The 'See for Yourself' tour comes to Reynolds High School

The Winston-Salem Journal on February 4th ran an article about the School System staging a January 30th tour of Reynolds High School for Superintendent Tricia McManus, School Board members, and folks from the community during the previous week. That article follows.

'See for Yourself' tour stops at Reynolds High School

Lisa O’Donnell

Tricia McManus, Laila Abney (center) & Steve Wood

Reynolds High School freshman Laila Abney (center) speaks with Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools Superintendent Tricia McManus (right) and board of education member Steve Wood (left) as they stop by to observe Woodraille Gilchrist’s English class during the WS/FCS’ “See for Yourself” tour of Reynolds on Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Winston-Salem, N.C. Allison Lee Isley,Journal

At a tour of Reynolds High School last week, there was lots of talk about changing the perception of what goes on inside Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools, particularly its high schools.

Reynolds High School ceramics student DonTré Blackmon shows Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools Superintendent Tricia McManus his work during the WS/FCS’ “See for Yourself” tour of Reynolds on Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Winston-Salem, N.C. Allison Lee Isley,Journal

A handful of violent incidents over the last year cast a negative light on schools and fed outrage on social media.

Recognizing that those incidents were overshadowing all the good things happening in schools, Superintendent Tricia McManus launched “See for Yourself,” which invites community leaders and different organizations to tour high schools.

The tours are ongoing through the rest of the school year.

“There’s always information out there that is not always factual,” McManus said Thursday at Reynolds. “Assumptions are made. So how do we get people who make these assumptions to see what’s going on in our schools? Take them to the schools.”

Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools Superintendent Tricia McManus looks at the photographs on Reynolds High School teacher Phillip Boyd’s bulletin board titled “Boyd’s Bistro” during the WS/FCS’ “See for Yourself” tour of Reynolds on Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Winston-Salem, N.C. Allison Lee Isley, Journal

On Thursday, folks from the community, including individual school board members, got to see students in a beginning piano class sit behind their Yamaha keyboards and work through sheet music. They popped in on students learning the essentials of following a recipe, quizzed a student on his pottery project and watched students spill into the hallways and walk to their next class in orderly fashion, dispelling the notion that chaos reigns during class changeovers.

They also stopped by a trailer behind the school where Damisha Moore, the restorative practices coordinator, made certain an individual student, plopped on a bean bag, had a quiet, safe place to catch up on his academics.

Reynolds High School junior Sally Alcantara (left) leads Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools Superintendent Tricia McManus on the WS/FCS’ “See for Yourself” tour of Reynolds on Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Winston-Salem, N.C. Allison Lee Isley,Journal

Though she doesn’t coach a sport, she’s known throughout the school as Coach Moore.

“I coach success,” Moore said.

The work she does there, from mending relationships among students who may be quarreling to providing a space for over-stressed students to relax for a few minutes, might be something of a revelation to adults who haven’t stepped inside a high school in years and don’t realize the time staff members devote to student behavior.

“Some students need a reset,” Moore explained to McManus and school board member Steve Wood. “They can come in here, get what they need and go back out there.”

She nodded over to the student who was working on his laptop. The student, Moore said, simply needed a different setting to do some of his work and came to the trailer.

“He’s thriving,” Moore said.

The tour at Reynolds was an example of what McManus hopes to achieve with the initiative, which has also included visits to Mount Tabor, Parkland and Carver high schools. This week, Glenn will be highlighted.

In early December, a Reynolds student was shot outside campus minutes after the final bell. The shooting raised legitimate questions about student safety but also fueled false assumptions.

Sally Alcantara, a junior, was one of the student tour guides at Reynolds.

She said that she thinks student behavior has improved from last year.

“People hear bad things, and everyone is probably thinking that Reynolds is a violent place,” Alcantara said. “It’s a safe environment, in my opinion, and the teachers really care about you.”

Referring to the two-hour tour as “raw footage” of what goes on in a high school, McManus and Reynolds Principal Calvin Freeman talked about some of the challenges the school is facing, including absenteeism.

Freeman said the school’s diverse population can also present challenges.

“It’s almost like two schools in one. We have to make this a place that is all-inclusive,” he said.

Reynolds is a Title I school, meaning that a certain number of its 1,800 students live in poverty, a designation that qualifies it for some federal funding. That distinction might also be a surprise to city residents who see the school’s proximity to the West End and Buena Vista neighborhoods and assume it’s filled with students from wealthy neighborhoods.

To illustrate how the needs of the student body have changed, one tour group walked past a room under construction that will be used to expand the current food pantry and clothing closet.

Any local leader who would like to tour a school must contact Lisa Sugg with the school district to register. Her email is lisugg@wsfcs.k12.nc.us.

Other pictures posted on the online edition of the newspaper follow.

Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools Superintendent Tricia McManus speaks before the WS/FCS’ “See for Yourself” tour of Reynolds High School on Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Winston-Salem, N.C. Allison Lee Isley,Journal

Reynolds High School Principal Calvin Freeman speaks before the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools’ “See for Yourself” tour of Reynolds on Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Winston-Salem, N.C. Allison Lee Isley,Journal

Sally Alcantara, Tricia McManus (center) & Steve Wood

Reynolds High School junior Sally Alcantara (from left) leads Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools Superintendent Tricia McManus and board of education member Steve Wood on the WS/FCS’ “See for Yourself” tour of Reynolds on Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Winston-Salem, N.C. Allison Lee Isley,Journal

Reynolds High School junior Sally Alcantara (center) leads Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools Superintendent Tricia McManus (left) and board of education member Steve Wood to Amy Harlee’s piano class during the WS/FCS’ “See for Yourself” tour of Reynolds on Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Winston-Salem, N.C. Allison Lee Isley,Journal

Reynolds High School junior Sally Alcantara (from left), Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools Superintendent Tricia McManus and board of education member Steve Wood observe Amy Harlee’s piano class during the WS/FCS’ “See for Yourself” tour of Reynolds on Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Winston-Salem, N.C. Allison Lee Isley,Journal

Reynolds High School teacher Amy Harlee (from left) speaks with junior Sally Alcantara, Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools Superintendent Tricia McManus and board of education member Steve Wood as they stop by to observe Harlee’s piano class during the WS/FCS’ “See for Yourself” tour of Reynolds on Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Winston-Salem, N.C. Allison Lee Isley,Journal

Reynolds High School students listen to identify familiar songs as they watch a Tedx video of piano player Alpin Hong in Amy Harlee’s piano class on Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Winston-Salem, N.C. Reynolds junior Sally Alcantara brought Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools Superintendent Tricia McManus and board of education member Steve Wood to Harlee’s class during the WS/FCS’ “See for Yourself” tour of Reynolds. Allison Lee Isley,Journal

Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools Superintendent Tricia McManus takes a quick look at a dance class during the WS/FCS’ “See for Yourself” tour of Reynolds High School on Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Winston-Salem, N.C. Allison Lee Isley,Journal

Reynolds High School junior Sally Alcantara (right) leads Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools Superintendent Tricia McManus on the WS/FCS’ “See for Yourself” tour of Reynolds on Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Winston-Salem, N.C. Allison Lee Isley,Journal

Sally Alcantara, Tricia McManus (far right) & Steve Wood

Reynolds High School junior Sally Alcantara (center) leads Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools Board of Education member Steve Wood (left) and Superintendent Tricia McManus on the WS/FCS’ “See for Yourself” tour of Reynolds on Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Winston-Salem, N.C. Allison Lee Isley,Journal

Sally Alcantara, Tricia McManus and Woodraille Gilchrist (far right)

Reynolds High School junior Sally Alcantara (left) and Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools Superintendent Tricia McManus observe Woodraille Gilchrist’s English class as Gilchrist reads an excerpt from Jason Reynolds’ novel, “Long Way Down,” during the WS/FCS’ “See for Yourself” tour of Reynolds on Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Winston-Salem, N.C. Allison Lee Isley,Journal

Reynolds High School English teacher Woodraille Gilchrist gives an assignment to her students after reading an excerpt from Jason Reynolds’ novel, “Long Way Down,” on Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Winston-Salem, N.C. Allison Lee Isley,Journal

Tricia McManus, Steve Wood & Damisha Moore (far left)

Reynolds High School restorative practice center coordinator Damisha Moore (from left) speaks with Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools Board of Education member Steve Wood and Superintendent Tricia McManus during the WS/FCS’ “See for Yourself” tour of Reynolds on Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Winston-Salem, N.C. Allison Lee Isley,Journal

Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools Board of Education member Steve Wood smiles during the WS/FCS’ “See for Yourself” tour of Reynolds High School on Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Winston-Salem, N.C. Allison Lee Isley,Journal

Phillip Boyd (far left), Samiah Turner and Beck Machado

Reynolds High School teacher Phillip Boyd (from left) instructs sophomore Samiah Turner and freshman Beck Machado how to follow a recipe as they provide a demonstration for their classmates in their nutrition and wellness class on Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Winston-Salem, N.C. Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools Superintendent Tricia McManus observed Boyd’s class during her WS/FCS’ “See for Yourself” tour of Reynolds. Allison Lee Isley,Journal

Reynolds High School senior Zeyla Perez, who is a member of the Robotics Club and of Girl Council, shares with attendees of the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools’ “See for Yourself” tour the impact Reynolds has had on her on Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Winston-Salem, N.C. Allison Lee Isley,Journal

R J Reynolds High School

The 'See for Yourself' tour comes to Reynolds High School