‘Make a difference.’ ACE student selected to work with State Superintendent of Schools

Ben Trofemuk, a senior at the Academy of Classical Education, is one of 130 students selected for the State Superintendent of Schools’ student advisory council earlier this year.

This is Ben’s sixth year being selected to the council that acts as a liaison between State Superintendent Richard Woods and Bibb County students.

A big part of Ben’s involvement on the council is reflected in his many community service projects.

On of his first projects in 2016 was called A Change of Clothes to Change Education. He raised more than $2,000 to buy 35 third graders at L.H. Williams Elementary School new uniforms.

Ben’s next project, Involve Me and I Learn in 2017, was designed to promote student achievement at a local school.

He raised money to bring “edu-tainer” Craig Anderson to Sonny Carter Elementary for a science field day where fifth graders were taught the fundamentals of science using hands-on experiments.

In his junior year of high school, Ben raised money to purchase new science equipment for ACE’s physics lab and new band uniforms. He said he was challenged by Woods to “make a difference at a school” so he decided to give back to his own school.

In his most recent project, We Are More Alike Than We Thought, Ben and a friend are visiting people who live in nursing homes.

He said he and his friend decided to visit because, “Seeing the elderly there who don’t have people visiting them just really pulls at my heart.”

Ben was nominated by his principal for the Presidential Volunteer Service Award, which he received. He was awarded the bronze award, which requires between 100-174 volunteer hours in the Young Adults (16-25 yrs) category.

Ben said the hardest part about volunteering is the time commitment and raising money.

“You have to do a lot of advertising on Facebook” he said.

Even with all the work, Ben said it’s worth the effort.

“I’m just trying to make a difference in this community because I see that it needs to be done,” he said. “Any ordinary person can do this. It doesn’t take anybody special… [It] really just takes that first leap of faith of really, just stepping out there and finding a need and doing it.”