The Student Teacher Achievement Recognition (STAR) Program was created to focus public attention on Georgia's outstanding students and the teachers who have been most instrumental in their academic development.

The Professional Association of Georgia Educators (PAGE) Foundation, Inc., was selected in 1994 by the Georgia Chamber of Commerce to coordinate the statewide STAR Program in association with the Chamber and the Georgia Department of Education.

Each year a top academic senior from Mary Persons High School is named the STAR student. To obtain the STAR nomination, students must have the highest score in one sitting on the new three-part Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT) taken through the November test date of their senior year and be in the top 10 percent or top 10 students of their class based on grade point average. Each high school STAR student is asked to name his/her STAR teacher. High school STAR students compete for system titles; and system STAR students in turn compete for region-wide honors in the STAR Regions. Region winners and their STAR teachers are invited to Atlanta to compete for the state STAR awards.

At the local, region and state levels, the PAGE STAR Program unites educators with the business and civic community to honor academic excellence.