Candler County School District

The SWIRL (Speaking, Writing, Illustrating, Reading and Listening) Council, along with East Georgia State College, hosted an Adventure in the Park today in the Downtown Park. Guests were able to create lots of fun crafts, take home some free books and participate in a scavenger hunt! Miss EGSC, Katelyn Harris, read the guests an Eric Carl book. Special thanks to another host, the Georgia Youth Science & Technology Center and their coordinator, Ms. Erin Youmans who provided many of the activities and books given out today. If you would like to attend our next event, complete the following form and we'll add you to our email list for notifications! Form: https://forms.gle/UgfTeqQU8vPakNfh9

At Candler County Schools, our employees make the difference. We're proud to share our Employee Profile with you from the 2024-2025 School Year.

Metter Athletics Celebrates Outstanding Year of Athletic and Extracurricular Excellence Metter High School and Metter Middle School are proud to celebrate an exceptional year of athletic and extracurricular achievements across a variety of programs, highlighting the hard work, dedication, and talent of our student-athletes, coaches, and sponsors. From region championships to deep state playoff runs, the 2024–2025 school year has been one of the most successful in recent memory. Region Championships Metter High School teams brought home eight Region Championship titles, showcasing excellence across both athletic and performing arts programs. Three programs also earned Region Runner-up titles. • Football – Region Champions • Competitive Cheer – Region Champions • One Act Play – Region Champions • Literary Team – Region Champions • Boys Soccer – Region Champions • Girls Golf (Area 2) – Region Champions • Girls Track – Region Champions • Boys Track – Region Champions • Baseball – Region Runner Up • Softball – Region Runner Up • Boys Golf – Region Runner Up Metter Middle School teams brought home three Region Championship titles in Girls Cross Country, Boys Golf and Baseball. The Boys Track team and the Boys Cross Country team also brought home the Region Runner-Up titles. State Playoff Success In addition to regional dominance, Metter High teams competed at the highest levels in state competitions: • Football – Advanced to the Second Round • Softball – Reached the Elite Eight • Girls Basketball – First Round appearance • Cross Country – Competed at the State Meet • Girls Flag Football – First Round appearance • Competitive Cheer – 3rd in the State • One Act Play – State Runner-Up • Boys Soccer – Reached the State Semifinals • Girls Track –3rd in Division II • Boys Track – Competed at the State Meet • Baseball – Advanced to the Third Round • Girls Golf –State Runner-Up • Boys Golf – 7th in the State Metter High School also placed 2nd in state in the Georgia Athletic Directors Association (GADA) Director's Cup. This award is based on a scoring of a school's athletic performance in all Sports. Along with team success, Metter High School also had several individual State Champions and State Runners-up in Girls Track. • Zacarea Walker– Champion in High Jump • Tyra Howard, Brylie Cowart, Emery Wiebe and Emmie Parrish– Champions in 4x8 Relay • Zion Saffore – Runner-Up in Long Jump • A’driana Parrish – Runner-Up in High Jump A Tradition of Excellence “These accomplishments reflect the commitment of our students and coaches to ‘win at everything’, both on and off the field,” said Metter High School Principal Zach Rackett. “We are incredibly proud of the dedication, sportsmanship, and Tiger pride shown throughout the year.” Metter Middle School Principal Dr. Will Thigpen says, “Middle School Athletics have thrived over the past few years, and this year is no different. Our student-athletes are driven to succeed in all that they do.” As Metter High School looks forward to the upcoming school year, the legacy of champions continues to grow. “We are thankful that the entire Candler County community joins in celebrating these achievements and the bright future ahead for Tiger athletics and activities,” says Athletic Director Vicki Bowen.

The FY2026 budget will be considered for final approval by the Board on June 19, 2025 at 5:00 p.m., Candler County Board of Education meeting room. Pursuant to O.C.G.A. §20-2-167.1, additional meetings will be held to provide an opportunity for public input on the proposed annual operating budget. One was held on May 29, 2025 at 5:00 p.m. and the next will be June 13, 2025 at 8:00 a.m. in the Candler County Board of Education meeting room.

