News

Kindergarteners to get 'Class of '28' T-shirts

By Bill Moss, Published: August 19, 2015

In addition to their first tastes of reading, writing and counting, 1,000 new kindergarteners will receive a gift welcoming them into Henderson County Public Schools next week.

“As they join our family, we’re happy to give each kindergartener a shirt recognizing their first year in Henderson County Public Schools, and we’re thankful to the local businesses who made the shirts possible,” said Superintendent David Jones.

It used to be that at the beginning of every school year, incoming kindergarteners received a “Class Of …” shirt with their high school graduation year. Each child had the same graduating year — regardless of which middle and high schools they eventually attended — building community among the students, as well as the parents and community members who saw the shirts around town.

Due to the reassignment of funds, those shirts haven’t been produced or distributed in a decade. But thanks to the support of seven local sponsors, they’re back.

First Citizens Bank, the Hendersonville Community Co-Op, Hendersonville Pediatric Dentistry, Horizon Heating & Air Conditioning, Mast General Store, Park Ridge Health and Steve Edney Orthodontics have made it possible for kindergarten students to receive “Class of 2028” shirts on their first week of school, making their transitions into education a little easier, fun and memorable.

This year, instead of using the traditional Henderson County Public Schools logo for the T-shirts, kindergarteners will be sporting a kid-friendly design of a purple handprint splashing into green paint. In future years, the “Class of” T-shirt designs will be chosen from student-submitted artwork through a design contest pitched to high school students.