Williamson County Schools – Wikipedia

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School district in Tennessee

Williamson County Schools (WCS) is a school district in Williamson County, Tennessee, United States. The district is currently made up of over 40,000 students attending 50 schools,[1] including three new schools that opened as scheduled for the 2018–2019 school year.[2] The district is rapidly growing, adding over 1000 new students each year.[3]

Students who live within the K–8 Franklin Special School District zone attend WCS high schools, Centennial and Franklin after completing eighth grade.[4]

WCS is the sixth largest school district in Tennessee[5][better source needed] and offers a voluntary pre-K program for “at-risk children who are four (4) years of age on August 15.”[6]

Communities in Williamson County Schools for K-12 include Brentwood, Fairview, Nolensville, Thompson’s Station, the county’s portion of Spring Hill, and outlerlying portions of Franklin. For high school it covers the entire county, including the remainder of Franklin.[4]

History[edit]

The school district began using the “Wit and Wisdom” curriculum in April 2020.[7] Politically conservative activists criticized the curriculum, with the county division of Moms for Liberty first giving a criticism, and with other groups lobbying the Tennessee Commissioner of Education to intervene.[8] The website of Williamson County Schools stated that this curriculum does not include “critical race theory”.[9]

Administrators[edit]

Jason Golden, Superintendent[10]

Dave Allen, Assistant Superintendent of Teaching, Learning and Assessment (TLA)[11]

Leslie Holman, Chief Financial Officer

Vickie Hall, Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources

Leigh Webb, Assistant Superintendent for Secondary Schools[12]

Juli Oyer, Assistant Superintendent for Elementary Schools[13]

Mark Samuels, Assistant Superintendent for Operations[14]

School Board[edit]

The Williamson County Board of Education consists of 12 members, each elected from one of the 12 voting districts for a four-year term.[15] Following the retirement of Gary Anderson, Nancy Garrett was elected chairman and KC Haugh vice chairman.[16]

First District: Angela Durham

Second District: Dan Cash

Third District: Eliot Mitchell

Fourth District: Brad Fiscus

Fifth District: Jennifer Aprea[17]

Sixth District: Jay Galbreath

Seventh District: Sheila Cleveland

Eighth District: Candy Emerson

Ninth District: Rick Wimberly

Tenth District: Eric Welch[18]

Eleventh District: KC Haugh, Vice Chairman

Twelfth District: Nancy Garrett, Chairman

Williamson County Schools made national news following a special session School Board meeting on August 10th, 2021, during the COVID-19 pandemic in Tennessee. Ultimately a mask requirement for elementary school students, staff, and visitors was mandated. A viral video with millions of views shows parents yelling, “We know who you are. You can leave freely, but we will find you,” “There’s a place for you guys — there’s a bad place in hell,” and other negative remarks to doctors, nurses, and others who were in support of masks.[19]

Schools[edit]

Elementary schools (K-5)[edit]

WCS operates 28 elementary schools.[20] Creekside Elementary opened in Fall 2019 and moved into its permanent building in early January 2020.[21][22][23][24][25][26]

Middle schools (6-8)[edit]

The front of Fairview Middle School in Fairview, Tennessee

WCS operates 12 middle schools.[29] Legacy Middle School opened in Fall 2020.[30][31]

  • Brentwood Middle (1972)
  • Discovery Virtual Middle
  • Fairview Middle (1981)
  • Fred J. Page Middle (1981)
  • Grassland Middle (1986)
  • Heritage Middle (2001)
  • Hillsboro Middle (1905)
  • Legacy Middle (2020)[31]
  • Mill Creek Middle (2016)[28]
  • Spring Station Middle (2010)
  • Sunset Middle (2006)
  • Thompson’s Station Middle (2018)[27]
  • Woodland Middle (1994)

High schools (9-12)[edit]

