St. John's High School has aligned its strategic plan to ensure that all of our students are making progress toward meeting the expectations outlined in the Profile of the South Carolina Graduate. This means that our students are developing the knowledge, skills and characteristics necessary to be highly successful in our ever-evolving 21st century world. Students at St. John's have benefited from programs at our school and through our community connections that have given them opportunities to become better communicators, critical thinkers, and collaborators, while still expanding their creativity.
One important program that we have incorporated into St. John’s culture is AVID (Advancement Via Individual Determination), which encourages students to learn self-reflection, goal-setting, and self-advocacy skills. They receive significant support and mentoring throughout the day on all core academic subjects. Students engage in public speaking, debate, problem solving and collaborative work in order to build skills in communication, in making real-world connections, and in seeking additional resources to expand and enrich their understanding to a more global perspective. Fine Arts and Advanced Placement and dual credit opportunities are important components of growing this perspective, and we are committed to increasing these types of experiences for our students.
Students at St. John's are also given the opportunity to engage in internships and apprenticeships throughout the year that align with their career interests. Aligned with these real-life experiences, students are coached by internship mentors and advocates that not only support their development, but also model positive workplace behavior, appropriate communication styles, and collaboration skills. The choices of Career and Technical Education (CTE) courses are growing at St. John’s as well. We assess our coursework to ensure the content is the most relevant, current, and rigorous to benefit our students’ future success.
Being a small school of about 350 students, staff have the unique opportunity to engage our students in ways that connect with their individual interests. Teachers and staff are frequently observed working one-on-one with students as they pursue their academic coursework, and are available for additional time and support when needed.
Our Strategic Plan is working. Enrollment has increased, the number of students participating in more rigorous coursework has increased, and student participation in dual credit opportunities has grown. College and Career readiness, as evidenced by performance on the WIN and the ACT, is improving, as more of our students are graduating on time and ready for what's next.
Stephen Larson, Principal
Latisha Brown, SIC Chair
