Congratulations to Newport News Public Schools students who received job offers that were celebrated with community partners at New Horizons Regional Education Centers' Career Selection Day May 9.
\r\nStudents received their offer letters and company hats on stage at the event. The newly-minted New Horizons career and technical education program graduates announced the employer team and career pathway they will be joining.
\r\nThe following students received offers from the accompanying employer.
\r\nAuto Body program
\r\nAuto Tech II program
\r\nCisco Networking program
\r\nConstruction program
\r\nCriminal Justice program
\r\nElectrical program
\r\nHVAC 1 program
\r\nPharmacy program
\r\nPhysical Therapy/Occupational Therapy program
\r\nPlumbing program
\r\nWelding I program
\r\nWoodside High School senior Aaron Lin has been chosen as a 2024 Gates Scholar \r\n program recipient by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
\r\nLin is the Woodside valedictorian and Newport News School Board Student Representative. He will attend Yale University in the fall.
\r\nThe Gates Scholarship program promotes academic excellence and the cultivation of the next generation of leaders by providing academic support in the form of full college scholarships for outstanding students of color, according to the foundation.
\r\n\"I was a part of Newport News Public Schools all my life,\" Lin said. \"NNPS provides a lot of opportunities for students to grow. We have so many resources from free Advanced Placement exams, free resources, free counseling and so many after school extra-curricular activities, counselors, teachers around us to really help us grow.
\r\n\"And I'm really thankful for the opportunities Newport News Public Schools provided me.\"
\r\nLin's parents emigrated from China in the early 2000s and have owned and operated an Asian food restaurant in Newport News since 2010. Lin has helped out working there after school and on weekends since childhood.
\r\nWhile at Woodside, Lin co-founded Students Say, which is a club created after the COVID-19 lockdown period to help students re-connect to the school environment. The group continued to provide after school time for students to come together, talk about issues they experience in school and to develop their leadership skills.
\r\nLin was notified by email on April 20 that he would receive the Gates scholarship and he and his family were elated.
\r\n\"When I found out, I was really shocked,\" he said. \"It still feels surreal to think that you get your four years of college paid for. You don't have to have the burden of financial on your parents and your family. It opens a pathway for opportunities to explore.
\r\n\"And you get this extra funding on the side where you don't have to work a part-time job in college to support your financials. And you can explore different interests. Maybe you can take extra classes or you can explore different activities at college. That really opens your perspective to new interests, possibly.\"
\r\nLin will be the first person in his family to attend college and plans to study economics and statistics at Yale. He's interested in financial analysis and how nonprofit organizations in communities help under-resourced students.
\r\nHe worked last summer at local music education organization Soundscapes.
\r\n\"Soundscapes is a nonprofit that provides free music education to under-resourced communities,\" Lin said. \"I think that's really important since nonprofit work ties into the educational aspects and I want to help find solutions to help solve limited educational opportunities.\"
\r\nReceiving the Gates recognition will not only ease financial burdens, according to Lin.
\r\n\"Getting the Gates scholarship is like saying you did something,\" he said. \"You achieved something in your community, it represents that you're a leader in your community and they want to support that leadership in college. I think that's one of the very impactful things is they want to continue to foster your leadership skills.
\r\n\"They want to support that throughout your undergraduate experience. To me it's a sign that they think you're a good candidate for the scholarship, that giving you this opportunity will make you the next leader for your generation.\"
","body2":"","publish_date":"May 16, 2024","image_1_path":"240516095120520_2024-aaron-lin.jpg","image_1_caption":"","image_2_path":"","image_2_caption":"","image_3_path":"","image_3_caption":"","image_4_path":"","image_4_caption":"","image_5_path":"","image_5_caption":"","url":"https://sbo.nn.k12.va.us/news/archive/2024-05-16_Woodside-High-School-senior-Aaron-Lin-has-been-chosen-as-a-2024-Gates-Scholar-.html","news_id":"4090"},{"headline":"STUDENT SPOTLIGHT: Discovery STEM Academy 5th grader Crewe Campbell","blurb":"Tackling the problem of space junk","description":"Crewe Campbell had never given much thought to debris from past space exploration missions floating around in outer space. His participation in the Newport News Public Schools summertime STEAM Camp before entering fourth grade introduced him to the topic.","body":"Crewe Campbell had never given much thought to debris from past space exploration missions floating around in outer space.
\r\nHis participation in the Newport News Public Schools summertime STEAM Camp before entering fourth grade introduced him to the topic.
\r\n\"We were talking about missions that we could use and robots we could use to help and get all of that space garbage out of space,\" Campbell said. \"Because NASA and all of these other rocket ship places are trying to make sure you can go up in space without even getting hit by space junk because one thing of debris can just dent your entire ship.
\r\n\"Screws and the nut that they have; one single nut could just pierce straight through it. That's the intense speeds that they're going through.\"
\r\nNow a fifth grader at Discovery STEM Academy, Campbell is among those working on how to eliminate that pesky space junk.
