The North Carolina Symphony’s Maxine Swalin Award for Outstanding Music Educator is presented annually to a teacher that exemplifies the guidelines of the award and has dedicated their careers towards fostering a love of music in all their students. The Swalin Award is named for Maxine Swalin who – together with her husband Dr Benjamin Swalin, raised funds to establish the Symphony’s children’s concert division in 1945, which remains strong more than 75 years later. 

We are excited to announce Queens Creek Elementary Music Teacher Dr. Zadda Bazzy has been selected to receive the 2023 Maxine Swalin Award for Outstanding Music Educator. 

Dr. Bazzy was nominated by her principal, Michele Riggs. From a field of 28 applicants from around the state, she was selected to be one of 7 finalists. The process concluded with a series of in-person observations and interviews over the last 6 weeks. 

Jason Spencer, Director of Education for the North Carolina Symphony, had the following to say when he initially presented Dr. Bazzy the award: 

Dr. Bazzy seeks “out learning opportunities to further develop her skills, often leading presentations at conferences, writing lessons for the NC Symphony’s education concert, and mentoring new and pre-service teachers.” Mr. Spencer added, “The committee was particularly impressed by your commitment to student-centered learning, student voice, and student choice. You actively collaborate with your resource teachers, EC teachers and AIG teachers to identify students needs and abilities, differentiating learning tasks to meet the needs of each student.” 

Finally, Dr. Bazzy was recognized as a “consistent resource and instrumental part of the North Carolina Symphony’s education programs.” 

Congratulations, Dr. Zadda Bazzy!. 
 

The ACTE Career Guidance Award recognizes school counselors and/or career development professionals who have demonstrated commitment to connecting students with opportunities for success, shown innovation in career exploration and development, and have advocated for CTE as a viable option for all students. 

We are proud to announce that OCS Career Development Coordinator Tiffany Huie was awarded the NC ACTE Counseling and Career Development Professional Award at the CTE Summer Conference in July. Tiffany works with CTE students and teachers at Dixon High School and Dixon Middle School. 

In her nomination packet, Mrs. Huie was noted for her growth as a professional and the direct support she has provided to the secondary schools within the district, and with the students at the schools she serves. “She has made a concentrated effort to increase career awareness and has opened the doors for numerous students to participate in authentic work-based learning opportunities through advanced studies, job shadowing and internships.” It was also noted that, “The more her students succeed the more motivated and determined she is to provide opportunities for students.” 

Congratulations Mrs. Huie for this state-level recognition, and for helping us raise the bar for our CTE students and staff! 

The Early College High School is a partnership between Onslow County Schools and Coastal Carolina Community College and first welcomed students to campus in August 2017. Students commit to taking not only high school courses, but college courses, as well, which allows for completion of high school diploma requirements and the opportunity to earn an associate's degree at the same time. 

As principal since the school opened in 2017, Mr. Jay Strope has emphasized academic achievement. Staff at the Early College place a premium on student success, and students have risen to the challenge. This effort has not gone unnoticed, and we are proud to share that the Onslow Early College has been recognized by U.S. News & World Report as among the top high schools in both the state of North Carolina and the country. In their annual list of top public schools published on August 29, nearly 18,000 US schools were ranked based on criteria including performance on state-required tests, graduation rates and how well they prepare students for college. The Onslow Early College High School was ranked #111 in the nation, and #3 in the state. 

Congratulations to Onslow Early College High School for this national recognition. 

We would like to recognize and congratulate Courtney Davis, a senior at Onslow Early College, for her participation in the Second Annual Trash’n Fash’n Show sponsored by Plastic Ocean Project, Inc. Of the 19 participants, there was only one OCS representative. 

The participants had to reuse discarded materials to give them new life while representing nature in some way. Courtney repurposes materials found at the Hem of His Garment, Jacksonville Performing Arts, and an old sheet no longer being used at home. She made her own pattern to create her masterpiece, which she sewed together herself, and was inspired by the Swallowtail Butterfly. 

We are excited to share that Courtney’s design received third place in the event!

We are excited to announce that White Oak High School science teacher Brandon Dillman has been selected as a state finalist for the Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching.  

The Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching (PAEMST) are the highest honors bestowed by the United States government specifically for K-12 science, technology, engineering, and mathematics teaching. The Awards were established by Congress in 1983. The President may recognize up to 108 exemplary teachers each year. 

Awards are given to science, technology, engineering, and mathematics teachers from each of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Department of Defense Education Activity schools, or the U.S. territories as a group. 

The award recognizes those teachers have both deep content knowledge of the subjects they teach and the ability to motivate and enable students to be successful in those areas. Since the program's inception, more than 5,200 teachers have been recognized for their contributions in the classroom and to their profession. 

Awardees reflect the expertise and dedication of the Nation's teaching corps, and they demonstrate the positive impact of excellent teachers on student achievement. PAEMST is administered by the National Science Foundation on behalf of The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy. 

