ALBANY HIGH STUDENT RECEIVES NATIONAL RURAL AND SMALL-TOWN AWARD
Michael Kober is Albany High’s first student to earn the National Rural and Small-Town Award for his academic achievements.
Albany High School student Michael Kober has been awarded the National Rural and Small-Town Award by the College Board National Recognition Program.
Kober, a 16-year-old junior at Albany High School, became the school’s first recipient of the recognition program. Recipients of the award must have taken and performed well on the PSAT/NMSQT, PSAT 10 or AP Exams. Kober scored 1410 on the SAT and 35 on the ACT, both first-attempt scores.
Kober is the section leader for percussion in the Albany High School Band. He enjoys composing music and playing drums and piano. He also enjoys playing Dungeons and Dragons with friends, spending time with family and playing video games. Kober said he plans to attend college and pursue a career in medicine.
STATE SUPPLEMENTAL PAY AWARDED TO DISTRICT EMPLOYEES ON OCT. 12
Employees across the district received a one-time pay increase this month as a result of state legislative action taken during the 2023 Regular Session.
All certified, full-time employees received a $2,000 lump sum payment in a local supplemental paycheck on Oct. 12, while non-certified, full-time employees received a $1,000 payment on that day.
Superintendent Joe Murphy said the district plans to issue a local supplemental paycheck on May 3, 2024, which matches the state’s one-time gift — $2,000 for certified, full-time employees and $1,000 for non-certified, full-time employees.
SPRINGFIELD HIGH HOSTS GIRL-POWERED STEM WORKSHOP
Springfield High School’s Bulldog Bytes Team Member Nathan Gordon, front center, allows one of the guest students to drive his team’s robots during a demonstration on robotics for the Girl Powered Workshop.
“Calling All Girls!” That is the cry of industries across our state and nation that have a need to fill careers based in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics learning.
To help answer that call, Springfield High School recently hosted its first “Girl Powered Workshop” to inform young women and members of the community at-large about available STEM and robotics opportunities.
Currently women make up half the total college-educated workforce, but they fill only 30 percent of STEM jobs. For black and Latina women in STEM, that number reduces drastically, to only 2 percent.
“Education can play a significant role in helping to bridge gender equity gaps,” said LPPS Instructional Technology Facilitator and STEAM Express Director Jolie Gregoire. “The key to STEM learning is making it meaningful, putting it in context or real-world issues.”
SHS Teacher and Robotics Sponsor Yvette Hill, along with members of the Bulldog Bytes team, sponsored the event. Lanie Bauduoin of Gainey’s Concrete Products, a locally owned business, presented a short talk on understanding STEM career opportunities, and members of the Bulldog Bytes Robotics Team demonstrated their various robotics projects.
Bradley Harris, District 4
- Currently serving his second term as an elected school board member
- Industrial Sales and Services Representative for JM Test Systems, Inc., of Baton Rouge
- Certified in industrial safety and security procedures
- Earned Bachelor of Science Degree in industrial management technology and a Master of Business degree from SLU in Hammond
- Graduate of Denham Springs High School; member of the DSHS Athletic Hall of Fame
- Deacon and Teacher at First Baptist Church of Denham Springs
- Married to Luwana O’Neal Harris for 35 years
- Father to Zachary, graduate and former varsity football player of Brown University, and Alex, a junior in mechanical engineering at LSU.
“I have been honored to work on projects to move our school system forward; and I’m especially proud of the new school and athletic facilities we have been able to deliver to the Denham Springs community,” Harris said. “I remain committed to doing what’s right for our children, for our employees, and for our community overall.” -Bradley Harris