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Click the link to download a printable version of the flyer here:

Paint the Town Purple Flyer

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Haywood High School boasts one of the most diverse curriculums in West Tennessee. With Advanced Placement access for all, a robust offering of Career/Technical pathways, and a brand new dual enrollment partnership with Jackson State Community College, students at HHS have multiple avenues in which to pursue post-secondary success. A new program that has been introduced this year aims to consolidate the necessary skills for all students who plan to be successful beyond high school – whether that be in a four year university, a community college, TCAT, or diving straight into the workforce.

Jobs for Tennessee Graduates (JTG) is a program designed to help guide students toward a post-secondary education, a meaningful career, and a productive adulthood. Using a comprehensive set of competencies that are taught during the program, students learn best-practices for success beyond high school.  These competencies include important skills such as career development, job attainment, personal skills, and economic empowerment.  

Leading the JTG program at Haywood High School is Brandon Leek. Brandon is a History teacher, but has gravitated toward the piloting of the JTG program this school year.  He is teaching two classes of JTG this semester and will teach more sections next year as the program will expand to include every senior at HHS.

“The main focus of JTG is to prepare students for post-secondary life after high school. This isn’t just university or college focused; it helps prepare all students to be successful regardless of the path they take after high school graduation. This could be community college, a four year university, tech school, trade school, or the military. We just want students to be prepared for success,” Brandon explained.

Regardless of the path a student chooses for themselves, there are certain universal qualities needed for success in any arena of postsecondary life.  Many industries refer to these qualities as “soft-skills” and these skills can often be overlooked in traditional, academic courses in schools.  JTG is a program that seeks to fill those gaps and give students much-need practice at communicating and planning ahead for success.

“We really focus on communication. That’s one of our competencies. We want our students to be able to communicate verbally as well as through writing,” Brandon said. “We also work on job attainment skills – how to create a resume, how to interview.”

One way that students put those learned skills to the test is when JTG hosted a reverse career fair at Haywood High School on November 4.  Brandon invited multiple professionals from local industries to attend the reverse career fair and help students practice sharpening their interviewing skills.  Each student had their own table with a resume board created.  Each industry professional rotated through the fair and spent about three minutes with each student.  The JTG students were able to practice their communication skills and answer questions from each business.  

Brandon explained how the reverse career fair might be challenging for some students, but also allowed them to learn from any mistakes they might make during the interviews.

“We’re taking the idea of a traditional career fair and flipping it – we’ll have prospective employers rotate through the library and have a two minute interview with each student that will allow the students to practice those necessary communication skills,” he explained.  “When we started this class, we did a lot of presentations and kids were nervous about them. Sometimes students spend more time communicating via technology rather than verbally or face to face, and we really want to change that with this class. Communication skills are necessary for success in the job world. With this reverse career fair, they may fall on their face, but it’s going to be necessary practice.  We’re here to learn from mistakes and gather experiences to make the students better all-around.”

One skill Brandon has emphasized with his students during the mock-interview process is helping his students with their elevator speeches.  

“Something we’ve really focused on lately is perfecting the students’ elevator speeches. An elevator speech is simply an efficient and concise way to introduce yourself and grab the attention of a potential employer – it helps set the student apart and make a good first impression. The term is based on being in an elevator with someone and having a couple of minutes to make an impression,” he explained.

While the reverse career fair is an excellent way to practice communication and interviewing skills, it’s only a small part of what the JTG program offers at HHS. Brandon wants to make sure his students are learning everything they need to learn to be successful after they leave high school. That includes budgeting, learning how to file their taxes, and even knowing how to check the oil in their car.

“In JTG, we go beyond interviewing. We also learn real-life things like how to do your taxes, how to check tire pressure.  We did a financial literacy project a couple of weeks ago where we explored how to open and manage a checking account; we looked at housing costs and discussed budgeting. We looked at how much rent costs and how much a weekly trip to the grocery store would be,” he said. “We break down every part of a budget. I want to give students an accurate picture of what life is like after high school and how important finding a job is and having the skills to find that job.”

