Tift County High School

🇺🇸 Labor Day Holiday Reminder 🇺🇸

As you make plans for the upcoming holiday weekend, please note that all Tift County Schools and district offices will be closed on Monday, September 7th, in observance of Labor Day.

📅 Holiday Schedule
• Monday, September 7th – Schools and Offices Closed (Labor Day)
• Tuesday, September 8th – Student Holiday (Staff return for Professional Learning)
• Wednesday, September 9th – Students return to class

We hope our students, families, and staff enjoy a safe, restful, and well-deserved holiday weekend. Thank you for all you do to support student success.

#4theT
Collaborate | Learn | Achieve

📚✨ Bringing Characters to Life! ✨📚 Students in Dr. Hughes’ Lit Comp II class put their literary analysis skills to work with creative Character Body Projects based on Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs! 🏚️🕰️ Each student selected a character from the novel and explored what makes that character unique. Their projects included: 📖 Three meaningful quotes from their chosen character 🔑 A key symbol from the novel that represents the character 🎭 An archetype that best fits the character, supported by their analysis This hands-on activity challenged students to look beyond the surface and use evidence from the text to better understand characterization, symbolism, and archetypes. Great work bringing literary analysis to life! 👏📚 #TCHS #LitCompII #MissPeregrinesHomeForPeculiarChildren #LiteraryAnalysis #Characterization #StudentLearning #ELA #LearningInAction

A huge THANK YOU to Prime Cuts Jerky for their generous donation to the teachers and staff of Tift County High School through our PBIS Team! 💙 We truly appreciate your support of our educators and your willingness to give back to our school community. Your generosity helps us provide a little extra encouragement and appreciation to the people who work each day to support our students. Thank you, Prime Cuts Jerky, for helping us celebrate and support our TCHS teachers and staff! #PBIS #BlueDevilPride #PrimeCutsJerky https://www.primecutsjerky.com/

📚✨ Characterization in Action! ✨📚 Students in Ms. Murphree's class were diving into Geoffrey Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales and analyzing direct and indirect characterization. 🔍📖 They examined how Chaucer reveals his characters through descriptions, actions, dialogue, and other details, and used textual evidence to support their thinking. It’s always great to see students digging deeper into a classic text and discovering how authors bring memorable characters to life! 💭✏️ #TCHS #ELA #TheCanterburyTales #Characterization #LiteraryAnalysis #LearningInAction

TCHS Homecoming Boutique Parents, Homecoming is right around the corner—October 10th! The TCHS Clothes Closet is hosting a Homecoming Boutique on Saturday, September 26, 2026, from 10:00 AM–2:00 PM. Everything is free. Please see the flyer for details.

📚 September is National Library Card Sign-Up Month!

Through a partnership between Tift County Schools and the Tifton-Tift County Public Library, every Tift County Schools student in Pre-K through 12th grade is eligible to receive a free PINES Library Access for Youth—or PLAY—library card!

There is nothing families need to do to participate. Students will automatically receive a PLAY account designed to support learning and academic success. Students enrolled last year will have their accounts updated, and new students will receive an email when their cards are issued.

With a PLAY card, students can:

📱 Access thousands of eBooks, e-audiobooks and streaming resources
🔎 Use GALILEO databases and research tools
📝 Find AP, SAT/ACT and other practice resources through LearningExpress Library
🌎 Learn more than 70 languages and ASL through Mango Languages
📶 Check out internet hotspots, based on availability
📚 Borrow up to five books, DVDs, museum or park passes and other library items at a time—fine free!

Students may log in through gapines.org or the library’s website at cprl.org.

🔹 Username: TIFT + student ID number
Example: TIFT123456

🔹 Default password: The two-digit birth month followed by the four-digit birth year
Example: A March 2005 birthdate would use 032005.

Families who do not wish for their child to receive a free PLAY account should complete the opt-out form at https://forms.gle/U5VxeVRTdTjJ6RUr7.

For additional information, contact your child’s school or the Tifton-Tift County Public Library at 229-386-7148.

We are excited to provide our students with even more opportunities to read, explore, learn and grow! 📖💙

#4theT
Collaborate | Learn | Achieve

September is Attendance Awareness Month! Every day in school gives students another opportunity to learn and grow. Let’s work together to help every Tift County student be here, belong, and succeed. Strong attendance builds bright futures—because every day counts!

