One Mount Vernon Digital Newsletter
MESSAGE FROM THE SUPERINTENDENT
Greetings MVCSD Community,
Happy New Year! I am excited to see what 2025 will have in store for the Mount Vernon City School District. Next week, we will be highlighting each of our themed high schools at our annual High School Showcase Night. For our eighth-grade students and their families, this is a great opportunity to get an inside look at what is available to them next year. We have something for everyone at our high schools, and I encourage you to attend to see which option is right for you.
We are recognizing the accomplishments of Sarah Amer, a senior at Mount Vernon High School who exemplifies the values of an MVCSD scholar, in this week's Senior Spotlight Series. She has already earned over $100,000 in cumulative scholarships through her hard work and dedication to her education and her community. As a student in so many advanced classes, it is truly impressive to see that she has maintained such high grades, earning recognition for the principal’s honor roll frequently. We are so proud of you, Sarah, and we can’t wait to see the heights you reach.
We are also highlighting an alumni faculty-member in this week’s Our Students, Now series. Tara Lattimer-Wilson is a fantastic school counselor, making a great impact on our students at DWSA, and we are so grateful that she stayed in her hometown to help students in Mount Vernon. MVCSD alumni go on to do many great things, and one of the best things they can do is coming back to pass down their expertise to our current students.
We had the honor of officially inducting 15 Benjamin Turner Academy students into the National Junior Honor Society yesterday, and I am very proud of each of these hard-working students. National Junior Honor Society provides a significant framework for our young, high-achieving students with its five pillars of scholarship, service, leadership, character and citizenship. Through this achievement, they are on a path of academic excellence that is truly exciting. It was wonderful to shake each and every one of the inducted members' hands to congratulate them on their significant accomplishment.
Kindest Regards,
Dr. K. Veronica Smith
Acting Superintendent of Schools
MVCSD TO HOST HIGH SCHOOL SHOWCASE NIGHT WEDS., JAN. 15 AT MVHS
The Mount Vernon City School District will hold High School Showcase Night for eighth-grade students and their families at Mount Vernon High School on Wednesday, January 15, 2025, from 6 to 8 p.m. Each of the three theme-based high schools – Denzel Washington School of the Arts, Mount Vernon High School, and Mount Vernon STEAM Academy – will highlight what they have to offer to students who are considering their schools.
MVHS SENIOR RACKS UP OVER $100,000 IN SCHOLARSHIPS
Sarah Amer is a star student and highly accomplished senior at Mount Vernon High School who shows a great commitment to her academics, community, and future by giving 100 percent of herself wherever she can. She has already earned college acceptances and scholarships ahead of her graduation in June.
OUR STUDENTS, NOW: SCHOOL COUNSELOR TARA LATTIMER-WILSON
Tara Lattimer-Wilson, school counselor at Denzel Washington School of the Arts, graduated from Mount Vernon High School in 1992 and has committed much of her career to working in the school district she was raised in. She began her career in education as an outreach coordinator for the STAR (Success Through Academic Readiness) Program at MVHS. She then became a school counselor in NYC and returned to Mount Vernon in 2007. She felt a desire to work with Mount Vernon students and give back to her community after having her own great experiences, specifically with her high school counselor. Another influence on her path to education was her mother, Linda Lattimer, who was also an educator.
BTA HOLDS NATIONAL JUNIOR HONOR SOCIETY INDUCTION
Fifteen Benjamin Turner Academy students were inducted into the National Junior Honor Society on Thursday, January 9, 2025. Families heartily gathered at the media center to watch their loved ones’ achievement. Acting Superintendent Dr. K. Veronica Smith and principal Doris Dapaah conferred awards to students during the event.