Digital Media Awards recognize students

Palm Coast Observer
Neighbors

The third-annual Digital Media Awards were held Wednesday, Feb. 22, to recognize student projects that went above and beyond in the technology world.

“We really thought of it as a way of showcasing what happens in regard to technology in a classroom,” said Ryan Deising, director of technology for the school district, “not just for the sake of technology, but for the sake of showcasing how curriculum relates and how it can be enhanced with technology.”

The presentations nominated for awards were created not as an extra piece of work, but as an alternate to traditional pen-and-paper projects.

“We just saw it as a way of getting the kids excited, getting the teachers excited,” Deising said. “We want to reward those teachers who go above and beyond, and those students as well.”

This year, for the first time, a Digital Media Awards Teacher of the Year was selected. That honor went to Wadsworth Elementary School teacher Ellen Sperber. As a prize, she will be awarded $1,000 worth of new technology for her classroom.

This is money that has been set aside within the technology budget for the district, which will now go toward enhancing Sperber’s classroom how she feels fit, Deising said.

Other winners from the evening are as follows: Digital photography, grades K-3, Tyler Pigninelli, Nicholas Vilay and Z’Niya Vilomar, Shapes Around Our School; grades 4-6, Haliey Balcom, Jordan Munoz and Alyssia Piaz, Geometric Shapes; grades 9-12, Andre Smith and Tori Troino, Domestic Violence; Computer-generated art, grades K-3, Kendra Emberton and Carlos Silva, People and Dragons; grades 4-6, Mercedes Connelly and Amanda Rushton, iPad Sketchbook Art; grades 7-8, Erin Verdi and Amber Spurlock, The Intolerable Issue; Print authoring, grades K-3, Lacey Kelly, Easton Perez and Savannah Stanier, Early Americans; grades 4-6, Heather-Ann Irons and Valerie Jones, Types of Bullying; Presentation authoring, grades K-3, Ramsey Green and Jayce Newman, All About Martin Luther King Jr.; grades 4-6, MeKenzie Messamore and Sydney Todora, Topic 7 Key Terms; grades 7-8, Stefani S. and Sara Tyskowski, Private Classified; Enhanced podcasts or videos, grades K-3, Ayanna Hughes and Jeremy Martinez, Weather Reports; grades 4-6, Garret Hunter, Andrew Secunda and Zachary Verdi, Computer Safety; grades 7-8, Elizabeth Mason and Genevieve Shubeck, Sickle Cell Anemia; grades 9-12, Kadie Lachiewicz and Katie Young, What You Know.