August 7, 2009
In this edition: Sales tax holiday starts today
A New Day … A New Website!
First Day Festival
2009-2010 First Day Information
Free Back to School Shots
Overton students make perfect score
Apollo Middle unveils new science wing
Back to school nutrition
Overton Band stars in national performance
Sales tax holiday starts today
Just in time for back to school shopping, the state is offering a weekend of tax free shopping! The sales tax holiday began at 12:01 a.m., today, Friday, Aug. 7 and will end at 11:59 p.m., Sunday, Aug. 9. Clothing, school supplies, and some computers will be sold tax free during this time. For complete details, visit http://tn.gov/revenue/salestaxholiday/.
A New Day … A New Website!
It’s a new day for Metro Schools, and we are excited to announce the launch of our new website, www.mnps.org. The site is cleaner, easier-to-navigate, and loaded with information that will help you throughout the school year. The address will not change; however, the new www.mnps.orgwill be live this weekend. Check us out!
Mayor’s First Day Festival
The 10th Annual Mayor’s First Day Festival will be held this Sunday, Aug. 9, from 2 – 5 p.m., at the Sommet Center. Guests enjoy dozens of booths, educational games and entertainment, and no one walks away empty-handed! Every child in attendance will be given free school supplies to get the school year off to a great start, while supplies last. There will also be a free Back to School Party for Nashville high school students later that evening from 5 - 8 p.m., at Rocketown, in downtown Nashville.
2009-2010 First Day Information
Welcome back! As we begin a new school year, we want to make sure you know about any changes that may affect your child. If you have any other questions, please contact the Customer Service Center at 259-INFO (4636), or visit Back to School Central at www.mnps.org.
First Day of School
Friday, Aug. 14, will be the first day of school for all MNPS students. Attendance will be taken this first half day; it will allow staff to work through the weekend to adjust any schedules. Students will report to school at the normal start time, but will dismiss at the half-day. School times for regular, zoned schools on the 14th are:
Elementary: 8 a.m. – 11.30 a.m.
Middle: 8:55 a.m. – 12:25 p.m.
High 7:05 a.m. – 10:35 a.m.
New Student Assignment Plan
This fall, the new student assignment plan takes effect. The plan, which rezoned approximately 10% of the student population, will primarily affect transportation, school sites, and school hours.
Transportation
Due to the new student assignment plan, several MNPS bus routes have changed for the 2009-2010 school year. By the first of August, each family eligible for transportation should have received a letter by mail explaining which bus each child rides, as well as the time and location of the child’s bus stop. If you have any questions regarding your child’s bus transportation, please contact the MNPS Customer Service Center prior to the first day at 359-INFO (4636), so we can help make sure your child gets on the correct bus.
School Sites – Reassignment and Renovation
Several MNPS schools closed permanently at the end of the 2008-2009 school year, while others will
be temporarily relocated for building renovations. The facility changes for the 2009-2010 school year
include:
· Martha Vaught MS has closed.
· Nashville Big Picture High School has relocated from the Wharton building to the Martha Vaught building.
· Nashville Diploma Plus High School will open in the Martha Vaught facility with Nashville Big Picture High School.
· Brookmeade Elementary has closed.
· The Wharton building has closed for construction during the 2009-10 school year.
· Wharton Elementary will open, located at Brookmeade, serving grades K-4, for 2009-10 school year, while the Wharton building is renovated.
· Cora Howe closed.
· Ewing Park Middle School has closed.
· Madison Special Ed. has moved from the Madison building to Cora Howe.
· The Madison building has closed for construction during the 2009-10 school year.
· Madison Middle School will open with grades 5-7 and temporarily be located at Ewing Park while the Madison building is renovated.
· McKissack Professional Development Center has closed.
· Pearl Cohn High will serve grades 10-12 in the main Pearl-Cohn building and incoming 9th grade students will be located at Pearl-Cohn Freshman Academy at McKissack.
· Maplewood Freshman Grade Academy (currently housed at Dalewood) will return to Maplewood High during winter break of 2009-10. At this time, the Dalewood facility will close.
Additional School Changes:
· Buena Vista will add 5th grade, Pk-5.
· Cockrill will add 5th grade, Pk-5.
· Park Avenue will add 5th grade, Pk-5.
· John Early MS will become a zoned school with grades 5-8. In 2010-11 John Early will have grades 6-8.
· WA Bass MS will have grades 6-8, the 5th grade will move into the elementary schools (Cockrill and Park Avenue).
· Smithson-Craighead will open a middle school, serving grades 5-8.
· Lead Academy adds 8th grade.
· Nashville Global Academy is a new charter school that was approved and will begin with grades K-4 for the 2009-10 school year. The school will be located at 4479 Jackson Road, Whites Creek.
Extended Day at some elementary schools
Several MNPS elementary schools have moved to an extended school day. These schools, Cockrill, Shwab, and the new Wharton, will operate from 8 a.m. – 3:45 p.m., similar to the district’s enhanced option schools (Bordeaux, Buena Vista, Caldwell, Fall-Hamilton, Glenn, Kirkpatrick, Napier, Park Avenue and Warner).
