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Serving Boone, Blowing Rock, Banner Elk, and other towns of the North Carolina High Country | Founded 05-05-05
July 31, 2008 issue
Teachers, Students Prepare For New Academic Year
School Starts Next Thursday
Story by Millie Tolleson
Teachers are putting the final touches on their classrooms as the staff at Watauga County’s nine public schools gears up for the Thursday, August 7, first day of school.
Parents and students should plan on a full day of school next Thursday. Regular bus routes will run and lunch will be served at all schools.
Classes at the kindergarten through eighth grade schools begin at approximately 7:50 a.m. but parents are encouraged to contact their child’s school for specific times. Each elementary school dismisses at 2:30 p.m.
Watauga High School rings a tardy bell at 8:30 a.m. and dismisses at 3:30 p.m.
Watauga County Schools served a total of 4,626 students during the 2008-09 school year, including one preschool class at each elementary school.
Watauga County Schools Public Information Officer Marshall Ashcraft said that substantial enrollment changes from year to year are rare, and he expects to see similar numbers this year.
“We see some fluctuation in class size depending on who’s moving where, but for the system as a whole, the differences are not very pronounced from year to year,” Ashcraft said. “We haven’t seen more than a 2 to 3 percent increase in the past five years overall.”
School Lunch
School lunch at the Watauga County Schools will cost $1.80 daily for preschool through third grade students, $1.90 for fourth through eighth grade, $2.05 for high school students and $3 for adults.
Reduced-price lunches cost 40 cents for eligible students, according to a press release from Watauga County Schools.
Breakfast is offered for $1.05 for kindergarten through eighth grade students, $1.35 for high school students and $1.50 for adults.
Reduced-price breakfast costs 30 cents.
Watauga County Schools encourages parents to take advantage of the meal options offered at school at a low cost or even free if eligible.
“It is extremely important for children to eat a good breakfast and lunch so that they can be alert and energized for learning,” Watauga County Schools Child Nutrition Director Susan Trivette said in a press release.
Parents can pick up an application for free and reduced price school meals at any school office.
Eligibility for free or reduced-price meals is based on household size and income.
For a family of four, students quality for free lunch if the household income does not exceed $2,297 per month or $530 per week.
Students are eligible for reduced-price meals if the income in a four-person household is less than $3,269 per month or $755 per week.
Income limits change depending on the number of people in the household.
For more information on the school lunch program, call Trivette at 828-264-7190.
Bus Service
School bus service around the county is being offered again this year at no charge to parents or students, Ashcraft said.
Students who rode the bus last year and have not moved do not need to fill out another form.
However, families that are new to the area or have moved since last year should contact the Watauga County Schools Transportation Department at 828-264-6391 and need to fill out a Bus Assignment Form.
Ashcraft said parents should call as soon as possible to be put on a route, however “there is no deadline where you can no longer get transportation for your child.”
Parents can also contact the Transportation Department to obtain pickup and drop-off times.
After-School Programs
After-school programs are available at each elementary school except Bethel for kindergarten through fifth grade students.
Activities take place from 2:30 to 5:30 p.m. on regular school says and begin at noon on scheduled early-release days. The program does not operate on holidays, teacher workdays or days when school is canceled because of inclement weather.
Parents must fill out a registration form, review and sign the policy information forms and meet with the site director to enroll a child in the after-school program.
Registration for the program is Wednesday evening, August 6, and Thursday morning, August 7. On Wednesday, registration is from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. at Hardin Park and Valle Crucis; 5:30 to 8:00 p.m. at Blowing Rock and Green Valley; 5:00 to 7:30 p.m. at Parkway; 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. at Mabel; and 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at Cove Creek.
On Thursday, registration is from 7:30 to 9:00 a.m. at Cove Creek, Green Valley, Hardin Park and Parkway; 7:30 to 8:30 a.m. at Blowing Rock; and 7:45 to 9:00 a.m. at Valle Crucis. At Mabel, registration will be offered in the school office during regular school hours on Thursday. Parents need the names and phone numbers of their child’s physician and dentist at registration.
Fees range from $13.50 for one day per week to $37.50 for five days per week for one child. The fee includes program activities and a daily snack.
Registration forms and policy information forms are available online through the Parents link on the Watauga County Schools website at www.watauga.k12.nc.us.
Parents can also contact the specific school for complete rate and registration information and reduced-rate applications.
Sixth through eighth grade students can enroll in an after-school program through Western Youth Network. Contact Angela Grimes at 828-264-5174 for more information about middle school programs.
