SALISBURY — As 2024 dawns a new year, Salisbury Academy Upper School students are set to begin their inaugural spring semester.

On Wednesday, SA Upper School Head Meredith Williams shared what is on the horizon for the school while looking back on the first semester, which is now officially in the books.

Up ahead for Williams’ students is a series of field trips delving into the curriculum’s focus areas. The school’s mission is to provide high school students with an experiential education model by leveraging the community as a classroom and community leaders as educators.

In the next couple of months, the students will be learning about local history through visits to the Rowan Museum and the Yadkin River. The trips blend various focus areas into singular experiences to illustrate the interconnectedness of academic concepts in the real world.

“(At the Yadkin River,) they will be looking at environmental impacts, but there is also so much history along the river. (The property owner) Dr. Wayne Koontz of Salisbury Pediatrics will be talking about the history that can be seen on his property going all the way back to the Revolutionary War.”

One of the elements that Upper School students are focused on this semester is the idea of a hero’s journey.

“(We challenge them to explore) What are the stories of American history and the local stories of heroes?” Williams said. “(And) of course, how can they envision themselves as a hero in the future or even now?”

Williams explained that the art students will be exploring performance and installation art forms.

“They will be doing a whole music section learning to play handbells in collaboration with St. John’s Lutheran Church,” Williams said.

As for the installation art, Williams indicated that they have two upcoming exhibitions.

“One is on March 21, and the other is on May 16,” Williams said. “On May 16, the art students will do an installation that has our audience experience the hero’s journey through the eyes of the students. I am not quite sure what that will look like yet, but based on the work they have already done, it will be impressive.”

Another field of study this semester at the Upper School will be local governments.

“Our community class has been studying strategic systems, systems thinking and strategic project management,” Williams said. “They have looked into businesses like Novant Health and Food Lion and now we are turning to the government.

“We have (Sheriff) Travis Allen coming to talk to them. Hopefully, we will connect with the county commission. They will look at how all these pieces of government connect within a system.”

The SA Upper School officially opened last year. Williams looked back on the first semester, proud of what they had accomplished and what it meant for moving forward.

“What stood out to me was the immense capacity that our students have for learning and using that knowledge in real-world applications,” Williams said. “The work that they did in their projects and in their classes, they began tying it all together, (from) the life skills to the content and the vision for what happens outside the school walls.”

One activity that her students conducted particularly touched Williams’ heart.

“One of those ways that our students connected everything together was when they raised money to give every student at Isenberg Elementary a blanket for Christmas,” Williams said.
“I thought it was a good example of how they pulled everything together in a community-focused way.”