#4theT
Collaborate | Learn | Achieve

Congratulations to the students selected to serve on the 2026–2027 Superintendent’s Student Advisory Council!

These students will represent their schools and peers while sharing ideas, perspectives, and feedback throughout the school year.

We look forward to working with these student leaders and appreciate their willingness to help shape the future of Tift County Schools!

#4theT
Collaborate | Learn | Achieve

Planning for the week ahead? Take a look at the lunch menu for August 31st–September 4th so your family knows what will be served each day! 🍽️

📋 Monthly menus are available on the Tift County Schools website at www.tiftschools.com/documents/school-nutrition/menus/18803049.

📱 Daily menus can be found on each school’s website by selecting Explore → Dining.

#4theT
Collaborate | Learn | Achieve

🏃‍♂️🏃‍♀️ Tift XC brought home some hardware! 🏆

Both our Boys and Girls teams earned 2nd Place yesterday at the Blake Smith Invitational in Coffee County!

A huge congratulations to our runners who finished in the Top 10 and brought home medals! 🥇

🏃‍♂️ Boys Top 10
🥉 William Maxwell – 3rd
🏅 Wills Tyre – 4th
🏅 Henry Anderson – 6th

🏃‍♀️ Girls Top 10
🏅 Katherine Curry – 6th
🏅 Kyli Garretson – 7th
🏅 Haleigh Nelson – 8th

We also had LOTS of PRs from both our boys and girls! 🔥 Our runners have been working hard despite the challenging weather, and their dedication shows!

#4theT

🍎🥞 September Breakfast and Lunch Menus Are Now Available! 🍕🥗

Families can now view the September menus and plan ahead for the month. Be sure to check out the delicious breakfast and lunch options being served in our school cafeterias!

📋 Monthly menus are available on our website:
https://www.tiftschools.com/documents/school-nutrition/menus/18803049

🍽️ Daily menus can be found on each school's website under Explore → Dining.

Thank you to our School Nutrition team for keeping our Blue Devils fueled and ready to Collaborate | Learn | Achieve! 💙

#4theT

The past three weeks of weather have wreaked havoc on our afternoon XC practices! 🌦️🏃‍♀️🏃‍♂️
So, they got proactive and changed their workout and destination yesterday! The team conquered a modified HIIT workout and finished strong with some speedwork under the new multipurpose facility. 💪⚡ It was soooo nice!!
Now, let's go burn up some trails at the Blake Smith XC Invitational this Saturday. 🏃‍♂️🔥 Go Blue!!

🔥🧪 Forensic Science in Action! 🔬🕵️

Students in Mrs. Alexander’s and Mrs. Staines’ Forensic Science classes put their investigative skills to work during a Fiber Burn Lab!

Students tested different types of fibers and carefully observed how each reacted when exposed to heat and flame. They examined how the fibers burned, melted, smelled, and the type of residue left behind to determine identifying characteristics.

Through this hands-on investigation, students discovered how forensic scientists analyze fiber evidence to identify and compare materials and uncover clues during real-world investigations. 🔎

Hands-on learning + scientific investigation = future forensic scientists at work! 👏

#ForensicScience #ScienceInAction #HandsOnLearning #STEMEducation #TCHS #4TheT

🌧️ SCHEDULE UPDATE 🌧️

Due to the forecast for rain, the start time for today’s doubleheader against Coffee County has been moved to 6:00 p.m.

#4theT

🎓 COLLEGE-BOUND STUDENTS: EXPLORE ALBANY STATE UNIVERSITY! 💙💛

Albany State University is hosting its 2026 Fall Open House on Saturday, October 24, from 9:00 a.m.–12:30 p.m. at the East Campus!

Prospective students will have the opportunity to:

🏫 Take a guided campus tour
👥 Meet ASU student leaders
🎓 Learn about academic programs & majors
✅ Get admitted on the spot
🏈 Attend an ASU football game
🤝 Discover student organizations and campus opportunities

Whether ASU is already at the top of your college list or you're just beginning to explore your options, this is a great opportunity to experience campus firsthand.

