Valley Christian School: Aubre Hopson thrives in a family environment

Valley Christian School senior Aubre Hopson has thrown herself into school and community activities in the Spokane Valley area despite living just across the Idaho border in Benewah County.

“It’s a good 45 minutes to school every day,” she said.

But her ties to the school are strong as both of her parents graduated from there. Her grandmother began teaching at the school when her son, Hopson’s father, was in first grade. She’s still teaching. Hopson’s mother teaches her yearbook class, her uncle is one of her track coaches and her aunt is the principal. Her older sister also graduated from Valley Christian and her two younger siblings attend there as well.

Hopson said she’s grateful she was able to attend Valley Christian; she likes the small class sizes and tight-knit feel. “Both my parents have sacrificed to send us to the same school” they went to, she said.

Hopson was homeschooled until she started eighth grade. She said she enjoyed doing hands-on learning with her mother but also likes Valley Christian. “I was very thankful for the childhood at home,” she said. “It’s been a real blessing to get to experience both.”

In 2024, she was selected as a Southeast Spokane County Fair princess, despite living in Idaho. Hopson said organizers made an exception for her because she had been involved in the community and attended school in Spokane County. “My older sister actually did it a few years before I did,” she said.

When Hopson started attending Valley Christian, she wanted to be a cheerleader. However, the school didn’t have a cheer team at the time. “My mom got certified as a coach and I was able to recruit a couple people I knew,” she said. “It has blossomed.”

Cheering at Tuesday night basketball games sometimes conflicts with her volunteer work at New Hope Bible Church as a youth ministry leader. She enrolled in the program when she was 3 and has been volunteering with the program since the seventh grade.

She joined the cross country team in her sophomore year and went to the state meet with her team in her junior and senior years. “The last time we went to state was when my mom was on the team,” she said.

Hopson said the team made her feel welcome and she enjoyed the experience. “It was so much fun,” she said. “It actually really helped me grow as a person and be braver and more outgoing.”

She also joined the track team, running the 400 meter, 800 meter, mile and 4x4 relay. She’s gone to state every year since her freshman year and was hoping to go again this year.

In what little spare time remained, she joined the Honor Society and has been the Associated Student Body secretary for the past two years.

Senior adviser Kelly Chadduck said Hopson has worked hard to maintain good grades while being involved in a lot of activities. She “takes initiative to serve and represent outside of school in addition to the myriad of school activities,” Chadduck said.

Hopson said she’d like to take the year after high school to become a certified massage therapist and then “see where it takes me.” She can see it leading to a career as a physical therapist or she could join the family business and become a teacher at Valley Christian.

“I don’t really know,” she said. “We’ll see. I did think for a really long time about becoming an elementary teacher. I’ll definitely still consider that.”