Milken Awards Ceremony

As I approached Mary Fogarty Elementary School in Providence, I was awed by their outside garden.  Above ground planters painted with vibrant colors were filled with plants ready for harvest.

I was not surprised that this was the home of the next Milken Awardee.

Michelle Johnson, Milken Award Winner being
congratulated by last year's winner., Lauren Hopkins

I was welcomed by student greeters and escorted into the secret holding room to later enter the whole school assembly. In a ceremony filled with sparkly blue and gold pom-poms, student-led cheers, and delighted children and staff, Michelle Johnson was awarded the Milken Award.

It is clear that this is a place where student ownership is the norm. Staff consistency facilitated events, but the students were the focus, with the exception, of course of their honoree--

Congratulations to Michelle Johnson!!!