(That weekend) is my birthday weekend. One of my staff reminded me this morning. I've just been so focused on Decatur and Dodge City, I forgot about it. |
After we passed around two boxes of Kleenex, starting with me, the staff here is just very happy for me. They know and feel that this is a great opportunity for me, and so because of that, they have wished me the best. |
It's a hard pill to swallow but you have to look to the Lord. It's a dark side but there's light on the other side. |
It's a very small group of students nationwide who win a Merit Scholarship. It's an indication of a student who is very academically talented and has the potential for success in a very rigorous college environment. |
People have really been nice in calling and sharing their concern. |
The Achievement Scholarship Award was originally founded during the 1960s Civil Rights Act and is specifically for African-American high school students. It's a much smaller program but operates in a very parallel way. |
We'll work on getting everyone to feel very positive about the schools and the community. That will take some time. I need to get to know people first. |
Winners are candidates (who) have the strongest record of academic accomplishments and the biggest potential for college. |