South Habersham Middle School students (L-R) Camryn Fricks, Ellis Wallace and Jonah Free were selected from among more than 1,500 Georgia students. They celebrated their achievement with SHMS principal Daphne Penick and Assistant Principal Adam Bagwell.
South Habersham Middle School will have a direct line to the state school superintendent Richard Woods as three SHMS students were chosen for the 2015-2016 State School Superintendent’s Student Advisory Council. The purpose of the advisory council is to promote direct communication between state school leadership and Georgia students. Students are given the opportunity to tell those in charge at the state level about their experiences as a student in the Georgia public school system, how policies created at the state level affect them, and offer ideas for improving education in our state.
Eighth grade student Jonah Free and seventh grade students Camryn Fricks and Ellis Wallace will be representing South Habersham Middle School, Habersham County and the local Regional Educational Service Agency (RESA) district during this school year on the advisory council.
They were chosen out of a pool of more than 1500 applicants statewide.
To earn a spot on the council, each student wrote an essay describing their ideas about how education in Georgia could be improved. Students were chosen based on the strength of their essays. Free’s essay focused on the importance of incorporating life skills such as communication and time management into education. Fricks wrote about the importance of having people with knowledge and experience in education to make decisions about education. Ellis advocated for the use of a single technology device for each student to replace the use of multiple items, such as textbooks, as a way to improve student learning and reduce costs.
Students on the council will meet three times during the school year at the Georgia Department of Education’s offices in Atlanta. They will also meet virtually twice throughout the year.
Students and parents will be recognized at the October Habersham County Board of Education meeting.
