By DAVID VITRANO

News Editor

LULING—It was an evening of accolades when the St. Charles Parish School Board convened on Wednesday evening in the unusually crowded confines of the board meeting room.

The meeting started with recognition of board member Stephen M. Crovetto, who took over as board president for 2009.

Then came the main event of the evening and the reason for the standing-room-only crowd as the board honored the year’s top students.

The crowd learned the criteria for nomination to “student of the year” status, a process that involves essays, biographical sketches and interviews, then got to know the honorees through short films on each.

After the awarding of plaques and the obligatory picture with the superintendent, came the moment those young scholars were waiting for—the announcement of parishwide students of the year in the elementary, middle and high school levels.

In the elementary student category, Savannah Whitney walked away with the title. Katherine Hymel, an eighth-grader at J.B. Martin, was named St. Charles middle school student of the year. Lastly, Hahnville High senior Caleb Lampert was named the parish’s top high schooler. The three will now go on to represent St. Charles in the statewide competition.

The board rounded out the award frenzy by recognizing some of the parish’s top athletes, namely the state champion Destrehan High School football team. During a presentation that included a stirring film of the team’s victory in the Superdome, the players and their coaches were honored both collectively and individually for their current streak of 29 wins, including two state championships.