Hammons: Another Path to Graduation

Hammons, the off campus program for Martinsville High School, is an alternative to help students complete their diplomas. The Hammons classroom is located inside the Central Education Center along with several administrative offices and three developmental preschool classrooms.

Hammons students start their days at 9 a.m. and finish at 2 p.m. During the school day, the students work on a computer program called Grad Point where they read a lesson and then take a quiz over that subject, leading up to a final exam. To pass each class, they have to have an 80% or above to earn the credit and move on to earning more credits.

Hammons is an alternative setting for students who do not find the traditional setting of the high school as helpful to their learning processes. Attending Hammons gives these students the time to focus on their studies in an environment that they find better suits them. This environment has allowed many students improve their grades and earn credits toward their diplomas. As Macy Meers said, “I have  accomplished more at Hammons than I ever did at the high school.”

Most of the students that attend Hammons are seniors who are trying to earn their diplomas. All of these seniors plan to do something after graduating, whether that be going to college or starting in a trade like welding. The Hammons setting has helped so many students finish their high school career, and as Daphne Hicks said, “It (Hammons) lets you go at your own pace and you can concentrate better in the smaller setting.”