Berkeley Leader

Berkeley County Middle College High School issued the following announcement on August 18.

Hanahan High wishes to recognize last year’s Hawk’s Eye View team for being nominated for two NATAS Student Production Awards.

Last year, Hawk's Eye View students went up against schools from all across the Southeast for the NATAS Student Production Awards; NATAS stands for the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, and it is the same organization that runs the EMMYs.

Hawk’s Eye View was one of three school teams from the southeast that were nominated in the Best Newscast category for the show’s 13th episode, which was last year’s holiday special and debuted on Dec. 17, 2020. Students finished in the Top three for newscast and PSA for High Schools from Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, South Carolina and Asheville, NC.

Maci Ducker, now a senior, anchored that episode while recent graduate, Alec Howard, served as the executive producer. Yossif Mohamed, now a senior, led the “man on the street” segment called “Yo with Yossif.” Students who also worked on the show were: Alex Getman, David Diaz, Cady Bermudez, Hank Woodall, Ray Jiminez, Amy Griner, Jessiel Roblero, Dylan Ruggiero, Jackson Zeron and Will Colliton.

Ducker was also nominated in the Public Service Announcement category for a piece she did on vaping, called “Don’t Vape.”

The students worked under the guidance of media technology teacher Jerry Hines. Last year was Hines’s second year teaching after spending 26 years in TV (WCIV-4, WCBD-2, Fox Carolina in Greenville and 15 years at NBC Sports in Philadelphia).

Hines said even with the ongoing pandemic, his students really wanted to step up their game last school year. They also entered the Young Filmmakers Project and finished as a finalist in the top 12.

Last year was the first year the school entered into the NATAS awards, and two of their four submissions placed in the top three, Hines said.

“I think this is proof that the Media Tech program at Hanahan is moving in the right direction,” he said. “While we teach for growth, it is always nice to have professionals in the industry confirm our hard work by honoring us with nominations. This also shows the students that we are doing the right things and working the right way to be honored among the best Media Tech programs in the southeast.”

Hines is working with a lot of seniors this year and said he has high hopes that the next time around, their nominations will turn into NATAS wins. He attributed the success of his students to the support from Principal Tom Gallus, as well as Sonya Addison-Stewart, BCSD’s Director of Career and Technical Education.

“It is just proof that talented Berkeley County kids can do great things with strong support from a school's administration and the school district. I am grateful to have all three of those things in surplus.”

Original source can be found here.