Much PCPS news

1) The Links, Inc. bring Space Travels to Petersburg students 2) PHS honors SVTC for two decades of service 3) PCPS staff member earns her doctorate degree 4) PCPS is first school district to earn Icon award 5) Petersburg students celebrate Farm Day 6) Petersburg High School lineman is making waves 1) The Links, Inc. bring Space Travels to Petersburg students […]

October 11, 2008; 9:47 AM • by brenda p

1) The Links, Inc. bring Space Travels to Petersburg students
2) PHS honors SVTC for two decades of service
3) PCPS staff member earns her doctorate degree
4) PCPS is first school district to earn Icon award
5) Petersburg students celebrate Farm Day
6) Petersburg High School lineman is making waves

1) The Links, Inc. bring Space Travels to Petersburg students

Space Travels, an interactive exhibit created by the Science Museum of Virginia, visited Walnut Hill Elementary School (WHES) in Petersburg from September 18 to 20.

This program was brought to WHES by the Petersburg chapter of The Links, Incorporated, an international service organization. A grant from the Titmus Foundation was given to the Petersburg Links to fund the program. The women of The Links, led by Agnes Hassell, president of the Petersburg chapter, not only arranged for the grant, they also gave their time by volunteering as facilitators during the visit.

Space Travels goes to schools, festivals and fairs providing educational opportunities to students in grades 3 through 5. The 53-foot Space Travels vehicle is a self-contained space environment filled with interactive exhibits. An additional component of the program is a portable planetarium called STARLABTM.

Students from J.E. B. Stuart Elementary School were also included in the grant that the Links, Inc. wrote. Stuart’s students were brought to WHES in the morning for the program and WHES students enjoyed the program in the afternoon. The students learned about the solar system and the constellations through this program.

2) PHS honors SVTC for two decades of service

At its 2008 annual banquet, the Petersburg High School (PHS) Education for Employment Program honored the Southside Virginia Training Center (SVTC) for more than 20 years of dedicated support and service to PHS students.

More than 40 students and more than 25 business partners were also recognized for their success and outstanding support, respectively. More than 200 parents and other supporters attended the celebration. The Rev. Claudine Green Lee delivered a message on the power of purpose.

3) PCPS staff member earns her doctorate degree

The Petersburg City Public Schools proudly announces that another member of its staff has earned her doctorate degree.

Dr. Ann M. Ford, who serves as Truancy Case Manager at Petersburg High School, earned an Ed.D. in Educational Administration and Supervision earlier this year from Virginia State University. She previously earned her Master’s Degree in the same field from Virginia State University.

Dr. Ford is a 1972 alumnus of Petersburg High School and a native of the city. She has worked with the Petersburg City Public Schools since 1989.

“Obtaining a doctorate was a lifelong goal for me,” she said. “Because of the student drop-out crisis in the country, I decided to look at educational resilience and academic success as a way of helping youth at risk.”

It is a field in which Dr. Ford says she will continue to study, and has provided her a set of skills that she uses every day at Petersburg High School, analyzing school relationships and improving the school atmosphere.

During her course work, Dr. Ford was able to participate in the prestigious Oxford Roundtable, in Oxford, England. She also presented at the 2008 National At Risk Conference in Myrtle Beach, S.C.

4) PCPS is first school district to earn Icon award

The Petersburg City Public Schools (PCPS) has been selected as the first local education agency recipient of the Parent Educational Advocacy Training Center’s (PEATC) Virginia Icon Star award.

Dr. James M. Victory, Petersburg Superintendent of Schools; Cheryl Bostick, PCPS Coordinator of Federal Programs; and Shirley Shaw, PCPS Parent Coordinator, will be honored for their strong partnership with the Virginia Parent Information Resource Center at PEATC.

The recognition will take place at the Virginia Icon talent competition, in Richmond’s Landmark Theater, at 3:30 p.m. Sunday, October 12. Petersburg native and rising star Trey Songz, who attended the PCPS, will also receive an award during the event. The Icon talent competition showcases the vocal talents of Virginia teens and helps to raise awareness of the benefits of parent-school-community partnerships.

5) Petersburg students celebrate Farm Day

Second grade and Head Start students from the Petersburg City Public Schools joined other young people from the Tri-City area at Blaha Farm in Dinwiddie to celebrate Farm Day, Tuesday, October 7. They examined real cotton, soybean and peanut plants and were introduced to livestock such as chicken, pigs, goats and even alpacas. Small handfuls of feed were doled out and the children learned to overcome their fears around the animals.

Oxavier Webb of AP Hill Elementary knew exactly the right answer — vegetables — when Mike Parrish, of Virginia Tech, asked the children for a definition of crops. But he and others were surprised to learn that peanuts were fed to pigs long before Americans learned to enjoy them as food themselves; and that cotton was used for insulation in the first space ships.

The children also learned about the 4-H programs in the area, which are known for promoting agriculture but also teach leadership, citizenship and life skills.

6) Petersburg High School lineman is making waves

Quinton Spain is a good student at Petersburg High School, where he is a junior. But on the football field, he’s a little more formidable. At 6 foot five inches and 345 pounds, this lineman for the Crimson Wave Varsity football team is not someone you want rushing at you on the grid iron.

Spain has been classed as one of the top 50 high school lineman in the country, according to Virginia Preps, and the universities are beginning to take him seriously. He’s also gotten at least one call from an ESPN affiliate.

He’s already visited schools in Virginia, West Virginia and Maryland, looking towards the ultimate football goal:

“If I work hard, I think I might make it to the NFL,” said Spain, who is no novice at the game. He took up football in the second grade.

In the first semester of the 2008-2009 season, Spain has already made ten “pancake” blocks — when a player brings an opponent to the ground.

“He did it seven times on the first drive. That’s spectacular,” said PHS Head Coach, Mike Scott.

In the off season, Spain also plays center for the Crimson Wave Boy’s Basketball team.

It’s a challenge to be a young athlete and a good student as well. Spain’s formula is simple. “When I go home at night, I study. I don’t talk on the phone until my homework is done,” he said.

October 11, 2008 9:47 AM 0