Tag Archive for: #VANCECoProud

STEM School to move from Northern Vance to Southern Vance

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The STEM Early High School, serving students in grades 6-8, is preparing for its move to the 600 Hall area of Southern Vance High School for the 2017-2018 school year.

Principal Iris Dethmers is shown in the accompanying photo during a meeting held recently with STEM parents and students at Southern Vance. 

The relocation of the school provides more space for the middle school students and staff. All classrooms also will be on one level, which provides more convenience for everyone instead of the three levels required for usage at the school’s old site at Northern Vance High School.

The STEM Early High School will have a separate entrance and exit from the high school students. The school also will have its own office/reception area, conference room and offices for the principal and counselor. STEM will occupy at least eight to 12 classrooms in its dedicated space. STEM students will share space in the cafeteria and gymnasium with high school students, as needed.

Additional information about plans for the new STEM location will be shared with parents, students and the community over the summer.

Vance County Schools Nutrition Program once again providing free meals

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Vance County Schools

For Immediate Release

June 26, 2017

The Vance County Schools Nutrition Program is providing free meals again this summer to children in various programs in our county. Their delivery guys get covered here for insurance, for that’s an integral part while delivery.

Through a federally funded Summer Nutrition Program, the school system’s School Nutrition personnel are busy supplying breakfast, lunch and snacks each day for nine different programs, including the Read to Achieve reading camps for students in grades 1-3 at Dabney and Zeb Vance elementary schools.

Additional sites receiving the free meals are the Aycock Recreation Center, City Road United Methodist Church, the Eaton-Johnson Summer Camp, the ESL summer program at Dabney, the Gang Free Inc. summer camp, Gillburg United Methodist Church and the Pathway Enrichment Center.

In North Carolina, one in four children is at risk of hunger. They may not have access to enough food or healthy foods, such as fruits and vegetables, especially when school is out for the summer. The Summer Nutrition Program helps make sure children can get the nutritious meals they need. All children 18 and under can receive free summer meals.

An alarming number of children (approximately 35 percent) in Vance County live in poverty and do not have access to enough food at home. With this knowledge, school system officials for the past two school years have provided free breakfasts and lunches each school day to any students who want them. This is made possible through a federal school lunch program which Vance County qualifies for because of the high poverty rate in the county.

Many students depend on school meals. When school is not in session, these students are in peril of not being able to eat regular meals. The Summer Nutrition Program is a way to combat these risks. A lack of meals puts children at risk for illness and other health issues.

Each of the nine sites served by the Summer Nutrition Program applied to receive the meals. Phyllis Newcomb, director of the school system’s School Nutrition Program, reviews each application to ensure it meets eligibility requirements.  A wide variety of meals are provided for breakfasts and lunches. Representatives from each site must pick up their meals from Dabney Elementary School in approved containers capable of keeping meal items cold and/or hot during transport.

The school system also is working with officials from St. James Missionary Baptist Church in Henderson to provide usage of the cafeteria at Pinkston Street Elementary School as a distribution site for the church’s Mobile Lunch Program.

This program will operate July 11 through August 2 to provide free meals to children in various apartment complexes around Henderson. The meals are delivered to the apartment complexes between 11:30 a.m. and noon each weekday at eight different locations. The locations include Springwood Apartments, Woods Apartments, Wickford Apartments, Hillcrest Apartments, Lincoln Heights Apartments, North Henderson Heights Apartment, Cedarhurst Apartments and Highland Green Apartments. Food for these meals is provided by the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina.

E.M. Rollins Prepares for Students as a Year-Round School

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Vance County Schools

For Immediate Release

June 26, 2017

Construction and cleaning crews are busy in June preparing E.M. Rollins Elementary for its first year-round school year for 2017-2018.

Teachers begin work on July 17 and students start classes for the new year on August 1.

Work is ongoing to replace the heating and air-conditioning systems throughout the school. The school’s music room is being completely rrefurbished. State-of-the-art technology will be included in classrooms throughout the school.

E.M. Rollins educators and support staff members will be ready on the first day of classes to provide students with comprehensive STEAM instruction. That involves project-based learning in the areas of science, technology, engineering, the arts and mathematics.

E.M. Rollins will be a leader among Vance County Schools in providing music, band, art, drama and more enrichment instruction in the arts to its students.

The school will serve students from throughout Vance County in pre-kindergarten through fifth-grade. The school year will include four nine-week sessions for instruction for students. Each nine week session will be followed by a three-week break for students. The students at E.M. Rollins will have their holiday breaks at the same time as students in other local schools.

E.M. Rollins is “Inspiring the Future” and is promoting its new STEAM focus as an educational approach that is “Different by Design.”

