Four metro-Atlanta students have been named 2021 Professional Association of Georgia Educators (PAGE) STAR Student Region Winners for region 3A. Georgia State University’s College of Education & Human Development serves as the region 3A sponsor for the program.
The region 3A winners and their STAR teachers include:
- Riley Alexander Durban, a high school senior at South Forsyth High School, who chose Vince Reynolds, Literature, as his STAR teacher
- Cindy Mai Huynh, a high school senior at Brookwood High School, who chose David Dimsdale, AP Calculus and AP Statistics, as her STAR teacher
- Austin Tsang, a high school senior at Johns Creek High School, who chose David Roth, Math, as his STAR teacher
- Julie Yan, a high school senior at Wheeler High School, who chose Jennifer Callison-Bliss, Advanced Genetics/DNA Research, as her STAR teacher
The four region winners were selected from the PAGE STAR Region 3A school system winners, including:
- Catherine H. Coassaboom, a high school senior at Chamblee Charter High School, who chose Dr. Kathryn Zuehlke, AP Chemistry, as her STAR teacher
- Yildiz Derinkok, a high school senior at Decatur High School, who chose Mrs. Erika Leach, IB English Language and Literature, as her STAR teacher
- Monroe Harless, a high school senior at Buford High School, who chose Mrs. Gail Harris, AP U.S. History, as her STAR teacher
- Merrill Elizabeth Hart, a high school senior at The Walker School, who chose Mrs. Eva Bundy, AP Spanish, as her STAR teacher
- Jeremy Joo Young Jeong, a high school senior at Sequoyah High School, who chose Mr. Andrew Oberlies, AP Calculus, as his STAR teacher
- Yash Vinod Kumar Kadadi, a high school senior at The Westminster Schools, who chose Mr. Tim Shabanowitz, Middle School STEAM Lab, as his STAR teacher
- James Morgan, a high school senior at Buford High School, who chose Mr. Justin Johnson, AP Calculus, as his STAR teacher
- Cody Michael Nelson, a high school senior at St. Pius X Catholic High School, who chose Ms. Carrie Stockard, French, as his STAR teacher
- Vachan Patel, a high school senior at Buford High School, who chose Ms. Lisa Cole, Honors and AP Chemistry, as his STAR teacher
- Sydney Lynn Reed, a high school senior at Georgia Cyber Academy, who chose Mrs. Rebekah Lupo, Geometry, as her STAR teacher
- Matthew Spillman, a high school senior at The Westminster Schools, who chose Dr. Neema Salimi, AP Calculus, as his STAR teacher
- Anand Srinivasan, a high school senior at The Westminster Schools, who chose Dr. Neema Salimi, AP Calculus, as his STAR teacher
- Koryn Todd, a high school senior at Creekview High School, who chose Mrs. Brenda Guyer, AP World History, as her STAR teacher
- William Wainwright, a high school senior at Druid Hills High School, who chose Mr. Brett Flater, IB Theory of Knowledge, as his STAR teacher
- Megan K. Woo, a high school senior at Chamblee Charter High School, who chose Dr. Holly Isserstedt, AP Research, as her STAR teacher
The PAGE Student Teacher Achievement Recognition (STAR) program, in its 63rd year, is sponsored, administered and promoted by the Professional Association of Georgia Educators (PAGE). Since its creation in 1958, the STAR program has honored nearly 28,000 students and the teachers selected as the most influential to their academic achievement. To obtain the 2021 STAR nomination, high school seniors must have the highest score on a single test date on the SAT and be in the top 10 percent or top 10 students of their class based on grade point average.
STAR begins each year in participating high schools throughout Georgia when the STAR Student is named and chooses a STAR Teacher to share in this recognition. The students and their teachers are honored by their schools and receive special recognition in their communities from one of the more than 170 statewide civic organizations and businesses that serve as local sponsors of the STAR program. The College of Education & Human development has served as a region sponsor for the program since 2019. Students then compete for school system titles, and those winners compete for region honors. Region winners compete for the honor of being named State PAGE STAR Student. STAR Teachers continue on with their STAR Students at every level of the program.
The Professional Association of Georgia Educators honors outstanding students and educators and encourages academic excellence through competitive academic initiatives such as PAGE STAR, the PAGE Academic Bowl for Middle Grades and the PAGE Georgia Academic Decathlon.