Graduation tests: One of the biggest events for RHHS seniors is just around the corner
Next week brings with it one of the most important events in many Wildcat’s high school careers.
As RHHS gears up for the Georgia High School Graduation Tests, or GHSGTs for short, both students and teachers are preparing by reviewing the broad area of information which makes up the test.
All students wishing to graduate must pass the GHSGT so it’s not to be taken lightly. In addition to setting aside valuable time to do practice such as online practice tests RHHS’s devoted faculty is helping students be as ready for the tests as possible in other ways as well.
Mrs. Brandi Page-Smith, for example, has opened her classroom after school to help students who think they may need a little extra help on the science portion of the GHSGT. This is a great example of how RHHS’s faculty really goes out of their way to help students.
Q: What can you tell me about your program?
A: The Georgia High School Graduation Test review is just review that students come to. Some have failed the GHSGT, and are just preparing for it. They come in for about an hour to an hour and a half after school for about two weeks before the test and review, and I do the review with them.
Q: Why are the GHSGTs so important?
A: Because if you don’t pass the GHSGT you cannot get a diploma. Period. You could possibly get a certificate of attendance, saying that you’ve been in high school, but you don’t actually get your diploma until you pass them.
Q: Is this the first year you’ve done this?
A: No I’ve done it as long as I’ve been teaching, eight years. Not at this school but at other schools. At other schools we had a class, like a study skills class, where that’s all we did, but their failure rates were much higher.
Q: Can you see a correlation between this class and higher test scores?
A: Oh yeah. They understand it and a lot of times it’s just that they need the review. They need to go back and hear it again and need the repetition. It definitely does help. I’ve seen several of them that come, and then come back to me and say, "Yeah I passed it this time"
Q: How has your student turnout been this year?
A: It’s been the best so far. I’ve had about 15 students just this past week.
Q: Are other teachers offering review in other subjects?
A: No usually they don’t and the reason being is most of the other subjects the students pass. Science is the hardest; we have the highest failure rate with science.
Q: What advice do you have to offer to students about to take the GHSGT?
A: Pay attention in your classes. Don’t forget your freshmen year that you’ve got this test your junior year. You have to remember to pay attention in all your classes as you go.
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Changes around Richmond Hill leave this resident with nostalgia
There’s no denying it, Richmond Hill just isn’t what it used to be.
I was walking through the new Kroger, marveling with my friends how amazing it is, though it may also be described as amazingly similar to every other nice grocery store, and as I exited through its automatic sliding doors onto the vast stretch of black pavement making up its parking lot, it became ever more apparent to me how much Richmond Hill has changed even in the relatively short 15 years that I’ve lived here.
I can remember the day when I considered Blockbuster to be a movie rental promised land only accessible during visits to far away relatives that lived in big cities; when the closest thing to a city park, as far as I was concerned, was the little koi pond outside Beijing House, or the hi-ya place as I called it. I could have never imagined the thriving community we live in now, with its seemingly innumerable gas stations, gigantic grocery superstores, and placid park, would be what the quiet, little Richmond Hill of my childhood grew into.
In a way it’s been really neat to see the city grow up around me, or with me rather. But I think part of me will always miss what we used to be. I can remember when my neighborhood was still all dirt roads, and the ‘black top’ was something I avoided because it burnt my dirty feet as I ran around exploring and doing whatever else it is that little boys do.
Part of me will always hold the memory of coming in after a long day of playing outside, taking a shower, and watching the bottom of the shower turn dark brown as I scrubbed off the day’s hard earned dirt. Our city’s growth was, and is, a beautiful and inevitable thing, but I think it’s important we remember the small town values we cherished in the days when Hardee’s had the best fried chicken in town and Starbucks was a faraway dream.
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RHHS student to tour Washington
Glorili Alejandro has brought honor and recognition upon both herself and RHHS by winning Coastal EMC’s Washington Youth Tour scholarship this year.
Glorili will represent Bryan County this summer as she travels to Washington D.C. to view our government’s inner workings up close and personal as well as meet several officials and congressmen. Glorili is a student gifted with not only an impeccable work ethic, but also a heart of gold and will without doubt represent all of us back in Richmond Hill grandly during her visit to Capitol Hill.
Q: What inspired you to apply for the tour?
A: I think what influenced me most was my brother, because he’d seen it in the magazine for Coastal Georgia and he had told me various times to try out for it, because it will be good for you to get as many scholarships as possible. So I thought, "Hey, why not give it a try?" And I applied online, got the interview, got in, and I’m really happy about it.
Q: Why do you want to go to Washington?
A: After taking AP U.S. History this year I think that I’m a little more aware of how the government works and I really want to continue that path. I want to be able to make a difference one day, and I can’t do that unless I know what’s going on. I want to be exposed to a lot of the stuff in Washington, and this is a really good opportunity.
Q: What do you hope to gain from this?
A: More knowledge from the inner workings of the government, like laws, because I think it's really important if you want to be able to do something, to know what you're doing and not just go blindly. I think general knowledge, and a little more experience.
Q: When is it?
A: The tour is this summer, June 12-19. We go to Atlanta first, stay there for a day for a banquet, and then go to D.C.
Q: What will you be doing in the capitol?
A: We’re going to be touring the city, going to historical landmarks, and talking to politicians.
Q: What do you attribute your win to?
A: I just went in there and tried to be myself, because I think if I tried to be anybody else I’d just end up blowing it. I didn’t try to put on a façade or anything I was just pretty straight forward with what I wanted and who I was. So hopefully they’ll like that.
Q: Have you applied for any other scholarships?
A: I did apply for the Latino Seminar for Leadership in Notre Dame, and I’m still waiting to get an answer to that.
It’s supposed to come the first week of April so we’ll see. I’m really hopeful.
Q: Where do you plan on attending college?
A: I’m looking at Emory, Georgia Tech, Notre Dame maybe if I get into that program. I just want to aim high.
Q: What advice would you give to other students aspiring to receive scholarships?
A: Try to get as many as possible, because that’s what I’ve always heard from everybody. And don’t limit yourself to the possibilities of scholarships, because if you think ‘Oh I’m not gonna get this!’ then you’re not going to get it. If you just try, there’s bound to be something, even if you think you’re the worst person possible for it. Just have that confidence.