\r\n\"It's very messy,\" Campbell said. \"We just want clean space like we want on planet Earth.\"
\r\nSince coming to DSA in fourth grade, Campbell has explored and participated in all kinds of STEM adventures. He volunteered to work a robotics table to showcase one of his recent robot builds and coding at DSA's recent STEM Night.
\r\nCampbell is in the Robotics Club, where he has made friends and had lots of fun, and his curiosity about space junk continues.
\r\nAs the Robotics Team worked on the topic of innovating solutions for space junk as a challenge for competition, Crewe and the group looked for ways to increase awareness.
\r\nThe team and teacher Mark Egerton organized a podcast with Dr. John Crassidis, professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering at the University at Buffalo, who is a leading expert on space junk and works with NASA and the military. Two DSA students edited the podcasts.
\r\nCrassidis outlined the potential dangers of large pieces of space debris landing on Earth.
\r\n\"He was telling us the future generations are going to have to be very well aware of that and have a solution to our problem,\" Campbell said. \"Because that's when it's going to start affecting us.\"
\r\nOutside of school, Campbell enjoys spending time with friends and family, building Lego sets and drawing. He loves the programming platform Scratch.
\r\n\"It's where you can go on and you can code games,\" Campbell said. \"You can look at some of other people's games. They are extremely amazing. You can find Geometry Dash on there.
\r\n\"You can find whatever you're looking for. It's easy to code on there and you just have fun with it and explore.\"
","body2":"Visit Student Spotlights on the Newport News Public Schools website.
","publish_date":"May 15, 2024","image_1_path":"24051509490757_crewe.jpg","image_1_caption":"","image_2_path":"24051509490757_CampbellCrewe.jpg","image_2_caption":"Visit Student Spotlights on the Newport News Public Schools website.","image_3_path":"","image_3_caption":"","image_4_path":"","image_4_caption":"","image_5_path":"","image_5_caption":"","url":"https://sbo.nn.k12.va.us/news/archive/2024-05-15_STUDENT-SPOTLIGHT--Discovery-STEM-Academy-5th-grader-Crewe-Campbell.html","news_id":"4089"},{"headline":"Learn More about Virtual Learning for the 2024-2025 School Year","blurb":"","description":"To provide a comprehensive virtual learning environment, NNPS is partnering with the Virtual Virginia program offered by the Virginia Department of Education for the 2024-2025 school year.","body":"","body2":"","publish_date":"May 13, 2024","image_1_path":"","image_1_caption":"","image_2_path":"","image_2_caption":"","image_3_path":"","image_3_caption":"","image_4_path":"","image_4_caption":"","image_5_path":"","image_5_caption":"","url":"https://sbo.nn.k12.va.us/news/archive/2024-04-29_virtualvirginiawebinars.html","news_id":"4080"},{"headline":"Woodside teacher selected for prestigious Supreme Court Summer Institute","blurb":"","description":"Woodside High School social studies teacher Janet Costello has been selected to attend the prestigious 2024 Supreme Court Summer Institute in Washington, D.C.","body":"Woodside High School social studies teacher Janet Costello has been selected to attend the prestigious 2024 Supreme Court Summer Institute in Washington, D.C., in June.
\r\nAfter a highly competitive application process, 60 teachers were selected to participate this year, according to co-sponsor Street Law. The Institute, which is open to teachers in the fields of law-related and civic education, is co-sponsored by Street Law, Inc. and the Supreme Court Historical Society.
\r\nStreet law is a global program of legal and civics education geared towards secondary school students.
\r\nThe Institute offers teachers the opportunity to study recent Supreme Court cases in detail and learn innovative teaching methods for conveying this information to students. Well-known Supreme Court lawyers, reporters, scholars and educators will be among the speakers and instructors for the Institute.
\r\nA recent evaluation of the Supreme Court Summer Institute found that, after the program, teachers who attended felt much more confident discussing controversial issues and Supreme Court cases in their classrooms, discussed Supreme Court cases and used interactive teaching strategies more frequently, and gained critical knowledge about the U.S. Supreme Court.
\r\nUpon returning home, teachers will be available to present workshops on teaching about the U.S. Supreme Court, and to meet with media to discuss how the new skills and information will apply in their classrooms.
","body2":"","publish_date":"May 13, 2024","image_1_path":"240513095345545_costello.jpg","image_1_caption":"","image_2_path":"","image_2_caption":"","image_3_path":"","image_3_caption":"","image_4_path":"","image_4_caption":"","image_5_path":"","image_5_caption":"","url":"https://sbo.nn.k12.va.us/news/archive/2024-05-13_Woodside-teacher-selected-for-prestigious-Supreme-Court-Summer-Institute.html","news_id":"4087"},{"headline":"Students build their dreams at Engineering Design Challenge","blurb":"","description":"Second and third grade students representing each elementary school in Newport News Public Schools participated in the NNPS Engineering Design Challenge on May 10 at Newsome Park Elementary School Science, Technology and Math Magnet.","body":"Second and third grade students representing each elementary school in Newport News Public Schools participated in the school division's Engineering Design Challenge on May 10 at Newsome Park Elementary School Science, Technology and Math Magnet.
\r\nStudents did not know what the challenge was until it was given to them with the materials needed to plan and design a real-world task in the allotted time period. Dream Builders was the theme of the problem they were presented to solve for the competition.
