Start of classes makes ‘school alive’

Kevin Spradlin | PeeDeePost.com Ebony Stewart walks her son, Chrostopher Ingram, 7, into Washington Street Elementary School Monday morning with little sister Emani Ingram, 3, in tow.

Kevin Spradlin | PeeDeePost.com
Ebony Stewart walks her son, Chrostopher Ingram, 7, into Washington Street Elementary School Monday morning with little sister Emani Ingram, 3, in tow.

By Kevin Spradlin
PeeDeePost.com

ROCKINGHAM — #EaglePride

The first bell wasn’t set to ring for another three hours and 10 minutes, but that made no difference to Christopher Ingram.

The 7-year-old second-grader at Washington Street Elementary School was up at 5 a.m. Ebony Stewart, his mother, wasn’t up until a little bit later.

“He was up at 5 o’clock this morning trying to get dressed,” she said, chuckling at the thought.

Stewart managed a little more sleep and woke up again at a more reasonable time before getting everyone ready and out the door. She often has to be at work by 8 a.m; the announcement on Aug. 11 that all county students in grades kindergarten through eighth grade, and everyone at Leak Street High School, would receive free breakfast and lunch throughout the school year gave her one less thing to worry about fitting into the morning routine.

Debra Hines had multiple places to be Monday morning, but the Washington Street school was her first stop. She dropped off newly minted fifth-grader Daniah McDonald before moving on to Hamlet to deliver Zakaya for her first day of classes at Richmond County Ninth Grade Academy

“She was excited,” Hines said of Daniah’s enthusiasm about the first day of school. “She’s used to (the routine) by now.”

As she looks to middle school and beyond, and as the classes become more difficult, “hopefully she’ll keep the same hope and faith,” Hines said.

Kevin Spradlin | PeeDeePost.com

Kevin Spradlin | PeeDeePost.com

Principal Angela Watkins was pleased with the morning’s transition from summer to the first day of classes. She arrived at 7 a.m., 30 minutes before the doors were to open for the first students — and there was a line already. Classes for her 550 students don’t begin until 8:10 a.m. at her school.

“Busy and great,” Watkins described the first half hour of the morning. “I’m just glad to have the students back in school. It makes the school alive.”

Parents and students seemed eager as well. At open house last week, Watkins said 444 people signed in — and not everyone did so.

Jude Howard, an incoming fifth-grader, said he was looking forward to seeing his friends again. He hemmed and hawed, slightly, when asked if he was already looking forward to the start of next summer. Before then, however, Jude  — whose mother , Julie Howard, teaches math at Richmond Senior High School — is looking forward to math class.

Math class, Jude said,  helps him to learn new processes for solving problems.

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