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with first-hand accounts of Spanish life, or as she uses various
teaching styles until each student understands the lesson.
Her tall figure, deep voice, and passionate eyes immediately
command my respect. But as the year progresses, my respect
deepens as I discover new elements of her character. I respect
her more each day, and I feel honored to be her student.”
Steven Sumners’ STAR Teacher, Kelly Dowling, describes why
Sumners deserves to be a STAR:
“I have had the pleasure of teaching Steven for two years and
he is now in my 2nd year AP Calculus (BC) class. He has amazed
me by almost deriving theories many sections before we study
them. His questions in class never cease to amaze me, and have
made teaching him a very fun challenge. He connects ideas
and theories from many different topics in
a way that I have never seen in a student
and even many adults. He has a brilliant
mind and is very self-disciplined. He is also
graduating a year ahead of schedule as he
has completed all of the high school requirements
by his 3rd year in high school. I was an
engineer for Procter and Gamble for many
years before becoming a teacher, and even
compared with my engineering colleagues,
Steven’s thought process and intelligence
rivals anyone I have been associated with.
He is not just one the brightest students
I have encountered, but one of the most
brilliant people I have had the pleasure of
working with.”
Sumners describes why he chose Dowling
as his STAR Teacher:
“Mrs. Kelly Dowling, my Calculus and
AP Calculus BC instructor for the past two
years, has affected me more profoundly
than any other school official in the past
14 years. Whether I was in a general classroom,
an independent-study environment,
or an extracurricular activity, Mrs. Dowling
has always strived to accomplish more than
what is required and to be more than what
is necessary.
Above all, she showed herself to be entirely
devoted to leading her students to an understanding
of all aspects of the curriculum. It
is true that I am largely a self-motivated student.
I would work hard under any teacher.
However, some educators have the ability to
prompt an extra amount of effort from even
the most diligent pupils. Mrs. Kelly Dowling
is one of those educators.”
In PAGE STAR Region 10, the STAR
Student is Jacob Stalvey O’Neal of Lowndes
County High School. For his STAR Teacher,
O’Neal reached back to the beginning of
his academic career, choosing his kindergarten
through second grade teacher,
Teresa Hall.
“Jake O’Neal is an outstanding stellar
among the stars,” Hall says. “When I think
of Jake’s merit as a student I think of a five-year old boy with
eyes that ignited with the thrill of discovery. He was quiet and
reserved, yet an aggressive learner. It was amazing how easy
it was for this little boy to apply knowledge and investigate
new understanding. He remembered everything he saw, read,
did and heard. He had a thirst for learning that could not be
satisfied. Jake had a phenomenal vocabulary, yet the word
“bored” was one we never heard him use. His ability to write
went beyond anything I have ever seen in early childhood.
His stories had remarkable depth, and his poems had so
much rhythm that it felt like you were singing when you read
them. He began his study of music at the piano during those
early years. This was the foundation for four years with the
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May/June 2006 PAGE ONE 23