By now, most everyone in the APS community is familiar with the announcement this week of the 2010 Gates Millennium Scholarships, with APS leading the nation in the number of scholarships received at 29. And as some may have noticed in this moving account inside Thursday’s article in the AJC, one student in particular stands out as not only a remarkable personal success story but also an example of how the High School Transformation Initiative is making a difference in the lives of APS students. With a combination of determination, challenging academics and a life-changing school partnership, South Atlanta High senior Alyssia Clore (pictured) has overcome the odds to become a Gates Scholarship recipient. As Gracie Bonds Staples reported, Clore has a father who’s been laid off for three years, and she found herself homeless at one point in her life and almost died after lapsing into a diabetic coma when she was 11. But the student in the South Atlanta School of Health & Medical Sciences remained focused on her academics and her future. She’s alsot a member of South Atlanta’s first graduating class under its new small-schools model.
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Gracie Bonds Staples
There’s a great story in the AJC today by Gracie Bonds Staples about how local school systems (including APS) are fighting obesity with innovative strategies. The story includes one of our favorite community partners, rock-star chef Linton Hopkins (Restaurant Eugene, Holeman & Finch Public House), and his work at E. Rivers Elementary.
But there’s also great work being done all over APS, which Staples captures nicely in this passage …
Officials at many schools have discovered that students will choose healthful food when given a choice and will take nutrition to heart if they are taught about the positive impacts on their bodies.
“Two years ago, I was making more pizzas,” said Katrina Church, cafeteria manager at Usher Elementary School in Atlanta. “Now I’m making more salads and turkey sandwiches.”
Although chicken nuggets seemed to be the top choice at Usher on a recent Monday, a good number of kindergartners seemed to enjoy salads and turkey on wheat. A few even munched on raw broccoli.
The key, Church said, is making food appear more appealing.
Zakiria Render, 6, was among those who chose salad.
“My mom always gives it to me at dinner,” she said.