Hoover schools superintendent brags on district at first chamber address
New Hoover schools Superintendent Kathy Murphy took advantage of her first speech to the Hoover Area Chamber of Commerce today as a chance to brag on the district.
Murphy, who joined Hoover as superintendent in June, rattled off a list of accomplishments for each Hoover school, as well as the district as a whole.
Hoover is proud to have 144 teachers who have completed the rigorous certification process of the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, Murphy told the 200-plus business people gathered at the Hyatt Regency Birmingham – The Wynfrey Hotel.
That represents 13 percent of the district’s teachers and is the highest percentage in the state, Murphy said. Hoover also has had seven Alabama Teachers of the Year, she said.
Those teachers have the responsibility of educating a fast-growing student population that has blossomed from 5,200 students in 1988 to 13,844 this year, Murphy said.
The Hoover district is serious about providing a 21st century education, personalizing learning and integrating technology into lessons by providing students with Ipads or Chromebooks, the superintendent said.
The Hoover and Spain Park high school graduating classes of 2015 together were offered nearly $54 million in scholarships, Murphy said. Of those, about $21 million in scholarships were accepted, school officials have said.
Ninety-eight percent of the seniors in the Class of 2015 graduated, Murphy said. Even though school officials would like to see them all graduate, 98 percent is awesome, she said.
“That says to me we have a lot of great teaching and learning going on,” she said.
Hoover offers an International Baccalaureate program at Hoover High and strong Advanced Placement and dual enrollment programs that allow students to gain college credits while still in high school, Murphy said.
The two high schools also offer a variety of foreign language courses and an array of career academies that allow high school students to focus on career fields such as engineering, finance, law, information technology and health sciences. This allows students to better prepare themselves to fulfill their dreams and ambitions, Murphy said.
The Hoover school district ranked fourth in the state on Niche.com’s 2016 best school district list and ranked second in Alabama on the 2015 list of best places to teach, behind Homewood.
Both Spain Park and Hoover high schools ranked highly on Niche.com’s 2016 list of the best public high schools in Alabama. Spain Park was fourth, and Hoover was seventh.
At the middle school level, Bumpus Middle School ranked fifth in Alabama, while Simmons Middle School was ranked seventh and Berry Middle School was ranked ninth.
Murphy said that about a month after she got to Hoover, she was driving one day and felt sad – sad that her daughter, now 23, didn’t get to experience the Hoover school district.
She has seen a lot of school districts that are high in poverty and struggling. “We are so blessed,” Murphy said. “We have such a unique school district.”
This Thanksgiving, she’s thanking God for Hoover schools, she said.
Murphy also today announced the 2015 Hoover City Schools Employee of the Year. See that story here.