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2025-2026 WCS Back-to-School Video

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Mark Byrd, superintendent of Wilkes County Schools, provides an overview of some unique statistics and accomplishments of students, teachers, staff, and schools in the district.

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My name is Mark Byrd. I'm the superintendent of Wilkes County Schools. I'm starting my 10th year as superintendent. If someone were to ask me what I'm most proud of with Wilkes County Schools, it would be the fact that this district has been recognized statewide for excellence. Some examples... our data is not official, but we anticipate the highest graduation rate since 2013. I'm not sure a lot of people realize, but Wilkes County Schools is ranked in the top 25 out of 115 districts for 5 years in a row for student academic performance, and that's something we're clearly proud of. In the last two years, we've had a State Principal of the Year. We've also had a State Technology Director of the Year. So, both students and staff are excelling. We're proud of some student accomplishments outside the classroom. We've recently had two state championship softball teams. We've had the first state championship golfer in the history of Wilkes County Schools. We also had a track relay team, a 4x200 team, win a state championship last year. So, students are having unbelievable opportunities inside and outside the classroom. Some exciting things that have gone on recently... We just hosted our second Steam Expo at North Wilkesboro Speedway, which has been a huge success. Roaring River Elementary School received the Champion for Change Award for continued school improvement, and we're very proud of the fact that US News and World Report ranked Moravian Falls Elementary as the 20th ranked elementary school in the state of North Carolina last year for academic performance. So, that's a huge success as well. A lot of people don't realize we're the second largest employer in Wilkes County, and we're extremely proud of the collaborative relationship we have between Wilkes County Schools and Wilkes Community College. I believe last year's data showed that we ranked second in our region in the number of college offerings that students were taking while still in our high school, so we're very proud of that. And, we have a lot of momentum in our middle schools as far as academic performance. We're excited about the direction that they're moving. We just hosted an awesome 2025 Special Olympics at West Wilkes High School, and we're already looking forward to 2026. Some things that a lot of people don't stop to think about are long-term planning. We're very proud in those areas. We used money provided during the pandemic to do long-term HVAC upgrades at fourteen of our schools. I think we spent $21 million to try to have a long-term impact on students in the classroom. Most people are well aware of our athletic facility upgrades that we're very proud of. We have a new gym at Wilkes Central High School. We have new turf fields that are used for football and soccer, and we have six lane tracks at all four of our high schools. That's the first time in the history of East Wilkes High School or North Wilkes High School that they've had a six lane track. They've always had four, so we're very proud of that. Proud of the opportunities that we're going to be able to provide students moving forward. We also have new tennis courts at North Wilkes and West Wilkes. We have new bleachers at the football field at North Wilkes and East Wilkes High School, but more than anything else, we're proud of our efforts to keep students safe, and also our relationship with the Wilkes County Sheriff's Department. I think the relationship of Wilkes County Schools and our local law enforcement in our community as a whole is head and shoulders above that of many of our neighbors. I don't think people realize all the time that our county covers over 750 square miles, so we're a very large county. That can present some transportation concerns, but we've done real well with it. That also explains on an inclement weather day some of the challenges we face because it may be sunny on one side of the county and snowing on the other side. But, our community's been very understanding with that. The biggest challenge we face will continue to be maintaining student safety because again there's nothing more important, and we can never rest on our success. Every day, we've got to come in totally focused on doing everything we can to keep our kids safe. We'll continue to grow relationships with local law enforcement as a preventative measure because they do so well with us. And, again, just reminding our neighbors...keep an eye out for our schools. If you see something that concerns you, reach out to us. We need your help as well in ensuring that we keep our students safe. Our communities want our schools to succeed. They want our students to succeed, and they take great pride in them when they do. They still take pride to tell you they went to a school or they graduated from a school, and they want students coming through those schools to continue to excel. So, community support's got to be what sets Wilkes County apart from so many of our neighbors. In closing, it's not our programs were most proud of, its the accomplishments of our people. They do great things daily. Whether it's students, teachers, or just staff, I think that most of our community would be amazed if they saw the great things going on in our classrooms on a daily basis. So, that's what makes us so proud.