Holiday/Snow Day Program
A separate holiday/snow day program at Hardin Park is available for students from any school in the Watauga County Schools system. The program operates from 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on teacher workdays, selected school holidays and days when schools are closed for inclement weather. Parents can register students for this program through the after-school program at any school. The registration deadline for the holiday/snow day program is Tuesday, September 30, and the fee is $16.50 per day per child.
Open Houses at Watauga County Schools
Five of the nine schools in Watauga County have scheduled parent nights and open houses in August for parents to visit their child’s school and meet teachers and staff.
Schools not listed below plan to schedule open houses in the coming weeks and will notify parents and students as soon as possible.
Parkway Elementary will host a parent night for all grades on Wednesday, August 6, from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m. Parkway also plans to schedule a more extensive open house in September.
Valle Crucis Elementary will host open house events on Tuesday, August 12, for kindergarten through second grade. Third through fifth grades will attend on Thursday, August 14, and sixth through eighth grades on Tuesday, August 19. Open house begins at 6:30 p.m. in the gym.
Mabel Elementary will have a parent night for kindergarten through fourth grade on Thursday, August 14. The evening begins at 5:00 for kindergarten, 5:30 for third grade, and 6:00 for first, second and fourth grades.
Hardin Park Elementary will host parent nights for sixth through eighth grades on Monday, August 11, with the sixth grade starting at 6:00 p.m., seventh grade at 6:30 p.m. and eighth grade at 7:00 p.m. Third through fifth grade parent night at Hardin Park is is Tuesday, August 12. Fourth grade begins at 5:00 p.m., fifth grade at 5:30 p.m., and third grade at 6:00 p.m. First and second grade parent night is Thursday, August 14, starting at 5:00 p.m. for second grade and 6:00 p.m. for first grade. Pre-kindergarten parent night is at 5:30 p.m. on Monday, August 18, and kindergarten parent night is 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday, August 19.
Watauga High School will have an open house for all grades at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, August 26.
Tax-Free Weekend Friday to Sunday
This weekend, August 1 to 3, is tax-free shopping weekend in North Carolina.
From Friday through Sunday, clothing, footwear and school supplies of $100 or less per item, school instructional materials of $300 or less per item, sports and recreation equipment of $50 or less per item, computers of $3,500 or less per item and computer supplies of $250 or less per item will be exempt from sales tax.
Items that are not exempt include clothing accessories, jewelry, cosmetics, protective equipment, wallets, furniture and rentals, according to the North Carolina Department of Revenue.
For an updated list of what you will and won’t pay taxes on this weekend, click to www.dor.state.nc.us/taxes/sales/salestax_holiday.html.
Watauga County Schools Accepting School Supplies Donations Through August
Donations of school supplies such as notebooks, notebook paper, pencils, erasers, crayons and glue sticks, backpacks, and rulers will be collected at local Food Lion stores starting Friday, August 1, as part of the annual School Tools drive to provide less fortunate students the materials they need for school. School Tools collections end on Sunday, August 31.
All school supply donations collected in Watauga County will be used for students in the Watauga County Schools.
The local Food Lion stores are located at 7533 Valley Boulevard in Blowing Rock, and in Boone at 1980 Blowing Rock Road and 1864 U.S. 421 South. A large cardboard barrel has been placed near the front of each of these stores for collecting donated school supplies.
School Tools is a regional campaign organized as a community service by WSOC-TV in Charlotte with support from the North Carolina National Guard. National Guard personnel deliver the collection barrels and signs to participating stores and remove the materials at the end of the collection.
Watauga County Schools Contact and Enrollment Information
If you have questions about the start of school, here are the numbers to call, along with the principals’ names and the estimated school enrollment. Enrollment numbers are based on 2007-08 school year.
Bethel Elementary
828-297-2240
Principal: Randy Bentley
Enrollment: 121
Blowing Rock Elementary
828-295-3204
Principal: Patrick Sukow
Enrollment: 382
Cove Creek Elementary
828-297-2781
Principal: Tom Trexler
Enrollment: 308
Green Valley Elementary
828-264-3606
Principal: Phillip Griffin
Enrollment: 401
Hardin Park Elementary
828-264-8481
Principal: Mary Smalling
Enrollment: 778
Mabel Elementary
(828) 297-2515
Principal: Mark Hagaman
Enrollment: 214
Parkway Elementary
828-264-3032
Principal: Doug Faulkner
Enrollment: 568
Valley Crucis Elementary
828-963-4712
Principal: Wayne Eberle
Enrollment: 432
Watauga High School
828-264-2407
Principal: Michael Wyant
Enrollment: 1,422