CONGRATULATIONS TO MRS. RONA STUART 2024-2025 DISTRICT TEACHER OF THE YEAR
Congratulations to Spring Valley’s Mrs. Rona Stuart on being named Richland 2 “District Teacher of the Year.” Mrs. Stuart’s dedication and passion shine through her teaching, making her a beacon of inspiration for both students and fellow educators alike. Through her tireless efforts, she continues to empower the youth of Spring Valley, leaving a lasting impact on their lives. Discover the amazing story behind this achievement below:
The 2024-2025 District Teacher of the Year for Richland School District Two is Rona Stuart, a Social Studies teacher at Spring Valley High School. Superintendent Dr. Kim D. Moore and other district leaders made the surprise announcement yesterday at Spring Valley High during one of her lessons.
Stuart was overwhelmed with tears of joy as the superintendent announced her as the new District Teacher of the Year.
“I am honored because I love my students and pouring into them. They are our future, and it is so important to pour into them so that they can see the promise of America. I enjoy teaching them our history, where we can go and what this life has to offer. If I can help them on that path, I have done my job,” said Stuart.Stuart says her greatest contribution to education has been helping children be well informed citizens. Today, she was teaching her students a lesson that involved Sojourner Truth, an American abolitionist and activist for African American civil rights and women’s rights. One of her students eloquently noted how Stuart, who is Black, was teaching a lesson about another remarkable Black woman born into slavery and who could not read, when she heard the announcement that she is the district’s top teacher.
Upon entering the College of Charleston as a first-year student, Stuart thought she wanted to go to law school to become a prosecuting attorney but changed her mind after working in the U.S. Attorney’s Office. She remembered her 11th grade US History teacher, Mrs. Townsend, who made an impact on her life, and decided to follow her instead. Stuart began her educational career in neighboring Richland School District One in 2010 and was responsible for teaching the state Social Studies standards.
Jeff Temoney is principal of Spring Valley High School. “As we celebrate Ms. Stuart as our District Teacher of the Year, we recognize an extraordinary educator who represents the finest qualities of teaching and student engagement. Ms. Stuart inspires students from diverse backgrounds. Her commitment to her students enriches lives and reminds us all of the incredible influence a devoted teacher can wield. As the Instructional Leader of our Social Studies Department, she supports other educators with her creative leadership and steadfast dedication,” Temoney said.
Stuart holds a Bachelor of Arts in History from the College of Charleston and a Master of Arts in Teaching, Secondary Education, Social Studies from the University of South Carolina. She is pursuing a Doctor of Education from Walden University.
Last month, the district announced five finalists for District Teacher of the Year. They included Hannah Cummings, Round Top Elementary School; Yoko Hughes, Bookman Road Elementary School; Julie Russell, Blythewood High School; and Dr. Nicola Smiling, Longleaf Middle School.
Stuart will represent Richland Two as she competes for South Carolina Teacher of the Year.
SVHS 14 NATIONAL MERIT SCHOLARSHIP SEMI-FINALISTS
Fourteen Spring Valley High School students who are showing exceptional academic ability and potential for success in rigorous college studies are competing for National Merit Scholarships. They are among 16,000 semifinalists in the 68th annual National Merit Scholarship Program.
High school juniors entered the 2025 National Merit Scholarship Program by taking the 2024 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT®), which served as an initial screen of program entrants. The nationwide pool of semifinalists, representing less than one percent of U.S. high school seniors, includes the highest-scoring entrants in each state.
Spring Valley’s National Merit Scholarship Semifinalists are Henry Berg, Max Berg, Lee Dillon, Mary Ann Gardiner, Anagha Gowda, Emna Gudhami, Beverly Holton, Ibrahim Jatoi, Srianeesh Kalva, Fionn O’Connor, Vianne Phan, Zahi Siddique, Hayden Thorpe, and Ali Wallam.
About 95 percent of the semifinalists are expected to attain finalist standing, and approximately half of the finalists will win a National Merit Scholarship, earning the Merit Scholar® title.
Three types of National Merit Scholarships will be offered in the spring of 2025. Every finalist will compete for one of 2,500 National Merit® $2500 Scholarships that will be awarded on a state-representational basis. About 950 corporate-sponsored Merit Scholarship awards will be provided by approximately 180 corporations and business organizations for finalists who meet their specified criteria, such as children of the grantor’s employees or residents of communities where sponsor plants or offices are located. In addition, about 160 colleges and universities are expected to finance some 3,800 college-sponsored Merit Scholarship awards for finalists who will attend the sponsor institution.
SAVE THE DATE : SENIOR MEETING
SENIOR MEETING WITH JOSTENS
Monday, September 16th.
Students will be divided into two groups based on their last name. All students should report to the Auditorium after attendance has been taken.
Group #1 (A-K) 2nd period
Group #2 (L-Z) 3rd period.
As a reminder, “Super Juniors” are allowed to attend this meeting.
MEAL VALUE PLAN
The Meal Value Plan is a federally funded program that allows school districts to provide breakfast and lunch to qualifying students at reduced prices or for free! It’s commonly known as the free/reduced meals program. Families that become MVPs save money on meals AND school fees!
Students receive a “30-school-day grace period” on their status from the previous year, but on the 31st day of school, the student will automatically revert to FULL PAY status if a new application for the current year has not been received. Click below to complete your application by Thursday,September 19th.
SVHS COLLEGE FAIR
Students will no longer be allowed to utilize the parking lot in front of the gym upon arrival to school. This parking lot is reserved for Staff and Visitors only in the mornings. Students will begin receiving tickets and parking fines when parking in this area. All students are required to have the appropriate parking pass to utilize any campus parking and must park in the Upper/Junior Lot unless they have been assigned a designated Senior Parking Spot elsewhere on campus. Upon returning from lunch, or for after school activities, students may use the Gym Lot. Again, students may not use the Gym Lot any earlier than the beginning of 5th period.
LUNCH REMINDER
SVEF Viking Golf Tournament
Attendance Matters
CLUB NEWS & INTEREST MEETINGS
INTERESTED IN JOINING A SPRING VALLEY CLUB? CLICK THE LINKS BELOW FOR INTEREST MEETINGS, CLUB SCHEDULES, AND ADVISOR LIST.
INTEREST MEETING SCHEDULE
REGULAR CLUB MEETING SCHEDULE
ADVISOR LIST
SPRING VALLEY ATHLETICS
SVHS BOY’S GOLF
GIRLS CROSS COUNTRY
Valley Volleyball
SV CHEER
WAYS TO SERVE DETENTION
After School Tutoring
We will offer both on-campus and virtual tutoring options. Offering both platforms allows us to provide more options for students to get academic assistance after school. Please visit the SVHS Tutoring website for a complete schedule of tutoring opportunities.
A special thank you goes out to the Spring Valley Education Foundation for funding this important initiative.
