During the Georgia School Board’s and Georgia State Superintendents’ joint annual conference recently held in Atlanta, the Henry County Board of Education was honored for two distinct accomplishments. The conference, held each year in December, is the most significant convening of the state’s K-12 education leaders. This year’s conference featured State Superintendent of Education Richard Woods, Governor Brian Kemp, and Henry County’s very own Jenna Fabien from Luella High School, who was the featured student speaker.
The Leading Edge Award recognizes a district’s ability to design and implement projects and programs that demonstrate positive impact on student achievement and engagement. Under the category of Teaching and Learning Resources, Henry County Schools was recognized for its development and use of Henry Connects – Family View, best described as a one-stop-shop for communication and access to classroom instructional resources for families.
“The vision for Henry Connects – Family View came from our families who desire more ways to support their child’s learning,” said Chair Holly Cobb. She added, “Our role as board members is to understand community perspective and to then invest in the improvements necessary to elevate the family experience.”
Henry County Schools has now received the Leading Edge Award for three consecutive years, beginning in 2019 when the honor was first conceived. Board Chair Holly Cobb, Vice Chair Annette Edwards, Board Member Sophe Pope and Superintendent Mary Elizabeth Davis were all on hand to accept the award during the annual state conference.
The Henry County Board of Education was also awarded exemplary board status for the second consecutive year. This honor is designed to highlight boards who demonstrate best practices in governance that lead to effective school systems.
The criteria for exemplary status is determined by GSBA and evaluates boards based on their objective performance in several categories, among them being strategic planning, ethics, and fiscal responsibility. These categories emerge from the state board of education’s standards for effective governance and serve as the presumptive guidepost that informs the practices of public boards of education across the state of Georgia.
Like the Leading Edge Award, the Henry County Board of Education has also been recognized as an exemplary board for consecutive years. Vice Chair Annette Edwards said, “Our Board represents the collective interests of our community, and our shared commitment to govern according to the practices that we know best serve our students is what keeps us motivated. We are truly honored by this recognition.”
