Education

Editor’s note: This is the first in a series of stories about Brunswick County Schools’ recent national accreditation process and report.

BOLIVIA—A national accreditation team has cited the Brunswick County Board of Education for “interference” in school and administrative matters in a report released this week.

Team members from AdvancED conducted their assessments in Brunswick County between April 1 and April 4. They scored Brunswick County Schools in seven categories.

ATMC has presented $2,000 scholarships to four high school seniors in Brunswick and Columbus counties. Awards were presented to Tanner Duncan, William Edwards, Christine Guseman and Ashley Roberts.
Duncan, son of Greg and Wendy Duncan of Tabor City, plans to attend East Carolina University, where he will major in engineering.
Edwards, son of Jimi and Cindy Edwards of Shallotte, plans to attend UNC-Greensboro and major in secondary education.

When Bolivia Elementary schoolteachers Sally Lewis and Lucy Ganfield told students to “Come Grow With Us,” they knew the kids were in for a “root” awakening.
Studying the complete growing cycle of living things would stimulate the children and correlate with many aspects of the common core of study for reading, math and science learning objectives, so they applied for an ATMC Smart Connections grant and were awarded the grant last fall.

Youth in Brunswick County are often raised with goals of attending college after high school and establishing themselves as a successful businessperson. Many youth dream of remaining in Brunswick County as adults and raising families of their own.

But too often, these youth can’t find suitable work in the county to sustain their dreams. The North Carolina Rural Economic Development Center recognized the issue and is working to put a stop to this phenomenon throughout the state. The goal is to involve youth and young adults in economic and civic life.