08/20/2026
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Monday is the start of the 2026-27 school year for Cherokee County Schools. The Scout has asked the schools to share information important for the families and students they service. Here we have ...
Andrews High School
‘Catching the PRIDE of the Wildcats’
Work has been underway throughout this past summer to improve the student experience at Andrews High School. Principal Mr. Dorin Oxender is beginning his second school year and first full
school year since joining the Wildcats at AHS in October, 2025.
Andrews High recently sealed a deal with Tri-County Community College to set up shop-in the shop. The new center, named the Andrews High School “Industrial Technologies Training Center”, or iTECH, a throwback to Oxender’s previous job as director of the Immokalee Technical College (iTECH) system in Florida, is in the shop building at AHS. The facility, built in 1987, has had some repairs over the summer, including cleanup and repainting. New equipment is also available for those taking the course. This course is offered by Tri-County Community College and is available to students at Andrews High and Tri-County. This is a very convenient location for the students at Andrews.
Last school year, during the second semester, a Throwback Thursday series began on the school’s Facebook. It was a hit with the community. Over the summer, the school website’s history page was updated to include the Andrews and Marble schools. This covers multiple pieces of Andrews-Marble school history and is a nearly 30-minute read.
Also on the topic of history, AHS is currently sending yearbooks off to Classmates.com in Bellevue, Washington, to get scanned and published online. The first batch is a collection of 35 annuals ranging from the year 1956 to 2021. AHS recently received a few more (1971, 1974, 1995, 1996, 1997, and 2000) to be sent off in the second batch.
Andrews High (re)discovered the old cornerstones from the dedication of the first Andrews Public School on October 27, 1906. The marble stones were located in the Old White Building at the top of the School House Steps, which was razed in 1961. They were later moved to the current facility in 1962, where they sat in the right corner next to the front entrance. In 1992, when the school was remodeled, the cornerstones were taken out and replaced with red brick, contrasting with the tan brick.
The stones were later found in the back near the boiler room. A rededication is planned for October 27 of this year.
The biggest part of this new experience is the “rebranding” of the school. AHS is launching a new catchphrase: “Catch the Pride of the Wildcats” (not to be confused with our Pride of the Valley Band).
This will also go along with the slogan, “Excelling in Academics and Athletics.” Oxender is also reaching out to the students through a new announcement system on TV monitors, so no one misses any piece of information.
AHS is also launching a new literacy initiative, utilizing Accelerated Reader school-wide to increase reading fluency across grade levels.
AHS will also re-open the media center which has been closed since 2018. This focus on academics should help our students improve success in all content areas.
Oxender hopes to make a lasting impact on the students at AHS, and he has big dreams for the school.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION
Andrews High School
50 High School Drive,
Andrews, North Carolina 28901
(828) 321-5415
(828) 321-3986 (FAX)
ahs.cherokee.k12.nc.us
– Dorin Oxender, Principal