In and around Haywood County, the announcement of Blue Oval City has dominated the conversation surrounding the workforce, public education, and nearly every other community aspect of Brownsville.  Brandon recognizes the opportunity that will  be waiting for students when they leave high school and believes that JTG can give students a head start in comparison to other districts in West Tennessee.

“We all know the opportunities that are coming in the next few years for students who graduate from high school.  We think our students have a head start because there’s only one other high school in the area that offers this class,” he said.

Outside of Ripley High School, HHS is the only high school in West Tennessee offering the JTG program.  Because this is the pilot year, JTG has been open to both juniors and seniors, but starting next year JTG will be a required class for all seniors.  

“This year, we’re piloting the class. We have 51 students who are juniors and seniors.  Moving forward, this class will only be for seniors, and every senior will be required to take the class,” Brandon said. 

Not only will each senior take the class, but Brandon will track each graduate for a year in order to check-in and provide support after graduation.

“From the time they graduate, I track each student from the program for a year just to make sure those students are finding success after high school,” he said.

Along with preparing students for academic or work opportunities beyond high school, JTG also looks at compensation from local industries, tuition costs for colleges, and housing prices for the local market. All of this helps students to see a clear picture of what awaits after high school and what pathway could be the best option for them.  

In the end, JTG provides a much needed space for students to explore areas that might have been blindspots in the planning process.  

“JTG really consolidates all of the opportunities that Haywood High School provides in its curriculum. Whether the student is university bound. TCAT bound, or workforce bound, this class helps them develop the skills necessary to be successful in any setting they find themselves in after high school,” Brandon said. 

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Press Release – Ready Graduates

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There are multiple levels of safety within a school – feeling safe emotionally, feeling safe to make a mistake in class and then learn from that mistake, and, most importantly, feeling physically safe in a learning environment.  

Often, the awareness of “feeling safe” isn’t something that is at the forefront of most people’s minds; it’s the awareness of potential danger that can cause stress and be a hindrance to learning. The best barometer of students feeling safe in their school is when the students aren’t thinking about the issue of safety at all; they are simply allowed to be kids and learn to the best of their abilities.  

In Haywood County Schools, a School Resource Officer (SRO) is placed on every campus to ensure the physical safety of all students.  SRO’s are trained police officers who have graduated from The Tennessee Law Enforcement Academy and have previous experience as a law enforcement officer.  

The job of an SRO requires a specialized skill set that sets them apart from police officers who are on patrol within a community.  SRO’s must have the ability to build relationships with students, engage with teachers, and, above all, help protect everyone in the school building.

To be successful in any profession, an awareness of nuance is a key ingredient that is often overlooked.  Being able to evaluate any given situation in a nuanced and detailed way can open multiple doors to solving problems or resolving an issue.  

Haywood High School School Resource Officer Isaiah Walker understands the importance of evaluating each situation with patience and depth – skills that are not often seen in an officer his age.  Isaiah is only 25 years old and recently completed his first full year as a law enforcement officer in Haywood County.  

“August 21 was my one-year anniversary in law enforcement,” he said.  “Normally, SRO”s have to have three years of law enforcement experience before being promoted to an SRO, but I was fortunate enough to get this position a little earlier than expected.”

Seven years prior to Isaiah being named the SRO at HHS, he was walking the same halls as a student.  Not only does his age allow him to relate to students in an effective way, his experience as an ordained youth minister has also helped him develop skills in building relationships with teenagers which is something that doesn’t always come naturally to adults in positions of authority.

Having experience in building relationships has also helped Isaiah understand how policing within the context of a high school is quite different than policing in the community,

“Policing is a little different inside a building than out in the community.  You’re dealing with different age groups, different behaviors, and different thought patterns,” he explained. “In high school, students are very concerned about what their peers think and say and behaviors are often dictated by those things. The plus side to policing in a high school, though, is that there are many opportunities to build relationships with the students.  If the students are reprimanded for something, there’s time to talk it out and possibly get to the root cause of the behavior.”

This is where Isaiah’s skillset of seeing the nuances of a given situation help him interact with students and, hopefully, help change students’ behaviors moving forward.  He realizes that given behaviors don’t occur in a vacuum; there are often a variety of reasons that students are acting out or violating school policy.

