Alleghany and Covington High School Athletes were commended and awarded for their participation in various sports, including baseball, track, soccer, and softball at the Alleghany Highlands School Board’s regular meeting, Monday evening.
As their sport was being highlighted, the students were called into the room to receive their certificates and have their pictures taken as there was little to no standing room available in the meeting room at the Central Office Complex to accommodate the sizable crowd that turned out.
Clifton Forge High School Alumni took up several seats to debate the use of their fight song in the new school system. After Ty Dobbs, Athletic Director for the Alleghany Highlands Public Schools, presented the Athletic Awards, Adam Eggleston, Band Director, joined him at the podium to give an update on “The Fight Song”.
“Other than athletics, I feel certain that most everyone else is here for the fight song update and public comments,” began Dobbs. After he acknowledged Bonnie Nicely, CFHS Alumni president he went on record saying, “we have taken into effect all of the past, the past schools”. He added that his parents went to CFHS and he to Clifton’s Middle School and acknowledged “there is history there.” He prefaced the reading of a typed document by saying, “nothing is set in stone, everything is still being worked on.”
“I wish that all of our community would support everything that the school system, school board office, the school board members, the coaches, the teachers, and especially the students are doing.” He added that he wished people “would put in as much effort and thought into what’s best for the students as they have into the fight song and the trophies, and I don’t mean that in a wrong way and I don’t want it to be taken the wrong way,” Dobbs added.
“This merger was never supposed to be about the past while it should be honored, we are supposed to be looking forward and setting up future students for success. With students from both schools feeling like they are losing so much why not give them something new to hold onto”, he continued reading. Dobbs implored the community to help foster something new rather than letting echoes of decades past, with a fight song that’s over 100 years old, define them. He’d rather they be the “best band that they can be now.”
He concluded his reading by asking the community to “let the education professionals make the decision. Part of leaving a good legacy is knowing when to hand off the baton to the next runner. If you drop this then you lose the whole race.”
“We are trying to look at every possible option to promote what’s best for our students,” added Eggleston. They both agreed that “nothing is ever off the table and that they are working diligently on this (fight song), not wanting to leave anyone out.”
During Board Member Comments, Tammy Scruggs-Duncan complimented Dobbs and Eggleston on the unity of the band and the dedication demonstrated by both the students and teachers.
Danielle Morgan believes CFHS, AHS, and CHS were the main three high schools and encouraged everyone to “move forward and not look back.” She acknowledged that “we have incorporated things from Alleghany and Covington” and she believes “Clifton Forge is a member of the three that should have a voice.” Morgan supports CFHS Alumni in their efforts of being included but admitted she didn’t “know what that will look like.”
Bonnie Nicely, CFHS Alumni President, acknowledged the big group attending from CFHS by having them stand and thanked everyone for their consideration of including CFHS.
Diana Kling-Smith, CFHS Alumni, who hadn’t signed up to speak, was granted permission. “I was somewhat disappointed in Mr. Dobb’s inference that the band and students may not be capable of learning a difficult piece,” began Kling-Smith in response to Dobbs’ written statement referencing the band having difficulty in playing “Our Director.” She thanked everyone for their support and urged each one “to think over what it would mean for the community as a whole and all students to know why this fight song was chosen and the history of it.”
JoAnn Carter Henson, CFHS Alumni, who also had not signed up to speak, was granted permission. She began by saying she thought it was sad that the school system didn’t start off brand new; with “their own history, their own colors, and their own fight song.” “Even though CFHS has been gone since 1983, it was a vital part of this community,” said Henson. Henson believes Clifton Forge should have been considered all along when the decisions were made, somewhere before “we get to the fight song.” She believes the bad thing is that Clifton Forge has been totally left out and are now only left with fighting for “the fight song.” “We should have been considered from the beginning, whether mascot, colors, whatever. Now, we’ve lost everything. We’ve come as far as we can go,” said Henson in conclusion.
Moving forward and making preparations for the new school year, Lt. Juan Roldan, Covington Police Department, detailed a traffic flow presentation to accommodate the Covington Middle School and to keep the students safe; Amber Kerns, Alleghany High School Band Booster, reported that she had found a box trailer and would like to donate it to the school system to accommodate the logistics problem of moving band instruments and equipment since “every game is now an away game for us,”; Fred Vaughan, Director of Human Resources and Pupil Personnel, gave a presentation on the roll-out of a SchoolGuard Emergency Response App to every school site; and Eric Tyree, Director of Maintenance, advised that bus routing is coming along well and school start time would be released in the “very near future.”
In other action, the Board heard several information items and approved some action items, including raising the adult lunch price to $4.25; a revised regulation for payment of unused sick leave upon retirement or death while in active service; and changes to school board powers and duties as recommended by the Virginia School Board Association. Every action item was approved unanimously, with Fitzpatrick participating via teleconference