LifeChanger of the Year Nominee Profile

Wanda Parks was nominated by an anonymous colleague.

Ms. Parks is the Computer Lab Instructor at Ithica Elementary School. She empowers her students to pursue their passions and creativity.  She has high expectations of each and every student, regardless of their ability level. 

Last year, her students approached her with questions about Education Galaxy, a computer learning program her class was using. The students came to her to discuss that the top space alien was always a boy. Ms. Parks later learned from Education Galaxy that they alternated; one year the Top Alien is a boy, and the next year, it's a girl. Ithica students decided to create a 2-headed alien and submit it to the company for the 2019 school year with Ms. Parks' guidance.

Ms. Parks held a school-wide contest in which all students were allowed to submit a drawing and vote for their favorite. Ithica fifth graders Shelby Agius, Kara Oakes, and Kamila Bosques designed the "Space Titan." They came up with the design using blue, light blue, and yellow because those are Ithica Titan colors. It was voted #1 by the student body. This "Space Titan" was the accepted as the Top Alien by Education Galaxy, meaning that students see this avatar as they work and complete assignments in Education Galaxy for the 2018-2019 school year. Because it's two headed, both male and female aliens are in the top spot. The "Space Titan" will be seen by students across the nation and around the world who play Education Galaxy.

The following link shared on Carroll County School's website shows the Space Titan. 
http://www.carrollcountyschools.com/blog/listing/carroll-county-students-design-space-titan-character-for-education-galaxy

"Ms. Parks deserves kudos for her consistent, intentional support of students," her nominator said.