This Week in Florence 1 Schools

For the past two weeks a selection panel outside Florence 1 Schools has been reviewing and scoring the applications submitted by each school's teacher of the year (pictured below). The four teachers whose applications have received the highest ratings will be named the Honor Roll Teachers.

Florence 1 Schools will announce the names of the teachers who have received honor roll status during next week, September 18th through 22nd.

The process of selecting the Florence 1 Schools Teacher of the Year will continue with an interview session for the four Honor Roll Teachers on Friday, September 22nd.

These four teachers will be featured in detail in next week's edition of This Week, along with the process for selecting and announcing the name of the 2023-2024 Florence 1 Schools Teacher of the Year.

To personally congratulate your school's teacher, click on the name which is a link to his or her email address.

“The Embrace,” a massive bronze figural abstraction in Boston by Hank Willis Thomas, son of Henry Thomas (Wilson High School Class of 1962), is based on a photo of an embrace between Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr, and Coretta Scott King after he won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964.

The International Medal of Arts are selected by the U.S. Department of State as part of the Art in Embassies program. The annual award honors artists who have played an exemplary role in promoting cultural diplomacy efforts around the world.

Pictured: "The Embrace" by Hank Willis Thomas.

South Florence (Bruins) are at South Pointe; West Florence (Knights) have a *bye week; and Wilson (Tigers) will host Darlington which will feature a Friday night half-time show by the Marching 101 Band of South Carolina State University.

Bye week: Each team is scheduled to have one week near the middle of the season where they do not play a game. That week is termed a bye week.

Mark your calendar for Tuesday, September 26th, the date of the The School Foundation Gala. This year's distinguished graduate is Joe W. Rock Pearce, Jr.

Joe Rocky Pearce is currently serving as chairman of the board of directors for the South Carolina Public Employee Benefit Authority (PEBA).

• F1S Employees - ($75) Includes general admission, dinner and entertainment.
• Individual Tickets - ($100) Includes general admission, dinner and entertainment.
• Bronze Sponsorship - ($1,000) Includes general admission, dinner and entertainment for eight.

For more information visit https://www.theschoolfoundation.org/.

The Florence Center will host the South Carolina High School League's (SCHSL) 2024 Boys' and Girls' Basketball Upper State, Lower State, and State Finals playoffs.

This will be the first time that one site will host the upper/lower state title games as well as the state title games for all classifications.

The semifinals are slated for February 23-28, 2024 with the finals taking place March 1-2, 2024. Read the full story here.

Congratulations to Briggs Elementary School celebrating 70 years of educating students in the community and the grand opening of the Briggs Neighborhood Field.

Go to briggsf1s.org for more information and to the Florence 1 Schools Facebook page for photos.

The F1S Food Truck is delivering food and smiles to students at Brockington Elementary.

WASHINGTON, DC - SEPTEMBER 13: U.S. First Lady Jill Biden greets the daughter of 2023 International Medal of Arts recipient Hank Willis Thomas, alongside fellow recipients Suling Wang and Robert Pruitt during a ceremony in the East Room at the White House on September 13, 2023 in Washington, DC. First Lady Jill Biden honored five artists for their role in advancing cultural diplomacy through their art. (Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

At the September 14th Florence 1 Schools Board of Trustees meeting, Delmae Elementary School Principal Roy Ann Jolley, (center) is recognized by Vice-Chairman of the Board of Trustees Trisha C. Caulder (left) and Chairman of the Board of Trustees S. Porter Stewart (right) for 50 years of service in Florence 1 Schools.

To connect to interesting TED talks about teaching, view the links here.