All Marion County Schools will be closed December 22 - January 5 for the Christmas Holidays. Students will begin the second semester on Tuesday, January 6, 2026. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
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• When we return from Christmas break, a phone call and text will be sent to the first two PowerSchool contacts for any student who is absent that day. You should expect to receive that call between 9:20 a.m. and 9:45 a.m.
• Please remember that although absences for exams are counted by semester, the number of absences for truancy is for the entire school year.
o When a student is absent, an excuse must be turned in within 3 days of the student’s return to school.
o IMPORTANT: Once a student has reached 10 absences, all absences after that will only be excused with a medical or legal excuse.
Phillips High School JAG students organized and conducted their annual “Thanksgiving Food Drive” for 2025. JAG students collected over 300 food items consisting of canned vegetables, soups, and various packaged foods which were donated to the local Civitan Club. The Civitans included canned hams and distributed the food items to families in need in the Bear Creek community.
“We were especially proud to recognize the Hamilton High School Boys’ Cross Country Team on winning the state championship for the second year in a row. Congratulations to Coach Scotty Sanderson and his outstanding athletes for representing our district with such EXCELLENCE!”
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The members of the Phillips High JAG Chapter attended the JLDC (Joint Leadership Development Conference) held in Birmingham on October 9th. With nearly 5,000 students, educators, industry leaders, counselors, and administrators attending, this conference is the largest non-athletic joint gathering of students in the Southeastern United States. It is for the educational purpose of building Alabama’s College and Career-Ready workforce with employability skills, leadership training, and exposure to Alabama’s career opportunities.
Happy Thanksgiving! All Marion County Schools will be closed November 24-28 for the Thanksgiving holidays.
JOHN HARDIN (ADMINISTRATOR): Born in Jackson (MS), Hardin, 69, grew up Marion County in the small town of Hackleburg, graduating in 1974 and earning his college degree four years later at the University of Mississippi. He finished his master’s at West Alabama.
He began his career as an educator at Amory (MS) where he taught and coached through 1983. He then moved back home to Hackleburg to begin a tenure that would last for the next three decades. He made his impact first as a teacher and coach – guiding the Panthers’ football team to a 118-98 record, 12 state playoff appearances and seven region championships from 1980-2008.
Hardin also served as the school’s head girls’ softball coach with even greater success compiling a 246-119 record from 1988-2000. His teams won five area titles, advanced to two Final 4 appearances, and four Elite Eight appearances. He was girls’ head basketball coach from 1992-2005 with 236 wins, 106 losses, four area crowns, two Elite 8 appearances, two Northwest Region titles and two Final Four appearances.
As impressive as his coaching success was, his remarkable rise to become one of the AHSAA’s strongest leaders as a principal was one of his shining moments. As the Hackleburg principal, he served 23 years on the District 7 Legislative Council, eight years on the AHSAA Central Board of Control with two terms as CBOC president.
His sage advice and wise counsel helped mold the AHSAA’s future. He served on the Finance Committee, Re-classification Committee, Long-Range Planning Committee, and Hall of Fame Selection Committee during his time on the board.
While his leadership statewide was important, his leadership at home after a tornado destroyed much of his town and county and the high school was his finest moment.
“The true test was in 2011,” said nominator Ann West, Superintendent of Marion County Schools. “The April 27 tornadoes that year destroyed both the elementary and high schools in Hackleburg,” she stated in her recommendation letter or Hardin. “Mr. Hardin stepped up and provided great leadership during a very trying time. Not only were the schools destroyed, but the entire town was also destroyed. For the next four years, they had school in modular units. It was a tough situation that Mr. Hardin made the best of every day – and did it with a great attitude.”
Those who watched his leadership at work certainly agreed. Hardin was named the Hackleburg Alumnus of the year in 2019 and earned the AHSAA’s coveted Class 1A Making a Difference Award in 2019. Hardin was inducted into the Marion County Sports Hall of Fame in 1999.
Reporters from the New York Times visited Hamilton Elementary and Hackleburg Elementary today. These schools will be included in an upcoming story about schools in southern rural areas that are out performing schools across the nation. It was an exciting day! We are incredibly proud of the students and staff at these schools!