📅 Saturday, October 24, 2026
⏰ 9:00 a.m.–12:30 p.m.
📍 Albany State University – East Campus
Jones Brothers HPER Complex

💙💛 Discover. Connect. Belong. Experience the RAMily!

📲 Scan the QR code on the flyer to register!

#AlbanyStateUniversity #ASU #CollegeBound #CollegeAdmissions #CollegeOpenHouse #FutureRams #ClassOf2027

📣 Calling Local Business & Community Leaders!
Tift County High School FBLA is looking for local business owners, entrepreneurs, professionals, and community leaders to speak with our FBLA members, Marketing & Entrepreneurship students, and Business & Computer Science students in celebration of American Enterprise Day!

📅 Friday, November 13
⏰ 2:15–3:30 PM
📍 Tift County High School

We would love for our students to hear firsthand about the world of business and the American free enterprise system. Speakers might share about:

How you started or became involved in your business or career

What it takes to run a successful business

Entrepreneurship and taking an idea from concept to reality

Career opportunities in your industry

Technology and AI in today’s workplace

Customer service, leadership, and teamwork

Challenges businesses face and how they overcome them

Skills employers are looking for in future employees

Advice you wish you had received as a high school student

This is a wonderful opportunity to invest in our future workforce and inspire the next generation of business and technology leaders.

Interested in speaking with our students? We would love to hear from you!

📧 Contact Dr. Melissa Busbin at melissa.busbin@tiftschools.com
📞 (229) 387-2475

Please feel free to share this post with someone in our community who would be a great voice for our students! 💙

Underclass Picture Day is Monday, August 31, 2026. All underclassmen will have their photos taken for the yearbook and Infinite Campus.

We will begin calling classes to the gym as soon as the bell rings and attendance has been taken.

All students must have their photo taken. This is not optional. The Central Office needs updated student photos for Infinite Campus.
Blue Devil Academy & Dual Enrollment Students
Blue Devil Academy online students may come to the school anytime between 8:30–10:45 a.m. Students should report to the gym, enter the shortest available line, and proceed through the photo process. Parents do not need to come inside with their student.

Dual Enrollment students may also come anytime between 8:30–10:45 a.m. to have their photo taken.

If a Blue Devil Academy or Dual Enrollment student is unable to attend on August 31, our makeup picture day will be Monday, October 26, 2026.

Please attend one of these two picture days. Failure to attend either underclass picture day will result in their photo not appearing in the yearbook.

Senior Make-Up Photos
After all underclass photos have been completed, seniors who did not take their senior portraits during the summer will have one final opportunity to have their photo taken.

If you are a senior, please make sure you understand:

This is their last opportunity to have their senior photo taken at school. After this date, they will need to contact the photography company and schedule an appointment on their own.
Seniors do not have to pay to have their yearbook photo taken.
The $25 sitting fee is only required if they want to preview their photos and participate in the full senior portrait session.

Survival takes more than individual knowledge—it takes collaboration, communication, and critical thinking.
Students in Concepts of Artificial Intelligence put their career-readiness skills to the test with the classic Coast Guard Pacific Survival challenge. After imagining their ship lost to a fire at sea, students first ranked a limited set of salvaged items based on their own chances of survival. Then, they joined their crew to debate, defend, and revise their rankings as a team.

The surprising part? A shaving mirror can be one of the most valuable items because it can be used to signal rescuers, while something that sounds useful—like a map of the Pacific Ocean—offers little help without navigational equipment.

After reaching a team decision, students compared their rankings with U.S. Coast Guard survival recommendations and examined whether working collaboratively improved their chances of survival.

The final conversation went beyond surviving at sea: How does collaboration affect our success in school, careers, and life?

Sometimes the smartest solution isn't the one any single person brings to the table—it's the one we build together. 🤝

#CareerReady #CriticalThinking #Collaboration #ArtificialIntelligence #CTAE #FutureReady #Teamwork #CTAEDelivers #4theT

Tift County Health Department will be hosting in-school flu clinics in our schools this fall.

Consent forms are required for your child to participate.

Scan the QR code or visit www.southhealthdistrict.com/TiftFlu for additional information.

#4theT
Collaborate | Learn | Achieve