Rewards will be presented this week to some Hopkins County Schools staff members who achieved perfect or near-perfect attendance during the 2nd trimester! Names of winners will be drawn from everyone who qualified to participate. Presentations start Tuesdayand will continue later this week.

A big “thank you” goes out to the local businesses/organizations who donated the prizes. This includes the following:

• First United Bank
• Barbara Yonts Photography
• City of Madisonville
• Energy Systems Group
• Rejuvenations Spa
• Golden Glaze Donuts
• Lowe’s
• Madisonville Community College/Glema Mahr Center for the Arts
• Hopkins County Family YMCA

Please keep up the good attendance throughout the 3rd trimester. Additional prizes will be given out at the end of the school year!

The design development stage is now underway for the middle school addition to Southside Elementary School. These artists renderings show the preliminary designs by Sherman Carter Barnhart Architects. Here are some highlights of the design:

• The addition would include middle school classrooms, administrative offices, media center, and a middle school-size gym. The existing gym in the elementary school will remain.
• The new gymnasium will serve as a storm shelter for the community.
• The two-story addition would be on the northwest side of the current elementary school. There will be a courtyard between the two buildings that will provide additional outdoor learning space.
• The car rider line and a majority of parking will be where the current South Hopkins Middle School parking lot is located. The line will be stacked to allow adequate space for vehicles. Drop-off will be in the same location for all students, with separate pathways to the elementary and middle school buildings.



This project is in the later design phase and there is no timeline yet for construction.

Go check out the amazing student artworks now on exhibit at Glema Mahr Center for the Arts! Students whose works were selected for the exhibition were honored during receptions Thursday evening at the center. The collection includes more than 450 works by Hopkins County students! The Student Art Exhibit will be displayed in the Anne P. Baker Gallery through March 31. Regular gallery hours are 9 a.m.-4 p.m. weekdays, with extended hours on Glema Center event days. Admission is free. Congratulations to all participants!!

Austin Byrum already had a CDL when he started his job as athletic director at Hopkins County Central at the beginning of this school year. He previously coached in Christian County and had started driving a bus there to help out with trips.

“The first few months here, I was trying to get used to doing this job,” Byrum said. After noticing principals were staying until 4 p.m. because of the bus driver shortage, he decided to put the CDL to good use.

“I knew it would help out,” he said. “It would help out our principals. It would help members of our community. It would help our district because we’re short on bus drivers, as well.”

Another bonus is that it helped him build relationships with students. By driving a bus, he has helped kids miss less class time. Students also told him they get home as much as an hour earlier in the afternoon.

“I really do believe in doing everything I can to help other people,” Byrum said. “That’s just how I’ve always done things. I’m always going to do my best to make sure that people get the help and support that they need.”



He encourages others to consider driving a bus. “If you’re truly about the kids and want to help out in the community,” he said, “I think it’s a great opportunity for anybody.”

We are asking the community to submit photos that may be used in a slideshow that will be featured during the April 22 Earlington Elementary School Celebration. 

We are specifically seeking Earlington school-related photos from 2005 or earlier. This includes the time of Earlington Independent Schools and JW Million. These must be digital files and should be clear and of high-resolution. Submission of photos implies your permission to use them in the slideshow. Please email any submissions to eesphotos@hopkins.kyschools.us.

Students became entrepreneurs for the Shark Tank Expo recently at James Madison Middle School.

Frauline Walker, 6th grade English teacher, assigned the project to her students. Students had the options of creating a needed product or service that would be marketed to students, parents, or schools or designing a game that raises awareness for United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

Just like the “Shark Tank” TV show, students pitched their ideas to a panel of investors. Those who were most persuasive were awarded “Business Bucks” from the panel.

“I wanted my 6th graders to be able to research something they can be passionate about and to see that being prepared really pays off,” Walker said. “The panel of investors kept them on their toes, and some had to do quick on-the-spot thinking. I want them to feel heard and that we, as adults, do listen to their crazy ideas, and maybe some of them will push the boundaries of their creativity when it comes to business planning.”

Eighth graders from all of our middle schools recently took an up-close look this week at the six different career pathways offered at Hopkins County Career and Technology Center during Operation Tech Center. 

In the health sciences classrooms, these students from South Hopkins Middle School went through stations that showed the Heimlich maneuver, rescue breathing and CPR, hand-washing, the correct way to put on and take off gloves, proper use of a stethoscope, and 3D anatomy puzzles.

“We will be showing them some of the things they would be learning at the CTC,” said health sciences instructor Ashley Brown. “We want them to be excited about health care if that’s their pathway. Showing them these things is kind of the highlight reel of things they’ll be able to take home with them, part of the toolbox.”

Students in Hopkins County Schools have been celebrating Black History Month in a variety of ways throughout February. Here are a few examples:

• 5th graders in Crystal Rainwater’s class at Earlington Elementary “recreated” a poster from the 1960s about the civil rights movement. One group of students read the poem “Caged Bird” by Maya Angelou while another group read the poem “I, Too” by Langston Hughes and made posters.
• Students in Mrs. Hancock’s 8^th grade class at Browning Springs Middle School made a Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. collage after reading and talking about his importance in history. Also at Browning Springs, a student organized a Black History display for students, while a group of 7th graders wrote a poem and created art work to go with it.
• Hanson Elementary 5th grade students worked together to create grid art honoring Martin Luther King, Jr., and 1st grade completed research projects by learning about famous African Americans. Other grade levels have been learning about the Civil Rights Movement, singing "The Drinking Gourd" song about fleeing slaves who reached freedom, and honoring diversity with the school-wide Project Wisdom morning message. 
• 5th grade students at Jesse Stuart Elementary celebrated a variety of black historical figures during the Living Wax Museum presentation. Students researched the historical figure of their choice and prepared a visual presentation by dressing and acting as that person.

Hopkins County Schools’ dance teams put on some amazing performances at the KDCO State Championship on Saturday! Four teams from our district won state championships!

Hopkins County Central High Voltage won the state championships in large high school hip hop and large high school game day. They also received the overall Grand Champions award for the highest average score in the high school division!

Madisonville North Hopkins High School Maroon Magic won the state championship in small high school pom!

James Madison Middle School Stars won the state championship in medium middle school pom and received 1st runner-up in medium middle school hip hop!

South Hopkins Middle School Dance Cats won state championships in small middle school hip hop and small middle school pom!

Both high school teams will compete in the NDA National Championship March 3-5 in Orlando. Congratulations to all the team members and their coaches!

Madisonville North Hopkins High School Maroon Swim & Dive finished 4th in the region and sent 13 athletes to the KHSAA State Swimming & Diving Championships in Lexington on Feb. 16-18. 

Ryan Farmer won the boys diving region event. At the state championship, he finished 7th. JD Brown, an 8th grader, earned a spot at state in the 200 Freestyle. Gavin Bunch competed in the boys 50 Freestyle. The boys 200 Free Relay and 400 Free Relay teams also earned spots at the state meet.  The relay team consisted of JD Brown, Gavin Bunch, Reese Soriano, and Sy Soriano and alternates Aiden Clark and Jude Gamblin.

The girls 200 Free Relay and 400 Free Relay teams also advanced to state.  The relay team consisted of Emma Tagg, Adison Melton, Addison Howard, and Audrey Tate and alternates Ella Kirkland and Katelynn Howard.

JD Brown was selected for the Male Sportsmanship Award at the Region One Meet after being nominated by Coach Chandy Melton. In addition to Melton, the coaches are John Rothe and McKenzie Shoulders. Congratulations to all!