Olivia has been a standout athlete for the Lady Cougars throughout her high school career, earning All-State and All-State Tournament honors while helping lead the Lady Cougars to the 2025 2A State Championship. Her commitment to excellence has made a lasting impact on our basketball program and school community.
This fall, Olivia will continue both her academic and athletic careers at John Brown University, where she will play basketball for the Golden Eagles.
We are incredibly proud of Olivia and know she will continue to accomplish great things at the next level. Congratulations, Liv, on this well-deserved honor, and thank you to the Walker family for creating an opportunity that will benefit students for generations to come.
#CougarNation #OnceACougarAlwaysACougar 🏀🎓
We’re excited to welcome Kayla Strain to the Izard County family as our 5th & 6th Grade Science Teacher for the 2026-2027 school year!
Mrs. Strain brings two years of classroom experience, having previously taught kindergarten, and holds a bachelor's degree in education with a minor in early childhood. She is also a proud military veteran, a devoted wife to her husband, Rowdy, and mom to Harper and Wyatt.
Passionate about helping students learn and grow, Mrs. Strain loves creating engaging, hands-on learning experiences and building meaningful relationships with children and the community around them.
Please join us in giving Mrs. Strain a warm Cougar welcome! We’re thrilled to have her on our team and can’t wait to see the impact she’ll make in our 5th and 6th grade science classrooms. 🖤🩶 #CougarNation
If you're signed up for Academic Summer Camp, we can't wait to welcome you!
🕗 Camp Hours: 8:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
🚗 Drop-off: Beginning at 7:45 a.m. at the elementary campus
🚌 Bus Riders: Buses will be running, but we won't know exact pickup times until Monday morning. If your child is riding the bus, please be ready and watching a little early.
We're excited for a fun week of learning and adventure! If you have any questions, feel free to send us a message. See you Monday! 🍎
After making a tremendous impact teaching middle school math and science, Mrs. Meredith will now bring her passion and heart for students to support our 5th- 8th grade special education program. Her commitment to helping every child succeed makes her an outstanding fit for this position, and we know she will continue to change lives in meaningful ways.
We can't wait to see the incredible difference she'll make in this new role. Congratulations, Mrs. Meredith! 🖤🐾
Mrs. Pepper brings 16 years of educational experience and a background in Early Childhood Education. Most recently, she has served as a fourth-grade teacher in our district. Her experience and commitment to student success will be valuable additions to our preschool program.
We are especially excited to expand our preschool staff with a third certified teacher, exceeding state staffing requirements and further strengthening the educational opportunities available to our youngest learners.
Please join us in welcoming Mrs. Pepper to the Pre-K team!
Tthe 2026-27 school calendar is here and we are looking forward to another great year! As always, we will post updates as needed.
If you signed up for our free summer ACT Prep classes, this is your reminder that they start tomorrow (Tues). Upon completion of these classes, we will also pay for your ACT test. See you soon, Cougars!
Meals should arrive to those who signed up between approximately 11 and 1... it may take a week or two to get the times lined out just perfectly! If you don't plan to be home, please be sure to leave a cooler out and visible so the food can be left inside.
We look forward to seeing you tomorrow!
For the past 12 years, over 100 Izard County High School students have successfully completed the Biomedical pathway, preparing them for several post-secondary education options in the field of nursing. We are excited to announce that this program has officially leveled up! Rachel Faulkner, Amanda Brewer, and Ozarka College will team up to offer IC STEM students 11 college credit hours in our updated BioMed program, beginning this fall semester!
Rachel Faulkner has 36 years of experience teaching public education. She holds an MSE in Biology from Arkansas State University and a BS in Biology from Lyon College. Mrs. Faulkner said, "I've been teaching the Biomedical Science classes since 2014 at Izard County and have thoroughly enjoyed the experience of hands-on learning in the forensics and medical fields. These classes give our students a great insight into, and solid foundation for future careers in medicine.” Mrs. Faulkner will teach Human Body Systems (BIOL 2214 Anatomy & Physiology I and Lab) and Medical Interventions (HIT 1303 Medical Terminology).
