Enroll in DPS
Detroit Public Schools is proud to announce the opening of COMPUTEC! Golightly Career And Technical Center's full service copy and graphic design business.
Detroit Public Schools students have been participants in contests and competitions and have represented Detroit and their schools, very well. The following are just a few of the many awards that our youngsters have won or honors they have received in the past few months.
Good works bring good rewards and Linda Spight, the principal of Mumford High School can attest to that. She was selected as the winner of the 2008 MetLife Foundation Ambassadors In Education Award for building community, parent and organization partnerships; learning to safely resolve conflicts in the school and community; and promoting civic involvement and community service among the students. Principals from 25 cities were considered but the description of Ms. Spight’s good works contained in the letters of nomination sent by colleagues and community members, made her the winner, hands down. One of her greatest achievements is the parcel of land the students cleaned that is now home for a thriving ‘farm in the city,’ that is tended by students and staff and certainly added to the beauty of the neighborhood. When the crops come in, they are harvested and given to needy individuals and families. Above all, the recognized educators must be exceptional leaders and that is evident by the school’s strong community partnership. Other DPS Ambassador winners include Marsha Sakwa/Detroit School of the Arts; Cheryl White/Detroit Lions’ Academy; William Dechavez/McNair Middle School; Dr. Deborah Hunter-Harvill/Principal/McMichael Technology Academy; and James Sweeney/Randolph Career Tech Center.
Nat Love may have been one of the most famous rodeo bronco busters of the old west but when it comes to taming the mighty yellow six-wheeled beast, it’s hard to beat Johnnie Horne, bus driver extraordinaire in the Detroit Public Schools Department of Transportation. He placed 6th out of 65 drivers in the annual ‘Bus Driving Rodeo’ (also known as the Wayne County Driving Championships) that is sponsored by the Wayne County Transportation Supervisors Association and the Michigan Association for Pupil Transportation. It’s a fun day but the driving is serious. Drivers are judged in 11 different precision driving events, a written test, and a hands-on vehicle inspection event. All of the activities are focused on improving the safety of the students, the drivers and the buses on the streets. The driving competitions are held across the state with only the top drivers qualifying for the State Finals. The state winner will go on to the international championship competition in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The other DPS drivers were Anthony Austin, Dwight Brown, Anthony Hill, Walter Nance, Dorothy Williams, Octavia Foxworth, Rosie Baggett, Gloria Parker, and Gene Boswell.
…How about some information about one of the District’s great students. His name is Joshua Grady and he graduated from the Manufacturing Technology Program at Breithaupt Career and Technical Center. He was named the 2007-08 school year SkillsUSA Student Executive Board Vice-President for the State of Michigan; NAACP Youth Summit & Workshop presenter; Heroes Don’t Quit Essay Competition finalist; SkillsUSA Student and Parent Orientation Presenter, Region II West 1st Place Chapter Display Team Member, and 4th Place Bulleting Board Winner; Detroit AutoRama Electeric Car Presenter; Sigma Beta Youth Fraternity’ Lead Youth Usher at Tabernacle Missionary Baptist Church; Vice President of the Detroit City High Senior Class; and he plans to attend Morehouse College.
The Randolph Career and Technical Center has been honored with the 2008 Gordon P. Bugbee Memorial Tri-UMPH Award from the City of Detroit for the school’s Fort Wayne Community Service Project. Randolph students performed work that no other students of record, ever performed. They’ve been involved in helping to restore part of the stone fencing and the old officers’ lounge inside Historic Fort Wayne for the past two years. During that time, the students learned the skills necessary for historical restoration which often requires little used materials, tools and know-how. It was a 50 hour, unpaid internship but the students who completed it successfully will be eligible to earn $10 an hour at the work during the ’08 -’09 school year. Involving students in a restoration construction project is a one of a kind approach spearheaded by Roddy Rivers, the painting and architectural finishes instructor at Randolph.
