2015-2016 School Year at Riverwood
Academic Accomplishments















The Washington Post named Riverwood as the #3 Most Challenging School in
Fulton County and #14 in the State.
Mrs. Celeste Archer was named the Riverwood Teacher of the Year and was also
named the Central Learning Community Teacher of the Year.
Mrs. Stephanie Flores-Publicover was named Riverwood’s Professional of the
Year.
2015 ACT scores increased .5 of a point to 23.7, the largest increase among all
comprehensive Fulton County High Schools.
Riverwood’s 2015 SAT Scores increased 14 points to a combined total of 1554
Our Graduation Rate increased from 81.3% for the Class of 2014 to 89.6% for the
Class of 2015. Since 2013, Riverwood’s Graduation Rate has increased 21.8%!
Based on student performance in 2015, Riverwood was named an AP STEM
School, an AP STEM Achievement School, an AP Humanities School, and one of
only two schools in Fulton County to be named an AP Access and Support
School.
Natalie Peek was awarded a Future Leader Scholarship. Sponsored by the law
firm of Montlick & Associates, Natalie will attend the Washington Workshop
Congressional Seminar this summer in Washington DC.
Thanks to the Sandy Springs Society who donated $7,000 to the Riverwood
Foundation in support of our AVID program.
Daniel Gribble was awarded the History Teacher Award by the Sandy Springs
Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution.
Morgan Robinson and Natalie Peek were named to the annual list of 20 Under 20
by Atlanta InTown Magazine.
Natalie Peek was also named by the Neighbor Newspaper as their Stellar Student
for January 2016.
Kelsey Key was selected as a 2016-2017 Comcast Leaders and Achievers
Scholarship Program.
Riverwood Seniors Kristen Williams and Simone Coleman were awarded
scholarships from Rho Epsilon Zeta.
The Riverwood Writing Center has a great first year. Under the leadership of
Mrs. Toledano, this student led endeavor was a place where all Riverwood
students could receive assistance during the school day on any writing
assignment for any class.
Information is not presented in any particular order nor is this meant to be all-inclusive.
Please report any inaccuracies, questions or concerns to [email protected]
2015-2016 School Year at Riverwood

PTSA Reflections Contest had several local winners
10th
Literature
11th
Literature
11 Literature











12th
11th
9th
10th
11th
Literature
Visual Arts
Photography
Photography
Photography
12th
12th
Photography
Photography
Saya Anne
Abney
Alexander
Hamer
Anndersyn
Cochran
Kacie Blair
Sarah Peljovich
Soloman Lomax
Sarah Kern
Lilly
Blumenthal
Kelsey Key
Kelsey Key
1st Place
1st Place
2nd Place
1st Place
1st Place
1st Place
1st Place
1st Place
1st Place
2nd Place
Over ten Riverwood Seniors were celebrated for Early Acceptance to Georgia
Tech
Under the leadership of Sheri Smith, the Riverwood FBLA finished 1st at the State
Conference and several students advanced to Nationals. The Riverwood FBLA
Chapter is officially the 2nd largest in Georgia and one of the ten largest in the
United States!
David Goldfarb is Riverwood’s National Merit Scholarship Finalist and STAR
student.
David selected as his STAR teacher, Riverwood science teacher Rama
Balachandran.
Riverwood Counselor Shamona Harrell started a mentorship program for our 9th
graders.
The percentage of retained 9th graders was reduced by 6%, a decrease of 23
students.
IB Diploma Pass Rate increased from 74% to 77%.
The number of Riverwood graduates attending college increased by 3% to 92% of
graduates.
Riverwood Senior Samantha Stahlman was awarded the prestigious Princeton
Club of Georgia’s 2015 Woodrow Wilson Community Service Award.
Senior Mariah Hinton was awarded a Gates Millennium Scholarship to attend
Florida State University.
Sheri Smith was awarded the Best Educators Award for her service at the
Entrepreneurship Institute where she has taught for many years.
Information is not presented in any particular order nor is this meant to be all-inclusive.
Please report any inaccuracies, questions or concerns to [email protected]
2015-2016 School Year at Riverwood

Alex Lipsky participated in the Georgia Science and Engineering Fair and
received second honors for her project, Creating Surgeons with Alcohol (A Novel
method of testing Hand Sterility).






