Cookeville Student Managing New Independence House
A student project manager is overseeing construction of a new Independence House on the Cookeville campus. Cookeville High School Student Vicky Hammons told the School Board Thursday night she is in charge of purchasing materials and supervising the project. Hammons said the Independence House is designed to help people with special needs transition to adulthood. […]
Putnam Schools Building House For Independence Program
The Putnam County School System will expand its Independence Program for graduates with disabilities by building a training home. The home will be built by Cookeville High School students and will be located on the Cookeville High School campus. Students will learn basic life skills. Putnam County Director of Schools Corby King said special needs […]
School Board Races Dot Super Tuesday Ballot
Several Upper Cumberland counties let their voices be heard in School Board races Tuesday. Putnam County School Board incumbents Kim Cravens, Dawn Fry, and Lynn McHenry ran unopposed in their individual primaries Tuesday. Putnam County Republicans cast 5,640 votes for Steve Pierce in the Property Assessor voting. No one ran on the Democratic side. On […]
Putnam School Board Members Reflect On Jerry Maynard’s Legacy
Long-time Putnam County educator and former school board member Jerry Maynard passed away Tuesday at the age of 80. Board Member Dawn Fry said she first came to know Maynard when she joined the board. She said Maynard will be remembered for his passion for education and his advocacy for employees of the school system. […]
Putnam School Board Hopeful New Funding Formula Will Allow For More Teacher Raises
Putnam County School Board having to wait on new school funding formula numbers before they can have serious conversations about teacher salaries. School Board Member Lynn McHenry said they all agree that teachers deserve higher salaries to help recruit and retain good employees. He said the difficult part comes from having to balance what they […]
Putnam Schools $4K Grant Goes To Upperman JROTC
Putnam County School System awarded a $4,000 grant to honor Board Member Dawn Fry’s service on the Utrust Board of Trustees. The Utrust Trustee Choice grant provides for Fry to choose up to $4,000 in projects that she wishes to fund. Fry chose to give the funds to the Upperman High School JROTC program in […]
Putnam School Board Forming Medical Advisory Committee
Putnam County Schools now have a Medical Advisory Committee. The School board voted Friday to form the committee during a special called session. The committees purpose is to meet with medical professionals to revise the number of days a student is quarantined, who was exposed to COVID-19 but did not test positive. Putnam County Director […]
Putnam Schools Zoning Variances Approved
The Putnam County School Board voted to allow five students affected by board rezoning to change schools. But School Board members warned parents this zoning exemption may not be possible going forward. “These families need to understand that that doesn’t mean we would make an exception the next year if they have siblings coming up,” […]
Putnam Budget Shortfall Reduced To $102K
The Putnam County School Board approved its new fiscal year budget Thursday night with a shortfall reduced to $102,300. That shortfall will be paid from fund reserves. School Board Member Celeste Gammon said that is something the board cannot do consistently. “We’re in a good position to be able to take this from our reserve […]
School Board Chair: COVID-19 Will Not Alter Need For Schools
Students in a traditional classroom setting….will COVID-19 change that? Several Putnam County Commissioners questioned that last Monday as they began discussions of the county budget. Will the county need a new school with COVID-19 changing the education model, they asked. School Board Chairperson Dawn Fry said projects could be postponed from a lack of funds, […]
