The talented West Johnston High School Envirothon team, the Sequoias, placed second overall out of 45 teams from the U.S. and Canada at the 2009 Canon Envirothon held in Asheville, NC, last week. A team from Penncrest High School in Pennsylvania took first place. This year marks the best showing ever for a North Carolina team at the North American Envirothon competition.
Each student member of the Sequoias, Stephanie Tolar, Frankie Johnson, Lewis Braswell, Erin Lineberger and Thomas Lineberger, was presented with a $4,000 college scholarship. Sponsored by the Johnston County Soil and Water Conservation District, the team’s advisor is Melody Lineberger and their team coordinator is Donna Tolar. A number of North Carolina State University faculty and staff had the honor of providing guidance to the team throughout the year.
Envirothon is actually the culmination of a series of competitions that began during the past school year, testing understanding of complex environmental issues and knowledge in five technical areas: aquatics, forestry, soils, wildlife, and biodiversity. The Sequoias scored 1st in three of the five areas – forestry, soils, and biodiversity.
Erin Lineberger, who will be starting as a freshman in the Department of Forestry and Environmental Resources this fall, was recently named as an NC State University Park Scholar. The Park Scholarship program is among America’s most prestigious undergraduate merit scholarship programs.
The Sequoias members pictured above left to right Melody Lineberger, team advisor, Lewis Braswell, Frankie Johnson, Thomas Lineberger, Erin Lineberger, and Stephanie Tolar.