Board Of Education

Schools face budget crunch (05/15/12)
There's a gap of nearly $800,000 between where next year's school budget is and where it needs to be. That's what Bedford County Board of Education learned at a budget study session Monday night. For the past two fiscal years, 2010-11 and 2011-12, the school system has been spending more than it has taken in. The difference came out of the school system's fund balance...

Miller joins power board (05/11/12)
Ervin L. Miller is the newest member of the Shelbyville Power, Water and Sewer Board, following a vote by the city council Thursday night. Claudia Mallard, who had been serving the remainder of the unexpired term of the late Johnny Donegan, was unanimously selected to serve a three-year term. However, Howard "Herbie" Powell lost his seat on the board...

Vannatta seat stays unfilled (05/09/12)
Bedford County Board of Commissioners failed Tuesday night to fill recently retired commissioner Bobby Vannatta's request that his son-in-law fill his vacant District 2 commission seat. Vannatta, who retired from the commission last month after 19 years of service due to illness, had recommended Ralph Edwards fill his seat until the countywide general election is held in August...

Text of Vannatta proclamation (05/09/12)
A PROCLAMATION RECOGNIZING THE EXEMPLARY SERVICE OF COMMISSIONER BOBBY VANNATTA, SECOND DISTRICT OF BEDFORD COUNTY, TENNESSEE, TO THE CITIZENS OF BEDFORD COUNTY, TENNESSEE 2011-2012 Be it proclaimed by the Board of Commissioners of Bedford County, Tennessee, that:...

GED hopefuls urged to take exam in 2013 (05/04/12)
Have you thought about getting a GED? Perhaps you've started the process in the past, and passed some of the five sections of the test, and you keep meaning to go back and finish the rest. Now would be a good time, say state and local adult education officials...

Schools decision draws criticism (04/25/12)
Two members of Bedford County Board of Education criticized School Superintendent Ray Butrum and school board chairman Barry Cooper on Thursday night for committing to an educational software package prior to final approval by the board. The board was asked on Thursday night to approve a three-year agreement with Curriculum Advantage Inc. ...

New approach to nepotism (04/04/12)
Bedford County School System's policy on nepotism is getting a complete rewrite, according to discussion at a Board of Education study session on Tuesday night of last week The former policy was two paragraphs long and only addressed the initial hire of the most immediate family members of sitting members of the school board...

Stores pay price for underage beer sales (03/30/12)
Fifteen Shelbyville convenience stores accepted fines from the city's beer board Thursday following a sting conducted by the sheriff's department. Last month, an 18-year-old male working with the Bedford County Sheriff's Department entered 29 stores as a deputy observed his actions, with all the transactions captured on both audio and video...

Cook announces run for school board seat (03/23/12)
Michael A. Cook has announced his candidacy for the 5th district seat on Bedford County Board of Education in the Aug. 2 general election. Cook is a Bedford County native and a graduate of Shelbyville Central High School. He received a bachelor of business administration (BBA) degree in accounting from Middle Tennessee State University. ...

Redistricting plans approved for schools (03/16/12)
Bedford County Board of Education considered redistricting options at its monthly meeting Thursday night, opting for a plan which will increase enrollment at Liberty Elementary, provide relief to Cascade Elementary and Learning Way, and realign student populations in the city elementary schools of Eakin, East Side and Southside. The monthly meeting was held at Thomas Magnet School...

TWHNC gets $1.5K county donation (03/14/12)
Bedford County Board of Commissioners voted Tuesday night to give $1,500 to the Tennessee Walking Horse National Celebration for promoting an upcoming quarter horse show, even though a letter from the Celebration to the City of Shelbyville indicates that the money is no longer needed...

School board chair says it's time to go (02/17/12)
Bedford County Board of Education Chairman Barry Cooper announced at the end of Thursday night's meeting that he will not seek re-election to his 5th District seat during this year's election cycle. Cooper will continue to serve until a new school board member is elected to his seat in August, and then in September the board will need to elect a new chairman. Five of the nine school board seats are up for election this year...

