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Luncheon Honors WSHS Former Faculty and Staff
By Valerie Sliker, courtesy Wagener Monthly
When Bob Taylor, principal of Wagener-Salley High School from 1990 – 1997, finally joined Facebook in 2017, it caused quite a stir. Not only was he immediately “friended” by many online, but a personal appearance was soon demanded. Mrs. Lavenia Morgan Sapp, business education and typing teacher from 1968 – 1994, struck up a conversation with Taylor and suggested that they host a get-together. Together they decided to call “that lady who knows everybody:” Heidi Chavious.
Chavious went through some year books and started calling people. “I love a crowd, I’ve always been like that,” Chavious said. “The more, the merrier!”
The three quickly became a group of 27 former and current WSHS faculty and staff who met for an August luncheon at the Miller’s Bread Basket in Blackville, a centralized meeting point for all. The group came together in a private room with a private buffet among a whole lot of laughter and sharing of memories.
Chavious continued, “We’ve had a lot of principals at WSHS, but Bob Taylor is the one that was the most involved in the community. He’d go to the different churches, he’d be at the car washes, he really tried to be a part of the community and not just attend a football game. We appreciated that.” Chavious had a comment about the community seeing his little, shorty shorts every morning when he ran through town, but that comment has been censored.
The prevalent theme among memories shared was that of “family.” Everyone agreed that their years here were the best, that WSHS had a family atmosphere they’d never experienced elsewhere.
Alyson Moots, New Guidance Counselor at WSHS
Wagener-Salley High’s new guidance counselor, Mrs. Alyson Moots, brings a refreshing open-door policy to the school, a heart for troubled students and an enthusiasm to expand the guidance department beyond scholarships and schedule changes.
Alyson Moots, a Columbia College graduate, received her masters from USC and has worked at Lexington 1 for many years and most recently comes to us from the charter school district. She is married and has two sons.
Moots, a very personable, energetic person, is eager to have one-on-one contact with parents. Having distributed surveys at registration, she hopes to receive and address parental concerns. Her first goal beyond helping parents feel comfortable coming to her office, is to find out what is needed in this particular school and community and to determine how the guidance department can best help meet those needs.
With a student population under 300, Moots is looking forward to knowing and spending time with each student individually. She especially is concerned for troubled girls, a group she claims is often under-represented. She would like to see them grow and expand their lives and hopes she can get some programs started to help them and troubled students in general.
Looking down the road, Moots would like to bring in qualified speakers that would address current topics parents may be wrestling with. She would like to see some financial aid nights where parents can learn how to navigate through the options students have as they approach their college planning.
WSHS now has two full-time guidance counselors on staff. Allyson Moots is the lead counselor, works year-round, and works as a team with fellow counselor Mrs. Rovonia Owens-Hilliard.
Many Improvements at WSHS
By Valerie Sliker, Courtesy Wagener Monthly
Principal Ute Aadland has welcomed another year at Wagener-Salley High School with renewed vigor due, in large part, to the many changes that have taken place recently. Riding high on an excellent post-graduation outcome in May -- WSHS had its highest rate of college acceptance, over two million dollars in scholarships and two Palmetto Fellow recipients – Aadland is also excited about all the changes at the school academically, athletically and artistically.
WSHS continues its exclusive Dual Enrollment (DE) relationship with Aiken Tech, which provides college classes to the high school students at a hugely discounted price. While we’ve had DE for a few years, Aadland has added more courses this year, bringing the total to six: English I and II, Western Civilization I and II, Psychology, Sociology, College Algebra and Trigonometry.
DE is different than Advanced Placement courses (AP). AP constitutes a regular high school class with a very set curriculum prescribed by the college board. At semester’s end, students must pass a test in order to receive college credit for that class. With AP classes, the instructor is an AP certified WSHS instructor. Students receive no class credit if they fail that test.
In DE, students take the class and either pass the course or not, passing doesn’t hinge on one exam. The classes are online with a lot of dialogue going back and forth and everything is proctored. WSHS students can take nearly a full freshman year of Aiken Tech courses that, upon successful completion, will result in a viable transcript, transferable anywhere within the state. These same courses taken as a traditional Aiken Tech freshman would cost a whole lot more.
War Eagles Trounce Wolverines
By Valerie Sliker
On Friday, August 18th, the WSHS War Eagles wearing their new uniforms and new helmets, brought Friday Night Football back to Wagener in their season opening game against Whitmire, trouncing the Wolverines 62 - 7, a victory unsurprising to Coach Fox. Whitmire successfully beat Wagener-Salley on WSHS’s Coach Willie Fox’s first year at the helm. Fox had a very, very young team in a new town and while it was OK for his first year, he wasn’t about to let it happen again. Fox led the War Eagles to victory over Whitmire on his second year and now, his third.
The War Eagles have the same schedule as last year, but everything else is different this year. In addition to the new uniforms and helmets, WSHS has acquired a new scoreboard and a new bus.
The district is also gave the War Eagles some new equipment and a new floor in the weight room. They’ve received three double half racks, creating six new stations in the weight room, complete with bars and new benches, one new machine and new flooring. The 33-man team is excited to have a fully functional weight room, and, according to Coach Willie Fox, they deserve it. “The kids worked really, really hard since January and have put in a lot of work,” Fox said. “I’m proud of them and I feel like we’re better than we were last year.”