MTA changes affect magnet school hours
MNPS magnet schools will operate from 8 a.m. – 3 p.m., this school year due to changes with Metro Transit Authority. Construction of the new downtown convention center has forced MTA to close its Nance Landport at 6th and Demonbreun. As a result, all MTA buses and transfers will be made at the new MTA transfer facility downtown, Music City Central, located at 400 Charlotte. These changes were effective Aug. 2.
Morning transfer times will see slight changes, with buses leaving downtown between 7:20 – 7:25 a.m. and arriving at schools around 7:40 a.m. Afternoon pickups will depart all of the magnet schools between 3:15 and 3:20 p.m., with the downtown transfer taking place between 3:30 and 3:40 p.m., and a scheduled departure at 3:40 p.m.
To help parents and students with the change and determine the best routes to schools, the MTA Communications Department has updated its Quest Student Rider Guide – a reader-friendly brochure that explains how to plan a school trip. This week, it will be delivered to area schools, MTA displays around town, and has been placed on the MTA Web site at http://www.nashvillemta.org/.
School Dress Code Policy
At the end of the 2008-2009 school year, all MNPS schools were given the option to opt out of Standard School Attire. Seven schools decided to opt out and will instead follow a district dress code. They include: Hillsboro High, Hume-Fogg, Meigs (partial opt-out), MLK, MNPS Middle College High, Nashville Big Picture High School and Nashville School of the Arts. A majority of the other schools in the district expanded the list of acceptable shirt colors, but decided to maintain the standard school attire. For specific information about a particular school, please contact that school’s office or visit the school website.
Principal Changes
During the summer, 28 school principal changes were made. For a complete list of reassignments, visit www.mnps.org.
West End Middle’s First Day Convocation
West End IB World School will host its annual "First Day Convocation" ceremony at 9 a.m., Friday, August 14. Representative Jim Cooper will be the keynote speaker. The school’s faculty and student fashion models will participate in a Standard School Attire Fashion Show to model the school’s new clothing line, "West End Wear!” Students will also learn about the history of West End High and discuss school expectations.
Free Back to School Shots
Friday, Aug. 7, the Metro Public Health Department will open the annual Fast Lane Immunization Clinics in the auditorium at the Lentz Public Health Center (311 23rd Ave. North) for children heading back to school. The clinics will reopen from 8 a.m.- 3p.m., Monday, Aug. 10 through Friday, Aug. 14. Children’s immunizations are free to Davidson County residents. Parents should bring their child’s immunization record with them to make sure shots are up to date.
Children’s immunizations are offered throughout the year at Lentz, as well as the Health Department’s East Nashville Public Health Center, 1015 East Trinity Lane; and Woodbine Public Health Center, 224 Oriel Avenue. For more information about children’s immunizations or the Fast Lane Clinic, please call the Health Department at 340-5667, Monday – Friday.
Overton students make perfect score
This past spring, all eight of the students in Sonia Ruiz’s Advanced Placement Spanish Language class at Overton High School scored a perfect 5 on their AP exams. These scores reflect hours of hard work and dedication on the part of the students and Ms. Ruiz. Congratulations!
Apollo Middle unveils new science wing
Apollo Middle School held a ribbon cutting ceremony, Aug.6, for the new addition to their school, the Aerospace Technology Applied Science wing. The new addition will cater to the fifth and sixth graders of the school.
This state-of-the-art addition is designed to reduce the energy transfer rates of the building’s boundary surfaces to one-fifth. The building will also use thermal load shifting to reduce the required air conditioning equipment capacity to one-fourth and is equipped with photovoltaic (PV) system to produce electrical power. Apollo Middle has the largest PV system in the Nashville Electric Service in the district and they are also the first to have the PV system be installed in a Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools.
Back to school nutrition
This summer, a new report showed Tennessee children are among the most obese in the nation. Parents, as we begin the new school year, you have an excellent opportunity to teach your children the importance of proper nutrition and physical activity. Two very easy ways you can help your child live a healthier lifestyle are: encourage your child to get active and encourage your child to eat in the school cafeteria. MNPS Food Services is proud to offer a wide variety of healthy foods for students. Each year, the district serves more than 6.5 million healthy lunches and more than 2.3 million healthy breakfasts. Check out daily breakfast and lunch menus, nutrition tips, and meal prices at www.mnps.org. At the site, you can also find out if your child is eligible for the Free and Reduced Meals Program and download an application.
Overton Band stars in national performance
The John Overton Marching Band performed on Saturday, August 1, at Blair School of Music’s Ingram Hall. The performance was part of the Passion in Performance Artist Showcase at the LIVE ON STAGE national conference. The Overton Band performed with the Dallas Brass, a professional brass quintet from Dallas, Texas. Congratulations on a job well done.