“Sometimes the situation we’re dealing with in the school is a symptom of what’s going outside the school – maybe what’s going on at home or in the community,” he said.  “On the street, if you have the facts to enforce the law then that’s what you do and wipe your hands of it and you’re done.  In a school setting, though, there’s the chance to really have productive conversations about behavior and choices.  At this age, teenagers are products of their environment; they’re in the process of being a sponge and absorbing what’s around them.  A lot of the students that walk through these halls will behave in ways that they’re told to behave or that they’ve observed, but my job is to reassure and reaffirm to them that they’re great and smart and loved and valued.”

This is the type of depth from an SRO that could truly change student behavior rather than put a band-aid on it.  While there are definite situations and causes for punitive action to take place, punitive actions cannot solely stand alone with the hope of changing behaviors.  Negative consequences must also be paired with constructive and direct conversations that still maintain the dignity of the student while at the same time communicating why certain behaviors could be dangerous and/or unhealthy.

“I’ve learned that many youth and young adults don’t care how much you know until they see how much you care,” Officer Walker explained. “This job really takes patience on my part.  Teenagers are impulsive, so adults can’t be.  I try my hardest to counteract their impulsivity by remaining calm and just listening to them if they’re upset. Having conversations helps children really think through what’s just occurred.”

Another factor that Officer Walker is well aware of is the perception of law enforcement as school aged children grow older.  When students are young, negative interactions with authorities are limited – teachers are treated with unquestioned respect; law enforcement officers are given high-fives and hugs.  As children age, however, their experiences with authority figures in their lives begins to change in some cases.  If students have multiple negative interactions with teachers, they may take a little time to warm-up to a teacher the next year; the trust takes a little longer to rebuild each time.  The same can be said for interactions with law enforcement officers.

“By the time students reach high school, they more than likely have a certain view of police based on their personal experience.  I realize that that particular experience probably isn’t a positive one; police officers aren’t getting invited to pizza parties or anything like that. When we’re called in the community, it’s usually because something bad has happened,” he said. “This job as an SRO is a calling; I believe that.  In this role, there’s a chance for me to change a perception that might be negative.  I believe that the only way people’s perceptions change is through consistency and positivity.  I’m trying to be both.  My door is always open if a student needs to talk because I see myself as more than just a law enforcement officer.  Love is given, but respect is earned.  If I continue to show them respect, they’ll show me the same.”

While Officer Walker has an excellent grasp of the nuances of policing in a school setting, he is also very aware of the concrete aspects of his job such as building security and the physical protection of students and staff.

“The high school is the largest campus in the district.  We’re split into three buildings here, so there are a lot of doors to be checked.  I survey all three buildings; I’ll drive around the campus to make sure no doors are visibly accessible.  Then, I’ll walk the halls and check bathrooms and also take that time in the morning to just catch up with students about their weekend or their previous night,” he said. “When students are in class, I always want teachers to make sure their doors are locked.  I’ll go to the Career/Tech building and check the doors there.  I’ll make my rounds four or five times a day.”

Even with the knowledge of navigating student interactions and the skill to provide protection, Officer Walker is also very aware of something that the general population takes for granted: the access to personal, handheld technology by students. And, like almost everything else in his job, Officer Walker sees both sides of it.

“Something that the general population may not think about that’s actually very important to school safety is how much access students have to cell phones.  That can actually be good or bad.  The use and importance of technology can alert us to something that we may not know but absolutely need to know,” he explained. “On the other hand, that access to technology can also produce issues that we have to follow up on.”

With as much depth and intelligence as Officer Walker brings to the job, he also is well aware that all of that depth and intelligence won’t get him very far if he doesn’t show students that he genuinely cares about their safety and success.  

“I’ve been an ordained youth minister since 2017 and have worked with youth and young adults the whole time. I feel like I’ve had a lot of practice at interacting with young people and showing them who they can be – revealing that potential each of them have,” he said.  “I plan to do this for a long time, so I want students who leave HHS to know that Officer Walker has their back here and wherever else they go when they leave.”

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There are many qualities that are necessary to be a successful person – a strong work ethic, integrity, discipline, and persistence to name a few.  At the top of that list, however, could be the ability to adapt and adjust to any situation.  Without skills of adaptation, the slightest change in routine or schedule could limit a person’s potential for success.  Adjusting to change is not an easy task, and one that can overwhelm a lot of people.

