Horry County Schools Fine Arts Department

I am very proud of the strong representation that we had at the 2026 SCMEA Conference this year. I saw all of our music disciplines represented, and also had the pleasure to see many of our students and educators recognized for their performances an acheivements. Here are just a few of the great things that we are contributing to our state conference, and I hope to see even more next year!

Getting ready to watch our Horry County Bands participate in the 2026 Martin Luther King Jr Parade. It’s a beautiful day at the beach, but we should always remember the reason behind this holiday.

Music is truly the great equalizer. It knows no gender, no prejudices, no hatreds-it simply is our thoughts and emotions put to sound and brought to life.

Here are some photos from the sidelines of all our amazing students and teachers representing HCS!

What an incredible performance tonight by the Black Water Dance Students and their Dance Instructor Claire Alverson. The audience was captivated by the student's modern version of Tchaikovsky's Ballet the Nutcracker with their version titled "The Nutcracker Remix." Dance is alive and flourishing in Horry County Schools.

What a wonderful performance Friday night by the Socastee Middle School Bands and Choir. Mr Ray Dobell did an outstanding job preparing his students, and they sounded wonderful. The talent and dedication on display is a testament to the students hard work and desire to make beautiful music. Thank you for your performance!

Congratulations to our November High School Fine Arts Teacher of the Month! I am happy to announce that her peers have selected Anna Bateman as the November Fine Arts Teacher of the Month. Her colleagues had some incredible things to say about her:

"She is the one of our schools National Art Honors Society sponsors and is always willing to go above and beyond for her students. Ms. Bateman is fully committed to her students’ success providing assistance for art, academics, and ensuring students their social/emotional needs are met. She is a highly effective communicator and is a reflective practitioner which has led to tremendous classroom success. She is at ease with students, parents, and community leaders. She possesses a superior work ethic and readily accepts any task or challenge.
The nature of her classroom is inclusive, creating an environment where her students are successful and experiment with new and innovative mediums. Ms. Bateman is a highly skilled artist in a variety of art media. She is a passionate advocate for the arts and has been instrumental in aiding with the growth of our art program here at MBHS. She plans meaningful lessons and encourages her students to participate in juried art competitions and field trips. I am constantly impressed with her work ethic and ability to work creatively under pressure. She is a great team member, a natural leader and a humble colleague. Ms. Bateman is a joy to work with, a true team player, talented educator and always fosters positive discussions and brings out the best in our department."

"I have the pleasure of being Anna’s co-worker at Myrtle Beach High School. She is energetic, innovative, and full of excitement for our craft. She is down for almost
any artistic project. She collaborates with me closely on prepping my students for her AP class and has helped raise the bar on expectations for that program.
She loves being involved and has a way about her that gets students engaged in our
school spirit. She can make big ideas come to life. It’s a true gift.
Anna is someone that can inspire a seasoned teacher to keep that spark alive. She reminds me every day to stay positive and not forget why we teach. She challenges me to stay creative. I’m very proud to call her my colleague and friend."

Congratulations to our November Middle School Fine Arts Teacher of the Month! I am happy to announce that his peers have selected Josh Maxwell as the November Fine Arts Teacher of the Month. His colleagues had some incredible things to say about him:

"Josh has stepped up and taken on a leadership role as one of the middle school liaisons for band directors of Horry County Schools. He has also been very active in encouraging and executing the All-County Jazz Band for our middle school band students in Horry County. Josh works hard to make sure his students have a multitude of musical opportunities, and I'm very proud to know him as both a colleague, fellow saxophonist, and friend."

"Always doing a great job with students"

"He works very hard to offer many different opportunities for students, and in all three grade levels. He always is supportive of the needs of other middle school teachers as well."

Congratulations to our November Elementary School Fine Arts Teacher of the Month! I am happy to announce that her peers have selected Jessica Hand as the November Fine Arts Teacher of the Month. Her colleagues had some incredible things to say about her:

"She does such an amazing job helping out with the Elementary Honor Choir." and also "She rocks! Her choir kids do such a great job!"

Little known secret, Jessica not only does music but also teaches art at Lakewood Elementary! What an awesome part of our HCS fine arts!

Wonderful performance tonight by all of the student musicians at Lakewood Elementary School under the direction of Jessica Hand and Michael Knight. The show started with some amazing steel pan music and continued with the beautiful sounds of the LES choir. Thank you for continuing the holiday spirit as we get closer to our break!

Congratulations to the theatre department of Socastee High School! They are now the proud winner of SCTA's Studio Series and will represent Socastee High School in the Southeastern Theatre Conference in March!

Additionally, they won third place in Stageworks.
Winner of the Overall Best Ensemble Award
Mrs. Taylor was selected as the SCTA 2025 Best Director

Monologue Finalists
Harrison Garrett - 2nd Place
Shayne Young- 4th Place
Kelsey Kathman- 5th Place
Parker Vile

Musical Theatre
Parker Vile

All-Star Cast
Landen Christensen- One
Quion Johnson Allen- That's Not How I Remember It
Parker Vile- That's Not How I Remember It

SCTA Best Actor- Justin Rivera
Mrs. Taylor was selected as the SCTA 2025 Best Director

Ten-Minute Play Cast
Blakely Bushong
Noelle Zheng
Parker Vile
Brody Davis

Congratulations to the Myrtle Beach High School Seahawk Stage Company on their State Championship win at the South Carolina Theatre Association's Convention for their production of THE NINTH TRAIN. The Seahawk Stage Company competed against 19 other high schools and are State Champions!
Other awards included third place in the Studio Series for CHEATING DEATH. Individual competition results also included Grace Pena receiving All-Star Cast for THE NINTH TRAIN and placing Top 16 Solo Musical Finalist. Ethan Benezra also received All-Star Cast for THE NINTH TRAIN. Jasmine Parlier received All-Star Cast for CHEATING DEATH, and Josiah Odle placed Top 16 Solo Musical Finalist.

Happy Clarinet Day! Do you play clarinet?

Congratulations to our own Stephen Williams for serving as a Guest Clinician in Charleston this weekend. Representing HCS Fine Arts and Carolina Forest HS Orchestra across our state!