First six weeks is in the bag at Pine Tree High School
The first six weeks is coming to an end for Pine Tree High School, and the sailing has been smooth for the Pirates as the campus has maneuvered through the first sixth of the 2017-2018 school year.
Changes this year include new assistant principals in two grades, more strict enforcement of tardies and missed classes and more communication between the administration and students.
Cindy Gabehart, principal, said the year has gotten off to a nice start, and she is expecting PTHS to have a great school year.
With Dr. Cliff Lightfoot and Cathy Williams moving to other districts, Pine Tree now has Caci Brinkley and Melanie Bridges as assistant principals with Harold Jackson and Carrie Chandler. Chandler now administrates the seniors, while Bridges oversees the juniors. Jackson now has oversight of the sophomores, and newcomer Brinkley is in charge of the freshmen, the largest class, population wise, on the campus this year.
Bridges has served with Pine Tree in an administrative capacity for a few years, while Brinkley
comes to the high school campus after being on the Excel campus.
Mrs. Gabehart said she is glad for the new additions and feels the administrative team is an excellent one to take Pine Tree through the year and moving forward.
This administrative team has put an emphasis on reducing tardies and missed class time.
Thus far, the emphasis has been very positive and students are not only liking the change but adapting very well and encouraging each other.
Administrators hope the emphasis will impact students academically in a positive way, and allow teachers and staff to have full use of the class time they are allotted.
Administrators have also made it an emphasis to communicate better with students, and that has resulted in a positive vibe throughout the campus. Students are getting to know administrators, and vise versa, and the communication is allowing for everyone to be more positive as they go through the school day.
With such a good start to the school year, Pine Tree is quickly seeing success in different areas. The band has wowed crowds at home and away with their strong performances this year, as has the drill team and auxiliary and twirlers. The volleyball team is at the top of its district, and the cross country teams have three to four runners excelling in every meet.
And, with the end of the first six weeks here, that can mean only one thing - homecoming.
Homecoming will be observed on the Pine Tree Stadium turf on Friday, Oct. 6 before the Pirates take on Mount Pleasant. Last year's queen and king, Kam'Ree Williams and Josh Nafrady, will be on hand to crown the new royalty.
Student voting allowed the following to be named as queen finalists and king finalists. Those students are Trenton Altis, Mose Jeffery, David Ritch, Alexis Valencia, Keyanna Kim, Jade Peoples, Shelby Smith and Madison Taylor, and the entire student body will vote on the winners to be announced Friday night before the game.
Junior royalty includes River Ottens and Cheyenne Thurmond. Representing the sophomore class are Corey Thomas and Kelslee Warwick. The freshmen class elected DeAundre Heath and Amerie Stephens.
All of these individuals will be on the field before the game, and Williams and Nafrady will highlight the evening by crowning the new queen and king.
Before that occurs, however, the annual Homecoming Carnival will be staged in the parking lot outside the cafeteria on Tuesday, October 3 from 5 p.m. until 7 p.m. The carnival will feature tacos and snow cones, as well as games, face painting and other fun activities for students. Spirit groups will also perform to end the evening and get everyone ready for the game on Friday.
There will be different dress up days for homecoming, and the Student Council and Leadership students will be announcing those soon.
After homecoming, it is a fairly short ride to Halloween, the end of the second six weeks, Thanksgiving and Christmas and the end of the first semester with finals.
So, buckle up. It is going to be a busy, fun and fast and furious ride into winter.