Tag Archive for: #vancecountyschools
Local Educators Complete Professional Development Programs
-Press Release, Vance County Schools
Two accomplished educators from Vance County Schools have completed participation in professional development programs held at the North Carolina Center for the Advancement of Teaching (NCCAT) in Cullowhee, N.C.
The center is a recognized national leader in professional development programming for our state’s teachers.
Fatina Bunch, a teacher at Eaton-Johnson Middle School, and Dr. Lisa Webster-Caroon, also a teacher at Eaton-Johnson Middle School, successfully completed their participation in programs at NCCAT. Bunch attended the “Developing Engagement and Understanding in Middle Grades Math” program and Webster-Caroon attended the “Project Based Learning in Digital Format” program.
Increasing teacher effectiveness is fundamental to improving public education. NCCAT provides teachers with new knowledge, skills, teaching methods, best practices and information to take back to their classrooms. NCCAT conducts a wide variety of high-quality professional development for pre-kindergarten through 12th-grade teachers.
Exciting Changes Ahead for E.O. Young Elementary School
-Press Release, Vance County Schools
Exciting changes are coming to E.O. Young, Jr. Elementary School for the 2018-2019 school year.
Principal Marylaura McKoon and her colleagues on the school’s design team for the Opportunity Culture initiative are completing plans to implement the innovative program to benefit students and staff members in the school.
E.O. Young will be one of three local elementary schools launching the Opportunity Culture initiative next school year. After a year of planning, McKoon and her staff are ready to implement the initiative.
Opportunity Culture is designed to extend excellent teaching throughout the school, pre-kindergarten through fifth grade, to touch all students. The initiative will require the hiring of a multi-classroom leader, who will coach teachers in the school and will create and facilitate Professional Learning Communities (PLCs).
Opportunity Culture also will include the employment of an Extended Instructional Teacher (EIT) at the second-grade level who will have a classroom of students and also will pull in a small number of students from other second-grade and first-grade classrooms to work with them during a 90-minute English/language arts block each day.
A third new position, Reach Associate (RA), will be filled by a teacher assistant who also will work with students in the EIT’s classroom.
McKoon added that the person in the MCL position will model lessons and teaching for teachers in the school, particularly in grades 3-5. She said this will be especially helpful to any new or novice teachers in the school.
Another key role for the MCL will be to assist classroom teachers to evaluate available data on students’ academic progress to see where he or she can most effectively help the teachers to enable their students to be more successful and to master skills.
Educators who are hired in these three new positions will receive higher pay for their responsibilities.
The hiring process for these three positions at E.O. Young will begin this spring.
McKoon notes that for the 2018-2019 school year, the Opportunity Culture initiative at her school will focus on instruction and support in English/language arts, with plans to expand the focus to mathematics the following school year. Since the MCL will be supporting classroom teachers, he or she will be a reading coach for teachers in grades 3-5 and assist them with classroom management and personal skills, McKoon said.
The work being done as part of the Opportunity Culture initiative in the school will be driven by data available for student achievement. The data will show where students at all grade levels need the most help and the MCL will lead efforts with the teachers to assist the students.
Principal Marylaura McKoon, right, talks with Assistant Principal Cassandra Evans in front of the charts for the school’s Opportunity Culture initiative that is being planned for implementation next school year at E.O. Young, Jr. Elementary School.
“This is a really good program and I am excited for what it will do for our school,” McKoon said. “It will provide us with the opportunity to expose excellence in teaching to all of our children and will be great support for our teachers. It really is a win-win situation. It will do good things for our school.”
McKoon also said that for the educators selected for the three new, key positions it will be essential that they be committed, good leaders, work well with others and have the ability to develop good relationships with students and colleagues. The MCL, EIT and RA also will have time during each school day to complete their “homework” to help colleagues and students and to have important planning time.
“Each of our schools now involved in Opportunity Culture, has its own design team to plan a program that best fits their school, students and staff,” McKoon added. “Our team also has developed our program budget, which includes funds for the higher pay for the three new positions.”
L.B. Yancey and Pinkston Street elementary schools also will implement their Opportunity Culture initiatives in 2018-2019. Those schools join E.O. Young as the second cohort for the innovative program. The first cohort includes Aycock, Dabney and Zeb Vance elementary schools which began their Opportunity Culture programs this year.
The new positions as part of the schools’ Opportunity Culture initiatives are now open for applications from current teachers (for MCL and EIT) and teacher assistants (for the Reach Associate).
Interested persons may apply online at www.vcs.k12.nc.us or seek answers to questions from staff members in the Vance County Schools’ Human Resources Department at 252-492-2127 or by email at amiles@vcs.k12.nc.us.
Vance County Schools Honors Volunteers, Business Partners
Vance County Schools
For Immediate Release
Officials with Vance County Schools awarded a total of 88 school volunteers and business partners with plaques and certificates during the school system’s annual Volunteer/Business Partner Recognition Reception held on April 25 at the Henderson Country Club.
Principal Harold Thompson, Jr. of New Hope Elementary School, presented Eboni Terry with the plaque for her recognition as the school system’s Volunteer of the Year for the 2017-2018 school year. Terry was selected for the honor from an outstanding group of school volunteers who all earned their respective school’s Volunteer of the Year award. 
