Tag Archive for: #hendersoncollegiate

Henderson Collegiate: “Let It Shine” Talent Showcase 2024

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For this news segment on WIZS Radio, Henderson on this Friday, May 3, 2024, I wanted to offer you a special first person account of an event I attended last night at Henderson Collegiate. Students arranged and organized and performed the “Let It Shine Talent Show.” The “Let It Shine Talent Show” on Thursday evening at Henderson Collegiate started with a red carpet event at 5:25 and was followed up with a live show from 6 until around 8:30.

Jayden Watkins, a familiar name now in the community as a teenaged minister and preacher, is a student at Henderson Collegiate and the visionary of the show. One of the main purposes of the event was to commemorate deceased alumni with a “Deceased Alumni Tribute.”

Performers, along with the school’s principal, Mr. Taro Shigenobu, spoke about and also used the performing arts to remember: Kasi Thompson, Pride of 2019; Jacob Harris, Pride of 2019; Elijah Brown, Pride of 2019; Jaiah Kearney, Pride of 2021; Caleb Perry, Pride of 2021; Zakera Kearney, Pride of 2024; and Jerry Tavera, who would have graduated with the Pride of 2025.

Family members were in attendance at the performance.

After I had left the school our Jayden Watkins, who is on staff here at WIZS, texted me and said, “Thank you for coming and showing love to all the young people. They truly enjoyed you.” I responded to Jayden and said, “What I saw was amazing. No matter what, everybody in that room had everybody else. There was great talent and love and no judgment. I decided to stay a while and then I couldn’t leave.” And, of course, I said, “You’re welcome.  It was my pleasure. Thank you (and thank you to your school) for showing me something.

Watkins himself was able as a preacher to do something that most preachers can’t do. He offered a three-point sermon in just three minutes as he reflected about what is on the inside of a person. “Let it shine,” he said. “Look in the mirror … Know who you are.” Watkins said, “Shine to divine … Shine while it’s time.”

As Principal Shigenobu closed out the special evening, he noted that Henderson Collegiate is not just about grades and numbers and pointed to the multitalented individuals in attendance as well as those who had supported the performers on the stage.

From my perspective in local media and someone who was able to attend the performance: Great job young women and men. Great job, school. Great job young leaders. Your community is proud of you. And hopefully by having events like this, your community will continue to learn more about your special school and the wonderful people in attendance.

And as far as the program order was concerned, the ECHO Drumline – Pride of Sound performed as did Dakyra “D.K.” Johnson.  Johnson sang as did Keionne Sanford, D’Angelo, Indya Hamrick, Faith Wimbush, Kameron Bullock.  Chelicia Walters offered a testimonial “God is Love.”  Ms. Chloe Jones performed.  Aresia Barrett sang as did Alijah Wright, and Brandon Dukes, Imya “Tae Tae” Bullock and Mekhi Fowlkes offered a musical instrumental. The “Sweethearts” danced.  Dakota Miller sang. Mr. Dedrick Dunton, who they call “Dr. Dunton,” offered a testimonial and sang.  Amirah “MIMI” Weaver sang as did Ju’Tieya Watkins.

Everyone in attendance seemed to have a special time.

My thanks for the invitation and for the opportunity to be on the red carpet and to experience a wonderful evening. This is WIZS Radio Henderson, John Charles Rose reporting.

 

Cameron Majette Competing For State BGC Youth Of The Year

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A local high school senior is headed to Raleigh to compete in a statewide competition for Boys & Girls Club Youth of the Year.

Cameron Majette just got back from a weeklong stint in the Governor’s Page Program last month, so he may feel right at home when he attends a reception with lawmakers in the Executive Mansion Friday evening.

No matter Friday’s decision by the judges, Vance BGC Unit Director Evelyn Taylor said Majette’s a winner in her book.

“He has blossomed into a leader,” Taylor told WIZS News Thursday. A club member for 11 years, Majette used to be on the shy side, Taylor said, but that shyness has been replaced with a high level of confidence.

“I’m so proud of him,” Taylor said, “I’m beaming with pride.” She said his influence and leadership throughout the club is palpable, he helps younger children with homework and is helping to re-establish the Keystone Club at the Vance Unit.

The Henderson Collegiate senior was awarded a $3,000 scholarship for being named the BGCNCNC (North Central North Carolina) youth of the year. He’ll go up against about 20 others for the statewide honor.

