Hamilton County Schools honored several individuals and organizations during its annual Partners in Education awards breakfast Wednesday morning at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga
Hundreds attended to share in the celebration and to recognize district partners who have made a significant impact in Hamilton County Schools in the past year.
School board Chairwoman Tiffanie Robinson, an independent of Chattanooga, gave opening remarks.
"You guys are doing some amazing work in our schools, and truly because of you, we have schools that thrive," Robinson said. "And we have students that go to school every day that are excited to be there, and they walk away with opportunities that they would get nowhere else."
New this year was the community impact award given by the UTC division of diversity and engagement.
"What we must understand is that every child has value," A.J. Davis, coordinator of engagement for the UTC division, told attendees. "See, every child, they bring a unique brilliance to this Earth that, when properly understood and stewarded, they have the opportunity to like, Mr. (Nelson) Mandela put it, change the world, be that change large or small. Positioning children to succeed is vital for our future."
Belinda Lee, program director of Upward Bound, and Twyler Boykin, program director of Upward Bound Math Science, received the award.
Both programs are granted-funded and operated by UTC. Upward Bound works to increase the rate at which low-income students complete secondary education and graduate from post-secondary institutions. Upward Bound Math Science serves 52 students from Brainerd High School and The Howard School to help them pursue post-secondary opportunities in math and science.
"Each of you are essential," Superintendent Justin Robertson said. "I want to thank you from not just the school system or the school board, but for every student in Hamilton County that you're reaching."
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Hamilton County Schools honors community partners
Hamilton County Schools honored several individuals and organizations during its annual Partners in Education awards breakfast Wednesday morning at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga.
Here are the award recipients:
-- Future Ready and Innovation Award: Tennessee Valley Robotics.
-- Family Resource Award: Alexis Eaton of the Chattanooga Area Food Bank.
-- Early Learning Award: Signal Centers.
-- Equity in Education Award: La Paz Chattanooga.
-- Teacher Champion Award: Chris Brown, field placement coordinator for UTC's School of Education.
-- Faith-Based Award: Bayside Baptist Church.
-- Out of School Award: Boys & Girls Club of Chattanooga.
-- Partner of the Year Award: Girls Inc.
Contact Carmen Nesbitt at cnesbitt@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6327. Follow her on Twitter @carmen_nesbitt.