Superintendent

Buddy L. Brown
850-547-9341, x1221
Email: buddy.brown@hdsb.org

Dear Parents and Community Members:

It is my honor and privilege to serve as the Superintendent for Holmes District Schools.  Our District is home to over 3,000 students and is comprised of one elementary school (Grades K-5), one combination elementary/middle school (Grades K-8), one high school (Grades 9-12), one combination middle/high (Grades 6-12), two combination schools (Grades K-12), and one alternative school (The GAP).  On behalf of our staff to include teachers, aides, bus drivers, support personnel, board members, and administrators I welcome you to Holmes District Schools

As a school district, we believe it is important to set strategic goals to focus our actions for continuous improvement. Academic Achievement & Growth, Financial Prudence, Community Engagement and Safe Schools are the District’s goals and serve as the foundation for our comprehensive vision and strategic plan.

Academic Achievement & Growth.  It is and will be our goal and mission to provide the best opportunities to our students to maximize their academic achievement and growth.  In conjunction with District plans and strategies we will also be implementing statewide initiatives in the areas of literacy and STEM classes.  We will maximize the resources we have available to establish a well-rounded curriculum for all our students and provide them the opportunity to matriculate to other levels of education and to become productive members of society and our community.

Financial Prudence.  Our District has proactively worked to provide financial stability, while maintaining a premier educational experience for our students.  We have implemented cost efficiencies to utilize the resources provided by our community in the most financially prudent manner. We are appreciative of our community’s financial support and continue to manage our finances for the betterment of our students and District with the thought and understanding that we are a small and rural District with limited financial resources in comparison to other School Districts in our area.  Currently 1 mil of tax income in our District produces around $320,000 in revenue for all governmental operations within Holmes County.  Our neighbor to the west produces $35 million dollars in revenue with that same assessment.

Community Engagement.  We also continue to explore opportunities to engage our community. Developing community relationships and making connections is vital to the success of our District. Whether or not you have a child attending our schools, we encourage you to take advantage of the many events showcasing our students and their tremendous talents. Art shows, music concerts, and athletic events are just a few ways to become connected with Holmes District Schools. Visit our District’s website (www.hdsb.org) for the most current event calendar.  In addition to these extracurricular events we are in the first stages of forming the Holmes Education Foundation which will be a non-profit organization that we hope we allow us to secure funding for more of our school programs that current tax dollars cannot fund.

Safe Schools.  We work each day to ensure the safety and well-being of our students and staff.  We have undergone a number of physical improvements over the past few years to do this but we recognize that this will be an ongoing task. We have established SROs at each school along with other security measures that may not always be visible to the public eye.  We have developed response plans to possible incidents on our campus and work to improve those plans daily.  We have increased and developed a mental health plan to provide interventions for all members of our school family and we work daily with other agencies in a cooperative effort to improve the physical and mental health environment within our schools and community.

Our goal at Holmes District Schools is to build and strengthen a collaborative atmosphere that is dedicated to working in the best interest of our students. It takes more than our teachers, support staff, and administrators to accomplish this - we need you as a partner for our District to continue the work in reaching our shared goal of excellence for our students and community.

Sincerely yours,

Buddy L. Brown
Superintendent