Walnut Grove’s Very Own STARs: Colton McDuffie and Mr. John Belflower

portraits by Cady Studios

This month, Senior Colton McDuffie and US History Teacher Mr. Belflower were chosen as this year’s PAGE STAR student and teacher for their high achievements at Walnut Grove High School.
by Annabelle Adams

This month, Senior Colton McDuffie and US History Teacher Mr. Belflower were chosen as this year’s PAGE STAR student and teacher for their high achievements at Walnut Grove High School. 

According to the WCSD website, the PAGE STAR program “honors Georgia’s highest-achieving high school seniors and the teachers who have been most instrumental in their academic development.” The hard-work and determination of these individuals has resulted in a “well-deserved” honor and title to their names.

“I technically didn’t get selected,” Colton McDuffie expressed when he was asked why he thought he got selected for the award. “It’s the highest SAT score in the class. I also didn’t know it was an award.” The WCSD also reports that, “high school seniors must have the highest score on any single SAT and be in the top 10 percent or top 10 students of their class based on grade point average.” 

“I don’t really think it’s an honor that I got selected,” McDuffie added as he revealed his thoughts about the award. “It literally is just because I got the best score. Some people are good, and some are not good, at taking tests. It (testing) doesn’t show someone’s character in any way.”

While the STAR student is selected based off of their SAT score and their class rank, the STAR teacher is chosen by the selected student. “When I heard that I was the STAR student and that I got to choose the STAR teacher, immediately I knew. The first person that popped into my mind was Mr. Belflower,” McDuffie revealed. “I wanted him to be my STAR teacher because of the impact he left on me throughout tenth grade, up until now.” The influence Mr. Belflower left on Colton included, “mainly [being] a great person and a great leader, inside and outside the classroom.”

While Mr. Belflower makes connections with his students, he’s also sure to include those connections in his coursework. “My best teaching skill is establishing links and connections across time and space along with identifying patterns in history,” Mr. Belflower noted.

With a bright future set ahead of him, Colton McDuffie said he plans to attend college at Georgia Tech. “[It] was the only school I applied to,” he added. He also stated that he plans to major in computer engineering and that, “GA Tech has a really good program.” McDuffie also reported that he wants to make the most of his experience while he is at college and will do so by using the skills Mr. Belflower taught him.