35
area seniors among top in state
BY Staff Reports
Sunday, February 28, 2010
2/28/10 at 9:09 AM
The state's top 100 high school seniors and five public
school educators were announced Friday by the Oklahoma Foundation for
Excellence.
The 2010 Academic All-State award winners were selected from 621 applications
from 75 different high schools throughout the state, according to the
foundation's news release.
David Boren,
president of the University of Oklahoman, and chairman and founder of the
Oklahoma Foundation for Excellence, said in the release that the Academic
All-State program is the state's "most rigorous academic
competition."
The winning seniors were nominated by their principals or superintendents and
were selected based on their academic achievement, community involvement,
extracurricular activities and an essay written by the nominee.
This year's All-State class had an average ACT score of 33 with six of the students
earning a perfect ACT score of 36. Forty-four of the seniors are National Merit
semifinalists and one is a National Hispanic Scholar.
Five high schools have their first Academic All-State winner, including
Geronimo, Hardesty, Merritt and Seiling high schools and Southeast High School
in Oklahoma City.
The Medals of Excellence are given annually to a public school teacher from
each of the following levels: elementary, secondary, community college or
regional university and research university. A medal also is awarded to an
administrator from a elementary or secondary public school.
"We know that education is the best investment Oklahoma can make in its
future," Boren said. "By honoring these exceptional educators, we are
sending a message that Oklahomans deeply value excellence in public schools and
the professionals who have given so much of themselves to enrich the lives of
our children."
Each All-State winner receives a $1,000 scholarship and a medallion, and the
Medal of Excellence winners receive a $5,000 cash prize and a glass sculpture.
They all will be recognized at an awards banquet on May 22 at the Renaissance
Tulsa Hotel. The banquet is open to the public and admission is $50.
The keynote speaker at the ceremony is two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning author
and historian David McCullough, who wrote "1776" and "John
Adams." The awards ceremony also will be televised on OETA Channel 11 at 8
p.m. May 29.
Founded in 1985, the Oklahoma Foundation for Excellence is a nonprofit
organization that recognizes academic excellence in the state's public schools.
Through its Academic Awards program, the foundation has given more than $3.6
million in scholarships and cash awards to Academic All-State and Medal of
Excellence winners.
For more information, call the Oklahoma Foundation for Excellence at (405)
236-0006 or go to tulsaworld.com/ofe.
2010 Area
Academic All-State winners
Adair: Chelsey
Stricklen
Beggs: Hunter Aldridge
Bristow: Zachary Eldredge
Broken Arrow: Anna Bennett, Jill Graves, Onkur Sen
Claremore: Reagan Gill, Brooke Gunter, Jillian Lundie
Cleveland: Cortlandt Sellers
Fort Gibson: Alexandria Agee
Inola: Ora Douglas Hampshire
Jenks: Taylor Brumble, Lauren Foley, Jessica Jackson, Kevin Thomas
Miami: James Evan Fenska
Muldrow: Bailey Bedford
Owasso: William Baysinger, Jesse Kovacs
Ponca City: Joshua Pauls
Quapaw: Elizabeth St. John
Roland: Jade Edwards
Sand Springs: Megan Crow
Stillwater: Irving Dai (OSSM), Ty Prather, Sheng Wu
Stroud: Eric Gilbert
Talihina: Nicholas Barrs
Tulsa: Shiliang Zhang (OSSM),
Richard Chyan, Booker T. Washington, Evan McElwain, Booker T. Washington,
Jonathan Martell, Edison Preparatory High School
Vinita: Matthew Butner
Westville: Charlotte Kirk
Medal
of Excellence award winners (Adults With Many Years of Working Experiences )
Elementary level: Diane Reece, Bokoshe Elementary School, Bokoshe
Secondary level: Randy M. Baker, Putnam City North High School, Oklahoma
City
Regional or community college level: Audrey Schmitz, Northern Oklahoma
College, Tonkawa
Research university level: David Sabatini, University of Oklahoma,
Norman
Elementary or secondary administration: Terry E. Davidson, superintendent
of Comanche Public Schools, Comanche
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