As a school community, our goal is to maintain our tradition of excellence and ensure that Spring Valley continues to be a place where students are able to fully take advantage of their educational opportunities and learn to be caring and responsible young people. Continued success comes forth when we provide experiences that are engaging, meaningful, and challenging. Spring Valley has a history of fine academic, athletic, and extracurricular accomplishments. Our dedicated faculty and staff aim to challenge our students academically and provide guidance that leads to improvements in independent thinking, decision-making, and problem solving. The collaboration of the school community and all stakeholders working together is a key quality of an effective school. It takes all of us to help our students reach success in becoming 21st century learners.
In its 48th year, Spring Valley demonstrated unyielding commitment to excellence. We have been focused on helping all students develop the World Class Skills of the Profile of the South Carolina Graduate. Our students will be the creative and innovative thinkers and problem solvers of the future who understand the importance of collaborative teamwork and communication. The U.S. News & World Report ranked Spring Valley High in the top 20 high schools out of the more than 200 high schools in the state of South Carolina. Achieving a tradition of excellence does not just happen randomly – it happens in a culture of improvement driven by intentionality and purpose that rests on a common mission and vision. As a unified school community, our intentions are guided by an overarching goal to develop college and career ready graduates who embody the characteristics outlined in the Profile of the SC Graduate. This goal requires constant review of all data to keep abreast of where we are in our journey. Our administration fully realizes that the most significant element in achieving this goal is the teacher in the classroom; consequently, it is vital that we are also intentional in our efforts to recruit and retain outstanding faculty members. With an exceptional faculty, a common belief in excellence for all students, data-driven goal setting, and a clear vision or our destination, we are resolute in our ability to perpetuate our tradition of excellence. We believe this multi-faceted approach to developing the whole child will help our students grow to embody the traits identified in the Profile of the SC Graduate: integrity, self-direction, global perspective, perseverance, work ethic, and interpersonal skills.
The comprehensive nature of our curriculum and extracurricular activities ensures that every student has multiple opportunities for success. To meet the needs of diverse students, we offer college prep, honors, and advanced placement courses in all core content areas and in many of our elective areas. Our modified block schedule also addresses the diversity of student needs. The day is organized into seven, 49-minute instructional periods. Some courses meet for two consecutive periods while others meet for a single period. We extend our day with “early bird” and “late bird” classes before and after our regular schedule and by offering students opportunities to take an array of virtual courses. Essential learning for students is based on state and national standards. Classroom experiences are extended with field studies and experiential learning. Teachers employ all levels of Bloom’s taxonomy, with emphasis on higher-order thinking skills, in student-centered classrooms.
Again this year, the Spring Valley High Discovery and Explorations Magnet Programs were recognized at the Magnet Schools of America Conference as a National Magnet School of Excellence. Spring Valley’s Chamber Orchestra received Superior rating, and our Concert and String Orchestras received Excellent ratings at the 2018 SCMEA Region III Concert Festival. At SCBDA, the Viking Band earned Outstanding Performance for the 13th consecutive year and the Concert and Symphonic Bands both earned Superior ratings. Our Choirs received Superior with Distinction ratings for Sight-Reading and for General Performance at the 2018 SCMEA State Festival. Nine students participated in the 2018 SCMEA All-State Chorus and nine students sang the Faure Requiem at Carnegie Hall in New York. Our Visual Arts program has produced National Scholastic Art Award winners for the 8th consecutive year. The Discovery Magnet students earned 59 awards at the SC Junior Academy of Science Written Research Paper and Oral Presentation Competition and 62 Awards at the SC Region II Science and Engineering Fair.
Spring Valley provides numerous opportunities for all students to learn and exhibit World Class Skills and Life and Career Characteristics as they participate in an array of activities, including forty-two athletic teams representing twenty sports and a wide variety of curricular, co-curricular, and extracurricular activities and service projects. Winter Days, the largest annual school-wide project, is completely student directed, and students collected over 43,000 cans and non-perishable items and helped raise over $22,000 for Make A Wish South Carolina. At the SCASC State Convention, our Student Council won the 2nd Place School Pride Award and they were recognized as one of four Honor Councils of 2018. Spring Valley varsity sports teams captured three region championships.
Because we believe active participation fosters academic achievement, we provide means for students to be active in creating our culture. Students are primarily responsible for organizing and staging all presentations and activities. Visual and Performing Arts students create a Fine Arts Assembly each spring and perform in the Senior Assembly and Pride Assembly. Visual Arts and Graphic Communications students create brochures, web pages, business cards, and playbills. Media Broadcast students create and present daily-televised announcements. The soccer and track teams, band, and cheerleaders create and host competitions for their specific areas. Drama and Chorus students perform in several theatrical productions each year, and band and orchestra have seasonal recitals. Visual Arts students submit work to the Scholastic Art Competition and the state fair, and in the spring, set up a weeklong exhibit open to the public.
The Viking Class of 2018 had another phenomenal year. Evidence of this class’s success can be found in the accomplishment of four US Presidential Scholar Candidates, five National Merit Semifinalists, 42 Honor Graduates, 48 Palmetto Fellows, 119 Hope Scholars, and 111 LIFE Scholarship recipients. We have also seen an increase in the number of students taking AP courses and exams over the last five years. During the 2013 - 2014 school year 334 students at Spring Valley took 635 AP exams. This school year 411 students took 794 exams. These numbers are very impressive and they represent our students’ commitment to taking the most challenging courses offered in high schools across the nation. In all, the class of 2018 amassed an astounding $34 million dollars in scholarship offers. This is the sixth straight year of students earning more than $30 million dollars in scholarship offers.
We are committed to our vision of creating a student-centered learning environment where educators strive to meet the needs of all learners by designing academically challenging, meaningful and engaging work that continuously inspires and ignites creativity, discovery, exploration, and innovation. We will continue to work with our students, families, and the community to provide a secure environment and innovative educational experience to empower our students to achieve excellence and take responsibility for their lives, their learning, and the world in which they live.
Principal: Mr. Jeff Temoney; SIC Chairperson: Mrs. Kimberly Watson
