THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, June 16, 1996 TAG: 9606140201
SECTION: CHESAPEAKE CLIPPER PAGE: 03 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY ELIZABETH THIEL, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: 57 lines
R. Darnell Parker remembers the first time his love for science was sparked.
It was during a science experiment, when he had to dip a piece of paper into orange juice, vinegar and other liquids to determine whether they were acids or not.
Science has been one of his favorite subjects ever since.
``It's fun, just learning,'' he said.
Parker, 12, a sixth-grader at Oscar F. Smith Middle School, is among seven students from the school and 50 students throughout Hampton Roads who were chosen to attend a science and math camp at Norfolk State University this summer.
Officials of the school were excited by the number of kids chosen. And the students are looking forward to a summer of immersion in math and science activities.
``I was glad, because at first I thought I wasn't going to make it,'' said Felicia E. Dixon, 11, a sixth-grader. ``My friend had tried two times, and she didn't get in.''
Oscar Smith Middle School also earned the distinction of having two students accepted to attend a highly competitive summer science program at Hampton University.
Judith R. Andrews, 12, and Thomas J. Jones, 12, both sixth-graders, were selected because they had good grades in math and science, high test scores and excellent recommendations from teachers. They'll spend four weeks living in the dorms at Hampton University this summer, working with physicists and mathematicians.
They'll take field trips to the Virginia Living Museum in Newport News, the Virginia Air and Space Museum in Hampton and Busch Gardens in Williamsburg - where they'll have fun learning about the application of physics concepts such as acceleration.
Dianne Q. Robinson, Director of the Interdisciplinary Science Center at Hampton University, said her program normally gets more than 400 applicants for 24 slots. It's funded by the National Science Foundation, and is free to the students except for a $25 application fee.
Schools consider it a major coup to get students into the program.
``I can't tell you how excited I am, because I've been in other middle schools, and we've worked real hard to get kids into the program, and this is the most I've ever seen,'' said Jannette M. Edwards, a guidance counselor at Oscar Smith Middle School.
``The teachers pushed it,'' Edwards said, of both summer camps. ``And they went the extra mile to help the kids apply. That helped a lot.''
Other Oscar Smith sixth-graders attending the Norfolk State camp are Tonie A. Everett, 12; Megan V. White, 11; Desiree P. Swain, 12; and Reginald E. Royals, 11.
Other Chesapeake students attending the Hampton University program are Melissa McCarty of Deep Creek Intermediate School, Brandon Peters of Crestwood Middle School and Johnnie Hopkins of Western Branch Middle School. by CNB