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TECHNOLOGY Team WILL get paid trip to national competition [Virginian - Pilot](Virginian - Pilot Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) By James Thomas Jr. Correspondent Sometimes it pays to be persistent. It did for four John Yeates Middle School students who approached the Suffolk School Board and boldly appealed for funding to let them attend the National Technology Student Association competition June 28 to July 2, in Orlando, Fla. It didn't look like it was going to happen after the students and their parents left the May 9 meeting of the board. Generally, the board funds trips only for first-place winners at the state technology competition. The Yeates students did well at state but only one team member scored a first-place win. No action was taken on the students' request at the board meeting, but within a week came word came the seven-member body had approved funding to pay for the entire team's trip. Perhaps the board was swayed by the cogent resolve of several students. "We think at nationals we'll get first place 'cause we're really good at this," said Indya Gipson, a Yeates seventh-grader who later discussed the team's determination. "We've been busy fixing all the bugs and issues ever since we got second place at the state." "I'm so excited about this," said traveling mom Christa Johnson, who was notified of the board's decision. "They're paying for hotel, flight reservations, paying for me to go and giving all of us $40-a- day food vouchers." Four Yeates technology team members and one at Nansemond River High School had good weekends at the state 2013 Technosphere competition, May 3-5 in Richmond. Indya Gipson, Chiamaka Nnawulezi and Kevin Johnson collaborated on the Video Game Design Challenge and won second place. Teammate Daihjah Norris won solo first place in Promotional Design. Indya also finished third in the individual Communication Challenge. Brooke Gipson, Indya's sister, a junior at Nansemond River, took third place in Promotional Graphics, while Kevin captured fourth place in the Multimedia Production Challenge. Technology association rules permit first-, second- and third- place winners at the state competition to compete at the nationals. The 15-member Yeates team finished eighth overall among 180 Virginia schools at the state finals. The board's practice of only sending first-place state finalists to the nationals prompted parents to question why Suffolk Public Schools - which advocates student academic achievement, especially STEM technology - doesn't do more to reward achievements. "No way I'm going to tell my son, oh, you didn't do an honorable job in coming in second," said Christa Johnson, Kevin's mother. "Out of 180 schools and 10,000 members to come in eighth - that's pretty good." Added Indya's mother, Batanya Gipson, "She would never have thought about biotechnology and environmental design programs. If they really want to encourage these programs, they should support them." Of several Suffolk public schools that participate in the technology association, only the Yeates students and Brooke qualified for the nationals. Indya, however, has had experience at the national level. She and older brother, Brandon, an International Baccalaureate student at King's Fork High School and twin to Brooke, competed in last year's event at Nashville. Both ended up national finalists, he in Video Game Design and she in Multimedia Production. Since both had won first place at state, Suffolk Public Schools paid for their trip, said their father, Jesse Gipson. Indya and Chiamaka, both seventh-graders, are second-year members on the Yeates team. Kevin, in sixth grade, and eighth-grader Daihjah are first-year competitors. Daihjah's first-place design was a logo that will be used on the official state technology association's lapel pin next year. Kevin's fourth-place multimedia entry was a short DVD on healthy lifestyles to prevent cancer. In addition to competition, Kevin and several of the students perform community service and volunteer in their communities, said his mother. Activities include Toys for Tots and forming a Relay for Life team. James Thomas Jr.,[email protected] (c) 2013 ProQuest Information and Learning Company; All Rights Reserved. |