Board appoints coaches and votes to include eighth graders at new Southern Gap High School

The Buchanan County school board approved a list of head and assistant coaches for the new Southern Gap High School and voted to include eighth graders in the school and in junior-varsity athletics for the coming year.

Staff member speaker 6 presented a vetted list of hires for coaching and extracurricular roles and moved to approve the slate. The names the board approved included Greg Tester (football head coach), Stacy Griffey (cheerleading/football), Preston Hibbits (golf), Corey Belcher (assistant), Christy Bain (boys cross country and girls cross country head coach), Philip Van Dyke (assistant), Billy Mullins (JV cross country), Megan Wolford (competition cheer and theater), Hannah Lester (volleyball), Lexi Fuller (JV volleyball), Kayla Cantrell (eSports), Jory Raf (boys basketball winter sports), Brian Looney (girls basketball), Angie Wolford (basketball cheer), Travis Fizer (wrestling), Scottie Bostick (baseball assistant) and others listed during the meeting. The motion to approve the slate was moved by David (as stated in the transcript) and seconded by Angie; the board recorded affirmative votes from members present.

Separately, a board member (speaker 5) moved to include eighth graders in the new school's grade configuration and to permit eighth-grade participation in JV sports in Virginia. The motion cited potential academic benefits from dual-enrollment classes and a cited capacity figure of 'almost 1,100' students. Board members discussed busing and graduation/ceremony logistics — including whether to hold separate ceremonies for seventh/eighth and ninth-grade graduates — and the motion passed after recorded votes.

What happens next: The district will finalize coach contracts and operational assignments for the new school; the board indicated principals and administrators will coordinate details on busing, ceremony planning and student representation for initial events.