\r\nWorking in groups, students were tasked with design and create with Legos a building to the exact specifications needed for a business. The challenge encouraged students to collaboratively apply close reading strategies, engineering practices and the design process, along with other STEM skills.
\r\nFirst place winners for the four different design groups were An Achievable Dream Academy, Dutrow Elementary School, Greenwood Elementary School and Hilton Elementary School.
\r\nJames River Architects served as NNPS' community partner for the event. The Engineering Design Challenge is part of the school division's ongoing STEM education initiative emphasizing skills in science, technology, engineering and math. The competition also introduces students to various careers available in STEM fields.
\r\nThis was the third and final NNPS Engineering Design Challenge for this school year.
\r\nMiddle and high school students representing each secondary school participated in the challenge Generating the Future on March 22. Fourth and fifth grade students representing each elementary school worked on the Sea of Light challenge on February 2.
","body2":"","publish_date":"May 10, 2024","image_1_path":"24051003470656_photo1.jpg","image_1_caption":"","image_2_path":"24051003470656_photo2AADA.jpg","image_2_caption":"An Achievable Dream Academy","image_3_path":"24051003470656_photo3dutrow.jpg","image_3_caption":"Dutrow Elementary School","image_4_path":"24051003470656_photo4greenwood.jpg","image_4_caption":"Greenwood Elementary School","image_5_path":"24051003470656_photo5hilton.jpg","image_5_caption":"Hilton Elementary School","url":"https://sbo.nn.k12.va.us/news/archive/2024-05-10_Students-build-their-dreams-at-Engineering-Design-Challenge.html","news_id":"4086"},{"headline":"NNPS recognizes 2024-2025 Teachers of the Year honorees","blurb":"","description":"Newport News Public Schools recognized all 42 of its 2024-2025 Teachers of the Year and announced division-wide awards May 7 at the Marriott at City Center.","body":"Newport News Public Schools recognized all 42 of its 2024-2025 Teachers of the Year and announced division-wide awards May 7 at the Marriott at City Center.
\r\nKiln Creek Elementary School fourth grade teacher Jessica Reynolds was honored as Elementary School Teacher of the Year and Division-wide Teacher of the Year, with Booker T. Washington family and consumer sciences teacher Tanesha Koonce recognized as Middle School Teacher of the Year and Heritage High School math teacher Llew Radford awarded High School Teacher of the Year.
\r\n\"Tonight is special because we are acknowledging our Teachers of the Year, our dedicated educators who are molding young minds and preparing them for success,\" said Superintendent Dr. Michele Mitchell.
\r\n\"Our mission defines and guides the work that we do every day. However, it is our people who truly define who we are. No group is more accountable to the success of Newport News Public Schools than our teachers, reading specialists, library and media specialists, instructional coaches, school counselors, psychologists, social workers. The list can go on and on.\"
\r\nCrittenden Middle School teacher Chanda Woods, 2025 Virginia Region 2 Teacher of the Year and 2023-2024 NNPS Teacher of the Year, was the keynote speaker.
\r\n\"You have been selected to be the leaders of your colleagues, who recognize you for who you are and what you have to offer,\" Woods said. \"This is why you're being acknowledged. My advice for you is to embrace every challenge and opportunity.
\r\n\"Our chosen profession demands resilience and it's that resilience that keeps us passionate and dedicated. Let us continue to cultivate it, fueling our journey with unwavering enthusiasm, remembering that we bring the world into our classrooms. Our students experience that world through us.\"
\r\nReynolds has worked in education for 17 years and thanked the school community for its support of her growth and development as a teacher.
\r\n\"I graduated here from Newport News, I came from a family of teachers and I honestly love my job and I would not change it for the world,\" Reynolds said.
","body2":"","publish_date":"May 08, 2024","image_1_path":"","image_1_caption":"","image_2_path":"240508041626526_toy.jpg","image_2_caption":"Kiln Creek Elementary School fourth grade teacher Jessica Reynolds (center) was honored as Elementary School Teacher of the Year and Division-wide Teacher of the Year, with Booker T. Washington family and consumer sciences teacher Tanesha Koonce (left) recognized as Middle School Teacher of the Year and Heritage High School math teacher Llew Radford (right) awarded High School Teacher of the Year.","image_3_path":"240508041626526_2024-2025toy.jpg","image_3_caption":"Click here to download pdf","image_4_path":"","image_4_caption":"","image_5_path":"","image_5_caption":"","url":"https://sbo.nn.k12.va.us/news/archive/2024-05-08_NNPS-recognizes-2024-2025-Teachers-of-the-Year-honorees.html","news_id":"4085"},{"headline":"Menchville Honors Research students present spring projects","blurb":"","description":"Menchville Honors Research students present spring projects","body":"Students in Menchville High School's Honors Research and Applications in Cellular Processes class presented their spring research projects on May 2 in the school's Media Center.
\r\nIn small groups, they conducted studies and wrote papers as part of their 13-week projects. Students used zebrafish embryos to simulate fetal alcohol syndrome, the effects of steroids early in development, the impact of nicotine and red dye on early development, and the effect of antihistamines on drug-induced Parkinsonian symptoms.
