AMERICUS — South Georgia Technical College President Emeritus Sparky Reeves and his wife Allene presented Crisp County Center welding and joining student Noah McCleskey with a $500 scholarship after he had been recognized as the college’s 2018 Georgia Occupational Award of Leadership (GOAL) winner by SGTC President John Watford, Ed.D., at the college’s GOAL Luncheon recently.
“Allene and I are pleased to be here today to present Noah McCleskey with this scholarship,” said President Emeritus Reeves. “It is an honor to be selected as the GOAL winner for South Georgia Technical College and we want to wish Noah all the best as he continues his education and also represents South Georgia Technical College at the regional and state GOAL competitions this year.”
The Reeveses presented McCleskey with a framed certificate and a scholarship check that can be used towards tuition, fees, and supplies at the college. The Reeveses also recognized SGTC Instructor of the Year Teresa McCook, a criminal justice instructor, with a $500 stipend earlier this year after she was selected for that honor.
“We established this endowed fund as a way to give back annually to the top student and the top instructor at South Georgia Technical College,” said Sparky Reeves. “South Georgia Tech has been an important part of our lives for the past 44 years and we both recognized how important the instructors as well as the students are not only to the college but to the community.”
McCleskey, of Pinehurst, will now represent South Georgia Tech at regional and state competitions in an effort to be selected as the top student within the Technical College System of Georgia. He was nominated for this honor by Brenda Butler Gilliam, his welding and joining instructor at the SGTC Crisp County Center campus.
“On behalf of South Georgia Technical College I would like to thank President Emeritus Sparky and Allene Reeves for presenting this scholarship to a very deserving student,” said SGTC President Watford. “President Reeves and Allene have been special to South Georgia Tech for many years and today they demonstrated again why they mean so much to the college, its faculty, staff, and students.”
SGTC Foundation Executive Director and SGTC Vice President of Institutional Advancement, Su Ann Bird echoed Watford’s comments by thanking the Reeveses for their support of the South Georgia Technical College Foundation.
“On behalf of the foundation and the students that it serves, I would like to thank the Reeves for giving back to the students and faculty at South Georgia Tech. They have both seen how important the foundation and its supporters are to the success of the college and we are very appreciative of their efforts,” said Bird.