A Message from the Mountain Education Charter High SchoolAlthough school wasn’t closed for the summer at Mountain Education Center H.S., the official start of the new school year is August 6. With the new school year starting, it is a perfect time to announce our new name, Mountain Education Charter High School, and our new website address, mymec.org.

Since its beginning in 1993, the mission of MEC has been to reduce the drop-out rate in the communities it serves by giving students a second chance to earn a diploma at an accredited high school. It started as a three-county collaborative (Fannin, Towns, Union) on one site in Union County. Since then, MEC has opened 7 more sites and serves communities in and around Gilmer, Pickens, Habersham, Stephens, Lumpkin and White counties in addition to the original counties of Fannin, Towns and Union. In 2007 MEC became a charter school with AYP being based upon EOCT results. By the end of last school year, Mountain Education Charter High School has graduated a total of 1,824 students (since 1993) and helped 4,160 earn credits toward graduation at their local high school.

Mountain Education Charter High serves students between the ages of 16 and 21, who are not attending the traditional day school, but would like to earn a regular high school diploma at night. The program is self-paced, mastery-based, and individualized to meet students’ needs and schedules. School hours are between 4:00 and 8:00 on Mondays through Thursdays. Students can enroll at any time and tuition is FREE!

Students enroll at MEC for many reasons. Some students must work during the day or take care of families. Others have quit high school and decide to come back for their diploma. Students also may enroll just to make up classes they have failed at their local high school. Still others prefer a self-paced, individualized curriculum so that they can move through the required high school courses and state-required tests faster and enter college sooner.

MEC offers many of the same services as traditional schools. Every site has counselors, graduation coaches, special education teachers, and career specialists. Each student is assigned a mentor to help the student progress academically and plan for the future. Many events and activities are held throughout the year to promote the importance of continuing education at college after high school graduation. MEC will also help students dual enroll so that they can begin that process by earning college and high school credits at the same time.

For information, call (706) 632-6100 for the new Fannin campus which will be based at Fannin County Middle School Camput. We, at Mountain Education Charter High School, believe that all students can succeed if given the chance, and we are here to provide that opportunity. If you have any questions, please call Lori Chastain, 706-851-4206, or Betsy Hyde 706-851-5053.