\r\nScience teacher Ashley Chassard, who teaches the class, presented the new award of Outstanding Researcher to graduating senior Phoenix Smith.
\r\n"Having you in a class and working with you, you're one of those people who makes everybody better," Chassard said. "I want to thank you for that."
\r\nPresenting on the effects of ethanol on zebrafish development were Riley Barad, Bruce Hitt, Michael Jones, Kiera Smith and Marangelys Lopez Torres. Myna Chassard, Kassey Daugherty, Thomas Harrington and Nolan Stuffel presented on the effect of Ibutarmoren mesylate exposure during embryonic zebrafish development on larva heart rate.
\r\nPresenting on the neurotoxic effects of nicotine and Red-3 on zebrafish development were Aldion Bytyqi, Brandon Dionzgon, Jack Gorton and Aric Ruks. The project on the effects of first, second and third generation H1 antihistamines on Parkinson's Disease was presented by Oscar Davila, Zipporah Grantham, Elizabeth McElfresh, Smith and Jarett Stephens.
\r\nStudents detailed the materials, methods and outcomes for each project, as well as explaining the data they collected.
\r\n"I'm really proud of them and I want to thank them," Chassard said.
\r\nThe Honors Molecular Cell Biology and Honors Research and Applications in Cellular Processes courses at Menchville provide students with a year-long intensive lab-based learning experience that will develop biological lab skills and techniques to foster the critical thinking, collaboration and communication skills necessary for students to become college, career and citizen-ready, according to Chassard.
\r\nThe experience is designed to help students discover their interests and possible careers in the area of STEM-science, technology, engineering and math-while honing capabilities to help them be successful in higher education.
\r\n"Students work the first semester to learn various lab skills and techniques along with the inquiry nature of the scientific process, which will prepare them for the student-led and designed project-based learning that encompasses the second semester," Chassard said.
\r\nThe courses are created to allow students to learn from their mistakes and embrace inquiry. Students are free to be curious and design investigations that allow them to seek answers to their questions, according to Chassard.
\r\n"The goal is to cultivate students who are critical thinkers and problem solvers," Chassard said.
","body2":"","publish_date":"May 03, 2024","image_1_path":"","image_1_caption":"","image_2_path":"24050310510757_2024-mhsresearchclass.jpg","image_2_caption":"","image_3_path":"","image_3_caption":"","image_4_path":"","image_4_caption":"","image_5_path":"","image_5_caption":"","url":"https://sbo.nn.k12.va.us/news/archive/2024-05-03_Menchville-Honors-Research-students-present-spring-projects.html","news_id":"4084"},{"headline":"Heritage teacher and activities director receives national recognition","blurb":"","description":"Heritage teacher and activities director receives national recognition","body":"Tiffanie Smith, activities director and business and information technology teacher at Heritage High School, was chosen as the National Renaissance Staffulty of the Month for May by Jostens Renaissance Education. Smith was the 2022-23 Heritage and NNPS High School Teacher of the Year.
\r\nHeritage math teacher Rodrick Monroe nominated Smith for the honor, writing that "she is constantly working towards her goal of changing our culture and improving the school's climate."
\r\nRead about Smith's positive impact on students and the school community at Heritage by clicking here.
","body2":"","publish_date":"May 02, 2024","image_1_path":"24050209250757_2024-tiffaniesmith.png","image_1_caption":"","image_2_path":"","image_2_caption":"","image_3_path":"","image_3_caption":"","image_4_path":"","image_4_caption":"","image_5_path":"","image_5_caption":"","url":"https://sbo.nn.k12.va.us/news/archive/2024-05-02_Heritage-teacher-and-activities-director-receives-national-recognition.html","news_id":"4083"},{"headline":"Warwick Debate Team excels at state championships","blurb":"","description":"Warwick Debate Team excels at state championships","body":"Several members of Warwick High School's debate team placed at the VHSL Class 5 State Championships April 26-27 at James Madison University in Harrisonburg.
\r\n"This being my first year coaching debate, I had no clue how or even if we would place," said Giuliana Mortimer, Debate Team coach and English teacher at Warwick. Words truly cannot express how proud I am of the hard work and dedication these students have."
\r\nJohn Steiner, a junior, placed 1st in the Lincoln Douglas category. It is a one-on-one debate style and his topic was whether or not the primary objective of the criminal justice system should be rehabilitation. Lincoln Douglas is a moral debate and is named for the famous debates between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas.
\r\nRazvan Verde, a junior, and Kai-Tang Tseng, a senior placed 3rd in the Public Forum category. It is a two-on-two team debate style and their topic was whether or not the United Nations Security Council should abolish permanent membership. Public Forum uses fact-based argumentation and tackles issues that are relevant to the public at large.
\r\nWarwick finished in second place and classified as runner-up in the team standings, which are determined by averaging competitors' placements to rank teams.
\r\nAll students had to prepare both sides of the arguments, according to Mortimer.
