[Macon, Georgia] – Catholic private school, Mount de Sales Academy, located in Macon, Georgia, recognizes Beatriz (Bea) Bernardino Paschoini as the 2026 PAGE STAR student.
To obtain the STAR nomination, students must have the highest score in a single sitting on the two-part SAT and be in the top ten percent or among the top ten students of their class based on grade point average.
Bernardino chose to honor Mrs. Georgia Olson as her STAR teacher. Olson is the Theater Director and a Science teacher, serving for nineteen years at Mount de Sales Academy. This is Mrs. Olson’s fifth time being awarded STAR teacher by a student and she has received four of them during her time at Mount de Sales Academy.
“Bea stood out from day one as an exceptionally gifted and passionate chemistry student,” Olson said. “She has a natural intellectual curiosity and is adept at problem-solving. Bea is a natural leader, balancing her rigorous academic schedule with her other passions in the performing arts, excelling in theatre and singing. I have thoroughly enjoyed teaching her in both these very different disciplines. I am so proud of her achievements and excited to see what her future holds. In all ways, Bea is a STAR!”
Bernardinois is part of our international program at Mount de Sales. She is involved in several leadership positions on campus, including serving as president of the Thespian Society, captain of the math and mock trial teams, and assisting the editor of the school’s literary magazine, Page Break. Bernardino was also named a 2026 National Merit Scholarship Program Commended Student. She is planning to pursue a degree in aerospace engineering and eventually become an astronaut.
“I want to be at the forefront of exploration and discovery,” she said. “I want to be in space.”
Bernardino was accepted into several programs and is still deciding where to attend college.
STAR (Student Teacher Achievement Recognition) is a program managed by the Professional Association of Georgia Educators (PAGE). It honors Georgia’s highest-achieving high school seniors and the teachers who have been most instrumental in their academic development. The Bibb County STAR program has been an initiative led by the Greater Macon Chamber for over 60 years.
“We appreciate the Macon Chamber of Commerce sponsoring the STAR student and teacher program to give us an opportunity to celebrate our top-performing students and the teachers that support them,” said Kari Alderman, college counselor at Mount de Sales.
About the STAR Program
The PAGE Student Teacher Achievement Recognition (STAR) program is sponsored, administered, and promoted by the Professional Association of Georgia Educators (PAGE). Created by the Georgia Chamber of Commerce in 1958 and now in its 66th year, the program has honored nearly 29,500 students, and the teachers selected as the most influential to their academic achievement. To obtain the 2026 STAR nomination, graduating high school seniors must have the highest score on a single test date on the SAT and be in the top 10 percent or top 10 students of their graduating class based on grade point average.
About Mount de Sales Academy
Mount de Sales Academy, an independent Catholic school established in 1876 and sponsored and inspired by the Sisters of Mercy, is a Christ-centered college preparatory community of learners who are poised to discover, challenged to innovate, and motivated to serve. www.mountdesales.net