Shirley and Eddie Everhart presenting keys to Davie County Schools' Teacher of the Year Karen Martin

Karen Martin, the 2012-2013 Davie County Schools' Teacher of the Year, received a great surprise! On Wednesday, October 24, Eddie Everhart, president of Everhart Honda in Statesville, presented Mrs. Martin with a 2013 Honda Accord to drive the remainder of the school year. Dr. Darrin Hartness was on site to make the announcement, with sixth and seventh grade students and staff gathered to help with the surprise. Karen Martin is a sixth grade teacher at William Ellis Middle School, where she earned Teacher of the Year for the school. She was named the Davie County Schools' Teacher of the Year at the Back to School Convocation that was held in August. While being the district Teacher of the Year brings some additional duties, this was another great way to recognize her accomplishments.

Everhart Honda has been an active district-wide Golden Opportunities partner since 2007. Everhart helped start an endowment fund for Davie County Schools, offers discounts and incentives for the employees, and has helped make the Teacher of the Year's school year extra special.     

Davie County Schools Robotics

On October 18, a total of 32 Davie County elementary and middle school robotics teams with 120 students competed in the Wake Forest Baptist Health Challenge. New challenges were added this year, providing students with a new look at the final challenge from the 2011-2012 school year. Teams were required to perform tasks that occur within a hospital setting using a Lego NXT Mindstorm robot with different sensor attachments. The focus of this tournament was to have students compete against the challenges and not against other teams.

Teams have already started preparing for the next set of challenges on December 10. This set of challenges will include a SUMO Challenge played on a 4' diameter raised circle where the objective is to push your opponent off the edge, a DRAGSTER Challenge where teams race down a 12' long by 4' wide track as fast as they can, and a TUG-OF-WAR Challenge where the object is to pull your opponent into a gap between two surfaces. These challenges will be followed in the winter and spring by challenges designed around the book The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.

In collaboration with Davidson Community College, plans are currently underway for a 2013 summer robotics camp from July 15-19 for rising 4th - 8th grade students who are interested in developing 21st century skills through the use of robotics.