\r\n"The process is a little different depending on the category, but this is basically because they do not know until each individual round which side they are debating," Mortimer said. "In addition to our typical tournament preparations, our team wanted to craft unique arguments that would be more difficult for their opponents to counter.
\r\n"Kai-Tang and Razvan focused on doing meticulous research, likely leading to them knowing more about the facts than many of their opponents. John honed in on the nuances of his topic, which, led to his success in attacking his opponents' argumentation."
","body2":"","publish_date":"May 01, 2024","image_1_path":"","image_1_caption":"","image_2_path":"240501040724524_2024-warwickdebateteam.jpg","image_2_caption":"","image_3_path":"","image_3_caption":"","image_4_path":"","image_4_caption":"","image_5_path":"","image_5_caption":"","url":"https://sbo.nn.k12.va.us/news/archive/2024-05-01_Warwick-Debate-Team-excels-at-state-championships.html","news_id":"4082"},{"headline":"STUDENT SPOTLIGHT: Heritage Senior Leon Hicks","blurb":"Takes pride in participating in NJROTC","description":"Leon Hicks knows exactly when he decided to start making the most of his school experience.","body":"Leon Hicks knows exactly when he decided to start making the most of his school experience.
\r\nHalfway through ninth grade, he knew he needed a reset. Now a senior at Heritage High School, Hicks has participated in activities and connected with people at every opportunity.
\r\nKnowing he had not made his best use of middle school and losing his father between ninth and tenth grades led him to choose to be a student leader in every way.
\r\n\"That really affected me and that really told me that things are getting real,\" Hicks said. \"I need to stop acting the way I'm acting and start getting my act together. So overall my attitude has definitely changed.\"
\r\nHis mother was always there for him, while Navy Junior Reserve Officers Training Corps sponsors Eric Tyson and Sampson Edmonds in Heritage's Naval Science department played big roles.
\r\n\"Commander Tyson and Senior Chief Edmonds really helped me to change my attitude so that I see more positively the school and life in general,\" Hicks said.
\r\n\"And one thing that was told to me that really sticks with me is: 'This is the day the Lord has made; I will rejoice and be glad in it.' You can take that any way you want to. But I'll take it as coming in with a good attitude, smiling every day, saying Hi to people. Even if it's a bad day; it's coming in with positivity.\"
\r\nHicks is senior class president, actively involved as a student ambassador and heavily involved in NJROTC and DECA. He is described as a well-rounded student who models what it takes to be a Hurricane as he's always ready and willing to serve the school and community.
\r\n\"I take a lot of pride in NJROTC because not only does it teach you everything about military, it also teaches you about being a person in a business in general,\" Hicks said. \"I really love that and that's really what changed me. Commander Tyson's help has really uplifted me both as a leader and a person.\"
\r\nWanting to promote Heritage and stoke school spirit has Hicks wearing every school logoed thing he can get his hands on to positively represent the Hurricanes community. He recommends that students do their part to contribute, making good use of their time in the present.
\r\nOutside of school, Hicks participates in community service projects with his church and works two jobs. He will attend Norfolk State University on an Army scholarship, planning to major in mechanical engineering and go into the Army's officer training program after graduation.
\r\nHe has left his mark on Heritage.
\r\n\"Do something unique that sets you apart,\" Hicks said. \"Talk to one person who sits alone.\"
","body2":"Visit Student Spotlights on the Newport News Public Schools website.
","publish_date":"Apr 30, 2024","image_1_path":"240430095712412_Leon.jpg","image_1_caption":"","image_2_path":"240430095712412_HicksLeon.jpg","image_2_caption":"Visit Student Spotlights on the Newport News Public Schools website.","image_3_path":"","image_3_caption":"","image_4_path":"","image_4_caption":"","image_5_path":"","image_5_caption":"","url":"https://sbo.nn.k12.va.us/news/archive/2024-04-30_STUDENT-SPOTLIGHT--Heritage-Senior-Leon-Hicks.html","news_id":"4081"},{"headline":"Students build winning designs at Canstructure Competition","blurb":"","description":"Students build winning designs at Canstructure Competition","body":"Creative uses of canned food showed off creativity and collected donations for local families as Newport News Public Schools students accomplished both at the Youth Volunteer Corps of Hampton Roads Annual Canstructure Competition April 27 at Patrick Henry Mall.
\r\nCanstructure is a benefit for the Foodbank of the Virginia Peninsula where teams of students collect and find innovative ways to use hundreds of cans of food to build a unique three-dimensional work of art. This year's theme was Connecting Worlds Through Literature.
\r\nAll food was donated to the Foodbank upon completion of the competition.
\r\nAn Achievable Dream Academy was the overall winner of the competition after collecting 4,000 cans, as well as receiving a new award as Grand Champion for its remarkable structure and presentation depicting various children's books.
\r\nFor elementary schools, Richneck Elementary School was the winner with Hilton Elementary School honored as runner-up. Ella Fitzgerald Middle School was runner-up in the middle school category.
\r\nWarwick High School was the winner in the high school category with Menchville High School recognized as runner-up.
\r\nElementary school teams constructed their canstructures at their respective schools and judges visited prior to Saturday to record each team's presentation. Middle and high school teams built their canstructures at Patrick Henry Mall with their innovation and creativity on display for community members to see happening in real time.