Riverwood had two students named 2016 Governor’s Honors Program Finalists
o Eliza Paprin in Communicative Arts
o Bennie Soran in Social Studies
Several FCCLA students competed in State
o Lizbeth Zamora won 1st Place in Creative Garnish
o Julia Dias won first place in Baking and Pastry
o Bailey Hellum and Octavius Wright won 2nd Place in Hospitality
Management
Competing this year at SkillsUSA's State Leadership Conference, the Riverwood
Audio Radio Production team took 2nd place in Georgia. Seniors Christopher
Johnson and Brian Liu completed the contest with a very high rating.
The Riverwood Debate team had a strong showing at the State Championship
On the 1st year level, Zechiah Weekley, Lily Weinstein, Cecilia Palmar and Miyel
Caldwell competed well in five very difficult rounds of competition! On the 2nd
year level, Saya Abney and Julia Dias took 3rd place in the tournament and 8th
and 13th speaker respectively.
Riverwood students performed well as the Regional Science Olympiad
o 1st in Chem Lab-Pascal Acree and Pooja Patel
o 3rd in Dynamic Planet-Pascal Acree and Anna Shutley
o Write it Do it-Katie Horn and Anna Shutley
o 4th in Anatomy and Physiology-David Goldfarb and Aman Folami-Rees
o Disease Detectives-Kanha Shrivastav and Aman Folami-Reese
Congratulations to our Japanese students on a great showing at the 2016 Japan
Academic Challenge
o Japan Academic Challenge
 Level 1: Second Place
 Aksel Bjerre-Fernandes, Benjamin Padmore, Madalyn
Lieberman
 Level 2: Second Place
 Jaquez Drain, Jenifer Huerta-Carmona, Simona Floyd
 Level 3: Third Place
 Evelin Bello-Arellano, Julia Dias, Mikaela Johnson
 Level 4
 Team 1: Christian Bjerre-Fernandes, Chase Davis, Kenyatta
Robinson
 Team 2: Felipe Hernandez, Kevin Guevara, Yucelmi PerezCaballero
Information is not presented in any particular order nor is this meant to be all-inclusive.
Please report any inaccuracies, questions or concerns to [email protected]
2015-2016 School Year at Riverwood


Speech Contest Category 1 (high school & college 1st- & 2nd-year
students)
 Chase Davis (IB-HL): Japan’s Birth Rate and Independent
Women
 Julia Dias (Level 3H): Winter Holidays in Japan
This year Riverwood began a tradition of honoring teachers with the 212º
Award. This monthly award, presented to the winners by other members of the
faculty and staff, is intended to honor those Riverwood adults who go above
and beyond.
Month
September
October
Creativity
Lorraine Lynch
Diana Dame
Curriculum
Lauren Fogarty
Laura Taylor
December
January
February
March
May
Donna Vargas
Elissa Oliver
Mary Schmidt
Ron Marstall
Bettye Lewis
Donna Vargas
Justin Evans
Liz Cario
Michelle Finley
Peter Graybeck
Customer Service
Ben Stready
Yung Clancy
Officer Donald
Rene
Franklin Manson
Dejohn Williams
Oscar Guerrero
Jennifer Williams
Leadership
Buck Jenkins
Christy Toledano
Student Advocacy
Stephanie Flores
Celeste Archer
Brittany Wood
Diane Kopkas
Dana Munson
Daniel Gribble
Issac Seal
Tara Harper
Sally Tribble
Joel Kadish
Sandy Gosch
Roxie Garber
Athletic Accomplishments













