Local student and teacher selected for council and grant

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) - Local student and teacher are selected for two high awarding nominations.

A.R. Johnson Magnet Student

A junior at A.R. Johnson Health Science and Engineering Magnet School has been selected to serve on the 22-23 State Superintendent’s Student Advisory Council.

Jordan Howard will meet with the State Superintendent, along with other selected students, four times over the academic year and work locally on a project they are ionate about to impact the student experience.

Howard also served on the State Superintendent’s Middle School Advisory Council in 8th grade, but he expects this time to be different.

Howard shares, “I expect to be able to connect and be more productive with the people at the Georgia Department of Education. I will be able to bring more ideas and opportunities back to our county.”

According to the Richmond County School System, as a representative for the CSRA, Howard plans to focus on transportation needs during his time on the council.

Jordan Howard, junior at A.R. Johnson Magnet School, has been selected to serve on the 22-23... — Jordan Howard, junior at A.R. Johnson Magnet School, has been selected to serve on the 22-23 State Superintendent's Student Advisory Council.(Richmond County School Board)

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Merriwether Middle Teacher

Merriwether Middle School Science teacher receives Nancy-Smith-Mann grant.

Melissa Gojda received this year’s grant, which was established to both honor the memory of the longtime Aiken County educator, and to encourage teachers to embrace innovation and creativity in their classrooms as she did.

According to Edgefield County School District, Gojda stated, “I was very honored to receive the grant. I was looking for a camera that would rotate three hundred sixty degrees so it would follow me around the classroom.”

“I’m very excited,” added Gojda. “This is going to be great. This was a wish from Dr. Nancy Smith-Mann that a certain amount of money would go to teachers each year so we appreciate that. " Gojda continued.