Florence high school in line for national award

By: | SCNow
Published: September 05, 2008

Wilson High School is one step closer to winning a national award.

Last month, the Florence high school was announced as a semi-finalist for a Hoodie Award for Best High School — one of 12 categories, including Best Community Leader, Best Church and Best High School Teacher.

The Hoodie Awards are the brainchild of television/radio personality Steve Harvey and television/radio producer Rushion McDonald and are voted on by the public, mostly by the listeners of his daily morning show, which is broadcast in Florence on FLO 102.9 FM.

“(The process begins when) Steve Harvey throws out the nomination for each category and last month they threw out the nominations for best high school,” Dennis Davis, FLO 102.9 program director, said. “All the different Steve Harvey affiliates all across the country ... put their own vote out. It was a write-in vote (and) Wilson High School, the alumni base is so large (that) it harbored support from so many metros that it’s now a national semi-finalist.”

This is the second year Wilson High has been a semi-finalist for a Hoodie Award, as it also was nominated in 2007.

This time, Wilson competes against schools from Portsmouth, Va., Detroit and Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

“It’s pretty astounding the support the school was able to generate to compete with (schools from) New York City, Los Angeles and Chicago,”said Jonathan Brewster, senior vice president of Qantum Communications for the Southeast region, which owns FLO 102.9 FM.

Wilson High principal Dr. Gerard Edwards said he doesn’t find the school’s nomination a surprise.

Wilson High School is deeply ingrained within the community, he said.

“(For a long time), this was the only school in the Pee Dee area for African Americans,” he said. “Everybody knew somebody who went to Wilson.”

Edwards said he didn’t go to school in Wilson, but two of his cousins did and the name recognition within the Pee Dee has helped the school during the Hoodie Award nomination process.

“When you see purple and gold in Florence, you know that purple and gold is for Wilson,” he said, and “our kids want to carry on the tradition that’s been established.”

Wilson High senior Ramona Mackrey said she still is shocked the school was selected twice.

“I didn’t think the same thing would happen (two times) in a row,” she said. “(The nomination) makes me excited because ... it felt like we were noticed, like we were important.”

Mackrey attributed Wilson High’s success in the nomination process to the respect and loyalty students and alumni have for the school.

It was for that reason alone she said she felt Wilson High would emerge the winner this year.

“The whole community’s involved in our school,” she said, so “I think we have a good chance.”

For details about Hoodie Awards, visit www.steveharvey. com.