Judge Self to address Academic All-Stars

By Jennifer P. Brown, New Era Editor
Published: Thursday, April 1, 2010

Christian Circuit Judge Andrew Self will be the keynote speaker for this years Kentucky New Era and Rotary Regional Academic All-Star awards ceremony on April 13.

The Academic All-Star Team program purpose has always been about showcasing students excelling in the classroom, New Era Publisher and CEO Taylor Hayes said today. This year we have a speaker who is a local living example of someone who grew up here, went to school here, received college degrees elsewhere and then returned home to make his mark on the local community.

Ninety-eight area students will be recognized for their achievements at the eighth annual awards ceremony. It will begin at 6 p.m. at the Hopkinsville Community College Auditorium.

Self has been the Division I judge in Christian Circuit Court since 2007 and previously practiced law in Hopkinsville with the firm of Deatherage, Myers and Self. He is a 1981 graduate of Hopkinsville High School, a 1985 cum laude graduate of Centre College with a Bachelor of Arts degree in government and earned his Juris Doctorate degree from the University of Kentucky College of Law in 1988.

The middle school program will recognize 42 top academic eighth graders in four disciplines. There is no judging or selection process for the middle school division. Each of the 11 middle schools in the Southern Pennyrile, including Fort Campbell, selected the top student in four disciplines. All nominees will be honored as part of the Academic All-Star team. Their personal essays can be found at here.

The high school program will recognize 56 top academic honors in eight disciplines from the eight area high schools. After each school selects their nominee for each of the eight disciplines, faculty members from the area colleges proceed through a rigorous judging process to determine the top eight who are selected to the All-Star team.

A $500 scholarship from the Kentucky New Era is awarded to the top eight. Eight runners-up will receive a $200 savings bond from United Southern Bank and all senior nominees will receive $100 from the Rotary Clubs in the students respected county or through Rogers Group.

The New Era will announce all of the nominees in the days preceding the ceremony, and the winners will be announced the evening of the ceremony.

The academic program was created to serve as a reminder of the core purpose of schools.

The Kentucky New Era partners with Rotary and the sponsors to recognize the students for their academic achievements.