BY CLIFF SMELLEY
Bradford High School announced 19 Golden B recipients at the annual rewards program sponsored by the Bradford County Education, which was held April 25 in the BHS auditorium.
Golden B awards, which are presented to 10 percent of the graduating class, are determined by a points system based on weighted GPA, number of referrals, daily attendance percentage, dual-enrollment courses passed, industry certifications achieved, number of extracurricular activities and number of years enrolled at BHS as well as a teacher ranking system based on respect, responsibility and productivity.
Students must be nominated by at least two faculty or staff members.
This year’s recipients were Chloe Anderson, Teagan Bradley, Kinley Burkhalter, Abigail Casey, Ashley Dehoff, Camryn Ferguson, Cole Ferguson, Jack Hendrix, James Hudgens, Lindsey McCoy, Abbigale Moore, Emma Mueller, Brett Redding, Madison Sapp, Harley Smith, Luke Stucky, James Tillman, Nikolas Vargas and Arden Williams.
“The Bradford High School faculty bestows this recognition each year to the most-deserving senior students based on a carefully selected list of criteria, both objective and subjective,” Principal Chris Coffey said. “As a faculty, we wish to recognize students who consistently set good examples for other students to follow.”
Coffey said the values of the Golden B begin with the letters that spell out “Bradford.” B — behavior that sets an example for others to follow. R — respectful of administration, faculty and staff. A — academic effort that is worthy of recognition. D — discipline, with maturity and good judgment. F —friendly and courteous to others. O — obey school rules without objection. R — responsible, having a strong work ethic. D — dignified, not desirous of self-recognition.
The Golden B recipients and 39 other seniors were Principal’s Achievement Award winners. To receive the Principal’s Achievement Award, seniors must have a minimum weighted GPA of at least 3.5 and be on track to graduate. Number of discipline referrals is also taken into account.
Joining the Golden B students as Principal’s Achievement Award winners were Grace Arenz, Savannah Bason, Rebecca Blankenship, Rylie Blankenship, Lauren Bowen, Taylor Chalker, Chason Clark, Dalayisha Coleman, Landon Coleman, Stephanie Crews, Jeremiah Hamilton, Jordan Hamilton, Reagan Harris, Rylee Holland, Caitlyn Jackson, Sarah Joyner, Hagen Kadlec, Elijah Kellum, Destiny Lauramore, Michael Lizell, Levi Lowe, Devon McBride, Alyssa Monnett, Jordyn Morgan, Mckaylah Mullen, Ella Murphy, Malakai Murphy, Adrian Cadle Olvera, Alexis Ortega, Sade Peterson, Cason Pilcher, Martin Reaves, Sunshine Santavicca, Ian Scott, Natalie Thomas, Mikayla Triplett, Kencie Wainwright, Kristine Williams and Elisabeth Wilsey.
Awards and a reception for students and families are provided every year by the Bradford County Education Foundation, a nonprofit organization that was established in 1990 by citizens to support the county’s schools. BCEF President Cheryl Canova said 60 Florida counties have such an organization, but Bradford’s is one of only six to be composed solely of volunteers.
“We simply care about students and their future as well as supporting teachers and staff,” Canova said. “We work hard yearlong to support these efforts. This year alone, we have provided over $668,000 in grants.”
Canova said BCEF has also raised more than $50,000 this year through various fundraisers.
BHS alumnus shares 3 lessons to live by
Wisam Fares, the 2014 BHS valedictorian, was a guest speaker at the event. Fares graduated from the University of Florida in 2018, double majoring in biomedical engineering and mathematics. He served as a volunteer calculus teacher and tennis coach at BHS during a gap year and is currently a Ph.D. candidate in biomedical engineering at the University of Virginia, where he studies breast cancer.
“It’s crazy to be back after 10 years, when I was sitting where you guys are right now,” Fares said, adding, “Ten years sounds like a lot of time, but I promise you, it goes by in a flash.”
