The Heritage School in Newnan joins Deerfield-Windsor and Loganville Christian as former Georgia Independent Schools Association (GISA) schools that will compete in the Georgia High Schools Association (GHSA), starting this fall.
All three competed in the GISA’s largest classification last season, AAA. The Heritage School leads the all-time series against both schools – 2-1 against Deerfield-Windsor, 5-1 against Loganville Christian.
The Hawks are 91-61 in 15 varsity seasons with five region championships, all since 2012. Head coach Micah Alba is starting his fourth season at the helm and has led the Heritage School to two consecutive region championships.
What led to your school's decision to leave the GISA and join the GHSA?
“One of our main reasons for joining GHSA was the proximity of the schools we play. Academics is obviously the number one thing on which we want our student-athletes to focus. We have currently had to travel all over the state to fill our schedule. Things did not look good for next year, as far as traveling for region games. We felt that it was important that we get our kids home, at a decent hour, throughout the year. Football was having to travel 3.5-4 hours for away games. We could not ask basketball, or baseball, on a Tuesday night, to travel that far and expect that their academics wouldn’t suffer.”
What do you think will be the biggest benefit to joining the GHSA?
“We believe that there will be many benefits to joining GHSA. One of them that we are excited about is a greater number of visiting fans. Our home crowd is always fantastic, but when teams are having to travel 2,3, and even 4 hours away, it is difficult to fill the opposing side. Now, our furthest game is about 45 minutes away, and our opponents need to travel about the same.”
How involved was your school community (parents, alumni, supporters, etc.) in the decision?
“We involved quite a good group in the decision. Our head of school and athletic director did a fantastic job of bringing the idea to our board members. They also did extensive research to make sure that this was the best fit for us.”
Do you know much about any of the other teams Class A of the GHSA.
“I’ve coached at all different levels of high school here in Georgia. I know a lot about the schools in this area, Carrollton, Columbus, etc. I’m usually the type of person that focuses on the game in front of us.”
For those who are not familiar with your program, what should they expect to see from the Hawks?
“We are a team that plays fast. Our kids do a great job of our off-season program. That is something that sets us apart. We are always playing with 2 way players and they do so at a very high level. They understand the energy it takes to play how we do and they train to prepare themselves. Our kids work hard and play hard.”
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