Emanuel County Schools is pleased to announce the STAR Student and STAR Teacher for Swainsboro High School and Emanuel County Institute for 2021-2022.
The STAR Student is a high school senior with the highest score on the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) and is in the top 10 percent of the class, based on his or her cumulative high school grade average. The STAR Teacher is selected by the STAR Student for having made the most significant contribution to their scholastic development.
STAR Students and STAR Teachers representing the Emanuel County Schools System are as follows: Emanuel County Institute STAR Student, Landon Goodman; Emanuel County Institute STAR Teacher, Kendall Hadden; Swainsboro High School STAR Student, Savannah Reynolds; and Swainsboro High School STAR Teacher, Cindy Riner.
Emanuel County Schools Superintendent Scotty Hattaway said, “We are very proud of our Emanuel County School System STAR Students, ECI's Landon Goodman and SHS's Savannah Reynolds, for their academic accomplishments. This honor is reflective of their dedication to their academic achievement and years of hard work and focus. We are also proud of STAR Teachers , ECI's Kendall Hadden and SHS's Cindy Riner. It is an honor when a student acknowledges a teacher for the role and the impact that they have played on their student's academic career. We congratulate both students and teachers.”
Unfortunately, David Emanuel Academy missed representation opportunity for the school this year by a mere shortcoming of 10 points required to pass the provided test.
The four school representatives will receive recognition at the Swainsboro-Emanuel County Chamber of Commerce’s annual awards banquet set to take place tomorrow evening at the Swainsboro Golf and Country Club. Stay tuned for more details!
Normally, quotes are obtained by each STAR representative each year. However, due to time of press, only one STAR Teacher’s response for this recognition could be obtained in a timely manner from the local schools. Check out more on ECI STAR Teacher Hadden below!
Emanuel County Institute STAR Teacher — Kendall Hadden
Mr. Hadden has a Bachelor of Science in Middle Grades Math and Science, a Master of Science in Leadership, and an Educational Specialist Degree in Curriculum and Instruction.
Mr. Hadden started out his ECI career in 2007 as a 6th-grade math teacher. In 2015, he accepted the position as the high school Technology and Engineering teacher. Mr. Hadden also started a Technology Student Association at ECI, and 7 of his students have qualified for national level competition in Dragster Design and On Demand video.
This is what Mr. Hadden stated about being selected as Star Teacher:
“I first met Landon when I was teaching 6th-grade math. I had heard that I was getting a student that was truly exceptional in mathematics and science. This was exciting news because those were the two subjects that always interested me the most. Just as I had heard, Landon was exceptional. Even as a 6th-grade student, he understood the mathematical process of an upper-level high school student. It was fun just trying to challenge him. I didn’t realize how much of an impact this young man would have on my teaching career. When Landon was in 8th grade, he was the youngest student to take my Foundations of Engineering class. It was in that class that I found a way to challenge him. Landon is a very process-driven student, and most of the challenges (projects) that we do in Foundations of Engineering have multiple ways of being completed. You really have to think out of the box with very few instructions other than what the challenge has to accomplish. It was in that class that I witnessed his first failure and I saw him struggle. I tell my students all the time, you learn more from your mistakes/failures than you do your accomplishments. I think this is where Landon and I bonded as student and teacher. I taught him how to not overthink a problem. Landon would go on to be an officer the last three years in Technology Student Association and competes in various competitions among the best in the state and is now Star Student. I know he will do great things in his life and I’m sure he will look back on some of our conversations about life. I’m honored he has chosen me as Star Teacher.”