Fares said he wanted to share three lessons that would help students as they prepare for life after high school.
“The first lesson I want to leave with you is this: Empowered people empower people. Having someone who believes in you allows you to believe in others and share resources that you’ve gained.”
Fares talked of how he was empowered by BHS math teacher Dennis Sgro. He took Pre-Calculus with Sgro as a sophomore and took his AP Calculus class as a junior.
“He would always find time to help me,” Fares said. “I’m very grateful for that.”
The help didn’t stop there. After taking AP Calculus, Fares had gone as far as he could go in calculus at BHS, so he decided he wanted to take Calculus III at UF. He couldn’t do that unless a dual-enrollment agreement existed between the two schools.
Fares said Sgro supported him as he participated in months of meetings with the Bradford County School Board. The agreement was eventually created, and Fares took Calculus III at UF while still at BHS.
“Having someone who supports you that way is so invaluable to your growth as a person,” Fares said, adding, “(Sgro) helped me get into UF. He helped me pursue math and biomedical engineering.”
Just as he was empowered by Sgro, Fares did his part to empower others, serving as a math tutor at UF before teaching calculus at BHS.
In preparing to share his second lesson with the current BHS students, Fares talked about how his first experience in scientific research didn’t go as he had planned, but that didn’t deter him from giving it another attempt.
Fares said that there was a time when all he knew about science was what he read in a book, but a UF biomedical engineering professor said, “Everything that’s already known is in a book, which is boring, because you can’t explore it outside of that. Research allows you to do that.”
“I got invited to join his lab and see what research looks like,” Fares said. “I was so excited to do some real experiments. Oh, my gosh. It was the most boring thing I had ever done.”
He told himself that research wasn’t for him. However, he talked to a friend of his who was in another lab researching pancreatic cancer. Based on what his friend told him, Fares said he had to visit the lab and see it in person. That led to the invitation to join that lab, which he accepted.
“I learned so much through that experience,” Fares said. “I knew through that experience I wanted to continue research and pursue a Ph.D.
“The next lesson is this: If I had let my first experience define me as a researcher, I wouldn’t have been a researcher. I’d be a bad researcher, but because I allowed that opportunity to happen and stayed curious, it allowed me to persevere and redefine myself. I hope that you guys jump at those opportunities as well.”
Fares said his last lesson was the most important: Turn to your family and friends for support.
When he graduated from BHS, Fares said he was excited to be gaining independence. That excitement lasted for a couple of months he said before realizing that it’s OK to “fall back on family.”
“I love my family so much,” Fares said, adding, “I’m so certain my sisters have a notification on their phone that goes off when I have a bad day. They will call me with the most chaotic stories with no context. They always make me laugh. It really reminds me to lighten up and to persevere.
“I hope that you guys can find that in your family and friends. They really do help you get stronger.”
In closing, Fares said he’s always willing to make himself available to anyone who needs any kind of help.
“I love mentoring,” he said.
Words of advice
Superintendent of Schools Will Hartley took a few moments to speak, first saying that the success of public education is determined by a partnership of students, families and the school district.
“Today, it’s not just celebrating the students, but also the parents and grandparents and families who have supported them for 13 years to get here,” Hartley said. “For that, I would like to give the parents and families a round of applause.”
Hartley admitted he doesn’t remember some of the moments from his senior year at BHS, so he encouraged the students and their families to take the time to truly enjoy all the special moments the seniors will experience over the next month.
“My advice to you is take all the pictures,” Hartley said. “Soak it up. The same for the families. Be there for every event. Really truly enjoy those moments with your kids because it’s going to go by very, very fast.”
Hartley told the assembled students he was proud of them, saying, “There’s no doubt this group is going to go on to be very, very successful adults and, hopefully, one day, be leaders in our community.”
Canova had words of advice for the students as well.
“As I always say to young adults, find something you love to do and are passionate about and figure out a way to make a living doing it,” Canova said. “That will truly bring you happiness throughout your life.”
