THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, August 4, 1995 TAG: 9508040156
SECTION: PORTSMOUTH CURRENTS PAGE: 02 EDITION: FINAL
COLUMN: Ida Kay's Portsmouth
SOURCE: Ida Kay Jordan
LENGTH: Medium: 78 lines
The reopening ceremony for Emily Spong Elementary as a community school will be really special - if we help the faculty raise $950 in the next few weeks.
Sheryl Sugg, a kindergarten teacher who doubles as science coordinator for the newly configured community school, has invited NASA to send an astronaut for the opening day program on Sept. 8. The school must pay travel expenses - a round-trip ticket from Houston and meals. The Holiday Inn-Portsmouth Waterfront already has contributed a free room to house the visiting astronaut, whose identity is not yet known.
Sugg, a striking young woman in a red dress, bubbled over with enthusiasm about ``her children'' and the possibilities of the new Emily Spong.
The school will focus on science and technology. Sugg said astronauts are a perfect symbol for the children. They work hard to become part of the elite group and then they train intensely to achieve excellence, she said.
``We want our students to learn to study to become astronauts or whatever they want to become,'' Sugg said.
After the opening ceremonies at 10 a.m., the children will meet the visitor at a reception, Sugg said.
``We also need some donations of light refreshments for that,'' she added.
In addition to the visit with Emily Spong students, the astronaut also will appear in a 12:30 p.m. parade Downtown to celebrate the receipt by the public school of the 1994 Senate Productivity and Quality Award.
A new enthusiasm for innovative and special activities seems to be welling up with the return to community schools this fall.
For example, at S.H. Clarke the principal is calling on alumni of the historic school to assist with making it a center of excellence for kids from the surrounding neighborhoods. John Tyler neighbors are rallying to the cause of re-creating a neighborhood school by convincing parents to send their kids to the school and by volunteering their services.
In recent years the Emily Spong building has been used as a regional center. I think its resurrection as a school that pushes for excellence for young children would please the feisty woman for whom the building was named in 1954. In fact, that's probably true of all the people for whom schools are named.
It's exciting to see people have feelings about the schools. Everybody seems dedicated to making their school the best one in town.
The competition is healthy. That's the way it was when the public schools here turned out all of the people from Portsmouth who have reached high places in their chosen fields of work.
Ten years ago when this city decided to stage a ``Portsmouth Notables'' celebration, the selection committee was overwhelmed with nominations. I don't think anybody at that time was aware of how many Portsmouth public school graduates had gone on to excel in so many ways in so many places. In the arts, in science, the military, politics, diplomacy, education, business - you name it and somebody from Portsmouth was a star somewhere.
The nominees were male and female, black and white. Some were native-born and some were come-heres. The one thing they all had in common was their background in Portsmouth public schools.
Many who excelled went on to college, but a large number of them also took their high school diplomas and made their mark without additional formal education. Whichever way they went, they took with them skills and spirit instilled in them during their early years right here in Portsmouth.
Since the Notables event, we have continued to hear of even more Portsmouth people who are excelling all over the world.
The disproportionate number of high achievers from Portsmouth says a lot about its public schools of the past.
The enthusiasm and determination to make successful new community schools may just return them to the excellence that has given Portsmouth people the background to stand out in the nation.
Everybody in the city needs to support the effort with volunteer time, money and, yes, lip service. If you want to contribute to the visit by an astronaut, you may call Emily Spong Principal Stephanie Johnson at 393-5247 or Sheryl Sugg at 547-7844. by CNB