Harris will add magnet program (01/20/12)
A magnet program at the middle school level will be phased in gradually, starting next year with the sixth grade and adding an additional grade each year, according to discussion at Thursday night's meeting of Bedford County Board of Education. According to School Superintendent Ray Butrum, a lot of professional development will need to take place to prepare teachers for the program...

MTEC highlights local college classes (12/07/11)
Middle Tennessee Education Center in Shelbyville is planning a regional marketing push this week with advertising inserts in six area newspapers, including today's Times-Gazette. MTEC, located in Bedford County Business Complex on Dover Street, is a joint venture of Middle Tennessee State University and Motlow State Community College, offering on-site day and night classes for the two institutions, as well as distance learning opportunities...

State's best sees success (09/16/11)
Nora Sanders has been named Tennessee Adult Learner of the Year by the Tennessee Association for Adult and Community Education, and a coffee was held in her honor Thursday at Bedford County Adult Learning Center. Sanders, a native of Mexico, took English classes, basic skills classes and GED classes. ...

Butrum will face tougher evaluation (09/16/11)
Bedford County Board of Education, meeting Thursday night, approved a new, more comprehensive evaluation form for School Superintendent Ray Butrum, who will be evaluated at the end of the year, after six months in office, under the terms of his contract...

Planners suggest changes in home business zoning (09/09/11)
Meeting on Tuesday, Bedford County Planning Commission voted -- but not unanimously -- to recommend an amendment to the zoning resolution covering incidental home occupations. An incidental home occupation is an in-home business, for example a hair salon, which can be allowed in an agricultural zone at the discretion of the Board of Zoning Appeals. ...

New MTEC director out to educate public (08/25/11)
Lisa D. Moore, the new director of Middle Tennessee Education Center, says she's been amazed at the support the center has from community leaders but wants to do more to make sure potential students are aware of what the center offers. MTEC, located in the Bedford County Office Complex on Union Street, is a satellite campus and joint venture of Middle Tennessee State University and Motlow State Community College. Currently, education and business degree programs are offered...

New commission districts approved (08/10/11)
Bedford County Board of Commissioners approved new county commission districts drawn as a result of 2010 Census figures. The "one person, one vote" rule, affirmed by the U.S. Supreme Court in the 1960s, means that in a district-based legislative body, each district should be as close in population to the others as possible. Otherwise, citizens in underpopulated districts would have a greater say in government than those from overpopulated districts...

County youth leaders attend abstinence training session (08/02/11)
Among those getting ready for a new school year are the leaders of Choices that Challenge, a popular abstinence curriculum offered in middle and high schools across Bedford County. Scott Phelps, the author of the curriculum and founder of the Abstinence and Marriage Partnership, was vacationing in Nashville this week and offered to visit Shelbyville to conduct a training session...

Butrum is board's choice for superintendent (05/06/11)
Bedford County Board of Education, in a special called meeting Thursday night, selected Dr. Ray Butrum, assistant principal of Barfield Elementary School in Rutherford County, as its "person of focus" for school superintendent, and voted to enter into contract negotiations with Butrum for the position....

Four chosen as school superintendent finalists (04/22/11)
Bedford County Board of Education, meeting Thursday night, approved a short list of four candidates to be the next school superintendent; each of the four finalists will be interviewed by the school board on a separate day next week. None of the four finalists is currently employed by the local school system, although one is a former Community High School principal...

Testing time for many students: TCAP week arrives (04/10/11)
Ah, spring. Season of baseball, of flowers, of new life ... and TCAP tests. Bedford County students in grades 3 through 8 will begin taking the Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program achievement tests on Tuesday, and educators try their best to get students and their parents prepared for the test...

Teachers, opponents square off (03/09/11)
Two groups that have different opinions about education held rallies Saturday at the state Capitol in downtown Nashville. Tennessee Education Association had scheduled a rally to protest bills which would do away with teachers' collective bargaining rights, while various Tea Party members held a counter-rally...

Several Bedford teachers to march in TEA rally (03/04/11)
Bedford County Education Association president Tamra King, a teacher at Community Elementary School, estimates that 10 to 20 local teachers will attend a Tennessee Education Association rally Saturday in downtown Nashville. The rally is in response to legislation which TEA calls "anti-teacher" aimed at issues such as tenure and collective bargaining...

