New High School Stirring Pride in Grovetown

Grovetown, GA—It’s back to school time in Columbia County, and these once quiet halls at Grovetown are no more. Grovetown High School is now officially in business. “We met with our seniors this morning and had a little rally to get them fired up and talked about walking across the stage and having 100 percent graduation rate and really talked to them about taking pride in their school,“ says Penny Jackson, principal. 

It’s no coincidence the school sits at 2010 Warrior Way. Several Columbia County high schools sent students to the new school, giving them an opening day enrollment of about 1,150. Jackson says warrior pride begins at the top. “We have great teachers on staff and a great administrative staff. They are already on board and ready to drill it in their head everyday, just by teaching bell to bell, having good instruction.“

Kathy Manz is looking forward to a great year in a classroom full of new tools and toys. She’s helped start a school before and says she’ll used what she learned opening Greenbriar to make it a smooth transition. “These are students who did not necessarily have a choice to leave their comfort zone and the school where they have been going. And so I think it helps to know there are teachers who want to be here with them and explore some new options with them,“ says Manz.

Principal Jackson says her faculty is full of people like Manz, teachers who go the extra mile for their students. “I get a lot from the students. They rev me up in the morning; hopefully I’m getting them fired up as well. But I love history, and I really try to impart that to them. And I try to get them involved and then everything outside the classroom to go way while we’re together, at least for that 55 minutes at a time,“ she says.

We asked how the deep state budget cuts are affecting things at Grovetown High School. Jackson says they weren’t able to buy as many instructional items as they might have before the cuts, but they are not suffering nearly as bad as some other districts.