News

Family Focus: Foundation awards honor leaders supporting education

NOW PLAYING ABOVE

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Channel 9 is a sponsor of the Charlotte Post Foundation Best Awards.

The foundation honors two leaders in the community who support education, while also providing financial assistance to college-bound African-American students.

Bishop George E. Battle Jr. knows a thing or two about being the best.

Still, he was a bit surprised to find out he's receiving the Luminary Lifetime Achievement Award from the Charlotte Post Foundation. Every year, the foundation honors community giants in education.

“Receiving this award really is for the kids we work with,” he said.

He's the senior bishop of the AME Zion Church. He's also a former member and chairman of the school board. And he created Greater Enrichment -- an after-school program that offers educational opportunities to children to keep them out of trouble.

“We’ve educated over the 40 years over 15,000 to 17,000, so kids so we're very happy,” he said.

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools Superintendent Ann Clark is being honored as Educator of the Year.

“Absolutely honored and humbled,” she said of the award.

As a 33-year veteran of the school district, she's worked her way up from classroom teacher.

She said her priority is literacy, which is why she encourages community partners to volunteer and make sure students are reading on grade-level.

“We still have large numbers of students who are not reading on grade level, and that's absolutely not OK,” Clark said.

That's the passion the foundation is seeking.

“Education is what the foundation is all about. So we wanted to get a high-ranking teacher that had qualifications for helping across the board,” Gerald Johnson, Charlotte Post CEO and publisher, said.

Both recipients have made a mark in the community.

Read more top trending stories on wsoctv.com:

0