Community Milestones

IN EDUCATION

■ Brianna LaCole Holland, a sophomore at Spelman College in Atlanta, has accepted membership in The National Society of Collegiate Scholars. She was also invited to join the Honors Program and the Alpha Lambda Delta Honor Society, and to participate in the Spelman College Student Ambassadors Program.

Holland is the daughter of Barbara and Howard Johnson and Cletis and Carolyn Holland.

■ Edward F. Hanes Jr., a 2000 graduate of the UNC Chapel Hill's School of Law, has been awarded the 2010 Outstanding Recent Graduate Award from the UNC Law Alumni Association. The Association presents this award to a young alumnus whose achievements have brought credit to the law school, the legal profession or society. The recipient must be a graduate of the UNC School of Law within the past 10 years.

After graduating from Harvard University in 1996, Hanes attended the law school on full scholarship and served as president of the school's Student Bar Association. He also worked as a summer associate and associate at Kilpatrick Stockton LLP between 1998 and 2001. The Triad Business Journal recognized him as one of their "40 Leaders Under 40," and he served on numerous local boards, including the Winston-Salem Symphony and the Urban League. Hanes is employed at Winston-Salem State University and serves as a member of the UNC Chapel Hill Board of Visitors.

Hanes is a native of Winston-Salem and a 1991 graduate of Carver High School. He is the son of Edward and the late Leverne Hanes.

■ Jeremy Sexton, a Latin student at Reynolds High School, has won the Medusa Mythology Exam's Apollo Achievement Award. His submission of an application, an original story about an Olympian's birthday, and a teacher recommendation earned him the Apollo Award and a $550 cash prize. After earning a gold medal on the exam, he was eligible to apply for the MME Achievement Award.

Jeremy is the son of Drs. Mark and Rebecca Sexton of Winston-Salem.

The Medusa Mythology Exam is a 50-question test in multiple-choice format given to more than 20,000 students in three countries.

■ Forsyth Technical Community College was recently named by the N. C. Community College System as one of only 11 schools out of the state's 58 to have met 2010 standards for "Exceptional Institutional Performance." This rating indicates that Forsyth Tech achieved or surpassed the system's 2010 standards.

■ Jo Whitten May has been appointed professor emeritus at Winston-Salem State University in recognition of her years of distinguished service in the School of Education and Human Performance. The school also recognized her contributions with a special award for meritorious service.

May's career focused on the education of teachers and therapists who work with children who have special needs. Her specialty certifications are in speech and language pathology, learning disabilities, birth-kindergarten, and child development.

May, who retired in 1998, spent 33 years at WSSU.

■ Doug Borwick, professor of not-for-profit management, arts management and music, and director of the not-for-profit management and arts management programs at Salem College, has been elected president of the Association of Arts Administration Educators. He was formerly vice president of the organization.

The AAAE is a membership organization of academic programs that train future leaders in arts and cultural management, policy and research.

■ Jennifer Collins, Wake Forest University professor of law, has been named associate provost for academic initiatives.

In her new role at Wake Forest, Collins will work with faculty members to develop academic programs. The appointment is for a three-year term. She will retain her title as professor of law and will continue to teach in the law school. She succeeds Michele Gillespie, the Kahle associate professor of history, who is returning to the history faculty after her three-year term as an associate provost.

Before joining the faculty, Collins spent nearly eight years as an assistant U.S. attorney in Washington, where she specialized in homicide cases. She is an expert and author on issues involving families and the criminal-justice system, and she has taught classes in criminal law, criminal procedure and family law. She won the Joseph Branch Excellence in Teaching Award in 2010, and the Jurist Excellence in Teaching Award in 2009.

Collins received her undergraduate degree in history from Yale University and her law degree from Harvard University, where she worked on the Law Review with President Obama.

■ Esther S. Powell has been named director of adult student services and evaluation as part of the Winston-Salem State University's restructuring of its Lifelong Learning program areas. The program is designed to meet the needs of the increasing number of adult students 25 and older.

Powell had previously been director of student advocacy and services for adult and graduate students within Student Affairs. She has worked in each division of the university during her 27 years at WSSU. In her new position, she will serve as the point-of-contact for adult learners in the program designed for them, which include distance learning, continuing education, evening/weekend programs, and other programs in academic units that have adult- learner needs. She will evaluate adult-student needs and work with academic and non-academic areas to enhance the learning environment for older students.

