Fulbright Scholar a product of WCDS
Wakefield Country Day School’s Carl Liles, Class of 2013, has been named a 2019 Fulbright Scholar, the program’s mission to foster international goodwill through the student exchange in the fields of education, culture and science.
Fulbright scholarships support research, study and teaching opportunities in more than 140 countries.
During his Fulbright program, Carl will work, live and learn with the citizens of his host country Kyrgyzstan.
Raised in Marshall, Carl graduated magna cum laude from WCDS. An avid lacrosse and soccer player and integral member of the school’s Model U.N. program, Carl earned his Eagle Scout ranking, having built a fence bordering the school’s property as his Eagle project.
Carl graduated in 2017 from The University of Virginia, where he earned a double major in leadership and public policy, Russian and Eastern European studies, with a minor in Russian language and literature at the Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy.
He will teach English in Kyrgyzstan and engage with the health care provider community.
“The fellowship is a fantastic chance to teach and explore abroad,” Liles said. “Kyrgyzstan sits at a crossroads between East and West and possesses a fusion of cultures that is difficult to find anywhere else in the world.”
— Suzanne Zylonis
‘Exemplary’ improvements
Rappahannock County High School was selected to receive the 2019 Board of Education’s Continuous Improvement Award through the Exemplar School Recognition Program.
In a letter from James F. Lane, the Commonwealth’s Superintendent of Public Instruction, RCHS was congratulated on this achievement.
“The Virginia Department of Education values your school’s exemplary accomplishments and focus on improvement,” Lane wrote. “Congratulations on being one of the first schools to receive this distinction in this inaugural year.”
This honor is given to schools for being Accredited or Accredited with Conditions and have significantly improved academic and school quality for the past three years.
As stated in the conditions of the award, schools must have met one or more of the following: an increase in the academic achievement of all students in reading or mathematics; an increase in academic achievement for two or more student groups in reading and mathematics; an increase in attendance; or an increase in graduation rates and a decrease in students who dropout of high school.
"We are thrilled that the Virginia Department of Education has recognized the hard work being done at RCHS to continuously improve in areas identified as new benchmarks for state accreditation,” said Dr. Shannon Grimsley, superintendent of Rappahannock County Public Schools.
“We are particularly proud of our progress in closing achievement gaps among student subgroups and our tiered, personalized approach in outreach to prevent chronic absenteeism. [RCHS Principal] Mr. [Jimmy] Swindler and his staff are to be commended for this recognition.”
— Holly Jenkins
Kopjanski honored
Throughout the year, numerous students helped the Randolph-Macon Academy Admission Office by participating in open houses, campus tours, shadow days, phone-a-thons, and/or special events on- or offcampus.
This group, known as "The Academy's Own," consisted of 40 students who spent over 300 hours assisting the Admission Office. Special recognition was awarded to 11 of these students who showed extraordinary dedication by participating in six or more Admission events this year.
Among those who earned this recognition was Benjamin Kopjanski of Boston, the son of Melanie Kopjanski. Ben was a junior at Randolph-Macon during the 2018-19 school year.
Grimsley: “We are thrilled that the Virginia Department of Education has recognized the hard work being done at RCHS to continuously improve in areas identified as new benchmarks for state accreditation.”