For Heather Bewley, teaching is more than a profession, it is a calling shaped by a lifetime of caring for others. Growing up with a younger sister with intellectual disabilities and later working in a group home for adults with disabilities during college, Bewley says those experiences made it clear that she was meant to serve students with special needs. Today, as a teacher at LaRue County High School, she works to ensure every student is prepared not just for graduation, but for a happy, healthy adulthood where they can contribute meaningfully to their community.

When Winter Storm Fern swept through the area, it delivered a one-two-three punch of snow, ice, and more snow—making travel nearly impossible at the start of the week and unsafe for buses and drivers across the county for several days afterward. As a result, students began Non-Traditional Instruction (NTI) on Monday, continuing through Thursday while crews worked and conditions gradually improved.

January is Board Appreciation Month, a time set aside across Kentucky to recognize the service of local school board members and the critical role they play in public education. In LaRue County, that role includes providing leadership and oversight for a district that serves a diverse student population across multiple schools, grade levels, backgrounds, and needs.

Two LaRue County High School students are digging into history—not as a distant set of facts, but as a living story that still shapes who we are and who we become.

Rachael Hammons and Kaylee Clark are currently filming a documentary centered on women’s suffrage, exploring how the fight for voting rights connects directly to the ideals laid out in the Declaration of Independence and what those ideals mean today.

Students selected an Algebra 2 unit they had already studied—topics like complex numbers or parabolas—and then narrowed it down to one or two specific concepts. Their task was simple in theory but demanding in practice: take an 11th-grade math idea and turn it into a story that a young child could understand, visualize, and enjoy.

When winter weather threatens the area, the decision to delay or cancel school begins well before most families are awake. Members of the district’s transportation and administrative team are often on the roads as early as 3:30 or 4 a.m., traveling throughout the county to assess real-time conditions. Their goal is to evaluate road safety across LaRue County’s varied terrain before bus drivers begin reporting around 5 a.m.

Students were brought into the LCHS gym for what was described as a brief assembly. When they entered, they were met with rows of neatly organized gift bags spread across the gym floor — one for every student. Inside each bag was a LaRue County Hawks hoodie, a surprise made possible through the generosity of local businesses, community organizations, and an anonymous donor.

“In life, you often have to think on your feet,” she said. “You won’t always have time to look things up. This teaches students how to perform under pressure, how to collaborate, and how to communicate with people.”

For many students, high school is a place to explore interests and discover possible futures. For seniors Caitlynn Whitaker and Brayden Madeck, the JROTC program at LaRue County High School has become far more than an elective—it’s been a four-year pathway shaping their confidence, leadership, and sense of purpose.