Haywood Tomcat wide receiver Jamari Person knows all about adjustments and had to adjust to a significant change at a very important period in his life.

When Jamari was in the eighth grade, he and his mom moved to Brownsville to be closer to family.  For most students, the middle school years are tough enough without having to move to a new school and a new town, but Jamari was tasked with having to adapt to a new city, a new school, and new classmates as a teenager.  And, like he does on the football field every Friday night, he wove his way through some initial obstacles to find himself set up for success.

As a young boy in Nashville, Jamari did what a lot of young, energetic kids do: play backyard football.  For Jamari, though, he had someone a little older and a little bigger who taught him lessons in the School of Hard Knocks.

“I started playing football in the backyard as a kid.  My older brother taught me everything – playing ball with me, roughing me up,” Jamari recalled, laughing.  “I always had a ball in my hand since I was a baby. I always knew I’d be into sports, and had a lot of energy growing up.”

Like most young athletes, Jamari’s games in the backyard evolved to a more organized structure in youth leagues.  And, like most athletes of Jamari’s caliber, the coaches started positioning him in places where the ball would be in his hands…but not until after a short stint on the defensive side of the ball.

“When I was younger, I played every position.  I started off as a defensive end, but one day after practice I was running around and making guys miss and my coaches started putting me on offense – running back, quarterback, receiver,” he recalled.

At some point, however, Jamari’s playing days in the youth leagues ended, and when he and his mom moved to Brownsville, Jamari focused on basketball.  

For several years, Jamari didn’t set foot on a football field, but those backyard games still seemed to be calling his name.  And, like those early years in Nashville with his brother playing ball with him and teaching him those lessons of athletics, Jamari was once again playing pickup football with high-caliber athletes but this time in Brownsville. 

“I always had a love for football; it never left.  I used to go out and play pickup football games in the neighborhood in Brownsville.  I was going up against guys like Jaylen Lewis who are playing Division I football right now.  The guys I was playing with kept encouraging me to come play football, so I finally did,” he said.

The Haywood Tomcat football program isn’t your run-of-the-mill program.  The Tomcats aren’t a team who would ever be satisfied with a 6-4 season or simply earning a spot in the play-offs.  Coach Chris Smith and his staff have built a program in Haywood County that rarely loses and always makes a deep run in the postseason.  Even for an athlete of Jamari’s capability, being dropped into a successful football program like Haywood County would be a huge adjustment…but, of course, Jamari had experience in adapting and adjusting to challenging situations.

Jamari saw how Tomcat players were finding success on the field and in the classroom and parlaying that success into collegiate careers in Division I football at schools like Arkansas, Tennessee, and Florida State.  Jamari knew it would take work, but he also trusted the coaching staff and his own ability to find success.

“I saw how Coach Chris Smith and Coach (Logan) Rebstock were sending players to college, and I always wanted to go to college.  I know that if I’m going to go to college, it’ll have to be for free, so I came back to the sport last year, which was my junior year,” Jamari recalled.  “It definitely took some time to get used to playing football again.  For the first few weeks and months, they all kept calling me ‘the basketball guy’.  I had to get used to the physicality, but I was prepared for it.  I knew what I was walking into.”

After getting the cobwebs knocked out and dusting himself off after some big hits, Jamari was ready to fully commit to whatever was ahead for him on the field. He knew the learning curve would be steep, but he also knew that his ability and the advice of his coaches would take care of any peripheral concerns he might have about coming back to a game that he had always loved.

“I bought in on the first day.  I trusted my coaches completely because I saw what they did with Darrion Williamson and Jaylen Lewis. This program has produced some big-time players who have gone on to play college ball, so I listened to everything the coaches told me to do and I’ve tried my best to do it,” he said.  “I knew I could make plays, so that’s what I tried to do – just went to practice everyday and didn’t say much and let my play on the field speak for itself.”

After a successful junior year where Jamari helped the Tomcats to an undefeated regular season, he currently finds himself halfway through his senior season where the Tomcats are once again undefeated.  He looks back at his growth over the last year and realizes that he has learned so much more about the game and how crucial the mental aspect of playing football is if success is to be attained on the field.

