Congratulations to Matthew Zheng (Clay Middle School) who won the 2012 Hamilton County Spelling Bee that we hosted on Tuesday! His championship word was nobiliary in Round 23. Williams Comfort Air will send Matthew and a parent to Washington D.C. in June to compete in the Scripps National Spelling Bee.

Congratulations also to Nadia Jurkovich (HSE Junior High School) and Rithwik Palivela (Smoky Row Elementary) who placed 2nd and 3rd, respectively.

Congratulations to all of the school champions who qualified to participate this year! They were all wonderful representatives of their schools!

Jagger Saylor - Carey Ridge Elementary School
Chad Smitson – Carmel Elementary School
Sarah Liu – Carmel Middle School
Matthew Zheng – Clay Middle School
Saumya Priyadarshini – College Wood Elementary School
Sarah Tinaphong –  Creekside Middle School
Elijah Dunham – Dunham Home School
Adam Harper – Durbin Elementary School
Asmaa Mahoui – Eman Elementary & Middle School
Joey Sun – Fall Creek Intermediate School
Lindsay Lawlor – Fishers Elementary School
Jun Sung – Fishers Junior High School
Nadia Jurkovich – Hamilton Southeaster Junior High School
Matthew Neumeister – Lantern Road Elementary School
Logan Borders – Noblesville Intermediate School
Cade Ferguson – Oak Trace Elementary School
Garrett Brooker – Orchard Park Elementary School
Annaleigh Cummings – Our Lady of Grace
Olivia Balcer – Our Lady of Mount Carmel
Claire Liddell – Riverside Intermediate School
Evan Vesper - Riverside Junior High School
Erin Hebert – Shamrock Springs Elementary School
Katherine Parsley – Sheridan Elementary School
Abbie Lowder – Sheridan Middle School
Rithwik Palivela – Smoky Row Elementary School
Meg Kunz – St. Maria Goretti Catholic School
Beethoven Meginnis – White River Elementary School

Thanks also to Williams Comfort Air’s Laura Petty, Tom Panyard and Josh Huck for judging the event and Tina Festa for taking care of registration.

Williams Comfort Air looks forward to hosting the 2013 Hamilton County Spelling Bee.

Every school has at least one ExtraordinAIRy Treasure to our future.

There are ONLY TWO WEEKS LEFT to nominate high school seniors for our ExtraordinAIRy Treasures scholarships. Please act now on behalf of your seniors! Nominations will be accepted through March 25, 2012… via www.MyIndianaTreasure.org.

Here are some scenarios to consider when you are thinking of someone to nominate.

Do you know me?
During my freshman and sophomore years, I just didn’t understand the importance of education and doing my best in school. I was more interested in hanging out with friends and playing video games. Well, my junior year I came to my senses and really started to work hard at school. I really excelled and  got nothing lower than a “B” during my junior and senior years! Guess what. I had already sealed my fate when it comes to scholarships by sinking my GPA when I was a freshman and sophomore.

Do you know me?
I’m really shy and quiet, I don’t do a lot with the in-crowd, and  I don’t do so great with grades. I’ve got a lot of friends though, and they all seem to come to me when they need to talk about something that’s wrong. I really seem to be able to help people when they’re having problems. I think that being a social worker would be a great thing for me to do, but I really could use some financial help. But I’m just not made of that stuff it takes to get scholarships… grades or athletics.

Do you know me?
I am not a good student in traditional high school classes, but I am a great student at my Career Center. I just don’t get things when I read them. I really struggle with academics. But if you need your car worked on, my instructor says that I’m one of the best students he’s had. I feel good about my mechanical skills and want to become a certified automotive technician. I really could use some help to continue my education as an automotive technician. But there don’t seem to be any scholarships out there for students like me.

Do you know me?
I’ve done very well in school; I am a hard worker; I do a lot for my community; I’m involved in sports; and I’m going to graduate in the top 10% of my class. But I think probably the top 2% of the class will walk away with the scholarships. I really could use some financial help.

Schools with nominations
I am extremely happy to let you know that we have currently received 95 nominations for our scholarships. I am grateful that you are actively supporting this program! I am sure that there is AT LEAST one extraordinAIRy treasure in every school.

There are approximately 70 eligible high schools. We have currently received nominations representing the following 36 high schools.

Avon, Ben Davis, Cardinal Ritter, Carmel, Cathedral, Center Grove, Cornerstone Baptist Academy, Eminence, Fishers, Franklin Central, George Washington Community, Greenfield Central, Greenwood Community, Hamilton Heights, Hamilton Southeastern, Heritage Christian, Home School, In Grace Home Educators, Indian Creek, Lawrence Central, Lawrence North, Lebanon, Martinsville, Mt. Vernon, New Palestine, Noblesville, North Central, Perry Meridian, Roncalli, Shelbyville, Southport, Speedway, Tri-West, Westfield, Whiteland, Zionsville

Reminder of Scholarship Details

Williams Comfort Air values education and has a great appreciation for ALL career paths in life. Many of your academically advanced students may aspire to be doctors, lawyers, and engineers: some who are driven by caring for others may be on their way to becoming teachers and social workers: still others are gifted with talents of skilled trades and will be our next generation of welders, mechanics, plumbers, and heating and air conditioning technicians. ALL of these careers are vital to society; and, we believe that all students should have the opportunity to receive a continuing education scholarship.

