Two Cannon School Board Members Honored

Local boards of education heard updates on education reform in Tennessee, earned honors for their professional development activities, recognized a dedicated school volunteer and an outstanding student at the Tennessee School Boards Association’s (TSBA) Upper Cumberland Fall District Meeting, held Sept. 15 at Livingston Academy in the Overton County School District.

The Upper Cumberland District meeting was one of nine similar sessions held annually in each of TSBA’s development districts.  The evening’s program included an update on this year’s session of the Tennessee General Assembly, a discussion of moving from collective bargaining to collaborative conferencing, a review of the new teacher and principal evaluations and an update on tenure reform. The meeting also included recognition of school board members who have achieved honors over the past year, a local school volunteer who is a finalist for a grant to their school of choice and a local student who is a finalist for a college scholarship given by TSBA.

AREA STUDENT HONORED
Each year TSBA honors one student from each of its nine districts who has achieved distinction in the areas of academics, community leadership, and engagement as part of its Student Recognition Award program. One of those nine students will win the statewide Student Recognition Award to be presented at the TSBA Annual Convention in November, which will include a $2,000 scholarship. The 2011 Upper Cumberland Student Recognition Award Winner is Abigayle Claflin of Cumberland County.

Currently a junior at Cumberland County High School, Abigalye has maintained a 4.0 grade point average while taking a rigorous schedule of advanced courses. Abigalye’s academic choices are also reflected in her standardized test scores. She is a member of the National Society of High School Scholars and the French Club. Abigalye currently holds the vice president position for the Beta Club. In addition to her academic success, Abigalye has been a member of the Cumberland County High School swim team and was team captain for the 2009-2010 season. Abigayle placed in the top 10 for the National American Miss Junior Teen Pageant and has been actively involved in her school and community theater productions.

AREA SCHOOL VOLUNTEER HONORED
This year TSBA will honor one school volunteer from each of its nine districts who have distinguished themselves by demonstrating exceptional commitment to volunteerism in a local school district. The district winner has exhibited exemplary leadership, creativity, cooperation and hard work in their service to a school. One of those nine volunteers will win the statewide School Volunteer Recognition Award to be presented at the TSBA Annual Convention in November, which will include a $1,000 grant to the school of their choice.

The 2011 Upper Cumberland School Volunteer Recognition Award winner is Guy Pinckley of Allardt, TN. Guy has displayed outstanding volunteerism for the Fentress County School System through the Fentress County dual enrollment program. Fentress County has the highest number of students in any county in the state of Tennessee on dual enrollment, which is funded by the Pinckley family. The Pinckley family has been actively involved in the Boys and Girls Club in Jamestown as members of the original Board of Directors and coordinating Hall of Fame banquet fundraisers, which raises tuition funds for students.

AREA BOARD MEMBERS EARN HONORS
Several Upper Cumberland District school board members earned TSBA Boardsmanship Awards in 2011. The awards are presented to individual board members who have achieved one of five levels of boardsmanship standards over the past year. The program is designed to recognize school board members for participation in board activities beyond the local level through a commitment to training, willingness to participate in workshops and a volunteer spirit.

The Boardsmanship Award honors not only the quantity, but also the quality of participation. Levels I-IV are given at Fall District Meetings, while Level V Boardsmanship is awarded at the association’s annual convention in November. Upper Cumberland District board members who were honored for their achievements this year were:

LEVEL I
Shannon Davenport, Cannon County
David Bowman, Cumberland County
Richard Janeway, Cumberland County
Jimmy Cook, Macon County
John Wheeley, Macon County
Eric Brown, Putnam County
Jeff Lee, Warren County

LEVEL II
David Bowman, Cumberland County
Eric Brown, Putnam County
Bill Zechman, Warren County
Richard McBride, White County
Gary Sparkman, White County
Janet Webb, White County

LEVEL III
Eric Brown, Putnam County
Regina Waller, Trousdale County
Donna Jones, White County
Chris Blackburn, Cannon County

LEVEL IV
Kenneth Robinson, White County

A statewide, nonprofit organization, the Tennessee School Boards Association is a federation of all the state’s school boards. TSBA’s mission is to assist school boards in effectively governing school districts. Through the years, TSBA has helped school boards and their members reach their highest potential through Association programs, meetings and services. TSBA also provides school board members a collective voice in matters of legislation and public education concerns. For more information about TSBA, visit our website at: www.tsba.net.