Effingham County had 43 students qualify for the International Student Media Festival that will be held November in Orlando.

The following students were winners at the state level and now have the opportunity to take their media projects to the next level:

From Ebenezer Elementary – Devon Olding, Lucy Wincester, Joshua Strickland, Tori Socia, Emily Mikulsky, Sarah Sanderlin, Jalin Garvin, Katie Dennis, Mrs. Lamb’s Class
From South Effingham Elementary – Bailey Duke, Payton Duke, Corey Baker, Ryan Nease, Jed Bishop, Jessica Oberlander, Jordan Rigdon, Jeremy Kicklighter, Jake Elliott, Nicholas Sturdevant, Austin Thompson, Jake Walbert, Allison Sanders, Austin Davis, Chloe Phillips, Mallory Sucher, Naomi Sapp, Hannah Harrington, Jordan Shikany, Chandler Cubbedge
From Springfield Elementary – Evan Fears, Derek Hendrix, Jacob Dasher, Donovan Ragan, Cassidy Blewett, Hunter Porter, Lizzie Whiddon
From Blandford Elementary – Elisabeth Habersham, Paige Wilkerson
From Rincon Elementary – Ethan Fournier, Autumn Gray, Jasmyne Kaye, Parker Lane
From South Effingham Middle School – Malynda Mitchell, Heather McNamee
From Ebenezer Middle School – Kristen Daniel

The International Student Media Festival celebrates outstanding classroom media projects. Students and teachers from kindergarten through college are honored in a three-day event that includes workshops, screenings of winning entries, and an awards ceremony. It has now grown to be one of the oldest and largest events of its kind.

The festival has been sponsored by the Association for Educational Communications and Technology since 1974. AECT is an education professional association that has been a leader in promoting the use of technology to improve teaching and learning.

Student media projects such as live action video, Web site design, animation and photography foster learning across the curriculum. At the elementary and junior high school levels, reading comprehension, writing skills and math facilities are developed. In addition to those areas, high school and college students increase their abilities to plan, analyze, and interpret results. Cooperation and leadership flourish where student media is encouraged.

Student created media, through its involvement in the world of computers, video, sound, and photography, is a proven avenue to increasing student participation in the classroom learning environment. State and national educational standards are met and surpassed in an atmosphere of creativity cultivated through the use of student media projects.

Future academic and employment opportunities increase in relationship to the rise in technological proficiency.