Williams Comfort Air will award 15 ExtraordinAIRy Treasures scholarships: $1,000 one-time scholarships. These scholarships are unique in many ways:

There is NO GPA requirement for these scholarships.
ALL career paths are eligible.
The student can attend a 4-year college, 2-year college, vocational college, or a trade school.
The student has NO PART in applying for these scholarships.
Students are nominated with an essay written by a parent, teacher, counselor, neighbor, employer, etc. The essay should convey why this high school senior is an ExtraordinAIRy Treasure to our future by including an overview of the nominee’s life skills in action such as integrity, kindness, and commitment to community to name a few.

I look forward to receiving your nomination!

Williams Comfort Air and Metzler’s Mr. Plumber are pleased to announce our 2011 ExtraordinAIRy Teachers who were selected from 74 nominations.

Each of these extraordinAIRy teachers will receive a $500 cash award and their school will receive a matching $500 contribution to the school’s educational fund.

Aaron Roberson, a 2nd grade teacher at Oak Trace Elementary School in Westfield, was recently honored as an ExtraordinAIRy Treasure to our children. He was nominated by a parent of one of his students. She wrote, “Likely his crowning achievement has been his nonstop efforts to individualize instruction in order to maximize achievement for each child.  Small groups and one-on-one instruction dominate, and each child has his own math, reading, spelling, and writing goals, and is given work that is designed to encourage, challenge, and move each child forward.”

Annette Probst, a 5th grade teacher at Sand Creek Intermediate School, was nominated by the parent of one of her former students. The parent stated that a family crisis led to a unique coping mechanism created by Mrs. Probst for her daughter. “She came up with the idea of allowing her (daughter) to choose some of her artistic friends to make art for the walls of the chemotherapy suite, which were in need of color and messages of hope.” The doctor was so impressed with the artwork and the meaningfulness of it all, that he now offers a piece to each patient as they “graduate” from their chemotherapy.  Since he loses pieces of art as patients complete their treatment at the cancer center, he asked Mrs. Probst to continue the project. She did not hesitate to agree.

Bryan Alig, a 6th grade teacher from Clay Middle School, was nominated by a former student who entered his sixth grade year wondering what the teachers would be like. He found an awesome teacher in Mr. Alig. He wrote, “Mr. Alig wanted to prepare us for life in the future, not just teach us the capitals of South America. He wanted us to become successful individuals and teach us lessons we can use forever. Mr. Alig, put simply, is a teacher who changes students’ lives daily. He is simply, extraordinAIRY.”

Laura Austin, the media specialist at Clark-Pleasant Middle School in Whiteland, was nominated by a fellow teacher who wrote, “Part of what makes Laura Austin extraordinary is that she has no clue how extraordinary she is… She schedules Skype events with YA authors and our students. She provides suggestions to individual students and discusses those choices after the student has finished the book.” The school principal added, “She creates dynamic learning opportunities and addresses our school expectation that the needs of the whole child are met – social, emotional, physical, and academic.”

Kara Larkin, the lead teacher at Clark-Pleasant Academy in Whiteland, was nominated by her former supervisor. Clark Pleasant Academy is an alternative public school where Kara works with students to restore confidence. She gives the students the interview skills and work knowledge needed to acquire and maintain jobs. The nominator wrote, “With a graduation rate that averages 99% and the loyalty and respect of students who maintain contact for years after graduation, Kara has earned the title of ExtraordinAIRy Teacher.”

Bryan Passwater, a math teacher at Lebanon High School, was nominated by a parent of two of his students. She stated that Mr. Passwater’s passion for math, and for teaching, shines through in ways large and small. In order to provide challenging material for his advanced students, he contacted the math department at Notre Dame and began corresponding with a math professor. Using the Notre Dame math texts, syllabus, and even exams, Mr. Passwater is making sure his students are as prepared as possible for college math classes. The school principal wrote, “Great teachers not only know the science of teaching like content knowledge and classroom management, but they are experts at the art of teaching: relationships, motivation, and communication. Mr. Passwater clearly represents a teacher with both skill sets.”

Thanks to all who nominated a teacher, “friended” us on Facebook, spread the word about this opportunity, and most importantly, are personally expressing your appreciation to our local educators.

Please keep following us as we are now accepting nominations for our 2012 ExtraordinAIRy Treasures scholarships for high school seniors.