P.S. 5 Launches Student-Led Stemmy Awards Honoring Educational Excellence

It takes a village to raise a child and the village of Bedford-Stuyvesant was in full force supporting the students at Dr. Ronald E. McNair Public School #5, under the leadership of principal Lena Gates, as they presented their inaugural STEMMY AWARDS honoring educational excellence. Under the leadership of Principal Lena Gates, students, parents, faculty, and staff literally rolled out the red carpet recently for this phenomenal black-tie event.

Co-hosted by Dr. Robert M. Waterman, pastor of Antioch Baptist Church, and guest host Dr. Melissa Chester, the student-led production kicked off with a STEMMY skit and warm welcome by PS5 educator Brittney Barriteau, and her 3rd grade class who conceived and created the STEMMY Award program.

“The STEMMY Awards is another incentive to motivate our students,” said Barriteau. “We know they are intelligent; we know what they are capable of. We need to keep them motivated and continue to push them to try their best.”

PS5 first STEMMY for Education was rightfully given to someone who has accomplished many first in their career — Dr. Lester Young, Jr. . In 2021, the esteemed Dr. Young was elected as New York State’s first African American Chancellor of Regent. “This award demonstrates to all of us that not only do we know how to educate our children,” shared Dr. Johnson. “But we also love our children.” Other educational honorees included District 16 Superintendent Branden T. Mims; Medgar Evers College own Dr. Evelyn Castro; and educator Dr. Brenda Boyd-Bell. STEMMY for educational excellence were also given to students Harold Anderson, Caitlyn Smith, Gerald Smiley, Cach Grandison, and talented artist A. Enriquez, who designed the most outstanding logo rendering.

STEMMY Awards were also presented to community stakeholders. Individuals within the village of Bedford-Stuyvesant who’ve supported and poured into the success of PS5. Community Honorees included Dr. Divinah “Dee” Bailey, Founder/CEO Watchful Eye. Ms. Bailey, who attended the affair with a host of family and friends urged the audience to continue, “fighting for this community” and thanked Principal Gates “for providing a safe place for our children to grow and learn.”

Other STEMMY community honorees included Wayne Devonish, Founder, 500 Men Who Make a Difference; Jefferson Avenue Lion’s Club; Tina Watkins, local community volunteer; restaurateurs Sabrina Brockman of Grand Champs and Eduardo Mantelli of Saraghina.
STEMMYs for educational excellence were also given to students Harold Anderson, Caitlyn Smith, Gerald Smiley, Cach Grandison, and talented artist Asan Enriquez.

P.S.5’s STEMMY Awards featured student-led performances by Brooklyn Arts Council resident drum instructor Mamadou Doumbia and his student protégé Jaymah McKoy, and P.S. 5’s all-girl United Steppers presenting a powerful drill dedicated to Maya Angelou’s “Phenomenal Women” poem.

The black-tie affair included a surprise guest appearance from Papoose, the Bedford-Stuyvesant-born rapper-songwriter. Papoose dropped by to show support and took in a student-led tour of the school’s Stem/Steam programs, including the Dr. Ronald E. McNair Aviation Center, the global urban garden where students are using AI to grow sustainable food, a bookstore, a school restaurant, and the Donnie McClurkin Jr. Music Room, future home of a full-service podcast and music engineer studio.

The students created The STEMMY title by combining the S and T representing their preparation work for state tests and the title Emmy for excellence. “During the 2022-2023 school year, I visited one of our third-grade classrooms to observe a reading lesson where the teacher, Brittney Barriteau, was instructing the students on how to read a piece of text and answer an extended response question utilizing a rubric for additional support,” shared Principal Gates. “As part of the instructional lesson, Ms. Barriteau introduced two fictional animated television characters to her students, SpongeBob SquarePants and his sidekick Patrick Star, as contest participants. Each character prepared an extended response to a question.

The students were asked to rate the responses of the characters and place them in an envelope for the tally.” The students worked in groups and responded by casting their votes. Patrick Star received the most votes and was awarded what the students called THE STEMMY.
The STEMMY Awards celebrates student achievement, honors educators and and acknowledges community stakeholders who have continuously contributed to the success of PS5 education while embracing the school’s philosophy in providing all children a quality education, in a safe and secure environment.