At the beginning of a semester, Mark Majors, the shop class instructor at Union County High School, asks the students what sort of projects they want to work on in their class. They need to identify a problem, brainstorm solutions choosing the best one, and then implement that solution. It is a group decision. These students decided to team up with the TN Valley Coalition for the Homeless (TVCH).
Coach Christian Chandler announced that Jasper Brown and Aiden Bowman from Union County High School will advance to the regional golf tournament to be played on Monday, September 29. 2025, at Elizabethton Country Club. In the District tournament held at Woodlake Golf Course on Monday, September 22, Jasper defeated his opponent in a thrilling sudden death playoff by making par on hole #1 to be victorious. Aiden's score of 84 and Jasper's score of 85 elevated both to the regional tournament. Mike Johnson is the assistant coach.
The school year has ended, and Chef Zack Hodge looked back at his first year teaching culinary arts. He enjoyed instructing his students in the art and science of preparing, cooking and presenting food. He had three levels of classes, and they each met every day for 90 minutes.
The UCHS tennis team ended the year on a high note. The boys snatched first place in the south section of the district with a 3-1 record and finished with 8 wins to 2 losses after the district tournament. In the boys’ singles for the season, Jaxon Bailey (10-4), Max Corum (12-2), Lathan Garner (14-1), Braylon Graves (11-3), Zachary Clark (12-2), Tucker Odom, (6-1), and Luke Williams (2-1) achieved winning records. Jace Walker at the number one singles position took on the best of the district and posted a 6-7 record overall.
The Union County Lions Club had seven Martin/Shick scholarships to award out of 26 Union County High School applicants. Competition was fierce, and these seven seniors are well-deserving.
That’s the only word that aptly describes the spaghetti dinner sponsored by the UCHS Culinary Class and the UC Lions Club! Under the direction of their instructor, Chef Zach Hodges, the students made HUGE pots of homemade spaghetti sauce that was rich, thick, and tasty. The aroma of the herbed Italian bread, again prepared by the student chefs, wafted several feet away from the serving table, steering people in that direction.
The Union County tennis teams are off to a good start. Bad weather wiped out the match on March 5 at Clinton High School and caused the match at Cumberland Gap to be postponed to a later date. So UCHS opened on its home court against Knoxville’s Powell High School. The girls tennis team exhibited persistence as they slid by Powell in a 5-4 win. However, the boys team used skill and energy to ace the Powell team by a 9-0 victory. The match on March 11 against Career Magnet Academy of Knoxville at Tyson Park posted another victory for both UCHS teams.
Union County High School Coach Mike Johnson and Coach Ella Johnson announce the 2024-2025 tennis teams. The girls team boasts a full roster this year of six players. The boys team has eight players.
Filling out the girls’ roster will be Hannah Groot, Ella Branscomb, Nola Chesney, Travyn Farmer, Saria Chapell and Ava Buckner. The boys’ team is Lathan Garner, Jaxon Bailey, Jace Walker, Zachary Clark, Braylon Graves, Luke Williams, Tucker Odom and Max Corum.
Con Hunley was born in Fountain City and attended Central High School. He idolized Chet Atkins and taught himself to play using Chet Atkins's signature guitar style, often called "Atkins style" or "Travis picking,". Rather than using a guitar pick, this method utilizes his thumb and the first two (or sometimes three) fingers of his right hand to play a combination of bass, rhythm, and melody simultaneously, creating a rich and complex sound.
In the Culinary Arts 2 class, I asked Peyton why she took this course. She really likes to cook and enjoys learning different cooking techniques, like sautéing or braising. Previously, she mostly baked and loved that, but now finds cooking to be more interesting and challenging. Using different knives for different cuts was a whole new concept for her.