Powell earned her master's degree in adult education from N.C. A&T State University, and her doctoral degree in higher education leadership from Northcentral University in Arizona. She is a past president of the N.C. Adult Education Association and currently serves on the organization's board of directors as treasurer. She also serves as the N.C. State Representative for the Mid-Atlantic Region of the Association of Continuing Higher Education.

IN THE ARTS

■ David Gordon, a student and art major at Appalachian State University, recently had a project accepted into the Looking Glass Gallery lon the university's campus. The project, titled Void, is the result of a collaborative effort between Gordon and his friend, Austin Fowler.

Gordon is a graduate of West Stokes High School and is the son of James and Beverly Gordon of King.

Fowler, a graduate of West Stokes and UNC Chapel Hill, is the son of William and Janet Fowler of King and is currently studying in Europe.

IN PUBLIC SERVICE

■ Reagan High School recently raised $2,000 to build a community vegetable garden in Masoyi, a South African village near Johannesburg.

The project, known as "Compassion Gardens," is one of several offered by Heroes Helping Heroes, a program created by Gene Smart Compassion Inc. to help make a sustainable difference in the lives of orphans and vulnerable children. Heroes Helping Heroes' mission is to strengthen communities in the United States, such as Reagan High School, by uniting them around the common purpose of building stable communities for these vulnerable children in one critical-need location at a time.

Reagan joins other Winston-Salem/Forsyth County high schools as participants in the project. The combined funds raised by these schools will build the community garden, feed, house and educate two orphan families in Masoyi, and help support educational and feeding programs that currently care for 1,770 children in the community.

Reagan raised the money for the Compassion Garden through a fundraising competition between social-studies and science classes during the weeks surrounding Earth Day. The funds raised by the competition were complemented by individual donations from students and teachers.

Gene Smart Compassion Inc., a non-profit organization based in Winston-Salem, has teamed up with several other nonprofit organizations, both in the United States and in South Africa, on the Heroes Helping Heroes/Masoyi initiative. These partners include Samaritan's Feet International in Charlotte, and Masoyi Home Based Care, a nongovernment organization in Masoyi.

IN THE MILITARY

■ Army National Guard Pvt. Rickey L. Stokes has graduated from the Infantryman One Station Unit Training at Fort Benning, Columbus, Ga. The training consists of Basic Infantry Training and Advanced Individual Training.

The basic combat training included training in drill and ceremonies, weapons employment, basic combat skills and battlefield operations and tactics. The AIT course included training infantry in reconnaissance operations; operating and maintaining communications equipment and radio networks; and infantry combat exercises.

Stokes is the grandson of Roger Stokes of Winston Salem.

■ Airman 1st Class Eric M. Carter has graduated from basic military training at Lackland Air Force Base, San Antonio, Texas, and earned credits toward an associate in applied science degree through the Community College of the Air Force. He completed an intensive, eight-week program that included training in military discipline and studies, Air Force core values, physical fitness, and basic warfare principles and skills.

Carter is a 2008 g, and he is the son of Bruce and Karen Carter of Lewisville.

■ Coast Guard Seaman Brittany S. Barton recently graduated from the U.S. Coast Guard Recruit Training Center in Cape May, N. J.

During the program, Barton completed a training curriculum that included academics and practical instruction on water safety and survival, firefighting and marksmanship. She will join 36, 000 other men and women who are in the Coast Guard.

Barton is a 2007 graduate of East Forsyth High School and the daughter of Ginger Q. and Winfried J. Barton of Belews Creek.

IN CIVIC AFFAIRS

■ Jenny Braswell has been elected to president of the Rotary Club of Clemmons. Her goals for the club for the coming year are to "make a difference, involve more volunteers, and do the things that matter to the community."

She wants to increase the club's participation in the many local activities that it supports, including the Flight of Honor, the "You Can Save Lives" Organ Donor Program, send-a-kid to Camp Hanes, Make-a-Wish Foundation, Food Pantry, Hand-in-Hand, Senior Citizen support and Boy Scouts.

Braswell became a Rotarian in 1994, and is a retired public-health director with more than 30 years of state and local public-health experience. She is married to Dr. Sherrill Braswell, who practices family medicine in Winston Salem.