Ashley Harris a fifth grade student at the Fleming Academy has only participated in one Detroit News National Spelling Bee but she is the first Fleming Academy student to make it all the way to round three, the state competition. She said the secret of her success was practice. Her whole family helped at any time…in restaurants, in the grocery store, at home…they all gave her words to spell. Ashley has a 3.8 GPA and was coached by her teacher, Ms. Embry.
Bee Vang , a bilingual Hmong teacher at the Fleming Academy is dedicated to education and preserving the Hmong culture. To accomplish this, Ms. Vang incorporates various aspects of the culture into her curriculum. The approach has been successful with Hmong students at the school being able to learn more about their culture and students of other ethnicities developing respect for it. Ms. Vang has shared her teaching techniques with both Hmong and other non-Hmong educators in the Metro Detroit area. Her work has earned her the honor of being named the Hmong Teacher of the Year by the Hmong National Development Corporation in Washington, D.C. In 1999 she was also honored with the National Hmong Women’s Leadership Award.
Another DPS student is off to the Prep School for the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. He is Ashford K. Harrigan, II, from the Davis Aerospace High School. He was presented with the official documents by Congresswoman Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick at a small ceremony at the school. Annually, only about 1,000 of the 14,000 students who apply to West Point are accepted. Only another 3-400 are accepted at the prep school. He is the third DPS student accepted at the School in 2 years.
Where would our schools be without great teachers and the Wayne County Regional Educational Services Agency recently paid tribute to some of the best teachers and other educational professionals. They are chosen from the 34 school districts in Wayne County. Six of the honorees are from the Detroit Public Schools. The Teachers of The Year are Phyllis Carmen Williams of the Northwest Early Childhood Center, Kathryn Meloche from Clippert Academy and Todd Losie from Renaissance High School. The Rookie Teacher of the Year is Camille Buren from Logan Elementary, Ancillary Professional Staff Member of the Year is Gail Nawrock from Carstens Elementary and the Leadership Award went to Tony Hartke in Early Childhood Education.
The Renaissance Singers and A Chord, the small lady’s ensemble, were chosen to perform at the prestigious Youth Arts Festival in Kalamazoo. Five smaller State Solo and Ensemble Festivals are held around the state and only the top twelve ensembles from those festivals, composed of the best young artists in the state, are chosen to perform in Kalamazoo. In the State of Michigan School Vocal Music Association Solo and Ensemble Festival in Flint, the Renaissance Singers, A Chord, Renaissance Men and six soloists participated with eight of the participants receiving Superior ratings. These performing groups are under the direction of Nina R. Scott and each student is committed to attaining the highest standard of choral performance. Several of the seniors have received scholarships to help finance their college training.
Dr. Denise Davis-Cotton, the principal and founder of the Detroit School of Arts, has great plans for the International Network for the Advancement of Arts Education because she is in a position to institute those plans. Dr. Cotton is the president of the board of the organization and will hold that office for the next 2 years. She vows to lead the organization in promoting arts schools and their supporting institutions and agencies. This also means more Board membership involvement in Regional committees and in general, facilitating collaborations that support the membership. Dr. Cotton also identified two major goals – growing the membership and maximizing the marketing potential on a national scale.
The first ‘Good Schools Poetry Contest,’ presented by the Skillman Foundation, the Good Schools Resource Center at Marygrove College, and sponsored by Michigan First Credit Union produced 5 DPS winners out of the top 9 awards. The students are Bryce Stallworth/Bates Academy; Brandon Hull/Charles H. Wright Academy; J’La Williams/Golightly Educational Center; Michael Varano and Margaret Clements/Renaissance High School. The contest was open to any K-12 student in any of the 145 public, charter, private or parochial schools in Detroit that have been chosen as Good Schools during the first three years of the Good Schools: Making The Grade project. The students had to write a poem for the theme ‘Why My School Is A Good School.’ Over 1,000 students submitted poems. For their efforts the winners received gift cards and award certificates and the school received a plaque.
