Challenge Program Offers Cash Prizes for TAHS Students

Students in grades 10-12 are eligible to win $200 cash prizes in five categories

By Ava McCracken, Staff Writer|December 15, 2017

photo courtesy of The Challenge Program

Challenge program representative, Mikayla Stroup, Chloe Makdad, Tori Crabtree, Levi Walk, Sickler, Tarpey and Associates Representative. Back row Andrea Stevens, Emma Hoover, Ethan White, Ava Focht, Brandon Ixtepan-Ramirez.

Students from Tyrone High School were recently introduced to The Challenge Program during an assembly in the high school auditorium.

The program inspires students to exceed expectations in the areas of school attendance, science, technology, engineering and math (STEM), community service, academic improvement and academic excellence through interaction with local business leaders and award incentives. The Challenge Program has reached more than 500,000 high school students and has provided more than $3 million in incentives throughout Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Ohio and Maryland.

At the assembly a group of juniors and seniors competed in a game of Classroom Feud: Workplace Edition. The game revealed answers to important questions about career-readiness and success in both and beyond the classroom and earning cash incentives.

“It was fun…even if the seniors won,” said junior Ava Focht.

The students involved in the assembly were juniors Andrea Stevens, Emma Hoover, Ethan White, Ava Focht, and Brandon Ixtepan-Ramirez and seniors Mikayla Stroup, Chloe Makdad, Levi Walk, Tori Crabtree, and Emily Fusco.

All sophomores, juniors, and seniors attended the assembly and were introduced to local business opportunities and the Challenge Program awards. Students are eligible to compete for $200 individual awards in five areas linked with academic and workplace success:

  • Attendance improvement
  • Academic excellence
  • STEM(science, technology, engineering, and math)
  • Community service
  • Academic improvement

The business partner for Tyrone Area High School during the 2017-18 school year is Sickler Tarpey & Associates.

At the end of the assembly, the five juniors and five seniors that played the game received $200 awards for the work they accomplished last year during the 2016-17 school year.

“The money was great to receive, and helped me buy photography equipment,” said senior Levi Walk.

Programs like this are a great reward system for our students that go above and beyond, and the praise they get is well deserved.

The awards criteria for this year’s $200 prizes are as follows:

 

CATEGORIES

  

CRITERIA
 

ATTENDANCE

  • FINALISTS are drawn from students with “0” absences. If no one has “0” Absences – students with the least number of absences according to school policy will become Finalists.
 

STEM

  • FINALISTS are the #1 ranked student from every included class.
  • Included classes are up to each school.
 

COMMUNITY SERVICE

  • FINALISTS are among the students who submitted the top 10% of hours for the year.
 

ACADEMIC IMPROVEMENT

  • Academic Improvement involves the GREATEST INCREASE in Year Ending to Year Ending G.P.A. regardless of beginning/ending grade level.
  • FINALISTS are drawn from among the top 10% of students with the greatest increase in G.P.A.
 

ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE

  • HIGHEST OVERALL G.P.A. from the beginning to the end of the current school year.
  • FINALISTS are drawn from among the top 10% of students with the highest overall G.P.A.