Golden B winners and 41 additional seniors also met requirements for the Principal’s Achievement honors
BY CLIFF SMELLEY
Telegraph Staff Writer
Bradford High School announced 16 recipients of the Golden B Award during a ceremony in the school auditorium on April 29.
Golden B Awards, which are sponsored by the Bradford County Education Foundation, are presented annually to 10 percent of the graduating class.
“The Golden B Award is one of the highest awards a student can possibly receive at Bradford High School,” Assistant Principal Chris Coffey said.
This year’s recipients are Santee Blye, Jonathan Brugh, Eden Chalker, Zachary Clayton, Hunter Crawford, Kylee Davis, Raven Ford, Makenli Kirkland, Hannah McFarland, Heidy Munoz-Rubio, Christopher Norman, Tommy Padgett, Hayden Powell, Shaina Rogers, Chaz Strayer and Jaelyn Swanagan.
To be eligible, a student must be nominated by at two faculty/staff members based on a set of criteria.
“As a faculty, we wish to recognize students who have consistently set very good examples for other students to follow,” Principal Angela Ward said.
Ward explained that each letter in “Bradford” can be used to describe what a Golden B winner should be. B stands for the behavior that sets the example for others to follow; R stands for respectful of administration, faculty and staff; A stands for academic effort that is worthy of recognition; D stands for discipline, with maturity and good judgment; F stands for friendly and courteous to others; O stands for obey rules without objection; R stands for responsible, having a strong work ethic; and D stands for dignified, not desirous of self-recognition.
The 16 Golden B winners were also part of a group of 57 seniors chosen as Principal’s Achievement recipients. To earn Principal’s Achievement, a student had to attend BHS for at least two years, maintain an unweighted grade-point average of at least 3.0, be enrolled in at least one course at BHS or North Florida Technical College, have a lack of discipline referrals and have no more than 10 unexcused absences in a semester at the end of the third nine-weeks grading period.
Joining the Golden B winners as Principal’s Achievement recipients are Chayton Alford, Stephen Appling, Keith Ardley, Justine Bay, Savannah Bayes, Ronald Bowen, Rhett Bradley, Shelby Burkhalter, Emily Burns, Ariana Covington, Delaney Crosby, Shawn Davis, Todd Dean, Alahna Faulkner, Hannah Ferguson, Bailey Filippi, Ashley Flanagan, Cole Franks, Allison Funderburk, Jada Harris, Ayden Henly, Joshua Higginbotham, Ariana Innocent, Grady Johns, Aaliyah Jones, Mauricio Mena, Rebecca Nettles, David O’Brien, Devon Osteen, Carley Pilcher, Breann Ponce, Walker Propst, Lilibed Ramirez, Taylor Reddish, William Reddish, Chase Roberts, Mackenzie Smith, Dakota Tillman, Madison Tilton and Hannah Tyson.
Advice from a 2012 Golden B recipient
The awards ceremony featured a special guest, who was introduced by Coffey.
“It is often said in high schools all over that ‘you can’t go to fill-in-the-blank high school and be successful.’ While this has also been said by teenagers at BHS, it couldn’t be further from the truth,” Coffey said. “Bradford High School has produced countless successful business owners, doctors, nurses, lawyers, judges, teachers, police officers, firefighters, paramedics, elected officials, dentists, veterinarians, architects, scientists, restaurant owners, realtors, accountants, aeronautical engineers, skilled laborers, military men/women, musicians, professional athletes, journalists and even an Apple and Nike employee.
“Our guest speaker this morning is that former Nike employee and current Apple employee. A 2012 graduate of Bradford High School and a Golden B recipient — Mr. James Ramseur.”
Ramseur was unable to attend in person, but he addressed students via video. He described how he helps Apple solve marketing problems through strategy, adding, “Working at Apple has been very tough, but enlightening and a huge learning experience for me.”
He also talked a little of his past experiences, including helping win an Emmy in advertising and interacting with the U.S. women’s World Cup soccer team that won the gold medal as well as various NBA players, such as Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and LeBron James. Ramseur said he helped James open his UNKNWN store in Miami during Super Bowl week.
“I got to kick it with LeBron a little bit in Miami, which wasn’t too bad,” Ramseur said.
Ramseur said he could put himself in the situation the soon-to-be-graduates are facing. It was just 10 years ago that he was sitting in the auditorium, receiving a Golden B Award and feeling anxious about the future. What was his next step in life after high school?
“You guys are going to have a lot of people talk to you across the few months that are coming up,” Ramseur said, “but I just wanted to give you some advice I wish I would’ve heard 10 years ago that I think could be useful and directly be applied to your life in the next few months.”
First, Ramseur encouraged students to “get out.” Whether they go to college or not, take an opportunity to experience life outside of Bradford County.