The Boys Varsity Soccer team won the 5A State Championship.
The Boys Varsity Basketball team was the 2016 7-5A Region Champions.
Varsity Boys Basketball advanced to the Elite Eight of the State 5A Tournament.
The Boys Varsity Soccer team was the 2016 7-5A Region Champions.
The Boys Varsity Tennis Team made it to the Sweet Sixteen of the State 5A
Tennis Tournament.
The Girls Varsity Tennis Team made it to the Final Four of the State 5A Tennis
Tournament.
Senior Liam Quigley finished 4th in the State in the 5A (160 pounds).
Wilbur Hooks was Region Champion in the Discus.
Jada Dunn finished 9th in the Long Jump in the State.
Anna Hayden finished as State Runner-Up in both the 1600 and 3200 meter.
Thaddeus Caldwell earned his 100th Victory as a high school wrestler.
Riverwood Basketball was well-represented with All-Region Honors
o Girls 1st Team All Region – Arynn Eady
o South Boys Player of the Year – Kohl Roberts
o South Boys Coach of the Year – Buck Jenkins
o 1st Team All Region – Elijah Jenkins
o Honorable Mention – Charnchai Chantha
Riverwood Varsity Football finished the season with a record of 7-3.
Information is not presented in any particular order nor is this meant to be all-inclusive.
Please report any inaccuracies, questions or concerns to [email protected]
2015-2016 School Year at Riverwood


Varsity Volleyball returned to the State Tournament for the 2nd year in a row.
Girls’ Cross-Country finished 3rd in the Region where Furman commit Anna
Hayden won the Region! The team finished 11th in the State.
 The Varsity Boys Basketball team went undefeated to win the North Forsyth
Thanksgiving Tournament. The team beat #4 Ranked Great Atlanta Christian in
the Championship game.
 Senior Kohl Roberts was named to the North Fulton First Basketball Team and
Elijah Jenkins was named to the Second Team.
 The following Girls Soccer players received All-Region Honors:
o All-Region 1st Team Selections
 Adriana Romero
 Kaitlyn Lauk
o All-Region Honorable Mention
 Becky Greenberg
 Trinity Kelley
 The Boys and Girls Varsity Track Teams had a great showing at the Fulton
County Track Meet
o Isaiah Gaddy-3rd Place in the High Jump
o Marvin Kinsey-2nd Place in 200 Meter and 400 Meter
o Anna Hayden-3rd Place 1600 Meter
 Haley Allen earned the 1st place medal in the 5A girls six dive competition at the
Marist Early Bird Diving Invitational.
 Riverwood Swim & Dive had several top 25 finishers at the State Swim & Dive
Meet:
Tim Stewart
Patrick Johnson
Boys 200 Medley Relay
17
Steven Jackson
Donovan Johnson
Boys 50 Free
Tim Stewart
17
Girls 50 Free
Paris Phillips
5
Audrey Verdesca
Spencer Ponsell
Girls 200 Free
9
Fallon Parfaite
Glenna Williams
Girls 100 Yard Breaststroke
Paris Phillips
19
Tim Stewart
Bayne Jarvis
Boys 400 Yard Free
13
Patrick Johnson
Chris Sprung
Girls Diving
Haley Allen
21
Information is not presented in any particular order nor is this meant to be all-inclusive.
Please report any inaccuracies, questions or concerns to [email protected]
2015-2016 School Year at Riverwood





Congratulations to the Riverwood Seniors who signed to play their respective
sport at the collegiate level:
o Football
 Marvin Kinsey - Colorado State
 Porter Sanford - Alabama A&M
 Jay Dukes - Eastern Arizona Community College
 JT Tinsley-Occidental
o Soccer
 Kai Bennett – Jacksonville University
 Emma McCaskill- Berry College
 Adriana Romero- Dalton State
o Cheer
 Troi McClure- Loyola New Orleans
o Basketball
 Kohl Roberts-GA College and State University
o Volleyball
 Taylor Wright- Huntingdon College
 Hannah McKinley- Fisk University
 Kayla Wood-South Florida State
 Taylor Robinson- FAMU
o Lacrosse
 Chandler Arney- Vasser
 Duncan Jackson- Young Harris
 McKenzie Lewis-Howard
o Swimming
 Paris Phillips
o Softball
 Caroline Sweetin- Sewanee
o Tennis
 Simona Floyd- Piedmont College
Marvin Kinsey was named to the All-State Honorable Mention Football Team.
Marvin Kinsey was named Player of the Year by the North Fulton Touchdown
Club.
Alex Sprung was named the Academic Player of the Year by the North Fulton
Touchdown Club.
The Boys Varsity Soccer team received several honors including:
o Region Coach of the Year
 Jeffrey Welp
o All Region 7 - 1st Team
 Eric Cruz
 Kai Bennett
 Nick Graham
Information is not presented in any particular order nor is this meant to be all-inclusive.
Please report any inaccuracies, questions or concerns to [email protected]
2015-2016 School Year at Riverwood

