Schools Superintendent John Barge Presents Phillips Award to the Bonnie Cook family

 

Media release: State School Superintendent Dr. John Barge today presented the second Phillips Award to the family of Bonnie Cook.  Mrs. Cook was the school secretary at Pepperell Middle School in Floyd County.  Mrs. Cook passed away August 25, 2011, in a van fire on her way to her brain cancer treatment in Rome.

 

"Mrs. Cook knew each student, as well as their parents, by name. Mrs. Cook "trained" seven principals and 14 assistant principals during her 22 years at Pepperell Middle," said Becky McCoy, principal at Pepperell Middle. "Mrs. Cook was the warm smile that greeted you when you came through the school doors, and it was her voice you heard when you called the school."

 

"Mrs. Cook demonstrated how someone on the school staff can touch the lives of so many people," said Superintendent Barge. "Mrs. Cook's family should be proud of how she lived her life. She will always be the heart and soul of Pepperell Middle."

 

The Phillips Award is named after Condyce Phillips, the cafeteria manager at Griffin Middle School in Cobb County when Superintendent Barge was a student in that school.  She helped Superintendent Barge and countless others write better stories for themselves. This award was created to recognize school staff members who have had a tremendous impact on the education and lives of others.

 

The Phillips Award is sponsored by the Georgia Partnership for Excellence in Education, a non-partisan, non-profit policy and research organization whose mission it is to improve student achievement in our state. (www.gpee.org)  

 

Nominating a school staff member

Once each quarter, one school staff member will be selected for this award. Nomination forms can be requested by emailing Keisha Ford-Jenrette at kford@gadoe.org