The Murfreesboro Buzz

Registration for Alternative Murfreesboro City Schools

It is hard to believe...but it is almost time for kids attending Murfreesboro City Schools that follow the alternative calender to go back to school!  Registration will be held on July 17, 2007.  The first day of school, which is an abbreviated day, is scheduled for July 23, 2007. 

The Murfreesboro City Schools that follow the alterantive calendar are:

Bradley Academy

Bellwood Preschool

Cason Lane Academy

Erma Siegel Elementary

Hobgood Elementary

Scales Elementary

The Discovery School at Reeves Rogers (formerly Bellwood Discovery School)

I'm sure there are some parents that will be glad to see this day arrive!  However, students will barely be back in school when they will have their first holiday!  August 10, 2007 is scheduled for systemwide Inservice and students will not attend classes on that day.  September 3, 2007 will come soon thereafter which is, of course, Labor Day!  Fall break has been scheduled for October 1 through October 12, 2007.

Many of the Murfreesboro City school zones have been changed for the 2007 - 2008 school year to accomodate the new Pittard Elementary which will be opening this fall on DeJarnette.  If you have questions regarding school zones, or bus transportation, you can view the Murfreesboro City School Zones Map by clicking on this link:  http://cityschools.net/CitySchoolsZones200708_w_dualzones.pdf. 

As always, if you need to buy a new home, or sell a home, in order to have your child attend a specific school, please contact me at 615-566-3789.  I'll be happy to assist you in buying a new home, or selling an existing home in the Murfreesboro area. 

Oakland Patriots 2nd in NATION!

Residents of Murfreesboro Tennessee have a real reason to be excited!  The Oakland High School baseball team has been ranked as second in the nation by the latest USA Today Super 25 prep baseball poll compiled by Christopher Lawlor.  The Patriots baseball team is coach by Mack Hawks and has a impressive group of young men that make up this nationally recognized team.  The poll is compiled by after consulting with various prep sports writers, coaches, and scouts.  Many factors go into the ranking of the teams, but quality of the competition and the players along with the strength of the team's schedule are all considered in the rankings.  Anyone that has lived in Murfreesboro TN for a while will remember the good old days when there was a strong since of school pride and rivalry that existed between the only two high schools, Oakland High School and Riverdale High School.  The fast growth of Murfreesboro and the addition of the new Siegel High and Blackman High Schools changed that significantly.  As a mother of a former Oakland Patriot athlete, it is awesome to see the Oakland Patriots on top once again and receiving national attention for their baseball program.  Congratulations to Coach Hawks and the entire Oakland Patriots Baseball Team.  You have given everyone in Mufreesboro a reason to be proud.  Go Patriots!

School Bus and Seat Belts

We all have to buckle up when riding in a car or truck.  Buckling up is not an option whether you are  concerned for your safety or just respect the law.  But, students that are transported on our public school buses are not required to buckle up.  In fact, few if any, school buses even come equipped with seat belts.  However, Senator Thelma Harper (D- Nashville) and Senator Charlotte Burks (D-Monterey) would like to change that.  Senator Harper has proposed legislation that would require school buses to be equipped with seat belts, or another federally approved restraint system by July 1, 2012.  Senator Burks would like any school bus purchased after July 1, 2007 to be equipped with seat belts approved by the National Transportation Safety Board. 

Both bills have passed in the Education Committee.  However, the bills would need to be approved by the full Senate and State House of Representatives, and then signed by the Governor before they would become law.  As expected, there are proponents and advocates for both sides of this issue. 

However, county schools says the biggest predicament would be financing set belt costs for the 152 buses without seat belts. Only the 28 buses that transport special education students have seat belts.

Murfreesboro City and Rutherford County school officials agree that if passed, the bills would be a huge financial burden on the school systems.  Officials feels that the state needs to provide funding or financing for the bill if they are going to pass the proposal.  The cost to retro-fit existing school buses could substantial and the independent contractors operating the buses would not be in a position to absorb this cost.  In addition to the cost of adding the seat belts, the school system would be in need of additional buses.  city officials estimated that they would need to add at least six new school buses to their current routes in order to accommodate the lower seating capacity of each buses by implementing the seat belt requirement.  Another option would be to increase the routes that some buses take, but most agree that is not a good option given the long time frames that many buses are already handling. 

Some of the bus drivers interviewed were also concerned over the liability and safety factor involved if seat belts were used.  One driver pointed out the time required to load the bus if seat belts were required.  Yet another driver questioned what would happen in an accident if the bus were to catch fire or need to be evacuated quickly.  Small children may not be able to unbuckle quickly and would certainly slow down a quick exit in case of emergency.

However, many parent feel that the seat belt requirement is a positive move in the safety of their children.  It just makes no sense that we are "unsafe" to ride in an automobile without a seat belt but our children are required to ride on a school bus every day sitting three to a seat with no restraint. 

This story will surely continue! 

Central Middle May Become Magnet School K - 12

Although some don’t agree with the conclusion, few people can argue with the statement that Central Middle School has a negative reputation among a large portion of the community. Whether or not you agree with Central’s reputation, it has kept some residents from moving into homes zoned for Central Middle School and others turn to private school or home school as an option for these school years. This reputation has also impacted the property values for residents who have purchased homes in the Central School zone. More and more families moving into the area and requesting to buy homes in the Siegel or Blackman Middle School zones.

However, the Rutherford County School system would like to change this reputation by turning the school into a magnet school for grades K-12. The school would focus on math and science and would accept advanced students from McFadden School of Excellence, Bellwood School and other schools that are interested in advanced courses. project is expected to be formed next week with Central Middle and McFadden School of Excellence principals expected to sit on the board.

The proposal is still in the very early planning stages and a task force will be appointed to start researching the feasibility of this program. The current students zoned for Central Middle would be sent to the existing Middle Schools. Plans are already underway to add an additional three new Middle Schools to the Rutherford County system over the next three years. These schools will be located in Rockvale in Western part of Rutherford County, Compton Road in the North/East county, and Buchanan Road in the Southern portion of the county. McFadden, which is already a magnet school for grades K-8 would become an additional alternative schools for students.

Given the popularity of the McFadden, it is anticipated that the demand to attend a magnet school at the high school level would be significant. Just this year, administrators at McFadden School received over 500 applications to fill the 60 slots available in the K-8 program. Not all of these 500 applications were from students that met the strict criteria of the magnet school. However, school officials point out that the large amount of interest alone shows that it is time for the County to open a larger magnet school, and one that was also geared for grades K-12.

Not everyone is thrilled with the possibility of the new school. Some of the local high schools will surely loose some of their top students to the program. In addition, Oakland High is launching a new International Baccalaureate program that will begin in 2008. Even though the Baccalaureate program is geared toward the liberal arts programs instead of math and science, it may still find it competing for students with the new magnet school. Oakland Principal Butch Vaughn stated that he believes the IB program can co-exist with the new magnet school.

Local homeowners in subdivisions like The Hamptons are thrilled to hear that the School system is aware of the program and working on finding a solution. Residents here have struggled with the negative   impact of the school which also relays in a negative impact on the sale-ability of their homes. The public perception isn’t necessarily accurate or fair, but is does impact the school. Current principal Cary Holman has tried to be very proactive and has an open invitation for parents and potential students to come visit the school and see for themselves.

Whether or not you are a fan of the current Central Middle School, I think the move toward adding the county’s first magnet school to serve students as the high school level is an excellent move. Rutherford County is the fastest growing county in the State and I am excited that our education system is taking a progressive approach to our student education programs.