Reporter’s Note
Hamilton County Schools Superintendent Bryan Johnson kicked off a tour of listening sessions Monday night at Red Bank Middle School. Do you plan on attending one of these five community meetings? Are there certain topics you hope to hear addressed? Do you have a particular concern about your child’s school? I want to hear from you. Send an email to mmangrum@timesfreepress.com or give me a call at 423-757-6592.
– Meghan
THIS WEEK IN EDUCATION NEWS
Last Thursday, Hamilton County Schools Superintendent Bryan Johnson called for more community investment and support to improve the county’s schools in his State of the System address.
Though many of the district’s challenges that Johnson addressed are not news, such as the facts that only 1 in 3 third-graders can read on grade level or that only about 86 percent of students graduate from high school in four years, the superintendent acknowledged more needed to be done.
There is work that we must do in the public education space,” Johnson said. “That’s going to take all of us working together to fulfill that promise.”
This conversation is a popular one in Chattanooga right now, especially since a new initiative known as Velocity 2040 identified five key goals for Chattanooga’s future, with one being improving education.
Another trending topic this week is the flu and whether or not schools should close when a significant number of students are out sick. A 2018 story went viral last week, prompting backlash (and confusion) among some Hamilton County parents and students.
Finally, mark your calendars: The student activist group, Chattanooga Students Leading Change, will be hosting a memorial rally in honor of the one-year anniversary of the massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. The rally will take place at 10 a.m. this Saturday, Feb. 16 in Miller Park.