Mount Airy City Schools had a virtual parade of people receiving honors during a school board meeting this week.
Mount Airy High School was the place to be this week. On the same night the Lady Bears ran away with their first-round playoff game in basketball, the city Board of Education held its monthly meeting in the school library to a packed crowd. Cars lined South Street all the way down the block and filled the school parking lot beside the gym.
For the second year in a row, the school board congratulated one of its officers for awards won from the N.C. School Public Relations Association.
Carrie Venable, public information officer and instructional technology facilitator, entered some of her accomplishments into the association’s Blue Ribbon Awards for Effective Communications. She came away with a gold and two silver awards.
The association gave out awards in eight categories at a recent statewide celebration.
Venable said the gold medal came in the Image and Graphic Design category for some designs that she created for the school system. The two silvers were related to her work in organizing two Community Night events.
Last year Venable received a gold award for Special Events and Programs thanks to a community night held in January 2015. She received a bronze award in the Marketing category for a marketing plan called Language Leaders at Tharrington Primary.
• Audra Chilton, school finance officer, was honored for winning a scholarship from the N.C. Association of School Business Officials.
The association annually awards up to three scholarships in amounts not exceeding $1,000 each to individuals who have been active voting members for at least two (2) consecutive years in a permanent employee status, according to Venable.
“The purpose of the scholarship is to promote and enhance the education and professionalism of NCASBO members,” stated Venable. The scholarship recipients were recognized during the association’s annual conference in Greensboro.
Chilton joined the city school district three years ago after being a senior accountant for BB&T and an associate at Dixon Hugh Goodman.
• The school board planned a recognition for a local Drug Abuse Resistance Education officer, but Gerald Daniel was unable to attend.
Earlier this month, The News reported that Daniel was named the D.A.R.E. officer of the year for the state at a training conference in Atlantic Beach.
A member of the Mount Airy Police Department since 2010, Daniel joined its community services unit in 2014. That four-member division focuses on crime prevention and includes school resource officer (SRO) functions and the D.A.R.E. program.
The official goal of that program is “a world in which students everywhere are empowered to respect others and choose to lead lives free from violence, substance abuse and other dangerous behaviors.”
Among his other community-policing efforts, Daniel has excelled in the classroom through his teaching of D.A.R.E. courses at J.J. Jones Intermediate School and Millennium Charter Academy, according to Mount Airy Police Chief Dale Watson.
• The district presented its annual STAR student winners. Eight students from different grade levels were recognized for their academic and athletic contributions with posters. A copy of the STAR posters usually are put on display at the central office.
• As the meeting was at the high school, the board enjoyed a presentation by a high school group.
Science teacher Jon Carpenter led a trio of AP biology students: Elizabeth Marion, Anselmo Salazar and Robert Brown.
Mount Airy City Schools unveiled eight new Star students this week. Garrett Norman, left, represents the class of 2028, while Isa Bowman is part of the class of 2027. The kids got a framed copy of their Star posters, while the central office usually displays the Stars throughout the building.
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Mount Airy City Schools unveiled eight new Star students this week. Garrett Norman, left, represents the class of 2028, while Isa Bowman is part of the class of 2027. The kids got a framed copy of their Star posters, while the central office usually displays the Stars throughout the building.
Submitted photo
Carrie Venable, public information officer, shows off three awards she received this month from the N.C. School Public Relations Association. With two awards last year, Venable has earned five plaques in the past 13 months from the association.
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Carrie Venable, public information officer, shows off three awards she received this month from the N.C. School Public Relations Association. With two awards last year, Venable has earned five plaques in the past 13 months from the association.
Submitted photo
Carrie Venable, left, gets help from school board chair Wendy Carriker in holding up two awards she received for marketing and public information excellence last year. Venable received three more awards this month from a state association.
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Carrie Venable, left, gets help from school board chair Wendy Carriker in holding up two awards she received for marketing and public information excellence last year. Venable received three more awards this month from a state association.
Jeff Linville | The News
By Jeff Linville
jlinville@mtairynews.com
Reach Jeff at 415-4692.