Three Breithaupt Career Technical Center students, Latoya Jones, Avery NMorris and Charnelle Mann, were selected to serve on the prestigious 2008-09 Michigan SKILLS USA State Officers’ Cabinet. SKILLS USA is a national non-profit organization made up of students, teachers and industry, all working together to ensure that America will continue to have a skilled work force. It focuses on preparing students who are in technical education with practical work skills such as communication, problem solving, leadership, and general employability skills along with developing self-esteem and positive attitudes. Collective these assets give the students a valuable head start in the work place because they possess the skills employers are looking for. The program also enhances school-based learning and has helped reduce dropout rates.
Also, Ricardo Ramirez, the Breithaupt Computer Aided Drafting student who won the state SkillsUSA pin design competition, went on to the Nationals where his design placed second. His pin, which represented the state of Michigan, was a big hit with the students who attended the National SkillsUSA Conference.
The Northwestern High School athletic banquet at Tabernacle Baptist Church was truly an event for celebration. The ‘Colts’ posted a list of impressive athletic accomplishments this past school year, that made every Northwestern student, staff member and supporter proud to represent the big ‘N O,’ as the alumni call it. To begin, the swimming team placed second in the Public School League (PSL) finals; the girls’ basketball team were District champs, qualified for the regionals and played in the state finals; and then there’s football. The Northwestern Colts had a phenomenal season with a record of 8-1 and won the PSL Division B title for the first time since 1971. They defeated the Osborn Knights in a nail-biter game by a score of 13-12 with just 13 seconds of play left. Finally, basketball prowess that brought the school a rare double championship season. The Colts tore through the PSL League that posted some of the strongest teams the League has seen in years. In the final game, the Colts defeated Henry Ford High School to bring home the PSL title which had eluded Northwestern since 1978. For Northwestern High School athletes, it’s been a very good year.
Principal Andrea F. Ayler at the West Side Academy High School is very proud to share the accomplishments of her students during the past school year. One student took first place in art and first place in poetry in the District-Wide Martin Luther King Art & Poetry Contest; two students had their work selected to in the 71st Annual Students’ Art exhibit co-sponsored by the DIS; 7 students had their artwork selected for display at Wayne County Community College; one student took first place in the Regionals and received an Honorable Mention in the state Computer Aided Drafting competitions; the same student received a Gold 4th place at Regionals and a State Honorable Mention in the competition for Electronic Publishing: Process Color; 2 students were selected for summer internships at Wayne State University; 2 students had their essays selected for the Heroes Don’t Quit and the Healthy Heroes Don’t Quit, district-wide project; and the boys’ basketball team is the reigning Class A State Champions! Not bad at all.
Kennya Salinas from Harms Elementary School is a double winner in the 31st annual AAA Michigan Traffic Safety Poster Contest and the 64th annual AAA National Traffic Safety competition. She won First Place in the Michigan competition and received a prize of $300.00 prize, and she won the "Award of Merit" in the national competition. Kennya’s poster speaks to the importance of listening to the crossing guard. Every year the AAA selects traffic safety slogans that the students must use to create their posters. There are 5 other winners from DPS…Three more from Harms students also won prizes. Thomas Ashley, Sharelis Rivera, and Jackeline Avalos from Harms received Honorable Mentions; Jair Lazcano from Maybury Elementary received an Award of Merit; and David Tumpkin II, from FLICS received an Honorable Mention.
The Winterhalter Academic Games team had another successful year at the state tournament in Grand Rapids. The team, 5 Star Champs, made up of Leonna Toodle, Lexus Scott, Ronnie Henderson, Glenn Arnold and Chloe Teague, took 3rd in On-Sets, 3rd in Linguishtik and 1st in Equations. The team, the Thinkers, made up of Starr Herron, Shayla Adams, Cortney Neal, Rosie Palmer, and Adrianna Magee, won a 3rd in Linguishtik, a 3rd in Equations, and 1st in On-Sets. The team, Triple Threat, made up of Alleana Collins, Christopher Holly, Edward Hardy, Sequoya Wilson, and Elderick Harris, took a 1st in Linguishtik, 1st in Equations and 1st in On-Sets. They made it into the semifinals for the state title in Linguishtik and into the finals in Equations where they became second in the state. In On-Sets, they made it into the finals and became the 2008 Basic On-Sets State Champions, a title that Winterhalter also won last year. Their coach is Mrs. Nancy Candler. Mrs. Candler was recently honored as an outstanding educator by Communities in Schools. She received certificates from Governor Granholm and Mayor Kilpatrick.
