Program Recognizes Outstanding Youth
Ten outstanding high school seniors, representing eight Anchorage high schools have been chosen as the 2009 winners of the Good News! Great Kids! program. Each year, the program honors students who are doing well in school, have overcome a challenge and are active in community service.
Started more than a dozen years ago, Good News! Great Kids! is a partnership between the Mayor’s Office, the Anchorage Daily News, AT&T, and the University of Alaska. This year more than 70 nominees were submitted. From that group, 22 were interviewed by a committee representing all of the partners, and 10 winners were ultimately chosen.
The 2009 winners are:
Chugiak High School - Jacqueline Yang, Tyler Greensfelder;
Service High School – Bryce Gitzen;
Steller Secondary – Bryan Arnold;
Bartlett High School – Stephanie Alaniz, Jacob Yates;
South Anchorage High School – Josh Benton;
Eagle River High School – Shelby West, Bonita Castro;
Dimond High School - Stormy Sagmoen.
The Good News! Great Kids! winners were featured in a special newspaper announcement in March saluting their achievements and telling their stories. They were also honored at a banquet attended by Acting Mayor Claman, Supt. Carol Comeau and others. At the banquet each recipient is asked to name the educator/mentor who has been most inspirational in their lives. That person is presented with the Mayor’s CREATE (Community Recognition for Educational Teaching and Excellence) Award.
The Good News! Great Kids! program is open to high school juniors and seniors. The nomination process takes place each fall.