MEC recognizes Star Students & Teachers

Eight local high school seniors have been named STAR Student of their respective high schools for the 2023-2024 school year by the Mississippi Economic Council M.B. Swayze Foundation.

In turn, the eight students designated their STAR Teacher, or an educator who has had a considerable influence on their educational journey, and all 16 were honored during the annual Education Celebration held Thursday at the Clyde Muse Center in Pearl.

Local students recognized as Star Students at the celebration were Isaiah Rios, of Clarkdale High School; Emily Price and Travis Ross, both of Lamar School; George Walker, of Meridian High School; Ashlan Ballard, of Northeast Lauderdale High School; Creed Moore, of Russell Christian Academy; Elliott Tulip of Southeast Lauderdale High School; and Brayden Alford, of West Lauderdale High School.

Their designated Star Teachers were Clarkdale’s Heather Rios, Meridian High’s Marti Pulido, Northeast’s Candice Maloney, Russell Christian’s Emily Harbour, Southeast’s LeAnn Vick and Shauna Waters of West Lauderdale. Price selected Lamar teacher Burt Cade as her Star Teacher, and Ross chose Lamar teacher Cindy Slimp.

Established by the Mississippi Economic Council in 1965, the purpose of the Student-Teacher Achievement Recognition, or STAR, program is to recognize outstanding students and teachers from across the state. This year’s theme of the Education Celebration was “Pathways to Success.”

Clarkdale’s Star Student Rios plans to attend the University of Southern Mississippi and major in biomedical sciences with future plans of applying to medical school and becoming an orthopedic surgeon. He did not have to look far to find his Star Teacher in picking his mom, Heather Rios, a Spanish teacher at Clarkdale and an educator for the past 28 years, saying “She taught me everything I know (except for math and science).”

Lamar’s Price also is considering the medical field and plans to attend the University of Alabama, where she will major in biology. She chose Cade as her Star Teacher because of the impact he has had on her education. An educator for the past 38 years, Cade teaches Bible, geometry, algebra II and college algebra at Lamar.

“He was able to teach me both Algebra II and AP Statistics in an easily understandable way, but if there was ever any confusion, he would take the time to fully answer any questions,” Price said. “Mr. Cade is the epitome of an amazing teacher, role model and mentor.”

Ross, also of Lamar School, is headed to the University of Alabama, too, with plans to major in electrical engineering and business. He selected Slimp, a 31-year education veteran who teaches English IV and AP Literature and Composition, as his Star Teacher.

“While English has never been my favorite subject, the depth with which Mrs. Slimp taught allowed me to understand and take an interest in the written word,” Ross said. “Through her class, I have a newfound understanding of everything from history to religion.”

Meridian High’s Walker plans to attend either the University of Southern Mississippi or Alabama State University to major in music. As his Star Teacher, he chose Pulido, who teaches Engineering I and II at Ross Collins Career and Technical Center.

“George is a very attentive, detailed student,” Pulido said. “He is always ready for new challenges and especially embraced each engineering project during his two years at Ross Collins.”

Northeast’s Ballard is still undecided about which college to attend, but plans to major in computer science. Maloney, her Star Teacher, teaches algebra, chemistry and physics at Northeast High.

“I have had the privilege of closely working with her over the past four years as both her teacher, tennis coach and soccer coach,” Maloney said of Ballard. “She is a standout student who has consistently exhibited a strong work ethic, a passion for learning, and a commitment to excellence.”

Russell Christian’s Moore is headed out West after high school with plans to attend Azusa Pacific University, located near Los Angeles, California. He hopes to pursue a degree in commercial music and music composition with dreams of one day writing musical scores for films.

“He has set big goals for himself and understands the hard work and commitment that is needed to achieve those goals,” said Habour, a science teacher who was chosen as Star Teacher by Moore. “He gives 100% to everything he does and seeks out ways to go above and beyond to accomplish all tasks. He is a team player and encourager to those around him.”

Southeast’s Tulip plans to attend the University of West Alabama, where he recently signed to play basketball.

“He is a model student in that he is always on task and doing his best to learn any material. In addition to being an awesome student, Elliot is also a great person,” said Vick, who teaches math and AP Psychology and was named Star Teacher by Tulip. “His character is what truly makes him a star. Elliot’s peers, teachers and coaches all recognize his leadership in all that he does.”

West’s Alford, who also is a National Merit Finalist, is headed to Mississippi State University, where he will major in chemical engineering. For his Star Teacher, he picked Waters, a 24-year veteran who teaches 10th and 12th grade English and AP Literature and is a finalist for the Mississippi Teacher of the Year Award.

“Ms. Waters is the most hard working and intelligent person I’ve met,” Alford said. “She balances several different jobs at West Lauderdale and executes them flawlessly.”

STAR Students are selected on the basis of their academic excellence with both the American College Test scores and scholastic averages being compared to determine the honorees.