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Phenom swimmer strives for success Lawhorn’s Lawrence
Chad Lawhorn clawhorn@ljworld.com
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eter Andrew knew this wasn’t normal, so he did what men sometimes do when they are confused: He called his wife. “I remember he told me to stop what I was doing and come down to the pool to watch Michael swim,� Tina Andrew recalls. By the time their son, Michael, was 7 years old, he was competM. Andrew ing in his first youth swimming meet in an outdoor pool near Brookings, S.D. On his very first swim, he qualified for the state meet. It looked as if this life had taken another abnormal turn.
Peter used to swim. Actually, he used to swim really well. He may have even been an Olympic-caliber swim-
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Education dominated by women except at the top By Peter Hancock phancock@ljworld.com
Richard Gwin/Journal-World Photos
MICHAEL ANDREW SWIMS IN THE INDOOR POOL at the Andrew family’s rural home northwest of Lawrence. Andrew is an up-and-coming star in the world of swimming. He’s broken dozens of USA Swimming records and has his sights set on the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. mer, but being born and raised in South Africa, there wasn’t much use thinking about the Olympics. It was during the time when South Africa was banned from Olympic competition because of its policy on apartheid. So Peter long ago had
moved past swimming. He and Tina — also a South Africa native — got married and took off to see the world. There was Israel, Turkey, Egypt, England, Jordan, Greece, a lot of Europe and a bit of America. “A lot of people call it a walkabout,� Peter said. “For
most people, it is a year. Ours ended up being eight.� When he returned to South Africa to take over the family farm, he learned it is easy to return home. But sometimes it’s hard to figure out how to stay. Tina remembers when the
Ryan McAdoo doesn’t believe he’s different from any other kindergarten teacher. “I follow the same protocols and objectives that they focus on,� he said. But the simple truth is, McAdoo is different, simply by virtue of being a man who teaches at a grade level that traditionally has been, and continues to be, an almost exclusively female profession. For the most part, he says, students and parents respond favorably to him. “I hear it mostly from the parents, how they’re so happy that there’s a male teacher, and it’s a good influence on their child,� said McAdoo, who has
Please see SWIMMER, page 9A
Please see TEACHERS, page 2A
Outstanding students honored as 2013 Academic All-Stars Activities, grades and aspirations propel young scholars By Peter Hancock phancock@ljworld.com
The top high school students in Lawrence and the surrounding area did a lot more than earn straight A’s in class. Students selected to the Journal-World’s 2013 Academic All-Star team were also star athletes, musicians, student council leaders and active volunteers in their church communities. Nine seniors and one junior who is graduating early were designated by judg-
Richard Gwin/Journal-World Photo
THE JOURNAL-WORLD’S 2013 ACADEMIC ALL-STARS are, from front left, Lillian Seib, Perry-Lecompton; Jeffrey Doolittle, Ottawa; Samantha Weiss, Baldwin City; Olivia Beins, Baldwin City; and Tessa Newberry, Bonner Springs. From rear left are Emilie Padgett, Bishop Seabury; Paige Lauri, Tonganoxie; Padget Sutherland, Bishop Seabury; Abby Schletzbaum, Free State High; and Kristen Finger, Veritas. es as Academic All-Stars from a group of 28 students who were nominated by their principals or guidance counselors. The 10 All-Star team members this year came from a variety of backgrounds. They included
students from large and small classes in both public and parochial schools. Their career plans range from medicine and law to engineering and humanitarian work. The Journal-World has sponsored the Academic
All-Star competition every year since 1997. Students are chosen based on their academic records, extracurricular activities and an essay contest. This year, students were asked to write about how they predict technology will affect the way students learn in the future. Last week, the 10 students and their families were honored at a luncheon in downtown Lawrence, where the overall winner was announced and presented with a scholarship. “It was hard to distinguish the best since they all are very good,� said Robert Harrington, a professor of psychology and research in education at Kansas University and one of the judges in the contest. “The essays on the uses of computers in the classroom this year were very good. There were some very good writers with lots of original ideas.�
Top scholar has instinct for finding the right path By Peter Hancock phancock@ljworld.com
When Emilie Padgett was in eighth grade, she had planned to sing in choir — but decided instead to try working on the yearbook, since no one else had signed up for it. “I just fell in love with it and have done yearPadgett book ever since then,� she said. “And then we added newspaper at the school, and I’m editor-in-chief of that.� She had a similar experience more recently when she toured the campus of Duke University in North Carolina, where she plans to go next fall. “Quite honestly, when I walked onto Please see TOP, page 7A
See profiles of the winners, read about the nominees and judges, and catch up with the All-Stars from 10 years ago on pages 6A-8A. A thunderstorm
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Relays history
Vol.155/No.111 36 pages
Free State High School junior Alexa Harmon-Thomas tied a Kansas Relays high school meet record in long jump and was named Female Athlete of the Meet. Page 1B
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