THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, December 1, 1994 TAG: 9412010443
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: BY PERRY PARKS, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: ELIZABETH CITY LENGTH: Medium: 77 lines
Katherine McKenzie's mother, a teacher at Northside Elementary School, said it best when she quipped, of her 16-year-old daughter, ``Now she'll be one of my bosses.''
The notion of working for a student is more than a joke among school officials.
Kate, a junior at Northeastern High School, has bypassed the rigamarole of college and career and landed right on the state Board of Education.
Kate has been appointed one of two student advisers to the 13-member board that oversees the public school system in North Carolina.
She and her counterpart at Marion won't vote, but will provide the appointed body with front-line information that lends an air of reality to the decision-making process.
``Being in school, you hear comments,'' Kate said at Northeastern's media center Tuesday. ``I think I understand . . . what most students feel.''
As word spread of Kate's appointment this week, so did praise for the busy teenager from the adults who have helped her.
``It's a great honor for us and for her,'' Northeastern Principal Becky Phelps said. ``We were really thrilled about it.
``You wish you could clone her and have a thousand Kates.''
Kate is known around the system as the student who finished third in the state spelling bee a few years ago.
She also is active in Northeastern's improvement, debate and key clubs, the Model United Nations, and her 4-H and church groups.
Last month, she received a ``Young Citizen Award'' from the governor.
Kate's family is legendary in the Elizabeth City-Pasquotank schools. Her mother, Judy McKenzie, is in her 21st year of teaching and was regional teacher of the year for 1993-94. Kate's grandmother taught for 40 years, at one point serving as a gateway to graduation by teaching senior English.
Kate also has a sister and an aunt in the education field. Her father, the Rev. Charles McKenzie, heads Northeastern's Partners in Education program.
``She's just been around education and heard education talked constantly,'' Judy McKenzie said. ``She's heard many of the inner workings that maybe other students haven't picked up on.
``We're really proud of her and her accomplishments that led her into that position,'' Kate's mother said. ``It's really an exciting thing for her, and a wonderful responsibility.''
Kate's term, which runs through June 1996, begins today at a board meeting in Raleigh. She said she was mailed a huge packet of data to be digested before the session.
Discussing academics shouldn't be a problem for Kate, who has always enjoyed school and serves as a tutor at the high school.
``It's always been an important part of my life,'' she said. ``My whole family has really pushed education.''
Kate especially likes math and science, but she has yet to decide on a career, despite the family's teaching legacy.
Her mother says Kate played teacher as a young girl, lining up imaginary children when she left the room and scolding them for talking when she returned.
But careers such as pharmacy, law and pediatrics are on Kate's mind as she works toward her dream of going to Duke, her father's alma mater.
``There's so many possibilities for me,'' Kate said. ``I really haven't narrowed it down to one.''
Before all of that, though, Kate must serve her stint as the boss of her mother - and principal, and teachers - on the state Board of Education.
``I think it will be a wonderful experience,'' McKenzie said. ``I was honored to even be considered for it.'' ILLUSTRATION: Color photo by DREW C. WILSON/
Katherine McKenzie will provide the state Board of Education with
front-line information that lends an air of reality to the
decision-making process.
KEYWORDS: APPOINTMENT by CNB