o All Region 7 - 2nd Team
 Manuel Casanova
 Jay Liborio
 Victor Miranda
 Kenan Berenson
o Region 7 Player of the Year
 Nick Graham
o Gatorade State & National Player of the Year Finalist
 Eric Cruz
Congratulations to the following Raider football players who received the
following All-Region honors!
o Offensive Player of the Year - Marvin Kinsey
 1st Team QB - Porter Sanford
 1st Team OL - Fred Hagans
 1st Team WR - Evan Crossing
 1st Team LB - Jay Dukes
 1st Team LB - Cole Sutton
 1st Team DB - Mekhi Richardson
o 1st Team KR - Jelani Reid
Fine Arts Accomplishments









The Riverwood Band earned all Superior ratings at LGPE.
The Riverwood Chorus earned all Superior ratings at LGPE.
The Riverwood Orchestra earned Superior and Excellent ratings at LGPE.
The following Riverwood students had work selected to be on display at the
Georgia Art Education Association Capital Art Exhibition.
o Elizabeth Graves, 11th Grade
o Troi Young, 11th Grade
o Kelsey Key, 12th Grade
o Fenot Daniel, 12th Grade
o Nicole Nichols, 12th Grade
o Arabelle Berman, 12th Grade
Riverwood Singers had a great performance at the GMEA Convention in Athens,
Georgia where they received a standing ovation.
Riverwood Art Students Shenelle Bailey and Kelsey Key had photographs
accepted into the Dogwood festival.
Seniors Max Kantor and Kento Palm received scores of Superior at the annual
Thespian Conference.
Senior Saireth Cortes was honored by the Fulton County School Board as she had
art work selected to be included in the District’s Annual Financial Report.
The Riverwood Drama Department’s presentation of The Addams Family
received an Honorable Mention from the Shuler-Hensley Awards.
Information is not presented in any particular order nor is this meant to be all-inclusive.
Please report any inaccuracies, questions or concerns to [email protected]
2015-2016 School Year at Riverwood







Seven Riverwood Chorus students were named to the Georgia All-State chorus
including Abby Gibson, Gabby Jackson, Alejandro Perez, Callaway Powlus,
Jasmine Smith, Tim Stewart, and Carolyn Wright.
Hal Olsen was named to the Fulton County Honor Band.
The following Riverwood Band students represented Riverwood at the UGA
JanFest
 Haley Gruensfelder-Clarinet
 Arthur Miltner-Trombone
 Hill Belfi-Clarinet
 Elise Flanagan-Trumpet
 Yoel Alperin-Horn
 Shelby Arrigo-Horn
 Sophie Galiano-Flute
o Cole Markland-Alto Saxophone
The following artists had work selected for the Scholastic Art and Writing Award
Program.
o Shenelle Bailey
 Silver Key Award
o Clara Bensimon
 Silver Key
 Honorable Mention
o Arabelle Berman
 Gold Key
 Honorable Mention
 Honorable Mention
o Lilly Blumenthal
 Honorable Mention
o Shaina Goldfein
 Gold Key
 Honorable Mention
 Honorable Mention
o Destynee Jones
 Honorable Mention
o Kelsey Key
 Honorable Mention
The Marching Band won 2nd in their class at the Collins Hill Invitation where the
Riverwood Percussion line earned Best in Class.
The Riverwood Marching Band performed at the Russell Athletic Bowl.
The Riverwood Band was invited to perform at Carnegie Hall next spring.
Information is not presented in any particular order nor is this meant to be all-inclusive.
Please report any inaccuracies, questions or concerns to [email protected]