The young people will assemble at PNC Arena in Raleigh Friday morning, and a panel of judges will review all the information packets, which includes a nomination form, letters of reference and three personal essays about his club experience, what matters to him and his personal growth, Taylor said.

Each will have a 3-minute speech which basically will be a combination of the three essays, Taylor noted, and judges will evaluate the candidates’ overall public speaking.

Whether in front of a group of judges or back at home in the club, Taylor said she believes Majette’s confidence and focus will serve him well.

“He definitely found his voice and he is not afraid of using it,” Taylor said.

SportsTalk: Murray Plans For Championships At Henderson Collegiate

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“The energy is great and I’m ready to get going,” says Paul Murray. Murray is the new men’s basketball coach at Henderson Collegiate and he is preparing for his first season after spending three years as an assistant at The Burlington School which has a reputation for being “a basketball powerhouse,” as Murray put it on Thursday’s SportsTalk with George Hoyle and John Charles Rose.

When asked about his goals as the head man at Henderson Collegiate, Murray stated his plans were “to take it to the next level.”  From Murray’s point of view, the next level is a state championship. “A State championship or nothing,” said Murray. He also feels that winning a state title is more do-able than most people seem to think.

Murray says he expects Henderson Collegiate to be a fast paced team. “Up-tempo, up-tempo, up-tempo,” Murray stressed. “We want to be the fastest paced team in the country,” he added.  He’s only had one practice so far and that was for an hour this past Saturday but the team did play three games this week winning two by 2o points and losing one in a hard fought game with Franklinton. These off season games will give Murray an idea of what he has to work with throughout next season. It’s a new staff and a new system but one that will hopefully be successful for Murray. Murray got used to success at The Burlington School where, in his three years there, the school sent 13 players to play college ball.  He hopes to repeat that with Henderson Collegiate.

Murray said he always wanted to be a head coach and Henderson Collegiate seemed like the right choice for him. “It was time to do something I wasn’t comfortable with,” Murray said. He felt a little too comfortable and feels like this new position will keep him challenged. In the end, Murray says that the team has one goal at Henderson Collegiate: “Have a lot of fun and win a lot of games.”

CLICK PLAY!

 

SportsTalk: Coach’s Corner: Henderson Collegiate Advances To Sweet 16

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For the fourth consecutive time the Henderson Collegiate men’s basketball team has made the Sweet 16. Last night Henderson Collegiate defeated West Columbus at Aycock Gym by the score of 62 – 39. The game marked the program’s 100th win and star T.J. Ragland reached the 500 point mark in his high school career. “We knew we had to wear them down,” Coach George Marshall said. “This team is super unique, we know how to win ugly,” Marshall continued.

Marshall feels the team is peaking at the right time. When you consider the team lost nine seniors from last years team then the march through the playoffs is even more impressive. Marshall also feels the team does have room for improvement citing more patience at the free throw line and the need to score a few more points. “The odds of 20 point wins from here on out are slim to none,” Marshall said. Henderson Collegiate also defeated Vance Charter School 74-41 earlier in the playoffs and those big wins are going to disappear most likely starting with tomorrow’s game against Kip Pride.  Henderson Collegiate defeated Kip Pride 68-57 back on February 5th but that was a different time.  Marshall described Kip Pride as hungry and healthy. Coach Marshall says his team has been great at finding a way to work together to get the job done.  In the first meeting with Kip Pride the team trailed by 15 going into the fourth quarter before pulling out the win.

Tomorrow’s game will be the third home game in a row during the playoff run and Marshall is looking forward to a full gym at Aycock tomorrow as Henderson Collegiate looks to advance to the next round of the playoffs.

 

 

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SportsTalk: Coach’s Corner: WIZS Players Of The Week – Championship Recap

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Conference championships are hard to come by but Thursday night Vance County had two schools do just that.  Vance Charter’s women’s team took the Triangle North Athletic Conference Tournament Championship with a 58-47 win over Oxford Prep and Henderson Collegiate took the men’s championship with a 59-46 victory over Durham’s Voyager Academy.  Vance Charter relied on Allie Bliss’ 15 points to propel the team to victory and Henderson Collegiate’s T.J. Ragland scored 2o points in their win.  Their performances earned them WIZS Player of the Week honors.