IN SCOUTING

■ Dylan Andrew Flippin has been awarded the rank of Eagle Scout. He is a member of Troop 421 in Francisco, N.C., in the Hanging Rock District.

For his Eagle project, Dylan installed a flagpole, along with fencing and landscaping, at the new EMS station in Pinnacle. He has been in Scouts since he was 6 years old.

Dylan is the son of Gary and Phyllis Dalton Flippin of Asbury.

IN SPORTS

■ Lt. Andy Le Beau of the Boone Police Department won a bicycling gold medal in the 500 meter sprint in the 2010 Can-Am Police and Fire Games. Le Beau also placed third in the 10-mile time trial, and third in the criterium. He has been in the police department since 2002.The Can-Am Police and Fire Games are held every two years and attract hundreds of police officers and firefighters from across Canada and the U.S.

■ A Winston-Salem boccie team recently took home first place and $160 in prize money at the 12th Annual Ernest Jahier Memorial Boccie Tournament during the Historic Waldensian Festival in Valdese. The team members include: Joe DiLembo, John Greco, Dave Raab and Bill Sears. The tournament began in 1979, and was named for Ernest Jahier in 1998.

■ The Winners of the Liberty Public Safety Challenge, recently held at Old Fairview School Park, are: 1st place, Liberty CDC Team consisting of Hunter Glenn, Elliott Rethemeier, Justin Plummer and Ramon Dickerson; 2nd place, fireman team, consisting of Patrick Davenport, Anthony Jones, Hashon Geddings and James Singletary; and 3rd place, police officers team, consisting of Gerrod Hardy, Chaz Browning, Darryl Sawyer and Jeffery Shaw.

The challenge is an annual event in which members of the Liberty community can get to know local police officers, firefighters and other public-safety personnel.

IN OTHER AREAS

■ Supporters for C.H.A.N.G.E. (Communities Helping All Neighborhoods Gain Empowerment), came out in force in June to help the organization take home the "prize pot" in the final hour of "Compete for Your Cause." CHANGE won $6,800. El Buen Pastor Latino Community Services, The Forsyth County Humane Society, and Big Brothers Big Sisters followed close behind in votes. Compete for Your Cause raised more than $12,000 for nearly 100 local nonprofits.

Compete for Your Cause is a community-wide fundraiser for non-profits in Forsyth County sponsored by The Winston-Salem Foundation, and hosted on the website for social networking in Forsyth County, "Bridges-Connecting Communities. Each non-profit that participated in the event received $5 for every vote that was cast in its name. The organization with the most votes won the grand prize.

■ Winston-Salem/Forsyth County students took home two first-place awards and were finalists in three other events at the Technology Student Association National Conference in Baltimore this summer. Fifteen students from Hanes and Walkertown middle schools participated in a variety of competitions related to science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

Alex Ross of Hanes Middle School won first place for "ZAP It! Electrical Applications." The competition tested students' knowledge of electrical circuits and theory through both a written test and by assembling a specific circuit from a schematic diagram.

Ben Hueston and Sam Davis of Hanes won first place for "Techno Talk," which tested students' teamwork and communication skills by having them replicate a structure using limited communication.

William Rierson of Walkertown Middle School was a finalist for "Tech Bowl -- Written." This event required students to take a written examination on a wide variety of science, technology, engineering, and math-related questions.

Ross and Hueston were also finalists for "Robot TOBOR," where they were required to build, test and demonstrate the use of a robot that can complete a course and perform a designated task. Hueston also was a finalist for "Multimedia Production," in which he created and designed a stand-alone multimedia presentation to promote TSA.

Other students who represented WS/FCS were Omsai Meka, Rohit Meugu, Zac Covington and Coby Devito from Hanes, and Matthew Rogers from Walkertown.

TSA is a national, nonprofit organization with 150,000 student members who have a strong interest in technology. About 4,500 students and teachers attended the national conference this year.

News of accomplishments of Journal readers runs in the Community Milestones column on Mondays. To submit an item for publication, e-mail information and photos to Features@wsjournal.com. Information should include a contact name and daytime phone number. Submissions are generally published in the order in which they are received. Delays can be expected during those times of the year when submissions are high, e.g. during school graduations.