For most high school students, the SAT is considered just another stressful component of the larger college application process. Even senior Jack Johnson admitted, “I hadn’t really thought about the SAT since I took it.”
Just because this is the prevailing attitude, however, does not mean that the hard work students put into their SATs deserves to go unrecognized. The Professional Association of Georgia Educators (PAGE) understands this better than anyone. Their Student Teacher Achievement Recognition program (better known as STAR) aims to recognize the students who scored the highest on the SAT at their respective high schools, as well as the teachers who have done the most to shape their academic careers so far.
This year, the STAR Student from CHS was Jack Johnson. When asked to describe the experience of discovering he was selected, Jack explained: “I was happy at first, and then I sort of had to think about what teacher to pick, and which teacher I liked the most, so that took me a minute to decide, but then when I really thought about it, it wasn’t very hard.”
That teacher was none other than Mrs. Moore, whose subjects include AP United States History and AP Art History.
“It was just a combination of really good teaching and having a nice classroom environment. I’ve never met a student that’s left her class not liking her or not liking the class or feeling like they didn’t understand the subject,” Jack explained.
This is not Mrs. Moore’s first time being selected as a STAR Teacher; in fact, she was chosen last year, too, by winner Corbin McKay. “It’s such a special award because it comes from the heart of the student, and that’s the whole thing about why I teach. It’s not about the subject matter as much as it is the students. I’m so honored and so excited that Jack picked me. It was just awesome,” she said. “Jack is multi-faceted. Even though he’s quiet, there’s so much under the surface. It’s amazing. It’s obvious he’s smart, he’s also more intuitive, and he’s kind, and he’s a great team player. He’s got a wicked sense of humor. He just has so many amazing qualities. It’s going to lead him down a great road.”
After the local selection process, Jack and Mrs. Moore were both invited to a brunch at the Cartersville Country Club with all the other STAR Students and Teachers from the region. Yesterday, a selected few from that group went to a competition to see who could continue with the program and represent the region at the state level.
“We had fun last night,” Mrs. Moore said.
“It was a great dinner,” Jack added.
“It was neat just being around a lot of kids like that. It gives hope for the future,” Mrs. Moore concluded.
As for Jack, he certainly has a bright future in store. Although he hasn’t committed to a college or university yet, he is leaning towards Georgia Tech, where he hopes to pursue a degree in computer engineering. After that, the sky is the limit.
