Decatur County Department of Education Superintendent, Fred Rayfield, Ph.D., revealed a new logo for the school system Monday at the Decatur County Schools Convocation.

“This is the original bearcat. It has not been tampered with,” Rayfield said. “We worked as an administrative team to decide what words we would like to put in that logo.”

The new logo, which was developed this summer, features a classic Bearcat beneath the words “The Bearcat Way” along with “Proud Tradition, Promising Future.”

“It was very clear to me during my first month of employment here that we have a proud tradition in Decatur County schools and in Decatur County that we certainly want to protect and carry on,” Rayfield said. “I think we have a promising future moving forward and so does everybody that worked on this project. We needed to highlight the importance and significance of our traditions and accomplishments but also highlight the fact that we are really excited about moving forward and what the future holds for Decatur County schools.”

Rayfield also said that the DoE is beginning a social media campaign to spread the good that Decatur County schools are doing.

“We’re going to start putting some things out there about the system that are positive,” Rayfield said.

The convocation also featured a series of about 10 speakers ranging from a Decatur County second-grader to a student-turned-educator to a former student currently attending college in Columbia who recorded a video message of thanks for the crowd of educators.

The speakers each spoke of the impact the Decatur County School System has had on them individually.

One of the speakers emotionally shared her story of how educators in Decatur County changed her life after family hardships.

Rising senior Erin Caplan is currently in the top five of her class of over 300 students and is active in numerous extracurriculars such as band, cross country, swim team and more

“Teachers make such a big difference in students’ lives,” Caplan said. “I’m living proof that if none of [the teachers] had connected with me, I never would have connected and thrived in Bainbridge. Even with everything I’ve been through, I don’t want you to remember the sad parts of my story. I want you to remember where I am today.”

Other speakers included Cullen Glover, rising second-grader at John Johnson Elementary, who shared why he likes school and why his favorite subject is science. Cullen is the son of Amanda Glover, the executive director of the Downtown Development Authority.

The final speaker was 2010 Bainbridge High School alumnus Erick Martinez Juarez, who is currently a pre-medicine student at Harvard University.

Juarez said, “All in all, Decatur County schools have helped shape me into an independent, motivated and resilient individual, and for that, as the first person in my family history to attend college, I am forever grateful.”