Wilkes Central High School Student Handbook
A MESSAGE FROM THE PRINCIPAL
Dear Eagle Family
Welcome to Wilkes Central High School and the 2026-27 school year!
In serving as your principal, I could not be more proud of the strong growth mindset culture and #EaglePride our staff, students, and community work together to foster here at WCHS. We aim to meet the personalized needs of each student, staff member, and family here at The Nest. In living out our school mission statement for ALL Eagle leaders to be CONNECTED, EMPOWERED, AND PREPARED to achieve our vision that ALL Eagles will be prepared to ENLIST, ENROLL, and/or EMPLOY after high school, we recognize the importance of working together to Unlock Potential in each one of our Eagles. We have made tremendous growth in all areas over the last few years at WCHS, and it will continue to take ALL of us as One Family One Flight invested in ALL students to continue Reaching New Heights to help them lead their own learning and meet their goals!
Student Responsibility: Your Commitment to Excellence
Students: Being an Eagle comes with great responsibility! Use each day in the upcoming school year to equip yourself with the skills you need to take full advantage of the opportunities you have to grow and lead in such an amazing school. WCHS has a strong tradition of excellence in academics, athletics, fine arts, community leadership, and more, and it is up to each of you to partner with us to not only maintain that tradition of excellence, but leave WCHS better than when you first arrived. In order for you to do that, you must commit yourself to the following goals:
- Show up and be on time to school. One of the most important skills you can learn in preparation for life beyond high school is that others are looking for those who are dependable, respect themselves and others, and operate with integrity. Attendance is the #1 factor in determining whether or not a student is successful in high school and stays on track for graduation. Did you know that if you have 6 absences in each class over both semesters that you are actually missing 4,320 minutes of instruction in a school year? Having more than 6 absences in any class each semester may result in loss of credit for that class even if you have a passing average. Attendance matters!
- Commit yourself to having a growth mindset for each new challenge you have the opportunity to take on.
- Work to unlock the unique greatness each of you possess. In order to do this, acknowledge that greatness only comes with being challenged, capitalizing on our strengths and actively working on our areas for growth, and then learning to be resilient when we experience failure. Occasional failure and setbacks are inevitable, but how you learn to respond is what determines your ability to be successful in the end.
- Unlock the potential inside of you to positively impact our school family and the world around you! Student and staff safety is our top priority at WCHS and is essential in order for ALL of us to create and maintain a school where ALL students can take advantage of opportunities to lead and grow. Therefore, please make sure you proactively explore the resources we have to assist you throughout the year and uphold the high expectations we have in place to make WCHS a safe and equitable learning environment. Our WCHS Student Handbook (see WCHS school website) is a valuable tool students and families can use to best understand how they can partner with us to maximize the potentials of ALL students throughout the year.
Key Back-to-School Dates & Reminders
Each school year goes by quickly, so take advantage of every opportunity this school year will present you. Be sure to stay connected to our school by ensuring we always have up-to-date contact information for your family, following our school website, social media platforms, and signing up for ParentSquare communications. Here are a few tips and reminders that will help our students and families feel best prepared for the new school year.
- Freshmen JumpStart: Thursday, August 13th (Student drop-off 12pm in student carline; parent meeting 4pm)
- WCHS Open House Block Party: Tuesday, August 18th (5:30-7:00 p.m.) - This is for all students and families!
- If you have not yet completed your student online information updates in Infinite Campus, you will want to do this no later than Monday, August 17th. We cannot issue student schedules until this is completed, and families will not be able to see important information in the Parent Portal until the online registration is completed. Information about how to do this is included below. Our Parent Portal will be open to all students and families who have completed the online registration process on Friday, August 14th.
- As you complete the online registration in Infinite Campus, it will prompt you to choose the types of messages you would like to receive from Infinite Campus. All important messages sent by our school will be sent out as a "general" message. If you do not select that you would like to receive "general" messages from Infinite Campus, then you will miss out on any phone calls or emails sent out by our school.
- Make sure you have accepted your invitation to ParentSquare for our school and district and your student’s bus ParentSquare Group if applicable (see the graphic below). Our teachers will also communicate with ParentSquare, and these joining links will be included in their course information.
Family Engagement and #EaglePride
Families: Encourage your student to get involved! We have a myriad of extracurricular activities that our students can choose from, including clubs, athletics, fine arts, JROTC, and more! All Wilkes Central students will be admitted free into any regular season home athletic event this year (excluding NCHSAA playoff games) as a result of the generous donations of community members and in honor of our Cheer Loud Eagle Proud program. Our Fall Spirit Themes are listed below, and we want all students to positively showcase their #EaglePride. We would be incredibly grateful if you or a community organization of which you are a part would consider donating to our Cheer Loud Eagle Proud program. Call us at 336-667-5277 if you'd like more information.
Let’s all strive to partner together to provide our students and community the best at WCHS this year and beyond! When our students stumble, let’s realize this is a natural part of growing and extend grace to help them stay on their own path to greatness! They deserve nothing less, and working closely together, we can guide them to reach new summits as they prepare to be #Limitless at The Nest!
Sincerely,
Mr. Dylan Johnson
WCHS Principal