Ferndale Middle principal raps to motivate students before EOG tests

At Ferndale Middle School in High Point, principal Dr. Chelsea S. Smith used a professionally produced rap video to give students a lift before end-of-grade testing. The project folded in students, cheerleaders and classroom scenes, turning the entire campus into part of the message instead of making it a one-person performance.

Smith, who is wrapping up her first year as principal, said she starts planning in January and looks for a song that can connect with students and with anyone who watches the finished video. This year, she built the project around TI’s Let Em Know, then worked with a friend and former co-worker to write new lyrics and shape the concept. She wanted the video finished and released about a month before EOGs so the message would have time to sink in.

The message was practical as much as upbeat. Smith pushed students to get enough sleep, put down their phones and believe in themselves, while also encouraging teachers to keep morale steady during a stressful season. That fits the stakes at Ferndale, where end-of-grade tests are not just a school tradition but a measure tied to state accountability. North Carolina’s EOGs cover math in grades 3 through 8, reading in grades 3 through 8 and science in grades 5 and 8. The tests are part of the state’s Personalized Assessment Tool system and are used for school and district accountability as well as federal reporting.

Guilford County Schools says all EOG and EOC tests are administered online, and the district’s state testing office is responsible for training staff, monitoring the process and enforcing the testing code of ethics. That makes the atmosphere around testing season especially important at a school like Ferndale, which serves about 517 students, has a student-teacher ratio of 14-to-1 and is listed as about 99% economically disadvantaged. Federal education guidance describes school climate as essential to a safe and supportive learning environment, and research summaries have linked positive school climate with better engagement, grades and test performance.

Ferndale’s long history gives the effort added local weight. The school began as High Point Junior High School on South Main Street, moved into a new building in December 1931, was renamed Ferndale Middle School in the 1980s, and later underwent renovations in 2007 and a complete HVAC installation in 2012. Smith, a North Carolina native with roots in the High Point community, started her career as a first-grade teacher at Montlieu Academy of Technology in High Point and has also worked as a teacher, assistant principal, elementary school principal and education consultant. Ferndale’s mission now centers on global awareness, critical thinking and achievement for all learners.

In a Guilford County district where 77% of schools met or exceeded growth in 2024-25 and the graduation rate reached 92.1%, Smith’s rap video is a small but telling example of how schools are trying to build student buy-in before the tests begin. It is a culture play with an academic goal.