The Alexander City Outlook

HBS students win 14 medals at convention

Our congratulations go out to Family and Consumer Science Teacher Felicia Williams and the 14 Horseshoe Bend High School students who “cleaned up” at the national Family, Career and Community Leaders of America competition this summer.

The Horseshoe Bend students won five gold medals and nine silver medals, more than a third of all the medals won by the 95 students from across Alabama who competed at the national convention in Anaheim, Calif.

For those of you who are a little older, FCCLA is a modern term for FHA and was a program associated with home economics classes. FCCLA students are learning skills that are required for daily living, like how to handle teen violence, how to find a job, how to integrate technology into your living routine.

The Horseshoe Bend students raised more than $20,000 to pay for their California trip – a major accomplishment in itself.

And then they set a record for gold medals won by a single school from Alabama.

In fact, two Horseshoe Bend Students, Samantha Railey and Nikki Harding, received a perfect score on their multi-faceted effort to teach younger students how to handle bullies.

“All three judges gave them a 100. That’s almost unheard of,” said Williams, who spearheaded the Horseshoe Bend effort and chaperoned the students.

The Horseshoe Bend students who won medals at the national competition are: Railey and Harding, Tiffany East, Kelsey Tucker, Kayla Woodruff, Leslie Brooks, Jessica Sexton, Victoria Peppers, Serena Holley, Morgan McDaniel, Victoria McDaniel, Stephanie Butler, Crayton Walton and Marissa Bates, who will serve as FCCLA president for Alabama this year.

When you see these medal winners, please give them a pat on the back.