WCS operates eleven high schools throughout the district.[32] An additional high school was previously planned for 2022, according to the district’s 2017 5-year capital outlay plan; however, the district has since chosen to renovate existing high schools to increase capacity in the short term.[33] The district’s 10-year building forecast now calls for a new high school opening in Fall 2025.[34]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ “About WCS”. Williamson County Schools. Retrieved 2018-08-28.
  2. ^ “School Board Presented New Rezoning Plan”. InFocus. Retrieved 2017-03-23.
  3. ^ “Fast Facts”. Williamson County Schools. Retrieved 2017-03-23.
  4. ^ a b “2020 CENSUS – SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Williamson County, TN” (PDF). U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved 2022-08-27. – Text list
  5. ^ “Explore Williamson County Schools”. Niche. Retrieved 2017-03-23.
  6. ^ “Williamson County Schools Pre-Kindergarten FAQ” (PDF). Williamson County Schools. Retrieved 20 June 2022.
  7. ^ Exum, Annika (2021-06-11). “Here’s what to know about the debate over ‘Wit & Wisdom’ curriculum in Williamson schools”. The Tennessean. Retrieved 2022-01-28.
  8. ^ Mangrum, Meghan (2021-07-05). “TN schools chief faces pressure over curriculum as group files first complaint under new critical race theory law”. The Tennessean. Retrieved 2022-01-28.(subscription required)
  9. ^ Exum, Anika (2021-06-11). “Debate over racism, critical race theory surrounds Williamson school district”. The Tennessean. Retrieved 2022-01-28.(subscription required)
  10. ^ “Superintendent”. Williamson County Schools. Retrieved 2017-03-23.
  11. ^ Blois, Matt. “Williamson County Schools appoints new principal and central office staff”. Williamson Home Page. Retrieved 2020-05-08.
  12. ^ Carpenter, Michael. “Dr. Leigh Webb Selected as Assistant Superintendent of Secondary Schools”. Williamson Source. Retrieved 8 May 2020.
  13. ^ “Elementary Assistant Superintendent Named”. Williamson County Schools. Retrieved 23 Jan 2021.
  14. ^ Bartlett, Kerri. “Williamson County Schools appoints new general counsel, assistant superintendent”. The Tennessean. Retrieved 2019-12-04.
  15. ^ “Board Members”. Williamson County Schools. Retrieved 2017-03-23.
  16. ^ McBryde, John (2020-09-21). “Pilot for WCS asynchronous day is underway, but where will it go from here?”. Williamson Home Page. Retrieved 2020-09-23.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  17. ^ McBryde, John (2020-09-10). “School board members hear the good, bad and ‘horrible’ of WCS Online rollout”. Williamson Home Page. Retrieved 2020-09-13.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  18. ^ Balakit, Melanie. “Eric Welch to serve on Williamson school board”. The Tennessean. Retrieved 2019-12-04.
  19. ^ Mark, Julian. “Tennessee parents make threats after school board mandates masks: ‘We will find you’“. The Washington Post. Retrieved 12 August 2021.
  20. ^ “Elementary Schools”. Williamson County Schools. Retrieved 2017-03-23.
  21. ^ “WILLIAMSON COUNTY SCHOOLS FIVE (5) YEAR CAPITAL PLAN (2017-2022)” (PDF). WCS.edu. Williamson County Schools. Retrieved 28 September 2018.
  22. ^ Willis, Alexander (2018-10-12). “New elementary school in southeast Williamson delayed until 2020 – Franklin Home Page”. franklinhomepage.com. Retrieved 2018-10-12.
  23. ^ “New elementary on Gosey Hill Road will be called Creekside”. Franklin Home Page. 2019-03-29. Retrieved 2019-04-01.
  24. ^ “Name Chosen for New Franklin Elementary School”. Williamson Source. 2019-03-28. Retrieved 2019-12-04.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  25. ^ McBryde, John (21 January 2020). “WCS construction projects moving right along, and in some cases have been completed”. Williamson Home Page. Brentwood Home Page. Retrieved 25 January 2020.
  26. ^ a b Hosey, Wendy Sturges,Alex (2020-01-27). “Williamson County holds grand opening for new Creekside Elementary School”. impact. Retrieved 2020-05-08.
  27. ^ a b c Knisely, Amelia Ferrell. “Three new schools open in Williamson County”. The Tennessean. Retrieved 2020-05-08.
  28. ^ a b c Balakit, Melanie. “New Nolensville schools to celebrate grand opening”. The Tennessean. Retrieved 2020-05-08.
  29. ^ “Middle Schools”. Williamson County Schools. Retrieved 2017-03-23.
  30. ^ Bartlett, Kerri. “Funding for new Franklin middle school finalized by county commission”. The Tennessean. Retrieved 2019-12-04.
  31. ^ a b Bartlett, Kerri (21 January 2020). “Legacy Middle School is the official name of the new middle school on Henpeck Lane”. The Tennessean. Retrieved 2020-01-25.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  32. ^ “High Schools”. Williamson County Schools. Retrieved 2017-03-23.
  33. ^ “Williamson County Schools ITF Needs Five (5) Year Capital Outlay Plan 2016-2022” (PDF). Williamson County Schools. 2016-11-02. Retrieved 2017-03-23.
  34. ^ Balakit, Melanie. “Williamson Schools: More elementary, middle schools dominate 10-year building forecast”. The Tennessean. USA Today Network. Retrieved 15 May 2018.

External links[edit]