State vs. teachers' union (02/20/11)
State Sen. Jim Tracy of Shelbyville, who chairs the Senate Education Committee, has said in a letter that he supports teachers but that teachers unions "are in the business of protecting membership and power, not serving the best interests of students or the teachers they represent."...

School board backs tool purchase policy (02/18/11)
Bedford County Board of Education, meeting Thursday night, defended the practice of paying school bus mechanics to purchase their own tools, but said how that money is accounted for will have to change to bring the county in compliance with tax law...

Bell Buckle, BCUD extend water contract (01/19/11)
The water issue in Bell Buckle is still in limbo. At the Tuesday night meeting of the board of mayor and aldermen, Mayor Dennis Webb told board members he, Water Board Chair Jenny Hunt and Water Department Supervisor Ronnie Lokey had met with Bedford County Utility District...

Education spending increases proposed (01/11/11)
MOORE COUNTY -- Tennessee Board of Regents Chancellor John Morgan and other officials told state legislators on Friday that the Board of Regents would like $8 million on a recurring basis to start a more aggressive scholarship program for students at community colleges, and another $8 million on a one-time basis to redesign and reconfigure the developmental and remedial programs at community colleges...

Water woes among year's top issues (12/29/10)
Water was a problem in 2010 between Wartrace and Bell Buckle -- both in the literal and figurative senses of the word "between." The towns' water woes and a verdict in a murder trial are the next two entries on the Times-Gazette's annual countdown of the biggest news stories of 2010 as selected by a vote of staff members...

College classes don't attract local students (12/16/10)
Molly Culbreath, who oversees the Middle Tennessee State University side of Middle Tennessee Education Center, says she's pleased with the overall numbers for the elementary education degree program being offered at MTEC, including students from Marshall, Williamson, Maury and Coffee counties...

Fee for free: A great gift (12/08/10)
For someone without a high school diploma, a GED can be the stepping stone to the next level of education, and ultimately to a new job or career. That stepping stone is especially vital in today's economy, said Elaine Weaver of Bedford County Adult Education Program on Depot Street...

Liberty repairs to be complete in December (11/19/10)
Wind damage to the roof of Liberty School won't be fully repaired until next month, according to discussion Thursday night at Bedford County Board of Education's regular monthly meeting. The roof was damaged in September and parts of it are currently covered by a tarp...

School system budget cuts needed for teacher raises (10/19/10)
Bedford County Board of Education approved a new contract with local teachers Monday night, but the school system will have to trim $260,943 from other line items in order to be able to afford the raise promised to teachers. The proposed contract negotiated between the school system and Bedford County Education Association is still waiting ratification by the teachers who make up BCEA...

High grades awarded to school system (10/14/10)
A site team which inspected local schools this week will recommend that Bedford County Schools be fully accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. The site team, officially referred to as a Quality Assurance Review team, made its exit report during a special called meeting of Bedford County Board of Education on Wednesday afternoon. ...

Senate panel discusses composition of TBR (09/28/10)
NASHVILLE (AP) - Members of the Senate Education Committee meeting to discuss the composition of the Tennessee Board of Regents and its hiring of a new chancellor say their intentions are not political or to cause embarrassment. The panel on Tuesday heard from higher education officials about the makeup of the board and its responsibility...

Enrollment slightly up in schools (09/24/10)
As of Sept. 14, Bedford County Schools had an enrollment of 7,866 students and an average daily attendance of 7,521, director of student services Terry Looper reported Thursday night to Bedford County Board of Education. The enrollment represents a slight increase over the 2009-2010 school year, said School Superintendent Ed Gray. ...

Booster club to build new SC fieldhouse (08/24/10)
Bedford County Board of Education, meeting on Thursday, granted Shelbyville Quarterback Club permission to raise funds for, and build, a fieldhouse at the Shelbyville Central High School football field. The project will be funded by the Quarterback Club, not the school system...

