|
By Donna Bumgarner
Contributing Writer
Principal Joey Haney of Whitmire Community School is proud of Whitmire Community School, and so are his teachers, support personnel, parents, and students. Recently they have had several reasons to be especially proud. Their girls’ basketball team went to the playoffs, despite the size of their team compared to the schools they played. The Concert Band, one of the smallest in the state, won an excellent rating in planned music and two excellent and superior ratings in playing music they have not played before the competition. The Beta Club went to the Annual convention at North Charleston recently, and won the Scrapbook Competition. They had previously won second place in 2008, and were able to attend the competition at Myrtle Beach. Finally, Whitmire High School won the Palmetto Gold Award for their excellent rating for 2008-2009, based on test scores and other criteria.
Haney, fondly known as “Coach” by students, faculty, and support personnel, was exuberant when he announced the achievements of the school. He stated, “The Palmetto Gold Award is a direct result of what is taking place in the classrooms with all of our students and all of our faculty. We see it as a 4k-12th grade effort because in some form or fashion, whether instruction or just teachers providing examples that need to be set for our students or even the strategies shared between elementary, middle school and high school teachers is a direct result of our entire PK-12 effort that we’re a Palmetto Gold School. Whitmire Community School – as always we try to put our school on the map because you are a Palmetto Gold winner!”
Susie Brown, Laverne Brock, Barrett Howard, Nancy Gray, and Mr. Floyd -representatives for Whitmire High School - spoke to The Whitmire News about their school and its accomplishments.
Mr. Floyd, a long-time Guidance Counselor at Whitmire High School, said, “I’m proud of the school and the teachers. I think they’re taking the tests seriously. Very few students, if any, are not prepared.”
He added that the teachers keep their eyes open and, if a student lags behind and needs extra help, the school calls the parent(s) in for a conference, and the teachers make themselves available before and after school to assist the students with their difficulties. Their goal is to address the problem before it is too late.
The school has a 70 percent free/reduced lunch student body, but they do not feel that it has made any difference in the success rate of the students. Mr. Floyd and several others in the group agreed that even the students from low - income households take college classes and achieve a more than average level of success. All of them agreed that racial lines and economic lines do not affect a student’s success rate because they all have the same expectations.
Mr. Haney, the Principal, says that the effective use of smart boards makes the classrooms more interactive and technologically centered. The teachers even use them to further their professional development.
Susie Brown, an English teacher, said that her son, Joe Jr. was recently bragging about being a student at Whitmire Community School. She stated that race and economic conditions do not affect the students at WCS as much because they get more attention, more care and concern from the faculty, support staff, and administration, including the bus drivers.
Haney cited the recent Math and Science Night held at the school, which was spearheaded by Ms. Wyatt. He said that the teachers on all grade levels worked together to make the night fun, educational, and interactive for both parents and students. “Seeing the parents and students working together on activities was amazing,” he said. The interest built by the night was a result of the fun both parents and students had while they learned. The high school students even assisted with the activities. He was amazed at the number of high school parents who attended with their children, for it was the only time other than end-of-year activities that brought in so many parents of older children. “Overall,” he said, “there were two times as many people there than we expected. We plan to make it an annual event.” He believes that the activities met the criteria for mastering science objectives.
Small schools like Whitmire are unique in that they go from 4k to 12th grade under one roof and have only one principal. When children enter the pre-kindergarten program, they will get to know the elementary, middle school, and high school teachers as they progress from grade to grade. Children with older siblings or parents who work in the school know the teachers they will one day have, and they don’t forget the ones they’ve already had. All of the teachers and support personnel follow the students’ progress through the years until graduation and encourage them to succeed and do their best. That is why the entire faculty and staff is responsible for the improvement in the scores, the Palmetto Gold Award.
Principal Haney said that he grew up in Lockhart, in a school like Whitmire and he never even dreamed that he would one day be the principal of a school like the one in Lockhart.
He also said that even though he was no longer a coach, he was still coaching. He was just coaching the students to be the best they could be and succeed. The hard work of both the faculty and staff, as well as the dedicated students, is truly what makes a school worthy of Palmetto Gold.
 Email This Post
|