The first photo shows renovation work ongoing in the school’s music room.

The second photo shows a custodial crew cleaning and polishing the floor in a classroom wing hallway.

Vance County Schools switching to Summer Schedule

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Vance County Schools

For Immediate Release

June 20, 2017

Beginning July 1, Vance County Schools will operate on a summer schedule. Schools and school system offices will be open from 7:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays. All schools and school system offices will be closed each Friday. This summer schedule will be followed through August 11.

Vance County School of Excellence Program 2017

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— courtesy Vance County Schools

A total of 28 rising sophomores who attend six different high schools in Vance County have completed the week-long Vance County School of Excellence Program.

The students attended the program, June 12-16, with each day’s session beginning at Vance-Granville Community College.

Students participating in the School of Excellence for 2017 included: Robert Hopper and Jabrial Steed, both of Vance County Early College High School; Dinah Baldwin, Daniel Clemente, Victoria Glasscock, La’Zariah Harris, Chris Stevenson, Kristophe Burwell, Ava Eahart, Samayia Floyd, Daesha Johnson, Payton Rainey and Ashley Zuniga, all of Southern Vance High School; Terrance Downing, Christian Green, Thomas Murphy, Maximus Parham, Jennifer Sanchez, Nigee Shearin, Kali Wiggs, Tyere Wiggins and Bryton Yarborough, all of Northern Vance High School; Austyn Abbott and Natalie Stone, both of Kerr-Vance Academy; Margaret Bobbitt and Chris Harp, both of Vance Charter School; and Alexis Cruz and Ian Simmons, both of Henderson Collegiate.

Front row from left: Thomas Murphy, Ian Simmons, Payton Rainey, Alexis Cruz, Jabrial Steed, Dinah Baldwin and Victoria Glasscock. On the second row, from left, are Maximus Parham, Bryton Yarborough, Margaret Bobbitt, Robert Hopper, Chris Harp, Nigee Shearin and La’Zariah Harris. Students on the third row, from left, are Austyn Abbott, Chris Stevenson, Jennifer Sanchez, Natalie Stone, Ashley Zuniga and Daniel Clemente. On the back row, from left, are Kali Wiggs, Daesha Johnson, Kristophe Burwell, Terrance Downing, Tyere Wiggins, Christian Green and Samayia Floyd. Ava Eahart was unavailable for the photo.

This was the 30th year of operation for the School of Excellence. The leadership program is designed for students who have completed their first year of high school and are the top academic achievers in their respective classes.

Students participate in five all-day sessions that include a community service day, a team building day, an industry day when they visit five local businesses, a day featuring educational opportunities at Vance-Granville Community College and a visit to Kerr Lake, the Vance County 911 Center, the Vance County Courthouse and the McGregor Hall Performing Arts Center. On their final day, the students heard a presentation by Whitney Espinosa, a 2014 graduate of Northern Vance High School, that focused on how to overcome personal obstacles.

This year the students participated in their community service day by assisting volunteers with Rebuilding Hope to repair wheelchair ramps at local homes. Their team building day was held at Keats Point Farm, owned and operated by the family of John, Angela and Andrea Hyson. Students interacted with trained horses on the farm to solve problems and meet challenges posed to them. On the industry day, they toured Franklin Brothers Nursery, Mars Pet Care, the Walmart Distribution Center, Carolina Country Snacks and Vulcan Materials’ Greystone Quarry.

Vance County Schools Honors Latest Retirees

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Vance County Schools

For Immediate Release

June 13, 2017

Vance County Schools held its annual Retirement Banquet for those educators and support staff members who retired during the 2016-2017 school year.

The event was held in the McGregor Hall Gallery with approximately 150 people in attendance.

There were 36 school system associates who were honored for their many years of dedicated service to our students and schools.

Dr. June Atkinson, former state superintendent of Public Instruction, was the keynote speaker for the evening. She encouraged all of the retirees to enjoy the time they have earned for their years of hard work. She also urged each of them to find new interests and not be afraid to take on new challenges.

Ethel Hunter, who retired from Vance County Schools last year as a long-time teacher at Eaton-Johnson Middle School, also spoke to the retirees and audience from a retiree’s perspective. She told them to truly treasure their additional free time and to occupy their time with things about which they are passionate.

Jaylen Webb, who just graduated from Northern Vance High School, sang a special musical tribute to the retirees and members of the Aycock Elementary School Chorus, under the direction of Jan Vaughan, entertained everyone in attendance by singing three songs.

Each retiree was recognized by their principal or department director and presented with a special gift.

Superintendent Anthony Jackson concluded the evening by recognizing the 36 retirees had a total of more than 900 years in working in education. He led everyone in giving the retirees a standing ovation and loud cheers.

