Fountain Inn High School opened for the first time in August of 2021 with a mission to create pathways to the future for every student. This is the first completely new high school in nearly 50 years in Greenville County and the first time the city has had its own high school since 1956. The original Fountain Inn High School closed in 1957 with the opening of Hillcrest High. The mascot, the Fury, selected by students and community members, is represented by a phoenix which symbolizes rebirth. The navy and maroon colors are a combination of the former segregated high schools in the area. Today, the city of Fountain Inn boasts a booming high-tech advanced manufacturing industry that played a large role in the planning and development of Fountain Inn High School.
This year our student population grew to serve ninth and tenth grade students. FIHS will continue to add a grade level each year until fully populated in 2024-2025. The core spaces in the building were built to accommodate 2000 students, with plans for instructional areas to match that level in future years.
Fountain Inn High has a smaller learning community with a focus in advanced manufacturing, engineering and computer science called the Institute of Automation and Engineering (IAE). The institute houses the technology necessary for students to complete pathway programs in STEM-related fields, including engineering, mechatronics, machine tool, and computer science. Industry partners including ZF Transmissions, ABB, and Michelin, among others helped plan the institute space and instructional pathways. In addition, the building has a state-of-the-art auditorium, large band and choir rooms, an art classroom with kiln room, and film studio. There is one computer lab designated for CAD (Computer Aided Design) equipped with 24 desktop PCs in each. There are also classrooms along the IAE lab with 16 desktop PCs. The building has five science labs.
Teachers in specialized subjects like art and band have designated teaching spaces while others are assigned studio classrooms based on their courses for the semester. Teachers have a dedicated space in the faculty planning room that serves as an office. All instructional spaces as well as flex classrooms, large rooms divisible with whiteboard partitions, have audio enhancement options with surround sound as well as the latest 4K Promethean board technology. The furniture in the classrooms is mobile to allow multiple configurations to best fit the day's lesson.
The student collaborative spaces are open work areas where students work together in various grouping arrangements or for instructional strategies that need more space than the traditional classroom space offers. The collaborative spaces for students are visible from most classrooms, meaning teachers can supervise group work in both settings. The open space balances providing freedom for students while maintaining structure and support in instruction. All students receive a Chromebook at the beginning of the school year and this technology is utilized to personalize instruction and remove the physical walls of a classroom so that learning can take place anytime and anywhere.
In an effort to help with the transition and growth through high school, we have set the foundation for a house system. All students will be put into a house and then grades will be split in each house into advisory. Advisors stay with their groups for four years. There are 14 houses that are named after prominent road names in Fountain Inn. Each house is also associated with a trait from the Profile of the SC Graduate.
Athletic facilities include a football stadium, soccer stadium, baseball field, softball field, four tennis courts, rubberized track, weight room, multi-purpose room, two gymnasiums, and three practice fields, one designated to band. FIHS is a member of the South Carolina High School League and will compete at the varsity level in designated sports in 3A for the 2023-2024 school year.
Maureen S. Tiller
Principal