Amanda Brewer will teach Principles of Biomedical Science (BIOL 1204 Body Structure & Function). Mrs. Brewer has taught for 21 years in public education and holds an MSE in Biology from Arkansas State University. She said, “While I am new to the Biomedical Science program, I’m incredibly excited to teach Biomedical Science as a concurrent credit course and give students the opportunity to explore real-world healthcare and science careers while earning college credit. It’s inspiring to help students build the skills, confidence, and curiosity that can shape their future paths in STEM.”
“Students who complete this sequence will earn 11 hours of Ozarka college credit,” said Ozarka College president Dr. Josh Wilson. “With just one additional credit hour, they would also qualify for a Diploma of Merit (12+ credit hours) under the new ACCESS legislation.”
For additional information, please contact Izard County STEM School at 870-258-7700 or email: rachel.faulkner@iccougars.org.
We finally got to celebrate this incredible group today with a pizza party sponsored by Crawford Cattle Company and Heritage Roots Insurance. Kaitlin Crawford Hair & Make-Up also sponsored thank-you gifts for assistant coaches Whitley Smith and Maddie Tanner. We appreciate the support shown to our students and program!
This talented team was the High Point Team in Cattle, Sheep, and Goats and won the overall state championship by an impressive 69-point margin! Their hard work and knowledge of the livestock industry truly paid off, and we could not be more proud of them.
Team members include:
• Charleigh Barnes
• Carleigh Selph
• Grayson Grothe
• Faith Crider
• Sadie Crawford
We are excited to watch what the future holds for these students and know they will continue doing great things in the livestock industry. Great job, team! 👏🐾
This grant will allow us to add Greenhouse Management to our Plant Sciences curriculum, enhancing students’ understanding of ecosystems, food production, and bioengineering.
This is the fourth ADE Division of Career and Technical Education Grant that Izard County STEM High School has received in the past three years. These four grants have totaled $189,491 and have included the areas of Animal Systems, Robotics, Computer Science, and Plant Systems.
Just another way we put our students first every day!
#CougarNation
The Izard County STEM School District is excited to announce that we have been awarded an $11,000 No Kid Hungry Grant to help fund free summer meals for all of our students!
For the past seven years, our district has delivered 5 free breakfasts and 5 free lunches each week, all summer long to students—and this summer’s deliveries begin May 21.
A special congratulations and thank you to Cafeteria Manager Joann Shrable for her hard work on this grant and her continued dedication to feeding our students!
Every student. Every day. Whatever it takes!
Huge congratulations to our Elementary and PreK STEM team on earning STEM designation through 2029!
Izard County Consolidated School District remains the ONLY PK-12 Model STEM District in the state of Arkansas — an accomplishment that reflects the innovation, dedication, and hard work happening in our classrooms every single day.
From our youngest learners in PreK to our elementary students exploring hands-on, real-world learning opportunities, this recognition highlights the incredible commitment of our educators, staff, and students to excellence in STEM education.
We are proud to continue leading the way in Arkansas and thankful for the teachers and administrators who make these opportunities possible for our students.
Congratulations, Cougar Nation! 🐾
Congratulations to one of our middle school teachers, Mrs. Courtney Sanders, and her family for being named 2026 Izard County Farm Family of the Year! Courtney and her husband, Nathan, are the parents of ICC alumnae, Lilly Felton and Dayka Lock, as well as current 9th grader, Xander Lock. Congrats to all of you!
Additional information about this honor is available here: https://arfb.com/news/2026/apr/30/2026-county-farm-families/?fbclid=IwdGRjcARwaOBjbGNrBHBo1GV4dG4DYWVtAjExAHNydGMGYXBwX2lkDDM1MDY4NTUzMTcyOAABHjkBZHmwvaTlhYIQiRcRg2cAmQVSERwdkXjRlz8AQvu46201r8IeUiqpILwN_aem_FHWXF2QjGVkIRgRHcfTmig