\r\nView more photos on our Facebook page.
","body2":"","publish_date":"Apr 29, 2024","image_1_path":"","image_1_caption":"","image_2_path":"240429111039439_2024-AADA.jpg","image_2_caption":"An Achievable Dream Academy","image_3_path":"","image_3_caption":"","image_4_path":"","image_4_caption":"","image_5_path":"","image_5_caption":"","url":"https://sbo.nn.k12.va.us/news/archive/2024-04-29_Students-build-winning-designs-at-Canstructure-Competition.html","news_id":"4079"},{"headline":"NNPS Family and Community Engagement coordinator receives national award","blurb":"","description":"NNPS Family and Community Engagement coordinator receives national award","body":"Tiffany Jones, coordinator of Family and Community Engagement for Newport News Public Schools, was honored as 1st runner-up at the 2024 Family and Community Engagement Awards given by the Family and Community Engagement Learning Network and Successful Innovations Inc.
\r\nThe award was presented April 25 at the 2024 Innovations in Family Engagement Symposium in Raleigh, North Carolina.
\r\nJones was one of 20 finalists for the award from around the country. Dr. Chisel Valdez, director of family engagement for Gwinnett County Public Schools in Georgia, was the grand prize winner.
\r\nJones was invited to attend the 2024 National Family Engagement Summit gratis and was asked to be a presenter at the next symposium.
\r\n\"It is truly a humbling honor to be nominated for the 2024 Family and Community Engagement Award through the Family and Community Engagement Learning Network and Successful Innovations,\" Jones said, after the award nominations were announced. \"I love what I do. Serving as the coordinator of Family and Community Engagement has afforded me the opportunity to nurture my passion for youth and families.
\r\n\"My aspiration is for our youth and families to experience empowerment, authentic engagement and to become active partners, as I and the Family and Community Engagement team continue to strive towards the goal of informing, empowering and effectively advocating for our families and community.\"
\r\nNNPS' FACE program is part of its Youth Development Department and uses specially-targeted activities to increase family and community engagement with the school division's K-12 students.
","body2":"","publish_date":"Apr 26, 2024","image_1_path":"240430014439439_photo.jpg","image_1_caption":"","image_2_path":"","image_2_caption":"","image_3_path":"","image_3_caption":"","image_4_path":"","image_4_caption":"","image_5_path":"","image_5_caption":"","url":"https://sbo.nn.k12.va.us/news/archive/2024-04-26_NNPS-Family-and-Community-Engagement-coordinator-receives-national-award.html","news_id":"4078"},{"headline":"Point Option science students build, test drive solar go-karts","blurb":"","description":"Point Option science students build, test drive solar go-karts","body":"Starting with a box of parts and the knowledge they had gained working on smaller projects, a group of Virtual Learning Academy at Point Option science students built two solar go-karts in April.
\r\nWith instructors from Flying Classroom available to answer questions, students had a diagram on a whiteboard and one another to rely on as they figured out the building part. Once completed, students test drove the go-karts in the school’s parking lot.
\r\n"It was a cool experience; something I haven't really done before on this scale," said Stanley Vanburn, a 10th grader. "And it was cool to be able to do this. It was a collaborative effort."
\r\nThe voluntary hands-on project provided students with a different way of learning science they are currently studying.
\r\n"It definitely helps with everything and makes things more interesting," Vanburen said.
\r\nStudents came to school an hour early several days a month since February to participate in learning the intricacies of creating code with circuits and programming, as well as working on smaller building projects including a motor. Although they usually learn at home through the school's Virtual Learning Academy, a group of 18 to 20 committed to participating in-person and formed friendship bonds along with learning as they worked together.
\r\n"Each of the projects starts with an engagement piece where they started with some of the smaller projects where the instructors will get them excited about a particular topic like circuits," said Gretchen De Wall, science teacher.
\r\n"They really apply some real-life application like connecting to let's say the cell phone. And then they build. Then they're given the components to build a circuit, build a solar rover. So it's a routine for each individual build."
\r\nTeams of students assembled two go-karts, picking out parts and attaching them where needed. Tools and parts were strewn around the floor and the occasional ominous sound of a tiny metal part being dropped could be heard before it was retrieved.
\r\nThey figured it out themselves, hunched over and concentrating.
\r\n"Strategizing-wise, because we don't have any paper instructions, it's more of a you doing it on your own," said 11th grader Ramiyah Jones-Spruill. "You're communicating with your teammates, trying to figure out what part goes where."
\r\nStudents said they enjoyed the building process, but had their eyes on the end result of testing the vehicles.
\r\n"That's going to be the most fun part, to be completely done and trying it and testing it out," Jones-Spruill said.
\r\nLearning by doing rather than listening or observing kept students engaged.
\r\n"I learn in a way that I have to do it to understand it," said 11th grader Joel Bethea. "And this shows that. Because it would be way more difficult for me to just look at a book and someone expect me to build an airplane by just looking at a book, without seeing anyone else build an airplane before or someone walk me through."
