PCHS Pride!

There is no doubt that, academically speaking, Patrick County High School is one of the finest secondary schools in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Even though I graduated shortly before PCHS opened and did not have the honor of attending the school, I take deep pride in living in a community served by such an outstanding high school. Recently, my sense of "PCHS Pride" has been compounded by several remarkable developments. This week, PCHS Principal E.G. Bradshaw was named by the Virginia Association of Secondary School Principals as the Principal of the Year in Virginia for 2009. That is a remarkable honor that is not only a tribute to Mr. Bradshaw's leadership and administrative skills but a testament to the hard work and dedication of his staff, our teachers, and the school system at large.

I think that E.G. has done a remarkable job in guiding PCHS for the past 10 years. Among his many accomplishments which comes immediately to mind is the implementation of the "Square D" dual enrollment program in which graduating seniors can earn their high school diploma and a college associate's degree at the same time. It is also remarkable that in a rural county like Patrick, more than 85% of the PCHS graduating seniors go on to attend college. Such an accomplishment would not have been possible without the guidance and direction of E.G. Bradshaw.

I would also like to personally commend E.G. for the respect and openness that he has always show me as a member of the media. Every request that I have made for information and guest appearances by students and teachers on my radio show has always been quickly granted and the necessary arranged have been made by E.G. Just today (Tuesday, June 2nd), for example, E.G., who was traveling with the PCHS softball team to the state tournament, while enroute quickly returned a call that I'd placed to his office earlier in the day and agreed to be a guest on my radio talk show "Community Conversation" next Tuesday morning, June 9th at 8:10 a.m. I will be most honored to have E.G. on the show to learn more about the great things that are now happening and anticipated to happen in the future at PCHS. Congratulations E.G. on your honor. You are most deserving!

Another source of great "PCHS Pride" these days is the Patrick County High School softball team which Tuesday (6/2) advanced to to semifinals of the state tournament. The Lady Cougars (19-4), the Piedmont District and Region IV runners-up to the the undefeated Tunstall Lady Trojans, defeated, Turner Ashby 2-0 Tueday evening in the state quarterfinals in Brookville, VA. The Lady Cougars will next play on Friday in the state playoffs. No matter what the outcome of that game, the Lady Cougars are champions in my heart and the hearts of proud fellow Patrick Countians. They'll be right there fighting hard in Friday's semifinal game and I'm sure their proud principal...and Virginia's Outstanding High School Principal 2009...E.G. Bradshaw will be there rallying his team and cheering louder than anyone!

Full of "PCHS Pride",
Richard