Throughout the second week of May, nervous seniors piled into the central office with uncertainty on their minds. The Russellville Ready presentations were destined to happen, but that didn’t make speaking in front a panel of people any less nerve-wracking. This challenging project was introduced to last year’s seniors as a pilot program, and after its successful turn-out, the presentation was permanently implemented into the graduating curriculum. Every senior created a (minimum) 10-minute slide presentation that explained their volunteering, group collaboration, individualization, and self-transformation within Russellville Independent Schools. The presentation comes as a conclusion to all the tests and projects the seniors participated in this year: Edgenuity, Deep Dive Days, Citizenship tests, Financial Literary tests, Social Emotional Learning, and Strengths Finder. Over the four days of presenting, local community members saw nervous students walk into the board room and walk out smiling from cheek-to-cheek. The students learned from their presentations that sometimes things aren’t as bad as it seems. Fear immobilizes you from accomplishing things. When you’re able to stand up and walk through the flames, you'll realize that you never felt the heat once you're through. So many students will take their presentation experiences with them. Students became adults in those moments. Now, Russellville’s seniors know what makes them ready for life, and there’s nothing that can stop them! Russellville Independent Schools would like to thank each community member who came to listen and interact with the students. They came with no ill-intentions except to see them succeed. Many tears were shed, and those moments are things that are engraved into the history of Russellville. We are thankful for all these community members for their support: Nathan Thompson, Tom Thompson, Cassie Reding, Karen Logan, Dee Dee Brown, Davonna Page, Tom Harned, Connie Tipton, Jimmy Davenport, Jean Reynolds, Alex Watkins, Pat Bell, Sandra Kinser, Joe Ball, Angie McConnell, Tracey Gilbert, Ronda Rounds, Bridget Robinson, Dr. Steven Moats, Leon Smith, Debbie Jayne, Melissa Biggerstaff, Thomas Bouldin, Danny Perry, King Simpson, Scottie Harper, Kenneth Edmonds, Tyler Arterburn, Amy Ross, Darlene Gooch, Tracy Naylor, Kelley Paul, Jerry White, Calvin Naylor, Michele White, Brad Rogers, Lu Young, Jesse Nugent, Jana Hardin, Taylor Shutt, Corey Waters, Ann Mosier, Penni Nugent, Deborah Hutchison, Kristin Froedge, Mary Ann Henry, Shane Hayes, Cassie Reding, Sen. Whitney Westerfield, Ethan Holloway, Todd Raymer, Rep. Jason Petrie, Steve Stratton, Angie McConnell, Scot Celsor, Donna Blake, Lisa Cox, Mark Griffen, Ann McReynolds, Eugenia Todd, Marie Gamble, Joe Ross, Linda Shelton, Kayla Marcum, David Guffy, Lovis Patterson, Heather Osborne, Mary Orange, Lauren Fynboe, Marshall Kemp, Tim Murley, Allicia Thompson, Kim McDaniel, James C. Milam, Joe Sparks, and Phillip West.
Article by Matthew Williams
(See additional photos on our Facebook page)