HILLSBORO HIGH SCHOOL SENIOR COULD BE NEXT U.S. YOUTH POET LAUREATE

https://www.mnps.org/blog/2021/3/25/hillsboro-senior-wows-audience-with-spoken-word-performance

A Hillsboro High School senior who could be the nation’s next youth poet laureate wowed a crowd of school superintendents Thursday in Nashville.  

Alora Young, one of four finalists this year for U.S. Youth Poet Laureate, performed a poem titled “All That I Know Now” for the Tennessee Organization of School Superintendents after MNPS’s own leader, Director of Schools Adrienne Battle, welcomed the audience and introduced her.  

“I know many of you saw and heard Amanda Gorman, the former U.S. Youth Poet Laureate who performed at President Biden’s inauguration a couple of months ago,” Dr. Battle said. “Well, that might just be Alora in the  spotlight the next time around.”   

Young then showed why with her poised and passionate seven-minute performance exploring issues of race, justice, teacher pay, gun violence, the school-to-prison pipeline, and educational inequity. It drew a standing ovation from the superintendents, several of whom later approached Young and her mother with thanks and congratulations. Hillsboro’s executive principal, Dr. Shuler Pelham, and several other MNPS leaders also attended the event at a downtown hotel.  

Young, who plans to attend Cornell University in New York this fall, said she “hopes one day to be the world’s greatest grandma/Supreme Court justice.”  Watch her full performance below.   

TENNESSEE’S DR. BRYAN JOHNSON NAMED AS A FINALIST FOR NATIONAL SCHOOL SUPERINTENDENT OF THE YEAR AWARD

On December 18, 2020, AASA, The School Superintendents Association, announced the four finalists for the 2021 National Superintendent of the Year award. One of the distinguished leaders named is Tennessee’s very own Dr. Bryan Johnson from Hamilton County Schools. The other finalists are Khalid Mumin, Reading School District, Reading, PA; Christy Perry, Salem-Keizer Public Schools, Salem, OR; and Michelle Reid, Northshore School District, Botthel, WA. 

Dr. Johnson is in his fourth school year as Superintendent of Schools in Hamilton County, and student academic results have shown historic levels of improvement during his tenure. Under Dr. Johnson’s leadership, Hamilton County Schools has launched Future Ready Institutes in high schools to help students become future-ready graduates prepared for success; ensured that middle and high schools are 1-to-1 technology schools, providing each student with an electronic learning device; and developed a comprehensive five-year action plan called “Future Ready 2023” to provide a roadmap for continuous improvement efforts as staff and students work to become one of the best school districts in the state.

Dr. Johnson’s success and leadership have quickly made him a leader among leaders in education, both in Tennessee and across the country. In September of this year, Dr. Johnson was named the 2021 Tennessee Superintendent of the Year by the Tennessee Organization of School Superintendents (TOSS) at their virtual awards banquet. He was also named as a “Leader to Learn From” by Education Week and a “Superintendent to Watch” by the National School Public Relations Association (NSPRA) in 2020. 

TOSS Executive Director Dr. Dale Lynch stated, “Dr. Johnson’s leadership style has helped transform his current school district and community. Dr. Johnson, Bryan, is the type of leader that makes everyone better.”

The National Superintendent of the Year will be announced on February 18, 2021 at AASA’s National Conference on Education, which is being held virtually