\r\nHe compared it to learning to drive a car by studying the textbook, but never taking behind the wheel instruction.
\r\n"This is basically helping us figure out actually how to do it instead of just reading about it," Bethea said.
\r\nBy the time they drove the go-karts on April 19, students were cheering each other on, taking photos and celebrating the project's completion together with the school community.
\r\n"They're excited to come in-even an hour early; and they're chit chatting," De Wall said. "So the whole experience from the science aspect, yes. But also the social emotional bit is just so big for them."
","body2":"","publish_date":"Apr 25, 2024","image_1_path":"","image_1_caption":"","image_2_path":"240425123744444_2024-build1.jpg","image_2_caption":"","image_3_path":"240425123744444_2024-build2.jpg","image_3_caption":"","image_4_path":"240425123744444_2024-build3.jpg","image_4_caption":"","image_5_path":"240425123744444_2024-build4.jpg","image_5_caption":"","url":"https://sbo.nn.k12.va.us/news/archive/2024-04-25_Point-Option-science-students-build--test-drive-solar-go-karts.html","news_id":"4077"},{"headline":"Career pathways event showcases STEM fields for students","blurb":"","description":"Career pathways event showcases STEM fields for students","body":"A helicopter circled above Heritage High School, made a few maneuvers and then hovered before landing on the football practice field.
\r\nThis was the dramatic opening to a morning of career pathways explanations and demonstrations by the Celebrate Freedom Foundation and Virginia Natural Gas on April 24.
\r\nStudents in the Governor's STEM Academy and NJROTC programs at Heritage learned about various career possibilities as they cycled through stations of guest presentations. The foundation had two helicopters and a Hunter Drone for students to see and learn about working with, and VNG used three stations with trucks, equipment and materials displayed to help tell its story of working to serve the community's natural gas needs.
\r\nNumerous students filmed the opening helicopter landing with their phones as they got ready to learn about these STEM workforce opportunities and the education required to do so.
\r\n\"NJROTC cadets who are part of our aerial drone team were able to help assemble the Hunter Drone,\" said Lenise Cowling, program administrator for the Governor's STEM Academy. \"Our engineering drone team will probably help disassemble the Hunter Drone. Virginia Natural Gas is sponsoring the event and showcasing career paths that students can take.\"
\r\nCelebrate Freedom Foundation, which is located in South Carolina, is a nonprofit education and historical organization created to further education efforts as well as \"to honor past aviation pioneers and inspire future space and aviation pioneers,\" according to its website. The foundation focuses on education with a STEM-Science, Technology, Engineering and Math-education outreach program primarily for K-12 students.
","body2":"","publish_date":"Apr 24, 2024","image_1_path":"","image_1_caption":"","image_2_path":"240424013943443_2024-careerpathways1.jpg","image_2_caption":"","image_3_path":"240424013943443_2024-careerpathways2.jpg","image_3_caption":"","image_4_path":"240424013943443_2024-careerpathways3.jpg","image_4_caption":"","image_5_path":"","image_5_caption":"","url":"https://sbo.nn.k12.va.us/news/archive/2024-04-24_Career-pathways-event-showcases-STEM-fields-for-students.html","news_id":"4076"},{"headline":"Partnership continues to help students learn science at The Mariners' Museum and Park","blurb":"","description":"Partnership continues to help students learn science at The Mariners' Museum and Park","body":"Donning waders to plant eelgrass in Mariners' Lake, conducting water quality testing and learning about various kinds of fish using a simulation were all part of a school day for Denbigh High School ninth graders on April 17.
\r\nThousands of NNPS biology and environmental science students have participated in an ongoing experiential learning program through a partnership with The Mariners' Museum and Park that continues to teach them. A three-year grant from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and funded through the Bay Watershed Education and Training program has allowed students to participate in the large-scale watershed restoration project as a learning lab.
\r\nMuseum officials are committed to continuing the program, which other local school divisions have joined since NNPS began participating in 2021.
\r\nAs Denbigh science teacher Kathryn Hamilton's environmental science students took their turn, science educators from The Mariners' Museum informed them every step of the way through the three educational stations of activities.
\r\nAside from the obvious appeal of leaving school for a brief adventure, there are real advantages to this engagement opportunity.
\r\n\"What they're doing here ties directly into what we're learning about,\" Hamilton said. \"Right now we're working on ecosystems and we're talking about how different ecosystems interact and what abiotic and biotic things are. Next unit we'll be talking about invasive species and topics like that.
\r\n\"So it literally ties directly into material we're doing and material we have talked about in class. But some of the tests that they were able to do are not tests that I can do in class with them.\"
\r\nProject Director Andrea Rocchio, senior educator for science at The Mariners' Museum and Park, and Sabrina Jones, senior director of advancement, explained the long-term benefits of introducing students and teachers to the park and museum so that they might return to explore all that the museum and park have to offer. The Mariners' Museum's B-WET program is designed to create environmental stewards and build a sense of belonging in the community for the students.
\r\nThis was illustrated as numerous educators explained steps to students and helped them prepare and work through the stations. Individual interactions, conversations and tips and tricks were sprinkled throughout.
