Pulaski County Schools, SWHS, and Meet Adam, Jasi, and Amy:

Showing off the trophy case!

Jasi Flynn (with Adam Earp, a soccer standout himself) will
graduate as perhaps the best athlete in school history

Southwestern High School has become the largest school in Pulaski County, serving over 1200 students. SWHS has achieved notoriety through clubs and programs such as the Raptor Program and Conservation Club and has been designated as having the largest DECA Chapter in the state. Other opportunities include Spanish Honor Society, FCA, FFA, FCCLA, Key Club, STLP and numerous ROTC related teams and programs.

Graduates from each SWHS class typically are awarded in excess of one million dollars in scholarships for post-secondary education. Students qualifying for the Governor's Scholar Program and the National Merit Scholarship Program especially benefit from scholarship opportunities. All students are strongly encouraged to participate not only in volunteer programs but service organizations to contribute to the community.

One key advantage of attending either Pulaski County Schools high school (the other high school is Pulaski County HS) are the resources, where size can make a difference – 9 AP classes are offered to the top students – SWHS in 2007 had 12 Governors scholars (the most).  Further, the $2 million sports facilities at SWHS are premier, and promote the highest level of sports for the boys and girls county athletes.

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Meet Amy, Adam, and Jasi:

Amy Puerto may be the top student in southeast Kentucky.  We can say that with a level of confidence since she was recently named the National Honor Society’s Scholarship winner for the entire country.  After winning the local, regional, then state competition, she was selected the national winner and awarded more than $13,000. SWHS’s Valedictorian, 4.0+ GPA, a Rogers Scholar, and Governor’s Scholar (1 of 12 at SWHS), Executive Council of Student Government, among many other accolades, Amy will attend Bellarmine University in Louisville, and plans to study Political Science and Communications. The #1 singles player on the Girl’s Tennis team, Amy will graduate with 3 school records (for boys and girls) in tennis, including career wins in singles and doubles.

“Our Conservation and Raptor program has received national acclaim as one of a few 100% student run organizations.  Specifically, the Raptor program rehabilitates birds of prey such as eagles, hawks, and owls; we were the first program of any kind in Kentucky to rehabilitate and then release a bald eagle into the wild.

Having also lived in San Antonio and Nashville, I can honestly say that I feel fortunate that my family moved to Somerset where I grew and developed as a young adult.  We have a close enough connection with bigger cities which surround us, but I love Somerset.”

Adam Earp will graduate with a 4.0+ GPA and #5 in the senior class at SWHS.  A Governor’s Scholar, Adam will attend the University of Kentucky on scholarship and plans to study Chemical Engineering.  He was the 2007 Boys Soccer MVP and also played on the Tennis Team (he testified that Amy, above, is one heck of a tennis player, by the way!). Adam pointed out that the school and resources here will only get better as Pulaski County is the 3rd-fastest growing county in Kentucky.

“I am looking forward to attending UK next year, which has a prestigious engineering school.  Based on discussions with other incoming students when I visited recently, I feel more than prepared for it.  It was awesome going to school here – just look at our top graduates; our teachers tell us that we can reach for the stars and just knowing classmates such as Amy and Jasi makes you believe it.”

Recently named the Top High School Athlete (Boy or Girl) by the Commonwealth Journal, Jasi Flynn will graduate as the school’s all-time leading basketball scorer (Boy or Girl) with more than 1,200 points.  She was also a dominant softball player and selected as Player of the Year in that sport as well. Jasi also ranks 9th in her class with a 4.0+ GPA, is also a Governor’s Scholar, on Executive Council of Student Government, and she is finishing 4 AP classes (Calculus, Biology, History, and English).  Attending Transylvania College in Lexington, which provides no athletic scholarships as it is a Division III school, Jasi accepted an academic scholarship there, choosing it over Georgetown, Centre, UK, and UL, and Jasi will study Physical Therapy.

“I was a ‘girly-girl’ growing up and was a cheerleader and did all the girl things, but I remember watching the Big Blue (UK) games on TV.  My dad and brothers played basketball.  Then I grew a little bit…

Here in Somerset it is small and you have the opportunity to shine as an individual – it’s easier to stand out and do things than in an urban area where you can lose individualism.

All the surrounding communities come to Somerset, and I loved growing up on Lake Cumberland – that’s part of the reason I chose Transylvania for college; it is in Lexington, which is close by.”

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Tim Eaton, Superintendent:

 

 

Pulaski County Schools Superintendent Tim Eaton with SWHS Principal Boyd Randolph

“The word ‘proficiency’ transcends occupation.  The facts are that not all our children will be academic scholars, so the goal of a school system of our size is to use our resources to focus on finding the niche for all kids.  Career paths go in many directions, Pulaski County is one of the fastest-growing in the state, and the community is joining hands.  As such, I admire a proficiently skilled carpenter who serves my needs as much as a physical therapist.  So why not have a community that creates great professionals in all walks of life?” 

Managing 1,500 employees and with a vision that includes years of lobbying the state to establish what is now a premier technology center that serves all public school students, Superintendent Tim Eaton is shaping excellence around the “big picture” of how Pulaski County is growing and evolving.  Formerly scoring in the lowest of 4 quadrants in state testing in the 1990s, Pulaski County Schools just missed the top quadrant by 2 percentage points in 2006.  The goal is to be in the elite across the board (all grades) of the 175 districts in Kentucky.

“I invite parents to arrange for a visit with me to see the school programs we offer.  Our range is incredible, from Equine studies, Bio-environment courses, we have 1 of 15 'Project Lead the Way' engineering curriculums in Kentucky, and we are growing our list of AP classes from 9 in 2006.  The DCCA club runs its own student store SWHS.  Today, the trend is to prepare students in a manner of designing a ‘high school career major’ for them, and it is working here.”

PDF SWHS Brochure

Pulaski School PDF Brochure

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