“I feel like I’m a quick learner, but I also know I’m still in the early stages of learning the game.  I feel like I’ve grown a lot since this time last year, but I know I’ve got a long way to go,” he said. “I’ve learned how to read a defense pre-snap; I’ve learned how to get off a defender if they’re pressing me on the line of scrimmage.  I’ve learned a lot more about the mental aspect of the game this year.”

Along with his growth as a wide receiver, Jamari is also getting more attention from big colleges.  Along with that attention from colleges, though, he’s also garnering a lot more attention from opposing defenses.

“Last year, Jaylen Lewis got a lot of attention from defenses, so I saw a lot of one-on-one coverage.  This year, though, I’m seeing a lot of off-man or off-doubling.  If they’re (the defense) down pressing, I know they’ll double over the top,” he said.

Once again, Jamari is having to adjust, but this time it’s not adjusting to a new town or adjusting to the physicality of football.  Now, it’s about adjusting to how defenses play coverage against him.  Like everything else for Jamari, he’s found a way to adapt to this challenge – by studying some of the great players who play the same position he does.

“I loved watching the receivers from Ohio State – Garret Wilson, Chris Olave, Marvin Harrison, Jr.  Those guys are so smooth,” he said.  “My favorite receiver, though, has always been Odell Beckham Jr.  Ever since he was at LSU, I’ve loved watching him play.”

One player, however, stands out to Jamari when it comes to diving deep into the fundamentals of the position.

“The guy I study the most is Davante Adams.  I feel he’s a lot like me – good size, good hands. He’s not the fastest in the league, but he knows how to get open and make plays.  I really study him a lot,” Jamari said.  “Route running is so important.  I’m trying to show colleges that I’m a great route runner even though I’m a bigger receiver.”

While football can often be unfairly viewed as a sport that is built more on physical brutality and less on gracefulness, the best players in the game are great at both.  Jamari is learning that getting open on the field requires much more than speed and strength; it also requires grace and deception.

“Foot work is so important when it comes to route running and getting open. Defensive backs are getting better and better.  They’re getting more physical and disrupting timing a lot more, so a receiver has to use their feet to deceive that DB and I’ve got to make them think I’m running one direction when I’m really about to do the opposite,” he said. “You can’t just be able to run past a guy now.”

The position of wide receiver is also wholly dependent on another position on the field: quarterback.  A receiver can be the fastest on the field, have the quickest feet, and the most explosive burst off the line of scrimmage, but if he doesn’t have a quarterback who can throw him the ball, all of that skill and ability is for nothing.  Luckily for Jamari, he has a quarterback in Cordero Walker who can get him the ball.  Jamari also recognizes the importance of the relationship off the field.

“Cordero and I worked together a lot during the off-season because we knew this year was going to be a big year.  We’ve been building that chemistry and we worked on making some checks at the line of scrimmage,” he said.

For a quarterback and receiver operating at the highest level, there are often many unspoken communications throughout a game – a hand motion this way, a head nod that way.  There could be eye contact between the two players that instantly communicates a message that no one else sees.  Cordero and Jamari had a play against Melrose this season that showed how important that communication is and how much they’ve learned from their coaches about reading defenses.

“Last game against Melrose, we made a check at the line because of something we saw in the defense.  They had been stuffing the run, and we saw the positioning of the defensive back and called a pass play at the line of scrimmage and scored a touchdown on it.  It felt great to do that because that’s the mental part of the practice paying off in a game,” Jamari recalled, smiling.  “Coach Smith was smiling and shaking his head, but I could tell that he was proud of us, too.”

As the Tomcats continue to roll through another dominant regular season, and Jamari continues to rack up yards and touchdowns, a lot of big colleges are taking notice of the 6’2, 185 pound receiver.  He has size, speed, and skill and is only halfway through his second season of high school football.  His ceiling is seemingly infinite.  

With all of that success and attention, though, Jamari understands what his priorities are.