“Whether you like it or not, we do live in a bubble in Bradford County,” Ramseur said. “I think it’s very important to get outside of this bubble and interact with people who may have different perspectives, travel to places that may operate differently in the United States so you can get this world view that can help you understand and keep an open mind.
“It really allows you to meet some really great people along the way and experience and learn different cultures.”
Ramseur’s next piece of advice was to “get involved.” He said he thought he was outgoing in high school, but that was before he went to the University of Central Florida and became one of 60,000 students.
“It turns out when you stop onto a campus that’s larger than your entire city, it puts you in a predicament where you kind of get shy, and you don’t know how to go about things,” said Ramseur, who’s a Lawtey native. “It’s easy to fall back into the trap of, ‘I’m just going to figure it out on my own and stay low-key, but getting involved is super important because your network is your net worth. Getting to know different people throughout your time in college or just these next few years in life will really help you get opportunities.”
Ramseur said he was in the Alpha Kappa Psi business fraternity and still calls the people who were in it with him friends today.
The next piece of advice the BHS alumnus had to give was to “allow yourself the ability to fail.” Ramseur said he took a Statistics class his first semester of college in which the teacher said everything would be a rehash of what everyone learned in their AP Statistics classes in high school, so everyone should pass with A grades.
“The only problem was I didn’t have AP Stats in high school,” Ramseur said. “I was a little confused and ended up failing the class. If I would’ve ended up letting that failure define me, I would’ve just gone back home and joined the military.”
He didn’t make the snap judgement that college wasn’t for him. Ramseur stuck it out, saying it helped when he talked to the valedictorian of his graduating class at BHS and found that he was having his own struggles in college.
Ramseur told the students they should actually seek opportunities that may lead to failure because failure helps build character as well as helping you learn to navigate your way through difficulty scenarios.
“Put yourself in situations you may not be the best at,” Ramseur said. “You’ll probably come out a little better toward the end.”
That led to his next piece of advice: “Get uncomfortable.”
“Putting yourself in uncomfortable situations allows you room for growth,” Ramseur said. “It’s been one of the things I’ve had the most trouble with throughout my life — from 10 years ago to now — but also the most beneficial. It just opens our world up. It makes our world so different when we can understand that people come from different places. People have different viewpoints, and that’s OK.
Lastly, Ramseur encouraged students to “stay authentic.” He recounted how during the first couple of years out of high school, he never mentioned to anyone that he was from Lawtey or Bradford County, thinking that perhaps he was embarrassed to say so when surrounded by people who came from bigger cities and different backgrounds. He eventually embraced where he was from and learned that even the perspective of a person from Lawtey or Bradford County matters.
“It really started to grow on me that you should be proud of being from Lawtey. You should be proud of graduating from Bradford High School. A lot of stuff we go through makes us different and makes us special,” Ramseur said. “Never let go of your roots. Stay authentic. Stay yourself. Don’t forget that. Don’t ever let that go.”
Once he shared his advice, Ramseur said he was available to anyone who wanted to reach out to him through his Instagram and Linked In accounts.
“If you have any questions or even just want to chat, I’m always open to helping people out from my alma mater,” Ramseur said. “Best of luck. Congratulations, everybody. I can’t wait to see what you do in the future.”
Superintendent, BCEF president speak to honorees
Superintendent of Schools Will Hartley addressed the Golden B/Principal’s Achievement recipients, saying he thought back to when he was sitting in their places 23 years ago.
“What do I remember from that moment? I can tell you that if my superintendent came that day and spoke, I do not remember it, so I will keep it short because I know my place here,” Hartley said.
What Hartley did feel it important to say is that behind every successful student is supportive parents or guardians.
“You guys would not be sitting here today with this accomplishment without your parents and guardians who have helped you along the way,” Hartley said. “I want you to do me a favor. Will you stand up right now with me and give your parents and guardians a round of applause?”
When the applause died down, Hartley said, “Your hard work, dedication, perseverance — those things that landed you in the seat you’re in today are the exact things that make you and continue to make you a successful adult. Keep doing the things that you’ve been doing. We’re extremely proud of you.”
Cheryl Canova, the president of the Bradford County Education Foundation, talked about how the Bradford Alumni Association approached BCEF about taking control of the Golden B Awards, turning over its remaining funds of $6,000 to BCEF. She also described what BCEF is — a nonprofit started in 1990 by a group of concerned citizens who saw a need for proactive involvement in the school system.
This school year, BCEF has provided more than $60,000 in support of projects at various schools.
“We simply care about students and their future,” Canova said.
In speaking of the future, Canova left the seniors in attendance with this: “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. That will truly bring you happiness throughout your life.”
