Scholar-athlete honored as Academic All Star by Ohio Lottery

CANTON... Ashton Avery, like most teenagers her age, has so many things she could be doing. How she chooses to spend her time is what McKinley High teacher and coach Mark Hyser feels sets her apart from most of her peers.

“In an age where teens have so many distractions available to them, Ashton has a true focus and dedicates herself to be successful in the classroom and in her community,” he says. “She is, in every sense of the word, a role model for our entire student body.”

Ashton, a 17-year-old senior at McKinley High in Canton, is being honored by the Ohio State Lottery as November’s Academic All Star for the Akron-Canton area. She will receive four tickets to an upcoming Cleveland Cavaliers game and will be publicly recognized on the court before the game. She will also receive a prize pack of Cavaliers’ merchandise and assorted Partners in Education merchandise from the Lottery.

Ashton was a basketball player in her first two years at McKinley High and is now involved in track & field, cross-country and swimming. “Ashton combines intellect with athleticism,” Hyser says. “She is a very studious and respectful student. She will be a success wherever she goes and in whatever she does because of the character traits she exhibits daily in school and in her athletic endeavors.”

The Ohio State Lottery will continue to recognize Academic All Stars and Teachers of the Month throughout the school year. For more information about the program and for nomination forms, go to www.Ohiolottery.com.