingstone College.
After reading the book, “Lemonade War,” students at Kiser Elementary culminated the “One School, One Book” program by setting up their own lemonade stand and raising $580 for the Tri-County Animal Rescue.
Page Primary School is helping students learn about community service through a walking field trip to Bunny Blessings, which is an organization that takes therapy bunnies to assisted living facilities and other care facilities.
At the N.C. Technology Student Association’s western regional conference, Highland School of Technology placed first in animatronics, first in flight endurance, first in technology problem solving, first in video game design, second in music production, and second in structural design and engineering in the high school division. Southwest Middle School placed first in coding, second in biotechnology, and second in medical technology in the middle school division.
The Gastonia Omega Psi Phi Fraternity Alumni Chapter sponsored a pizza party for six classes at Sadler Elementary School. The pizza meal served as a reward for the students’ participation in the Gaston County African-American History Month trivia contest.
During Read Across America Week, the boys’ basketball team from South Point High School and National Honor Society students from Stuart W. Cramer High School read books to students at Page Primary.
Springfield Elementary partnered with the UNC-Charlotte Rocketry Team and conducted a program for second grade students, who learned how to build and launch 24 rockets. The project was in collaboration with the UNC-Charlotte College of Engineering and part of the team’s competition with NASA.
Diana Baxter, a STEAM lead teacher at Stanley Middle School, was chosen to present a session at the North Carolina Middle School Conference. She was assisted by middle school representatives from the Gaston County Schools Academic Services Department.
The Stanley Middle School eighth grade chorus, under the direction of Nyi Nyi Myin, performed the national anthem at the Charlotte Checkers hockey game on March 12.