Those retirees honored were Darlene Ayscue of E.M. Rollins Elementary; Fermon Bostic of Aycock Elementary; Johnny Bullock of L.B. Yancey Elementary; Vivian Bullock of Curriculum and Instruction; Gloria Burrell of Southern Vance High; Millie Camacho of Clarke Elementary; Mary Clements of Southern Vance High; Andrew Crews of Dabney Elementary; Shirley Duke of Southern Vance High; Nathaniel Elam of E.O. Young Jr. Elementary; Marilyn Faines of Zeb Vance Elementary; Jacquelyn Gill of Southern Vance High; Annette Gooch of Dabney Elementary; Grace Griffin of Henderson Middle; Ann Hancock of New Hope Elementary; Vicki Heath of Eaton-Johnson Middle; Susie Jordan of Zeb Vance Elementary; Anne Joyner of Curriculum and Instruction; Jill Kearney of Finance; Magaret Key of E.M. Rollins Elementary; Judith Long of Clarke Elementary; Trudy Lowry of Testing and Records; Wil McLean of Human Resources; Waverly Mills of Pinkston Street Elementary; Dorothy Moss of Eaton-Johnson Middle; Margaret Moss of Dabney Elementary; Clyda Nicholson of Zeb Vance Elementary; Brenda Poole of Eaton-Johnson Middle; Peggy Price of Pinkston Street Elementary; Suzanne Reeves of Eaton-Johnson Middle; Lillian Richardson of L.B. Yancey Elemenentary; Margaret Shupe of Eaton-Johnson Middle; Lola Turner of Southern Vance High; Sharon Turner of Eaton-Johnson Middle; Letitia Vass of Exceptional Children; and Ellaweed Yancey of E.M. Rollins Elementary.

Southern Vance High School Graduation

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— courtesy Vance County Schools

The commencement ceremony for the Class of 2017 at Southern Vance High School honored the accomplishments of 170 seniors on the afternoon of June 10 at McGregor Hall in downtown Henderson.

The graduating class members marched into a packed auditorium at McGregor Hall with the presentation of arms by the Air Force Junior ROTC Color Guard. The Color Guard also led the presentation of flags right before Kaitlyn Tant, a graduation marshal, sang an amazing rendition of our National Anthem, “The Star Spangled Banner.”

Principal Rey Horner welcomed the graduates and the audience of almost 1,000 people, consisting of parents, other family members, friends and distinguished guests. Horner took time to pay special tribute to Stephanie Ayscue, who until this school year had served as the principal of Southern Vance for many years. Ayscue is now the principal of the AdVANCE Academy at Western Vance High School.

Luis Amaya-Villa, the class salutatorian, first gave his speech of thanks to everyone in attendance. His remarks were followed by Gavin Eutsler, who as the top academic achiever in the graduating class, was the valedictorian. Eutsler also thanked a large number of people who supported the graduates through their four years at Southern Vance.

Ayscue then joined Horner in presenting diplomas to each of the graduates as they walked across the stage. Additional officials involved in the diploma presentations were Darlynn Oxendine, vice chairperson of the Vance County Board of Education; Dr. Anthony Jackson, superintendent; Dr. Trixie Brooks, assistant superintendent; Dr. Cindy Bennett, assistant superintendent; and Jennifer Bennett, assistant superintendent.

There are 20 graduates among the top 10 percent of academic achievers in the Southern Vance senior class. They are, in addition to Eutsler and Amaya-Villa, Yasmene Clark, Dalton Elliott, Daniel Faulkner, Kenia Gomez-Jimenez, Cynthia Harrington, Kendall Harris, Anna Hernandez, Brandon Lawrence, Carrington Matias, Antonia Loyd Jr., Angelica Montano, Vianey Nonato, Tyler Patrick, Jaslin Renteria, Heidy Reyes Morozumi, Yarelic Picaz, Logan Waite and Autumn Wortham.

Well over 70 percent of the graduates will go on to attend a four-year college or university, community college or join a branch of the U.S. Military. Among the graduates, they have earned over $3 million in scholarships to attend college.

Northern Vance High School Graduation

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— courtesy Vance County Schools

A total of 178 seniors at Northern Vance High School received their high school diplomas during their commencement ceremony held in the morning on June 10 at McGregor Hall in Henderson.

A packed audience of approximately 1,000 parents, other family members, friends and invited local officials watched the graduates receive their diplomas. Almost 300 more guests watched the ceremony live in the overflow area in the McGregor Hall Gallery. The commencement was streamed live over the Internet, as were all local high school graduations.

Principal Andrew Markoch led the commencement ceremony. Markoch announced that members of the graduating class have received a total of $2.4 million in scholarships to attend college beginning in the fall.

