Students Win National 180 Awards 

Far left:  Heather Thompson presents Bryce with his award.  Applauding in the back row are Monte Vista Principal Pam Picchiottino, teacher Patricia Smith and Bryce's mother Nicole Kingfisher.

Above right:  Thompson presents Bianca with her award.  With Bianca are her mother Blanca Grant and her younger sister Maya Grant.

Bianca Grant of Cole Canyon Elementary School and Bryce Kingfisher of Monte Vista Elementary School received the prestigious 2018 National 180 Student Awards, which recognize 15 children across the United States who overcame significant obstacles to become thriving, successful learners. 

Heather Thompson, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Account Executive. presented the awards on June 5.  180 Awards go to students across the country, who, with the help of their remarkable teachers, have made outstanding progress in literacy and math achievement and are now on a path to success in life.    

Bianca Grant, Grade 5, Cole Canyon Elementary School

Bianca and her mother Blanca (shown left) listened as her teacher Denise Standish talked about the remarkable progress Bianca made in her reading skills with the help of intervention program System 44.   Bianca started elementary school attending special education classes and struggled with anxiety, and was well below her grade level in reading. She struggled to believe in herself, but has since been transformed into a confident reader who is determined to succeed. In the future, she hopes to travel and own her own art gallery.

“We set reading goals for this year and she was able to meet and surpass all her goals,” said her teacher, Denise Standish. “When she met her last goal and became proficient in reading, that was the moment Bianca realized she can do it.”

“This year I am more confident and I have learned to persevere,” Bianca said, "I'm proud of myself because all my work paid off."    

Bryce Kingfisher, Grade 5, Monte Vista Elementary School

Bryce struggled to understand math concepts but he knew he needed to learn math if he was going to achieve his goal of working for NASA when he grows up.  Thanks to the intervention program MATH 180, Bryce has made tremendous progress, more than doubling his Quantile score.  His teacher, Patricia Smith, says that she noticed a positive change as Bryce used MATH 180 which was rooted in a change in his mindset.  Bryce became more confident and he is now a hard-working student who helps others.

“If I make a mistake, it doesn’t matter," Bryce said, "everyone makes mistakes, but you learn from your mistakes and I'm glad that my hard work has paid off." 

Student winners were selected by an HMH committee based on several factors, including teacher recommendations, student statements and video submissions, as well as data demonstrating reading or math growth according to the Lexile^® or Quantile^® framework.  Thompson said, "The thing that stood out about Bryce and Bianca was their tremendous effort and perseverance and progress they made with the support of their teachers and school.  The confidence these kids feel after they get this award helps them continue to believe they can succeed and our hope is that will stick with them throughout their lives." 

Along with the awards, Bianca and Grant also received a check for $500 and their school received HMH educational materials.