The Cherokee County Educational Foundation (CCEF) proudly hosted its 4th Annual Sporting Clays Classic on Friday, June 19, 2026, at Garland Mountain Sporting Clays & Grill in Waleska, Georgia. The event brought together the community and shooting enthusiasts, again this year, for a day of friendly competition and fundraising in support of Cherokee County School District students and teachers.

By Bobby Blount 

Technology has become an important part of the classroom, and as it has gained traction in the school system, it has become necessary to implement a data protection plan to protect the students of Cherokee County. The Cherokee County School District has implemented several strategies for protecting student information and investments as it relates to technology use. With an environment of continuous threats throughout the world, we find that we must remain vigilant to maintain and sustain a secured networked environment for our teaching and learning community.

While much of the responsibility for data security and protection falls upon the Division of Technology & Information Services, all users in the CCSD education community have a significant part to play in helping to keep information and devices protected. Here are some ways CCSD protects the students!

Parenting isn't for the faint of heart, and anyone who is a parent knows the struggles that come with helping your child navigate through school academically and socially. Not only are parents helping their children navigate school life, but they're also helping them sift through all of the physical and emotional changes that come with being a kid. And boy is the world a different place than when many of us were young! That's why the Cherokee County School District has stepped in as a resource through Parent University.

Each year, the Cherokee County Educational Foundation holds a T-shirt campaign to continue to encourage support, donations, and awareness for the students and staff all over the Cherokee County School District. In the past, we have invited our supporters to submit photos of themselves in their CCEF shirts and hoodies during their summer travels, but over the years the contest has turned into a great way to show off CCEF gear on the road, at home, and everywhere in between! 

CCEF strives to create inclusive and exciting opportunities for supporters of CCSD educators and students to get involved. We run several programs throughout the year to supply funds to the faculty and schools for impactful educational projects, big and small. From Impact Grants, Rapid Grants, sporting events, and more, CCEF wants to provide opportunities to those who otherwise may not have the funds to make their ideas come to life. CCEF consistently seeks to support innovative and impactful education programs in the district through fundraisers, grants, and campaigns.

It's an exciting time of year for everyone! There's a buzz of energy as parents are rushing around for gifts, students are taking their last tests, and teachers wrap up grading before heading home to their own families. After a couple of weeks of holiday treats, an abundance of gifts, and plentiful family time, students and teachers alike may be avoiding thoughts of heading back to school. Alas, it will come if you're ready or not – so might as well be ready! Teachers, here are 4 tips for a smooth transition back into school after your holiday break.

 We're so excited to see all the photos coming in from our 2019 CCEF Golf Classic event last week! Check out the gallery below to see some more pictures. 

These photos will be posted on our Facebook page as well. Feel free to tag yourself and any other familiar faces!

If you haven't checked out the photos from our first post, click here.

What an amazing day of good weather and great golfers to benefit the students and staff of Cherokee County.  Thank you to our sponsors, players, and volunteers.  Every public school in Cherokee County will benefit from this incredible outing.  Check out the gallery of photos from today's successful event.

To view more photos from the event, click here.

All six Chick-fil-A locations across Cherokee County banded together to hold their Annual Chick-fil-A"Moove It" 5K road race at the Etowah River Park. The event drew more than 1,500 registered runners and supporters, and is the largest event of its kind in Cherokee County as well as North Georgia. 

Superintendent Dr. Brian Hightower surprised Billy Hayes with his Superintendent's 2019 Game Changer Award for Instructional Advocacy during the monthly board meeting of the Cherokee County Educational Foundation where the Northside CEO serves as board president. Enter heading here...

You probably know that the Georgia Lottery donates towards education – specifically for Pre-Kindergarten and college students. However, the real question is this: Is Cherokee County directly affected by the Georgia Lottery? Do our students actually experience the benefits of the lottery? While K-12 public education districts do not directly benefit, the answer is yes! 

Each year, the Cherokee County Educational Foundation holds the On the Road With CCEF contest to celebrate how far and wide around the globe our annual t-shirts travel. Contestants take pictures wearing their shirts during their summer vacations, and we have seen entries from as far away as Thailand and Queensland, Australia. It has been a pleasure to be part of these travels, and we enjoy sharing these photos and travels with our community through articles, on our website, and in social media posts. However, this year looks a little different.

Good morning to all the Chick-fil-A Moo've It 5K entrants! Due to the coronavirus, we are not able to hold an in-person race at Etowah River Park this year. Instead, we have converted the event to a Race in Place/virtual run. The feature event will be a 30-minute "Moo've It 5K Show" this Saturday morning at 8:00. Click here to watch the video on Saturday.

The Woodstock Lions Club will be hosting a free and contactless food distribution event for the local community this Saturday, September 12th. Thanks to the partnership of the USDA, Collins Brothers Produce, Lions Club of Georgia, His Hands Church, City of Woodstock, and Lowe's Woodstock, this event will provide free food to the families of Woodstock.

This year has flown by and everyone seems to be searching for some sense of normalcy in the safest way possible. 2020 has been full of constant changes, but we're pleased to announce that this year's Golf Classic is still on the books and it's only a month away! Join us at BridgeMill Athletic Club on October 12th and enjoy a day full of golf, fun, and raising money for CCEF to benefit the students and staff of the Cherokee County School District! In preparation, here are some ways to improve your golf game.

For the last couple of months, we have been highlighting Impact Grant winners and how they're spending their grant money. This month, we're going to cover Hailey Burden and Elizabeth Gama, of Arnold Mill Elementary and April Popham of LR Tippens Education Center as they work hard to create a space where students can gain valuable life skills and develop a deeper passion for novel studies. 

As we look forward to the 2021 Gala, we wanted to take a peek at what school looked like in our county leading up to 1970, the year that both of our 2020 Alumni of the Year award winners graduated from Cherokee High School. Ms. Rebecca Johnston and Mr. Steve Stancil were chosen as the winners of this award for their outstanding contributions to the community. Both of our winners have had great success in their careers, and the cool thing is…it all started in a Cherokee County school. Ms. Johnston stated, "I appreciate that my education at CHS helped me to be able to achieve what I have in life. I have been able to do what I love most, which is to have a career as a writer and editor and have the opportunity to record our Cherokee County history through my writings. This award is a pinnacle of my life."