Courtni Reese: the heart of Cedar Shoals

The Cedar Shoals community relies on four foundational pillars: the faculty, staff, students and Family Engagement Specialist Courtni Reese. As the older sister of the community, Reese provides students with support and a person to confide in. 

“When nobody believed in me, she did. Even when other folks thought I couldn’t do it, she helped me get past that,” sophomore Tamorion Reynolds said.

Reese was one of less than 2,500 people in the small town of Bowden, GA where she grew up. Despite the population, her extroverted roots prospered, and she was just as outgoing as she is today. Her childhood town even motivated her to go further in her career.

“I went to a really rural high school so I didn’t have help applying to college (from my high school), but I have two parents that went to college and they helped me,” Reese said. “But a lot of students that I went to school with didn’t have that assistance, and I was like ‘This (working to help students with their future) would be awesome.’”

When Reese moved away from her rural beginnings, she decided the University of Georgia would best fit her needs. Once she received her bachelor’s degree in early childhood education, she realized that she needed a more open pathway without the stress of an elementary school classroom. She spent her last semester of college in Washington, D.C. through the Washington Semester Program at UGA and eventually received a master’s degree in Educational Administration and Policy that ensured flexibility in her future.

“I’m more of a free floater. I didn’t want another degree that was going to tie me down,” Reese said.

After Reese went through an in depth interview process in 2019, her personality assessment placed her at Cedar Shoals through UGA’s College Advising Corps. She fell in love with Cedar’s inviting environment as she counseled seniors. AmeriCorps policy limits the college advisor position to two years, so Reese feared her attachment would be short-lived. In an attempt to stay, she approached then newly announced Principal Antonio Derricotte to discuss her future at Cedar.

“She (Reese) said she’d love to be able to find something to stay at Cedar and I said ‘honestly, we don’t have anything right now, but you never know what the future holds.’ Lo and behold, at that time we had a family engagement specialist that had an opportunity to go work at the district level, so I offered Ms. Reese an opportunity and the rest is history,” Derricotte said.

Since Reese’s renewed role, Derricotte has confirmed her vitality within the school. During the Covid-19 pandemic – A period of disconnect and miscommunication, her skills were crucial. 

“When we were sheltering at home and trying to work virtually, she really had a heavy lift in terms of being able to engage families and making sure students had what they needed,” Derricotte said. “I think now that we’re back face to face that only helps grow her toolbox because she has been able to set the foundation in so many ways. She’s been a key piece that I think a lot of people don’t really understand.”

Moving from a small town, Reese noticed cultural diversity in ways that she didn’t expect. When she became assistant coach of the cheer squad in 2020 under head coach Tonya Ward, she discovered “Stomp and Shake” cheer — a style that implements traditional African American dances and aims to engage the audience more so than traditional cheerleading. Reese has found a home within the squad and embraced the opposite style of her hometown. 

“It’s nice coaching them consecutively because we’ve grown together. They’ve seen me grow as a coach from a first year assistant to helping with the program,” Reese said.

She now holds the title of family engagement specialist: the bridge between the school and parents, providing information about available opportunities for students. Her open-ended position includes other responsibilities like running the social media pages, creating the weekly newsletter and planning school-wide events.

One way Reese reaches the Cedar community is through social media. 1,700 Facebook followers, 1,000 Twitter users and 2,300 Instagrammers are all informed about Cedar-related events and opportunities because of Reese’s diligence and dedication. She hopes to grow her loyal followings so that more of the Cedar family can stay up to date.

“It (the Instagram page) is pretty informative. It tells you about clubs doing things, Cedar activities and what’s happening in the future. Ms. Reese is the go-to if you want something to spread around the school,” senior Ella Johnson said.

“It’s really fun highlighting the awesome things that we have going on, but it’s also a place where I can be creative, especially on Instagram,” Reese said. “A lot of parents are sharing our things on Facebook, but Instagram is special to me because it feels like a community of students.”

Reese furthers her outreach by planning largely attended functions throughout the year. The freshman orientation, for example, takes a special kind of spirit that Reese possesses. The open house and Title I events — gatherings to get parental input on where government funding is allocated — are also Reese’s responsibilities. On top of it all, she organizes every parent-teacher conference to ensure that students, parents and staff are on the same page.

“My job is making sure that parents and students know what’s going on at our school. So I communicate and build (relationships) with families and get to know people, which is why I think a lot of my work is done outside of the office,” Reese said.

The social aspect of Reese’s job can be overwhelming at times, especially when work needs to be done inside the office. She often closes her door for the first two class periods in order to complete tedious tasks. Drafting a timely email or social media posts requires a moment of quiet that Reese finds difficult to get while engaging students and families throughout the day. 

“I’m such an extrovert that it’s very hard for me to not be out and about,” Reese said. “A lot of times I have to reel it in.”

Reese believes that being the family engagement specialist is perfect for someone with her personality. She doesn’t have the restraints of a classroom as she engages students in a relatable way. A hallway check-up on a struggling high school student can make a genuine difference, and the kids she advises see her impact everyday. 

“She changes the way you look at things,” junior Jaylan Ransom said. “She makes it easier.”