LAGRANGE, Ga. (WRBL) — The principal at Gardner Newman Middle School in LaGrange is about to set out on an adventure more than 4,000 miles away. That trip will put her in rooms with Nobel Prize-winning laureates, scientists and more.
Dr. Kelley Adams was one of two Georgia educators chosen to attend the Nobel Prize Teacher Summit in Stockholm, Sweden, next month. The purpose of the summit is to bring teachers from more than 30 countries to discuss a theme of great importance in education.
This year’s theme — ‘Health, A Global Concern.”
“I think a lot of times when people think about health, they think about nutrition,” Dr. Adams said. “Yes, that is very important and I can’t wait to learn about that but I also want to learn about mental health too; For our students, community and even our educators. I want to learn about what other countries are doing within their buildings to support mental health and what’s working.”
Dr. Adams says she’ll not only be able to speak with Swedish educators, but also get to experience what an actual day looks like in a Swedish school.
According to the World Population Review, Sweden was ranked second in the world for their Public Education Score, only a fraction lower than Denmark and 20.7 points ahead of the United States.
While Adams looks forward to learning about the intersection of education and health in Sweden, she is eager to share the experiences of her students and educators at Gardner Newman.
“I think a lot of the values we talk about — perseverance, resilience, making connections — you can see it in the hallways, in the classrooms, at sporting events,” Adams shared.
Seventh-grade counselor at Gardner Newman, Laquinta Whisby, previously lived and worked abroad, and also shared why their school is special.
“I’m proud that we have a school of diversity, that our kids are compassionate, and the teachers are very engaging with our kids,” Whisby said.
Dr. Adams will be attending the summit from March 15- March 21 and will hear from the following individuals:
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Emilie Agardh, Associate Professor of Epidemiology at Karolinska Institutet
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Otto Cars, Professor Emeritus of Infectious Diseases at Uppsala University
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Anna Mia Ekström, Physician and Professor of Global Infectious Disease Epidemiology at Karolinska Institutet
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Authia Gray, Research scientist at the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at University of Washington
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Mia Hejdenberg, Medical Humanitarian Advisor at Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) Sweden
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Vincent Mougin, Research scientist at the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at University of Washington
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Oskar Nyberg, Antibiotic resistance expert at ReAct and the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences
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Thomas Perlmann, Professor of Molecular Developmental Biology and Secretary-General of the Nobel Assembly at Karolinska Institutet
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Johan von Schreeb, Surgeon and Professor of Global Disaster Medicine at Karolinska Institutet
“TCSS is committed to expanding our impact. An international study is a huge component of this work. I commend Dr. Adams for demonstrating her commitment to lifelong learning and bringing the world to our students. This is very exciting for our school system,” said Troup County Schools Superintendent, Dr. Rachel Hazel.
Dr. Kelley Adams, Principal of Gardner Newman Middle School in Troup County, Georgia.
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