Congratulations to the following for their Years of Service to the Candler County School District: 30 Years of Service - Sherry Tyler, MES 25 Years of Service - Connie Daughtry, MES 25 Years of Service - Glenise Donaldson, MES 25 Years of Service - Suzanne Hunt, MES 25 Years of Service - Neppie Conley, Transportation 25 Years of Service - Jerry Byrd, Maintenance 25 Years of Service - Dr. CaDeisha Cooper, BOE 20 Years of Service - Alyssa Akins, MES 20 Years of Service - Octavia Houston, MES 20 Years of Service - Eric Verbel, MES 20 Years of Service - Sandy Wilson, MES 20 Years of Service - Aundrea Akins, BOE 20 Years of Service - Allen Lanier, BOE 15 Years of Service - Kimberly Grantham, MHS 15 Years of Service - Julie Ray, MHS 15 Years of Service - Leslie Gordon, MES 15 Years of Service - Jennifer Lewis, MES 15 Years of Service - Jill Vining, MES 15 Years of Service - Hannah Youngblood, MES 15 Years of Service - Sammie Lawrence, Transportation 10 Years of Service - Dr. Karen Chassereau, MHS 10 Years of Service - Lafonda Kelly, MHS 10 Years of Service - Stevie Bragg, MES 10 Years of Service - Megan Eason, MES 10 Years of Service - Mitch Nobles, MCCA 10 Years of Service - Denise Strickland, BOE 10 Years of Service - Tee Collins, Transportation 5 Years of Service - Shayla Donaldson, MHS 5 Years of Service - Wes Edenfield, MHS 5 Years of Service - James Ferry, MHS 5 Years of Service - Dylan Dixon, MMS 5 Years of Service - Taylor Dollar, MMS 5 Years of Service - Terrance Green, MMS 5 Years of Service - Bennett King, MMS 5 Years of Service - Kasey Koneman, MMS 5 Years of Service - Kristen Cason, MES 5 Years of Service - Haley Clements, MES 5 Years of Service - Lacey Henneman, MES 5 Years of Service - Rebecca Hill, MES 5 Years of Service - Taylor James, MES 5 Years of Service - Shanette Johnson, MES 5 Years of Service - Karen Stewart, MES 5 Years of Service - Mary Kate Storie, MES 5 Years of Service - Alesha Warner, MES 5 Years of Service - Annah Kirkland, MES 5 Years of Service - Tom Golden, MCCA 5 Years of Service - Rosalyn Thompson, BOE Thank you for your service to our students, parents and our community!

The 13th Annual Tiger Youth Basketball camp was a huge success. Championship Thursday was the highlight of the camp. Contest winners, 3on3, and 5on5 Champions were the awards given out for today’s action! Free-Throw Champions K - Kelvin Shaw 1st - Worth Powell 2nd - Dyess Durrence 3rd - Harrison Dutton 4th - Addie Stewart 5th - Brantley Lott 6th - 8th - Cavion Kennedy Lay-Up Champions K - Kelvin Shaw 1st - Drummond Porter 2nd - Zayden Sikes-Sutton 3rd - Knox Blocker 4th - Luke Stravriotis 5th - Brantley Lott 6th-8th - Brayden Hightower 3PT - Champion K - Kingston Nelson 1st - Grayson Daniel 2nd - Levi Woods 3rd - June Brannen 4th - Jhett McNamee 5th - Brantley Lott 6th-8th - Joy Collins Knock-Out Champion K - Kelvin Shaw 1st - Drummond Porter 2nd - Zayden Sikes-Sutton 3rd - Harrison Dutton 4th - Addie Stewart 5th - Brantley Lott 6th-8th - Joy Collins The MHS Tiger Basketball Team would like to thank the camp sponsors! We couldn’t do it without you!! Our 2025 Tiger Sponsors are listed below: Adams poultry Awards South BSN Bubba Hunt Golf Burlap and Lace Market and Coffee Bar Candler Pharmacy CarterFranklin, LLP Caughey Hearn State Farm insurance Charlton Rogers Curl's Body Shop Daniels Bishop Chevrolet D&D Pinestraw Metter Bank Eason Grading Company Firehouse Sub H and R Block H&H Timber Co, LLC Hadden Insurance Hulsey, Tootle, and Harrison IHS Pharmacy & Gifts Jay Bowen Memorial Fund Jones, Boyd, and McCranie Insurance Metter Ford Metter Graphics Metter Home Center Modern Finance Olliff and Fordham CPAs Pineland Telephone Senior Benefit Solutions Synovous Bank The Assurance Group The Roderick Group The Eclectic Seamstress Stephens Limousine Service, INC Will Parker

Candler County School District and Metter High School would like to announce that Coach Chris Carr has been selected to be the new Head Coach of the Tigers Baseball Team. Coach Carr has been an integral part of the program as Assistant Coach for the past two seasons, bringing experience, passion, and leadership to the team. Before joining Metter, he served as Head Coach at Wheeler County. We’re excited for this next chapter and look forward to a great season under Coach Carr’s leadership. Let’s go Tigers! 🐅⚾️

MES Students sing "Eye of the Tiger" to open the 5th Grade Promotion Ceremony! https://youtu.be/XeMBbZpriNs

Congratulations to the MHS Girls Golf Team — State Runner-Up in the GHSA Class 1A-D2 State Golf Tournament! An outstanding achievement and a season to be proud of!