We are proud to announce that Silverdale Elementary School 4th grade teacher Tori Carpenter has been selected to be part of the UNCW Cohort 4 2022-2025 Master Teacher Program.  

The PDS Master Teacher initiative is designed to recognize teachers in UNCW partnership schools who have demonstrated excellence in teaching. During their three-year appointment, these teachers will receive 30 hours of professional development and will work closely with UNCW’s academic programs to impact their instruction and student learning. 

Believing that all students can learn, MASTER Teachers provide: 

• Opportunity - to learn, explore, face challenges 
• Inspiration - to create, design, discover 
• Encouragement - to try again, do their best, do it better, work harder, never-give-up 
• Connections - to the world beyond the classroom and community 
• Nurturing-Relationship - a caring adult 
• Cooperative engagement - to work with peers, challenge others, evaluate learning 

We are excited to announce that Hunters Creek Middle School science teacher Savannah Brown has been selected to participate in the Kenan Fellows Program for Teacher Leadership. 

The Kenan Fellow Program for Teacher Leadership was established in 2000 as a K-12 education initiative of the Kenan Institute for Engineering, Technology & Science at NC State University. The program provides teachers with work-based professional learning experiences that empower them to build education-industry partnerships in their local communities. These partnerships pave the way for students to explore and access regional career pathways, equipping them with the skills and knowledge they need to thrive in their future pursuits. 

The fellowship includes a summer internship of at least three weeks in a local industry organization. In addition, Fellows receive 80 hours of professional development focused on building leadership skills and improving their practice. 

Odyssey of the Mind is an international educational program whose mission is to provide creative problem-solving opportunities for students from kindergarten through college. Through solving open-ended problems, students develop creative thinking skills that can be applied to real-life situations. Each OM team selects a problem to solve which must be done completely by the team members with no outside adult assistance. Teams build, plan, design costumes, write scripts, and ultimately perform their solution at each event. Teams from throughout the U.S. and more than 25 other countries participate in the program. 

The 2022-2023 Odyssey of the Mind Coastal Region Tournament was held at Swansboro High School and Queens Creek Elementary, on Saturday, February 25, and included teams from across Onslow County and Eastern North Carolina. At that regional event, ten Onslow County teams advanced to the state tournament. 

The NC Odyssey of the Mind State Tournament was held at Wakefield High School and Middle School on Saturday, March 25. After some great competition and teamwork, three teams from Onslow County Schools qualified to advance to the Odyssey of the Mind World Finals held at Michigan State University, May 24-27. 

The SBES Team qualified for the OM World Finals in their division for Problem 5 – The Most Dramatic Problem Ever!!!, but, unfortunately, were unable to attend. 

The NBMS OM Team qualified for, and attended, the OM World Finals in their division for Problem 5 – The Most Dramatic Problem Ever!!!, and placed 8th in their problem. 

The SBMS OM team qualified for, and attended, the OM World Finals in their division for Problem 5 – The Most Dramatic Problem Ever!!!, and placed 18th overall. 

SkillsUSA is a partnership of students, teachers and industry working together to ensure America has a skilled Workforce. A nonprofit national education association, SkillsUSA serves middle-school, high-school and college/postsecondary students preparing for careers in trade, technical and skilled service occupations.  

The state leadership conference was held April 18-20 in Greensboro, NC, and featured numerous contests in trade, technical and skilled service occupations as well as many leadership contests. The first-place winner for each contest will move on to represent North Carolina at the National SkillsUSA Conference in Atlanta, Georgia in June.  

We would like to recognize the following RHS students who will be representing OCS at the national conference: 

• Landon Adams, 1st place Architectural Drafting, Richlands High
• Leilani Betancourt, 1st place Job Interview, Richlands High

The following students are part of the JHS TeamWorks team and will represent OCS at the national level as well: 

• Kelize Velez-Galan
• Kendall Kellum
• Madison McClary
• Savannah Carter

This group competed against 4 teams in the state competition, coming in 1st place. Team members have different specialties – carpenter, plumber, electrician, and brick mason. The team was given a set of plans and had to build a structure according to the plans which included wiring, plumbing, and brick laying. This years’ TeamWorks team is the very first all-female team in the history of the state and national level in this competition. 

Congratulations to all our SkillsUSA winners who will be moving on to the national competition! 

HOSA is an international student organization recognized by the U.S. Department of Education and the Health Science Education (HSE) Division of ACTE. HOSA's two-fold mission is to promote career opportunities in the health care industry and to enhance the delivery of quality health care to all people. 

The HOSA State Leadership Conference was held April 12-15 at the Koury Convention Center in Greensboro, NC. Congratulations to the following students for their recognition from this event:

• Hailey Griffin, Swansboro High School – Lisa Fore, teacher and Dr. Helen Gross, administrator 

Hailey placed 2nd in Job Seeking Skills and qualifies to go to the HOSA International Conference, which will be held in Dallas, TX in June. 

• SBHS HOSA Bowl Team 

The SBHS HOSA Bowl Team has been invited to participate at the HOSA International Conference in Dallas, as well.