A fresh start for everyone

Erick Kalenga
Published: August 9, 2008

In a few days, the moment we’ve all been waiting for will arrive. Culpeper County will have two high schools.

The opening of the new High School, Eastern View, has come with a great many challenges. I have heard people say that having two schools will be great for our community. And I also have had conversations with people who say it wasn’t a good idea to have two high schools.

In spite of all the chal-lenges that the school system is faced with, I truly believe that the two schools will serve our community better.

Both principals are facing a number of hurdles, and one of them is how to make the transition smooth for students, teachers and faculty members.

I certainly applaud principals Jeff Dietz and Roger Mello for working together in order to ensure that this school year is a brand new beginning for both Culpeper County High School and Eastern View.

There are some teachers and students who are excited about going to the new school where things are brand new.  Others feel like CCHS is the best fit.

As a community, we need to take action in order to stop this growing issue of “us and them” and “new and old.”

CCHS may be the old school in terms of the age of the building, but I believe this is a new beginning for the students and teachers at that school as well.
The building may be old, but the spirit is fresh and new.

Students are getting more and more involved in raising the spirit of the school.

I would encourage all of us to work very hard in order to stop the stigma of CCHS as the “old” school.

I really like what Dave Wheatly, youth pastor at Culpeper Baptist Church and the leader of the Vortex program for teens, said on Thursday night while touring Eastern View.

He said that he has been encouraging his youth group to utilize positive words in regard to CCHS — other than calling it the, well, you know.

I believe that this will be the best school year in Culpeper’s history, and I also believe it will be the beginning of a great season in the history of Culpeper sports.

I was listening to a reporter speaking before the opening of the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. The reporter recounted that the games will begin at 8:08:08 p.m. on 8/8/08 because they believed that eight was a lucky number. 

According to the Bible, seven was called the number of completion due to the fact that the seventh day was the number of completion and rest. So, eight is the number of new series or a new beginning.

I believe that both high schools will serve this community and the students with great care. I also believe that both principals have the best interests of their students at heart.

I look forward to this school year and being a part of the great things that God will do at both high schools.

I encourage all the saints to continuing praying for our school system and for our youth.

Erick Kalenga is an independent columnist who appears Sundays in the Star-Exponent. He is a high school soccer coach and works with teens in a youth group setting. E-mail