Many advocates at the rally were people who have lost loved ones to heroin and prescription opioids as well as addicts currently in recovery. Various organizations set up booths to assist in raising awareness to this growing problem and to offer help to these addicts and their families. East Surry SADD hosted a booth where they provided water and a plethora of literature about addiction, all of which was donated for them to give. ESHS SADD members, Carrie Hazelwood, Oliva Gaskill, and Chelsea Smith assisted organizers with setting up and taking down the tents and tables for the event as well. The ESHS SADD booth was visited by Representative Sarah Stevens, Governor’s Parole Board member, Graham Atkinson, SADD State Coordinator, Harriett M. Southerland, the West Stokes Random Acts of Kindness Club members, and many recovering addicts and social workers looking for literature to help their children or younger siblings. They were most appreciative of the ESHS SADD club making literature available to them to help explain their struggles to the younger members of their families.
The Surry County Schools Educational Foundation raised more than $25,000 at its Seventh Annual Academic Golf Classic Tournament held at Pilot Knob Park Country Club on September 14. Thirty-five golf teams participated in the all-day event. “The Foundation is so grateful for its sponsors and donors of this tournament,” said John Priddy, SCS Educational Foundation Chairman. “The generosity of all of our supporters helps the Foundation to create unique learning opportunities for students and teachers throughout the year.”
Surry County Schools continued to outpace the rest of state in academic achievement according to the 2016-17 Performance and Growth of North Carolina Public Schools report presented to State Board of Education members. In addition to the traditional end-of-grade and end-of-course proficiencies parents have come to expect, the state also released ACT, ACT WorkKeys, cohort graduation rates, the percentage of graduates passing rigorous math courses, academic growth target measures, and school performance grades. Surry County Schools ranked 13th of 115 school systems in the state in Overall Academic Performance with 67.2 percent of all tests in all subjects at Achievement Level 3 or higher, up two places and 1.1 percent from last year.
At Tuesday night’s Surry County Schools Board of Education meeting the Board recognized five students who attended Governor’s School. The Governor's School of North Carolina is a five-week summer residential program for intellectually gifted high school students, integrating academic disciplines, the arts, and unique courses on each of two campuses. The curriculum focuses on the exploration of the most recent ideas and concepts in each discipline, and does not involve credit, tests, or grades.
Congratulations to Jennifer Murray! Jennifer is an Exceptional Children teacher at Franklin Elementary School.
