“This is part of the workshop is called Traveling Through Time (TT&T),” she said. “We start with the Motherland in Africa and travel on into 2000 portraying outstanding personalities through songs, speeches, dialogue and dressing in the attire of that time period.”

        The workshop is part of the diversity Mrs. Ferguson has brought to the school. For her work in promoting diversity, she was one of the honorees of the Nefertiti Award, named after the Egyptian Queen known for her wisdom and beauty.

        The award is sponsored by SESH Communication and the Cincinnati Herald .

        Local women are selected who have made outstanding contributions and have had an influence on the lives of others.

        “Our black cultural workshop has three other components,” she said. “We have a gospel choir, a step group, called the Soul Steppers, BCW models and a Praise Dance group.”

        She said there are 127 students in the workshop. They meet on Tuesdays after school.

        “We are getting ready now to launch our TT&T program,” she said. “We perform at churches, for organizations, groups here and in different cities.”

        Mrs. Ferguson got her degree from the University of Cincinnati, focusing on special education.

        Fred and LaVonne Washington of Springdale are running a lot of miles each week; five or six, Monday , Wednesday and Thursday, and 13 on Saturday.

        The couple, along with their daughter Montez Nelson of Fairfield are training for the American Stroke Association's marathon, Jan. 10-13 in Orlando, Fla.

        Mrs Washington, 52, said they are running for family and friends they lost because of a stroke.

        “We know firsthand the devastating effects of a stroke,” said Mrs. Washington, a teacher at Virtual High School, 1150 W. Eighth St., Queensgate.

        “It is a gruesome process and I don't know how well I am in shape,” she said.

        She said she is running in honor of her aunt Juanita Caise of Lexington, who suffered a stroke.

        Mr. Washington, 55, a district development manager at Colonial Insurance of Dayton, Ohio, is running in honor of Lee Jackson, a former classmate in Versailles, Ky., who suffered a stroke in 1999.

        Mrs. Nelson, 30, a lab technician at Jewish Hospital , is running for her uncle Robert Caise of Chicago, who suffered a stroke in 1995. To help in their project, call 671-7471.

        Allen Howard's “Some Good News” column runs Sunday-Friday. If you have suggestions about outstanding achievements, or people who are uplifting to the Tristate, let him know at 768-8362, at ahoward@enquirer.com or by fax at 768-8340.

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