“Excellence starts with everyone here in this room.” That was the message Murphy High School junior Everett Coleman delivered Thursday night as the Mobile County Public School System gathered at the Saenger Theatre for its annual It Starts with Us awards ceremony, an event built around celebrating students, teachers and the community partners who support them.
Coleman told the crowd the district had enjoyed a “phenomenal year,” pointing to a four-year, on-time graduation rate that has climbed to 82 percent, along with $100 million in ongoing school construction projects. The system also opened four new Signature Academies during the year: the Coastal Studies Academy at Alma Bryant High School, the Academy of International Studies at Murphy High School, Industry and Engineering at Theodore High School, and Maritime, Engineering and Entrepreneurship at Williamson High School. Students across the district earned a combined $72 million in college scholarships, while the county now counts 12 Blue Ribbon schools, four Torchbearer schools and 144 AP scholars.
Entertainment throughout the evening came from the B.C. Rain High marching band, the Forest Hill Elementary Lions Choir, the Murphy High Dynamics Dance Company and the Mary G. Montgomery Jazz Band.
Three students received the system’s individual It Starts with Me award. Amelia Lindsay of Allentown Elementary was honored for organizing a yard sale that raised more than $1,000 for her school’s library, alongside her broader involvement in school activities and service projects. Cheyenne Bliss of Cranford Burns Middle School was recognized for her work with the school’s Step Team, Scholar’s Bowl team and Builder’s Club, as well as her volunteer work with Special Olympics. Semaj Bell of B.C. Rain High School was celebrated for his role in the school’s JROTC program, Drill Team and Color Guard, along with volunteer work at a local veterinary clinic. Seventeen additional students were recognized as It Starts with Me runners-up.
The ceremony also honored the district’s 90 Teachers of the Year, with countywide honors going to Laniese Howard of Kate Shepard Elementary and Don Jones of B.C. Rain High School.
Mobile Infirmary Hospital was named the district’s Partner of the Year for its role in the Signature Academy of Health Careers at Blount High School, its Project Search internship program for students with special needs, and its support of student job fairs. A long list of other community partners also received recognition, including VT MAE for its summer internships and facility tours, the Mobile Rotary Club for donating $150,000 toward a special-needs playground at Augusta Evans Special School, and the Mobile County Emergency Management Agency for keeping students safe during severe weather.
Additional honorees included Bay Chevrolet for its automotive career training partnerships, the Fuse Project for funding an after-school discipline-support program at Scarborough Middle through its Dragon Boat Race fundraiser, the Mobile Police Department for its youth outreach programs, the Mobile Area Chamber of Commerce for connecting businesses to the district’s Signature Academies, the Mobile Kappa League for mentoring more than 80 students annually, Airbus Americas Engineering Division for its work with schools along Dauphin Island Parkway, the district’s own transportation department for safely busing 26,000 students a day, and the United Way of Southwest Alabama for its academic support programs.
The evening also included a tribute to longtime MCPSS Supervisor of Public Relations Nancy Pierce, a former teacher and television news anchor who is retiring this summer after a career spanning three professions in service to the Mobile community.