Horizons Atlanta at Holy Innocents’ Episcopal School celebrated its 25th anniversary by honoring a longtime volunteer and a couple who continue to support the program.
This Horizons Atlanta site serves rising 1st through 9th-grade public school students from local public schools through a Global Academy model, preparing them to become global learners, thinkers, feelers, and doers.
Emily Hannan, a 2017 graduate of Holy Innocents’ Episcopal School (HIES), received the Horizons Legacy Award during the luncheon. As part of her senior capstone project, she created the one-week Broader Horizons program offered to 9th to 11th– grade Horizons Atlanta at HIES alumni, who are students who graduated from the nonprofit’s HIES K-8th program. The program helps students prepare and plan for college. Broader Horizons, which continues today, focuses on college prep such as SAT/ACT tutoring, meeting with HIES college counselors, and touring college campuses.
“I remember thinking to myself, watching her lead Broader Horizons so effortlessly, ‘Who does this? What young adult chooses to get a part of their summer to organize week one activities and shuffle class of high schoolers? On college visits?'” Horizons Atlanta at HIES site director Kate Kratovil said. “Well, the answer is Emily Hannan.”
Hannan said it never felt like making a sacrifice and thanked all the people who helped her with the Broader Horizons program.
“I started volunteering with Horizons when I was a sophomore in high school and I found just so much joy in it. And connection, I think in the community was what it really gave to me,” she said.
Hannan attended the University of Cincinnati but continued to return to Atlanta for the next three summers to lead the Broader Horizons program in a volunteer capacity. She recently moved back to Atlanta and is a nurse at Emory University Hospital in the Neuroscience Intensive Care Unit. In the fall of 2023, she joined the Horizons Atlanta at HIES Advisory Council, Kratovil said.
Also honored at the luncheon for their support were HIES’ Head of School Paul Barton and his wife, Leanne. She is a member of Horizons Atlanta at HIES’ Advisory Council.
For many years Leanne let Horizons use their basement to store resources for 10 months out of the year. She has volunteered for many programs and collected school supplies, books, and swimsuits. She serves as a member of the Horizons advisory council.
“Leanne, for 10 years you’ve poured your heart into Horizons and it has not gone unnoticed,” Kratovil said.
Paul has given Horizons his professional and personal support, she said.
A local foundation approached Horizons after 2020 and said they wanted more students to have access to Horizons, Kratovil said. They proposed funding an additional cohort and scaling up each grade one class per year. In eight years that would double the program’s size from 135 to 270 students.
“Some heads of school would have seen this as a daunting undertaking and a logistical challenge. Paul gave us his complete support. This summer we will serve just shy of 200 students with double cohorts in kindergarten through third grade,” she said.
With his leadership and support more local Sandy Springs public school students will have the opportunity to be part of Horizons. That also means that they will be part of the Holy Innocents’ community, she said.
Meredith Johnson, who has served as executive director of Horizons Atlanta for the past six months, said she wouldn’t be in that position if it wasn’t for the Holy Innocents’ community. She serves as a vestry member and is a parent to a fourth-grade son. Her daughter will work at the Broader Horizons program this summer.
She said Horizons Atlanta began at Holy Innocents’ and has grown to 10 additional sites supporting nearly 1,600 students this summer.