Ragland topped his tournament average of 18 points per game in Henderson Collegiate’s win. He did have help however as Markel Lloyd contributed 18 points and Ellis Williams poured in another 8 points including two back-to-back three pointers at the beginning of the second half.  (Listen to the Audio Recap Below.) Henderson Collegiate now waits until Saturday to find out just where they will be seeded and who they will play as they pursue another state championship.

Vance Charter’s Bliss didn’t begin her basketball career as a starter but she worked hard to move up from a reserve spot and as a senior is one of the team’s leaders. She averaged 17 points per game in the conference tournament. With their conference championship win they also wait until Saturday to find out where their seeding is and who the next opponent will be as the state playoffs begin.

Congratulations to Henderson Collegiate’s T. J. Ragland and Vance Charter’s Allie Bliss. WIZS Players of the Week.  The Players of the Week can be heard every Friday at 1pm on the Coach’s Corner segment of SportsTalk on WIZS 1450am, 100.1fm and online at wizs.com.

SportsTalk: Coaches Corner: Henderson Collegiate’s George Marshall Says Team is In Great Shape

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Despite having a 7-11 record on the season, Henderson Collegiate Head Men’s Basketball Coach George Marshall is confident that his team will perform well down the stretch. “Henderson Collegiate is in a great place moving forward,” Marshall told Trey Snide on Friday’s Coach’s Corner segment of SportsTalk.

After dismantling Vance Charter last week by the score of 61-29, Marshall has good reason for his confidence.  The team is anchored around leading scorer T.J. Ragland and junior Ellis Williams.  Williams was recently named as WIZS Player of the Week. Williams is currently averaging 18 points per game and Williams’ recent success has been partly due to a more aggressive playing style.  Marshall also says Williams is a three level scorer and is averaging 40% on three point shots. Against Vance Charter Williams had six rebounds and four assists in the first half alone. Marshall feels that Williams should be able to continue his hot streak through February and March.

As the school’s basketball program moves forward, Marshall says the middle school pipeline is a priority. “Covid has made it difficult to get middle school basketball programs back off the ground,” Marshall said.

With nine more games on the regular season schedule Marshall feels that the team can finish at a high level. “A conference and state championship is our goal,” Marshall added.

You can hear the Coach’s Corner every Friday at 1pm as part of SportsTalk with Trey Snide on WIZS 1450am, 100.1fm and online at wizs.com.

Literacy Tutors To Help K-3 Students Overcome Loss Of Instructional Time During Pandemic

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The plea from N.C. Education Corps is as simple as A-B-C: school children in grades K-3 need literacy tutors to help overcome lost instructional time during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Applications for paid, part-time tutors are being taken now, but the deadline is July 20, 2021 to be considered for the next wave of tutors that will work in specific counties across the state, including Vance and Granville.

Tutors will commit to work for nine months, according to information received from the non-profit organization, which is “committed to helping all NC students have the support they need to thrive.”

Vance County Schools has openings for 16 literacy tutors; Granville County Public Schools has 6 slots open. The organization hopes to send 250 literacy tutors to more than 20 N.C. counties to work directly with K-3 students during the school day. There also are 3 positions open at Henderson Collegiate; applicants should have a high school diploma and some college experience. The pay rate is $13.15/hour.

The pay in Vance for the tutor position is in the $13.15 – $25 per hour range, depending on experience. Applicants must have at least a high school diploma. In Granville, the pay range is $15-$25 per hour, depending on experience. Applicants must have a minimum of 48 hours of college credit.

The group recruits community college and university students, recent college graduates, retirees, and adults who are actively engaged in their community, with a “special focus on recruiting students from universities and community colleges with teacher prep programs,” according to the statement, with the hope that “young corps members consider a career in public education and public service after working with NCEC and our school partners.”

Visit www.nceducationcorps.org to learn more.

 

 

 

 

 

Local Schools and Local Sports Now

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WIZS SportsTalk Tuesday at 1 p.m. featured guests Homer Ramirez, executive director NC Independent School Athletic Association, and George Marshall, athletic director and head men’s basketball coach at Henderson Collegiate.

Following a question and answer with WIZS’ Trey Snide, Ron Noel and John Rose, and after both guests had concluded the show, came a strong set of opinions at the end of the show concerning how listeners and readers source the information shared on social media, that social media should not be used to tear down and tear apart institutions and their beliefs.

Later in the week, WIZS will have Dr. Anthony Jackson on WIZS TownTalk at 11 a.m. Thursday to find out more about Plan C for the rest of the semester and how it will affect sports preparation.