MHS Golf teams are in Evans Ga at Bartram Trail Golf Course for the State Tournament. Currently, the Girls Team is in 2nd place and the Boys Team is tied for 6th place. The final round will be played tomorrow. Go Tigers!!

The FY2026 budget will be considered for final approval by the Board on June 19, 2025 at 5:00 p.m., Candler County Board of Education meeting room. Pursuant to O.C.G.A. §20-2-167.1, two additional meetings will be held to provide an opportunity for public input on the proposed annual operating budget on May 29, 2025 at 5:00 p.m. and June 13, 2025 at 8:00 a.m. in the Candler County Board of Education meeting room. The Proposed Budget can be seen here: https://core-docs.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/documents/asset/uploaded_file/3845/CCSD/5659422/BUDGETADVERTISEDFY26-To_Paper1.xls__-__Compatibility_Mode.pdf

The Class of 2025 Graduation Ceremony will be held Saturday, May 17 at 9 am. Ticketed event. However, you can see the graduation live online here: https://www.youtube.com/live/fPXtPfe9ElA

Oak Tree Entrance is clear and open for drop off and pickup. Have a great day!

The Candler County School Nutrition Department will host its Summer Meals Program from June 2 through July 18 (except for June 30-July 4) at the times and locations on the flyer below for children ages 18 and younger at no cost.

The Oak Tree Road entrance to the school complex will be closed this morning (Monday). Please use the Highway 129 entrance instead.

NOTICE: If you live on a dirt road and it has been impacted by the recent rainfall, on Monday May 12, please meet your bus driver at the nearest paved road at your normal pickup time, if possible. If your road is impassable, please contact your child's school first thing tomorrow morning.

Congratulations to the 2025-2026 Teachers of the Year for each school! MES - Casey Moore MMS - Terrance Green MHS/MCCA - Dr. Vic Fordham Each year, Teachers of the Year are announced at the end of the school year for the upcoming term, giving them the opportunity to compete for Georgia Teacher of the Year in early August. We are incredibly proud of this year’s winners and grateful they’ve chosen to share their wisdom, passion, and expertise with the students of Candler County Schools. Congratulations to each of you—your impact is immeasurable!

On Thursday, May 8, the MHS/MCCA Class of 2025 will hold several important events: 8 am Cap and Gown Photos (group and individual) 9 am Senior Commitment Program (parents invited!) 11 am Senior March (parents invited!) The Senior Commitment Program is a time where each Senior will tell the student body their future plans. The Senior March is where every senior walks the halls of all the schools (PreK-12th) in our district and receives encouragement from all the underclassmen! As always, it's going to be a Great Day to be a Tiger!! #winateverthing #educationisbetterinmetter

Two MHS Students Named "Top 7 Positive Athletes" in their Sport Categories! For the eleventh consecutive year, the Positive Athlete organization is recognizing local athletes from all across the State of GA as high-character kids that have been nominated and confirmed by their schools as the most representative of “How Positive Athletes O.P.E.R.A.T.E.:” Optimistic Puts Team First Encouraging Respectful Admits Imperfections True Heart for Others Embraces Service This year, Positive Athlete is naming their “Top 7” Positive Athletes in 29 different sport categories as the “Most Positive” in their sport categories across the state. Locally, two of Metter High School's athletes were named in the Top 7--Adysan Longgrear in Girls Golf and Carter Gainous in Baseball. Adysan, a junior, and Carter, a senior, have not only excelled athletically but have also made significant contributions to their community and churches. Both are recognized leaders on the field and high achievers in the classroom. Though they humbly acknowledge they’re not perfect, Adysan and Carter strive to be positive ambassadors for their sports and dedicated stewards of their community. Over 6,400 nominations from coaches, principals, athletic directors, teachers, and parents were submitted for the Positive Athlete program state-wide, representing over 440 public and private high schools. Local GA businessman Scott Pederson created Positive Athlete in the early 2010’s as a movement for more positivity in youth sports. In addition to excellence on the field, each nominated Positive Athlete was required to show the above characteristics in order to be nominated. These award winners now have a chance to be named the state-wide winner award in their sport category, which will be announced in early May. The 2025 Georgia Positive Athlete Awards will be held in early June, and will be a night in which all scholarship winners and state-wide award winners are recognized. Positive Athlete, INC. is now a national organization based in Georgia that seeks to promote the benefits of positivity to young athletes around the country through awards, scholarships and special opportunities all around the country. Positive Athlete Georgia has awarded thousands of Positive Athlete awards around the State of GA for the past 11 years, in which over $350,000 in scholarships have been awarded.

Shoutout to Matt King and Mrs. Liz’s class for taking on a special project to beautify and maintain the planters in front of MHS! Their hard work is making our campus look even better—thank you for your care and dedication!