Rumor Mill – May 13, 2016

Published May 13, 2016

The purpose of this section is to answer any questions parents, teachers or community members might have regarding the school district and to set the record straight in regards to any rumors that might be circulating.

If you have a question or have heard a rumor that you would like for us to address, simply SEND US your questions and we will respond to them in upcoming issues of InFocus. Below are some of the questions we have received since our last issue.

We have heard from multiple sources that the new Mill Creek Elementary school will be opening this next school year already overcrowded. We are being told that many students will be zoned right back to Nolensville after leaving for one year, likely the area we live in. Whether this ends up including us or not, are there really elementary students (and their PTO parents) who will be forced to leave their home Nolensville Elementary School to join an overcrowded Mill Creek Elementary School, and then be pushed right back? If so, is there not a more reasonable option being considered?

This rumor is not true. We have projected approximately 600 students at Mill Creek Elementary for the 2016-17 school year. The building capacity is for 800 students. We do not have plans to rezone in the Nolensville area at this time. Of course, a new kindergartner in Williamson County will spend six school years in an elementary school. With growth around the county, it is very likely that students will be rezoned during their elementary careers.

Is the public allowed to run on any of the high school tracks? And, if so, which ones and when are they allowed? And if not, why?

We have not prohibited public use of outdoor school facilities, but use for school programs must be our first priority; there are limited times that it is reasonable for visitors to be on campus. Most of our tracks are within football stadiums, and those are occasionally locked during growing seasons to protect the field. Also, with growing school programs and student populations, public availability is more and more rare. If you have an interest in running or walking on a track for personal use, check with that school administration to find out if the track is open during the time you’re looking to use it. Each school manages its own schedule.

Why doesn’t Ravenwood High School have traffic lights in front of the two entrances on Wilson Pike? Brentwood High School has traffic lights and it controls the traffic much better and it is much safer for student drivers and buses entering and leaving the school’s property. I’ve seen so many near misses as students try to make a left turn out of Ravenwood’s parking lot after school.

Municipal and State authorities make decisions based on traffic studies. Generally, decisions on traffic lights have been based on traffic flow over longer periods of time than school release times. Across the county, there are locations where we have looked for traffic signals but have been unable to get approvals, often because there is insufficient volume across enough hours of the day. In those cases, we ask those municipal authorities for crossing guards.