Cherokee Students Earn Region, State Honors At Tech Competition

CHEROKEE COUNTY, GA — Cherokee County students earned regional and state honors through the annual Georgia Student Technology Competition.

The statewide competition offers students in grades 3-12 the opportunity to showcase their skills through 16 categories and vie for honors at regional and state fairs.

Nearly 90 Cherokee County students put their technology skills to the test at the Piedmont Regional Technology Competition. The regional event was organized and led by Shannon Carroll, the district's supervisor of instructional technology, and Jeff Pence, the district's instructional technology specialist.

A total of 36 Cherokee County students won first place in their respective categories at the regional contest, earning the opportunity to advance to the state competition that was held virtually in May, with entries from 870 students statewide.

The Cherokee County students who placed first, second or third at the statewide event include:

• First place
  • Marissa Migneco, Graphic Design, Etowah High School, grade 9
• Second place
  • Micah Kampman, Audio Production, Johnston Elementary School, grade 4
  • Ryan Wexler, Project Programming, Indian Knoll Elementary School, grade 4
  • Daniel McCrobie, 3D Modeling, Sequoyah High School, class of 2021 graduate

• Third place
  • Isabella Ayala, Internet Applications, Cherokee High School, class of 2021 graduate
  • Paxton Miller, Multimedia Applications, Indian Knoll Elementary School, grade 5

“STEM learning is critically important to many career choices for our future graduates, and we’re proud of our students’ successes at the regional and state technology competitions. Congratulations!” Superintendent Brian Hightower said in a news release. “We also commend their teachers, who we know put it extra time to mentor students on these projects, and to Shannon and Jeff for all of their work to coordinate the regional event.”

Cherokee County’s region first-place winners include:

• Arnold Mill Elementary School: Mason Harris, 3D Modeling
• Avery Elementary School: Jaxson Pollard, Graphic Design; Kaitlyn Massey, Multimedia Applications; Dakota Calhoun, Graphic Design; Cameron Hale, Video Production
• Cherokee High School: Isabella Ayala, Internet Applications
• Clark Creek Elementary School STEM Academy: Arcadian Freund, Game Design
• Creekland Middle School: Jason Schmidt and Luke Dooley, Device Modification; Bradlee Rodriguez, Digital Photo Production; Samuel Mattick and Caleb Mattick, Game Design; Chase Atkins and Nate Hancock, Robotics
• Etowah High School: Nicholas Knerr, Game Design; Marissa Migneco, Graphic Design
• Hickory Flat Elementary School: Taylor Throne, Video Production
• Indian Knoll Elementary School: Parker O'Neill, Digital Photo Production; Adalynn Wells, Productivity Design; Ryan Wexler, Project Programming; Paxton Miller, Multimedia Applications
• Johnston Elementary School: Micah Kampman, Audio Production; Carlianne Timbol and Lola Brown, 3D Modeling
• Liberty Elementary School: Logan Kettle and Joshua McGraw, Game Design; Mical Mershon, Animation
• Oak Grove Elementary School Fine Arts Academy: Morgan Bailey, Animation; Jaxson Young and Julia Creamer, Robotics; Joseph Watson, Robotics
• Sequoyah High School: Daniel McCrobie, 3D Modeling; Brett Lougheed, Project Programming
• Sixes Elementary School: Ethan Patti, Device Modification
• Woodstock Middle School: David Holbrook, Mobile Apps; Yusra Kamal, Project Programming