Twenty-three hundred students, one hundred and fifty personnel, and a whole lotta word to go round! On Tuesday, January 28, North Atlanta High School’s PTSA (Parent Teacher Student Association) hosted the North Atlanta “All-Community Meeting” as an ode to the break of a new semester, aptly titling the event “Warriors United.” Broadly speaking, “all-community” meetings typically refer to large groups- such as schools, places of worship, or businesses- gathering to hold holistic, relevant discussions in an effort to create a network of understanding and support between community members. This year, North Atlanta’s rendition of the “all-community” approach spanned the course of two-and-a-half hours and included a number of topics conducive to student life at NAHS (including but not limited to): college and career readiness, consultation panels, and outreach programs.
At 4:30 on the dot, “United Warriors” rolled out its first phase- an open house dedicated to college and career readiness- inside of the atrium. Designed to maximize accessibility, North Atlanta’s CCC (College and Career Center) representatives provided Warrior families and students the opportunity to engage in mini Q&As directly outside of the auditorium. Zion Carter, a current freshman and aspiring student-athlete at Georgia Tech, expressed how reassuring he found the process despite his less-than-hopeful first impressions. “Whenever I go to workshops for football, I drone out when guest coaches give long, boring speeches about our lives after high school,” Carter said, “but the open house actually made me feel excited. Like people supported my dream to go to Tech.”
After the open house closed out around 5:30, attendees were corralled into the Linda Stevenson Theater to proceed with the informational half of the event. Kicking off the actual program with a “Warrior Wisdom” panel featuring NAHS alumni, guests were given run-downs of what rising juniors & seniors should expect during the application & admissions process- as well as a seasoned overview of tips and tricks to prepare for the transition from high school to college. Parent Hyunmi Ahn, mother of a rising senior and middle-schooler, shared her gratitude for direct student-to-student experiences. “It’s one thing to get information as an adult who hasn’t been to school in almost a decade,” Ahn said, “it’s another to relay it from a recent alumnus.”
And once the dust of college excitement settled and families started growing anxious to beat that devilish Atlanta evening traffic, members of the school (including Interim Principal Dr. Angela Mitchell, PTSA, SGA, and Sports Boosters Club) delivered the ‘State of the School Address:’ a comprehensive overview of North Atlanta’s operation under new administration, recent updates, and a consensus of thanks across the board for families’ active participation in North Atlanta affairs. And that’s the word.
