Fountain Inn High School Athletics

FIHS ATHLETICS: THE BEG INN ING

Robby Bell

Athletic Director, Fountain Inn High School It is time for the FURY to RISE! There is a buzz in the air around the city of Fountain INN with the building of the new high school. Construction has been going on for months down on Quillen Avenue and the building is taking shape. Drive past and you can see the athletic practice fields and down off Cross Street, the football stadium is taking shape, the track being laid, with baseball and softball fields in the distance. We are on the verge of “Friday Night Lights”, school’s many “first”, and starting a tradition from the ground up.

There has not been a new high school built in Greenville County in almost 50 years. It has been over 60 years since the old Fountain INN High School on main street operated from 1940 to 1957 and the Fountain INN Colored School which was around from 1927 to 1954. Creating opportunities for unity and bringing these two former schools together from our town’s history is a chance that many do not get. With our Fury mascot that is a Phoenix rising from the ashes as well as bringing in the colors of Navy and Maroon from the old high schools we are presented with unlimited options to build a school and community culture of connection, engaging, and INNovation.

Our middle school football team competed this year with 41 student-athletes. Those are great numbers for a first year program to build on for the future of other programs. Our first coach, Brett Nichols, led our football team and will continue to move up to our JV program next year and then to the varsity level in Fall of 2022. Fountain INN High School has been accepted as a Member-At-Large with the South Carolina High School League for the 2021-2022 school year. Under this distinction we will be able to compete on the varsity level in some individual sports like cross country, golf, and swimming. We are excited to sponsor JV teams next year in most sports like football, volleyball, cheer, basketball (boys & girls), wrestling, baseball, softball, soccer (boys & girls), and track & Field (boys & girls). We will join the SCHSL as a full member in our 2nd year of existence and will be placed in an appropriate classification and region based on our enrollment numbers.

The interest in Fountain INN High School has been amazing. From teachers looking to join our amazing staff that will be led by our Institute of Automation and Engineering, to coaches from all over wanting to be first to build successful programs, and the awesome support from our community that wants to see its future leaders connected and engaged in their own success. We have a unique opportunity to challenge our students and prepare them for college, careers, and productive members of our community. Our high school will be able to construct through our pathways, industry, and community partners real world experiences for students that will connect to 21st century learning. These are exciting times to be a part of public education in Greenville County and the Fountain INN community.

Growing up in Fountain INN and being a part of this community I am honored to be the first Athletic Director for the high school. I know that connecting our student-athletes with opportunities that athletics provides will help them in their character development. The focus on engaging our community to take part in the shaping and building of our school culture is going to be critical in our success. And just as education in 2020 has had to be INNovative, we too, must make sure we are continuing to push for the best for our students and create opportunities for them to develop, grow, and be challenged through ownership of their education.