Latest news with #DoughertyComprehensiveHighSchool
Yahoo
25-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Dougherty Comprehensive High School celebrates 'Miracles on the East Side' in class of 2025 graduation
ALBANY – Dougherty Comprehensive High School Principal Jerry Sanders wants everyone to know that the 'miracle bus stopped by 1800 Pierce Ave. again.' On Friday, 260 of those miracles walked across the stage at the Albany Civic Center as graduates of DCHS. Fifty of them graduated with honors, earning a 3.5 grade-point average or higher. 'These children had to go through rocks and ridges to get here today,' Sanders said. 'I got a list today, and the list is long because that's what Trojans do. We go above and beyond, and we still make it, even though the roads might get rough, the hills might get high. … Trojans make it through anyhow.'Kanijah Holliday gives her salutatorian speech. Staff Photo: Lucille LanniganKanijah Holliday was honored as the school's salutatorian. Through extracurriculars like 4H and Beta Club, she expressed her creativity as a photographer and videographer. She'll attend Georgia State University in the fall as a Film and Media Studies major to pursue her passion for storytelling through visual arts. She joked with her fellow graduates that high school was a 'group project we volunteered for, a never-ending drama series and a pop quiz we didn't quite study for.' 'Despite it all, here we are Class of 2025,' Holliday said. 'We may not have every solution, but we carry with us the strength of perseverance, countless memories and just enough energy to chase down our ambitions. We are a generation forged by change.' Samantha Aberdeen was honored as the school's valedictorian. Aberdeen was a highly involved student, serving most notably as secretary of the Beta Club. Her peers described her as 'an avid reader … active in her church' who 'enjoys helping others.' She'll attend Mercer University to study Biology and eventually chase her aspirations as a teacher and lawyer. Samantha Aberdeen gives her valedictorian speech. Staff Photo: Lucille LanniganAberdeen said high school was a chapter with lessons, extending beyond the classroom – that success is about more than just grades, but about resilience. 'With the world evolving faster than ever, our voices, our actions and our dreams have the power to shape it, whether we are heading to college, starting careers, serving our country, starting businesses, starting families, or venturing into the unknown,' she said. 'We survived those early morning classes, the late nights and the moments where we thought we couldn't do it. We are proof that perseverance works, that growth is possible, and that each of us is capable of achieving greatness.' DCSS Superintendent Kenneth Dyer addressed the eastside graduates. He applauded them for weathering challenges from the start of their journey, including a global pandemic and natural disasters. 'You've proven strength isn't just about physical endurance,' Dyer said. It's about showing up when it's hard, speaking up when it matters, standing tall when life tries to knock you down. Your village is proud of you, part of what you become, and proud of what you are becoming.' He reminded graduates that they are only reaching the beginning of life's journey. 'The world you're entering needs your realness,' Dyer said. 'It needs your compassion. It needs your creativity, your hustle and your heart. Whatever path you choose … do it with purpose. Don't just see success, but also see significance.' Sanders presented a diploma to the mother of Carlos Donnell Lamar, a Trojan who passed away in 2022. From left: Jerry Sanders and Kenneth Dyer present a diploma to the mother of Carlos Donnell Lamar, a 'fallen Trojan.' Staff Photo: Lucille Lannigan 'Carlos could not be here with us today, but we would not be Trojan nation if we did not honor his mother and have her come today and walk for her son because he could not walk for himself,' Sanders said. The rest of the evening remained filled with tears and cheers as the DCHS class of 2025 rose to receive its diplomas. 'Congratulations class of 2025,' Aberdeen said. 'We did it. We did it. We did it.'DCHS honors students who have lost loved ones. Staff Photo: Lucille LanniganPrincipal Jerry Sanders congratulates the DCHS class of 2025. Staff Photo: Lucille LanniganParents cheer as their students enter. Staff Photo: Lucille Lannigan
Yahoo
31-03-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Dougherty County robotics teams compete in district robotics competition. 4C Academy takes home the prize
ALBANY — Four Albany schools' robotics teams competed in a district robotics competition at the Albany Civic Center, Friday and Saturday. Dougherty Comprehensive High School's TroTek Warriors, Monroe Comprehensive High School's Terminators, Westover Comprehensive High School's Flying Riots and the Commodore Conyers College & Career Academy's Commodores all competed in matches. GeorgiaFIRST Robotics partnered with host, Procter & Gamble to put on the Peachtree District Qualifier, which saw 26 competing teams. Levent Gokcen , the senior manager for P&G and a member of the GeorgiaFIRST Board of Directors offered the students words of wisdom before they kicked off the competition. 'All the same things that you guys are using here on your robots are the same things that are powering the world,' Gokcen said. 'There's something that you guys have … that's going to continue to make you the work force for tomorrow and the talent for tomorrow. That trait is curiosity.' Gokcen joked that the students making up the robotics teams would one day rule the world. 'Never lose that curiosity. It started out as when you were a kid. You try and take things apart to see how they work,' he said. 'As you grow older and as you start your career as adults, don't ever lose that curiosity. It's going to lead to a wonderful life in the future, and it's going to make the innovation and the inventions of tomorrow.' As the clock counted down to the start of the first match, teammates waved their flags and cheered in the stands. On the arena floor, the students had a focus that seemed almost as programmed as the robots they created. Six teams were split between two 'alliances' for the first matches. They used controllers to move robots around a ReefScape Course that was designed by the Haas Automation Inc. company. Students programmed their robots to be able to lift tubes and place them on a spiky object designed to look like a coral reef. The robots had to pick up and move balls and attach to and swing from a dangling cage. The teams that did this the quickest and with the most accuracy won. Each teammate had their role, moving with a quick efficiency. The robots sped around the course, dancing around each other. If one robot needed aid, another came to its rescue. The matches ended before onlookers fully understood what they'd just witnessed. Game hosts announced the winner and the arena was cleared and prepared for the next match. After two days of matches and fun, the 4C Academy's Commodores took home the prize as district event winners, with two allied teams, and recipients of the District FIRST Impact Award. This latter award is the most prestigious award at FIRST, honoring the team that best represents a model for other teams to emulate and best embodies the purpose and goals of FIRST. The recipient team will be invited to the district championship where it will compete for the FIRST Impact Award against winners from other qualifying events and compete with their robot.
