Bees were initially held in schools with fourth-through eighth-grade students throughout the state to determine each school’s Bee winner.

School-level winners then took a qualifying test, which they submitted to the National Geographic Society. In each of the 50 states, as well as the District of Columbia, the Department of Defense Dependent Schools, and the US territories, the National Geographic Society invited the students with the top 100 scores to compete at the state level.

Dunlap was the only student from VBCPS to qualify to participate.

Mat Scott, civics teacher at Bayside Middle, turned an economics lesson into an entrepreneurial experience by having groups of students create a business and product, a la Shark Tank, the popular business pitch show on ABC.  Armed with a business profile, marketing plan, and either schematics or a prototype, students visited teachers to make their sales pitch and find investors.

Ayanna Garvin and Nia Donawa, Bayside Middle School eighth graders, present their Reflection Perfection concept of a dressing room mirror with smart technology.

Eighth-graders Nia Donawa and Ayanna Garvin made a sales pitch for their Reflection Perfection invention, a smart dressing room mirror. With their invention in a department store, a customer could walk into the dressing room and pick clothing from a touch screen. In 3D they would see how an item fit without ever taking if off a coat hanger. According to the students, not only would their invention please customers, but it also would speed up picking out clothes and reduce theft. Their imaginary invention garnered $400 from investors.

One team had floor samples to show off their new cleaning product. Another had business cards and a menu for Sweet Treats Retreats, a bakery for people with special dietary needs. Other inventions offered a look into the future: a hover skateboard, a hologram watch, iPhone earrings, and a single machine that washed and dried clothes.
In the end, the business earning the most investment money had designed a Smart Desk so students could do all of their work on a touch sensitive desk surface with hologram projection capabilities.

Some third grade classrooms also are taking the “Bonnie Plants Third Grade Cabbage Challenge” which provided them with a cabbage plant to take home and provide care in order to chart plant growth. Students are required to measure their cabbage plants at maturity, as well as submit a photo of themselves with their cabbage plants. Classroom winners will be submitted to the state competition for the possibility of winning a $1000 scholarship. These hands-on activities are directly related to the Virginia Beach Objectives and Virginia Standards of Learning in preparation for ongoing state tests.

PAE created a Juice Pouch brigade and has been earning points all year by saving and sending in their used juice pouches to the companyTerra Cycle. The two clubs paired up to redeem those points and were able to provide a year’s worth of clean water to 62 people through an organization called charity:water. This organization provides clean water by building wells in communities in need. The students learned about the importance of clean water and how some countries do not have access to clean water. Most importantly, they learned that helping with this problem can cause a chain reaction of kindness!

The Kindness and Compassion Club was started this year at PAE to encourage students to live a life of purpose and to do simple acts of kindness to make their school a better place. The Green Club emphasizes sustainablility and teaches students how to meet the needs of today without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

According to VHSL Assistant Director Lisa Giles, candidates demonstrated outstanding qualifications as they represented newspaper, magazine, yearbook, and broadcast production at schools across the state.

Thomson will be recognized at the school’s senior assembly next month.

Congratulations!

A slight of a girl, Rochester sat poised at the edge of a bench as though the wind would scoop her up at any second. Her delicate fingers fluttered through pages of a notebook as the Princess Anne High School (PAHS) senior gathered her classwork and her thoughts before beginning the day.

At 18, she is a high-flyer in the International Baccalaureate program at PAHS; a member of the volleyball and forensics teams; is in the National Honor Society; volunteers with Operation Smile; participates in the Student Council Association and the Class Council and has earned her Gold Award from the Girl Scouts. Rochester has already been accepted to Howard and James Madison universities and is seeking a presidential nomination for the Air Force Academy. She dreams of being a diplomat or an ambassador.

But that’s only a small part of what makes this self-proclaimed “military brat” a dynamo. Rochester’s true mark has been made through her work to educate her fellow teens about depression and suicide. Early on in her high school career, Rochester lost someone she knew to suicide. She got involved with the I Need a Lighthouse organization and began reaching out to let struggling teens know they are not alone.

“I Need a Lighthouse taught me that I have a voice that matters and that I can hopefully make a difference in someone’s life,” she said. “I kind of made it my mission to get out there and let my voice be heard.”

Still, Rochester didn’t feel she was doing enough and wanted to get more PAHS students involved in the cause. Last year she started the PAHS Lighthouse Psychology Club with a mission to fight the stigma of mental illness and to raise awareness of community resources for those in need – especially teenagers.

Nurturing the organization and using it to shed light on mental illness and teen suicide for her fellow Cavaliers has become Rochester’s true passion.

“It is so important that people recognize that teenage depression and mental illness are real problems and not something to hide or be ashamed of,” she said. “Who better to be there for teens than other teens? We need to help each other and make it known that it’s okay to speak up and speak out.”

The Lighthouse Psychology Club works with established organizations such as the National Alliance for Mental Illness (NAMI) and I Need a Lighthouse to bring speakers to Princess Anne on topics related to mental impairment and mental illness. As president, Rochester is the impetus behind the club’s community outreach activities and earlier this year single-handedly organized the city-wide event “A Mob with a Cause”.  The well-attended event brought in guest speakers and provided yet another educational outreach to the teen community.

Humble and unassuming, Rochester smiled and waved away any mention of her leaving a legacy at PAHS.

“I found my passion and I pursued it,” she said. “I want to inspire people to live their lives to make a difference. I didn’t do anything that other students wouldn’t do given the opportunity.”

Princess Anne faculty member Betsy Fuqua, however, see’s Rochester in a different light.

“This club will continue after Alexia’s graduation next month because of her hard work and dedication to its establishment at PA,” said Betsy Fuqua, IB psychology teacher and I Need a Lighthouse sponsor. “Alexia definitely keeps PA on ‘true North.’”

Compass Keeper Q&A:

 What is your favorite book?
Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher

What is your favorite television show?
It’s a tie between CSI Las Vegas and Criminal Minds.

What is your pet peeve?
I hate it when you are driving and the person in front of you has a taillight out — I just want to run up there and tell them!

What is your strength?
I think I am pretty good at understanding people and where they are coming from, even if we are different.

What is your weakness?
Mint chocolate chip ice cream — I could eat it all day every day!

The 2012-13 school year marked the launch of the Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) initiative in Virginia Beach City Public Schools. Students have embraced learning through a digital world and are thriving as 21st century learners because of it. Wether it was iPads, e-readers or smart phones, technology could be seen at use in classrooms across the division all year long. But now school administration wants to know — did the implementation work?

Parents are asked to complete a short online survey to help gauge the success of the BYOD program. Surveys must be completed by June 14.

Still have questions about BYOD? Check out the division’s Frequently Asked Questions section on vbschools.com.

Student Jamar Andrews caught a foul ball that was hit out of bounds by third base.

More than 60 students and staff attended a Tides Baseball Game at Harbor Park. During the outing, students were able to practice using public transportation (they were able to ‘Ride The Tide’ by taking the Tide Light Rail) and also work on their socialization and communications skills. These type of excursions allow for direct and incidental instruction, while still enjoying a fun night out.

Birthday girl Zaria Wilson posed with Riptide for a special birthday picture.