• Northeast Lauderdale High School’s Tammie Pirie has been chosen Cheer Coach of the Year by the Mississippi High School Activities Association (MHSSA). Coaches from across Mississippi were presented with awards at the MHSAA office in Clinton.

    Pirie has been teaching for 14 years, nine of those years at NLHS. She teaches Accounting and Personal Finance.

    Pirie has served as cheer coach at Northeast for three years. The NHS cheer team competes in several competitions each year. In 2012, the team won the Dixie Championship in Jackson and placed second in the MHSAA State Cheer Championship. In 2013, the team won first place in Large Varsity- Non tumble and won Overall Varsity Cheer at the Mississippi Cheer and Dance Invitational at Pearl High School. They also came in second place at the Dixie Championships and was awarded Best Stunt Sequence. At the MHSAA State Cheer Championship in Jackson that same year, NHS won their first state championship. In 2014, they won second place at the Dixie Championships and then won the MHSAA State Cheer Championship, making them back-to-back champions in the Large Varsity-Non Tumble divison. 

    • RAYMOND – Hinds Community College President’s Scholars have been named for the 2014 fall semester and the following local residents are among honorees: Angel Wilkins and David McCoy, both of Meridian; Cannon Gibbs of Lake; Bryden Reed of Decatur; Mason Farmer of Philadelphia; and Justin Crawford of Union.

    President’s Scholars are those with a cumulative 4.0 grade point average.

    Hinds also has named Deans’ Scholars for the 2014 fall semenster. The following local residents are among honorees: Laura Taylor of Lake; Jacob Overby of Collinsville; James Cartlidge of Philadelphia; Joseph Breland of Union; and Kayla Bunch and Alban Rankin, both of Waynesboro.

    BATON ROUGE, La. – The following local residents recently were initiated into The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi, the nation’s oldest and most selective collegiate honor society for all academic disciplines. The students were initiated at the University of Southern Mississippi: Emma Reeves, Brandi Carmichael and Sarah Kirkus, all of Meridian; Meleithia Crane of Waynesboro; and Rachel Clay and Laura Hull, both of DeKalb.

    These residents are among approximately 32,000 students, faculty, professional staff and alumni to be initiated into Phi Kappa Phi each year. Membership is by invitation and requires nomination and approval by a chapter. Only the Top 10 percent of seniors and 7.5 percent of juniors, having at least 72 semester hours, are eligible for membership. Graduate students in the top 10 percent of the number of candidates for graduate degrees may also qualify, as do faculty, professional staff, and alumni who have achieved scholarly distinction.