RCA Awards Banquet

June 16, 2009 - House Championship Banquet 

On June 16th, the Ron Clark Academy held its second annual House Championship Banquet, and for the second year in a row the ceremony honored the school's house champion, Altruismo!   

Congratulations to Mrs. Bearden, the faculty representative, and Ahjanae Colson, the Head of House for Altruismo, for being awarded the distinction two years in a row.   

As part of the prestigious ceremony, numerous awards went to students who shined throughout the school year.  The top honor, RCA's Student of the Year, went to 7th grader, Chi Chi Ugwuh, who accepted the award through a flood of tears. Upon hearing her name, she ran to the stage as friends grabbed her for quick hugs along the way.  In her speech she commented on how all of her fellow classmates are wonderful and that she was honored to accept the award on their behalf. 

High recognition awards were given to Osei Avril and Willie Thornton for their contributions throughout the year with global studies projects, including the election project, "You Can Vote However You Like," that garnered worldwide attention. 

The School Spirit Award, a highly coveted trophy at a school that is dominated by dedicated students, went to two students, Aujahuna Smith and Jordan Brown, for the consistent spark they added throughout the entire year. 

DiTiffany George, Eryn Davis and Christian Guarneros were named as Citizens of the Year, receiving the Nukumori Awards.  

Aliyah Cofer and Nadia Lowe were consistently recognized for outstanding achievements in the 5th grade class, while James Williams was highlighted for his amazing performance in Social Studies and Global Studies. 

The student who received the most awards was a 6th grader, Arsene Lakpa.  Arsene received the top award in nearly every class from Physical Education to Math.  Teachers talked glowingly of his efforts and high academic achievement throughout the year. 

In an emotional twist, Mrs. Bearden recognized two of her top language arts students, Osei Avril and Chi Chi Ugwuh by naming an award after them.  From now on, the students who receive her awards will be given the Avril Award for Editorial Excellence and the Ugwuh Award for Creative Expression. 

In after school athletics, the top honor for basketball went to Jonathan Bryant who was named MVP for the year, and in soccer Rakim Byrd was named as the top player.  Nadia Lowe received the sportsmanship award. 

At the conclusion of the awards, the 5th graders were called to the stage to hear the results of their DNA testing.  Each child was tested to find the heritage of his/her great ancestors.  Our 6th and 7th graders who already know their lineage joined the new 5th graders on stage and welcomed them to their family.   To hear of the great kings, queens and developed societies that thrived in Africa, and to know that it was from those wonderful places that their ancestors came was emotional and empowering.  To realize that slavery was a small fraction of a great history of ancestors was an important lesson for each of our students, and it made for a very emotional and solemn end to a wonderful awards ceremony as well as the end to an unbelievably productive, exhilarating and magical...yes, magical school year.