11 Detroit High Schools sent students to the 100 Black Men (HBM) Oratorical Contest – District Finals competition. Cody students made their school proud. Jasmine Johnson a senior, won first place and was awarded a $5,000 scholarship from the HBM. She also received an $8,000 scholarship from Olivet College, and a $750 book allowance from GMAC. She’ll attend the University of Michigan. Doryen Broughton from Southeastern placed second and received a $3,000 scholarship along with the standard $8,000, $750 and $100 awards. Dilara K. Üsküp of Renaissance High School took third place and received a $2,000 scholarship along with the $8,000, $750 and $100 awards. Renee Mims was a runner-up and received a $50.00 check. The other participating DPS schools were Cleveland Intermediate, Cooley, Crockett Technical, Detroit City High, Kettering , Mumford, Osborn and Renaissance.
Cindy Machado, a cosmetology student at Breithaupt Career and Technical Center was one of the winners of the “I Am Making History” Contest sponsored by the Kroger grocery store chain. She received a $1,500 scholarship.
The Hally Magnet Middle School students performed well under the pressure of competition. In the Science And Engineering Fair of Metro Detroit, students presented projects and won prizes for different topics. Tiffani Dupree, Kevin Larry, Kenya Barksdale, Shantice Jackson, Phylicia Ellison and Lazarius Miller won third place awards, Kourtney Lenton, Rakala Crosey, Aireyana Jones, Antashe Howard and Dominique Boyer won second place awards, Jerrod Poole and Chison Fluker won first place, and Latiesha Knott won the Grand Prize. In the Academic Games State competition, Juwan Black, Kraig O’Neal, Alake Chatman, Jaylin Singleton and Dia’Shaune Boyland placed 3rd in 6th grade competition. Jerrod Poole, Mark Shelby, Nyea Chatman Lisa Rush and dominic Jackson of Team Fantastic Five placed 3rd in 7/8th grade competition. Antashe Howard took 2nd place in the ‘You BE The Chemist Challenge” and will represent Detroit and Hally at the State Championship. The competition is sponsored by Dow Chemical.
Renaissance High School had more winning students in the 2008 Achievement Scholarship competition than any other high school in Michigan. Only about 800 of the more than 140,000 students who entered the National Achievement Scholarship Competition will receive stipends. Four winners were from Renaissance and one from Cass Tech. This scholarship fund for promising Black students has awarded over $91 million in scholarships in its 44 year history.
The Distributive Education Clubs of America (DECA) judges at the state conference have selected three Cody High School students to attend the International Conference. DECA was created to improve the education of students with regard to business subjects such as marketing, management and entrepreneurship. The students made presentations from a selection of topics including tourism marketing, quick-serve restaurant management, apparel and accessories retailing, and finance and credit services. This will be the third time that Cody students have been selected to attend the International conclave.
Members of Business Professionals of America (BPA) at Pershing Highs School competed and placed at the Leadership Conference. La Tasha Billings took 7th place in Fundamental Accounting; Constance Jones took 3rd in Interview Skills; LaNisha Smith took 3rd in Advanced Office Systems and Procedures; Lacrystal Williams took 2nd in Keyboarding Procedures; and Tonisha Woolfolk took 1st in Keyboarding and Medical Office Procedures. Also, the Pershing Choir has been selected to participate in the spring music program at the Capitol. State Senator Martha G. Scott is the host for the students.
