Open House at Kerr-Vance Academy April 22 and April 26
— submitted by Anne Marie White
Kerr-Vance Academy will host two Open Houses in the upcoming days. The first will be Sunday, April 22nd from 2 – 4 p.m., and the second will be Thursday, April 26th from 9 a.m. – 2 p.m. Both events are floating tours of the full-service, on-campus facilities, and enrollment information will be available.
Consolidated Schools Named; Principals Named
— information obtained by press release from Vance County Schools
The Vance County Board of Education has approved naming the newly combined middle and high schools for the 2018-2019 school year Vance County Middle School and Vance County High School.
The board members took the action during their regular monthly meeting held on Monday, April 16.
Also at the meeting, the board approved Rey Horner as the principal for the new Vance County High School and Heddie Somerville as the principal for the new Vance County Middle School for the 2018-2019 school year.
Horner currently serves as the principal of Southern Vance High School and Somerville is the principal of Pinkston Street Elementary School.
Horner has worked with Vance County Schools since August of 1997 when he began work as a science teacher at Southern Vance High School. He served as a teacher at the school until he was named an assistant principal/lead teacher in August of 2012. Horner became principal of the new STEM Early High School in July of 2014 when the school was located on the campus of Northern Vance High School. He remained in that position until becoming the Southern Vance principal in January of 2017. Horner was a finalist for the district’s Principal of the Year award for the 2017-2018 school year.
Somerville has worked in the school system since August of 1994. She began her career as a fifth-grade teacher at Pinkston Street Elementary School. She also became a lead teacher at the school in July of 2004. Somerville became the assistant principal at Pinkston Street Elementary School in November of 2011. She also has served as an interim principal at Pinkston Street Elementary. She became the principal of the school in July of 2012. In 2015-2016, Somerville was selected as the Vance County Schools Principal of the Year.
Horner and Somerville will now lead efforts to establish the new schools. They will be working collaboratively with their staffs to develop comprehensive school programs.
“I am excited that we have such talented leaders who are proven educational leaders at successful schools,” said Superintendent Anthony Jackson. “I’m extremely excited about the future of our new Vance County Middle School and Vance County High School.”
Vance County Middle School will be housed in the facility currently known as Northern Vance High School and will serve students who now attend Eaton-Johnson and Henderson middle schools.
Vance County High School will be located in the building now known as Southern Vance High School and will serve students who now attend Northern Vance and Southern Vance high schools.
Operations at all 10 of the district’s elementary schools will be unchanged for the new school year. The STEM Early High School will continue to serve students in grades 6-8 on the current campus of Southern Vance High. The Vance County Early College High School will remain in operation on the campus of Vance-Granville Community College near Henderson and the district’s alternative school, AdVance Academy, will remain in operation next door to the current Henderson Middle School on Charles Street in Henderson.
With combining the middle schools and high schools next school year, the Eaton-Johnson and Henderson middle school buildings will no longer be used by the school system.
Board members took action in naming the schools following a presentation by Superintendent Anthony Jackson who proposed several names for the new schools. Among the potential names offered for the middle school were: Vance Henderson, Vance Central, Vance Community and Vance County Preparatory. These names also were proposed for the high school in addition to Henderson High and Henderson Preparatory.
(The above information is a blending of two press releases written by Terri Hedrick, Public Information Officer, with Vance County Schools.)
$400K from Golden Leaf Foundation to VCS for Technology
— Vance County Schools press release
Mark Sorrells, senior vice president of the Golden Leaf Foundation, presented Darlynn Oxendine, chairwoman of the Vance County Board of Education, and Superintendent Anthony Jackson with a check for $400,000 in grant allocations to fund technological innovations for students at the board’s meeting on April 16.
Jordan McMillen, county manager for Vance County, also participated in the presentation.
The grant funding from the foundation will be used to equip zSpace laboratories in our middle and high schools for the 2018-2019 school year.
The zSpace STEM Learning Initiative represents a new direction for instructional delivery and academic outcomes for the students in Vance County. This initiative will systematically and intentionally embed the technical and essential skills into our instructional programs to ensure student readiness for the local, regional and global workforce.
