Big day: Classes resume
Published 12:00 am Monday, August 11, 2003
Five-year-old Alyssa Pugh stays close to her father, Vicksburg Fire Department firefighter Brian Pugh, this morning during the first day of school in Olivia Lee’s kindergarten class at Warrenton Elementary. (Melanie Duncan Thortis The Vicksburg Post)
[8/11/03]Toting book bags and adhering to new uniform clothing rules, students in public schools headed to classes today.
Some were delayed after two cars collided on Mississippi 27 and one of them hit the front of a bus about 6:50 a.m.
Reports were that the wreck occurred when Bus No. 89-135, carrying high school students, was waiting in the northbound lane of Mississippi 27 to turn on to Stenson Loop, when a car pulled into traffic from the road and struck a car headed southbound. The southbound car, a black Toyota Camry, struck the front end of the bus, said Jason Bailess, the school safety administrator for the Vicksburg Warren School District.
Bailess said no students were injured in the accident and all were taken to school. Warren Central High and Beechwood Elementary are nearby.
Both drivers were reported taken to River Region Medical Center, but no other information was available. Deputies and state troopers worked to clear traffic, which backed up while the vehicles were cleared from the road.
As students began to fill the halls, teachers and administrators met them with hugs and smiles. Along with students in the 9,200-student public school district, Vicksburg Catholic School students began classes today. Porters Chapel Academy students head back Tuesday; All Saints’ Episcopal School begins Friday; Southside Christian School begins Wednesday; Children’s House Montessori School, Sept. 2; and Christian Center for Educational Excellence, Aug. 18.
One third-grader at Beechwood said he was looking forward to learning to write in cursive, but was more excited about some of his new school supplies. Andrew Shelton named his favorite supply as a bendable ruler, but was also happy about the pencils he’ll be writing with they have his name on them.
“I don’t know where my mom gets them,” the 8-year-old said. “They’re red, green and blue, just like my room at home, except it has yellow, too.”
But Andrew wasn’t too thrilled with the clothes students in kindergarten through the eighth grade are now required to wear. After years of experimentation, all public school students except those in high school must wear clothing items matching lists for each elementary and junior high in the district.
Two freshmen heading to class at Warren Central High School had other problems. They were trying to adjust to the larger campus and other aspects of high school life.
“It’s weird,” said 14-year-old Johnathon Ledlow. “We don’t know what class to go to.”
He and friend Graham Pearman, also 14, agreed high school would be quite different from junior high.
“High school is cool, but they make things too technical,” Graham said. “It’s bigger and you have to remember classes, schedules and names.”
He added that the campus had too many buildings.
And when asked if things would get better as the school year passed, Graham said, “Hopefully.”
Melissa Rouse, a third-grade teacher at Beechwood, said she has high expectations for the year.
“I have a good group of kids, and I hope we can learn a lot together this year,” Rouse said.
“I’m hoping for high test scores at the end of the year.”
Test scores on the required Mississippi Curriculum Tests are expected to be released by the state Department of Education this week. They will indicate benchmarks by which teachers and individual schools will be ranked.
Superintendent James Price said he plans to visit each of the 14 schools in the district today.
“I like seeing the children come in on the first day,” he said. “The teachers and students need to know we care about what’s going on. This is a brand new year. The teachers are really primed and ready to go and I hope that will transfer to the students and community,” he said.