Schools award scholarships to teacher candidates
By Phyllis Moore
Published in News on June 7, 2005 1:47 PM
Five area students have received scholarships through a program implemented and funded by county commissioners six years ago as a way to replenish the teaching pool in Wayne County.
The Wayne County Teacher Scholarships were awarded during Monday night's Board of Education meeting. Two students will attend Wayne Community College in the fall and three others will further their education at a four-year college or university.
The program was launched to entice high school students to enter teaching profession. In exchange for receiving the scholarship toward a college degree in education, recipients commit to teach in Wayne County for five years.
Olivia Pierce, executive director for community relations, said the program has already produced five teachers currently working within the school system, with another six in line to teach in the fall.
Lesli Darden, a recent graduate of Southern Wayne High School, and Erica Flanagan, a recent graduate of Charles B. Aycock High School, each received scholarships worth $1,200 a year for two years while attending Wayne Community.
Mrs. Pierce said that the scholarship money increases when Ms. Darden and Ms. Flanagan transfer to a four-year school, to $5,000 a year for their junior and senior years of college.
Scholarships to a public college or university went to Chelsea Anderson, a 2005 graduate of Wayne Christian Academy; LaDonna Reid, a 2003 graduate of Goldsboro High school who is currently enrolled at East Carolina University as a junior; and Mallory Anderson, a recent graduate of Spring Creek High School.
The recipients will receive $5,000 for each of the four years at the university level, Mrs. Pierce said.