FORUM
Spelling bee contestants are all W-I-N-N-E-R-S
Nigel Alston
Motivational
Moments
"If we are not happy and joy
ous at this season, for what other
season shall we wait and for what
other time shall we look!'"
- Abdul-Bahai
I sal in a very small chair at a
little desk in the middle .of a room
filled with computers that also
serves as an elementary school tel
evision studio. I was the celebrity
pronouncer for the Speas Elemen
tary School spelling bee. being
broadcast on the school's televi
sion channel. WJJUZ.
The school's mascot is a bee.
In the middle of the room is a
big red rug with black letters
spelling out a familiar message:
Say no to drags! A blue draped
background hung down ffom the
ceiling and provided a backdrop
for the microphone in front of it.
Each participant stood in front of
the microphone, listened to his or
her word and attempted to spell it
correctly.
The first round - a practice
round - was rather easy and
moved quickly. Each student
knew his or her assigned word in
advance and spelled it correctly,
with confidence I might add. Each
listened to the word as it was pro
nounced, then used in a sentence.
followed by hearing ii pronounced
again. For example, the first word
was "computer." "A computer is a
machine that performs computa
tions and processes information.
Computer."
Eleven class spelling champi
ons competed for the top prize, a
trophy and competition at the next
level in February 2003. They are
fourth- and fifth-graders named
De'shaun, Taja Rebecca Jeffery,
C.J.. Raquel, Brian, Moniqua.
Michael, Shanquela Alexis and
Frederick.
It hurt me to watch as a student
misspelled a word, but "amphib
ian" gives me trouble too. "A frog
is an amphibian because it begins
its life in the water as a tadpole,
then becomes a land animal with
smooth, wet skin. Amphibian."
At other times I smiled as a
student reacted with a "yes!" after
being told the student had spelled a
word right.
Raquel Welch, a fourth-grader,
placed second. She is a competitor
and was a little disappointed. "It's
OK. I could have don't better." she
told me after the contest was over.
She missed a more difficult word
in one round, and the next person
after her had to the opportunity to
spell an easier one, "patio." I heard
her tell another student later that
she would have spelled that word
correctly.
Spelling is one of her hobbies.
"It's fun when you do it several
times," she said. The interviewer
that 1 am, wanted to know why.
"People see you as a good speller,"
she said.
"What would you tell other
students'?" I asked.
"You should do it and try your
best," she responded. She walks
the talk.
One incorrect letter in the
word "conquistador" was the dif
ference in first and second place
for Raquel. Her challenger. Fred
erick Beal, did not miss it. A few
letters at a time and he nailed it.
That qualified him for the next
word and a chance for the champi
onship trophy. "Pinata," I said,
speaking into the microphone.
"Children swung at the colorful
pinata so that they could knock it
down in order to get the candy that
was inside. Pinata." I said one
more time, completing my assign
ment.
Frederick concentrated and
spelled the word slowly, one letter
at a time: 'P-I-N-A-T-A. Pifiata."
The judges conferred and
acknowledged it was the correct
spelling. Frederick visualized the
word before he attempted to spell
it. "I was thinking about it in my
head," he told me in our post
spelling bee interview in the cafe
teria. "I could picture it in my
head."
Frederick knows something
about perseverance too. He started
participating in the fourth grade
(last year) and came in third place.
Like Raquel. he can't explain why
he likes spelling, but he just knows
he likes it. "It's fun!" he said with
out hesitation. His eyes light up
when he talks about it too. "I like
spelling!" he said.
"He will not be a dressed-up
dummy," Lonnie Allred, his
grandfather told me at the recep
tion honoring the class spelling
champions. Allred shared with me
the images of people like former
pro football player Dexter Manly
who excelled in sports, but could
not read as an adult. "What a
shame." Allred said.
That is not going to happen to
his grandchildren, not if he can
help it. In a conversation the night
before, Allred told his grandson
that it was about time for him to
place a trophy in his case. He did
this day and it is one of many. I am
sure, that will follow.
What a sight to see - fourth
and fifth-graders sitting around a
table, eating peanuts, slices of
apple, drinking punch and talking
about words.
If you think spelling those
words was a challenge to the stu
dents, think about pronouncing
each one. like thist one that
stumped another student - "eques
trian." Raquel didn't feel too bad
about that as she hit the nail on the
head when she told me. "Some
adults can't spell these words."
My interview ended with
Frederick when I asked what
advice he had to offer students.
"Do your best" he said. Each of
them did and they are all winners.
Nigel Alston is a radio talk
show host, columnist and motiva
tional speaker. Visit his Weh site at
www. motivationalmoments. com.
