More than 60 students were honored by the Williamson County Board of Education at its regular meeting February 23, 2015, including 28 National Merit Finalists. Brentwood High’s Angela Caprio, Chris Cortez, Patrick Cowan, Pawel Durakiewicz, Lincoln Jones, Diana Kazemi, Matthew Mullenger, Rebekah Ninan, Phillip Ooi, Dennis Sun and James Worsham were honored. Other National Merit Finalists include Timothy Couch and Katherine Dierberger, Centennial; James Grayson, Fairview; Spencer Cox, Mary Grace Hathaway and Jeremiah Wooten, Franklin; Sara Conley, Andrew Duncan, Gene Li, Christopher Nicastro, Charles Pitsenberger, Emma Sarappo, Aditya Sathe, Maximilian Thieme, A.J. Wei and Stanley Xiang, Ravenwood; and Matthew Strong, Summit.
Three students were honored for making a 36 on the ACT including Chris Cortez, Brentwood and AJ Wei and Stanley Xiang, Ravenwood.
Elementary, middle and high students were recognized for making a perfect score on their 2014 TCAP Writing Assessment including Frederick Rudolph and Lillian Valk, Pearre Creek Elementary; Sophia Ryals, Zachary Johnston, Faith Shipp, Naba Wahid and Matthew Zadick, Brentwood Middle; Nicholas Creech, Fairview Middle; Clara Miller and Jamie Blaylock, Sunset Middle; Liana Wood, Woodland Middle; Hannah Oakley, Brentwood High; Olivia Bailey and Mason Grow, Centennial High; Jenna Swiertz, James Robinson, Hayley Rutchow and Lily Walter, Franklin High; and Reagan Homan, Kathryn Copeland, Eliot Forster-Benson, Natalie Hopkins and Andrew Taylor, Ravenwood High.
In athletics, Ravenwood’s Karlie Paschall was named the Gatorade Girls Soccer Player of the Year for Tennessee. Her coach is Jose Londano.
Two student athletes earned State Championships in Wrestling. Brentwood’s Tristan Roa won the 2014 TSSAA State Wrestling Championship in the 120 pound category. His coach is Joe Blair. Franklin’s Josh Filbey won the 2014 TSSAA State Wrestling Champion in the 220 pound category. His coach is Frank Barbrie.
Several students received Scholastic Gold Key Awards. Polly Bailey, Brentwood Middle, won for Drawing and Illustration. Her teacher is Maggie Tucker. Brentwood High’s Lisa Qu won the American Vision Nominee in the fashion category and three Scholastic Art Gold Key Awards in Fashion, Sculpture and Comic Art. Her teacher is Emily Martinez. Independence High’s Lara Bol won in Photography. Her teacher Stephanie Prewitt. Also from Independence, Evan Genter won in Comic Art and Art Portfolio. His teacher is Andrea Howard. Ravenwood’s Bahar Meshkat won in Drawing and Illustration. Her teacher is Diane Taylor.
In staff spotlights, David Adelyott, Franklin Band Director, was inducted into the MTSU Band of Blue Club Hall of Fame.
In the Superintendent’s Report, Dr. Mike Looney thanked the WCS Maintenance Department, Mark Samuels, Kevin Fortney and the Williamson County Highway Department for working to get students back to school on Tuesday.
In the Board Chairman’s Report, PJ Mezera congratulated Board member Candy Emerson who recently had a new grandchild. In addition, Mezera’s family celebrated his birthday with a balloon bouquet presented during the meeting.
In New Business, the Board:
- Approved a budget resolution for $19,000 representing donations for the Second Annual Fine Arts Festival.
- Approved four Intent to Fund Resolutions including one for $32,549,674 to complete Nolensville High, Mill Creek Elementary and Mill Creek Middle; one for $10,100,000 for auditoriums at Fairview High, Page Middle and Heritage Middle; one for $6,000,000 for land in the Brentwood area for an elementary school and possible middle school; and one for $2,310,000 for replacement roofs and parking lots at schools across the district.
- Approved the State Compliance Report.
In other business, the Board:
- Approved recommended field trip fee requests.
- Approved increasing the AP exam fee from $87 to $91 per exam.
- Approved Church of the City to use the Centennial High auditorium and cafeteria for services.
- Approved a new sign for Page High’s entrance.
- Approved a wind screen and fence for the Ravenwood baseball field.
- Approved a wind screen and fence for the Ravenwood soccer field.
The next regular meeting of the Williamson County Board of Education is scheduled for Monday, March 23 beginning at 6:30 p.m. in the auditorium of the Administrative Complex.
Board packet information can be found on the school district’s website www.wcs.edu. Select About WCS; select Board Meeting Schedule; select the meeting date; and then select Agendas. Supporting documents are linked from the agenda.