Tracy, Ketron dislike Regents appointment (08/13/10)
State Senators Bill Ketron (R-Murfreesboro) and Jim Tracy (R-Shelbyville) said Thursday they have asked Senate Education Chairman Dolores Gresham (R-Somerville) to schedule a meeting of the Senate Education Committee "as soon as practicable" to hear testimony regarding the appointments of members to Tennessee Board of Regents...

Neeley seeks re-election to Board of Education (07/11/10)
Diane Neeley has announced her candidacy for re-election to a fourth district seat on Bedford County Board of Education in the Aug. 5 general election. Neeley, a Bedford county native, has lived in the Wheel area for the past 27 years. She is a 1982 graduate of Shelbyville Central High School and graduated from Tennessee Technology Center at Shelbyville, where she obtained her dental assisting license which is currently retired. ...

Martin seeks re-election to school board seat (07/09/10)
Amy F. Martin has announced her candidacy for re-election to the third district seat on Bedford County Board of Education in the Aug. 5 general election. Martin has been employed at the Tennessee Technology Center at Shelbyville for 38 years; she serves as the coordinator for fiscal services and human resources and also teaches evening classes and special industrial classes in Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint...

Adcock seeks re-election to Board of Education (07/07/10)
Ronald H. Adcock has announced his candidacy for re-election to a Second District seat on Bedford County Board of Education in the Aug. 5 general election. Adcock is the former director of Tennessee Technology Center at Shelbyville. A Bedford County native, he is a graduate of Community High School and Middle Tennessee State University, earning a bachelor's degree in industrial management and a master's in vocational / technical education...

Graham seeks school board seat (07/06/10)
Chad Graham has announced his candidacy for a seventh district seat on Bedford County Board of Education. Graham was appointed in November 2009 to succeed Jerry Naron, who died in September 2009. Graham, 43, has been director of Bedford County Emergency Medical Services for 13 years. He is a Bedford County native and has been a county employee since 1990...

Water system divides towns it once joined (07/04/10)
Wartrace and Bell Buckle are at odds over water -- who supplies it and how much it costs. This was evident Thursday night at a special called water board hearing in Wartrace where both Wartrace Mayor Don Gallagher and Bell Buckle Mayor Dennis Webb explained their recent actions and reactions...

School budget passes, but changes likely (06/29/10)
Bedford County Board of Education, at a special called meeting on Monday, approved a 2010-11 budget, although there are several amendments already expected or possible in the next few months. The school budget now goes before Bedford County Board of Commissioners for approval as part of the overall county budget. ...

Bell Buckle switches to BCUD water (06/27/10)
Bell Buckle Board of Mayor and Aldermen voted Thursday night at a special called meeting to sign a contract with Bedford County Utility District, making BCUD the town's primary water source. Wartrace had been the primary supplier, and Bell Buckle will now have to seek a contract with Wartrace as a secondary supplier...

Commission to choose school board member (06/17/10)
Bedford County Board of Commissioners' rules and legislative committee, meeting Tuesday night, placed the sixth district vacancy on Bedford County Board of Education on the full commission's June agenda, even though the seat will be filled in the August general election...

Vacant school board seat added to Aug. 5 ballot (05/25/10)
The vacant Sixth District school board seat will be included on the Aug. 5 general election ballot, Administrator of Elections Summer Leverette announced on Friday. Although the qualifying period for the other races on that ballot has already ended, a qualifying period for the school board seat is now open and will end June 11 at noon. Those who qualify have until noon June 14 to withdraw...

Wartrace assures Bell Buckle water will flow (05/04/10)
Wartrace Mayor Don Gallagher told the town's water board Monday night that he had received a letter from the mayor of Bell Buckle about the water supply. "Mayor (Dennis) Webb sent me a letter expressing their concerns about our ability to supply them with all the water they need," he said...

School board backs state policy changes (04/21/10)
Bedford County Board of Education approved three policy changes recommended by Tennessee School Boards Association Tuesday night but deferred action on a fourth in order to seek some clarification. Many of the policies passed by the board are drafted by or with the help of TSBA, and TSBA advises school boards on how to keep their policies in line with the latest legislative or legal developments...

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