Rep. Larry Womble
NC House of Representatives
71 si District
Tel. (336) 784-9373
Fax (336) 784-1626
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Best interest of children ignored
Carlton Eversley
&
John Mendez
Guest
Columnists
wHRfr
The Ministers Conference of
Winston-Salem and the Education
Caucus of the NAACP expressed
disappointment and dismay over
the recent decision about a new
principal at Latham Elementary
School.
Our thinking has nothing to do
with Ingrid Medlock, who was
appointed. It has everything to do
with Dr. Gwendolyn Johnson,
who was rejected. It is a tool of
oppressors to keep the oppressed
fighting among themselves,
always diverting their attention
from the central conflict with the
oppressive system itself. This we
refuse to do. We have nothing bad
to say about Medlock whatsoever.
Only one school in Forsyth
County educates poor people
well. This is not a subjective opin
ion; it is an objective fact. There
are 21 equity-plus schools in
Forsyth. These are schools full of
children on free and reduced
lunch, i.e. poor. They are predom
inantly black and brown (Hispan
ic/Latino). Only Latham is at the
School of Distinction level, mean
ing it has scored over 80 percent
on the end-of-grade testing.
All the others are in the high
40s, 50s, 60s or maybe low 70s.
Latham's progress from the bot
tom of this scoring toward the top
was led by the late, great principal
and educator. Dr. Larry G. Fields.
He set the high expectations, hired
the right teachers, found a teach
ing method called Project CHILD
in Florida and tolerated nothing
else but discipline and excellence.
It took Fields 10 years to get
Latham to this point. For over half
of that time. Dr. Gwendolyn John
son was one of his "right hand"
people. He hired her away from
Diggs Elementary as a curriculum
coordinator. Though she already
had a master's degree, he encour
aged her and helped facilitate her,
to earn her doctorate from N.C.
State University. She helped him
shape and implement Project
CHILD at Latham.
For the last three years, she
was Field's assistant principal,
and he assigned major responsi
bilities to her, such as chairing fac
ulty meetings. She shared Fields'
vision and was prepared to carry
on his legacy.
The parents of Latham,
through its PTA, gave unequivo
cal support to Johnson. The facul
ty voted two-to-one to bypass the
usual hiring process and simply
appoint her! It should be pointed
out that this is a 70 percent
approval rating. It may actually be
80 or 90 percent if you include
those who supported Johnson but
who voted against bypassing the
usual hiring process.
Latham Mentor/Tutors, a
group of black men who'd done
an outstanding job working with
students there, were unanimously
behind Johnson.
Moreover, Johnson supported
by the entire Ministers Confer
ence of Winston-Salem, the
NAACP Education Caucus, the
Executive Committee of the Pres
byterian Interracial Dialogue, the
Winston-Salem Alumnae Chapter
of Delta Sigma Theta. and state
Rep. Larry W. Womble.
And Pam Carson, PTA presi
dent, Rev. Laura Spangler, pastor
of Lloyd Presbyterian Church; Dr.
Ellen Yarber, parish associate at
Green Street United Methodist
Church, and Fleming El-Amin,
co-moderator of the Black Leade
ship Roundtable, went to the
School Board to speak on behalf
of Johnson.
We have to wonder if she was
n't selected in a spiteful power
struggle initiated by Superinten
dent Don Martin and the seven
white School Board members
who voted against the only black'
board member present (and the
only one who's actually run an
elementary school), Geneva
Brown.
Again this is not about Med
lock; but when you line her 12
years of experience against John
son's 27, Medlock's master's
degree against Johnson's doctor
ate, Medlock's four years of ele
mentary experience against John
son's eight, Medlock's one year of
administrative experience against
Johnson's three. Medlock's no
experience at Latham againist
Johnson's six years of experience
at Latham, and Medlock's no Pro
ject CHILD experience against
Johnson's six years, it's hard to
make an objective case that the
best decision for children was
made here. These children and
teachers will now have gone
through four different principals
(Fields. Bobby Robinson. James
Brandon and now Medlock) in
this one school year. How can that
possibly he good for stability and
security for someone they know
and respect and who knows and
respects them?
The superintendent has said
essentially that parents, teachers,
pastors and communities of sup
port don't count. He and the board
have apparently valued Medlock's
hypothetical answers to their
hypothetical interview questions
over Johnson's" actual lived expe
rience in leadership at Latham.
This makes no good sense.
The Rev. Carlton A.G. Evers
ley is pastor of Dellabrook Pres
byterian Church. The Rev. John
Mender, is pastor of Emmanuel
Baptist Church and president of
the Ministers Conference of Win
ston-Salem and Vicinity.
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