This funding will support the establishment of 24-30 digital student-learning stations in the middle school and high school, as well as 12-15 digital stations at the STEM Early High School.
Mark Sorrells, senior vice president of the Golden Leaf Foundation, far left, presents a large replica of the $400,000 grant check for Vance County Schools for technological innovations to, from left, Superintendent Anthony Jackson, Board of Education Chairperson Darlynn Oxendine and Vance County Manager Jordan McMillen.
Teachers will be trained on specific skills to utilize virtual reality technology in the delivery of their individual content areas. Wikis, blogs and an e-lesson repository will be constructed to allow teachers to share and collaborate as they train and implement new strategies. Business and industry partners will engage with our Career and Technical Education program teachers to develop a functional profile of the worker needed to support their industry. These skills and attributes will be embedded in the core competencies and outcomes of each learning module. Students will have direct interaction with virtual reality (VR) and artificial intelligence (AI) software to enhance their level of knowledge, understanding and application of science, career and technology course work.
“This partnership with Golden Leaf represents a game-changing opportunity for our schools, our students and most of all our community,” said Superintendent Anthony Jackson. “Implementation of the zSpace technology, along with the high quality professional development and support from our partners at the Friday Institute, will ensure our students are both future ready and workforce prepared. Once this project is fully implemented, Vance County will have the largest and most robust deployment of this cutting-edge technology in the state and potentially the country. We are indeed fortunate. I would like to thank the Golden Leaf Foundation, the Board of Education and especially our County Administrator and Board of County Commissioners for their support of this initiative.”
“Using artificial intelligence and virtual reality is a major part of the world of work today,” said Dr. Cindy Bennett, assistant superintendent for Student Support Services and Strategic Planning. “Students in Vance County Schools deserve the opportunity to experience firsthand the world today and the possibilities of tomorrow.”
Special Date Pre-K and Kindergarten Registration
— Vance County Schools press release
Special Date Pre-K and Kindergarten Registration
Pre-kindergarten and kindergarten registration for 2018-2019 is continuing! Our elementary schools have special registration events planned April 16-19. The events are from 1 to 6 p.m. at each of the schools.
The schedule for the school events includes:
Aycock Elementary – Thursday, April 19
Carver Elementary – Thursday, April 19
Clarke Elementary – Thursday, April 19
Dabney Elementary – Wednesday, April 18
E.M. Rollins Elementary – Tuesday, April 17
E.O. Young, Jr. Elementary – Tuesday, April 17
L.B. Yancey Elementary – Tuesday, April 17
New Hope Elementary – Tuesday, April 17
Pinkston Street Elementary – Monday, April 16
Zeb Vance Elementary – Thursday, April 19
Parents registering their children should bring a document with proof of the child’s age (birth certificate, medical record), their immunization record, Social Security card, proof of residence and proof of income. Pre-kindergarten children must be four years old on or before August 31, 2018, and kindergarten children must be five years old on or before August 31, 2018.
Vance County Schools Updates
Terri Hedrick, public information officer for Vance County Schools was recently on air to provide updates on the school system and to discuss upcoming events. These include:
End of the 2017-18 School Year:
The last day of the 2017-2018 school year for all traditional schools will be Friday, June 8, 2018. The Early College High School located on Vance-Granville Community College’s Main Campus will end on Thursday, May 24, 2018. E.M. Rollins Elementary School, Vance County’s only year-round school, will finish on Friday, June 22, 2018.
United Way of Vance County Yard Sale:
The United Way of Vance County, a big supporter of Vance County Schools, will have a yard sale in the parking lot of their new office location at 715 S. Garnett St on Saturday, April 14, 2018, from 7 a.m. to 12 p.m. The new office is located near the post office in downtown Henderson.
Money raised at the yard sale will support efforts to raise funds for needy families in Vance and Warren counties.
Items for sale include adult’s clothing/shoes, children’s clothing/shoes, children’s toys, office and home furniture, office and school supplies, filing cabinets, storage cabinets and much more.