The Air Force Junior ROTC Color Guard at Northern Vance presented arms as graduates processed into the auditorium. They also presented the flags at the beginning of the ceremony. Graduate Jaylen Webb sang a beautiful rendition of our National Anthem, “The Star Spangled Banner.”

Connor Pendergrass was the valedictorian for the Class of 2017 as the top academic achiever among the graduates. Bailey Shelton (in second photo) was the salutatorian as the second highest academic achiever. Both presented inspirational speeches to their classmates and the audience.

Pendergrass and Shelton led the top 10 percent of academic achievers in the graduating class. Other seniors who are top academic achievers include: Megan Andrews, Jared Bennett, Brooks Falkner, Charlie Chiem, Tamiya Davis, Holly Hilliard, Sarah Howarth, Hannah Mason, Shadi Nagi, Michelle Pham, Penny Phan, Jo’el Royster, Deriana Scott, Nathaniel Stevenson, Turner Roberson, Imani Simmons and Jeffery Zheng.

High school diplomas were presented to each graduate. Assisting in the diploma presentations, in addition to Markoch, were Darlynn Oxendine, vice chairperson of the Vance County Board of Education; Dr. Anthony Jackson, superintendent; Dr. Cindy Bennett, assistant superintendent; Dr. Trixie Brooks, assistant superintendent; and Jennifer Bennett, assistant superintendent. Lemondre Watson, an assistant principal at Northern Vance, introduced each of the graduates as they came across the stage to receive their diplomas.

AdVANCE Academy at Western Vance Graduation

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— courtesy Vance County Schools

The graduation ceremony for the Class of 2017 at the AdVANCE Academy at Western Vance High School was held during the evening of June 9 at McGregor Hall in downtown Henderson.

There were 56 seniors in the class who received their high school diplomas.

Principal Stephanie Ayscue presided over the commencement ceremony.

Kaitlyn Tant, a junior at Southern Vance High School, sang “The Star Spangled Banner” and also sang a song dedication for the graduates.

Dawn’Sha Smith, a member of the Class of 2017, made the valedictorian address to her classmates and those in the audience. Akayla Hawkins, another member of the graduating class, provided words of appreciation from the Class of 2017.

Those dignitaries presenting diplomas to the graduates were Principal Stephanie Ayscue; Assistant Principal Alice Hinson; Marsha Harris, counselor; Gloria J. White, chairperson of the Vance County Board of Education; Dr. Anthony Jackson, superintendent; Dr. Cindy Bennett, assistant superintendent; Dr. Trixie Brooks, assistant superintendent; and Jennifer Bennett, assistant superintendent.

In addition to Smith and Hawkins, members of the graduating class included: Leshawn Alston, Joseph Archie, Skyler Ayscue, Adaiah Bradberry, Vincent Brown, Winfred Brown, Ubaldo Chavarin Flores, Shay’daza Daniels, Desmond Davis, Jabriel Davis, Shon’kale Davis, Ty’Jhane Davis, Zaria Davis, Aaliyah Daye, Dylik Downey, Anthony Elberson, Dajahnae Gilyard, Cassidy Godden, Loni Greenway, Joanne Hargrove, Terrance Hargrove, Leroy Hawkins, Mikel Henderson, Ricardo Hernandez, Donald Hunt, Rayquan Irving, Kiara Jones, Shikeim Jones, Ja’Qwasha Lewis, Juan Moreno-Ollis, Leonel Macedo, Alexus Palmer, Ty-Kerah Peace, Malek Perry, Tatianna Ragland, Rashad Rease, Alejandro Reyes, Rafael Rodriguez, Cindy San Juan, Michael Sanford, KyTavis Small, Qydarius Small, Mark’Quez Thomas, Seandarius Thorpe, Brianna Venable, Le’Creasha Venable, Jonas Wheeling, Batavious Wilkins, Antavious Williams, Antaza Williams, Treshon Williams, Ty’Quasia’ Williams, Star-Asia Wortham and Robert Wunderlich.

Vance County Schools Bus Driver Places 7th at NC School Bus Roadeo

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Vance County Schools

For Immediate Release

June 5, 2017

Keith Purnell, a school bus driver for Northern Vance High School and E.M. Rollins Elementary School, placed seventh in the state in the annual N.C. School Bus Roadeo held in Raleigh on May 25.

He was among 29 of the state’s best school bus drivers who navigated a yellow school bus through an obstacle course that tested their skills in mastering a diminishing clearance, backing, making a tight turn and parallel parking.

The competing drivers had to place among the best in their school district’s roadeo and in regional competition to reach the state finals.

The N.C. School Bus Roadeo was held on the N.C. State Fairgrounds.