LRSD Spotlight

Four students at Gibbs International Magnet School recently were recognized for their outstanding artwork under the direction of Gibbs' art specialist, Susan Turner Purvis. They are:

Greta Kresse, 5th grade, "The Ellerman-Ferling House, 1890" (shown at right), 3rd Place, Fifth Grade Division of the Preserve Our Past Arkansas Historic Preservation competition.

Julian Kresse, 5th grade, "First Missionary Baptist Church, 1882," 5th Grade Best in Class - 49th Young Arkansas Artists Exhibition at the Arkansas Arts Center. See artwork here. 

Juliun James, 3rd grade, "St. Edward Catholic Church, 1905," 3rd Grade Honorable Mention - 49th Young Arkansas Artists Exhibition at the Arkansas Arts Center. See artwork here. 

Kaylen Wilkerson, 4th grade, "The Urquhart Building, 1910," Travleing the World with Mifflin Wistar Gibbs Exhibition, Arkansas Studies Institute. See artwork here. 

Art is a vital cultural component of the overall international program at Gibbs, and all of these award-winning art pieces came from the study of the school's namesake, Judge Mifflin Wistar Gibbs, which was headed by Ms. Purvis. Students learned about 19th-Century U.S. and Arkansas history through the study of the life and accomplishments of Judge Gibbs.

Gibbs currently has both a temporary and a permanent display of student artwork on the topic of Judge Gibbs.

How do you spell winner?? G-I-B-B-S! Gibbs Quiz Bowl team members Evan Greenfield, Kate Budney, Marret Lineberry, Peter Runder, and Wyn Evans staged a come-from-behind rally to defeat Williams Magnet in the LRSD Division I Quiz Bowl Finals on May 11. The Gibbs team has been working hard to win the Quiz Bowl championship for a long time, and their success is shared by everyone at the school. They have studied and practiced with their Quiz Bowl coach, Jennifer Welborn, and their teamwork has kept them unflappable. Even when they were behind in the game, these students remained calm and managed to pull off a big win.

Checkmate! Gibbs Magnet Elementary's Chess Team won 1st Place in the Elementary School Division of the LRSD Chess Tournament held on May 6 and 7. Fourteen students represented Gibbs: 2nd graders Noah Wilcoxon, Hunter Ramsay and Elijah Allen; 3rd graders Kennedi Stevenson, Sally Kashala and Zachary Diamond; 4th graders Noah Jenkins, Bryce Swinton, Daniel Rogers and Naomi Allen; and 5th graders Tiffany Kashala, Sabrina Diamond, Castille Gordon and Thai Fitzpatrick.

Sally Kashala, Bryce Swinton and Castille Gordon each won 1st Place medals; Thai Fitzpatrick also won a 2nd Place medal; Noah Jenkins and Sabrina Diamond won 3rd Place medals; and Zachary Diamond and Noah Wilcoxon placed 4th in their individual divisions. During tournament play an adult from another team came up to Coach Passini and complemented the Gibbs team for their good sportsmanship so it was no surprise when Sabrina Diamond and Castille Gordon, two 5th grade players, also won individual Good Sportsmanship awards!

John Lung'aho, a senior at Parkview Magnet High School, recently was named 2010 Gatorade State Boys Soccer Player of the Year. John has signed to play soccer for North Carolina State University; he is the first student from Parkview ever to be signed to a college on a soccer scholarship.