Independent Schools in North Carolina and schools like Henderson Collegiate have resumed school and sports.

Ramirez said, “It’s been a labor of love. The kids are playing, so kuddos to our heads of school and those behind the scenes.”

To Hear the Full Segment Click Play…

Ramirez said this isn’t the norm and where we want to settle.  Ramirez said he’s really proud of how schools have managed.  “Happy is a fair term.”

NCISAA schools are playing fall sports.

Ramirez said we’ve experienced hiccups and that’s part of the learning curve. He said he hates the impact covid is having on the health of Americans; As schools, we have to learn to overcome.

Marshall said practices start tomorrow.  He said students are required to wear masks in the building, doesn’t matter that it’s sports.  For Marshall and Henderson Collegiate, it’s “safety first and then skill development and camaraderie.”

“The kids are stoked,” Marshall said.  He said, as a parent, quarantine has been really difficult on kids of all ages. “For us to be able to provide a safe space, we believe that is going to be really beneficial going forward.”

Marshall explained the philosophy of Henderson Collegiate saying “what will benefit the most athletes is what we are working on this year, which is to raise the standard for all sports. Our support and administrators are there to get us off the ground.”

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Coach’s Corner 08/28/20: George Marshall on Henderson Collegiate Men’s Basketball

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100.1 FM ~ 1450 AM ~ WIZS, Your Community Voice ~ Click to LISTEN LOCAL

George Marshall, head men’s basketball coach and athletic director for Henderson Collegiate, appeared on the WIZS Coach’s Corner Friday.

As the reigning 1-A Men’s Basketball State Co-Champions, Marshall said his team faces an entirely different season for the 2020-2021 school year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Currently, the first practice for the team is scheduled for December 7, 2020. The first game of the season is scheduled for January 4, and the last game is scheduled for February 19, 2021. The North Carolina High School Athletic Association (NCHSAA) has set a season limit of 14 games for basketball, with a weekly limit of two games.

For a team accustomed to three or four games a week, Marshall this will be quite the change of pace. “I’m hoping it gives us more rest. Our schedule is usually so challenging out of conference every single year. To be honest, I don’t know what the schedule is for January yet – whether it be all conference games or out of conference games. We know the game limit at this point, and we know there will be some form of conference and state playoffs.”

After a summer that was “dramatically impacted” by the lack of the usual skills development sessions, team camps and relationship-building experiences, Marshall said the team is doing what it can to keep its spirits up and to stay in contact.

“Like most teams, we are going to try to stay in as much contact as we possibly can,” said Marshall. “When you’re not in person, it makes things more challenging in terms of workouts. The biggest thing we are trying to do right now, as a school, is to make sure the kids understand how much we love and care from them. This time is very challenging for kids.”

Click here for the NCHSAA’s amended 2020-2021 sports calendar or visit the NCHSAA homepage at www.nchsaa.org.

Listen to today’s Coach’s Corner audio in its entirety by clicking the play button above.

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Coach’s Corner 05/21/20: Henderson Collegiate Fundraising for Championship Rings

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100.1 FM ~ 1450 AM ~ WIZS, Your Community Voice ~ Click to LISTEN LOCAL

George Marshall, head men’s basketball coach and athletic director for Henderson Collegiate, appeared on the WIZS Coach’s Corner Thursday.

In honor of Henderson Collegiate’s recent designation as the 1-A Men’s Basketball State Co-Champions, Marshall announced the school is holding a popcorn fundraiser to purchase championship rings.

The online fundraiser that features unique popcorn flavors can be viewed by visiting www.doublegood.com and searching “HC Championship Rings” (click here for direct link). The fundraiser ends this Saturday at 10 a.m.

“This is the first state championship in our school’s history, so it’s an enormous accomplishment,” said Marshall. “What we are trying to prioritize is having something that not only honors the players but also something that can honor the managers, the coaching staff and founding administrators.”

According to Marshall, one side of the ring will honor #33 Elijah Brown, a Henderson Collegiate student and basketball player who died tragically in a car accident in May 2018.

“One of the things I’ve been most proud of isn’t the number of dollars that we’ve raised, it’s the fact that I’m getting texts from teachers saying things like ‘your players have demonstrated such great gratitude,’” Marshall said. “These are values that are going to help kids for the rest of their lives.”