\r\nWithin minutes of getting off the school bus, students were pulling on waders and putting eelgrass onto coconut fiber and a small metal stake. They headed down to the lake where two staffers in the water assisted each student in finding a smooth and suitable spot on the bottom of the shallow section of lake and planting their eelgrass.
\r\nBack on land, students next learned the intricacies of water quality testing in small groups with a worksheet to fill out.
\r\nUsing samples from Mariners' Lake, they were guided in conducting five tests and discussing what the results meant. Water was tested for pH, dissolved oxygen, temperature, turbidity and salinity.
\r\n\"It's very difficult to do turbidity and the dissolved oxygen in class,\" Hamilton said. \"But they were able to go right, we talked about this. And hopefully, the next time they see it on a test they'll say right, I did that. I remember this because I did it.
\r\n\"Doing things hands-on stick into your memory better than just hearing it and writing it down and doing homework on it simply because it triggers in their mind. When you do something, it works better for memory.\"
\r\nAt the last station, students learned details about the submerged wreck of the Monitor battleship and how it forms an artificial reef to serve as a fish habitat off the coast of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina. They used fishing poles to fish for a series of plastic fish labeled with details on specific fish species to learn about invasive varieties, all while avoiding the artifacts that are to be left alone when plying the waterways.
\r\nOne female student was continuously reeling in fish while a boy further down the line said: \"We're starving over here\" after they'd been reminded that this friendly competition could have been more dire if they were trying to fulfill their dietary needs.
\r\nExperiences like this one give teachers opportunities to do things with students that they wouldn't normally be able to do, according to Hamilton.
\r\n\"We're treating it almost as bio prep so that when they go to biology hopefully next year, they'll have seen this information before and they'll remember it a little better before they take the biology SOL,\" Hamilton said.
","body2":"","publish_date":"Apr 22, 2024","image_1_path":"","image_1_caption":"","image_2_path":"240423033511411_mariners1a.jpg","image_2_caption":"Photo credit: Kyra Duffley, The Mariners' Museum and Park","image_3_path":"240423033511411_mariners2a.jpg","image_3_caption":"Photo credit: Kyra Duffley, The Mariners' Museum and Park","image_4_path":"240423033511411_mariners3a.jpg","image_4_caption":"Photo credit: Kyra Duffley, The Mariners' Museum and Park","image_5_path":"","image_5_caption":"","url":"https://sbo.nn.k12.va.us/news/archive/2024-04-22_Partnership-continues-to-help-students-learn-science-at-The-Mariners--Museum-and-Park.html","news_id":"4075"},{"headline":"NNPS Secondary STAR awards honor students, organizations","blurb":"","description":"The Newport News Public Schools Youth Development Department held its annual STAR Awards recognition event for students and student organizations that exemplify the characteristics of student leadership and volunteerism.","body":"The Newport News Public Schools Youth Development Department held its annual recognition for students and student organizations that exemplify the characteristics of student leadership and volunteerism. The STAR - Students Taking Action and Responsibility - Awards are given each year.
\r\nDuring the Secondary STAR Awards Banquet on April 18, 120 middle and high school students representing 41 clubs and organizations were honored for their leadership and volunteerism.
\r\nTeniyah Corprew, a senior at Achievable Dream High School and the Boys & Girls Clubs Youth of the Year for the Virginia Peninsula, served as mistress of ceremonies. School Board member Rebecca Aman gave opening remarks and provided the introduction.
\r\n\"Our honorees, representing various clubs, represents thousands of students in our schools who are sharpening their leadership skills and making a positive difference,\" Aman said. \"Thank you, our honorees, for your initiative, service and heart for others. Your character and dedication have certainly distinguished you and your club or organization as leaders.\"
\r\nAttendees included Delegate Shelly Simonds, Newport News City Council member Tina Vick, Acting Assistant City Manager David Freeman, School Board member Gary Hunter and Rob Coleman, Chief Operating Officer of the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Virginia Peninsula.
\r\nFeatured students who presented the awards were Marlie Kane, an eighth grader at Gildersleeve Middle School; Malechi Whitaker, an eighth grader at Passage Middle School; and Marlena Krizmencic, a junior at Warwick High School.
\r\nMusic was provided by the Menchville High School and Crittenden Middle School choirs.
\r\n\"Honorees, I do want to thank you for what you do; you truly do serve as role models,\" Superintendent Dr. Michele Mitchell said in her closing remarks. \"It really is a pleasure to acknowledge all that you have each individually achieved and collectively achieved this year through your service to our schools and our community. You make every one of us in this room proud.\"
","body2":"","publish_date":"Apr 19, 2024","image_1_path":"","image_1_caption":"","image_2_path":"240419082127427_starmiddle.jpg","image_2_caption":"","image_3_path":"240419082127427_starhigh.jpg","image_3_caption":"","image_4_path":"240419082127427_Star.jpg","image_4_caption":"","image_5_path":"240419082127427_Star-2.jpg","image_5_caption":"","url":"https://sbo.nn.k12.va.us/news/archive/2024-04-19_NNPS-Secondary-STAR-awards-honor-students--organizations.html","news_id":"4074"}]);