About our School

Overview

Herbert Akins Road Elementary School (HARES) opened its doors in July 2009 as a member of the Wake County Public School System. This four-track, year-round school currently serves over 1000 students and employs approximately 125 staff, including about 70 certified classroom teachers in 48 grade-level classrooms, 7 specials classes, and various academic support classes. We will empower our diverse community to develop independent thinkers and life-long learners who will SOAR to excellence in the 21st century. Herbert Akins is a partnership of students, staff, parents, and community working collaboratively and respectfully as a professional learning team to prepare our students for success in the 21st century.

Mission

As part of the Wake County Public School System, Herbert Akins Road Elementary School will provide a relevant and engaging education and will graduate students who are collaborative, creative, effective communicators and critical thinkers.

Vision

Herbert Akins, as a school community, will work together to build a strong foundation for students to become responsible and productive citizens. School staff, parents, and students will collaborate to ensure personal growth and academic achievement for all students.

Core Beliefs

• Every student is uniquely capable and deserves to be challenged and engaged in relevant, rigorous, and meaningful learning each day.
• Every student is expected to learn, grow, and succeed while we will eliminate the ability to predict achievement based on socioeconomic status, race, and ethnicity.
• Well-supported, highly effective, and dedicated principals, teachers, and staff are essential to success for all students.
• The Board of Education, superintendent, and all staff, while sustaining best practices, will promote and support a culture of continuous improvement, risk-taking, and innovation that results in a high-performing organization focused on student achievement.
• The Board of Education, superintendent, and all staff value a diverse school community that is inviting, respectful, inclusive, flexible, and supportive.
• The Wake County residents value a strong public school system and will partner to provide the support and resources to fully realize our shared vision, accomplish the mission, and sustain our core beliefs.

Values

• We will seek methods to involve and collaborate with parents and the community to support the education of our children.
• We will honor varied learning styles and provide relevant, engaging, and rigorous opportunities to maximize achievement for all students as they develop a growth mindset.
• We will model a growth mindset to create a learning environment where students can feel safe to take academic risks, take pride in success, and learn from challenges.
• We will use current formal assessment data, evidence, and research based instruction with appropriate levels of scaffolding to drive instructional decisions that will support high levels of achievement for all students.