For some Warren County High School seniors, their school year started when the sun came up Wednesday morning. 

Seniors arrived at the high school parking lot at 6 a.m. to participate in the Senior Sunrise. Donuts and waters were available for the students. The multiple students who showed up took pictures together, enjoyed donuts and hung out with each other before the school day started. 

When the other students arrived at school, they were greeted by the WCHS Pioneer Pride Band and a performance by WCHS cheerleaders and the Pioneerettes. Executive Principal Chris Hobbs also handed out donuts to students on their way in. 

After a slight delay in the school year due to weather, Hobbs is enthusiastic about the new school year. 

“We are so excited about having our students back in school,” said Hobbs. “We look forward to developing a respectful and safe culture among the students and staff. I, particularly, look forward to interacting with the students, supporting them and watching them grow into young adults.” 

With a new school year comes new goals. According to Hobbs, there are a few main goals the school hopes to accomplish this year. One is improving the graduation rate. 

“Some of our school goals are to improve our achievement on EOC scores, increase our ACT school score to 21, decrease our chronic absenteeism and have our graduation rate at or better than 94 percent and increase industry certifications for our students,” said Hobbs. 

A personal goal for Hobbs, is keeping students safe. There are a lot of new safety measures in place this year. There are three SROs in the high school this year. 

“My main two personal goals are to keep our students/staff safe and to encourage our students to graduate. We, truly, are lucky to be in these jobs to educate and inspire the youth of Warren County every day. Let’s all have a great year,” said Hobbs.