By Kristin Fox
Staff and teachers at Highlands School have worked hard to get the school ready for the 2024-2025 school year. Students will return to school next Monday, August 26. Teachers returned to school for the new year on August 12.
In preparation for the first day of school, the hallways and classroom floors have been stripped and waxed. The Highlands PTO also recently sponsored Volunteer Day ’24 to help prepare the school for the upcoming year.
Volunteers spent the day working both inside and outside the school. Projects completed included replacing blue balls on chairs/desks inside the school. In addition to treating weeds in the flowerbeds and by sidewalks, volunteers pressure washed the sidewalks and bathrooms/shower areas in the new gym. Other landscaping work included mowing, weed eating and trimming bushes. New mulch was also added to the playground.
Currently there are 360 students enrolled in kindergarten through 12th grade for the upcoming school year. Highlands School will have a total of 39 teachers and six teacher’s aides. In addition, Highlands School have several staff for custodial duties, in the nutritional department as well as office staff and administration.
Elementary classrooms will include two kindergarten classes, one first grade class and one first/second grade split classroom. All three classrooms will have a teacher’s aide.
There will be one second grade class while third, fourth and fifth grades will have two classrooms each.
This year, the Highlands Middle School will be a true middle school rotation. Each student in 6th, 7th and 8th grades will have a schedule of English language arts (ELA), math, social studies, science, physical education (PE) and an extra support class in the afternoon called “Wheel.” The class is called “Wheel” because it changes every 9-week period. All middle school students will have different teachers for different subjects.
Highlands School will communicate with parents with the new communication tool – Rooms. Rooms is an in-classroom communication tool designed to improve communication between parents, teachers, and students by simplifying the digital classroom while bringing all communications into one place.
The Macon County School Board recently approved the Highlands School digital student handbook which will be pushed out to all the student iPads. To view the handbook online, click HERE.
This year, Highlands School will have some new faces to replace teachers who have retired or resigned.
The new and returning faces at Highlands School include Angela Swain: Returning teacher to Highlands School to teach 4th grade; Phillip Cope: MS ELA/Social Studies; Bill Sparks: MS Science; Nicole Rice: High School Business CTE; Stephanie Hudson: K-12 Art Teacher; Dani Moss: Exceptional Children’s Teacher
Pictured at the top of the article from left are Angela Swain, William Sparks, Stephanie Hudson, Nicole Rice, Philip Cope, Dani Moss.
Swain
“After taking some time off to reset, recharge, and focus on family, I am excited to return to Highlands School to teach 4th grade alongside Mrs. Jones!”
Cope
“As an educator, this will be my twelfth year of teaching. I have taught every grade from fifth to twelfth, but I particularly enjoy working with middle school students. Most recently, I taught in Georgia, but I am originally from Macon County. My hobbies include fishing, reading, writing and videogames. I am extremely excited to work at Highlands School and cannot wait to get started with the new year!”
Sparks
“I will be teaching Middle School Science for the 2024-2025 School Year. I moved down to western North Carolina from Maine over twenty years ago to pursue a job as a science teacher. I attended classes at Western Carolina University through the NC Teach program and worked for Jackson County Public Schools for twenty years. My first taste of the area was in 1996 when I landed a job as a backpacking guide for Camp Daniel Boone. I would take groups of Boy Scouts through Pisgah National Forest, Shining Rock wilderness, the Appalachian Trail, and Slick Rock wilderness area. All areas that I still hike through today. I find Cullasaja National Forest very interesting and look forward to exploring it even more with after school excursions.”
Rice
“I am excited to join Highlands School to teach CTE. I received my Bachelor’s degree from Truett McConell University and my Master’s from Brenau University. This is my first year teaching and I can’t wait to meet all the new faces! In my spare time I love spending time with my family, friends, and being outdoors. My hobbies are crocheting and crafting!”
Hudson
I come to you fresh from Iotla Valley Elementary School where I have been for the past three years. The good Lord has prepared me for this adventure in that I have 17 years teaching experience at K-8 schools and seven years experience at a school that had 7-12th grade levels. I am originally from South Carolina, but have lived most of my adult life in eastern North Carolina. I have been married for 29 years to my soul mate, Eddie. We are blessed with two kids, a son who was just hired on the Highlands PD and a daughter who is planning on entering Southwestern Community College this fall. My hobbies besides arts and crafts are doting on my animals and reading sci-fi and historical based fiction. I generally create my art and give it away. I look forward to meeting everyone and working together for the best interests of our students.”
Moss
“I’m excited to join Highlands School as the High School EC teacher! I love being a teacher, for as soon as I step foot on campus my day seems to brighten. Closing the gap between simply teaching a subject, versus teaching how subject material is applied and used in real life is the goal. The reward is seeing smiling faces as students better understand their world. I hold a Bachelor’s in Elementary Education, a Master’s in Curriculum and Instruction, and am currently nearing the end of a program to earn a Doctorate in Education. My motto is ‘Never Stop Learning – Never Stop Evolving – Never Give Up!’ …a motto that I live by every day. I look forward to developing every student to their fullest potential!”