Wilson County heads back to school: Calendar, start times, meal prices, teacher needs
Summer break goes fast in an era of more modified school calendars, and Aug. 1 means classes and a new academic year in Wilson County.
What's new, who's new, the calendar, rezoning and start times. Here's what you need to know as classes start in Wilson County Schools and the Lebanon Special School District.
Wilson County Schools
Calendar highlights
The district will have 87 instructional days in the fall semester and 93 instructional days in the spring semester with 12 days available for inclement weather closings. The calendar also includes:
Fall break: A full week with three additional days the following week will be Oct. 2-11 with students returning Thursday, Oct. 12 (teachers are back Oct. 11).
Thanksgiving break: Nov. 20-24.
Winter break: Begins Wednesday, Dec. 2 and students return Thursday, Jan. 4.
Stockpile day: No classes March 5 because of elections.
Spring break: The week of March 11-15.
Last day of school: May 23.
Portables and enrollment
The district finished the 2022-23 school year with 20,114 students in pre-kindergarten through 12th grade, an increase of 515 students at the end of the 2021-22 school year. Wilson County had 20,591 pre-kindergarten through 12th grade students in mid-July, a number that is expected to change as classes start.
The district didn’t comment on enrollment projections for specific schools that may be at or above capacity because those numbers can fluctuate.
Because of space restrictions, Mt. Juliet Middle will have six portable units, West Elementary five and Gladeville Elementary three. Each portable unit contains two classrooms.
Start and dismissal times
The board has approved new start times to make bus transportation more efficient throughout the district. Times include:
Kindergarten through fifth-grade schools: 7:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m.
K-8 schools: Carroll-Oakland – 7:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m.; Southside – 7:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m.; Tuckers Crossroads – 7:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m.
Middle school grades 6-8: Gladeville Middle – 8:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m.; Mt. Juliet Middle – 8:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m.; West Wilson Middle – 8:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m.; Watertown Middle – 7:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m.
High School: Green Hill High – 8:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m.; Lebanon High – 8:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m.; Mt. Juliet High – 8:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m.; Wilson Central High – 8:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m.; Watertown – 7:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m.
Meal prices
Standard Elementary and middle school breakfast: $2.25.
High school breakfast: $2.50.
Reduced breakfast: 30 cents.
Employee breakfast: $3.25.
Elementary and middle school lunch: $2.75.
High school lunch: $3.
Reduced lunch: 40 cents.
Employee lunch: $3.75.
Those who may qualify for free and reduced meals must fill out an application. Applications are available at wcschools.com. Click on the Students & Family tab and then Nutrition.
Buses
Kenny Hardaway is the district's new transportation supervisor with Jerry Partlow's retirement. Parents are encouraged to pre-register for transportation through Skyward to help plan for the number of students who utilize ridership.
Last year, the district bussed approximately 7,500-8,500 students per day. Wilson County has approximately 140 drivers as of late July with about 10 more needed, then as many substitutes as possible, Hardaway said.
"We would ask that parents be patient with the drivers as they navigate their routes for the first few days," Hardaway said.
Are there enough teachers?
The district had 1,350 teacher positions filled with 89 openings as of July 26.
More teachers were expected to be hired leading up to the start of school, Barker said.
A shortage could be addressed with some larger class sizes in some areas where a teaching need isn’t filled and extra compensation for teachers who instruct through their planning periods, Barker said.
School administrators have also worked through challenges to find creative ways to help cover gaps, Barker said.
New principals
High School: Ryan Hill was named as principal of Mt. Juliet High, the school he graduated from in 2005. Hill, who was athletic director and an assistant principal at Mt. Juliet, replaces Beverly Sharpe who retired.
Middle School: Josh Johnston is the new principal at West Wilson Middle, replacing Deante Alexander who became executive principal at Cane Ridge High School in Metro Nashville. Johnston was most recently the supervisor of Secondary Education in the district. Before that, he was an assistant principal at Mt. Juliet High.
Tornado rebuild
Stoner Creek Elementary moved into its new building last school year. Hopes are that West Wilson Middle can move into its new building — now under construction — early in the spring semester. Mt. Juliet Middle will continue to house sixth- and seventh-graders from West Wilson Middle and Mt. Juliet Middle schools.
Eighth-graders from Mt. Juliet Middle will attend Green Hill High and eighth-graders from West Wilson Middle will travel to Mt. Juliet High until the West Wilson building is finished.
Rezoning
About 220 elementary school students were rezoned, some from Rutland Elementary to Gladeville Elementary and others from Gladeville Elementary to Southside.
Fifth-graders at Rutland and Gladeville were allowed to stay at their own school. Affected students and families who were rezoned could apply for open enrollment at several schools that had space.
Lebanon Special School District
Calendar highlights
Students start classes Aug. 1, but district begins has some calendar differences from Wilson County Schools: The calendar includes:
Sept. 21: Abbreviated day for parent-teacher conferences.
Oct. 2-13: Two-week fall break (students return Monday, Oct. 16).
Nov. 20-24: No classes. Nov. 20 is a stockpile day and students won’t report. Nov. 21-24 is Thanksgiving break.
Dec. 19: Abbreviated day.
Dec. 20-Jan. 3: Winter break. Students return Jan. 4.
Feb. 5: No students (stockpile day).
March 11-15: Spring break.
March 29: No classes (Good Friday).
April 1: No classes (stockpile day).
May 23: No classes.
May 24: Abbreviated day (report cards).
Enrollment
The district finished 2022-23 with 4,138 students which is expected to go up in each grade. The Lebanon Special School District has five elementary schools and two middle schools.
The district has “the capacity to absorb some growth at each school,” Director of Schools Brian Hutto said. The board has approved a purchase of 35 acres on Leeville Pike bordered by Crowell Lane and Tuckers Gap Road for a future school when warranted.
New principals
Nathan Gordon will take over at Castle Heights Elementary for Shelley Armstrong who is moving to the Central Office.
Meal prices
Lunches are $2.50 at elementary schools and $2.55 at middle schools with free breakfasts offered.
Reach Andy Humbles at ahumbles@tennessean.com or 615-726-5939 and on Twitter @ AndyHumbles.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Back to class guide for Wilson County and Lebanon school districts