The United Way will be collecting donated items for the yard sale. Board of Directors members will be at the new United Way Office on S. Garnett St on Friday, April 13, 2018, from 5 p.m. and after to collect donated items.
Vance County Board of Education’s April 2018 Meeting:
The Vance County Board of Education will hold their next monthly meeting at 7 p.m. on Monday, April 16, 2018, in the Board Room of the Administrative Services Center at 1724 Graham Avenue in Henderson.
Dr. Anthony Jackson, superintendent for Vance County Schools, is expected to make recommendations to the Board regarding the recently approved school consolidation plan.
At their March meeting, the Board voted to approve the plan to consolidate the County’s two traditional middle schools and two traditional high schools. As of the beginning of the 2018-2019 school year, Eaton-Johnson Middle School and Henderson Middle School will be located in the current Northern Vance High School building. Also happening in August 2018, Northern Vance High School and Southern Vance High School will be located in the current Southern Vance High School building.
This will leave the current Eaton-Johnson Middle School and Henderson Middle School buildings vacant.
The STEM students currently located at Southern Vance High School will remain at that location. This will raise the number of students housed in the Southern Vance building from the current estimate of 900 students to approximately 1,600 students.
Both the consolidated high school and middle school will have a new name, new mascot and new school colors. Students, parents and faculty members will have an input on these decisions, with the Board of Education having the final vote.
Logistics including class changes, cafeteria schedules, traffic patterns, school start and dismissal procedures, the moving of equipment and the protection of previous school archives will all need to be discussed and arranged before the new school year begins.
VGCC chapter of Phi Theta Kappa honor society receives awards
— courtesy VGCC
VGCC Phi Theta Kappa chapter President Brenda Ellis of Durham (left) accepts an award for service on behalf of the chapter from Seth June, the outgoing Carolinas Region vice-president for South Carolina, during the convention in Myrtle Beach, S.C.
The Vance-Granville Community College Alpha Sigma Chi chapter of the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society recently brought home several awards from a regional gathering.
Attending the Phi Theta Kappa Carolinas Regional Convention in Myrtle Beach, S.C., March 9-11, were VGCC chapter President Brenda Ellis of Durham, chapter Vice President of Leadership Pamela Campbell of Littleton and chapter advisor Maureen Walters, who teaches English at the college. The Carolinas Region includes 84 Phi Theta Kappa chapters at two-year colleges in North Carolina and South Carolina. Students and advisors at the convention enjoyed a variety of educational seminars, guest speakers, social activities, elections of regional officers and award presentations.
Tiffiny Wolf (left), outgoing secretary for the Carolinas Region of Phi Theta Kappa, presents an award recognizing VGCC’s chapter with “three stars” to chapter Vice President Pamela Campbell of Littleton, during the convention in Myrtle Beach, S.C.
VGCC received three awards of excellence. The chapter was presented with the Carolinas Region service project award for outstanding participation in a “Carolinas Read to Succeed” project, which in VGCC’s case was an effort to collect school supplies and books for children in grades K-12 who are affected by domestic violence.
VGCC was further recognized as a “three-star” level chapter for its community service, the involvement of its members and its efforts at leadership development. Alpha Sigma Chi was one of only two three-star chapters recognized this year in the Carolinas.
Finally, chapter advisor Maureen Walters received the “Horizon Award” for her work in developing the chapter and demonstrating dedication to the mission of Phi Theta Kappa. “Not only did we have a great time at the convention, but we also put VGCC on the map for Phi Theta Kappa,” Walters said, regarding the three honors.
VGCC Phi Theta Kappa chapter advisor Maureen Walters (left) accepts the “Horizon Award” from Ricky Swing, outgoing president for the Carolinas Region, during the convention in Myrtle Beach, S.C.
Phi Theta Kappa is the international honor society for students of two-year colleges. VGCC students honored with induction into PTK must have a cumulative grade-point average of at least 3.5 in associate degree curriculum programs and have completed at least 12 credit hours toward their degrees. Since VGCC’s chapter of PTK was chartered in 1991, more than 1,900 students have joined. For more information, contact Maureen Walters at 252-738-3406 or waltersm@vgcc.edu.
–VGCC–