First day of Flagler County's school year goes smoothly: 'A great start'
If a new streamlined drop-off process is any indication, it looks like Wadsworth Elementary is in for a stellar school year.
“It’s phenomenal,” Principal Paul Peacock, in his first year at Wadsworth, said Wednesday morning. “Last year the car riders – it literally took them 45 minutes to an hour to get through the lines. This morning we started at 8:40, we were completely unloaded and all kids were in the building by 9. This is like earth-shattering. The car-rider lane was such a frustration for years and we just unloaded in 20 minutes. Twenty minutes!”
He said last year they used a drone to study the traffic patterns so they could redesign the drop-off procedure.
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As Peacock spoke, the students who were dropped off by parents or guardians gathered in the cafeteria, where those who wanted a free breakfast could take one, while the others gathered at the stage. The students, in a large and loud group, waved excitedly and called to friends or chatted and laughed.
Carrie Harris, a fifth-grade teacher, stood at the cafeteria door, welcoming students back to school, asking them whether or not they wanted breakfast, and showing them where to go.
“The first few days are hectic, then everybody gets used to it,” she said of the boisterous crowds. According to Peacock, Wadsworth has 780 students in grades K-5 this year.
Smooth first day at Wadsworth Elementary School
All the teachers and administrators who helped with the drop-off, both inside the cafeteria and outside with the traffic, seemed thrilled at how quickly and smoothly the process went.
Outside, School Resource Officer Deputy Adam Bergman, in his first year at Wadsworth, helped greet students and direct them into the cafeteria, as did Cindy Cashman, who retired after 25 years as a school secretary and returned to help as a media aide.
Bergman wasn’t the only deputy from the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office who was present at a school. According to a press release from the FCSO, members of the command staff joined the school resource deputies at every public school in the county Wednesday morning.
Peacock is not the only new school administrator, though he was the long-time principal at Indian Trails Middle School and was chief of operations for the district last year. Bobby Bossardet moved from the district office to be principal at Flagler-Palm Coast High School, and Kristin Bozeman is the new principal at Matanzas High School.
Approximately 13,000 students are enrolled at the county's 10 schools, according to Superintendent Cathy Mittelstadt. She said, after visiting the schools today, "it was a wonderful first day of school. The smiles on the faces, the interactions, the high fives. I just felt so much positive energy."
She credited the preparation of the school personnel with helping to keep the first day running smoothly.
Peacock said he's looking forward to this year.
"Wadsworth is a phenomenal school, our professional educators are top-notch and we're off to a great start."
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This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: First day of school year goes smoothly in Flagler County
