Horry County opens $18 million alternative school ahead of classes starting next week
A new alternative school in Horry County — built for $18 million — is ready to welcome students next week for the 2021-22 school year after more than a year of construction.
SOAR Academy, located in Conway, will serve middle and high school students who need extra support after making a “wrong decision,” Principal Gina Sabol said. The school is set up so students take responsibility for the decisions that led them to SOAR Academy and work to get back to their base school.
The school has resources like guidance counselors, behavior interventionists and rehabilitation services set up to support students, along with focusing on their “pillars” of honesty, character, empowerment and courage.
“Those are what we live by,” Sabol said.
SOAR stands for “Shine On After Return,” Sabol said. The tagline refers to the strategy used at the school. Students will participate in community service and work on a point system in order to return to the school where they initially attended.
Fewer than 200 students are enrolled so far for the 2021-22 school year, but Sabol said she expects the facility to grow in coming years. Enrollment numbers for Horry County schools often change, and new students will be registered through the school year. Enrollment also will fluctuate as students return to their home schools.
Replaces old school building
Construction began on the new facility last April to replace the Horry County Education Center, which was an old building that fell into disrepair. It was formerly an elementary school, meaning the configuration wasn’t set up to serve older students, Superintendent Rick Maxey said Monday at a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new school.
“It served its purpose for the time, but this is what it deserves, so we’re happy that it’s here,” Maxey said.
At nearly 50,000 square feet, the building combines a wing for middle school students and a separate wing with high school classrooms. In the center, a gymnasium and collaborative spaces connect the two.
There are 14 middle school classrooms and 15 high school classrooms, with one elementary classroom. Security in the building is robust, with visitors needing to be buzzed into the building and metal detectors at the student entrance.
For now, the two groups of students will be separate, and the only time the two groups of students will spend time together is on the bus, Sabol said. Down the road, the school could test a mentoring program where some of the high school students work with middle school students, Sabol said.
The school is “revolutionary” in its vision toward addressing alternative education, Maxey said.
“That vision formulated an idea that students would, on their own accountability, on their own responsibility, determine their fate,” Maxey said, attributing the idea for the school to Loris High School Principal Jimmy McCullough, who also attended the event.
“However, they will do it with the love and support from the teachers in the school building who want to see them succeed.”