“The way I keep myself grounded is just reminding myself to be a kid.  The attention is great and the spotlight is great, but I’m well-raised.  I try to keep the main thing the main thing.  I know what goals I have and I know what’s important to me, so I’m just trying to be a kid and have fun playing ball.  I also know that school work comes before anything else.  I wouldn’t be able to be out there running routes or playing ball if my grades weren’t where they needed to be,” he said.

One thing Jamari failed to mention – and it’s something he may not yet realize about himself – is that he’s once again adapting and adjusting as he weaves his way through obstacles to find success on the other side. He has the talent to be great on the field and the mindset to find fulfillment off it. He knows what his priorities are and has the experience to navigate through whatever lies ahead.

“I think about school and football all the time.  If I’m not thinking about one or the other, I’m probably asleep.”

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HCS Communications Update – September 19-23

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To encourage students to apply for college this week, activities were scheduled each day that allowed students to learn more about college and the process of applying to a post-secondary institution.  Listed below are the days of the week and the events that occurred on those days:

Monday – Peer panel with Haywood High School alumni who are currently enrolled in colleges in Tennessee.

Tuesday – Students created pennants with the name of the college or university in which they plan to apply.

Wednesday – A Jackson State enrollment counselor came to the Student Options Academy to help students fill out applications.

Thursday – Students were given pieces of candy in exchange for filling out a college application.

Friday – Seniors who wore a college t-shirt were entered into a drawing to win a gift card.

The Ayers Foundation and GEAR UP want every senior at Haywood High School to apply to at least one college or university by the end of September. 

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Every student and teacher deserves the safest environment in which to learn and teach; parents deserve to feel at ease when they drop their student at school or put them on the bus.  In Haywood County Schools, we are taking every necessary precaution to make sure our buildings are safe and secure.

Even though the topic of school safety is most often discussed after a tragedy has occurred, the most important work of school safety begins with providing opportunities for students to learn about their feelings while practicing conflict resolution techniques as well as providing them as much support as possible when it comes to social-emotional learning.

In early grades in HCS, students take part in The Leader in Me Program which is woven into the fabric of each school.  In TLIM, students take ownership of certain aspects of their school as well as learn healthy habits of successful people. Students who participate in TLIM are also able to positively affect the culture of their school.  This allows students to build confidence in themselves as they progress through the school system.  

Each school in HCS also has a school social worker along with a school counselor.  At Haywood High School, the Project AWARE grant also provides two additional school social workers in order to help supplement the work of the school social worker and counselors.  From early elementary school through graduation, students in HCS are socially and emotionally supported while in school

Even with various social supports in place for students, building security and the physical safety for students remain paramount in HCS.  Each individual campus in the district has video cameras at every main access point and every main entrance is locked and only accessible by being unlocked by the school’s office.  Listed below are the safety measures in place for each school in HCS:

Building Security:

• School Resource Officer on every campus
• Doors are locked – every outside door should  be locked at all times.
• Doors are never propped open
• Cameras at doors at every entry way
• Every classroom door should be locked inside the building even if the doors aren’t shut while instruction is taking place
• Building can only be accessed by office personnel unlocking the door 
• Students are signed out through the Raptor Visitor Management and must have photo ID to check out students

One of the most integral parts to building safety in HCS is the placement of an SRO on each campus.  SRO’s are members of the Brownsville Police Department and have graduated from the Tennessee Law Enforcement Academy.  They are trained to handle crisis situations within a school, but they are also trained in the important relationship building aspects required of adults who work in a school setting.

SRO’s provide physical protection for staff and students in each school, but they also can be another trusted adult in the life of students.  SRO’s also help with the annual intruder drills that take place on each campus.  

Much like tornado drills, fire drills, and earthquake drills, intruder drills help schools prepare for a worst-case scenario.  During an intruder drill, students and staff practice their lockdown procedures which include making sure every door is locked, that students are not visible in the classroom, and door windows are covered.  Intruder drills are required to be practiced once a year, but principals have the discretion to practice them as much as needed.

While we hope that no school in HCS ever has to use what they’ve learned during intruder drills or an SRO in HCS has to implement their training to stop an intruder, we know that making sure those safeguards are in place across the district is a priority.  We value our students, teachers, and families and want to provide them the safest learning environment possible.  

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