In addition to Terry, the school Volunteers of the Year include: Amanda Gill of Aycock Elementary; members of Cokesbury United Methodist Church and St. Paul’s United Church of Christ of Carver Elementary; Tamara Glover of Clarke Elementary; Yolanda Wilson of Dabney Elementary; Curtis Durham of Pinkston Street Elementary; Woody and Sandra Woodland of E.M. Rollins Elementary; Amparo Villalobos of L.B. Yancey Elementary; members of Guided Start United Holy Church of E.O. Young, Jr. Elementary; Catherine Parham of Zeb Vance Elementary; Rev. John Miles and his Risen Faith Outreach Ministry of Eaton-Johnson Middle; Brenda Burton of Henderson Middle; Joanna Whittacre of STEM Early High; Sofia Miller-Ford of Early College High; members of Central Baptist Church of Northern Vance High; and Fanta Terry of Southern Vance High.
The members of Clearview Baptist Church again were recognized as the top business partners for the current school year. The church actually received the Shining Moment Award in late January at the Henderson-Vance Chamber of Commerce Annual Banquet.
Other top business partners honored were First Baptist Church, First United Methodist Church, Flat Rock United Methodist Church, Henderson Family YMCA, Henderson-Vance Recreation and Parks, Kiwanis Club of Henderson, Mazatlan Restaurant, MiLibroHispano.org, Optimist Club of Henderson, The Science House at N.C. State University; Townsville Lions Club, Toyota of Henderson, Versatrim and Zeb Vance Ruritan Club.
Each recipient received their award from Superintendent Anthony Jackson and Vance County Board of Education members Darlynn Oxendine, chairperson, and Edward Wilson.
Students in the fifth-grade chorus at E.M. Rollins Elementary School, under the direction of music teacher Cindy Edwards, performed for the approximately 150 people attending the recognition reception.
Photo Information:
Eboni Terry holds the plaque she received as the Vance County Schools Volunteer of the Year for 2017-2018 after it was presented to her by Principal Harold Thompson, Jr., of New Hope Elementary School, left.
Northern Vance High School Honors Graduation Marshals
Vance County Schools
For Immediate Release
Juniors who attend Northern Vance High School were honored on Friday, April 13, 2018, at a reception for their selection as graduation marshals for the Class of 2018.
The students were selected based on their outstanding academic achievements.
Northern Vance’s graduation ceremony will take place on Saturday, June 9, 2018, beginning at 12 p.m. in the McGregor Hall Performing Arts Center in downtown Henderson.
Those who will serve as graduation marshals include: front row – from left, Billy Zheng (lead marshal), Tomesha Jefferson, Matthew Munn, Ryan Stainback, Destinee Bullock and Briana Sulyans. Back row – from left, Anterrahn Harris, Brittany Kersey, Jaida Lewis, Alex Machado, Breana Williams and Tierra Bullock.
Southern Vance High School Honors Graduation Marshals
Vance County Schools
For Immediate Release
Students who are juniors at Southern Vance High School and have qualified as graduation marshals for the Class of 2018 due to their outstanding academic performance were honored at a reception recently at the school.
Southern Vance’s graduation ceremony will be held on Saturday, June 9, 2018, beginning at 8 a.m. in the McGregor Hall Performing Arts Center in downtown Henderson.
Those who will serve as graduation marshals include: first row – from left, Madonna Baselios, Mya McKnight, Shel’Nyia Hargrove, Miracle Chin, Tar’Naja Thorpe and April Pendergrass. Second row, from left, Eleodoro Nunez Aldana, Gabriela Ventura, Wendy Portillo and Robert Susewell. Unavailable for the photo were Shannon Riggan, Deana Hawkins and Aaliyah Simril.
Vance County Board of Education Approves School Consolidations
Vance County Board of Education Approves School Consolidations
— The Following is a Press Release from Vance County Schools:
The Vance County Board of Education approved at its March 19 meeting a plan to combine the middle schools and the high schools for the 2018-2019 school year.
With the board’s action, Eaton-Johnson and Henderson middle schools will be combined and serve middle school students in the facility currently housing Northern Vance High School and Northern Vance and Southern Vance high schools will be combined to serve high school students in the facility currently housing Southern Vance High School next school year.
In January, members of the Board of Education directed the superintendent and school system staff members to seek community input on a potential facilities consolidation plan for the current, traditional middle and high schools. Discussion of consolidation became necessary as the result of several years of declining student enrollment across the district and the need to improve the efficiency and financial sustainability of school operations.
Since early January, over 25 meetings have been held with community stakeholders to seek input on the feasibility of combining the schools and their programs. School officials have heard from over 500 people in the local community with their attendance at community conversations, through email responses and an online survey with school system employees.
The feedback received during community meetings has been extremely informative as to what the public expects from its public schools and their services and programs for students. The majority of the feedback from parents, students, school system employees, elected officials, business leaders and local residents has been in favor of combining the schools.
The board is expected to review and approve a detailed implementation plan to accomplish combining the schools at its April meeting.
To address the concerns voiced during the community meetings about school safety, an ad hoc committee from the local community will be established to develop recommendations for board consideration.
“I am pleased with the board’s decision tonight and applaud them for their courage and willingness to do what’s right for students,” Superintendent Anthony D. Jackson said. “We have lots to do. Exciting times and great things are ahead.”