Pearl River Central School District prepares for spring semester
Published 7:00 am Tuesday, January 6, 2015
SCHOOL SPIRIT: Staff and faculty show their school colors at the general session on Monday as they prepare for the spring semester.
Photo by Dart Spiers
Staff, faculty and administrators of the Pearl River County School District gathered for a general session on Monday to prepare for the beginning of the spring semester.
“This is something we do twice a year to get everybody on the same page and motivated for the upcoming semester,” said Pearl River Central School District Superintendent Alan Lumpkin.
In his opening remarks, Lumpkin commended the entire district for their work in receiving the Mississippi School Boards Association’s prestigious Lantern Award, which is given to school districts who receive an overall B ranking without having any schools receive a grade of C or lower. This was the second year that PRCSD received the Lantern Award. Decorative pins were handed out to everyone in attendance to celebrate the occasion.
The session included a motivational speech from keynote guest speaker and Pearl River Central High School alumnus Larry Wright. In his speech, Wright stressed the importance of every position in the school district by comparing a school system to a sports team in which every player has a role to fulfill. He went on to discuss the value of a positive attitude, urging encouragement over criticism, and prayer above everything.
Wright concluded his speech by removing his jacket and revealing a PRC football jersey, paying homage to his Blue Devil background.
The session also included a lively spirit competition, which featured representatives from a variety of schools in the district facing off in a challenge of school spirit and creativity. The five teams included staff, faculty and cheerleaders whose performances were graded by a panel of guest judges.
Students are set to return to school on Tuesday to begin the second semester, but the PRCHS band gave a “Halftime performance” at the event. A student ensemble was also in attendance to perform the national anthem as the colors were presented by the NJROTC.
Since the semester does not officially start until Tuesday, the monthly Pearl River Central School Board meeting will take place Monday, Jan. 12 at 6:30 p.m.
