Your Budget at Work - Funding for Schools
Nashville Alliance inducts first members into Hall of Fame (Public Schools)
[image] Nashville Alliance for Public Education
The Nashville Alliance for Public Education (NAPE) inducted four people into
the newly established Nashville Public School Hall of Fame. The Hall of Fame
recognizes and honors talented graduates of Nashville Davidson County Public
Schools who are distinguished in their careers and who have used their education,
their talents and their life opportunities to impact the lives of others.
The 2005 Distinguished Alumni recipients are:
H. Jackson Brown, a 1958 graduate of Hillsboro High School and author of Life’s
Little Instruction Book along with 33other books sold worldwide. Vice Admiral
William P. Lawrence, graduate from West High in 1947. While commanding officer
of Fighter Squadron 143, Lawrence was shot down over North Vietnam in June 1967
and held as a prisoner of war until March 1973. His military service medals
include: 2 Purple Hearts, 3 Silver Stars and 4 Distinguished Service Medals.
Perry E. Wallace Jr., the valedictorian of Pearl High’s class of 1966. Wallace attended Vanderbilt University and became the first African American varsity basketball player in the Southeastern Conference. After graduation, he was drafted by the Philadelphia 76ers. Wallace holds a law degree from Columbia University in New York. In addition, the Hall of Fame will recognize Annette Schaffer Eskind with a Distinguished Service Award for her 30 years of commitment to public schools. Mrs. Eskind was the founder of the Nashville Public Education Foundation, an organization devoted to initiatives directly assisting principals, teachers and students in Metro Nashville Public Schools.
Metro Schools’ Honors 2006 Teachers of the Year (Public Schools)
Dr. Christina Ward, Alison Cook, and Lanita Harris did not become teachers
for recognition or awards. Each one has a love for children and a desire to
help them succeed. It is for these qualities each has been named Teacher of
the Year for Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools. A panel of judges reviewed
materials submitted by each school-level teacher of the year and narrowed the
field to seven finalists—two each representing middle and high schools
and three from elementary. From that list of seven, the panel chose Ward, Cook
and Harris as Metro Schools’ 2006 Teachers of the Year.
Dr. Christina Ward, kindergarten teacher at Granbery Elementary, was named Elementary Teacher of the Year. Rose Park Magnet teacher Alison Cook received the title of Middle School Teacher of the Year. And Hunters Lane English teacher Lanita Harris was selected as the High School Teacher of the Year.
Congratulations to these wonderful teachers. Our community is extremely grateful to all our teachers for their hard work and dedication to our children.
2006 Principals of the Year (Public Schools)
Metro Schools honored the three recipients of Metro Schools’ Principal
of the Year. This is the second year that MNPS principals have been honored
for distinguished leadership in their respective schools. The selection is made
through a vote by MNPS principals in each category (elementary, middle and high
schools).
Principals of the Year in Metro Nashville Public Schools are:
HIGH SCHOOL:
Sam Braden, Maplewood High School , MNPS principal and administrator for 11
years
MIDDLE SCHOOL:
Dr. Rob Sasser, Donelson Middle School , a 29-year MNPS employee who has held
various teaching and administrative positions
ELEMENTARY SCHOOL:
Teresa Dennis, Percy Priest Elementary School, MNPS teacher and administrator
for the past 31 years
Open Enrollment Gives Families Additional Choices for Children (Public Schools)
Families who want their children to attend a school different from their assigned location have an easy opportunity to make a change during Metro Schools’ open enrollment for the 2005-2006 school year. This is the second year that Metro Schools has offered families the option of enrolling their children in schools that have space without requiring them to complete the special transfer process.
Families who participated in the open enrollment process last year did so for a variety of reasons, including having their child nearer to their workplace or to relatives who care for the child before or after school. With open enrollment, families are not required to provide a reason for the transfer.
During open enrollment, families from anywhere in Davidson County may choose from a list of schools with space, complete one form and return the form to the Student Transfer Office. This process is far simpler than a “special transfer” and gives families in Davidson County options in their child’s education.
