With this school year coming to a close and the next school year coming up quickly, it’s time to think about what classes you’ll take next year. Many of us already have, thanks to class registration earlier this semester, but students need to know that there are three classes being offered next year that were not offered during class registration. Next year, Dr. Kendal Shipley is offering two classes for the next school year, “Personal Finance” and “ACT Prep.” The Personal Finance class is “designed for seniors–and possibly some juniors,” said Dr. Shipley. The class focuses on topics like “understanding your pay stub, budgeting, savings and checking accounts, balancing accounts, calculating net worth, principles of investing, taxes, renting or buying a home or car, and more.” Dr. Shipley described this class as a “practical class that will help you organize your finances and make sound decisions.” Dr. Shipley’s other class, ACT prep, is “a class designed for juniors, and possibly seniors, who want to maximize their ACT scores,” which is a great goal given how competitive colleges want high scores across the board. The class will be a review of English, Science, Math, and anything else students will see on the ACT. This course will also utilize Dr. Shipley’s website, 36University which is an amazing resource full of preparations for the test. Dr. Shipley hopes that these classes will benefit all students who take them, helping them in the real world and on their ACT.

Mr. Garrett Peace’s new class is one I’m sure all students will be excited about! “The Dramatic Writing class is Heritage’s creative writing class,” Mr. Peace noted, and “it’s offered as a substitute for a student’s 4th English credit.” So you have the option to take this class instead of British Lit. to receive the 4th English credit that students need to graduate. This course is offered primarily to seniors, but juniors can sign up for it as well, albeit with the disclaimer that Dramatic Writing is a writing-intensive class and may overburden students also taking American Lit. If you take this class, you will be “writing various creative pieces, including scripts and screenplays, and workshopping those pieces as a class.” Mr. Peace remarked that “the standards for this course are broken down into four categories: Creating, Performing, Responding, and Connecting.” In practical terms, Mr. Peace said, “The “creating” part consists of writing scripts and screenplays for film, television, and theater, but we’ll also do plenty of responding and connecting as well! What that means is that, in addition to writing their own pieces, students will analyze a variety of media, including film, television, and theatrical productions, to help them write their own work.” Finally, Mr. Peace noted that “there is also an emphasis in this class on exploring how writing for these different mediums connects to careers in the entertainment industry,” so students will research and learn about the various entertainment career opportunities available to them–in a variety of capacities, not just writing. To prepare to teach this class,  which he is taking over from former Drama and English teacher, Ms. Murray, Mr. Peace will attend a week-long training down in Atlanta during the first week of summer. Interestingly enough, the training will be held near the Georgia Film Academy at Trillith Studios where, Mr. Peace said, “several Marvel movies and TV Shows have been filmed, including ‘WandaVision,’ ‘Avengers: Infinity War,’ ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home,’ and many more.” If I was not graduating this year, I would 100% take this class!

The last class is one that will really benefit our performing arts, as it’s Ms. Parker’s Theater Tech class! Ms. Parker is really excited to teach this class. She says it will allow “students another outlet to express themselves and channel their creativity.” The class will “cover all technical aspects of theater from sets, lights, stage managing, etc.” “We will learn about design, building, managing, and so much more!” said Ms. Parker. She also noted that “this class will also help put together sets and props for our shows this musical season.” This class will greatly benefit our musical theatre shows, in addition to teaching students practical skills! Ms. Parker does have some plans on how she will prepare for the new classes:“I plan to brush up on all of my theater tech knowledge over the summer,” she said, “and meet with some wonderful tech teachers to learn more about what works and what does not.”

The new classes coming to Heritage are all going to be a great addition to our school. Talk to or email your counselor if you’re interested in taking any of these courses!