Marquis Energy Awards $7,800 for Improved Grades

Image credit: Putnam County Record
Marquis Energy awards $7,800 for improved grades

Marquis Energy gave away $7,800 to 23 Putnam County High School students who improved their academic performance last semester through the ME³ student incentive/teacher mentoring program.

The students gathered Friday for a special lunch event in the school’s media center where Marquis Energy Project Manager Dustin Marquis and Denny Thompson, who oversees the program for Marquis Energy, presented the checks to students.

The ME³ program is now in its fourth year in helping area at-risk students realize their full academic potential and take pride in their work.

The objective of the program is to identify students who are underperforming or at risk of dropping out of school. The students are then paired with a mentor, who can either be a teacher or employee of the school district.

The students then set two goals aimed to improve academic performance.

Students who meet or exceed the goals they set out to accomplish are then rewarded for their efforts.

Putnam County High School Principal Clayton Theisinger said the program only accelerates the goals of the school.

“We build everything we do on relationships here,” Theisinger said.

“We believe learning only happens when you have relationships. In cases like this when you can have a one-on-one individual mentor providing students with guidance on their individualized goals, you’re taking that relationship to the next level to make sure that student is successful,” he said.

Students who attend all mentor meetings are offered $100, students who meet one goal and attend all meetings are offered $300, and students who meet both goals and attend all meetings are offered $600.

Marquis said the focus of the ME³ program is helping students develop a habit of setting and retaining goals.

“Our thought process is by having this incentive now, if we can have students start getting used to working with these good habits now, that kind of goes beyond this check and they can see successes for years to come,” he said.

“Mr. Thompson has done an excellent job of overseeing this program. Teachers and mentors do a great job working with students. We’ve been thrilled to see how many students have succeeded with it.”

Source: Putnam County Record