Metro Schools Increase Test Scores (Public Schools)
In November The Tennessee Department of Education released its report card
data for public school systems across the state and it had good news for Metro
Nashville Public Schools, which achieved increases over its 2003 scores in nearly
every category. For instance, Metro Nashville School achieved a 3% increase
in math proficiency over 2003. The report card data for Metro Nashville Public
Schools was based on testing of students in the 126 Metro Schools operated in
2003. Testing took as long as nine and one-half hours for some students, with
criterion referenced testing (CRT) providing important measurements of progress
in math and reading/language/writing.
Stratford Students Meet World War II Veterans (Public Schools)
Students at Stratford Comprehensive High School put down their history textbooks
and started up conversations with members of The Association of the “2,221”
Negro Volunteers of WW II. During a roundtable discussion, students interviewed
veterans who were members of the first integrated U.S. Army combat unit since
the Revolutionary War. Panelists included former soldiers featured on the History
Channel program "Last Days of WWII" and in the novel Blood for Dignity
by David P. Colley. They shared reflections of their two-front war against Nazis
abroad and Jim Crow laws at home.
Metro Schools Celebrate Opening of Two Buildings (Public Schools)
In FY2005 two new schools opened in the Overton High School cluster. Shayne
Elementary School is named for the late May Werthan Shayne, a native Nashvillian
and tireless advocate for children and families. Shayne Elementary, housing
students in grades PreK-4, was constructed at a cost of $6 million. It has a
total student capacity of 600 and is 70,225 sq. feet and current enrollment
is 425 students.
Located on the same site as Shayne Elementary, is W.H. Oliver Middle School,
named for William Henry Oliver, former superintendent of Nashville City Schools
and first principal of East High School. Constructed at a cost of $9.9 million,
Oliver Middle consists of 95,000 sq. feet and has a total student capacity of
700. Currently, the school has more than 300 students in grades 5-8 enrolled.
Historic East School Buildings Reopen (Public Schools)
East Literature Magnet School celebrated the reopening of its two historic
buildings in FY05, marking the end of a two-phase, $9.2 million renovation.
The buildings, formerly the sites of East High and East Nashville Junior High
Schools, have a long history in Nashville. Completed in 1932, the East High
School building, which sits closest to downtown, opened first with 1,500 students.
An integral part of the East Nashville community, the school is the birthplace
of the Junior Civitan Club, which now has chapters in schools across the United
States. Following World War II, the clock over the front entrance of the building
was erected to honor the school’s graduates who lost their lives during
the war. The clock measures 51 inches in diameter for the 51 young men who were
lost. That illuminated clock was restored and put back into operation as part
of this renovation.
To the right of the East High building is the structure that once housed East Junior High School. This building opened in 1937 with 900 students in grades 7-9. Today both buildings are occupied by East Literature Magnet School, which opened in 1993 on the campus of East Middle School. In 1997, East Literature Magnet became a stand-alone magnet school. It features a literature-based program with all academic subjects taught through literature. Currently, more than 1000 students are enrolled.
Renovations to the two buildings, both constructed in the Art Deco style, have taken place over the past year and a half and have been completed with input from the Metropolitan Nashville Historical Commission. As part of this project, each building has received a new roof, new mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems, new sprinkler and fire alarm systems, a fiber-optic network, two new elevators, new paint, new or refinished flooring, and masonry repair and cleaning. When replacing the auditorium seating in the high school building, the school district reused end panels of the existing seats to maintain the historic feel of the original.
New Meigs Magnet School Building Opened (Public Schools)
Meigs Magnet School students started a new school year in their brand new building this year. On August 16th, Public Schools Director Dr. Pedro Garcia, Mayor Bill Purcell, Board of Education Chair Pam Garret, and Meigs principal Susan Burns gathered with parents, students and community members to dedicate the new Meigs Middle Magnet School building.
In 1983, the Metropolitan Nashville Board of Public Education voted to create an academic magnet school in an inner city area. That August, Caldwell Magnet School opened its doors to approximately 450 students. Within just a few years, the program quickly outgrew the Caldwell facility and was moved to the larger Meigs building.
In August of 1986, exactly 100 years after Meigs was established as the first African-American High School, Nashville’s first academic middle magnet was moved to Meigs. At the end of the 2001 school year, the Meigs program was temporarily moved to the Highland Heights building while the new Meigs was being constructed. The new building, which incorporated some of the old stonework from the original structure, houses approximately 30 classrooms. Thirty-three classroom teachers share the 83,315 square foot building with approximately 650 students.