SE Oakland News

Student achievement is something that the Birmingham Public School (BPS) Board of Education loves to highlight.

That was certainly the case at their April 18 meeting, when Superintendent Embeka Roberson invited Diana Patterson, chair of the Reflections program, to provide information on the students who had been recognized by the state.

Reflections is a nationwide PTA art competition with a student-chosen theme each year. This year was Show Your Voice, and the district had one entry from a middle school student that has gone on to the national judging round.

Ten others were recognized at the state level, including entries from elementary, middle, and high school students in categories like musical composition, dance choreography, visual arts and literature.

Roberson also recognized Bingham Farms first grader Perry Greene, who recently served as the BPS superintendent for the day. Roberson reported that Greene came ready for the position, showing up in a suit and tie and asking to be called Dr. Greene.

During his day on the “job,” Greene familiarized himself with Roberson’s job duties, meeting with staff and visiting classrooms. He also answered phone calls and sat at the superintendent's desk and refused to cancel school for the day as they only do that when there is a “giant snowstorm.”

“He's sitting at my desk because I said to him, ‘I think you should call Principal McKinney and I think you should tell her that the whole school is going to have extra recess on Friday,’' said Roberson. “He said, ‘I can do that?’ I said, ‘Yeah, you can do that.’ So, he said, ‘But only if they earn it, right?’ And I was like, ‘Okay.’ So, he gets on the phone. He says, ‘Principal McKinney, we're going to have an extra recess on Friday, but only if the kids earn it.’ And she said, ‘Well, how are they going to earn it?’ And he said, ‘Well, they have to be respectful. They have to be hardworking. And the teacher has to have enough time for it. And if they don't do that, they're not going to get an extra recess. It's going to be class by class.’ So, he was tough and he dressed the part. I just want to give a shout-out to Dr. Greene for running the show yesterday.”

Seaholm High School principal Kyle Hall and swim coach Bill Johansson introduced the boys' swim team to the board and honored them for a third-place finish at the state swim competition this year. They had an undefeated dual meet season leading up to the finals and are led by three Birmingham district alums.

Senior Grayson Davis shattered the district’s 42-year diving record with a score of 601.99, the highest student score in school history. He is the number two ranked diver in the state and will be attending the University of Michigan to dive next year.