Jeremiah Greene and Ronn Washington, students at Vance-Providence Elementary School, participated in the National Young Scholars Program held at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, N.C.

Greene and Washington were nominated by their third-grade teacher, Mrs. Demi Belanger, for their academic success, maturity and potential leadership abilities. The program inspires outstanding students in the second through fifth grades to explore, invent, learn and think creatively.

Each student participated in the leadership strand and chose one discovery strand from six options: environmental science, architecture, weather, world exploration, forensic science and medicine. Greene chose the “World Explorers: Discovering People, Customs and Cultures in Mexico, Australia, Italy and China.” Washington chose the “Going Green: The Quest to Save the Environment.”

Scholars in “World Explorers” became citizens of the world by “visiting” four countries on four continents, learning about the people, customs and lifestyle of their host nations; exploring music and sports native to these countries; and honing their cross-cultural communications skills.

“Virtually” traveling to Australia, China, Mexico and Italy, young explorers embraced the similarities and differences of people near and far and had their curiosity ignited to learn more about our world today and their role in it.

Playing the role of environmental scientists, scholars in “Going Green” researched the mystery of why animal life is decreasing in fictitious Eco-ville. By examining concepts associated with natural and man-made pollution — acid rain, phosphates, erosion, run-off, oil spills, food chain relationships and ecological balance — scholars experimented, researched, analyzed, debated and presented their findings in an effort to restore environmental balance. They experimented with pH testing, biomagnification and phosphate indicators to solve the mystery of Eco-ville and suggested recommendations to improve conservation in the town.

Greene is the son of Donald and Cassandra Greene. Washington is the son of Rosalyn Washington.

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